"Punching force: 4,589 kilograms! A peak punching-force record! Congratulations, you've broken it!"
The announcement rang through the hall.
At the same time, golden light erupted from the first pillar in the center of the hall.
Xu Jingming's name flashed in gold at the top of the rankings, as though a sovereign had descended.
With Xu Jingming's arrival, every other name on the list rippled like waves and dropped one place.
"First place: Xu Jingming. Punching force: 4,589 kg.
Second place: Luo Yang. Punching force: 4,321 kg.
Third place: Chen Dahai. Punching force: 4,122 kg.
..."
Those who had been ready to laugh at Xu Jingming fell silent.
They were like ducks with their necks seized, unable to make a sound.
For a moment, the entire hall was deathly quiet.
"The peak punching-force record... was broken?"
The question came from somewhere in the hall. Only then did everyone snap back to their senses.
The whole place erupted.
"Holy shit! Someone actually broke the punching-force record?!"
"Over forty-five hundred kilograms? Can a human even punch that hard?!"
"One punch from him would turn me into paste, and you're telling me he's a freshman?"
"..."
After all,
Thunder Martial Hall had stood since Magic City Superpower University was founded.
It had witnessed the university's entire history.
And the five ranking pillars on its third floor held punching-force results from more than a hundred thousand students.
Anyone who made the top thousand on any one of those lists had been a standout of their era.
That was why the records near the top were so difficult to break.
It had been roughly ten years since anyone had broken the record on the first pillar!
Now, the peak punching-force record for First-Order Metahumans had finally fallen again!
And it had been broken by a freshman who was only First-Order Low-Rank.
How could they not be stunned?
Many people hurriedly took out their phones and photographed Xu Jingming in the center of the hall, capturing the historic moment.
Others could not wait to share the news with friends and teachers.
Some posted it straight to Magic City Superpower University's student forum.
A few people in the hall suspected Xu Jingming of cheating by using a superpower or a Battle Technique.
After all, a punch of more than forty-five hundred kilograms from physical strength alone was astonishing.
But others quickly dismissed the idea.
The punching-force testing machine in the center of the hall was controlled by Eva, the school's Artificial Intelligence.
Its Sub-body met the standards for level-one Artificial Intelligence.
If anyone had cheated, the result would have been voided long before an announcement was made.
"Wait, Xu Jingming is only First-Order Low-Rank.
He's nowhere near Peak First-Order yet. Doesn't that mean he could break this record again?"
The question, called out from somewhere in the crowd, set off another wave of discussion.
Of course. Xu Jingming was already this strong at First-Order Low-Rank.
How much stronger would he be at First-Order Mid-Rank or First-Order High-Rank?
After all,
the previous top ten on the first pillar had all reached Peak First-Order and could advance no further!
Xu Jingming was different. No one knew where his limit lay!
Meanwhile, Liu Wentao stood dumbfounded as he listened to the crowd.
He had wanted Xu Jingming to go up and embarrass himself too, so his own result would not stand out so much.
Who could have guessed Xu Jingming would be this fierce? One punch had shattered a record held against the results of more than a hundred thousand people.
That only made Liu Wentao, ranked outside the top hundred thousand, look even more like a clown.
"Bro, you're the best!"
Liu Wentao was thoroughly convinced as he watched Xu Jingming step down.
"Brother Ming, I'm sticking with you from now on! Wherever you go, I go!"
"It's not that serious."
Xu Jingming smiled and shook his head.
In truth,
the punch had exceeded even his expectations.
He had thought he might reach thirty-five hundred kilograms at most.
Instead, he had surpassed that by more than a thousand.
Looks like the Thunder Tyrant Dragon really is a good fit for me.
Xu Jingming nodded to himself, then turned to the staff member beside him.
"There's a credit reward for breaking a record, right?"
The female staff member was still a little dazed.
Only when she saw his handsome face up close did she come back to herself. She blushed.
"Of course. Breaking the record earns you four hundred credits. They should be in your account by now."
Xu Jingming took out his phone. Sure enough, a notification showed that the credits had arrived.
With the two hundred credits Senior Brother Liu Ming had given him as a first-meeting gift at Teacher Yang's Villa, plus the hundred basic credits from the school,
his student account now held a little over seven hundred credits.
"Nice. If I break the record again next time, will I get more credits?"
Xu Jingming put away his phone, eager to try.
"You can only receive credits for breaking this record once."
Unfortunately, the staff member's answer was no.
That was a shame.
He was still far from Peak First-Order. He was bound to break the First-Order Metahuman record several more times.
But there are four other pillars, for Second- through Fifth-Order Metahumans.
I can break their records later.
Xu Jingming smiled faintly. He had found a way to earn credits.
By then, the older students in the hall had recovered from their shock and were approaching him with smiles.
"Junior Xu, this is your first time at this training hall, right? Come on, I'll teach you how to use the equipment."
"Brother Xu, nice to meet you. I'm Wang Jie, a third-year. You can call me Brother Jie."
"Junior, our club happens to be looking for members. Want to consider joining? We have lots of girls!"
"..."
The punching-force rankings reflected only physical strength, not the strength of someone's superpower or Battle Techniques.
But with punching force that high, how weak could he be in other areas?
Besides, someone capable of entering the top ten appeared only once every few years. Each was an exceptional talent.
Xu Jingming had gone further and broken the record to take first place!
The students who had made it into Magic City Superpower University were no fools.
If they did not make friends with a junior who had this much potential now, when would they?
The sight made Xu Jingming's scalp prickle.
He did not dare stay in the public training hall. He quickly fled with Liu Wentao.
They found a private training room where he could finish testing his strength.
What he did not know was that
news of the broken First-Order Metahuman punching-force record
spread through the entire campus like a whirlwind.
Before long, many people knew that this freshman class included a formidable newcomer named Xu Jingming.
"Over forty-five hundred kilograms of punching force. My junior brother's physical strength is terrifying."
In a student Villa, Senior Brother Liu Ming read the post on the school forum and clicked his tongue in amazement.
He, too, had once challenged the punching-force rankings.
At the time, he had been a First-Order High-Rank Metahuman who had reached the first level of Thunder Undying Body.
Yet he had managed only a little over thirty-five hundred kilograms.
Compared with Xu Jingming now, he had fallen far short.
"Qiu Yun, Qiu Yun, look! This guy's so handsome!"
In the Library, Song Qiuyun was reading a Battle Technique manual when her roommate Qi Dongxia called to her softly.
Qi Dongxia held a phone up in front of her.
On the screen, a young man stood tall beneath a spotlight, while the pillar before him shone brightly.
He was tall, with resolute features. His dark eyes were striking against their whites and held a hint of coolness.
It's him?
Song Qiuyun recognized him at once. He was the young man she had noticed on the road earlier, the one who had seemed to carry the aura of a ferocious beast.
So his name is Xu Jingming. And he seems quite strong...
The post was on the school forum and had drawn plenty of attention.
After reading it all, Song Qiuyun's eyes brightened slightly.
So that strange trace of a ferocious beast's aura had not been her imagination.
But how did he come to have an aura like that?
Song Qiuyun studied the figure in the picture, a faint curiosity in her eyes...
"Xu Jingming! So you came to Magic City too!"
"This time, I'm taking back the honor that should have been mine!"
Inside a Villa, a young man glared resentfully at the figure in the picture.
If not for Xu Jingming, he would not have lost the title of Jiangnan Provincial Top Scorer and become a laughingstock in Ning'an City!
Before you continue