Outside the city, amidst a rugged stone field.

It was Zhang Ping’s first time leaving the city, and his overwhelming sensation was… safety.

He had anticipated a barrage of dangers waiting beyond the city walls, yet following Liu Sishan along the way, they hadn’t encountered a single Mutated Beast.

“Sisi, what are we doing here? Weren’t we supposed to start combat training?” Zhang Ping asked as he picked up a smooth pebble, casually twirling it in his hand.

With her back turned to Zhang Ping, Liu Sishan suddenly swept out a stream of water from her side.

Whoosh!

The pebble in Zhang Ping’s hand split cleanly in two. Startled, he quickly dropped the stone and took a few steps back.

“To ensure that this training is effective for you, you can attack me with your full strength. I will fight back as needed to test your limits,” Liu Sishan said calmly, turning to face Zhang Ping, whose guard was now fully up.

Zhang Ping frowned. “Sisi, are you sure you won’t accidentally split me in half instead?”

“No promises. You’d better hope I don’t lose control,” Liu Sishan said indifferently.

As she spoke, four water orbs materialized around her, spinning in a slow orbit. They could transform into razor-sharp water whips at any moment, ready to shred anything nearby.

“Come on.” She gestured at Zhang Ping with a wave of her hand.

Clad in white, Liu Sishan stood motionless in place. As water vapor spread through the air, light refracted around her, making her appear almost ethereal, like a celestial being.

Zhang Ping hesitated, unsure where to start. After a brief pause, he bent down to pick up a few more pebbles, deciding to test her defenses with them first.

With a flick of his wrist, he launched the stones at her.

The water orbs around Liu Sishan immediately flattened into shields, deflecting the projectiles. Then, countless smaller water spheres split off from the main ones, shooting toward Zhang Ping like bullets.

“Not good!”

Zhang Ping scrambled to evade, watching in horror as the pebbles ahead were punctured clean through by the water bullets. He didn’t dare imagine what would happen if those bullets hit him directly.

In that moment, Zhang Ping realized Liu Sishan wasn’t holding back.

Taking a deep breath, he drew the Beauty Tear dagger and activated his Ape Step, moving swiftly toward Liu Sishan.

The core of the Ape King Style lay in its footwork—unpredictable, nimble, and difficult to track. When mastered, it became nearly impossible to target unless one possessed a psychic-locking ability.

Zhang Ping’s Ape Step was far from mastery, barely at an entry-level stage. Fortunately, Liu Sishan wasn’t using her full strength; otherwise, her water bullets would have been faster and equipped with tracking capabilities, leaving Zhang Ping with no chance at all.

Thanks to her leniency, Zhang Ping managed to dodge the water bullets and close the distance. But just as he prepared to strike, a massive water palm swept him off his feet, sending him flying five meters back.

“Ouch!”

He landed hard on a pile of rocks, wincing in pain and sucking in a sharp breath.

But Liu Sishan wasn’t about to let him rest. Another barrage of water bullets came his way, forcing him to roll and dodge.

Over and over, Zhang Ping tried to approach her, only to be thwarted in the same way each time. After several attempts, he was panting heavily, drenched in sweat.

“Is that all you’ve got?” Liu Sishan finally paused her attacks, staring at Zhang Ping.

Gasping for air, Zhang Ping shot her a glare. “Sisi, what do you expect from a level-three rookie like me?”

“You’re not even performing as well as you did when the Skyborn Fox attacked. It seems… I’m not pushing you hard enough,” Liu Sishan said, her eyes narrowing mischievously.

Zhang Ping felt a chill run down his spine. He had a bad feeling about this.

Sure enough, in the next moment, dozens of thin water whips formed in the air.

Though they lacked the high-speed oscillation or cutting force of more advanced techniques, they were still formidable.

Caught off guard, Zhang Ping took a lash to the back. His hair stood on end, his eyes widened in pain, and he sucked in a cold breath as a fiery sting spread across his back.

It hurt. Badly.

Seeing more whips coming, he quickly extended one hand, summoning a surge of fire elemental energy. A massive flame shield materialized, blocking the incoming water whips.

But the whips moved like octopus tentacles, attacking from every angle.

Zhang Ping found himself dodging, leaping, rolling—only to get hit several more times, each strike making him wince and grimace.

In the heat of battle, he had no choice but to abandon all distractions and focus solely on countering Liu Sishan’s attacks. Slowly, he entered a state of complete concentration, sensing the subtle rhythms in the wind.

No matter where the water whips came from, he began to react instinctively, blocking each strike with precise bursts of fire.

Watching him, Liu Sishan’s lips curled into a slight smile. The whips increased in speed and attacked from increasingly tricky angles.

One minute later, Zhang Ping’s fire elemental energy was completely drained. He collapsed to the ground, utterly exhausted.

“I’m done. I can’t go on,” he muttered, closing his eyes in defeat.

The water whips stopped mid-air and gradually retracted to Liu Sishan’s side, returning to their orb form.

Liu Sishan walked over to Zhang Ping and said, “You’re actually quite strong—for a Beginner Level Awakener.”

Despite his flaws, Zhang Ping’s reflexes and ability control were impressive. His only major weakness was his lack of ranged attacks, but that was something he could work on in the future.

“I know I’m strong for my level! Sisi, if you were at the same level as me, would you even stand a chance?” Zhang Ping asked, looking up at her.

“No, I wouldn’t. Before Intermediate Level, I only had defensive abilities. It wasn’t until after I advanced that I gained offensive power,” Liu Sishan admitted.

“How long did it take you to advance?” Zhang Ping pressed.

“One year,” she replied.

“What? That’s impossible!” Zhang Ping exclaimed, stunned.

“There’s nothing impossible about it,” Liu Sishan said. “The speed of advancement varies greatly depending on one’s ability.”

Her ability allowed her to store water elemental energy by drinking water. Unlike ordinary people who could suffer from water intoxication, she could drink endlessly, converting it into energy as long as she released it periodically. This made her training process highly efficient.

Abilities grew stronger with use. Compared to those with restrictive activation conditions, hers was incredibly flexible, allowing her to progress rapidly. Of course, her extraordinary potential also played a significant role.

Without it, such rapid advancement would have been unattainable.

...

After resting in place for ten minutes, Liu Sishan gestured for Zhang Ping to get up and led him onward.

"Sisi, where are we heading now?" Zhang Ping asked, munching on a compressed energy bar.

Liu Sishan replied, "Do you know why Mingzhu City was built here?"

"Why?" Zhang Ping genuinely didn’t know the answer.

Liu Sishan explained, "Because to the east lies the Longsand River, to the south are the Salt Highlands, and ten kilometers to the west are vast iron mines. To the north are the Infinite Peaks. Building a city here means there's no shortage of water, salt, iron, or meat resources."

"So, we're currently heading south?" Zhang Ping looked up at the sun and deduced their direction.

Liu Sishan nodded. "Yes, the road south leads to the Salt Highlands. The Investigation Unit and Patrol Squad regularly clear out the Mutated Beasts there, so most of them are low-level. It's a perfect place for you to get some practice."

"Right now?" Zhang Ping's eyes widened in surprise.

"We’ll rest at a camp for half a day first, then head out at night," Liu Sishan replied.

"That's good to hear." Zhang Ping sighed in relief. He was in no condition to fight—his fire elemental energy was completely depleted, his stamina was almost gone, and he doubted he could even fend off a normal wild animal, let alone a Mutated Beast.

---

The Salt Highlands, a vast valley rich in salt mines, lay two hours away from Mingzhu City.

Sometimes, salt transporters would run out of time to return to the city and would rest near the Highlands instead, eventually forming small camps.

But spending the night in the wild was risky. Attacks by wild animals and Mutated Beasts were common, and many transporters lost their lives because of it.

Seeing a business opportunity, some Adventurers built safer, better camps near the Salt Highlands. For a small fee in Mingzhu Coins, guests could stay overnight with dedicated Awakeners guarding the area, driving off beasts and Mutated Beasts.

The price was reasonable, and the safety was reassuring. Over time, salt transporters grew accustomed to staying at these camps, and the camp business thrived.

---

Two hours later, Zhang Ping and Liu Sishan arrived at one such camp.

Perched on a small hill, the camp featured a large pit in the center filled with roaring flames, resembling a small volcano. Surrounding the bonfire were numerous tents, each marked with a corresponding number for guests to rest.

Their tent was close to the fire. Zhang Ping sat directly by the bonfire, absorbing its flames to quickly replenish his energy.

"Let me ask you something. Can you eat the fire you create yourself?" Liu Sishan observed him curiously.

Zhang Ping paused, tried it, and replied, "I can, but it still consumes some energy. Still, this might be a new strategy!"

The Fire Eater ability allowed him to devour flames to recover stamina. Once his stamina was full, the absorbed energy would be stored as fire elemental energy within his body. This meant he could expend his elemental energy to create flames, then consume those flames to recover his stamina—a self-sustaining loop.

Could this actually be the true application of the Fire Eater ability? Zhang Ping wondered.

Many Awakeners never fully understood their abilities’ true potential. Instead, they trained and used them based on their own assumptions. Over time, these abilities would adapt to the habits and understanding of their users, even if they were misguided.

"Since you can recover stamina by absorbing fire, don’t just sit there. Do 500 push-ups," Liu Sishan instructed, her eyes gleaming as she realized the Fire Eater's hidden potential.

With the Fire Eater ability, Zhang Ping could easily follow the path of physical enhancement. He didn’t need to worry about stamina depletion—so long as there was fire, he could keep training endlessly.

"Sisi, 500 is too modest. I'll make it 5,000 just to warm up," Zhang Ping said with a grin. He immediately gave himself the mental order to start training.

By the bonfire, he began doing push-ups while continuously absorbing flames. He hardly felt tired.

After completing 5,000 push-ups, Zhang Ping started doing frog jumps around the bonfire.

It was broad daylight, and most of the salt transporters were out mining. The camp was quiet, save for the crackling of the bonfire and the sound of Zhang Ping's heavy breathing.