Qi and Blood Breaks Through 10 Cal!

Wang Zhen's voice made the air throughout the training grounds seem to freeze.

A progress check!

Every student's nerves instantly went taut.

To them, Wang Zhen's progress checks were just like exams, and few students liked exams.

Except the top students.

For a moment, everyone's gaze instinctively swept toward the figure sitting in the front row, resting with his eyes closed from beginning to end.

Half a month had passed. How much further had this guy, who had made Zhao Jie his lackey on his second day after transferring in, grown?

Wang Zhen's sharp gaze slowly swept across the room before finally settling on Chen Fan for a full three seconds. The barely suppressed fervor and anticipation in his eyes were almost palpable.

"Same rules as always: test your qi and blood, then assess your stance and fist techniques." Wang Zhen's voice returned to its usual cold severity. "Li Wei, you're first."

"Yes!"

Li Wei took a deep breath and strode forward.

After half a month of grueling cultivation, aided by a basic qi and blood potion, he was full of confidence.

He planted himself in front of the testing device, lowered his waist into a stance, and slammed a textbook Five Elements Fist into the sensor plate.

Hum!

The light screen lit up, and the numbers jumped rapidly before settling.

[Qi and blood: 3.5 cal]

Seeing the number, Li Wei showed a trace of pride.

In half a month, he had gone from 2.8 to 3.5 cal. That rate of improvement put him in the upper middle of the class.

Wang Zhen, however, merely gave an indifferent nod. "Back in line."

The lukewarm response instantly dispelled most of Li Wei's pride.

He trudged back into line, unable to resist glancing at Chen Fan, a jumble of emotions in his heart.

"Next, Zhao Jie!"

Wang Zhen's voice abruptly rose.

Swish!

The entire class turned to look at him in unison.

The Zhao Jie of today was no longer the tagalong who followed at Chen Fan's heels. He was more like a guardian vajra, always stationed half a step behind Chen Fan's side.

Hearing his name, Zhao Jie thrust out his chest, his face showing an unprecedented focus and fervor.

He strode up to the testing device, but instead of punching immediately, he turned sharply to look at Chen Fan, whose eyes were still closed, as though drawing boundless strength from him.

Then he spun around to face the device, his chest heaving as he let out a roar that shook the whole room:

"For the boss!"

Boom!

The punch, infused with all his sweat, admiration, and determination not to fall behind over the past half month, slammed heavily into the sensor plate!

The numbers on the light screen jumped wildly with unprecedented force, rising noticeably faster than Li Wei's had!

Finally, the numbers came to a steady stop.

[Qi and blood: 4.5 cal]

"Hiss!"

A chorus of sharp intakes of breath rose from the crowd.

4.5 cal!

That number had nearly caught up to Chen Fan's record from half a month ago!

"Good!"

A rare, heartfelt smile finally bloomed on Wang Zhen's perennially frostbound face. He nodded firmly, his voice full of approval. "It seems that staying by a genius's side really can bring out a person's potential."

"Not bad!"

At the praise, Zhao Jie's face instantly flushed bright red. He proudly puffed out his chest like a little rooster that had won a fight and turned to look at Chen Fan with expectant eyes, eager for a word of recognition.

"Boss, what do you think? I didn't embarrass you, did I?"

Chen Fan, however, kept his eyes closed, his breathing long and steady, as though everything outside had nothing to do with him. Only when disappointment appeared in Zhao Jie's eyes did Chen Fan slowly utter a few words.

"Not bad!"

The excitement on Zhao Jie's face faltered, but it soon turned into even deeper admiration.

Look!

This is the realm of a master!

Mount Tai could collapse before him, and his expression wouldn't change!

Boss is showing me through his actions that this little bit of progress isn't even worth mentioning!

Seeing this, Wang Zhen thought nothing of it.

He cleared his throat, and the entire classroom instantly fell silent enough to hear a pin drop.

In an exceptionally solemn tone, he spoke the name everyone had been waiting to hear:

"Chen Fan."

Chen Fan opened his eyes, their depths as still as an ancient well.

He calmly stood and walked slowly to the testing device.

Everyone thought he would punch it directly to take the test, just like the others.

Chen Fan, however, did not.

Under the gaze of dozens of pairs of eyes, he spread his feet shoulder-width apart and slowly lowered his body.

It was an absolutely flawless opening form of the Five Elements Stance.

That opening form alone made Wang Zhen's pupils abruptly shrink to pinpricks!

That's not right!

This is no longer an entry-level stance technique!

Standing there now, Chen Fan seemed less a person than an ancient tree rooted deep in the earth.

An imposing aura, heavy and steady as a mountain, radiated from him. Qi and blood circulated within his body, causing even the air around him to ripple visibly.

His force flows freely and harmoniously, entirely at his command! This was a sign that his force had penetrated deep into his marrow and that he could circulate his qi and blood at will!

Five Elements Stance, minor mastery!

"Th-this... how is that possible?"

Wang Zhen's mind reeled. Half a month—only half a month to cultivate the Five Elements Stance from entry level to minor mastery?

This had already surpassed his understanding of what a genius could do!

But before anyone could recover from the shock, Chen Fan moved!

Without breaking his stance, his fist intent had already risen!

Using his minor-mastery Five Elements Stance as a foundation, he turned and unleashed a fierce Five Elements Fist!

Before his fist reached its target, a crisp explosive crack rang out in the air!

Crack!

It was no longer the dull sound of the entry level, but proof of power condensed to an extreme, tearing through the air!

Five Elements Fist, also at minor mastery!

The stance and fist techniques merged perfectly in Chen Fan. Every movement was filled with a sense of explosive power and rhythm, as though he were not practicing a fist technique, but performing an art of slaughter.

The final move!

Drawing on all the force of his movement and stance techniques, Chen Fan delivered a minor-mastery Five Elements Fist without the slightest flourish, planting it squarely on the cold sensor plate.

"Hum!"

The testing device emitted an unprecedented, violent buzz, as though it could barely bear the strain!

On the dark-blue light screen, the numbers surged like a wild dog that had slipped its leash, climbing at a speed that struck terror into the heart!

5.0!

7.0!

9.0!

The entire testing room was deathly silent.

Everyone held their breath, eyes wide and fixed on the wildly flickering light screen. Their hearts seemed to be gripped tightly by an invisible hand, even forgetting to beat.

The pride and admiration on Zhao Jie's face had long since frozen, replaced by blank, dazed disbelief.

Li Wei's mouth hung open, a gurgling sound coming from his throat, but he could not utter a single word.

At last, beneath everyone's stupefied gazes, the wildly jumping numbers finally began to slow, then came to a decisive stop.

They settled on a value that brought the entire space to a complete standstill.

[Qi and blood: 10.3 cal]

Time seemed to stop at that moment.

Wang Zhen stood rooted to the spot, his mind completely blank.

He stared fixedly at the glaring 10.3 on the light screen, then looked at the boy, only eight years old, who was slowly withdrawing his fist as though he had merely done something insignificant.

His Adam's apple bobbed with difficulty, and he murmured in a dreamlike voice only he could hear:

"Half a month... from 3.6 cal to 10.3 cal..."

"Fucking hell, what have I ever done to deserve teaching a monster like this?!"