Racing Against Time!

"Xu Wuyi?" Zhou Yun frowned slightly and quickly searched her memory. "The one with a Life Energy Level of 8.6? I remember him being quite hardworking, but his talent was pretty average. Has he shown anything outstanding?"

"During the final practical combat class before the break, he defeated Han Mengmeng, who was at Level 9.2," Wang Wenhai said calmly.

"Han Mengmeng?" Zhou Yun looked somewhat surprised. After thinking back, she said, "Her Spirit Snake Hand has already reached Minor Achievement. Though her unstable foundation is a weakness, it shouldn't have been that easy to break through. What happened?"

Wang Wenhai swiftly swiped his fingers through the air and brought up a video file.

Combat classes at school were naturally recorded, both for teachers and students to review afterward and to ensure the facts could be determined if an accident occurred.

"Take a look."

The light screen unfolded before the main seat, and clear footage began to play. It was the battle between Xu Wuyi and Han Mengmeng.

Zhou Yun folded her arms and watched with interest.

At first, her expression remained rather calm. When she saw Han Mengmeng completely suppress Xu Wuyi with Spirit Snake Hand, she nodded slightly, clearly approving of Han Mengmeng's technique.

But as Xu Wuyi held firm beneath the storm-like onslaught without retreating, his movements showing not the slightest hint of panic, her gaze gradually turned serious.

Practical combat was a tremendous test of a Martial Artist's mentality.

Before gaining access to virtual machines, students had few opportunities for actual combat. Being able to perform at this level already meant he had potential worth cultivating.

When the footage reached the moment Han Mengmeng's moves began to run out of momentum and Xu Wuyi answered with a perfectly timed block followed by a swift counterattack, Zhou Yun raised an eyebrow.

"Stop," Zhou Yun said.

The image froze an instant before Xu Wuyi's fist struck Han Mengmeng's chest.

"Go back one and a half seconds. Slow motion," Zhou Yun ordered.

Wang Wenhai had naturally given her operating authorization long ago. Once the command was issued, the virtual Smart Brain promptly complied.

In slow motion, every detail of Xu Wuyi's seemingly simple Mountain Crushing Fist was revealed.

"That force generation... this is nothing like what a C-Rank Mountain Crushing Fist should look like. Its core is the Bow Stance Punch from the Basic Body Tempering Method." Zhou Yun knew her stuff and spotted the key at once. "And there's something to that strike... it isn't merely that the movement was standard."

She looked at Wang Wenhai. "You suspect he's touched upon the rudiments of intent?"

"It's not a suspicion. I'm basically certain." Wang Wenhai pointed at the frozen image. "Look at the refinement of his blood energy circulation. That isn't something simple hard training can achieve. He must have an understanding of the cultivation method beyond the movements themselves."

"I've observed his recent training. Compared to before, his movement precision and blood energy control have improved enormously. It's like he's become a completely different person."

Zhou Yun silently stared at the image for several more seconds before finally nodding. "Interesting. To touch upon intent after merely reaching Entry Level in a Body Tempering Method at the Martial Apprentice stage—this comprehension... no wonder you took notice of him. What's his Life Energy Level now?"

"The record still says 8.6. He hasn't been tested again. I gave him five E-Rank Standard Blood Energy Potions to give him a hand," Wang Wenhai said. "It wouldn't be surprising if his Life Energy Level reaches 9.5 after winter break."

An expense of several tens of thousands of Federal Credits was not really much to a Martial Artist.

For a Martial Artist like Wang Wenhai, who still had hopes of reaching Martial Master, it was merely a few days' worth of cultivation expenses.

Zhou Yun did not question Wang Wenhai's investment. Instead, she smiled. "Looks like you really dug up a treasure. If he can maintain this momentum, he has a very good chance of making a run at the Three Great Universities."

"Seedlings with this kind of high comprehension are indeed worth looking forward to once they get the hang of things."

Zhou Yun understood very well that falling behind temporarily was nothing. A student's talent and comprehension were what truly mattered.

With the help of abundant resources, there were countless students who advanced by leaps and bounds during the second semester of their senior year, or even in the final month or two before the College Entrance Examination.

There was no shortage of geniuses who crossed several Life Energy Levels in one leap, soaring from near the ordinary university cutoff straight into the Three Great Universities. She hoped Xu Wuyi would be the next one.

After a pause, she tapped through the air and brought up several other student files. "Besides him, Fang Rui from Class Two has a Life Energy Level of 9.7 and a strong family background... Lin Xiaoyu from Class Three stands out in movement techniques... Let's conduct a comprehensive assessment and draw up a preliminary watchlist."

The two discussed matters in the analysis room for a long time, reviewing the potential students who might be selected for the Sprint Class one by one.

They both knew that the Sprint Class concerned not only the students' futures, but also the school's honor and their own teaching achievements.

"I hope that this year, we can send a few more children to try knocking on the doors of the Three Great Universities," Zhou Yun said at last.

Xu Wuyi had no idea that the two teachers were evaluating him and placing their hopes on him.

It was another morning, already the third day since he had begun taking Blood Energy Potions.

The remaining medicinal power had been completely digested and absorbed. Xu Wuyi was now training entirely on his own stamina and willpower.

The process remained grueling.

After every seventy or eighty repetitions, it felt as though he were trudging through a swamp, every step extraordinarily difficult.

But with the experience of the previous two days, Xu Wuyi's will had become tougher, and his endurance for his physical limits had also grown stronger.

He even began exploring how, in an exhausted state, he could distribute his stamina more efficiently, adjust his breathing rhythm, and complete standard movements with the least possible expenditure.

This itself was a form of cultivation, a tempering of mentality and control.

[Standard training completed today: 100 repetitions]

[Effective training has reached one hundred repetitions today. One Epiphany obtained.]

As the notification for completing his hundredth repetition appeared, his third Epiphany descended.

This time, the insight was more restrained. It mainly further integrated and solidified the gains from the first two times, and the extent of his realm improvement had also stabilized.

[Basic Body Tempering Method current realm: Entry Level (41.5%)]

In three days, he had surged from 0.8% at Entry Level to 41.5%. Such a rate of improvement would be enough to shock the world if revealed.

At the same time, Xu Wuyi could clearly feel the changes in himself.

Although he could not precisely test his own Life Energy Level, he was certain that he had already firmly crossed the 9.0 undergraduate cutoff. He might even have surpassed it by quite a bit, reaching around Level 9.2.

That evening, after finishing his training, Xu Wuyi looked at the four remaining Blood Energy Potions in the metal box and fell into thought.

"Teacher Wang said one every five days was a safe absorption cycle. But I have Epiphany to improve my proficiency and solidify my foundation. My training intensity is far beyond that of ordinary people, and three days are enough to digest the medicinal power."

"Should I proceed step by step, or finish this batch of potions as quickly as possible?"

Risk and opportunity weighed against each other in his mind. In the end, his desire for strength overwhelmed his caution toward the potential risks.

"Winter break is precious. I have to race against time!"

"The sooner I push my Life Energy Level to 10.0, the sooner I can enter the Star Martial Battle Net..."

"With the Martial Dao Diligence Record in hand, as long as I work hard enough, my martial arts proficiency will eventually improve. The only thing I'm most lacking is actual combat."

The Martial Arts College Entrance Exam tested practical combat.

Whether it was the point-based test against an instructor or the practical exam against other students, neither could avoid requiring a great deal of practice.

Virtual machines, meanwhile, allowed Martial Artists to unleash their abilities without concern. Even injury or death was no problem. That was undoubtedly an enormous advantage.

With that thought, Xu Wuyi's gaze hardened as he made his decision.

Tomorrow, he would take the second Blood Energy Potion!