"Someone died?"
Ye Xiao was a little dazed.
Just then, someone who loved watching a spectacle loudly chimed in.
"Supposedly, someone died in the Gravity Tower once."
"It was about seven or eight years ago. An SS-Grade genius thought he could handle a gravity zone of over eighty times normal."
"He sneaked in late at night without telling his instructor and cranked the gravity up to eighty-five times."
"The next morning, the staff found him lying on the floor of the seventh level. His heart had stopped."
"He left five words written on the wall:"
"It's too heavy. I'm sorry."
"After that, anyone entering a gravity zone above the seventh level had to be accompanied by an instructor."
Ye Xiao turned to look at him.
"What does that have to do with not letting people enter the fifth level?"
The other man sneered.
"Obviously, they're afraid you'll die in there!"
"After all, there are always reckless idiots who think they can prove themselves and withstand high gravity, only to nearly die in the process."
"This kind of thing has happened more than once or twice!"
Gravity Training Tower.
First Floor · 2x Gravity Zone.
The inside of the tower was more spacious than it looked from outside.
The first-floor hall was over a hundred meters in diameter. Thick gray mats covered the floor, and the fluorescent stones in the ceiling gave off a dim yellow light.
Only a few students were training inside. Some jogged, some did push-ups, some meditated, and some practiced their skills.
Everyone moved half a beat slower than usual, as if they were underwater.
The moment Ye Xiao stepped onto the mat, he felt the difference.
His body grew heavier.
It wasn't like carrying a load. The weight seemed to seep out from between his bones.
His blood flowed more slowly, breathing took more effort, and raising his arm felt like lifting a dumbbell.
It really is heavy! Ye Xiao thought.
It didn't take long for his breathing to grow noticeably labored.
By comparison, when Ye Xiao watched the third- and fourth-year students stroll upstairs with ease, he understood just how great the gap between them was.
The first floor was a low-gravity zone.
The maximum setting didn't exceed five times normal gravity.
So the upperclassmen and women Ye Xiao saw training on the first floor were only warming up.
Before long, they headed to higher levels.
Ye Xiao didn't force himself onto the second floor just because he was embarrassed or wanted to save face.
Instead, he walked over to a corner.
He stood in front of a wooden training dummy.
"This is the 2x gravity zone."
"With every punch, I have to draw on noticeably more strength from my whole body."
Ye Xiao focused completely, gathering his strength and concentration into a single point on his fist.
Then he threw a powerful punch straight ahead!
Boom!
The punch struck the training dummy.
But it only made it sway slightly.
It didn't fall over.
Yet Ye Xiao's forehead was already beaded with sweat.
"Huff! Huff!"
He was soon panting.
His body had turned red and hot from overexertion.
"As expected of the Gravity Training Tower."
"I've only thrown one punch, but I already feel like I'm almost out of strength!"
Just then, a system notification sounded in Ye Xiao's ear.
[ Ding! ]
[ You completed one punch. Punch strength: 32%! ]
[ You gained 2 Martial Value! ]
[ Your realm has increased! ]
[ Current realm: Mud Embryo Realm · 24th Layer! ]
[ Current realm: Mud Embryo Realm · 25th Layer! ]
"Wait! What's this?"
"Did I hear that right?"
Ye Xiao was surprised to discover that after throwing one punch in the 2x gravity environment, he had gained twice the realm advancement!
Delight instantly appeared on Ye Xiao's face.
"So, maintaining the quality of my punches under strong gravity lets me make greater advances!"
"I'm in the 2x gravity zone now. But what if I switched to the 3x gravity zone?"
There was no time like the present!
Ye Xiao looked toward the 3x gravity zone nearby.
It was only a little over ten meters from where he stood.
But the moment Ye Xiao walked over, he immediately felt it.
Every bone and every inch of muscle in his body was under even greater gravitational force!
His back bent under the pressure, and his knees buckled, making it hard to straighten them.
Even Ye Xiao's teeth began to chatter.
"Was my body really this weak?"
"This is only the 3x gravity zone, and I've already reached my physical limit!"
Ye Xiao thought to himself.
He felt a sense of defeat.
But that feeling was quickly washed away by his fierce ambition to grow stronger.
"Hiss! Hiss!"
Ye Xiao gritted his teeth and struggled to breathe. At last, he managed to straighten up in the 3x gravity zone and stand tall.
"Let me..."
"Th-throw one punch and see!"
Some upperclassmen and women who had just entered looked over with mocking, puzzled expressions.
"He's already shaking like that in the 3x gravity zone?"
"That guy's so weak!"
"Are you kidding me? If he's that weak, he should just stay in his dorm and sleep. Why come here to train?"
"..."
Ye Xiao clenched his fist tightly as his body trembled uncontrollably.
He put everything he had into slowly throwing a punch in front of him!
[ You completed one punch. Punch strength: 21%! ]
[ Realm advancement failed. ]
"Failed?"
Ye Xiao stared at his fist, unwilling to accept it.
Under the pressure of 3x gravity, Ye Xiao had already used every last bit of strength he had.
But every part of his body felt as if it had a stone tied to it.
It was hard enough just to raise his arm. How could he possibly have enough strength left to throw a punch?
Just then, Ye Xiao, trembling all over and struggling to stay on his feet, looked toward the entrance.
The old man guarding the door suddenly walked in.
He headed toward Ye Xiao.
The upperclassmen and women who saw this wore expressions of anticipation, ready to watch the show.
"Old Man Black came in himself. Looks like he's going to tell that guy to leave."
"He's shaking like that in the 3x gravity zone. How could they let him keep training?"
"What if he dies in there?"
"Someone has died in the Gravity Training Tower before."
"..."
Ye Xiao also thought the other man had come to tell him to leave.
When the old man stopped in front of him and stared, Ye Xiao was drenched in sweat but still held his ground.
His teeth chattering, he said, "I'll go back to the 2x gravity zone. I can handle it there. Don't kick me out..."
Just then, a knowing smile appeared on the old man's face.
"When a Martialist trains, the fundamentals are in the fist."
"Punching is all about strength. They say great strength works wonders, and that force can overcome a thousand techniques. That's exactly what they mean."
"But when you don't have great strength, your punches depend on Skillful Force."
"I watched you throw punches. You're not using some flashy technique, just the most basic straight punch—retract, punch, retract, punch. The angle, force, and speed of every punch are almost exactly the same."
"I've seen a lot of people punch. Genius punches, fancy punches, fierce punches, gentle punches. But someone who throws every punch exactly the same way? You're the first I've seen."
Ye Xiao asked with difficulty, "So?"
The old man smiled leisurely. "So you're too rigid."
"You need to learn to use a bit of Skillful Force in your punches!"
"That way, you'll only need three-tenths of your strength to deliver a punch with seven-tenths of its power."
"Did you understand what I mean?"
Before you continue