January 30, 2028

Alliance of South East Asian Nations(ASEAN)

P-Base Sanctuary, Sector 2

Dojo Of Limitless, Center Of Sector 2

•••••

Larry's fist smashed against the machine.

The machine shook violently.

Soon enough, a number appeared on the machine's screen──"957kg"

"Not bad, Lucky. You passed the 950kg milestone" A man with a height taller than 1.9 meters who was a bit lean yet buff laughed and clapped. This buff man had a savage scar on his face.

"Jomar senpai" Larry laughed, "when compared to you, this is nothing. Jomar senpai, could you help me turn on the 'Speed Tester Machine'?"

Jomar senpai, named Tamura Jomar, is currently ranked top three within the elite members in the 'Dojo of Limitless'. If it wasn't for his speed, he would've cleared the 'Elite Warrior Preliminary exams' a long time ago.

For a Martial Warrior to become an Elite warrior.

He has to pass two exams──

The first exam is the 'Fitness' exam or the 'Prospective Elite warrior' exam. Once you pass that, you have proved that your fitness level has reached the standard of an 'Elite Warrior'. At this time, you have become a 'Prospective Elite warrior'. After you achieve the title you are now eligible to cultivate or harness the Runic energy, and after harnessing the energy, you will become an official Champion.

The second exam is a 'Fighting Combat' exam.

Just having the body fitness doesn't grant you the privilege of becoming an Elite Warrior. Only by defeating an actual monster in an actual fight will you be able to achieve the title of 'Elite Warrior'.

"Testing speed? Alright." Jomar laughed as he walked towards the machine and turned it on.

[KA]

The machine turned on and lighted up.

Larry adjusted his breathing and stood on the track, which was 100 meters long. Close to the speed testing machine was a speed testing region.

Larry exploded forwards!

[WHOOSH]

In a blink of an eye, Larry has accelerated to his maximum speed. His feet pedaled with strength, increasing his sprinting power. His body was like an arrow leaving a bow and flying across the runway, bringing along with him a gust of wind. Larry flew past the speed testing region. After that, he naturally slowed down and stopped.

"How fast?" Larry laughed as he walked towards the machine.

"Heh, Lucky, looks like you improved a bit since last time. Not bad, not bad" Jomar, with a face of astonishment, looked at the number displayed on the speed testing machine, "Come look for yourself"

Larry looked over to the machine and the number displayed was── "26.8 m/s"

"Not bad," Jomar said appreciatively.

Larry wasn't that happy though, since there were two parts to the Fitness exam: The Mental mastery and Physique exam;

"PHYSIQUE"

•Strength- measuring physical power and carrying capacity.

•Constitution- measuring endurance, stamina, and good health.

•Dexterity- measuring agility, balance, coordination, acceleration, and reflexes.

"MENTAL/BRAIN"

•Intelligence- measuring deductive reasoning, cognition, knowledge, memory, logic, rationality, reaction speed, and time perception(you could perceive time much lower than the average human. He can think, see things, and make decisions faster)

•Wisdom- measuring self-awareness, common sense, restraint, perception, and insight.

•Charisma- measuring force of personality, persuasiveness, leadership, and successful planning.

.....

For speed, Larry was naturally gifted, he only needs to reach 30 m/s to achieve the standard speed of an Elite Warrior.

However──

In the prospective Elite warrior exam, the passing mark for strength is ── 1200 kg!

For speed, the passing mark is── 30m/s! Or 100 meters within 3 seconds.

Since the awakening, all the people that survived got stronger, now average fighters had already surpassed the human athletes in the past.

The world record before the awakening; fastest speed, 12.3 meters per second, heaviest lift, 3000 kg(backlift), and high jump 2.5meters. Now they are already been left in the dust.

"The stronger you get, the harder it is to improve" Larry contemplated, "For me to raise my speed from 26.8 m/s to 30 m/s would probably take around two years. For my strength to improve from 923 kg to 1200 kg would probably take even longer. I would probably have to wait until after I graduated from the Military academy to achieve the title of 'Elite Warrior'."

.....

Within the dojo training hall, scar-faced Jomar stood in front of the 'Strength Tester machine'. However, he didn't seem very serious; he simply punched the tester a few times with both hands. A repeated [BAG!] [BAG!] [BAG!] sounded as he punched the machine. Soon after that, a few numbers were displayed on the screen.──"1057kg, 1034kg, 1086kg, 983kg..."

Tamura Jomar punched a couple dozen times in one breath before stopping.

Larry, who was watching on the sidelines, couldn't help but admire. His full power could only amount to 957 kg, but Jomar senpai could unleash a flurry of fists with such power. For all of them to just pass the 900 kg mark would already be plenty.

"Jomar senpai, if only one of my full-power punches could be as strong as one of your random ones, then that would be great" Larry laughed.

"You, " Jomar walked towards Larry and laughed as he hit him on the shoulder, "you're only 19 this year, or 18 right now. When I was your age, I was only so so. With the rate at which you're improving… you would achieve the body fitness level required for the rank of 'Elite warrior' within two years for sure. Heh, a 20-year-old Elite Warrior, how envious."

Larry laughed.

The dojo only recruited students from age 16 to 30 because this is the period where one grows the fastest. This means that a person could enter the rankings more quickly and lead to even greater strength in the future. Larry became a martial warrior at the age of 17, which many admired.

"Oh yea, Lucky, you got Senior-high school exams right? What're you gonna do after them?" Jomar laughed.

"I will have to prepare for the military academy" Larry let out a small laugh, "the average person becomes a basic level officer in the normal army after getting into the academy. However, I should be able to get into the Special Forces after  without a problem."

"Oh"

Jomar listened and curled his lip, "Entering a military academy is good but… I feel like your freedom is limited there. After you graduate from the academy and enter the special forces, you'll have to follow all of the rules. I would never be able to handle that; better for you to become a free fighter or maybe you'll get LUCKY and become a Runic Champion."

Larry laughed, "I will not put my future on luck, I know Runic Champions are great and mighty, but they will also have to rely on other Champions. Also becoming a Runic Champion also have its own responsibilities."

"A free fighter is great" Larry nodded, "But I wouldn't want my parents to worry. It is much safer to enroll in an academy, train, and then officially join the army than to become a free fighter."

"Entering the army is safe, but I wouldn't want to live my days without any freedom" Jomar nodded, "This year, I think I can pass the 'Prospective Elite warrior' exam. After I pass, I'll immediately sign up for the 'Fighting Combat' exam and work hard to become an Elite warrior."

Larry's eyes flashed: "Jomar Senpai, you're confident that you can pass the prospective Elite Warrior exam?"

"Haha" Tamura Jomar laughed, "I have reached the requirements for strength and reaction speed a long time ago. My weak point is speed. However, if I do well, I can barely reach 29.8 m/s. I'll work hard these few days and I should be able to pass the exam by the time I take it."

"Congratulations, Jomar senpai." Larry was happy for Jomar senpai since he worked so hard to become an Elite warrior for so many years. "Jomar Senpai, what will you do after you become an Elite?"

"Of course I'll join the Dojo of Katana" Jomar senpai laughed, "The Dojo of Katana is the guild of my fellow countryman. Every dojo has a very loose system and is scattered all around the world. Many previous Elite warriors improved themselves in these dojos. Also, when I feel like taking a break, I can go out and kill some monsters. Quite free if you ask me."

Larry nodded.

"Lucky " Jomar looked at Larry, "You're quite crazy inside your bones. I'm pretty sure that you are very suited to walk the path of a free fighter. Join a dojo, how free is that? And the Dojo of Atlan is very suitable for you, it will help you greatly."

"I…." Larry hesitated.

Jomar saw what was happening, he shook his head, and laughed, "Lucky, free fighters frequently fight for their lives and train on the border between life and death. It's a bit more dangerous! But at the same time, because you are constantly fighting for your life, it's the fastest way to increase your strength! You see, no matter where, most of the strongest fighters are all free warriors."

An Elite Warrior or Champions usually has four paths they can choose from.

The first path: Join the Base's army and become a Defender. It's safer and the Sanctuary  wouldn't easily let the warriors take risks. The Sanctuary  would also give the warrior's family many benefits, so the warriors would have no regrets.

The second path: Join a dojo and become a free fighter; you can do everything you want, You won't have responsibilities, you will have absolute freedom, and it is also the most dangerous path. The restrictions of a dojo are broader and the community is more loose. Since the 'Dojo of Limitless' was created by the strongest man on earth 'Han', there are quite a few benefits in becoming a Champion in dojos. Since the administration isn't as strict, there is more freedom too. Dojo and Guilds are connected, you can also say the dojos are like an Adventurers' organization. The only difference is; the guilds are only exclusive to the Runic Champions, while the Champions can only join Dojos.

*Everyone can have a Runic Abilities and become a Runic Champion, their seed just need to sprout inside their spirit consciousness, the problem is awakening the seed, it is super hard! While getting older, it will only get harder and harder.

The third path: Join a large business, some family, or some major political power, and become a thug.

The fourth path: Become a mercenary and join a mercenary corps. Mercenaries are Vagabonds they go where the money is, which would endanger their life all the time. At the same time, it grants the most freedom out of all four paths.