Chapter 1 The Martial Arts Champion Loan

[Dear customer Li Ang, hello. We regret to inform you that your current installment of the 'Martial Champion · Dream Fulfillment Loan' is 24 hours overdue.]

[According to Supplementary Article 72 of the 'Longnan City High-Martial Talent Support Agreement': If the default exceeds 72 hours, since your collateral is 'biological ownership of yourself for the next sixty years,' the Black Gold Chamber of Commerce will have the right to initiate 'Asset Preservation Procedures'.]

[At that time, your corneas, organs, bone marrow, and Soul imprint will be at the full disposal of our company to offset the debt. For the sake of your physical integrity, please make payment as soon as possible.]

Outside the car window was the twenty-meter-high alloy wall of Longnan City; in the distant sky, a massive energy shield shimmered with a cold light under the sun.

Li Ang looked at the cold collection message on his phone screen and rubbed his face hard.

His fingertips touched the inside of his left arm, which was densely covered in needle holes and surrounded by bruises—the marks left by long-term injections of 'low-grade berserk potions.'

"Transmigrated... and it's a hellish start, saddled with debt."

Li Ang felt a chill run down his spine.

He had just been working overtime, got too tired and took a nap on his desk—where the Hell did this bring him?

After transmigrating yesterday, he had fused with the chaotic memories of the original host.

This was a crazy world where ten thousand races invaded and the Martial Dao reached godhood.

Martial Artists were the only privileged class in this society.

His predecessor was an orphan from an ordinary background, a poor Soul driven mad by 'class anxiety.'

Because his Aptitude was mediocre, in order to catch up with the geniuses of the great families, his predecessor had signed the notorious 'martial champion loan' at an underground bank called the 'Black Gold Chamber of Commerce.'

He borrowed six hundred thousand, was deceived by training institutions, and spent it all on low-quality 'tiger-wolf' drugs and brain development fluids meant to keep the mind clear and improve learning efficiency, effectively ruining his own body.

To maximize the drug's effects, he had even rented a VIP infusion room at an off-campus tutoring center; while hooked up to fluids that would make an ordinary person roll on the ground in pain, he expressionlessly ground through practice problems.

In Longnan No. 1 High School, Li Ang's predecessor was a celebrity, and also a 'freak.'

He was the acknowledged 'King of Kings' of grinding.

At five in the morning, before the school gates even opened, he was the one who let himself into the martial arts training room.

At ten at night, when the library lights went out and people were being ushered out, he was the one who lingered and refused to leave.

His grades in cultural subjects were impeccable.

"Human Meridians Study," "Anatomical Atlas of Exotic Beasts," "History of Martial Dao Development"...

Anything that appeared on an exam, he consistently topped the year's rankings; full marks were the norm.

In the front row of the bus, several students with strong Qi and Blood were laughing and playing around.

"Hey, isn't that 'God Li'? The bus has already started and he's still reading?"

A mocking voice entered his ears.

"Shh, he's the number one in cultural grades for the year. He's counting on going to the battlefield and making the exotic beasts die of laughter with that 'Grandmaster Force-Exertion Techniques' book."

Harsh laughter echoed through the bus carriage.

Li Ang did not look up.

He just silently turned a page of his book, while his finger subconsciously pressed down on the still-aching infusion needle holes.

In this elite-filled Longnan No. 1 High School martial arts class, students were generally at the Fourth Stage of Qi and Blood or above, and the true geniuses had even touched the threshold of the sixth stage.

And he, mockingly called 'God Li,' had barely managed to stack his way up to the Fourth Stage of Qi and Blood by overdrawing his life and frantically popping pills.

In the eyes of others, he was a waste who only knew how to study books to death.

In the eyes of the Black Gold Chamber of Commerce, he was 'consumable material' about to expire.

"Six hundred thousand principal, with compound interest it's now 1.2 million... and there are three days left."

If the money wasn't repaid in three days...

This body would be disassembled into corneas, heart, bone marrow... priced by the pound to pay off the debt.

A dead end.

A total dead end.

Because the predecessor feared the upcoming repayment date, he suffered cardiac arrest during an infusion last night, which led to the current Li Ang.

Just as Li Ang was considering whether to take the chance to jump off the bus and run away...

A mechanical prompt, devoid of any emotion, abruptly sounded in the depths of his mind.

[Detected that the host's Soul fluctuations are stable. Life Simulator loading complete.]

[Current remaining simulation attempts: 3 (Newcomer gift)]

[Would you like to start the first simulation?]

Li Ang's pupils suddenly constricted, and then his heart began to beat violently.

A Golden Finger!

As a web novel enthusiast in his previous life, he knew all too well what this meant.

"Start," Li Ang muttered in his mind without the slightest hesitation.

At this life-or-death juncture, any hesitation was a sign of disrespect toward his own life.

[Simulation starting.]

[Detected host's Soul traits, automatically loading inherent talent:]

[Hardworking and Enduring (Green)]: The elegy of a corporate slave in a past life, and a medal in this life. Your mental resilience is extremely strong, and you have a level of endurance for boring, painful, repetitive labor (such as 996 or extreme cultivation) that ordinary people can hardly match.

Effect: As long as you don't practice yourself to death, practice to the death! Significantly reduces pain perception and significantly increases mental endurance.

"Hardworking and Enduring... What is this, an 'Excellent Beast of Burden' certification?"

A self-deprecating smirk touched the corner of Li Ang's mouth, but then his eyes brightened; this might be exactly what he needed most right now.

[Please choose one of the following talents for the simulation (randomly refreshed this time):]

[Premature Balding (White)]: Your hair will fall out very quickly, but it will also save you shampoo.

[Iron Stomach (Green)]: You can digest some foods that ordinary people cannot, such as tree bark and Guanyin clay.

[Blade Dao Genius (Blue)]: You have a good intuition for saber-type weapons and a keen perception of Saber Dao Cultivation Techniques. You will become a Saber Dao Genius, and practicing saber techniques will yield twice the result with half the effort.

[Gambler's Intuition (White)]: When guessing heads or tails of a coin, your accuracy is slightly higher than 50%.

[Night Owl (White)]: You will be exceptionally excited at night.

"Only one blue and one green..."

Li Ang quickly made a judgment.

"Saber Dao Genius, I'll choose that."

[Hardworking and Enduring] plus [Saber Dao Genius]—one allows me to practice tirelessly, and the other ensures the practice is effective.

What an excellent combination!

[Selection complete.]

[Talents 'Hardworking and Enduring (Green)' and 'Blade Dao Genius (Blue)' have been loaded.]

[Simulation beginning—]

[Day 1: You are sitting on the bus and receive the debt collection message from the Black Gold Chamber of Commerce. Knowing that time is tight, after returning to school, you dive headfirst into the martial arts training room.]

[Relying on your 'Saber Technique Affinity,' you quickly pick up the Basic Saber Technique, but you are not satisfied. Using the 'Hardworking and Enduring' talent, you block out the agonizing pain of muscle tearing and swing your saber ten thousand times consecutively like a machine. By late night, the webbing between your thumb and forefinger has split and your arms are swollen like radishes, but you feel nothing, simply continuing to swing after a basic bandaging.]

[Day 2: Your crazy actions terrify the combat class teacher. He is shocked to find that in just one day, your saber technique has reached the entry level and stabilized. You try to borrow money from the teacher, but seeing your bloodshot eyes like those of a hungry wolf, he thinks you've gone mad from training and refuses you, claiming he is powerless to help.]

[Day 3: You do not give up and continue your self-mutilating bitter cultivation. Your muscle fibers become tough through high-intensity tearing and healing. In a combat sparring session, you ignore the pain, tank a punch from the class monitor, and defeat him with a backhand saber strike. The whole class is shocked; no one believes this is that Fourth Stage 'bookworm'.]

[Day 4: As the repayment date approaches, you attempt to go to an underground casino to risk your life for money. But before you can even step through the door, you collapse in an alley due to severe physical exhaustion—even though you don't feel pain, your bodily functions have reached their limit. When you wake up, it is already late at night.]

[Day 5: The Black Gold Chamber of Commerce comes knocking. Two large men in black at the Qi and Blood Seventh Stage corner you at your doorstep. You do not beg for mercy; you draw your saber and strike. Relying on the muscle memory carved into your marrow over the last few days, you actually leave a deep, bone-deep wound on the arm of that seventh-stage Martial Artist! However, because the gap in Realm is too great, your limbs are subsequently broken in an instant.]

[You are dragged to an abandoned slaughterhouse on the outskirts of the city.]

[On the operating table, the lead surgeon marvels as he cuts into your muscles: "This kid's muscles are all necrotic damage from overtraining, and his pain nerves are numb. Was he a masochist in life?"]

[You are dead.]

[Simulation ended.]

[Survival time in this simulation: 5 days.]

[Evaluation: F (The life of cannon fodder without a ripple, but your madness was impressive)]

[Cooldown time: None]

On the bus.

Li Ang snapped his eyes open, gasping for breath.

Although the phantom pain of having his limbs broken had been weakened by the System, it still left him drenched in a cold sweat.

"This is the gap in strength... even if I give it my all, the Fourth Stage of Qi and Blood against the seventh stage is still like a mantis trying to stop a carriage."

Li Ang clenched his fists, his nails digging into his flesh.

That so-called 'martial champion loan' was a man-eating trap from the very beginning. Even the school teacher chose to keep a respectful distance when seeing the massive debt.

But this simulation was not without gains!

[Please choose an item to retain from this simulation:]

1. Martial Dao Realm (Fourth Stage of Qi and Blood)

2. Martial Arts Experience (Basic Saber Technique · Minor Achievement)

3. Final Memories (Regarding the location and internal structure of the 'Asset Recovery Department')

Looking at the three options before him, Li Ang began to consider the cost-effectiveness of each.

Choose the Realm? Five days was too short; there was no improvement in his Realm.

Choose the memories? He had already experienced them in glimpses just now; having the full details wouldn't be useful yet.

"I choose option two, Martial Arts Experience!"

Only Li Ang knew.

This so-called 'Minor Achievement' saber technique was the result of swinging his saber tens of thousands of times without rest, like a mad dog, with all pain blocked under the [Hardworking and Enduring] talent!

Even if a normal person had talent, their body wouldn't be able to withstand this kind of training.

But he could!

Boom!

A warm current instantly flooded into Li Ang's mind and his entire body.

Originally, he knew nothing about saber techniques, but at this moment, countless memories of swinging, hacking, and parrying seemed carved into the depths of his Soul.

He felt a slight heat at the webbing of his right hand, as if he had held a saber for ten years; a sharp force even surged within his muscles.

"Basic Saber Technique... Minor Achievement."

Li Ang lowered his head, looking at his hand full of needle holes, his lips curling into a cold arc.

A single simulation had saved him three years of hard work that ordinary people would have to endure.

Is this what it feels like to be a Genius?

"I'll die in five days?"

"There are still two more chances... keep simulating. This dead game, I will definitely find a way to win it!"

The bus vibrated slightly as it drove into the gates of Longnan No. 1 High School.

Li Ang looked up at the students sweating on the playground outside the window, his gaze somewhat dark.

"Black Gold Chamber of Commerce, let's play this slow."