Chapter 116: The Strongest Power!
12,531 kilograms?
Was this a joke?
How could a student who had been cultivating for only eight and a half months possibly achieve this? Even a demon-kin could not do it.
When they saw the number on the Sky Pillar, this was the thought that surfaced in the minds of the vast majority of people present.
In the live broadcast room, Gang Shan also said with surprise, “Who is the next contestant? They’re actually going to challenge a 12,531-kilogram Sky Pillar?”
Le Jingchen, at his side, said calmly, “The last contestant who hasn’t taken the stage should be Zhang Yu of Songyang High School, right?”
Gang Shan was taken aback. “That student from Songyang High School? Didn’t he only lift 7,000 kilograms in the last round? Now he’s jumping straight to 12,531 kilograms? Is he not afraid of being killed by the shockwave?”
“And this kilogram amount, precise down to a single digit… does he mean to say he has a perfect grasp of his own limit, even down to the last digit?”
Le Jingchen did not speak, because he also had no idea what was going on.
“Could it be… a new publicity method? A comedic promotion?”
“Are White Dragon High School and the Immortal Resonance Group using a marketing tactic I don’t understand?”
Wang Hai, for his part, was growing anxious. “What is this kid doing? 12,531 kilograms? Is that something he can handle right now?”
“That could kill someone!”
“How expensive is your insurance policy that you dare to play like this?”
Imagining the weight of 12,531 kilograms pressing down, and the possibility of Zhang Yu being severely injured the instant he tried to forcibly hold it, Wang Hai immediately rushed toward the competition floor.
If a student on the team had an accident, he, the teacher, would also be held responsible.
This was especially true if the student didn’t die, but the money ran out.
Wang Hai did not want to see such an outstanding student have his savings wiped out by medical fees so early in his first year, losing all his potential in the Immortal Dao.
Although Wang Hai wanted to stop him, he was blocked by the event staff.
While Wang Hai was tied up with the staff, the other contestants also looked at Zhang Yu with astonishment.
Le Mulan watched his back, touching her own feverish and somewhat dizzy head, and thought distractedly, Could it be that he filled it out wrong?
Song Hailong grew immensely curious. Zhang Yu doesn’t seem like an idiot, so what is he planning?
Yu Xinghan considered himself to have the strongest physique and the highest level of physical control on site.
Looking at Zhang Yu not far away, he thought to himself, What a bluffer; with his level, it’s impossible to achieve this.
Hu Yuntao’s face was full of disdain, also refusing to believe Zhang Yu could lift a 12,531-kilogram Sky Pillar.
He was just about to exchange a few words with Xiong Wenwu beside him, to mock Zhang Yu, but found that Xiong Wenwu had already fainted.
At this moment, the gazes of countless people were fixed on Zhang Yu, and all their attention converged upon him, forming a heavy pressure that was almost tangible.
Just watching from afar gave Zhao Tianxing goosebumps all over his body, making him wish he could dig a hole for Zhang Yu to hide in.
But in Zhang Yu’s eyes, it seemed there was no one else on the field.
He just calmly waved toward the gymnasium entrance and calmly accepted the delivery from a Purple Cloud teacher.
This was the drug he had ordered just before the start of the final event.
Although he had paid extra for a deliveryman at the peak of Qi Refinement to bring it, it had still been held up at the school gate and was only now being delivered by the Purple Cloud teacher.
Zhang Yu slowly took out the three syringes from the delivery package and injected them one by one into his body.
He felt the state of his vital energy throughout his body and thought, After all, for a weight of 12,531 kilograms, I still need a little assistance from drugs.
Seeing Zhang Yu injecting himself, Wang Hai’s heart sank even further. What kind of drug is that? Why is he taking drugs at all? Pushing himself this hard will really cause fundamental damage.
And to many people present, the drugs Zhang Yu was now taking were clearly his trump card.
Bai Zhenzhen gazed at Zhang Yu’s back as he slowly ascended the stage and thought, Go, Yu-boy, and win the prize money, the advertisements, the endorsements, and a spot in the Ten Greats… win every last damn thing!
In the broadcast room, Gang Shan also became excited. “This Zhang Yu’s physical strength is level 4.95, right? With a weight of 12,531 kilograms, the slightest misstep will result in serious injury.”
Le Jingchen nodded and said, “It is nearly impossible to make the body perform in overload to hold up a Sky Pillar of this weight. On the contrary, the slightest mistake in posture or force application will result in torn tendons and broken bones.”
Gang Shan sighed. “So this isn’t just a challenge of his own strength, but also his technique. He’s challenging it with his medical insurance and even his Immortal Dao potential.”
On the stage.
Zhang Yu slowly raised his head, looking at the base of the Sky Pillar.
Although the venue was incredibly noisy, although the gazes and attention of countless people were fixed on him, although this next battle concerned his future, the arrangements of the three major high schools, and the company’s plans…
To the single-minded Zhang Yu, none of these things were on his mind anymore.
And when he activated the fully-focused state of the Heavenly Martial Heart-Tempering Art, his spirit was concentrated to an unprecedented degree.
The entire world seemed to turn black and white in that instant, and in Zhang Yu’s eyes, only the Sky Pillar before him and his own body remained.
His strong heart beat continuously, and his muscles and bones, nourished by qi, blood, and the potion, were incredibly active.
Without a doubt, after the breakthrough with his heart in the last event and an hour and a half of development, his physical body was at a peak state.
His physical strength had even risen from level 4.95 to 4.96.
At this moment, his heart was no longer a liability. His entire body was perfectly balanced, able to perfectly unleash the power contained within his vital energy.
Then, the rest is simple.
I just have to do what I am capable of doing.
This was a rare occasion for Zhang Yu to enter a fully-focused state purely for power circulation, outside of a high-speed environment.
He watched the Sky Pillar descend as slowly as a snail.
Zhang Yu gently extended a finger and pressed it against the base of the Sky Pillar; he could immediately feel a tsunami of power descending from the heavens, passing through his body and conducting to the platform beneath his feet.
And if he were to resist this power even slightly, it seemed he could see the pressure from the Sky Pillar and the platform below, one from above and one from below… like the massive maw of a giant beast, about to grind him to dust.
In the next moment, as Zhang Yu’s palms pushed forward forcefully, beginning to resist the descending Sky Pillar, this feeling grew ever stronger.
It was a body that had been tempered through long training, incomparably powerful.
But in Zhang Yu’s perception at this moment, his body became fragile under the pressure of the Sky Pillar.
His arms, shoulders, spine, leg bones, and the muscles in every part of his body… all became increasingly fragile under the oppression of this immense force.
In his perception, it was a feeling of fragility where a single lapse in attention would exceed the tolerable limits of various parts of his body, leading to torn tendons and broken bones.
Thus, as the Sky Pillar pressed down, Zhang Yu continuously adjusted his posture.
The arm muscles can’t hold up like this… I have to redirect.
The lumbar spine can’t bear it this way… I have to offload the force.
The pressure on the legs needs to be distributed…
Zhang Yu felt as if he were assembling a set of building blocks, freely and skillfully combining the strength from all over his body to support the torrential pressure descending from the sky.
The only difference was that these blocks were made of his flesh and blood, and at this moment they seemed as fragile as glass, liable to be shattered by the terrifying, heaven-sent force with the slightest hesitation.
Almost…
It’s almost complete…
Zhang Yu’s brain operated at high speed, and as he continuously adjusted and broke down the force, sweat constantly beaded on his forehead.
And during this process, the Sky Pillar continued its unwavering descent.
The Sky Pillar and the high platform were like a gradually closing maw, and Zhang Yu felt as if he were walking a tightrope above it, liable to be swallowed by this maw at any moment.
But at this moment, Zhang Yu did not even have time to panic.
With his complete and total focus, he could only feel his thoughts becoming smoother and the ‘power’ in his vision becoming clearer.
The Sky Pillar’s center of gravity, the flow of power through his muscles, the support from every fiber of his being…
Everything was so clear, so understandable, that Zhang Yu felt an unprecedented sense of clarity.
Under the immense pressure before him, Zhang Yu made a new breakthrough.
Redirection, shifting, offloading, exertion, support, explosion… the techniques brought by a dozen level-10 cultivation techniques merged into one at this moment.
Zhang Yu could seemingly see countless flows of power moving, balancing, and intertwining.
In the next instant, a sharp light flashed in his eyes, and it was as if his entire body’s nerves, muscles, and bones were pierced by a bolt of lightning.
I can feel it… I can see it…
All the power…
Along with the violent exertion of his muscles, Zhang Yu’s entire body of flesh and blood reached an unprecedented state of balance.
Every inch of his skin, every piece of his skeleton, every fiber of his being, was sharing the burden of that terrifying force descending from the heavens.
A force of 12,531 kilograms erupted from within Zhang Yu’s body, and his frame, like a statue both incredibly fragile and incredibly strong, slowly pushed the Sky Pillar up.
It was incredibly fragile because the slightest misstep, or even the slightest tilt in the force he bore, would break his body’s balance, and it would collapse, would shatter.
It was incredibly strong because every fiber of his flesh and blood had erupted with its own limit, like countless bars of steel and concrete, pushing with a terrifying force of 12,531 kilograms to lift the Sky Pillar.
And so, under the shocked gazes of countless people, Zhang Yu slowly straightened his back, steadily shouldering the Sky Pillar.
First second!
His bones began to show fractures, his skin began to split, and traces of blood appeared all over his body.
Third second!
His internal organs began to bleed.
Fifth second!
Blood trickled from the corners of Zhang Yu’s mouth, eyes, and nose, yet he revealed a faint smile.
Because he had shouldered the 12,531-kilogram Sky Pillar.
At this moment, he represented the strongest power in the entire arena!
Below the stage, Yu Xinghan stared intently at Zhang Yu’s body, his gaze sweeping over every revealed muscle, every ripple and contour.
At this moment, what he saw was not an ordinary physique, but a technique perfected to its peak, a display of understanding of the body and of power that completely surpassed his own.
At this moment, Yu Xinghan understood that he had lost.
In the extraction and use of physical strength, he had lost this time.
The Zhang Yu before him had wagered his own flesh and blood and defeated him.
And when the Sky Pillar slowly rose back up, there was almost no part of Zhang Yu’s body that was not damaged.
But it was precisely because his entire body had sustained damage, had shouldered the harm, that he had not suffered a single, severe injury.
Wang Hai and Bai Zhenzhen rushed onto the stage.
Wang Hai quickly checked Zhang Yu’s body, then sucked in a sharp breath.
“The injuries are so minor? At this rate, they could heal on their own without treatment, right? No… it’s not just that they’re minor; if many of these spots were just a little more severe, it would have likely caused a chain reaction, leading to serious injuries costing hundreds of thousands or even millions in medical fees.”
“This kid, he controlled the damage to just below the threshold of a serious injury…”
As a top-tier athletics coach, Wang Hai was naturally extremely familiar with the human body’s structure.
And it was for this reason that he knew just how incredible Zhang Yu’s array of injuries was.
The only explanation Wang Hai could come up with for this was… talent.
“Absolute talent, an absolute talent for the extraction and control of physical strength.”
“This Zhang Yu is the most talented and most valuable student I have encountered in my entire coaching career.”