We had some eggs for breakfast the following day, and I said goodbye to Brea. I found my way to the central square. As I walked down the road, I marveled at how advanced the city looked despite being on a planet with little to no technological advancement. I had left Breas shop a bit early to try and beat the traffic, but there were already hundreds of people going in a myriad of different directions as they started their day.

After about twenty minutes, I reached the central square, which was already filled with people. The courtyard was a large open area with a roofed job board in the center. Surrounding the area were small popup shops, stands, and people hawking their goods.

I made my way up to the job board and took a look. The board was not covered in tacked paper as I expected. It was a manna-powered display system that looked almost like an ancient computer screen. I placed my hand on the board, and a window popped up in front of me. I could swipe left and right or type in a search box to find different jobs.

There were hundreds of listings. I figured I would be here a few months, so I listed the gigs by expected length of employment. I scrolled past dozens of positions before I finally found one I knew I could get:

Position:

Interim Martial Arts Instructor

Length:

6 Months- 1 Year

Duty:

Instruct trainees on how to win at physical combat

Requirement:

Defeat the Captain of the guard. No manna use.

I smiled as I looked at the job. My Kung Fu was extremely high level. The position looked perfect for what I needed, and the simple requirements didn't mention anything about a background check or investigation into the applicant. I pushed the "Confirm Appointment" button on the soonest test slot available, which, as it happened, was in about 30 minutes.

I arrived at the building that the test was listed to be at and joined a line of three other applicants who had also shown up for the testing slot. A clerk walked out and briefly looked down her nose. She rolled her eyes, presumably noticing how young I looked.

She opened a scroll from a scroll. "Good morning, gentleman. This test is for the Interim Physical Combat instructor position." Rolling it back up, she continued, "We don't care about your history as long as you can train our recruits to win every time. The guard captain is named Kenneth. If you can beat him, you are qualified. Come this way!".

The secretary led us to a small arena where we sat awaiting our respective turns to face the Captain. Kenneth was huge. He had tree trunks for arms and a massive chest and waste. I was sure he could crush a horse with his bare hands even without using any manna. The two men in front of me stood up and walked out upon seeing the monster, and the gruff man behind me leered, "Kenenth is going to eat you up, little boy. What's a little princess like you doing here anyway?" I stifled my urge to turn the asshat into a past with an orbital strike and replied, "Why don't you show me how real men do it then?" I gestured with a slight bow and waved in front of me. "Surely you can show me whose boss?" The man swore, "Little shit," shoved me out of the way and stepped forward. "I'm ready!"

Kenneth shook the man's hand, and they squared up. The asshat got into a boxing stance, and the clerk ran a bell. Kenneth blurred forwards so fast my imperial upgrade chip had to augment my thoughts so I could see what was happening.

Kenneth swept the leg and throat and slammed the asshat into the ground. I looked at the unconscious man, and my mouth became parched. There was no way Kenneth wasn't using some manna technique or cultivation to move faster. I toggled the speed assist in my upgrade package as I stepped forwards for my turn.

Kenneth looked at me and asked, "You look a bit small. Are you sure you want to continue?" I smiled and nodded. "Yes, sir! If I may, it's not the size. It's how you use it."

Kenneth's lips broke into a smile. "Kid, I will double your starting salary if you can beat me without using manna."

I stepped into the ring and put my left foot forward in a classical ancient Sanda kickboxing stance. As the bell rung and Kenneth blurred forward, I performed a charge step and rotated into a Bajiquan double fist strike with both fists connecting with the arteries running on the sides of Kenneths' neck. The attack was potent as it leveraged the explosive power of the legs, enhanced by full-body torque but left my center unprotected. An ungodly pain blossomed in my stomach as my internal organs were ripped apart by Kenneths' jab through my stomach. His fist narrowly missed being obliterated on my upgraded spinal cord as it punctured all the way out my back.

Kenneth pulled his fist out and grinned before collapsing unconscious. My strike had crushed the arteries going to his brain.

I was losing a lot of blood, but I did not go into shock as my imperial nanites rushed to knit me back together, but I could hardly stand on my feet as the amount of pain was not stemmed by my upgrades.

A healer ran forward, and blue light streamed from her fingertips towards Kenneth. The ashen color soon left his face as the healer repaired his destroyed veins.

I was starting to get hazy from blood loss and the pain. I fell on my ass and tried to

breathe. It was my turn next, and I felt a cool numbness wash all the pain away as the healer poured manna into me.

We were both fully recovered about twenty minutes later, and Kenneth gestured for me to sit in one of the chairs. "So you're pretty good for a kid! I have been the Captain here for ten years and never saw a technique like that. What's it called?" It looked like I might get hired. "Well, sir, it is an ancient technique from a very far away land. It's called Bajiquan. It is little known but highly feared by those who know about it because it requires the practitioner to be willing to sacrifice their life to deliver a killing blow. I thought it matched the description of the job requirement."

Kenneth replied, "It's true you won, but I'm concerned that it put you out of action as well." "Respectfully, sir," I replied. "It is also known as the "bodyguard style" as it was used to prioritize the survival of the emperor. Shouldn't the city guard be willing to die to defend their country?"

Kenneth stood up. "Well said, young man, and I can't deny the power of your technique. You're hired! Double salary as I promised." He handed me a paper. "You start tomorrow morning! Show up here at 5 AM sharp. The recruits will be lined up and awaiting your inspection. I will evaluate your progress after a month. If you pass that, you get to stay six months or longer if the head trainer doesn't come back on time" Kenneth shook my hand, and I departed.

I hurried from the guard building and took my contract to the government building that approved identification cards and housing. I was able to procure a small studio apartment without waiting after showing the work contract I got from the guard. No one seemed suspicious of me, and no one had any strange comments. I pulled up my stats before going to bed.

Stats

Category

Description

Skill

Body

Permanent bone structure augment (UNKNOWN MATERIAL)

Immortal/regeneration when damaged

Mind

Memory bank augment/link to CPU

Photographic Memory

Spirit

3%

YOU'RE A NOOBIE. DON'T GET POSSESSED!

Kung Fu

Skill transferred from origin

Master

Manna Use

Ability to manipulate manna and cast spells

3.001

Path of cultivation

Overcome, and you can rule the mortals

0%

Close Combat

Hydraulic blades attached to the bone structure in your forearms

Cut through most materials with your fancy atom-sized blades

Ranged Combat

Orbital Strike--Choose between a kinetic strike or laser

Did that city block annoy you?

I was disappointed that I hadn't made much progress with my manna use since it was pretty easy to develop. I wanted to be able to throw fireballs, heal and cast other cool spells besides getting better at inscribing. Before I fell asleep, I resolved to try and find a trainer to help me while I was in the city.