I became a martial arts saint while playing games.

The other students in the training room, upon hearing Lu Cheng'an's words, all thought, "Oh, so this junior brother is at the second level. No wonder he can catch a blade barehanded. That makes a little more sense."

But in just a moment's thought.

Wait a minute, aren't you just a freshman? Aren't you a humanities major?

What does it mean that they've already reached the second tier?

If the way everyone looked at Gu Yan before was like sizing up a monster, now it was as if they were seeing a celestial being descend to earth.

To be able to enter the second stage in the first semester of freshman year, let alone in their small first-tier university, Linjiang University, or even in Donghua Wufu University, the top key university in Linjiang City, this would be considered an absolute genius.

Everyone looked at Gu Yan with incomprehension.

You think you're so great? Why are you hanging out with us noobs?

As if sensing the students' confusion, Professor Zhong Ding explained slowly, "You don't know this. The reason why Gu Yan only transferred to the martial arts department now is because his grades were mediocre when he entered university, and he had not yet reached the next level."

Everyone: "??????"

The teacher's explanation had an immediate effect on the confusion, leaving everyone even more perplexed.

Enrolled, didn't reach the first rank, and now at the second rank?

What the heck? I don't understand at all!

Senior Brother Lu Cheng'an, who was present, was also shocked by the news. However, he was even more shocked that he had been caught bare-handed and hit by a calisthenics punch.

His mind was a jumbled mess, filled with shock, but it seemed there were too many shocking elements to know where to begin...

But one thing he was certain of.

He had previously thought that Teacher Zhong disliked the newcomer or simply wanted to intimidate him. Now he knew he was wrong.

Now he's starting to suspect that maybe Teacher Zhong dislikes him, so he specifically sent this new teacher to teach him to question the meaning of life...

No, he can't accept that.

If he couldn't beat the freshman liberal arts students in their broadcast gymnastics and boxing, he would feel that all his years of hard work on the sword had been for nothing.

Lu Cheng'an rallied his spirits, shouted "Again!" and leaped forward once more.

His previous mistake was partly due to carelessness and underestimating his opponent. Now, he is fully focused and has no intention of underestimating his junior brother.

Lu Cheng'an brandished his longsword, his moves steady and refined, each advance, retreat, and turn executed with discipline. His swordsmanship was skillful and experienced, each move combining defense and offense, with a measured pace. While his swordplay wasn't particularly fierce, it was meticulous and precise.

The other students couldn't help but secretly cheer when they saw him make his move. Lu Cheng'an was a junior this year, and he was already one of the top experts in their study room. It seemed that his swordsmanship had improved even more recently.

Of course, the more skilled the senior brother's swordsmanship was, the more it highlighted the abnormality of the "liberal arts student" who caught the attack bare-handed.

What's even more bizarre is that after exchanging blows for about ten moves, the two realized that Gu Yan had indeed only used that set of radio calisthenics called "Yang Qi Chang Quan" for those ten moves, and there wasn't a single move they didn't recognize.

This is fucking...

The students racked their brains but couldn't understand how Yangqi Changquan could fight Lu Cheng'an on equal terms.

Only Professor Zhong Ding, with his extensive experience in martial arts, noticed something amiss. He realized that although Gu Yan's techniques were indeed all about cultivating inner strength and long fist, the simple and unadorned moves contained the superior skill of "neutralizing internal energy."

Gu Yan used the Qi-Nourishing Long Fist, employing the same moves, but subtly concealing a sophisticated method of deflecting force.

Lu Cheng'an's swordsmanship was indeed rigorous and flawless, but his moves were constantly deflected by the opponent's fist and palm strikes, which involuntarily created many flaws. As a result, he was forced into a state of chaos by Gu Yan.

It seemed to everyone that Lu Cheng'an was attacking more and defending less, while Gu Yan was always on the defensive, only occasionally throwing a punch to counterattack after his senior brother took the initiative to attack and deflect the attacks.

But after several rounds, Lu Cheng'an was retreating repeatedly, while Gu Yan followed at a leisurely pace.

With each step Gu Yan took, Lu Cheng'an felt the pressure increase, and the long sword in his hand seemed to grow heavier and heavier, becoming increasingly sluggish, until he could barely wield it. The invisible pressure caused beads of sweat to roll down his forehead.

Professor Zhong Ding had seen countless高手过招 (masters clashing) throughout his life; what grand scene hadn't he witnessed? Yet today, it was merely two students from his research lab fighting. This scene... this scene...

He had never seen such a scene before.

The attacking side kept retreating, while the parrying side pressed forward step by step, each step carrying an overwhelming sense of pressure, which was truly against common sense.

After seventeen or eighteen moves, Lu Cheng'an's back was already pressed against the wall behind him, leaving him with no way to avoid it.

He had practiced swordsmanship diligently since childhood, and was fortunate enough to become a disciple of Zhong Ding in university, receiving meticulous guidance from the professor. He thought his swordsmanship was already quite accomplished, but he never imagined that he would be forced into such a sorry state by a freshman who was doing calisthenics.

In an instant, he suddenly realized that all the sword skills he had honed over the decades had been transferred to Gouzi.

In a moment of impulsiveness, his blood boiled. He suddenly unleashed a dangerous move with his longsword, the sword strike fierce and sharp, employing his most prized and deadly technique. However, the ferocity he displayed in facing his opponent was unlike that of a friendly sparring match; it was as if he were fighting for his life.

The students outside the arena gasped in surprise at the fierce sword wind. Zhong Ding also frowned slightly, secretly preparing himself, ready to intervene at the slightest sign of trouble.

In that split second, Gu Yan slightly spun around, still displaying the stance of the Qi Cultivation Fist, while secretly circulating the Shifting Universe Heart Technique.

With a light flick of his left hand, he deflected the sharp sword light as if guiding a thread. His right hand then skillfully grasped Lu Cheng'an's wrist, releasing a gentle burst of energy through his fingers and palm.

Lu Cheng'an felt a tingling numbness in his wrist, and the longsword slipped from his grasp and fell to the ground. Gu Yan flicked his wrist, and the hilt of the sword landed lightly in his hand.

He snatched the sword from his hand, spun it around, and smoothly unleashed the "Throat-Sealing Demon-Stopping" move from the Thirteen Subduing Demons Swords. A flash of cold light disappeared in an instant, and the sword's edge stopped just inches from Lu Cheng'an's throat, almost touching his skin, just a fraction away from severing his throat.

Gu Yan parried, seized the sword, and retaliated with a swift, fluid movement, his entire sequence flowing seamlessly from the Qi-Nourishing Long Fist to the Thirteen Subduing Demons Swords, as if it were a single, complete move.

Everyone watching knew that this move was incredibly swift. He could control the sword perfectly, stopping precisely at Senior Brother Lu's throat without harming him in the slightest. The precision of his control was exquisite, leaving all the students holding their breath and silent for a long time.

Then Zhong Ding broke the silence first, shouting, "Good!"

He clapped twice, and only then did the others realize what was happening and join in with applause.

The applause was absolutely genuine. After this battle, everyone present was filled with admiration for their new junior brother. Even Zhong Ding vaguely realized that he had recruited a truly exceptional monster into the research lab this year.

Gu Yan turned the longsword back and handed it to Lu Cheng'an, saying, "Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother. I was very rude just now, please forgive me."

Lu Cheng'an stared blankly at the sword handed to him for a long while before accepting it with a wry smile, shaking his head and saying, "Not at all, I should be thanking you for your guidance, Junior Brother. Only today did I realize that I was a frog in a well, completely unaware of the principle that 'there are always people more capable than you, and heavens beyond heavens.'"

He paused, gave Gu Yan a strange look, and continued, "But speaking of which, Junior Brother, the power you unleash with your Qi-cultivating Long Fist is truly outrageous. I think your unique insights into this fist technique could be published as a decent academic paper."

Gu Yan was taken aback: "You can even publish papers?"