One Punch! Blast the Training Dummy!

Ye Xiao, who had been feeling lost, suddenly found his goal clear.

"I will first raise my cultivation to the 100th level of the Mud Embryo Realm, then complete the Hundred Refinements to Steel achievement."

"Then, I will attempt a breakthrough at the limit of exhaustion!"

And so, for the time that followed, Ye Xiao did not entertain any lofty or unrealistic thoughts.

He immersed himself entirely in the first floor of the Gravity Training Tower.

On the first floor, there were five different gravity zones, ranging from 1x to 5x.

Ye Xiao maintained a steady rhythm.

He would rest for 15 minutes, get up to throw two punches, and then immediately rest again.

Just like that, Ye Xiao stood alone in the corner of the first floor of the Gravity Training Tower.

Even though people came and went around him, no one could distract his focus.

On the contrary, many people stared at him with looks of amusement.

"That weirdo has such a strange way of training."

"He rests for 15 minutes, throws two punches, and then rests again."

"Heh, is this guy here for a joke? He wants strength but doesn't want to suffer the hardships of training—how could such a good thing exist?"

"I heard that guy is a freshman."

"Impossible, right? How would a freshman have a Gravity Training Card to get in here? Besides, how would a freshman even know about this spot?"

"Who knows? They say he's a connection hire. Isn't there a very famous special recruit among the freshmen this year?"

"Oh! So it's him? That special recruit? He only has the strength of the Professional First Realm and is an E-rank, the weakest class! And he doesn't even attend regular classes, coming straight to the Gravity Training Tower to train instead. No wonder everyone says he's a connection hire. Looking at him now, he really is a damn connection hire!"

"I despise people like that the most. Relying on their background and connections to snatch up training resources from everyone else."

"God knows whose spot he squeezed out in the dark just to get into our school!"

Even though various conspiracy theories were flying around the first floor of the Gravity Training Tower, Ye Xiao remained deaf to them all.

Because he was very clear about one thing: in the face of these rumors and countless doubts, merely using his mouth to speak would not convince anyone.

The only way was to prove it with his fists!

The moment he could use his fists to knock down every single freshman in his year, all the doubts would naturally be resolved!

Soon, time flashed by until noon.

After a morning of punching without eating or drinking, Ye Xiao's body was on the verge of collapse, in desperate need of energy replenishment.

Just then, Ye Xiao squeezed out the last bit of strength in his body and threw that punch!

The wind howled, and the training stake in front of him grew a few millimeters deeper in its indentation.

[Ding!]

[You have completed a punch. The force of this punch is: 31%!]

[Obtained 3 points of Martial Value!]

[Your realm has improved!]

[Current Realm: Mud Embryo Realm, 98th Level!]

[Current Realm: Mud Embryo Realm · 99th Layer!]

[Current Realm: Mud Embryo Realm · 100th Layer!]

"Done!"

Ye Xiao was so exhausted that his entire body felt limp; he couldn't even lift his arms.

He fell straight backward.

Fortunately, there was a soft cushion beneath him.

Ye Xiao didn't suffer any injuries from the fall.

Just then, Ye Xiao noticed his

[Path of the Strong]

flickering with a red light.

The red light vanished in a flash.

Ye Xiao knew that his new achievement had been unlocked!

He hurriedly checked it.

[Hundred Refinements to Steel! Trigger condition: Mud Embryo Realm reached 100th Layer! Achieved! Reward obtained: Body Protection Pill! System prompt: "One hundred punches. Hands hurt, don't they? They'll hurt even more later."]

Ye Xiao's eyes were soaked with sweat.

He wiped them with his clothes, a happy smile appearing on his face.

"My hands do indeed hurt, but it feels great too!"

With a thought from Ye Xiao, a Body Protection Pill appeared in his palm.

He stared at the pill, which looked like a chocolate ball.

He was filled with emotion.

"I've suffered so much just for a tiny thing like you!"

"I hope you won't let me down!"

Ye Xiao shoved the Body Protection Pill into his mouth, chewed it a few times, and swallowed it.

After a few seconds, Ye Xiao could feel his limbs and bones turning warm.

It felt as if a warm current was protecting every blood vessel and meridian in his body.

"The time is ripe!"

"Let's break through the limits of my body!"

Ye Xiao scrambled up from the floor.

It could be said that the current Ye Xiao wasn't standing up by the strength of his body, but entirely by his immense willpower!

"When the body can no longer hold on, willpower will lead you to break through the siege!"

"Come! Drain the last bit of strength and potential from my body!"

"Let me see where the limits of this body lie!"

BOOM!

A faint, light-red gas actually rose from Ye Xiao's body!

This scene immediately drew the side-glances of many senior students nearby.

"That guy, why is red light coming off him?"

"Red light? Could that be his Blood Qi Mist?"

"Isn't that a typical sign of severe injury?"

"Ah? Is this freshman crazy? Doesn't he realize his internal organs are damaged and his blood and qi are leaking out?"

"..."

Even the old gatekeeper outside the Gravity Cultivation Tower stopped his work.

He walked into the first floor of the tower and stared from afar in Ye Xiao's direction.

"This kid, is he risking his life?"

"It's only his first day training here; there are plenty of days ahead, so why go as far as burning his blood and qi?"

"But that's not right—at his age, how would he know the method to burn blood and qi?"

In an instant.

The eyes of every senior student on the first floor of the Gravity Training Tower were fixed upon Ye Xiao.

And Ye Xiao began to exert his strength!

He felt power surge up from the soles of his feet, traveling upward along his bones, segment by segment.

Ankles, knees, lumbar vertebrae, spine, shoulder blades...

Every single joint had been opened!

Like water, the power flowed from his feet; as it passed through each joint, it met no resistance, faced no obstruction, and surged forward naturally.

When it reached the tip of his fist.

This punch.

Slammed into the surface of the training dummy!

The entire room fell deathly silent.

Yet, the surface of the training dummy merely emitted a crisp sound.

The training dummy did not even show a trace of swaying.

It remained in its original position, standing firm and motionless.

In a flash.

The room erupted with thunderous laughter.

"Hahahaha! I'm dying of laughter!"

"This freshman made such a big scene, I actually thought he was something special!"

"After all that, he can't even budge the training dummy!"

"The training dummies on the first floor are the weakest; any freshman could move them, yet he couldn't even make it twitch."

"What a waste of my expectations. An E-rank trash is just E-rank trash. If it weren't for his connections, who knows where he'd be digging for ore right now!"

"..."

Just as the room was filled with jeers and mockery.

Only two people wore different expressions.

A look of delighted joy appeared on the face of the gatekeeper.

And a smile of success emerged on Ye Xiao's face.

One second!

Two seconds!

Three seconds!

BOOM!!!

The Hidden Force within the training dummy detonated instantly, shattering the entire thing into smithereens!

The debris from the destroyed training dummy flew everywhere, slapping against the faces of the senior students and stinging their skin with pain.