Chen Yan easily lifted the two-hundred-kilogram stone weight, leaving even himself a little surprised.
Two hundred kilograms was already far beyond what people his age could manage.
Hu Yuan could lift two hundred kilograms because he was naturally sturdy, and his family had invested heavily in his training. He was among the best in the class.
As for the average student, they could only manage around one hundred and twenty kilograms.
There was a thud.
Chen Yan set the stone weight down and flexed his hands, his gaze turning strange.
It seemed...
Even after deadlifting this two-hundred-kilogram stone weight, he hadn't reached his limit...
Just how much strength had the two Saint Breaking Fruits given him?
Feeling around in the dark, Chen Yan could just make out a larger stone weight nearby, with [250 KG] carved into it.
Two hundred and fifty kilograms...
He'd give it a try!
Chen Yan took a deep breath, rubbed some dry soil from the flowerbed beside the park onto his hands, then gripped the iron bar embedded in the two-hundred-and-fifty-kilogram stone weight.
"Mm!"
Chen Yan grunted. Blood rushed up his neck toward his jaw, and he poured every ounce of strength into his legs, straining upward.
Scrape, scrape, scrape...
The enormous stone weight ground against the ground.
"Whew..." Chen Yan let go.
He'd failed.
But after using every ounce of his strength, he had managed to shift it.
That proved his maximum deadlift was probably not far below two hundred and fifty kilograms.
That was enough.
To make such a huge improvement after only a few days of training was downright unbelievable.
His strength might now be far greater than Chen Yuxu's, after years of wielding a wok.
He just didn't know whether he could punch with a force of one hundred and sixty kilograms.
Deadlifting two hundred kilograms didn't mean he could punch with that much force using one hand.
Skill and raw strength were entirely different paths.
"I should... be able to pass, right?" Chen Yan murmured.
He went to the stone weight marked [100 KG] and continued his deadlifts.
Now that he had more or less tested his limits, he still had to build his strength gradually.
Unlike running, strength training couldn't be done all afternoon. Even a whole night's practice wouldn't be enough for Chen Yan to condense another Saint Breaking Fruit.
If he overdid it, he'd be too worn out to do any other training the next day.
"Whew... ha..."
Chen Yan began training with the one-hundred-kilogram stone weight. Before he'd even done ten lifts, sweat had soaked him from head to toe.
His heart pounded as if its power had suddenly surged, while a fierce burn seized both his arms.
But Chen Yan's attention had shifted from the real world to the Consciousness World.
In the depths of the boundless universe, a streak of orange light drifted toward him like a river, slowly sinking into the roots of the Saint Breaking Tree.
This orange streak was far brighter and more dazzling than the one he had gained from running.
After about twenty deadlifts, new green growth appeared on the branch that had once borne the [Strength] Character Saint Breaking Fruit.
On the Data Panel, the line that read [Saint Breaking Fruit:
Strength: (0/100)] suddenly changed.
[Saint Breaking Fruit:
Strength: (2/100)]
A glint appeared in Chen Yan's eyes. Although the change in the data had no effect on the outside world,
seeing it made his strength training feel less exhausting. He could feel the pleasure of dopamine surging through him.
The data was like a visible goal laid out just for Chen Yan.
Even though anaerobic exercise was agony, the excitement in his heart was real.
The training plan he'd made in his head vanished in an instant. Now Chen Yan was like a reckless brute, unwilling to stop until he was completely spent.
The stone weight hit the ground with a heavy thud.
It felt as if all the strength had been drained from his body. Chen Yan collapsed onto the ground, and every pore seemed to open as sweat poured off him like a breached dam.
He rubbed his arms and spat out the sweat that had trickled to his lips.
He still managed to hold back, saving a little strength. Now he began massaging his arms.
He'd rest for a while, then go again and do a few more sets.
[Saint Breaking Fruit:
Strength: (4/100)]
It had risen to four. It felt great.
It was around eleven at night. The night breeze stirred the leaves in the park, whispering through them as it brushed against him, drying the sweat and leaving a cool, refreshing feeling.
"I lost another fifty today. Hey, you're treating us, Li Ming—you have to!"
"My treat, my treat. I'll buy everyone a good drink the day after tomorrow."
Outside the park, two or three bare-chested men walked by, laughing. Each had a cigarette in one hand and a beer in the other, their bellies sticking out as they chatted in comfort.
Suddenly, a man named Li Ming paused and peered suspiciously into the park. The night was deep and dark, and he couldn't make out what was going on inside.
By the faint light, he could just make out a bare-chested young man lifting a stone weight.
"Wonder whose kid that is. He's really working hard," Li Ming praised.
"Maybe it's Yu Zhiwen. That kid works hard. She's already awakened her Qi and Blood."
As they spoke, they walked away.
Chen Yan hadn't heard their conversation very clearly.
After the first set, his body still felt fine. But by the second set, the ache seemed to have climbed to an entirely new level.
What a burn.
But when he saw the Saint Breaking Fruit's progress in his Consciousness World rise by another point, Chen Yan felt that no matter how tired he was, it was worth it.
It was one in the morning when Chen Yuxu, exhausted after a full day's work, slowly pedaled his tricycle near the park.
Chen Yuxu immediately pulled the handbrake, staring in astonishment at the slender figure sitting by the roadside.
Moonlight draped Chen Yan in silver. His wet upper body glimmered with tiny points of light. His head drooped as sweat dripped from his hair, leaving a large wet patch in front of the stone steps.
"Dad, let's go home."
Chen Yan picked up the clothes he'd left beside him, stood, and smiled.
[Saint Breaking Fruit:
Strength: (16/100)]
By the end, the exhaustion and soreness had reached their peak, but the fruit's growth seemed even faster than before.
It was as if everything was telling him: Do one more. Hold on for one more second.
Chen Yan, you'll gain everything!
Looking at his son, Chen Yuxu pressed his trembling lips together. He wanted to say something, but in the end, it turned into a smile.
"Get on."
Chen Yan sat beside Chen Yuxu. The tricycle seat was long enough for two, with room to spare.
"Don't push yourself too hard. You're exhausted. Be careful you don't fall sick again."
"I'm fine."
"Hey, you..."
"Dad, don't go to the back hill. It's dangerous there."
"Hey, now you're lecturing me."
"Someone died on the back hill recently. I think it won't be hard for me to awaken Qi and Blood before the College Entrance Exam."
"All right. I won't go."
The next day, Chen Yan went to school as usual.
By senior year, they had very few academic classes left. Most of the time, teachers led the students in training.
That afternoon, Head Teacher Wang Yang led the students to the Sports Field.
"Today, I'll teach you the fifteenth lesson in the basic boxing techniques: Eight Character Skill."
"To awaken Qi and Blood, you have to keep breaking through your limits and find different ways to push past them. Running, practicing boxing, even pull-ups—all of them can help."
As Wang Yang spoke, his gaze swept over Chen Yan, and a strange feeling stirred in his heart.
For some reason, Chen Yan seemed to have changed a great deal.
In the crowd, Chen Yan looked again at the statue beside the Sports Field.
The statue's face belonged to a rugged-looking young man. He was simply sitting in a basic boxing stance.
In the Consciousness World, golden Flowing Light appeared once more, only to be blocked by an invisible barrier three feet from the Saint Breaking Tree, where it faded away.
Chen Yan was full of questions. The golden light represented Skill Energy.
Why did simply looking at this Bronze Statue give him such a huge amount of Skill Energy?
At the front, Head Teacher Wang Yang had already begun demonstrating the movements of Eight Character Skill.
Since he couldn't absorb any more golden light for now, Chen Yan began following along with Eight Character Skill.
Then he suddenly paused.
When he watched Wang Yang practicing his punches, there was golden light in the Consciousness World too, but it was so faint there was almost none at all.
"That makes sense. Learning Eight Character Skill is learning a skill, too," Chen Yan murmured.
"Class Three, Zhang Qingsi! Teacher Xia wants to see you!"
Just then, a tall boy at the edge of the Sports Field called out to Chen Yan's class.
A wave of envious cheers rose from the class.
"That's Wang Yu from Class Two. Teacher Xia Tong, the head of instruction, called Zhang Qingsi for private training."
"Tsk, I'm so jealous. Teacher Xia Tong is really good at teaching."
"Being jealous won't help. Zhang Qingsi has already awakened Qi and Blood."
At the front, Head Teacher Wang Yang nodded to Zhang Qingsi. Amid the envious stares, Zhang Qingsi ran over to Wang Yu.
Nearby, Hu Yuan watched Zhang Qingsi leave in silence. He saw Chen Yan at the back of the class practicing punches alongside Wang Yang. His lips parted as if he wanted to say something, but then he couldn't be bothered.
While practicing his punches, Chen Yan kept an eye on the changes in the Saint Breaking Realm.
[Saint Breaking Fruit:
Strength: (33/100)]
In the Consciousness World, the orange fruit representing the [Strength] Character Saint Breaking Fruit had grown to the size of a jujube. As Chen Yan practiced his punches, waves of orange flames drifted slowly from the boundless darkness.
Every inch of light represented a drop of Chen Yan's sweat.
Extend, intercept, wrap, cross, lift, press, cloud, lead.
Chen Yan's punches cut through the air with a sharp whoosh. His steps shook the ground, drawing puzzled glances from some of his classmates.
"Has he gotten stronger?"
Wang Yang watched Chen Yan, unable to hide his surprise. The students might not notice and might only think Chen Yan was putting more force into his punches, but Wang Yang knew better.
Chen Yan's technique was far from standard.
In the Consciousness World, golden light began to mingle with the orange Flowing Light. The orange was dazzling enough to obscure it.
About forty minutes later, students throughout the class began calling out that they were tired. Practicing Eight Character Skill nonstop was exhausting, even if the movements weren't large.
Quite a few students were already sitting on the grass before Wang Yang had called for a break.
Wang Yang didn't pay it any mind.
In fact, nearly a fifth of Class Three had already begun skipping class.
He would have tried to rein them in if they'd been first- or second-years, but now they were seniors. Every student had to make their own choices.
"The whole class can take a break. We'll keep going in a bit."
As soon as Wang Yang spoke, a chorus of complaints rang out. The students who were still practicing fell across the Sports Field like grass flattened by the wind, scattered out on the ground.
Wang Yang glanced around. There was only one person still practicing punches across the entire field.
It was Chen Yan.
Wang Yang didn't interrupt him. He simply watched in silence.
On the grass, Hu Yuan glanced at Chen Yan, the trace of annoyance in his eyes growing even more obvious. He decided that out of sight meant out of mind, and started chatting with a few classmates.
Time passed slowly. As it neared the end of the school day, Chen Yan's body reached its limit again.
Suddenly, an unexpected sound came from his fist. Chen Yan froze. A flash of red light flickered across his knuckles.
The change lasted only an instant, but inside the Saint Breaking Realm, a great mass of red light appeared.
The [Blood] Character Saint Breaking Fruit began growing rapidly.
[Saint Breaking Realm: Level One (2/3)]
[Saint Breaking Fruit:
Strength: (54/100)
Blood: (7/100)]
In an instant, a blood-red fruit the size of a quail egg ripened.
Chen Yan paused. What had just happened?
He really had punched out a red glow, hadn't he?
In the office building, Principal Zhang Yue and the head of instruction were chatting over cigarettes.
"The Town Martial Bonus has already been decided, right? Yu Zhiwen, Wang Yu, and Zhang Qingsi," Xia Tong said.
"That doesn't seem right. If it's decided in advance, the students will probably be unhappy," Zhang Yue said hesitantly.
"What's wrong with that? Can any of them beat those three?" Xia Tong said indifferently.
"I'm not afraid of criticism. I chose those three for private training because they have the best talent and the greatest strength."
Zhang Yue hesitated even more. Her gaze swept across the Sports Field, passing Chen Yan without much thought. Then she suddenly froze, her pupils gradually narrowing, and looked toward Xia Tong.
"You're already making a lot of students unhappy by privately training just those three. How about adding a few more?"
"Hm?" Xia Tong furrowed his brow. Weren't they talking about deciding the bonus in advance?
"Forget it. I'm going to train them." Xia Tong waved his hand and left.
It wasn't that he didn't want to privately train more students. The problem was, did any of the others have talent?
Why would he do something with no investment value?
Had he just made a Red Light appear?
Chen Yan was a little dazed. Not only had he made a red glow appear, he had clearly felt his fist make contact with someone else's!
What a strange sensation. There was clearly no one beside him.
And the red glow was supposed to mean his Qi and Blood had awakened, right?
But he didn't feel the slightest difference now.
Just then, Head Teacher Wang Yang called out:
"Chen Yan, come over here."
Wang Yang gave Chen Yan a satisfied look, then took a bottle of drink from the briefcase at his feet.
"Everyone has seen how well Chen Yan has done these past few days. Yesterday, the three class head teachers discussed it privately, and we decided to reward today's hardest-working student with a bottle of Qi and Blood Drink."
Wang Yang held the drink out to Chen Yan.
"Chen Yan, congratulations on winning this bottle of Qi and Blood Drink!"
As soon as Wang Yang finished speaking, the entire class looked at Chen Yan differently. Qi and Blood Drink! A bottle cost five hundred yuan.
In a town like theirs, five hundred yuan was a huge sum.
Hu Yuan stared at the bottle of Qi and Blood Drink, his expression sour. His dad had given him three thousand yuan, but he couldn't spend it however he wanted.
His eyes were full of jealousy. Why did Chen Yan get the Qi and Blood Drink?
If only he hadn't taken a break just now.
"Teacher, this... it's too precious." Chen Yan was a little stunned as he looked at Wang Yang.
"Rewards are for people who work hard." Wang Yang smiled and opened the cap. "I'll watch you drink it."
Chen Yan pressed his lips together. His little scheme had been seen through. He nodded, took the Qi and Blood Drink, and gulped it down.
A sweet taste slid down his throat, and a warm sensation instantly spread through his stomach.
It was sweet and refreshing.
Chen Yan was marveling at the taste when he suddenly noticed a Red Light appear in his Consciousness World, slowly drifting beneath the roots of the Saint Breaking Tree.
On the Saint Breaking Tree, a hint of fresh green suddenly appeared on a withered branch.
[Saint Breaking Fruit: Blood: (8/100)]
It had grown a little more.
A glint flashed in Chen Yan's eyes.
"Finish it. You look pretty thirsty." Wang Yang's voice rang out again. Chen Yan nodded and drank the remaining half.
Without hesitation, Chen Yan gulped down the rest of the bottle under the envious or jealous gazes of his classmates.
[Saint Breaking Fruit: Blood: (9/100)]
Before you continue