Chapter 116: One Hundred Million Kilograms of Striking Force

Casual conversation helped bridge the distance between them. Jiang Ming observed the surroundings, taking in the battles on all ten fighting platforms. Each match offered a wealth of combat experience to be absorbed.

Most valuable of all was the wisdom embedded within each candidate's cultivation techniques.

Once Qin Zhiyan stepped onto the platform, he paid extra attention. The class monitor was growing at an astonishing speed, using the power of water and fire to manifest a Tai Chi diagram, simultaneously forming a protective stance and launching a counterattack. It was clearly a defensive-offensive strategy, meant to temper her body and foster growth through combat.

"She is a bit nervous."

It was understandable. After all, she needed a clean sweep of victories within her team to advance to the semifinals. Even a single loss carried a high risk of elimination. It was brutal.

Without any surprises, Qin Zhiyan emerged victorious. The fighting continued, fierce and relentless. Jiang Ming and his companions spoke in hushed tones, offering their critiques.

"Combat is the best way to temper oneself," Shi Lei sighed. "Especially when facing an evenly matched opponent in an intense struggle of life and death. It accelerates improvement and sparks potential more effectively. Each of them is improving, and the progress is significant."

"Indeed, it is quite clear," Ye Bai took up the thread. "Especially Jiang's little girlfriend. She uses water and fire to manifest an infinite sword path, yet she lacked a sense of agility. Now, however, she has grasped the essence of wind and integrated it, giving her water-fire sword intent a fluid, adaptable quality. Her combat power has risen a notch."

"Her special bloodline has also improved through the intense fighting," Wang Qiutong added. "And there is still vast potential to be tapped. In the future, she will be no weaker than Long Aotian, and catching up to us won't be difficult."

The others nodded in agreement. Each of them possessed a keen eye and could naturally judge the depth of other geniuses.

Jiang Ming sat silently, his eyes appearing somewhat distant, yet within them flowed a divine light that coalesced into sparks of wisdom. These grew more numerous, eventually igniting into a raging flame that integrated into his own accumulated knowledge.

Deep within his mind, in the depths of his consciousness, he was constantly refining his secret techniques and evolving his inch-punch. Watching, absorbing, mastering, integrating into his own path, then evolving and innovating—he was in a state of constant improvement.

By dusk, the first round concluded.

"That was fast!" Luo Feng stood up and stretched. "Hundreds of candidates, and it's all finished in a day."

"With time limits, everyone unleashes their trump cards the moment they step onto the platform—kill or be killed!" Jun Qiye laughed. "It's better this way. Dawdling is just boring."

"When we fight each other, should we also be quick?" Chen Bei joked. "When it's our turn, how about a fast-paced match?"

"Cut the crap!" Jun Qiye retorted indignantly. "You’re specifically designed to counter me. My Supreme Ghost Body versus your Samsara Dao Body—this damn heaven is clearly out to get me."

"Haha..." Fang Qinghan laughed. "He counters you, but what about me?"

Jun Qiye rolled his eyes. This guy had a Devouring Body, which was every bit as formidable as the Samsara Body. Even worse, he couldn't fathom Fang Qinghan's depths at all; the impression he gave was even more terrifying than Chen Bei.

"What about me?" A spark of light flickered at the tip of Jiang Ming’s finger—the power of light. The light swirled, transforming into lightning.

"Hahaha..." Ye Bai couldn't help but roar with laughter. "Brother Jun, look at you being so arrogant, only for one person after another to show up who counters you! The Supreme Ghost Body is indeed terrifying, but I have a Sacred Body. The way of the Sacred Body contains holy power, specifically designed to suppress strange and ominous forces."

"Don't get cocky. Countering is only relative. Once the scales tip, the counter becomes the countered," Jun Qiye snorted coldly. He felt a pang of sorrow internally. He had thought that upon emerging, he would be able to run rampant, but instead, he found one freak after another—some of whom wielded powers that specifically countered his own. He felt as if the heavens were targeting him.

*If I have the ability, I will topple the heavens and set the rules myself!* Jun Qiye thought.

Without incident, Qin Zhiyan secured a spot and advanced to the semifinals. Jiang Ming did not linger and exited the virtual battle network.

Emerging from his room, he looked at the sunset burning like fire, his heart filled with an unexplainable complexity. He had come to this world, but his past life could not be pursued.

Let it be. Just let it be.

"What are your thoughts on this battle?" Elder Tang gestured for him to sit opposite him and asked.

"There are so many geniuses!" Jiang Ming sat down. "The strength of our humanity far exceeds what I imagined!"

Elder Tang shook his head, saying nothing. Jiang Ming frowned. "Is there a hidden truth?"

"Did you really think the Sacred Body and the Supreme Bone were exposed by chance?" Elder Tang chuckled. "You are indeed a smart kid."

"Pressure from the Myriad World Battlefield?" Jiang Ming pointed toward the sky.

"Exactly!" Elder Tang nodded. "The Myriad World Battlefield—that is the true place of cruelty, a meat grinder. As for these geniuses today, if they were sent there, it would be a miracle if one out of ten survived."

"No way?" Jiang Ming was shocked.

"Don't overthink it. All you need to do now is practice hard," Instructor Yu said. "The blood essence supplement prepared for you has arrived. This time, it will be enough to give you a massive boost."

He took out a red bottle and placed it on the table. It was as red as fire, filled with a crimson liquid.

"This is precious blood—true precious blood. It is a creation refined from numerous demonic beasts, divine beasts, spiritual roots, and precious jade, ultimately blended together. It is called the Myriad Spirit Precious Blood. Each drop contains immense blood-qi power. This bottle is enough to burst ten body cultivators at the Sixth Rank; you must be very careful when using it." Instructor Yu looked at the jade bottle with genuine heartache.

"This really is the bottom of the barrel," Elder Tang sighed. "Back in the day, when a talent appeared at Central Divine Martial University, they couldn't get a single drop even when begging on behalf of the school. I never expected they would bring it all out now."

"Good things must be used on the sharpest blades," Instructor Yu suppressed his reluctance. "A precious sword for a hero, a talented scholar for a beauty—good things must have a worthy owner."

"Thank you!" Jiang Ming said sincerely. "I will go practice and try to reach the peak of the Sixth Rank in one go."

He didn't stand on ceremony, took the jade bottle, and went into his room. Dinner? Obviously, he wouldn't be eating. He didn't even wait for Qin Zhiyan and the others to return.

"Having talent is one thing, but being this diligent is the key. If he doesn't become a master, who will?" Elder Tang said with satisfaction. Instructor Yu agreed deeply. You think you are a genius. You think you are diligent. But someone more talented than you is working harder than you. How can one compete with that?

Long Aotian and the others returned one by one, congratulating Qin Zhiyan on making it into the top one hundred.

"We all made it into the top one hundred; it’s truly worth celebrating," Long Aotian said, pleasantly surprised. "Does this mean many provinces don't even have one?"

"The Federation has one hundred and eighty provinces, yet they only take the top one hundred. Excluding those from the Myriad World Battlefield, the starry sky, and hidden families, the share allocated to the one hundred and eight provinces is even smaller, and we alone took five," Lan Xin laughed. "I imagine those old fogeys at the provincial capital are going to be happy to the point of madness."

"Am I old?" Instructor Yu asked quietly.

"Ah? Haha, well, you are in your prime!" Lan Xin quickly changed the subject. "Where is Jiang Ming? Is he practicing?" Seeing Elder Tang and Instructor Yu nod, she couldn't help but say, "He really doesn't waste a single moment. Fine, I'll go practice too, and try to advance one more spot tomorrow."

She turned and returned to her room. Qiang Jiu, Long Aotian, and Qin Zhiyan looked at each other before following suit.

"These youngsters, really..." Elder Tang shook his head with a smile. "Full of passion!"

"Indeed. I'm almost envious, but alas, time does not return, and youth is hard to reclaim."

In his room, Jiang Ming sensed his physical state while activating the Dragon-Elephant Heaven-Suppressing Technique. His grasp of the deeper barriers between his sinews, bones, internal organs, and blood marrow became clearer.

*Even without external help, I could have broken through in ten days at most, aligning inside and out to truly turn my body into a unified whole and reach the Vajra Indestructible State.*

There was no doubt about that. But what he lacked most right now was time.

He opened the bottle, and a surging force of blood-qi formed an ocean, instantly drowning the entire room. It was a terrifying spectacle—blood-qi like an endless, immortal sea. Jiang Ming was shocked, followed by wild joy.

He inhaled, and a drop of the red liquid flew out and landed in his mouth. Jiang Ming discovered that this single drop weighed over a thousand pounds and contained power like mountains and seas. As it slid down his throat, his powerful physique felt as if it were being pierced. He hurriedly channeled his technique to digest the precious liquid.

The Myriad Spirit Precious Liquid immediately transformed into a surging, endless torrent of blood-qi, containing terrifying creative power. As he channeled his technique, it forcefully broke through invisible shackles.

*Rumble...*

Breaking through the twelve-story tower, opening the twenty-four heavens, aligning the internal and external, he forcefully shattered one blockage after another. His power skyrocketed. His control over his own body reached its peak. With every movement, his entire strength could be condensed into a single point, forming a blood-qi divine ability capable of breaking all laws.

Jiang Ming inhaled again, and another drop of the precious liquid fell into his mouth. As he refined it, he further increased his strength, enhanced his physique, and tempered his body in every aspect.

The next day, he walked out of the room and stretched his arms, and a terrifying storm—like a torrent—exploded within his body.

"Did you succeed?" Instructor Yu, who had been sitting in the courtyard, saw Jiang Ming walk out and felt the terrifying aura dormant within him, his eyes lighting up.

"He definitely succeeded!" Elder Tang showed a gratified smile. "His every movement is natural and effortless, his power comes from his heart, his control is meticulous—he has clearly stepped into the Sixth Rank. Good, very good, haha..." He couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"I knew I couldn't hide it from you two," Jiang Ming walked over with a smile.

At that moment, a food-delivery robot flew over, dropped the food onto the table in the room, and flew away. The group was already accustomed to this.

"To what extent have you improved?" Instructor Yu asked. Elder Tang looked over as well.

"Sixth Rank peak, truly the peak." Jiang Ming clenched his fist, and a thunderous sound erupted from his palm. He felt a bit embarrassed. "However, the Myriad Spirit Precious Liquid has been completely digested."

Even though he had expected it, Instructor Yu couldn't help but twitch his lips. "Monster!"

Elder Tang couldn't help but shake his head, then said, "Jiang, go into the virtual battle network immediately and head to the testing room. Let us see what your pure physical strength has reached."

"I also want to know exactly what level my physical strength has reached." Jiang Ming was eager; he immediately returned to his room, lay in the virtual pod, and connected.

The final exams hadn't begun yet, but there were several places in the virtual battle network, including the testing room. A moment later, Elder Tang and Instructor Yu arrived. They walked inside. It was very spacious; in Elder Tang's words, the space could expand at any time, accommodating an unlimited capacity.

"The testing room is usually used to measure physical strength," Elder Tang explained. "The divine path is mysterious, and soul power is ethereal, making it difficult to have an intuitive manifestation of strength. For instance, with curses, even soul-power metrics can hardly determine the true degree of power; and with True Qi, if it’s released by a blade, it contains sharp energy, which isn't very intuitive."

"Physical strength is simple and clear, with no twists or turns. Whatever it is, that's what it is! One punch, and the number is clear! Come, Jiang, give it a try!"

Elder Tang pointed to the machine in front.

Just then, someone walked in from the other side, surprised. "Brother Jiang, I didn't expect you to be here too."

"Brother Ye!" Jiang Ming turned to see the Sacred Body, Ye Bai, and asked curiously, "Did you also reach the Sixth Rank?"

"Yes!" Ye Bai nodded while bowing slightly to Elder Tang and the other, then said, "The pressure you put on us was too great. In order not to embarrass ourselves in the final battle, we had to consume our foundations to improve. Last night, I tapped into my physical potential and leapt into the Sixth Rank, reaching the peak. That’s why I came here to measure it. Brother Jiang, did you break through too?" He then showed a look of shock.

"Just like you!" Jiang Ming laughed.

"You monster!" Ye Bai pointed a finger, speechless. He took a deep breath, suppressed his inner turmoil, and puffed out his chest. "No matter how deep you dig into your physical body, even if you reach the limit, you are still a mortal body. In terms of physique, I have the edge over you. Does that count as winning before the fight even begins?"

"Win before it begins?" Jiang Ming glanced at him. "Back on the Heavenly Stairs, you were all arrogant, looking down on me, but what happened in the end? Didn't I crush you?"

"That's completely different," Ye Bai snorted. "Not convinced? Then let's try it!"

"Let's try it then!"

"You go first!"

"I'm stronger than you, so of course, you go first!"

"Fine!" The Sacred Body Ye Bai gritted his teeth. "I'll let you see the power of a Sacred Body."

He shook his body, and a sound like a tsunami erupted from within—the surging power of blood-qi, truly transformed into an ocean. He took a few steps forward and reached the measuring device.

At that moment, a strange power descended from the void. Jiang Ming felt his True Qi suppressed, unable to mobilize even a shred, and even his soul power was compressed within his mind.

"This is a restraint, only to measure pure physical strength!" Seeing Jiang Ming's confusion, Elder Tang explained. Instructor Yu also watched with a smile.

"I didn't know there was such an ability," Jiang Ming was amazed. He discovered that he truly couldn't mobilize a sliver of True Qi or soul power.

*Boom...*

Ye Bai had already struck. His punch created a sonic boom that shook the heavens and earth; this punch contained a destructive storm.

"Good lad, this punch actually hit one hundred units of Vajra Power," Instructor Yu was surprised. "One unit of Vajra Power is equivalent to one million kilograms of attack force. Impressive, worthy of a Sacred Body!"