No money for martial arts university? Slay your way through the border to the top martial arts schoo

Lin Feng was not in a hurry to return to the Northern Border.

He had seen Zhang Qian's message, but he had something more important to do.

That piece of Dark Abyss Iron.

Forging materials can upgrade the Rift Mountain from Grade A to Grade S.

I've had this in my storage ring for a long time, but I haven't been able to find a suitable blacksmith.

There are a few master-level masters in the provincial capital, but they are all quite far away.

Ping'an County does not have it.

However, there is one in Qingyan Town, 40 kilometers east of Ping'an County.

Zhang Qian had previously sent him a list of blacksmiths in the northern region, one of whom was named Zhuang Laohei, a retired military blacksmith who had worked in the logistics department of the second defense line in the north in his early years. His craftsmanship was among the top ten in the entire north.

After retiring from the military, he found the city too noisy and moved to the mountains in Qingyan Town, occasionally taking on a few private jobs.

Lin Feng spent half an hour getting to Qingyan Town.

Zhuang Laohei's foundry was located halfway up the mountain at the east end of the town. It was a dark stone house with smoke billowing from the chimney and a one-eyed dog tied up at the door.

When the dog saw Lin Feng, it whimpered twice, then tucked its tail between its legs and shrank behind the door.

Even beasts fear the aura of a fourth-stage Martial Master.

Lin Feng pushed open the door.

A wave of scorching heat rushed towards us.

The forge was even darker inside than outside, with the furnace in the corner glowing red and the sound of hammers clanging and banging echoing through the room.

A burly, shirtless man was forging iron, and sparks flew everywhere with each swing of his hammer.

"Zhuang Laohei?"

The burly, dark-skinned man didn't even look up.

"No jobs, get out."

Lin Feng placed both the Mountain Splitter and the Dark Abyss Refined Iron on the worktable in front of him.

With a clang, the Dark Abyss Refined Iron slammed onto the iron plate, releasing a surge of energy.

Zhuang Laohei stopped hammering.

He put down the hammer, picked up the piece of Dark Abyss Iron, and examined it three times over.

He picked up the Rift Mountain again, pulled it out to examine it, and ran his finger along the spirit pattern.

"The A-grade combat knife is forged using traditional military techniques."

He looked up and glanced at Lin Feng.

"You want to upgrade to S-rank?"

"right."

"We have enough materials, but the labor costs are not cheap."

"How many?"

Two million.

Without saying a word, Lin Feng took out his phone and transferred the money.

When Zhuang Laohei saw the notification that the money had been credited to his account, a slight smile appeared on his lips.

"Great, I'll come back in three days to pick it up."

"Can't we wait three days? Can we get it done tonight?"

Zhuang Laohei glanced at him again.

"Are you trying to kill me?"

"almost."

As he spoke, Lin Feng transferred another million.

Zhuang Laohei's eyes widened.

I didn't expect this kid to be so generous.

"Then you wait here, don't rush me."

Lin Feng sat down on the stone by the door and closed his eyes to rest.

He spread his mental energy, sensing the activity in the forging workshop.

Zhuang Laohei's technique was indeed skillful. The Dark Abyss Iron was repeatedly forged and quenched in the furnace, and each strike was accompanied by a precise distribution of force.

Zhuang Laohei only stopped once, and drank half a pot of wine.

Eight hours.

At two in the morning, the hammer fell for the last time.

"alright."

Zhuang Laohei fished the battle knife out of the sink, shook off the water droplets, and laid it horizontally on the worktable.

Lin Feng opened his eyes and walked over.

The knife has changed.

The blade is two inches longer and one finger wider than before.

The overall color is dark gold, but beneath the dark gold, there is a faint layer of dark undertone.

The spirit patterns are no longer simple lines, but rather an interwoven pattern resembling dragon scales, layered upon layered, extending from the hilt to the tip of the blade.

The moment it was held in hand, a heavy force was transmitted from the hilt to the palm, up the arm, and finally into the dantian.

A prompt appears on the system panel.

[Weapon upgrade detected]

[Mountain Rift (Rank A) → Fang of Calamity (Rank S)]

[Cataclysmic Fang: S-rank battle blade, forged from Dark Abyss Iron, with 100% spirit rune coverage. Base attack power is twice that of an A-rank blade. After infusing with Qi and Blood, it can activate the passive effect "Cataclysmic Poison"—each full-force slash automatically inflicts Dark attribute erosion, dealing mental damage to enemies.]

Lin Feng held the Fang of Calamity up in front of him, the dragon scale patterns on the blade gleaming coldly.

"What new name are you going to choose?" Old Zhuang asked, wiping the grease off his hands.

"The Fang of Calamity"

"Wow, quite the boast."

Lin Feng re-inserted the Fang of Calamity behind his back and nodded to Zhuang Laohei.

"Your skills are good. I'll look for you again if I need any work in the future."

"Come on, you'll only encounter a customer like you once in your life."

Lin Feng left the forge, pushed off with his feet, and sped off towards the northern border.

Wu Zong traveled at full speed, his feet barely touching the ground.

Twelve hours later.

The wall of the sixth line of defense came into view.

Upon entering the camp, the atmosphere was off.

I was even more nervous than before he left.

The patrol density doubled, and all the heavy firepower on the city walls was aimed at the northwest direction.

Zhang Qian wasn't waiting for him at the door.

Lin Feng went directly to the command post.

Push open the door.

There were seven or eight people sitting inside.

The battalion commander sat in the corner, his face ashen, and the officers next to him also looked gloomy.

The person sitting in the main seat was not Li Zhenguo.

Three young people.

They were in their early twenties, dressed in uniform dark battle robes, with their respective family crests embroidered on their chests.

The man in the middle had his legs crossed, twirling a folding fan in his hand, and was pointing at the captain.

"Captain, during Commander Li's recovery period, the command of the Sixth Defense Line will be jointly managed by the three of us."

To the left of the man with the folding fan sat a round-faced fat man, and to the right sat a thin man with a pointed chin.

The highest level among the three is Martial King, Level 1; the remaining two are Martial Grandmaster, Level 7.

Lin Feng leaned against the door frame, took the Fang of Calamity off his shoulder, and rested it on the ground.

With a thud.

The floor shook.

Everyone turned their heads.

The man with the folding fan saw Lin Feng and put away his fan.

"Who are you?"

The captain jumped to his feet.

"Sergeant Lin! No, Lieutenant Lin! You're back!"

The man with the folding fan frowned: "Second Lieutenant? What Second Lieutenant?"

Lin Feng took out a woven card from his pocket and threw it on the table.

"Second Lieutenant, directly under the Provincial Martial Arts Headquarters, Special Operations Unit, personally signed by General Zhou Che."

The man holding the folding fan stopped.

The fat man and the thin man exchanged a glance.

"Who are you three?" Lin Feng scanned the three of them.

The man with the folding fan cleared his throat: "I am Yao Qiming, a direct descendant of the Yao family in the provincial capital. These two are representatives of the Chen and Sun families. After Commander Li was injured..."

"How did Commander Li get injured?"

Captain Zhao continued, "The day before yesterday, Commander Li personally led a team into the remaining area of ​​the B-level rift to investigate abnormal fluctuations. They were ambushed by a surviving Martial King-level alien beast. He was injured in the back, near the spine, and is currently lying in a medical tent."

Lin Feng tapped his finger on the hilt of the knife.

"Is he unconscious?"

"He's not unconscious, but he can't move. The army doctor said he'll have to stay in bed for at least half a month."

Lin Feng turned to look at Yao Qiming.

"So, while he's bedridden, you three families want to seize military power?"

Yao Qiming snapped open the folding fan and fanned himself twice.

"Lieutenant Lin, you can't say that. Commander Li is wounded, and the defense line can't be leaderless. Our three families all have contracted fissures and properties near the sixth defense line, and we have both the obligation and the right to participate in defense coordination."

"Who gave you that authority?"

"The Alliance of Families"

"Can the Alliance of Aristocratic Families control the military's defenses?"

Yao Qiming stopped fanning himself.

Lin Feng took two steps forward.

As the aura gradually dissipated, the temperature in the entire command center dropped by two degrees.

"I'll ask you one more time, who gave you that authority?"

Yao Qiming stood up, feeling embarrassed.

"Lieutenant Lin, don't think you can do whatever you want just because you have a position at headquarters. This is a joint authorization from the three major families in the provincial capital."

Raymond Lam drew his sword.

The moment the Fang of Calamity was unsheathed, all the spirit patterns on the S-rank battle blade lit up, and dragon scale patterns flowed across the blade, illuminating the entire command center with a layer of ghostly golden light.

Yao Qiming's words caught in his throat.

He sensed it.

The power emanating from the blade was unlike any weapon he knew.

"I'm telling you today, Lieutenant Lin can do whatever he wants!"

Lin Feng held up the Fang of Calamity, its tip pointing at Yao Qiming, and without hesitation, he slashed down.

A gale tore through the blade, carrying the corrosive effect of an S-class battle sword.

Yao Qiming's folding fan turned into fragments in the face of the strong wind.

The gale ripped off the heads of the three people, and there was a clear trace of poison corroding the wounds.

The residual force struck the wall behind them, causing it to crack.

The command center was silent for a few seconds.

The captain let out a long sigh and plopped back down in his chair.

"I knew you'd keep things in check when you got back."

Lin Feng sheathed his sword, walked to the front of the main seat, but did not sit down.

"Where is Commander Li? I'll go check on him."

Just as the captain was about to answer, a loud bang suddenly came from outside.

It wasn't an explosion.

It was an earthquake.

The entire camp shook violently, water glasses on the table overturned, and documents were scattered all over the floor.

The alarm on the city wall blared shrilly.

Captain Zhao's expression changed drastically.

"What happened?"

The communicator crackled with the hoarse roar of a sentry on the city wall.

"Report! Northwest direction! A spatial collapse has occurred at the original location of the Class B rift!! The entire area within a ten-mile radius has been swallowed up!! The ground is sinking!!"

The second point follows immediately.

"The cracks were red! A red I'd never seen before! The whole sky was dyed red!"

Captain Zhao grabbed his binoculars and rushed out of the command post.

Lin Feng followed him out and stood at the door, looking up towards the northwest.

On the horizon, half the sky turned scarlet.

Zhang Qian appeared out of nowhere, his face completely pale.

"Lieutenant Lin, the headquarters' detection system just sent an urgent notification."

The communicator in his hand was shaking.

"The original Class B rift has undergone a mutation and fusion at its original site, and the level determination has failed."

What does "judgment failure" mean?

"The system indicates that this type of crack has not been recorded. Headquarters has temporarily assigned it the number..."

Zhang Qian swallowed.

"Crimson cracks."