Suppressing his smugness, Li Biao took the fitness test and scored 616.
Then he walked over to the Punch Force Tester, gathered his strength, and threw a punch!
[Punch Force: 626 kg, Body Control Degree: 90 points]
Seeing those numbers—especially the Body Control Degree of 90—the students who had still been harboring doubts immediately dismissed them. There was no way several precision instruments could all malfunction at once.
Li Biao had also become the first examinee so far to achieve a Body Control Degree of 90. His result was impressive, beyond question.
Han Zhen, the homeroom teacher, had been watching from the side. He was very pleased.
Half a month ago, after confirming that Chen Mochuan had awakened, he had also spoken with Li Biao. He had known for some time that Li Biao had joined the ranks of the Awakened, so he had expected his Blood-Qi Value to rise quickly.
But when Li Biao finished his three Punch Force tests and the system automatically recorded his scores, Han Zhen saw him still standing beside the machine, looking smug and refusing to leave. He guessed the kid wanted to "show off in front of everyone" and couldn't help finding it amusing.
In a good mood, he made a rare joke. "What are you still standing here for? Want to take over proctoring for me?"
Li Biao hurriedly shook his head. Then, looking rather "sheepish," he fled the testing area and returned to Chen Mochuan.
As soon as he was out of his homeroom teacher's sight, Li Biao put on his smug, beaming expression again. He waggled his eyebrows at Chen Mochuan. "Well, Brother Chuan? Would you say I stole the show this time?"
Seeing his best friend showing off like that, Chen Mochuan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Playing along, he teased, "I suppose so. I even heard a classmate gasp in shock just now."
Li Biao grinned and played along. "Well, that was great of him. He made an outstanding contribution to global warming."
A little while later, it was Jiang Hao's turn. He had ranked first in the grade on the previous monthly exam.
He turned in a scorecard of [Basic Physical Fitness: 725 points], [Blood-Qi Value: 7.75, Punch Force: 713 kg, Body Control Degree: 92 points], once again stunning the students.
Su Zhining, who went up after him, also achieved results on par with Jiang Hao: [Basic Physical Fitness: 723 points], [Blood-Qi Value: 7.65, Punch Force: 711 kg, Body Control Degree: 93 points].
"At a Blood-Qi Value above 7, those two still managed to increase by nearly 0.6 in a month. They're monsters!"
"They're Awakened, after all. It's normal for them to make rapid progress in the early stages of martial arts, but they might not necessarily get further than the rest of us in the end..."
"Could they become Martial Artists before the College Entrance Exam? Wouldn't that mean they'd be guaranteed a place at one of the Big Six?"
"That's way too hard! Just reaching a Blood-Qi Value of 10 isn't nearly enough to become a Mortal Shedding Martial Artist. They have to break through the limits of the human body's Essence Gate and undergo a transformation in their very level of existence."
"Wait, then does Li Biao's rapid increase in Blood-Qi Value mean he's awakened a Spirit Talent too?"
Once someone made that guess, it quickly won over some of the students. They cast envious looks at Li Biao, wishing they could awaken a Spirit Talent themselves.
Li Biao paid no attention to their looks. His attention was fixed on Jiang Hao and Su Zhining. The two of them seemed to have noticed something, too, and looked this way thoughtfully.
Li Biao looked away and pursed his lips, muttering, "Those two just awakened earlier than me. I'll catch up with them sooner or later!"
Chen Mochuan, however, didn't dwell on their results. He knew there was still a considerable gap between him and those two top students, and he wasn't going to let that give him unnecessary anxiety.
His student number was near the end of the list, but his turn was coming soon.
"Chen Mochuan!"
Han Zhen looked at the student in whom he had placed such high hopes, hoping he would surprise him. Half a month ago, Chen Mochuan's Blood-Qi Value had been 3.66. By now, he had surely broken through 4.
"Brother Chuan, they called you! Go on, go on!" Li Biao urged him repeatedly. He looked even more excited than he had when it was his own turn, eagerly waiting to see his good friend's performance.
Chen Mochuan glanced at his excited friend and felt a little helpless, but he didn't waste any time. He strode forward and calmly stepped into the Blood-Qi testing machine.
A soft yellow light flashed. After a brief beep, the screen atop the machine clearly displayed the result:
[Blood-Qi Value: 4.49]
The crowd immediately erupted in an uproar, louder than at any time before.
"Th-this can't be right, can it?"
"If I remember correctly, his Blood-Qi Value wasn't even 3 last month! That's an increase of over 1.5!"
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! The machine must be broken this time!"
The students watching began chattering among themselves.
This time, even Han Zhen—who had already prepared himself and set his expectations very high—was left gaping in shock.
That kind of terrifying rate of improvement was beyond what a Yellow-Grade Spirit Talent could achieve. There was a very high chance Chen Mochuan possessed the far rarer Mysterious-Grade Spirit Talent!
In all his years of teaching, he had seen plenty of students with Yellow-Grade Spirit Talents, but this was the first time he had ever encountered a seedling with a Mysterious-Grade Spirit Talent.
Lin Hong, standing nearby, was also a little dumbfounded. As the Stance Training teacher for the honors class, he had known in advance that Chen Mochuan had awakened, but no one had told him this student was so impressive.
He didn't even remember to restore order in the testing area right away. Instead, he instinctively checked whether the machine was working properly. Of course, everything was running as it should.
Throughout the entire Martial Arts Arena, only Chen Mochuan, the person at the center of it all, remained calm. Li Biao, who had known all along, was the only other one looking around at everyone's shocked expressions, secretly laughing to himself.
If they weren't still in the middle of the exam, he would have loved to use his Personal Terminal to capture this "gallery of expressions" as a keepsake.
Coming back to his senses, Lin Hong hurriedly called out to restore order, but the commotion did not die down right away.
It wasn't until Han Zhen also spoke up in a stern voice that the Martial Arts Arena gradually quieted down.
"The result is valid!" Han Zhen announced solemnly, then signaled for the exam to continue.
At the Basic Physical Fitness Testing Platform, Chen Mochuan scored 439. Then he went straight to the Punch Force Tester.
He knew that the power of a punch came not only from the arm, but began at the feet.
Only with a stance as solid as a mountain could he channel the strength of his whole body through every link in the chain and unleash it at a single point with minimal loss. So he spread his feet, bent his knees slightly, and planted himself firmly.
As he adjusted his breathing, his relaxed body tensed. His hips and waist sank, while the soles of his feet took root and gripped the ground.
Then he pushed off with both feet. The muscles in his legs coiled like springs, sending power surging upward through his body. His lower back snapped straight, and his shoulders spread like wings.
His right arm seemed to become a powerful bow drawn to its limit. In that instant, he drove the Clear Force striking technique to its utmost, and the strength of his entire body surged like a rushing torrent, gathering into his clenched right fist!
A muffled, solid "thump!" rang out. The instant his fist struck the striking pad, all that gathered power exploded!
The screen on the Punch Force Tester flickered, then clearly displayed the result: [Punch Force: 427 kg, Body Control Degree: 95 points].
Among those who had tested earlier, six had achieved a Body Control Degree of 90, and the highest score belonged to Su Zhining, at 93.
Now, Chen Mochuan had raised the record to 95 in one stroke, putting him at the top of his class—and, without a doubt, the top of the entire school.
Before you continue