A maglev station in the Outer City.
A public maglev resembling a giant metal caterpillar pulled into the station with a dull hum.
The vehicle's body, covered in rust and scratches, was a silent testament to its age.
The moment the doors opened, a thick, foul odor—a mix of sweat, cheap nutrient paste, and motor oil—assaulted the senses.
The car was packed with people.
Standing among them were lower-class citizens of all sorts, all wearing work clothes, their faces etched with exhaustion.
They were the bedrock that kept this Fortress City running, yet they were crammed into its most neglected corners.
Most of their eyes were hollow and numb, devoid of any hope.
Han Feng found a corner to stand in, gripping a cold metal handrail.
The car jolted slightly and began to glide along its fixed magnetic track.
It wasn't fast, but it was steady enough.
Through the grime-caked window, the scenery of the Outer City unfolded before him.
Low-rise, prefabricated houses were scattered about chaotically. The streets were narrow, with sewage trickling across the ground.
A few City Guard Army soldiers patrolled with loaded weapons, their wary gazes sweeping over every corner.
Everything here was about struggle and survival.
His gaze traveled past the crowd toward the distance.
The hundred-meter-tall giant wall of the Inner City was a natural chasm, starkly dividing two different worlds.
Within the walls, the silhouettes of skyscrapers pierced the clouds, their surfaces shimmering with the brilliant light of Spiritual Energy Technology, even during the day.
Once, that wall had been an insurmountable barrier in Han Feng's heart, a symbol of despair.
But now, as he looked at that splendor, his heart was unusually calm.
The world was still the same world.
But he... he was no longer the same.
Before long, the maglev stopped at the East Sea Martial Arts University station.
Han Feng squeezed his way off the car. Instead of returning to his cramped dorm, which he called a "pigeon coop," he headed straight for the academy's public cultivation building.
The first-floor hall of the cultivation building was always bustling with people, the air thick with the smell of impatience and sweat.
A long line snaked from the front desk all the way to the entrance.
The line was composed entirely of D Level and C Level students in gray and light blue training uniforms.
Han Feng was used to this and fell in line at the end without a second thought.
Just then, a B Level Student in a dark blue elite training uniform walked in.
His hands were in his pockets, his stride leisurely.
Without so much as a glance to either side, he completely ignored the ridiculously long line and walked straight to the front desk.
A small stir rippled through the line, but it quickly died down.
Most people chose to remain silent, but they couldn't hide the complex emotions in their eyes.
Behind the front desk, a young, bespectacled staff member, who had just been dismissively answering a D Level Student's question while impatiently tapping his fingers on the counter, now saw the newcomer, and the impatience on his face vanished in an instant.
An almost sycophantic smile immediately plastered itself across his face.
"Senior Sun, you're here!"
"Same as usual, a High Level Gravity Chamber? I've been holding it for you!"
"Mhm."
The so-called Senior Sun grunted from his nose, tossing his student card onto the counter without even lifting his gaze.
The staff member hurriedly picked it up with both hands, performed a swift series of operations, and then respectfully handed the card back.
"All set, Senior Sun!"
"High Level Gravity Chamber number 3. I hope you have a pleasant cultivation session!"
In the line, a D Level freshman who had just recently enrolled lowered his voice and grumbled indignantly.
"How is that fair?"
"Everyone's waiting in line, but he gets to cut right to the front?"
An older student in front of him heard this, glanced back, and gave him a look mixed with mockery and numbness.
"First-year, huh?"
"Keep your voice down. Don't go looking for trouble."
The older student jutted his chin toward the front desk.
"See that? He's a B Level Elite."
"When he graduates, he'll walk right into a mid-level position at a major corporation in the Inner City. His future's limitless."
"Now look at that guy at the desk. He's a C Level graduate, and now he's working the front desk here. How much do you think he makes a month?"
"You think he'd dare to offend a future big shot?"
The older student's lips twisted into a self-deprecating smirk.
"For C Level students like us, if we're lucky, we might land a job like his after graduation and spend the rest of our lives sucking up to people."
"If we're unlucky, we'll get kicked back to the Outer City to scrape by in some minor faction."
"As for D Level... upon graduation, you're assigned directly to the Outer City's reclamation teams. If you manage to survive for five years, you can consider your ancestors' graves blessed."
"So tell me, is that guy at the desk going to suck up to the future big shot, or is he going to waste his time on no-hopers like us?"
His words were direct and cruel.
The freshman was rendered speechless, his face paling and flushing by turns.
Han Feng listened quietly from the back of the line, not a single ripple disturbing the calm of his heart.
He understood this cold set of rules better than anyone.
In the past, he might have felt the same suffocation and resentment.
But now...
...he actually found it a little funny.
'Who isn't a Martial Arts prodigy around here?'
'Well, excuse me, but now I am too.'
'And one with cheats, at that.'
After a long wait, it was finally Han Feng's turn.
The smile had long since vanished from the front desk clerk's face, replaced by a cold, business-like indifference.
'He changes faces faster than a professional actor.'
He glanced at Han Feng's student card, his voice as flat and emotionless as a counting machine.
"D Level, public cultivation room, three hours maximum."
"Ten Contribution Points per hour, for a total of thirty."
"Pay up."
Han Feng briskly paid the Contribution Points, took the key card, and walked toward the Cultivation Area without a word.
He entered an empty cultivation room and locked the door behind him.
The clamor of the outside world was completely shut out.
He was now desperate to verify just how much of a boost the activated system would give him when cultivating this world's native Cultivation Techniques!
After swiping his Identity Card, he selected a small gravity chamber and set the gravity to 1.5 times the normal level.
This intensity was just right, allowing his Body Tempering Fifth Layer physique to feel a thick pressure without restricting his movements.
He assumed a stance and began methodically practicing the Body Forging Technique he already knew by heart.
This Cultivation Technique, improved by the government, involved wide, open movements and was incomparably fierce and powerful.
It was the premier Technique for honing one's muscles and bones and strengthening Qi Blood in the Body Tempering Realm.
Normally, after practicing the full set once, he would only feel a faint fluctuation in his Qi Blood.
The Skill Proficiency on his panel would barely budge even after half a day.
But today, it was a world of difference!
As he performed the Body Forging Technique, he could clearly feel the Qi Blood Power within him being stirred by an invisible hand.
It washed over and refined his muscles, bones, and skin at an unprecedented speed!
A new line of information appeared in his consciousness.
[Permission 1 Unlocked: Skill Proficiency Mechanism.]
[Any Skill acknowledged by the system can have its Skill Proficiency increased through focused practice.]
'So that's how it works. It's exactly like Skill Proficiency in a video game.'
Han Feng understood instantly.
This mechanism reduced the weight of the ethereal concept of "Talent" to its absolute minimum.
It allowed every ounce of his effort to be rewarded with the most direct, quantifiable results!
As he continued to practice, the numbers on the system panel in his Sea of Consciousness began to jump wildly!
[Body Forging Technique Skill Proficiency +1!]
[Body Forging Technique Skill Proficiency +1!]
[Body Forging Technique Skill Proficiency +1!]
Watching the rapidly rising Skill Proficiency, Han Feng could barely suppress the grin spreading across his face!
This level of efficiency wasn't just like strapping himself to a rocket!
Although it couldn't compare to the freakish effect of his Cultivation skyrocketing while practicing the Sword Control Technique in an airplane...
...compared to his past, struggling self, his efficiency had increased by at least four or five times!
He immediately focused his mind and threw himself into his cultivation, forgetting everything else.
Again, and again.
The fatigue in his body was completely overwhelmed by his mental exhilaration.
'Since the efficiency of the *Body Forging Technique* is already so high, then...'
An even bolder idea suddenly flashed through his mind.
'What would happen if I tried to circulate the Sword Control Technique right here, without being in an airplane?'