Chapter 27: Pre-Exam Sprint
Three in the morning.
Inside an office at Songyang High School.
Su Haifeng stared at a list on his computer screen as he spoke into the phone, “Hmm… his Dao heart score hasn’t changed.”
“His magic power saw a rapid increase a while back. It looks like he spent most of his time and money on breathing exercises, which is how he broke into the top ten.”
“As for his physical strength, it hasn’t been tested in three weeks due to his isolation, but it had already dropped to nineteenth place. Now that he’s focusing on magic power, he’ll be lucky to even hold that rank.”
“His martial and Daoist arts haven’t shown any significant progress either. It’s possible he’ll drop below thirtieth place in both subjects on this monthly exam.”
Looking at Zhang Yu’s recent academic records, Su Haifeng shook his head.
“All in all, I’m not optimistic about him making any major improvements this time.”
“The school will probably still offer him a D-rank contract.”
“I understand. I’ll do my best to persuade him to sign it.”
“I don’t know how he managed to get Li Xuelian’s attention, but after this exam, he should have a clear picture of his own situation.”
After hanging up, Su Haifeng casually closed Zhang Yu’s file and moved on to the next document.
To him, Zhang Yu was just one minor issue among many. There were far more pressing matters and more important students at Songyang High School that demanded his attention.
Four in the morning.
In the abandoned building.
Today was the day of Songyang High School’s monthly exam.
Although his strength had improved significantly after nine days of torment, Zhang Yu was still seizing every moment to practice the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms, striving to boost his power a little more before the exam officially began.
His current panel in the Feather Book’s preface now read:
[Zhang Yu]
[Dao Heart: Level 1]
[Magic power: 11.7]
[Physical Strength: Level 1.05]
His magic power had increased from 10.5 to 11.7, thanks to his passive breathing exercises interspersed with occasional active sessions.
His physical strength had soared from Level 0.85 to Level 1.05 under his frenzied training.
Of course, the greatest progress in these nine days had been in the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms, which had now become: Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms Level 9 (89/90).
And as Zhang Yu threw one final punch, the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms finally broke through to Level 10, reaching the maximum limit for the Qi Refinement realm.
The moment he raised the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms to Level 10, it was as if countless memories flooded his mind—the image of himself practicing the forms over and over and over, his deepening understanding of his own body, his more profound reflections.
After being meticulously polished countless times, his body finally underwent a qualitative change and began to readjust itself in a more rational way.
A roar seemed to echo in his mind!
As his heart pumped waves of blood and qi to his limbs and bones, Zhang Yu’s entire body seemed to undergo a metamorphosis.
His flesh and blood contracted and expanded, and a series of sharp cracks echoed from his joints as his entire frame seemed to grow slightly larger.
His muscle distribution became better suited for exerting force, his skeletal structure grew firmer and more stable, and his whole body seemed to become more balanced and coordinated.
The structural optimization of his body, a process that should have occurred incrementally while leveling the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms to level 10, was now completed in an instant.
Physical Strength: 1.05 → 1.25
With the adjustment and optimization of his physical structure, Zhang Yu’s physical strength shot up by 0.2 levels, a massive 20% increase.
More importantly, Zhang Yu could feel that the improvement brought by this structural optimization was not just a one-time boost to his physical strength but would have longer-term effects. His more balanced and coordinated body would allow his future path of body tempering to be smoother and faster.
Zhang Yu smiled faintly, excitement rising within him.
Leveling the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms to 10 can actually trigger an optimization of my body’s structure.
Could it be that all skills provide such a huge boost when they reach Level 10?
This was information his teachers had never taught in class.
But Zhang Yu figured that Level 10 in any skill—even a basic martial art like the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms—was simply too distant a goal for first-year high school students, so it was normal that the teachers wouldn’t mention it.
Next, I’ll raise the Celestial Cycle Qi-Gathering Method to Level 10 and see what happens.
Celestial Cycle Qi-Gathering Method: Level 8 (3/160)
Zhang Yu estimated that it would take him a week at most to get this breathing exercise to Level 10.
But even with this thought, he didn’t immediately switch the Feather Book’s focus to the Celestial Cycle Qi-Gathering Method, because he had other plans for today.
“Please abide by the ritual’s agreement. Strive to complete the wish. Do not deliberately slack off or delay. 10.”
Just as Zhang Yu was feeling inspired and marveling at his improvement, that damned countdown sounded once again.
Zhang Yu cursed a few times, but the thought that this thing lacked even will or intelligence left him with only the empty feeling of punching cotton.
So he sat cross-legged, meditating and performing his breathing exercises while also giving his body, exhausted from another night of labor, a chance to rest and recover his stamina.
It was time to prepare… for the monthly exam.
…
Songyang High School.
A trace of anxiety was visible on the faces of the students hurrying through the grounds.
The campus itself seemed to have taken on a somber atmosphere today.
Zhang Yu looked up; the original banner, “Live until you die, learn until you die,” had been replaced with an anti-suicide slogan: “One person acts recklessly, the whole family pays the price.”
Even the perimeter of the rooftop had been enclosed with a layer of wire mesh, making it more difficult for students to act recklessly.
Beside him, Bai Zhenzhen commented, “Looks like those beastly school leaders finally learned to care about the students. They know the monthly exams can cause emotional breakdowns, so they actually took some protective measures.”
But the moment they arrived at the cafeteria for breakfast and saw the notice about price increases for certain dishes, Bai Zhenzhen couldn’t help but explode with anger.
“The prices went up again? How many times is that since the semester started?”
“A bunch of parasites can’t even run the cafeteria properly, how can they run the school?”
Zhang Yu tried to console her, “Sigh, being inhuman is standard procedure for them. Just stay calm and don’t let it affect your exam today.”
But a moment later, after hearing the new rule from the cafeteria lady serving the food, Zhang Yu raged.
“Why is the five-yuan meal set limited to one per person per day? I could still get ten yesterday! Why can’t a student even get a full meal!”
“Alright, alright, Yu-boy.” Bai Zhenzhen patted Zhang Yu’s shoulder comfortingly. “Don’t be impulsive, a teacher is looking over here. I’ll just buy you an extra poor man’s special.”
Carrying their trays to a table, Zhang Yu checked his bank balance.
Although he had once again received the 500-yuan reward for 0% distraction, his savings had dropped to 6,000 due to the massive food consumption required for body tempering, the continuous purchase and use of neural fillers, and miscellaneous expenses like transportation.
A new month was about to begin, which meant new loan payments, new rent, and new utility bills were due…
And then there was the cost of food. Since starting high-intensity body tempering, Zhang Yu had felt his appetite grow larger and larger; eating ten pounds a day was normal. His daily food expenses alone amounted to several hundred yuans, which would add up to over ten thousand a month.
Zhang Yu felt more and more that cultivation was an endeavor that only grew more expensive the further one progressed.
I hope I can get a good score on the monthly exam and land a good contract.
Otherwise, I’ll have to go back to working part-time.
Just then, Zhou Tianyi sat down beside them with his tray and shook his head helplessly.
“Do you guys know why the cafeteria raised its prices?”
Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen snapped their heads up in unison, staring at Zhou Tianyi and waiting for him to continue.
“To promote Oasis Corporation’s synthetic food, the municipal government has raised the tariffs on ingredients imported from other cities. In the future, the prices of all food in Songyang City, except for synthetic food, are likely to keep rising.”
“I heard the principal is also considering replacing the cafeteria’s pre-made meals with synthetic food.”
Before he started cultivating, the original Zhang Yu had eaten plenty of synthetic food, since it was much cheaper.
Fried insects, vegetable protein, plus recycled water and oil—the taste was something not even a pig would eat.
“We won’t even get pre-made meals anymore?”
Upon hearing this, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen let out another wail, cursing both Oasis Corporation and the municipal government for being utterly inhuman.
After breakfast, because it was the monthly exam, the three of them did not return to their classroom as usual but went to their respective examination halls.
The morning consisted of the general education exam and the martial arts theory exam, both of which were written tests worth 50 and 20 points respectively.
The afternoon featured the 100-point Daoist arts exam and the 80-point martial arts practical exam.
The 80 points from the practical combined with the 20 points from the morning’s theory test made up the total 100 points for the martial arts course.
The morning exams were all written, and the original Zhang Yu had already mastered this material.
After finishing, Zhang Yu didn’t bother checking answers with other students. Instead, he quickly ate lunch and hurried to the small garden to begin his training.
Freehand Combat: Level 1 (0/10)
Zhang Yu switched the Feather Book’s focus to Freehand Combat, which was why he hadn’t switched to the Celestial Cycle Qi-Gathering Method earlier.
After pushing the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms to Level 10 yesterday, no amount of time spent on the Celestial Cycle Qi-Gathering Method would yield significant improvement.
But if he used his daytime break to improve Freehand Combat, which was only at Level 1, Zhang Yu estimated he could raise it to at least Level 2.
This would undoubtedly provide a considerable boost for the afternoon’s martial arts practical exam.
With this in mind, Zhang Yu practiced with even greater focus.
As he executed the moves, propelled by his Level 1.25 physical strength, his bones and sinews sang in unison, and every punch and palm strike carried the rumble of wind and thunder.
Simultaneously, with each move, a trace of magic power was circulated to different parts of his body, enhancing its power.
Freehand Combat was a foundational practical martial art. Although it only consisted of fifteen moves, it included punches, palm strikes, kicks, and throws, not only covering various combat situations but also having a corresponding magic power circulation route for each technique.
Zhang Yu was now repeatedly practicing these fifteen moves.
As a practical martial art, the training intensity of Freehand Combat was far lower than that of the Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms.
Combined with his Level 1.25 physical strength, the magic power circulation from his Level 8 Celestial Cycle Qi-Gathering Method, and the physical optimization from his Level 10 Thirty-Six Body-Strengthening Forms, he trained at a blistering pace, raising Freehand Combat to Level 2 in just over fifty minutes.
Freehand Combat: Level 1 (0/10) → Freehand Combat: Level 2 (0/20)
In that instant, Zhang Yu felt the fifteen moves of Freehand Combat flash through his mind, becoming deeply ingrained in his memory in the blink of an eye.
But he didn’t stop. Although he felt a little tired, he decided to continue practicing this martial art.
There are still two and a half hours until the afternoon exam begins.
I’ll see if I can push Freehand Combat to Level 3 before then.
Zhang Yu continued to practice the fifteen moves over and over again, sweat pouring down like rain.
His body grew increasingly fatigued, his limbs gradually becoming sore and weak, and his movements began to lose their form slightly.
But whenever he thought of the mountain of debt he was under and his ever-increasing expenses, he gritted his teeth and persevered.
Over two hours later, a large bead of sweat dripped onto the ground with a soft splash.
Steam was rising from Zhang Yu’s entire body, his muscles intensely heated from more than three hours of high-intensity exercise.
But a smile appeared on his face; he had finally succeeded in pushing this martial art to the third level.