September 4, 17:50.
In the martial arts arena in his personal space, Xu Jingming carefully practiced Heavenly Python Evolution. His entire body was like a flood dragon—sometimes rising, sometimes crouching, sometimes swimming, sometimes rising…
After practicing Heavenly Python Evolution, Xu Jingming opened his personal combat strength interface and tapped lightly: “Evolution has been maximized.”
Genetic Evolutionary Method: Heavenly Python Evolution (Advanced 18%) (602 days of practice. No room for improvement)
Physique: 195
Technique: Spearmanship (Lv. 3 46%), Footwork (Lv. 3 5%), Shield Technique (Lv. 3 32%)
Basic Combat Strength: 4680
Combat Bonus: 40%
Combat Strength: 6552
I’ve already practiced the evolutionary method more than 20 times today, and it’s getting harder and harder to improve. Xu Jingming stared at his personal combat strength interface and thought to himself, My physique has increased by five points since midnight. Let’s see if I can clear it this time.
Whoosh.
He headed for the mission space again, and as a stream of light, he plummeted and landed under Cosmos Tower.
I failed the first four attempts today. I still can’t defend against the tiger king’s attacks with my spearmanship. If I use a shield technique, I’ll be able to last longer against the tiger king. However, the damage from the shield strike… is useless against the tiger king’s physique. Xu Jingming also had a headache.
The tiger king’s physique was terrifying—its strength, speed, and agility surpassed Xu Jingming in every aspect. The Eight Extremities Shield Technique was ferocious, but no matter how it smashed and struck… it only made the tiger king’s nose bleed. It didn’t suffer any other injuries.
He could injure the tiger king with his spear, but the tiger king’s claws were too terrifying—Xu Jingming couldn’t defend against them at all.
Back then, Master used both shield and saber. He could buy time using his shield in one hand for defense while giving up on attacking the tiger king’s vital spots with his other hand’s saber. Instead, he increased the number of injuries the tiger king suffered. As time passed, the tiger king’s injuries worsened, and its strength decreased… Only then could Master kill the tiger king.
But I can’t imitate Master; our combat methods are different. There’s only one way for me to succeed—with a spear.
Xu Jingming understood this. The spear could at least break through the defense and threaten the tiger king!
It’s no wonder only six experts in the world have cleared Cosmos Tower in the past month or so. The closer he was to victory, the more he understood how difficult it was to clear it.
Xu Jingming arrived at the third floor of Cosmos Tower again.
The familiar rainforest environment was dark and humid, and plants grew freely. Xu Jingming wore light armor and held a spear as he looked around.
His ears twitched, and he heard an undetectable sound. Xu Jingming immediately looked over and saw a pair of dark-yellow eyes staring at him from the shadows.
“Stop hiding, you big cat.” Xu Jingming was also very familiar with the area. He immediately charged forward with his spear, and the tiger hiding there also charged out as if it had been offended.
The two clashed head-on.
Xu Jingming tapped his feet and agilely flashed forward. He pushed his spear forward and pulled it out, not staying one moment longer.
Pfft!
A fatal wound appeared on the tiger’s neck, and it turned ethereal and disappeared.
After his body improved in all aspects, his spearmanship and other aspects improved. Ordinary fierce tigers on the third level no longer posed a threat to Xu Jingming.
Roar!
A deep roar sounded as fierce tigers appeared from all directions and surrounded him. Among them was the largest tiger king.
One of the tiger king’s front limbs was longer and thicker than Xu Jingming’s entire body, making it resemble a huge, furry pillar. Its head was incomparably huge, and its physique was terrifying. Heavy strikes were useless against it.
“Kids, you guys aren’t needed. Don’t waste my time; I want to deal with the tiger king.” Xu Jingming held his spear and charged forward.
Immediately, six fierce tigers roared and charged over.
Pu! Pu! Pu!
Xu Jingming’s movement changed, and his spear turned into afterimages that stabbed three fierce tigers to death in the blink of an eye. The remaining three fierce tigers were alarmed and jumped away.
At this moment, more ferocious tigers surrounded and attacked.
Haha… These ordinary fierce tigers are indeed much less of a threat after my footwork breakthrough. Xu Jingming was a human after all, and he was small. The tigers were too big, and it was difficult for them to form a perfect encirclement around Xu Jingming with him shuttling between them with his movement technique. He usually only needed to deal with two or three tigers at a time.
Spears could kill faster than swords or sabers.
After killing a total of 12 tigers, the tiger king—who had been silently watching Xu Jingming—finally charged out. The other tigers obediently cooperated with the tiger king, and Xu Jingming’s expression changed slightly.
Whoosh.
Xu Jingming dodged behind the other tigers and didn’t fight the tiger king at all.
The tiger king roared, but Xu Jingming was small and agile. He drilled through the cracks, and his spear danced as he kept reaping the lives of the ordinary tigers. The remaining tigers… were even used by Xu Jingming to block the tiger king.
Xu Jingming culled the tigers by simply using his movement techniques. On the other hand, his master, Liu Hai, needed to close in and deliver a strike!
Xu Jingming stabbed out with his spear one after another in a way that was easier than his master.
In less than five minutes, there were fewer than ten tigers left. The tiger king finally roared, and the remaining tigers retreated.
It’s a one-on-one battle. Xu Jingming gazed at the tiger king.
There was no other way. If he acted arrogantly and attempted to deal with the tiger king and other tigers simultaneously, he wouldn’t be able to last ten seconds.
Without having to worry about his back, he could fight the tiger king one-on-one for a longer time.
Boom.
The tiger king pounced forward, and a stench hit him in the face. Its two huge claws were much larger than Xu Jingming’s shield.
Xu Jingming’s body flashed, and he hid behind a large tree before thrusting out rapidly.
The huge tiger claw swiped down agilely and crashed into Xu Jingming’s spear. With a clang, it deflected the human’s strike.
The moment it deflected this move, the tiger king leaped and closed in.
Xu Jingming’s figure flashed again, and his spear stabbed at the tiger king’s neck.
The tiger king raised its forelimbs slightly and swatted away the spear, but its other claw agilely grabbed at its opponent.
Bang!
Xu Jingming retracted his spear and blocked. As he blocked, the terrifying impact immediately sent him flying. He tapped a tree trunk under his feet in midair and whooshed into the distance.
The tiger king leaped into the air with terrifying speed.
Xu Jingming was in a sorry state. He was disadvantaged in terms of speed and agility, and he could only rely on the environment. The trees and large amounts of vines posed an obstruction to the large tiger king. Even if the tiger king could crush the trees with a single swipe, it would still take time.
One strike after another.
Pu.
When the tiger king impatiently tore through the tree, a spear instantly drilled forward when the tree exploded. It stabbed into the tiger king’s left forelimb and tore through the fur.
Xu Jingming fled the moment he pulled it out, and blood dyed the fur red.
It’s impossible to attack the tiger king’s vital spots in close combat. I have to injure its four limbs and reduce its threat before I have a chance to attack its vital spots. Xu Jingming understood this from his repeated clashes.
This massive tiger king furiously chased after the slippery human expert.
Xu Jingming used the environment to buy time or defended with his spear, but he would eventually make a mistake if he defended for too long.
Whoosh.
The huge claw tore through the air and grabbed Xu Jingming’s body, causing him to turn ethereal and vanish.
I failed again. Xu Jingming appeared outside Cosmos Tower and recalled the battle. This one-on-one battle went on for quite a while. I also added seven wounds to the tiger king, but I’m still far from killing it.
If I want to win, I have to improve my spearmanship or my footwork, Xu Jingming thought. But I can sense that it’s not far. I should be able to clear it in a week.
Being able to fight the tiger king one-on-one for so long meant that their strength was very close. There was hope in clearing the third floor.
…
At home, Xu Jingming and Li Miaomiao sat on the sofa after dinner, eating fruits and watching a television program.
“Jingming, you’ve been in the virtual world for way too long today. You also spend time there during the day. You’ve almost maxed out your 16 hours, right?” Li Miaomiao asked.
“I’m just short of half an hour from maxing it,” Xu Jingming said with a smile. “I won’t be entering for the time being. I’ll enter the virtual world again when the competition is about to begin.”
“Why are you working so hard?” Li Miaomiao asked. “Didn’t we only stay in the virtual world after dark? Have you changed your schedule?”
Xu Jingming gently hugged his girlfriend and sighed. “On the one hand, I feel that I’m getting closer and closer to clearing the Cosmos Tower’s third level. I want to clear it in one go. On the other hand, Senior Lei Yunfang is giving me too much pressure.”
“Did you clear it?” Li Miaomiao asked, and she immediately slapped her head. “I’m being silly. If you had cleared it, the Internet would’ve already exploded with the news. The entire world would’ve known about this.”
“The tiger king is too strong. Its body has surpassed the Advanced Evolutionary Method in every aspect,” Xu Jingming said. “Although its combat intelligence is inferior to that of humans, defeating it… will still be very difficult. I should be able to clear it in a week.”
“In a week?” Li Miaomiao was a little excited. “There are only six people on the Cosmos Ranking now. There shouldn’t be more than ten people in a week. Jingming, you will be in the global top ten then.”
“Don’t be in a hurry to be happy about something I haven’t done,” Xu Jingming said. “What we need to deal with next is Senior Lei Yunfang.”
Li Miaomiao lay in her boyfriend’s arms and replied, “Yeah, Senior Lei Yunfang’s movement is incredible. Sharpshooters aren’t a threat to him at all from afar. When he’s close, Lei Yunfang will catch up with anyone in a flash and kill them with a single strike.”
“Sharpshooters can’t threaten him, much less ordinary team members,” Xu Jingming said. “As for one-on-one… I have to admit that I didn’t even clear the Cosmos Tower’s third level.”
The competition would begin in a few hours. However, he was indeed lacking in confidence.
“Even if you fail, it’s still a rare experience for you to hone yourself,” Li Miaomiao comforted. “There is always a winner and a loser in a competition. Don’t worry about a moment’s success or failure. The competition between experts in the virtual world is something that will happen in the next five to ten years or even longer. We have to take a long-term view.”
Xu Jingming lowered his head and kissed his girlfriend’s forehead.
Every time he was tired, his girlfriend would comfort him and make him feel more relaxed.
“Since we have nothing to do today, why don’t we have some happy time?” Xu Jingming smiled at Li Miaomiao.
Li Miaomiao blushed and said, “Go take a shower first!”
“Alright!” Xu Jingming immediately got up and rushed to the bathroom.