Blood Qi Test—Isn't This Guy a Little Too Monstrous?

The next morning, first-floor hall of Linjiang District Third High School's Martial Arts Pavilion.

The hall had been temporarily converted into a school-wide monitoring site. Ten state-of-the-art Blood Qi testing devices stood in an arc, with each class's martial arts teacher organizing their own students while Academic Affairs Office teachers recorded the results.

The overall atmosphere was solemn, yet tense.

More than four hundred students from the eight Grade 12 classes would compete here.

"By class order, Class One will begin. Come forward in groups of ten." The dean of academic affairs announced from the center of the hall. Standing among the Class Five students, Lin Ye swept his gaze across the hall and spotted several of the school's prominent figures.

Chu Tiange from Class One was said to have inherited the teachings of high-level martial artists. He had broken through to the Late Body Tempering Stage in his second year of high school and was universally acknowledged as the top student in the grade. He stood at the front of Class One's line, calm and detached, with a natural circle of empty space around him.

Su Xiao, the martial arts class representative of Class Four, was one of only two exceptionally talented girls. Her Rolling Stone Fist was said to be on the verge of Consummation, and she practiced other martial skills as well. She was currently chatting quietly with the girls beside her, occasionally glancing toward Chu Tiange with an unyielding sharpness in her eyes.

And then there was... Chen Mo from Class Six. Unlike the other two, he was famous for something different—he was the school's universally acknowledged king of grinders.

The testing began.

"Class One, Chu Tiange—"

At the call of his name, Chu Tiange walked to Testing Device No. 1 and lightly pressed his palm against it.

Three seconds later, the screen lit up: [Blood Qi Value: 475 cal]

The entire hall erupted.

475!

That number showed that he had firmly entered the Peak Body Forging Stage and had already reached its middle phase. Among all Grade 12 students in Qingjiang Province, his Blood Qi Value was likely among the very best.

Chu Tiange calmly withdrew his hand and returned to his line as though he had merely done something trivial. "Class One, Liu Hao—329."

"Class One, Wang Yuxin—292..."

Class One's overall strength was formidable. Four of its ten students had Blood Qi Values above 300, while two others were close to it.

Next came Class Two, then Class Three...

When it was Class Four's turn, Su Xiao stepped up.

She placed her palm on the sensor. Three seconds later, the screen flashed: [Blood Qi Value: 451 cal]

Another Peak Body Forging Stage!

Cheers immediately erupted from Class Four's line. Su Xiao smiled faintly, and as she returned to her place, she deliberately glanced at Chu Tiange.

"Class Five, Li Weiwei—"

Hearing her name, Li Weiwei walked forward, drew a deep breath, and placed her palm on the device. The numbers on the screen climbed: 300, 350, 400... before finally settling on: [427]

Late Body Tempering Stage. She was not far from the 450 points required for the Peak Body Forging Stage.

Seeing this, Zheng Huai revealed a gratified smile. This student, the one he was proudest of in the class, had not disappointed him.

"Class Five, Zhang Zhen—403!"

Still the Late Body Tempering Stage, but the improvement was considerable.

"Class Five, Zhao Qiang—352!"

Still the Late Body Tempering Stage, but he had already taken a big step forward within it.

"Class Five, Zhou Qian—327."

"Class Five, Li Yang—285..."

Group after group of results was announced. Class Five's performance so far had been quite impressive as well; several had already broken through to the Late Body Tempering Stage, while several others lingered at the threshold.

At last, it was Lin Ye's group's turn. He walked to Testing Device No. 7, where a stern middle-aged female teacher was in charge of recording the results.

"Name, class."

"Lin Ye, Grade 12 Class 5."

"Alright. Put your hand on it."

At that, Lin Ye pressed his right hand against the sensor. The device emitted a low hum as a faint electric sensation seeped into his body, scanning the vitality of every inch of his flesh and blood.

Three seconds later, the screen displayed: [Blood Qi Value: 218 cal]

"Class Five, Lin Ye—218!"

The middle-aged teacher recording the results calmly announced the number, and Class Five's line immediately exploded into an uproar.

"How much did Lin Ye get? 218?"

"Holy shit, 33 points in fifteen days? This guy is way too monstrous."

"Exactly. He was only at 185 in the test half a month ago. This rate of improvement... it's insane."

"No way. I'm a Martial Arts Student who eats enhancement-grade meals every day, and I only improve by 10 to 15 points a month. Is that even reasonable?"

"Why wouldn't it be? What grade is your Stake Training at, and what grade is his?"

"Isn't it just Proficient Grade? The class monitor and Old Zhang only improved by 20 to 30 points too."

"You've trained yourself stupid. Did you forget that Blood Qi gets harder to raise the further you go?"

"Has anyone noticed something terrifying? He was only at 138 points last month. That means Lin Ye improved by 80 points in just over a month."

Hiss!

Quite a few Class Five students realized this, and the way they looked at Lin Ye was as though they were looking at a monster.

"218, this kid..."

Only after hearing the quiet discussions among his students did Zheng Huai, standing at the front of the line, react. He remembered that Lin Ye had only been at 138 points during last month's test, yet now he had soared to 218—a full 80-point increase.

Eighty points, with Proficient Stake Training?

A trace of suspicion appeared on his face as he scrutinized Lin Ye.

Although Proficient Stake Training could greatly boost one's Blood Qi Value, progress this fast meant that, aside from the effects of Nutrient Agents, the kid's Stake Training must have risen another grade. Only that could explain such a massive improvement.

At this thought, Zheng Huai felt that his guess was close to the truth and could not help showing a gratified smile.

It seemed he had been somewhat one-sided in assuming that the 185 points from the last test had merely been due to the Nutrient Agents Lin Ye's family bought.

"This guy..."

Zhao Qiang muttered, his expression complicated.

His Blood Qi Value had been 325 last month and was now 352, an increase of 27 points. It seemed like quite a lot, but compared to Lin Ye, the sense of superiority that improvement had brought him vanished without a trace. Even though he consoled himself that Blood Qi improved more slowly the further one progressed, he still found it hard to calm his somewhat dejected mood.

Zhou Qian covered her mouth, her eyes round as saucers. "Lin Ye, what kind of Spirit Elixir did you take? How did you improve so fast?"

Zhang Zhen looked at Lin Ye, lost in thought. "Does he have an abnormally high Nutrient Agent absorption rate? Or did his Stake Training improve again?"

Li Weiwei gave Lin Ye a long look without saying anything, but her eyes were thoughtful, as though she had guessed something.

Meanwhile, Wang Tao, standing at the back of the line, heard Lin Ye's result and shouted outright, "Brother Night, you're awesome!"

Students from the other classes heard the commotion in Class Five and cast puzzled looks their way.

"What happened in Class Five?"

"How much did that Lin Ye test at? Why are they so worked up?"

"Seems like 218... That score is pretty ordinary. What's there to get excited about?"

"That's because you don't know. His Blood Qi Value was only 185 when he tested half a month ago."

"Wait, 185 points half a month ago... and now 218? Holy shit!"

"And that's not all. I heard he was only at 138 when he tested a little over a month ago."

"What? Holy shit!"

Truly, one "holy shit" could travel the world.

This time, low murmurs rose from the other classes as well. After all, an increase of 33 points in half a month and 80 points in just over a month sounded far too frightening.

Even the martial arts teachers from the other classes were deeply shocked by that rate of improvement. Lin Ye's progress had somewhat shattered their ingrained understanding.

Facing the discussions around him, Lin Ye acted as though he had heard nothing and calmly returned to his class's line. He knew that this result would certainly draw attention, but not excessive attention. After all, it was universally acknowledged that Blood Qi became harder to improve the further one progressed. Going from 138 to 218 could still be seen as merely rapid progress in the early stages; whether he could maintain that pace later remained unknown. Moreover, a Blood Qi Value of 218, at the Body Forging Mid-Stage, ranked rather low among the school's Martial Arts Students. So there might be some attention on him, but not much—just a novelty, unlikely to linger afterward.

Sure enough, just as he expected.

A moment later, the discussion about him gradually died down, and people turned their attention to the latest Blood Qi progress of others.