Chapter 140: Another Victory

"Please!" David returned to the arena holding his spear, standing five meters from Jeffrey, and spoke.

General Alvin and Mervyn, appearing via holographic projection, watched David with intense curiosity. This young genius had already surprised them too many times. It was not uncommon for armored soldiers to practice multiple weapons, but mastering one required long hours of training and constant combat. Consequently, the vast majority of soldiers chose a single weapon to achieve specialization.

Since David had chosen the spear, it implied that his spear mastery surpassed his warhammer mastery. At his age, achieving peak proficiency in a warhammer was already astonishing; could his spear mastery really be even higher?

Galen was also watching David. He had been keeping a close eye on him, so he knew that David had used a Grade 2 spear during his battle against the peak-level armored soldier. However, he did not know the extent of David’s mastery, and he felt a profound sense of curiosity himself.

"Kill!" Jeffrey tightened his grip on his heavy axe, his eyes locked onto David. He let out a roar, channeling all his strength into the weapon. As a genius of the younger generation, his strength reached 1,900 kilograms—nearly that of a peak-level soldier—and combined with his expert-level axe mastery, he feared nothing of David’s vibration power.

It was his firm belief that all techniques were mere illusions in the face of absolute power. Having watched David’s previous fights, he had already assessed his strength: if Arlo had possessed just a bit more power, David would have been injured during their weapon clash. David’s 1,200 kilograms of force was exceptionally strong for his age, but this was not a fight against his peers. Jeffrey was nearly thirty; to him, that level of strength was truly insignificant.

Just as Jeffrey unleashed his full-force strike, David moved. The spear in his hands erupted with an unstoppable momentum as he thrust it toward Jeffrey.

Across from him, Jeffrey felt a terrifying intent to kill wash over him. A sense of helplessness rose in his heart, and under the influence of that chilling intent, his muscles involuntarily stalled. It reminded him of the many times he had faced death; this time, he felt as if the Grim Reaper were grinning at him.

As David thrust the spear, his spirit merged with the weapon. The air seemed to offer no resistance, and the spear transformed into a ghostly shadow.

"No!" Daryl’s eyes sharpened. His body was instantly encased in black armor, and he surged forward, appearing beside Jeffrey as if he had teleported. However, his movements were nowhere near as fast as David’s thrust. Fortunately, David had no real intention of killing when he struck.

Jeffrey stood frozen, maintaining his axe-lifting posture. Cold sweat trickled from his hair into his eyes, yet he dared not blink. A spearhead was pressed against his throat. In that split second, David’s spear had pierced the air, reaching Jeffrey’s neck before he could make a single move.

Had it gone even a fraction of an inch further, David’s spear would have severed Jeffrey’s artery.

Daryl’s hand stopped in mid-air. From the moment he donned his armor to the moment he intervened in the fight, his speed had been terrifying, yet he was still a step too slow.

"You concede," David said, withdrawing his spear and nodding at Jeffrey. He then looked at Daryl, waiting for a response.

"Jeffrey has failed. We have lost this duel," Daryl said in a deep voice. Although he had lost a vial of marrow essence from a Space Ripper and the right to compete for its core, he no longer cared about those things. He stared at David with a look of extreme disbelief.

"My goodness, this is Master-level spear mastery! Such a young Spear Master—Galen, your luck is truly incredible!" General Alvin could no longer maintain his composure and exclaimed.

Galen was also stunned. His own warhammer mastery was only at the peak of proficiency. It wasn’t a lack of talent, but rather that since becoming an Ascendant, he rarely fought against peers of his own level. As a result, his peak-level warhammer mastery had not progressed for years. Not just him, but none of the four Ascendants present had reached Master-level mastery in any weapon.

Across the entire Granite Planet, one could count the number of Master-level weapon users on one hand. None of them were under a hundred years old; it took a century of refinement and a spiritual talent to have any chance of breaking through to that level. If David’s vibration talent had surprised the Ascendants, then his Master-level spear mastery truly shocked them.

A vibration talent was a sign of a genius, and while rare, such individuals did emerge. But Master-level weapon mastery at David’s age was simply too shocking; it required such profound research into the spear that it couldn't be faked.

"Galen, this isn't fair. Bringing a Spear Master to compete? With this level of mastery, let alone young disciples, even peak-level soldiers would find it hard to defeat David!" Daryl turned to Galen, speechless, completely forgetting that he had been the one to specify that David should fight.

"Daryl, are you going back on your word after losing?" Galen asked with a smile.

"I concede. Who said I wouldn't?" Daryl looked toward the two adjudicators. Even Mervyn, whom he had invited, would not allow him to go back on his word. If he dared to renege, his reputation in the circle would be ruined, and no one would ever cooperate with him again.

"Galen, you really are something. If you had said your disciple was a Spear Master, who would have challenged you?" Mervyn laughed.

"If I told you I only just found out myself, would you believe me?" Galen replied helplessly.

Even General Alvin looked at Galen with an expression that suggested he thought they were fools; clearly, he didn't believe him.

"Forget it, believe what you want!" Galen gave up on explaining, but his face was filled with joy as he looked at David.

"David, when did you reach Master-level spear proficiency? Why have I never heard you mention it?" He patted David on the shoulder and asked with a smile.

"It was during that fight with Kush. I broke through subconsciously while in a desperate situation," David answered truthfully.

"Good, truly good! But don't you dare neglect your warhammer training," Galen said with a laugh after understanding what had happened.

"I will work hard," David nodded.

"Galen, it’s a waste to leave such a disciple with you. If Barker knew about David’s talent, he would definitely fight you for him!" General Alvin shook his head. The Barker he referred to was another Ascendant in the military who specialized in the spear.

"If Barker lowered his strength and speed to David’s level, would his spear be better than David’s?" Galen retorted, staring him down.

"And what about you?" Daryl interjected with a jab.

"If I used a warhammer and lowered my strength and speed to match David’s, even he wouldn't be as good as me!" Galen said with absolute confidence.

Daryl was left speechless by Galen’s retort.

"Galen, remember to send me an invitation to the official apprenticeship ceremony!" General Alvin reminded him with a smile.

"Don't forget me either!" Mervyn added. Neither of them was present in person; seeing David through a virtual projection was far less direct than meeting him face-to-face, where they could observe much more.

"No problem, I’ll send the invitations in a few days!" Galen agreed with a grin. He then turned to Mervyn and said, "David hasn't received his official Armored Soldier certification yet. I’ll arrange for someone to take him tomorrow. I’ll need you to look after him then!"

"A genius like David will have no problem passing the certification. If he can't pass, who could?" Mervyn replied.

"Mervyn, don't play dumb. I mean that according to the rules, after David passes his certification, he’s entitled to purchase exoskeleton armor and weapons corresponding to his profession at half price from the Armored Soldier Association. Don't be stingy—make sure he has some high-quality gear to choose from!" Galen pointed a finger at him.

"Cough, cough. Everything will be done according to the rules. At most, I’ll give him some special attention," Mervyn cleared his throat.

If David weren't Galen’s disciple, the Association would have paid any price to keep such a talent. But since David was already Galen’s student, the Association wasn't foolish enough to hand out benefits to an outsider.