Result, Losing Face

Lei Hong already held significant prestige among these elders, and now, he seemed to be even more highly regarded.

Regarding this, Fang Chang seemed to have accepted it with equanimity, standing there with a faint smile still on his face.

"Today, who will go first?"

Hong Lei smiled and continued.

"Brother Hong, let me try first!"

Wu Yu said directly.

Immediately, he stepped up to the two-hundred-pound stone lock and gripped it tightly with both hands.

He exerted a sudden burst of strength, yet he could only lift it three feet high before he was unable to go any further.

After holding it for about two breaths, he had no choice but to give up.

Next, he went to the one-hundred-and-ninety-pound stone lock.

Not only did he quickly hoist this stone lock above his head, but he also successfully held it for three breaths.

"Not bad. Fang Chang, record it: Wu Yu, one hundred and ninety pounds!"

Hong Lei turned to look at Fang Chang and smiled.

Fang Chang said nothing more; he picked up the pen and paper that had been prepared and began to record.

"Truly impressive. Wu Yu is worthy of being last time's first place. In just ten days, his strength has actually increased by nearly twenty pounds. I fear this time's first place will belong to him once again!"

"Having a meat meal every day really makes a difference. I reckon my own strength only increased by five pounds over these ten days!"

Many people looked at Wu Yu with envy.

Especially those few newcomers who had arrived not long ago; let alone lifting a one-hundred-and-ninety-pound stone lock, they would likely find it difficult to even lift one hundred pounds.

As for Chen Pi, Gu Ming, and Chen Yong, who had also mastered the Five Animals Fist, they all felt immense pressure at this moment.

There were only three spots in total for the free meat rations, and barring any surprises, Wu Yu had already firmly secured one.

This meant they could only compete for the remaining two spots.

"My turn!"

Just as Wu Yu returned to the crowd with a smile on his face, and before Hong Lei could speak again, Chen Pi walked straight to the one-hundred-and-ninety-pound stone lock.

Under the gaze of everyone, although he managed to lift the stone lock above his head, he only held it for two breaths.

"Chen Pi, record one hundred and eighty-five pounds!"

Hong Lei nodded toward Chen Pi with a smile.

"Many thanks, Brother Hong!"

Chen Pi cupped his hands in a salute to Hong Lei, then returned to the crowd with a beaming smile.

Although he failed to surpass Wu Yu, with this result, barring any accidents, he should be able to secure third place even if he couldn't hold onto second.

"Only one spot left!"

Gu Ming and Chen Yong exchanged glances, and it seemed as though they could see the sharp edge in each other's eyes.

No matter what, they had to seize this final spot.

Soon, several others underwent testing.

Basically, everyone had increased their strength by five or ten pounds compared to last time.

Following that, the few newcomers also gave it a try, but the results were that almost all of them could only barely lift the one-hundred-pound stone lock.

"Barring any surprises, Lu Yuan should be giving up his third-place spot this time!"

"It is quite clear that this time's third place will either be Chen Yong or Gu Ming; Lu Yuan can forget about it!"

"That might not necessarily be true. Perhaps he was just slacking off in front of us and then went back to train in secret?"

Some people shifted their gazes to look at the eager Chen Yong and Gu Ming, then glanced at Lu Yuan, who was still standing there quietly.

Before long, amidst the anticipation of the crowd, Gu Ming and Chen Yong underwent their tests one after the other.

The result was that although Gu Ming lifted the one-hundred-and-eighty-pound stone lock, he only held it for two breaths, while Chen Yong not only lifted the one-hundred-and-eighty-pound stone lock but also held it for three breaths.

In the end, Gu Ming lost to Chen Yong by a narrow margin of five pounds.

"The results are out. The top three are basically set: Wu Yu in first, Chen Pi in second, and Chen Yong in third!"

Everyone sighed with strange expressions; it seemed the top three spots were once again out of their reach.

One step slow, every step slow; they likely wouldn't have another chance in the future.

Unless Chen Yong was like that good-natured fellow Lu Yuan, who, after taking third place, became lazy, only coming to the Song Academy once a day to practice the Five Animals Fist and leaving immediately after eating the free meat.

But that was clearly impossible; Chen Yong practiced more diligently than anyone else every day, otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to surpass Gu Ming, who had mastered the Five Animals Fist a day earlier.

"Brother Wu Yu and Brother Chen Pi have not disgraced the top three from last time. Some others, however, are not so certain. Still, I must thank him; if he hadn't been unable to endure the hardships of training, I might not have been able to secure this third place!"

Chen Yong looked at Lu Yuan with a mocking smile and said this without any hesitation.

"Brother Yong, congratulations. With the free meat, your progress over the next ten days will surely be leaps and bounds!"

Many people stepped forward to offer congratulations and curry favor, as if they all believed third place was already firmly in the pocket of Chen Yong.

"That goes without saying. With free meat to supplement my diet, I will definitely be able to maintain five or even six training sessions a day. I will never slack off in the slightest, and no one should even think about snatching third place from me in the next assessment!"

Chen Yong declared proudly.

Lu Yuan might not cherish this quota for free meat, but he treated it as his lifeblood and would never hand it over to anyone else.

As time passed, more and more people completed their assessments.

Just as everyone had expected, no one managed to surpass Chen Yong.

Just like last time, only Lu Yuan remained.

"What a pity. Ah Yuan's strength is naturally greater than the average person's. If he had trained properly over the past ten days, he might not have lost his hold on third place!"

Chen Pi sighed softly, shaking his head inwardly.

"Ah Yuan, you must not let me down!"

Fang Chang was also staring intently at Lu Yuan at this moment, his brows slightly furrowed.

"He's the last one to be tested again. Could it be that he still wants to strike late and seize third place once more?"

"Impossible. Perhaps he's just afraid of losing face and can only drag it out until the very end!"

Amidst the discussions of the crowd, Lu Yuan lifted his feet and walked straight to the 190-jin stone lock.

"No way, he's going to lift the 190-jin stone lock too?"

"Overestimating his own abilities. Even if he is naturally stronger than the average person, he has only been at Song Academy for a little over ten days. He surely hasn't mastered the Five Animals Fist yet; there is absolutely no way he can lift this 190-jin stone lock!"

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this? Could Chen Yong's third place be snatched away by him again?"

Ignoring the discussions and gazes of the crowd, Lu Yuan reached out both hands and grabbed the stone lock in front of him.

Although he appeared to struggle more than Chen Pi, he still successfully hoisted it above his head and managed to hold it there for two breaths.

"Bang!"

As Lu Yuan dropped the stone lock to the ground, the dull thud seemed to strike directly at the hearts of everyone present.

"He actually really did it again!"

"Chen Yong has been slapped in the face once more. This guy is so devious. Even though he acts like a slacker in front of us, he must have been secretly training until late at night. No wonder he's always late recently; it's obvious he's been training until very late."

Under the astonished gazes of everyone, Lu Yuan walked back to the crowd with a calm expression.

"You kid... congratulations!"

Chen Pi pointed at Lu Yuan, unable to help but shake his head and laugh.

"Same to you!"

Lu Yuan only smiled, offering no explanation.

"Damn it... truly damn it..."

Meanwhile, Chen Yong stood to the side, his face extremely gloomy and unsightly.