Snow thickened as Chu Feng walked toward the Steel Frost Quarters.
Torches flickered along the barracks.Warriors trained tirelessly, even in the storm.
Chu Feng looked up at the darkened sky.
Behind him lay the Sword Sect, his master, and everything he knew.
Ahead lay transformation or death,a place where he would either rise from the ashes like a phoenix or be buried.
He tightened his grip.
Then he stepped into his tent.
Before sunrise, a horn blast tore through the barracks, rattling the wooden frames and shaking frost from the eaves. Chu Feng's eyes snapped open instantly. Breath misted in the frigid air. Outside, soldiers were already moving, dark silhouettes against the white horizon.
He stepped out with the other new recruits.
The Steel Frost Quarters training ground stretched endlessly, lined with iron pillars, frozen pits, weighted chains, and stone platforms slick with ice. Cold winds swept through the field, sharp enough to cut skin.
An iron-blooded officer stood before them, bald, scarred, and expressionless.
Without a word, he raised a jade plaque.
A crushing force ripped through the air.
In the next instant, every recruit staggered as their cultivation was forcibly sealed.
The sudden emptiness left them reeling. Every recruit felt what it was like to be a mortal again, a sensation long forgotten.
The officer did not wait for reactions.
"Move."
That was the only command they received.
Dozens of recruits were driven toward a track carved along the base of a frozen cliff. They did not step on soil, but on ice that cracked and shifted underfoot.
The command flag dropped.
They ran.
Breath steamed. Muscles screamed. Without cultivation, every step felt like dragging stone. The ice tore at their shoes. The cold stabbed into their bones. Some slipped and fell, scraping their palms raw.
Chu Feng ran with steady breaths, his heartbeat calm despite the cold burning in his lungs. The experience reminded him of the insane training his master had put him through.
Ahead of him, a recruit collapsed. A guard dragged the unconscious body off the track without a word.
There were no second chances here.
Only forward.
He was not fast, but he kept going at a steady pace.
The run continued until legs shook uncontrollably. By the time they completed the circuit, half the recruits could barely stand. The rest were heaving heavily, Chu Feng included.
But this was only the beginning.
The next day,
Massive boulders, each inscribed with weight-increasing arrays, were placed before them.
No instructions were given.
The recruits understood.
They lifted.
Arms shook violently. Tendons strained. The cold bit into their skin like thousands of needles. Chu Feng tightened his grip, feeling the crushing weight press down onto his bones.
One recruit screamed as his fingers dislocated.Another collapsed, arms trembling uncontrollably.
Officers watched without a hint of sympathy.
Here, weakness was not corrected. It was culled.
Chu Feng's breath deepened, and not a trace of panic crossed his eyes.
He raised the boulder to his chest.
Sweat poured as he endured the weight, but he endured.
When the horn finally blew, many recruits fell to their knees, exhausted and trembling.
Chu Feng lowered the stone carefully, his hands numb and quivering. Then, as if on cue with the others, he collapsed to the ground, muscles burning, body exhausted.
Guards came to move all the collapsed bodies toward a giant pit of icy water.
The cold was so intense that frost rose in thick mist.
They threw the recruits into the pit. The biting qi of the water struck their bodies, and within minutes, the first few recruits screamed, jolted awake from their collapsed states.
Only those with strong mental fortitude and a solid foundation remained unconscious. The cold surged into their bones, sharp and merciless.
Their bodies screamed under the sensation of thousands of needles stabbing every nerve. Guards came and dragged them out. Those who were jolted awake were expelled.
The biting qi of the pool served a purpose. It tempered their meridians, widening the channels, and hardened their bones. The pain was immense, but it strengthened the body.
For Chu Feng, the effect was more profound. A torrent of energy seemed to be drawn into him, as if beckoned by a call. The medicinal residue remaining in his body was refined further, thickening and expanding his meridians.
The strain was extreme, but his consciousness began to expand slightly. This was another benefit of the pool, though it only worked when the body was in a weakened state and only on the first immersion. A second attempt would not produce the same effect.
When the horn finally signalled release, another recruit beside him woke up. Guards pulled him out just in time, sparing him from expulsion.
The soldiers looked at Chu Feng as if he were a monster.
They carried him and the remaining recruits back to the tent, still collapsed and shivering. Further away, someone took careful notes, observing which recruits had potential to become seeds for future power.
On the third day, they rested to digest their gains. On the fourth day, a towering stone wall loomed ahead, carved with ancient sigils that radiated spiritual pressure. The recruits stood before it, hearts pounding.
No climbing, no punching and running.
They were told to stand.
Just stand and withstand the pressure.
That was the trial.
The sigils activated.
A crushing wave of pressure forced them toward the ground. Recruits buckled instantly. Some clung to the snow with bleeding fingers. Others screamed silently as their lungs refused air.
Chu Feng felt the weight press into his mind, deeper than his bones. It squeezed his consciousness, testing its strength.
He closed his eyes.
He let the pressure wash over him.
His newfound mental clarity surged. His consciousness, having grown further since entering the Second Realm, resisted the crushing force with unwavering firmness. Though his knees trembled, he did not fall.
Minutes crawled into eternity.
Some fainted, while others vomited blood, and only a handful remained standing.
Chu Feng was among them.
When the sigils finally dimmed, the officer spoke.
"Those still standing, welcome to the Northern Border Army."
There was no praise.
Survival was merely the baseline.