Age of Heroes, 10-game winning streak

"Shoulder straps." Bai Yu said.

Tao Rusu immediately covered her shoulders with her right hand.

"And leggings."

"...Your eyes are becoming more and more presumptuous."

"What I mean is..." Bai Yu touched his chin: "You came prepared."

"Huh? I came prepared, I wouldn't deliberately create any encounter with you..." Tao Rusu couldn't bear to hear this, her face immediately blushed, and she denied it loudly.

Before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by Bai Yu.

"Tight-fitting sports bra, easy-to-change clothing, and marks on your hands... You're here for recovery exercises. I see there's a Blackwater Martial Arts Gym nearby. You're probably a member there, right?"

Tao Rusu, who had just turned red, quickly bit down an ice cube to cool down: "You can see that too?"

"I think I have a pretty good eye for observation." Bai Yu narrowed his eyes. "By the way, I also know the brand of your sweat-wicking tights."

"???"

"It's the same set as Su Ruoli's." Bai Yu shook her head and said, "But her evaluation is... it's only suitable for people with average body shapes. It's a bit too tight for her. She recommends the Emma brand."

"Isn't that the brand of an electric car?" Tao Rusu pressed her brows and said, "Wait...Okay, shut up. I don't want to discuss this kind of girly stuff with you. This outfit suits me very well and I don't plan to change it."

Bai Yu nodded, wanting to say something but stopping himself, his eyes becoming slightly ambiguous... He had seen with his own eyes the other side's northern hemisphere, and it was quite large, wouldn't this reduce production capacity?

"What's that look in your eyes?"

"Where there is oppression, there is resistance."

"Huh?" Tao Rusu clenched her fists. "I finally understand. You came to me just to have fun, right?"

"No, I dare not, goodbye." Bai Yu clasped his fists and was about to say goodbye.

"Don't even think about leaving." Tao Rusu grabbed him with a kingly pull: "Come here."

Holding Bai Yu's wrist, he walked towards the Blackwater Martial Arts School. His warm invitation looked like a macho man who was anxious to take someone to the locker room for wrestling.

"It just so happens that I didn't find a sparring partner today, so come over and play a few hands with me!"

Bai Yu was confused and didn't resist thoroughly. As soon as he entered the Blackwater Martial Arts School, he was dragged to the VIP personal training room.

Incomplete resistance means no resistance at all.

"This is my first time here." Bai Yu looked around with some curiosity.

Tao Rusu began to explain some common knowledge: "The Black Water Martial Arts School is a national chain of martial arts schools in Daxia. It has a total of fifty-nine branches, with the main school located in Shangjing. It was founded by the Black Water Martial Saint, who is ranked ninth on the Martial Saint Monument."

"Wu Sheng..."

"A Martial Saint is a fifth-order transcendental being. At this level, they're capable of moving mountains and shattering cliffs." Tao Rusu walked casually as she explained, "There are no more than ten publicly recognized Martial Saints in Daxia... Blackwater Martial Arts School, Extreme Martial Arts School, and Blue Wing Martial Arts School are known as the three major martial arts schools. However, the largest is naturally Daxia's Martial Arts Association, officially endorsed and headed by three Martial Saints. Unlike Extreme Martial Arts School, Blackwater Martial Arts School is more accessible, offering high-quality products at affordable prices. The fees aren't expensive, so even I can afford a VIP room here, where I can have a private, private training room without worrying about privacy leaks."

"So what route does Qingyi Martial Arts School take?"

"Qingyi Martial Arts School uses a traditional apprenticeship system. Joining Qingyi Martial Arts School means becoming a disciple and learning the skills. After that, you will carry the label of Qingyi Martial Arts School on you. Becoming a disciple means paying tuition and fees on time. You are not allowed to quit easily, but of course there are many benefits." Tao Rusu said calmly, "Three of you in your class are from Qingyi Martial Arts School. Rich families don't lack money to join... But I prefer the unrestricted membership system. If I want to take a class, I just buy the class time, and we pay for it in full."

"But you might also encounter a martial artist who hides his abilities."

"Of course, truly good things can't be bought with money." Tao Rusu hooked her finger, making a gesture of starting. "But for those of us who haven't yet embarked on the path of transcendence, there's no need to dwell too much on it. It's so profound and unfathomable. If I teach you, do you think you'll be able to learn it?"

Bai Yu's theoretical knowledge wasn't very sufficient, but Tao Rusu was able to explain it himself: "The lower body becomes ethereal and transforms into the wind, while the body moves alone like a dragon reaching out its claws—the Azure Dragon reaching out its claws style."

"Baguazhang," Bai Yu said, "but I'm not very good at martial arts."

"Then let me beat you up, and you'll naturally learn it slowly." Tao Rusu's smile revealed a sinister tone: "Have you ever heard of a saying? If you want to learn how to fight, you must first learn how to be beaten!"

As soon as she finished speaking, she was already close to him, slapping him with her palm, exerting force on the palm, as swift as a knife.

However, this move missed, and Bai Yu squatted down and followed up with a punch.

She reacted quickly and did a backflip to create some distance.

"This is the Xingyiquan's Hidden Dragon Descending Style and Drilling Fist..." Tao Rusu realized she had been tricked and stamped her feet in anger: "Bai Yu! You still say you don't know martial arts!"

"Sorry." Bai Yu shook his hand. "It seems like my muscle memory has been triggered."

"What else have you learned?"

"Let me think... Tai Chi, Xingyi, Wing Chun, free fighting..."

Tao Rusu narrowed her eyes and said, "Learning everything will only harm you."

Bai Yu clenched his fists, thinking of Master Ye's classic moves, and assumed a starting stance, standing with his legs in a "two-legged horse" position. "Then...Wing Chun, please teach me?"

Chapter 67 Stress Period

Thirty minutes later.

Tao Rusu couldn't straighten her back, gasping for breath: "What... Wing Chun... You're obviously practicing Xingyiquan."

"I'm just a handyman." Bai Yu spread his hands. "I learned a lot of different things, but it's all good as long as they're useful. I have so many moves that no one can spot any flaws."

"That's because I'm too weak, okay? If it were a master, you'd never be able to defeat him with your random moves." Tao Rusu corrected him, "I suggest you focus on Xingyiquan... By the way, why are your fists so hard? They hurt me so much. I have no strength in my body, my bones are weak, my back aches, I can hardly stand up straight...hiss."

"Maybe it's because I chose the skill of subjugating others?"

This is a lie, this is the effect of the iron fist of the formal class teacher.

In addition, Tao Rusu was still a student, so the special attack was also effective, adding a deterrent effect and causing her to have an additional reaction.

She suffered a serious loss, which could not be made up by relying on skills. The top three students in the school's martial arts exam could not beat Bai Yu.

But this is not only because his fists are hard enough, but also because he has rich practical experience.

Hundreds of deaths, countless battles, and accumulated combat experience are beyond the reach of ordinary soldiers.

The fight stopped because both sides had almost exhausted their Qi. Without Qi, the Qi and blood in their bodies could not be supplied, so they had to rest for a while.

Bai Yu didn't expect that after he had just been promoted, the first test subject would be friendly forces.

It was obvious that the sparring with Tao Rusu was only at the warm-up level and not life-threatening enough.

To others, it might have been quite intense, but it was not enough to allow Bai Yu to touch that fine line again.

Having said that, he didn't dare to gamble with his life. He could die easily in the dungeon, but in reality, he only had one life.

Today's sparring also made Bai Yu realize that he actually had quite a talent for boxing and kicking... It seemed that the initial talent from 'hard work and practice' was completely acquired through training.

During the break, Bai Yu asked, "Taozi, have you ever..."

"Stop." Tao Rusu glared, "What did you call me?"

"peach."

"We're not close enough to call each other nicknames." Tao Rusu touched the goose bumps on her arm and said, "You'd better just call me by my full name... or you can call me by my nickname."

"May I ask your nickname?"

"I am... naughty!" Tao Rusu raised his eyebrows with pride.

"I'm still a blue cat!"

"That's not bad either. Let's form a crosstalk group and call it Naughty Blue Cat." Tao Rusu laughed heartily and shook her legs. "So, what do you want to ask?"

"Have you ever had a very special feeling? The kind that is very special, hard to describe, and suddenly realized..." Bai Yu didn't know what he was describing halfway through his words.

"Oh~" Tao Rusu raised her index finger and shook it. It was clearly a stream-of-consciousness description, but she understood it: "I know what you mean... You're in the stress phase."

"Stress period?"

"Generally speaking, becoming a Transcendent requires a series of steps. It's not something that happens overnight. It's not that easy to achieve a breakthrough overnight. Both the body and the mind need a period of preparation. This period is called the 'stress period' or 'pre-awakening'."

Tao Rusu crossed her legs, gesturing with her hands as she described vividly, "Generally speaking, Transcendents, from stage one to stage three, can be collectively referred to as being in the 'growth period' or 'development period'. The silver soul of the second stage and the gold soul of the third stage are all manifestations of Transcendents still in their growth stages... This is actually the original meaning of Transcendent. Transcendent means transcending the mundane and being reborn."

"——And I heard that the growth of extraordinary people is also to lay the foundation for a goal in the next stage."

"When you reach the fourth or fifth stage after growth, there will be other names. Anyway, they just sound cool."

"Similarly, in order for our bodies to fully enter the growth phase and embrace a second wave of growth, we inevitably have to go through a stress response... It's like a reminder to ourselves—everything is ready, only the east wind is missing. It says, go ahead!"

Bai Yu's eyes were filled with doubt and disbelief: "Is it as simple as you say?"

"Nonsense, of course not." Tao Rusu sighed, "Do you think a single stress response is enough? It takes continuous stimulation to be effective. One or two times is just a marginal effect, four or five is just a smear, six or seven is a sure thing, and eight or nine is a sure thing."

Bai Yu touched his face and found that there was suddenly a tire mark on his face for some reason, which was as confusing as the drainage ditch on Akina Mountain.

“So most people get stuck in the stress phase?”

"Hmm...and the stress period will also gradually decline over time." Tao Rusu counted on his fingers: "After a person enters the stress period, if they don't experience a second stress reaction within six months, then there is no hope of becoming an extraordinary person in this lifetime - but usually extraordinary people will succeed in breaking through within a year."

"What's the shortest?"

"Well..." Tao Rusu pointed at a screen in the room and switched the picture: "Did you see this ranking?"

Bai Yu looked over and saw about twenty names displayed on the screen. Each name was arranged in order of importance and there was a number behind it.

"This is the ranking of the members of the Blackwater Martial Arts School in Nanling City. After entering the stress period, the number of days it takes for them to break through to the extraordinary realm will be recorded here."

"The current number one is a genius from seven years ago... Her record was set in just four days and would be ranked in the top ten provincially."

"Will it take so long?" Bai Yu asked.

"It takes an average of three to four months for a normal transcendent to become a super genius within a week," Tao Rusu said. "For the tenth place, it only takes thirteen days."

Bai Yu looked down one by one and saw a familiar name in the seventh position.

"Su Ruo...that is?"

Time: seven and a half days.

Tao Rusu nodded repeatedly. "I've noticed this a long time ago, and I've asked the staff at the Blackwater Martial Arts School before... This Su Ruoji is Su Ruoli's older sister, seven years older than her. She graduated from high school a long time ago. This record was considered very high seven years ago, and it hasn't fallen out of the top ten in the past seven years."

Bai Yu pressed his brows: "Su Ruoli's sister..."

He seemed to remember something. He still had some memories of Su Ruoji in his memory, although... not very clear. There was a seven-year age difference, which meant that the other party had graduated from high school, while Su Ruoli and Bai Yu were still in elementary school.

The overlapping area of the social circles of both parties is not very large, and it is naturally impossible for a high school student with heavy academic pressure to play with an elementary school student all day long.

"So, Su Ruoji is also a genius." Bai Yu murmured, "Is she also of the Heroic Spirit bloodline?"

"I don't know about that. I don't have the habit of prying into other people's privacy." Tao Rusu waved her hand. "If you're curious, you can go to the front desk and ask. They may not tell you, though."

"I don't have much impression of her." Bai Yu said lightly: "You don't need to take my feelings into consideration."

"I'm not that gentle and kind." Tao Rusu folded her arms and raised her chin proudly, then added honestly: "I really don't know much about her... I just heard a few rumors from time to time."

"rumor?"

"Su Ruoji is terrifying... She's personally crippled many people. It's said that on the day she broke through, she dragged the corpse of a calamity beast into the city. She's a naturally aggressive and bloodthirsty warrior."

"So..." Bai Yu almost blurted out "awesome".

"Right, I find it scary too." Tao Rusu grumbled softly, "But judging by Su Ruoli's appearance, she probably won't mutate into the Blood Queen personality... But you still need to worry about the possibility of her suddenly turning evil."

Bai Yu said without hesitation: "No need."

It was proven in the Shadow Spider's Lair that Su Ruoli was white when cut open, and it was impossible for her to be black.

"You're so confident! Then I don't have to be a villain and sow discord here." Tao Rusu yawned: "Hey, I need to take a shower. Do you want to come with me..."

"I didn't bring a change of clothes."

"You're not complaining at this time?"

"What's the big deal? My best friend often invites me to the bathroom to double-team. This is the highest level of friendship between men."

"...Tsk."

Tao Rusu, who was repeatedly frustrated, pushed open the door of the single training room, and the two of them came to the center of the Black Water Martial Arts Hall one after the other.

Bai Yu stopped and realized that there was a new arena here, which should have risen from the ground.

"Ah, it started again." Tao Rusu took a glance and said without interest.

"what is this?"

"We're doing something exciting." Tao Rusu added, "Today must be Thursday."

"Please explain it clearly."

"There's an event on Thursday called 'Powerful Martial Arts Masters,' which is essentially the Blackwater Martial Arts School Challenge Arena. A champion will be sent out that day to challenge anyone who wins. If you're willing to defend the arena, the more rounds you defend, the richer the prizes."

"Isn't this great?"

"Not good at all. Not friendly to rookies. There are always a few familiar faces coming up. I get tired of seeing them." Tao Rusu tilted her head: "It gets boring after seeing them too much."