Chapter 199: Zhang Yu’s Best Cultivation Conditions
Seeing both their medical coverages hit zero, Dai Xingzhi thought, A double KO?
The rules immediately flashed through Dai Xingzhi’s mind: “If one party’s medical coverage reaches zero, they lose. But if both parties reach zero simultaneously, the fight continues…”
But the next moment, having exhausted all his medical coverage, he felt an immense weakness in his body. He swayed slightly and fell to one knee.
In contrast, Bai Zhenzhen on the other side wiped her mouth, then slowly stood up. With her body wreathed in crackling electricity, she began to walk towards Dai Xingzhi step by step.
Dai Xingzhi’s heart sank. After using up 1,000,000 points of healing, she recovered better than I did?
Does that mean her injuries were lighter than mine? How is that possible? She clearly took my full-powered strike as well.
A confident smile appeared on Bai Zhenzhen’s lips. Her eyes, flashing with electric light, looked at Dai Xingzhi as she thought, These wealthy young masters from the Immortal Capital really… don’t know how to risk their lives like I do.
The next moment, Bai Zhenzhen activated Electric Flash Step, her body streaking towards Dai Xingzhi like a flash of lightning.
Although Bai Zhenzhen was still heavily injured and not fully healed, Dai Xingzhi’s condition was even weaker, more powerless.
Within two or three exchanges, Dai Xingzhi was knocked out of the ring by Bai Zhenzhen, thoroughly losing the match.
Watching this scene, Huang Zichou remarked to himself, “This Bai Zhenzhen really dares to fight. Although she might have a backer now, she must have originally climbed her way up from the very bottom of the poor.”
“After all, poor people like her can only have a chance to catch up a little to the wealthy by risking their lives like this again and again, surviving ten or twenty times. This kind of fearlessness and ferocity born from poverty can’t be faked.”
Below the ring, Dai Xingzhi replayed every detail of the battle in his mind, finally thinking with some unwillingness, “Was it because I didn’t gamble everything in that instant?”
But fighting desperately, gambling everything, putting it all on the line… these things went against the teachings Dai Xingzhi had received since childhood, actions he had always disdained.
“I actually lost because of this?”
“Could it be that the rules passed down through our family for generations have a flaw…”
Dai Xingzhi shook his head. “No, it was because I wasn’t careful enough, not cautious enough in this battle. I should never have allowed myself to be put in a situation where I had to risk my life.”
Looking at Bai Zhenzhen on the ring, Dai Xingzhi thought, Outsider woman, if there’s another chance to fight, I will definitely defeat you.
As the battle ended, Bai Zhenzhen immediately sat down on the ground the moment she stepped off the stage.
Feeling the injuries within her body, she thought, There’s no hope for the next match against Yun Jing, is there?
But it doesn’t matter. At least I’ve secured a top-two spot this time. I can participate in the final round of the Foundation Establishment examination and compete for a qualification certificate.
In that case, I might as well just surrender to Yun Jing, right?
I wonder how Yu-boy is doing…
Just as Bai Zhenzhen defeated Dai Xingzhi, in Zhang Yu’s examination hall, the simulated depth of the Dinghai Pillars had reached -300 meters.
The Netherworld Heavy Water in the pillars had become incredibly heavy at this point. Yu Xinghan felt as if his body was bound by countless iron chains, making every breath heavy and difficult.
Particularly in the more fragile parts of his body, the intense water pressure constantly squeezed them, making them especially prone to injury.
For example, Yu Xinghan could feel his ears begin to ache, as if needles were piercing them.
In addition, his glabella, throat, and chest were all being continuously compressed by the Netherworld Heavy Water.
Yu Xinghan knew this was because the air-filled cavities in his body had not reached pressure equilibrium with the Netherworld Heavy Water outside.
“It’s just like deep-sea diving…”
Yu Xinghan took a deep breath from the oxygen mask, then flexed his pectoral muscles, diaphragm, and throat muscles… pushing the inhaled air towards the cavities in his body. After several rounds of pressurization, he achieved a balance between the air pressure in his body’s cavities and the pressure of the Netherworld Heavy Water outside.
“This process must be done very carefully. If the internal gas pressure is too high, it’s easy for the air to injure the fragile parts of the body. But if the pressure isn’t high enough, it will lead to an imbalance between the inside and outside, and eventually my eardrums will be ruptured by the Netherworld Heavy Water…”
As Yu Xinghan resisted the pressure of the Netherworld Heavy Water while flexing his muscles to adjust the internal and external pressure difference, he felt the difficulty of this environment more and more keenly.
“Not only does your physical strength need to be high enough, and your body tough enough, but you also need to constantly control your physical power to actively counter the Netherworld Heavy Water.”
Yu Xinghan glanced at the other contestants around him. Meng Tao and another contestant were, like him, silently resisting the Netherworld Heavy Water and adjusting their breathing.
But only Zhang Yu and Ye Lingxiao stood out.
Especially Ye Lingxiao, who, to the astonishment of everyone, tore off his oxygen mask with a look of disgust, opened his eyes casually, and stood calmly at the bottom of the Dinghai Pillar.
Yu Xinghan was shocked. Has the effect of that intelligence-lowering capsule not worn off yet? Is he about to be eliminated just like that?
Zhang Yu was also delighted. Haha, did he really make a mistake because of his lowered intelligence?
But soon, everyone realized they were wrong. Ye Lingxiao stood as motionless as a statue. Despite not having an oxygen mask, he was completely unaffected, as if the surrounding Netherworld Heavy Water was air.
Ye Lingxiao tilted his head, thinking, What am I supposed to do next? Just stand here… is just standing here enough? That should be it. The test probably hasn’t officially started yet.
Ye Lingxiao couldn’t help but frown. No, this test… what is this test even about? It can’t be just standing here.
Seeing the unfazed Ye Lingxiao, Yu Xinghan was shocked and couldn’t help but analyze, “Is this guy using some kind of technique that allows him to master internal breathing?”
“No, he doesn’t seem to be breathing at all, nor is he adjusting the internal and external pressure difference. Is he resisting the Netherworld Heavy Water with pure physical strength?”
“Does that mean this guy has even tempered the fragile parts of the human body, like the eardrums, to the point where they can forcibly withstand the Netherworld Heavy Water?”
At this thought, Yu Xinghan gasped, then felt a sense of relief, glad that he wouldn’t have to face such a terrifying opponent in next year’s Foundation Establishment examination.
Then he looked over at Zhang Yu, who was twisting his body in the Dinghai Pillar, engaged in body tempering cultivation.
Yu Xinghan thought to himself, Sigh, among the five of us, I have the lowest physical strength.
As for Zhang Yu, with each refinement of his body and the nourishment of his Longevity magic power, he felt his physical strength increasing bit by bit.
The Phoenix-Mimic Functional Factor he had taken during the first half of the exam was still in effect.
Surges of medicinal power darted through his body like flames, stimulating the growth of his muscles and bones, and providing phoenix hormones to repair physical damage, working together with his Longevity magic power to mend his body.
What surprised Zhang Yu was that the Netherworld Heavy Water also enhanced his body tempering effect.
The pressure from all directions made him feel as if he were wearing layers of weighted clothing, causing his body to suffer more severe wear and tear while cultivating the Spring and Autumn Endless Zen.
“On one hand, it increases the wear on my body, and on the other hand, it enhances the repair of my body. This back-and-forth actually makes the body tempering effect of the Spring and Autumn Endless Zen even stronger.”
And if the combination of the level 10 Spring and Autumn Endless Zen, the top-tier Qi Refinement body tempering drug Phoenix-Mimic Functional Factor, and the Netherworld Heavy Water could be considered a top-tier body tempering condition, then what Zhang Yu was experiencing was top-tier times three!
This was because with his High School Sacred Body, when cultivating any Qi Refinement technique, he could increase the body tempering effect by two times, achieving a total of three times the original effect!
Thus, at this moment, Zhang Yu felt his body erupting like a volcano during his cultivation, roiling with the surrounding Netherworld Heavy Water, reaching an unprecedented level of efficiency.
“Exhilarating!”
“This is simply the best cultivation environment, the strongest cultivation conditions, and the highest cultivation efficiency I have encountered since coming to Kunxu!”
Physical strength level 9.92!
As the seconds and minutes passed, the simulated depth of the Netherworld Heavy Water grew deeper, and the pressure and wear on Zhang Yu’s body during his training became more severe, yet the efficiency of his training grew higher and higher!
When the depth reached -500 meters, Zhang Yu’s physical strength had also increased to level 9.93.
Now, every exertion of strength, every twist of his body, felt heavier, and the training effect increased again with the added pressure of the Netherworld Heavy Water.
Especially as the cultivation became more difficult, the Crippled Ox Body-Sacrifice Heart Art gradually came into play, constantly stimulating his potential.
In contrast to Zhang Yu’s frantic training, Ye Lingxiao on the other side remained motionless, not breathing at all, just standing silently at the bottom of the Dinghai Pillar with his arms crossed.
He looked at the -500 meter number above and thought, What does this mean?
Wait…
I remember now, he thought. The Dinghai Pillars and Netherworld Heavy Water…
I grew tired of playing with this stuff a long time ago.
As his thoughts gradually recovered, his ears twitched slightly, pressing flat against his head and completely covering his ear canals, thus blocking the pressure of the Netherworld Heavy Water.
He could perform tricks like this with ease.
What was an unprecedented experience and an unprecedented cultivation condition for Zhang Yu was nothing more than a commonplace, everyday affair for Ye Lingxiao.
Especially with Ye Lingxiao’s already powerful physical strength at the peak of the Qi Refinement stage, combined with numerous body protection techniques, the depth of -500 meters was as easy for him as a casual swim.
And as the side effects of the Dao-Dissolving Sustained-Release Capsule slowly faded and his mind gradually returned to normal, he felt even more at ease.
But as he recalled his actions after taking the drug, Ye Lingxiao’s brow gradually furrowed, and a gloomy look crossed his face. “Taking that drug actually lowers your intelligence?”
But gradually, his brow smoothed out again. “No, it doesn’t seem to be a lowering of intelligence. It’s more like a parallel line of thought was added. The adverse reaction of this drug might not… be a bad thing.”
While Ye Lingxiao was thinking, Yu Xinghan on the other side was about to give up. Not only did the pressure from the Netherworld Heavy Water make him feel like his bones and muscles were being crushed and creaking, but the pressure balance between his body’s interior and exterior was gradually exceeding his control.
“Damn it, if I hadn’t worked overtime yesterday, I should have been able to last a little longer today.”
Finally, when the depth reached -511 meters, Yu Xinghan reluctantly chose to give up.
At that moment, Yu Xinghan made a resolution: “I need to exercise restraint. I’ve been working too much overtime lately, and it’s starting to affect my studies and cultivation.”
Time continued to pass, second by second.
When the depth reached -900 meters, Zhang Yu’s physical strength had increased to a full 9.94, marking the fastest increase in his body tempering ever.
But at -900 meters, even Zhang Yu found it difficult to continue cultivating.
The medicinal power in his body was gradually dissipating, and there were no more phoenix hormones to accelerate his body’s growth and repair.
Instead, the pressure of the Netherworld Heavy Water was becoming more and more terrifying, forcing Zhang Yu to use more and more of his stamina to resist the water pressure and regulate the internal and external pressure difference.
Zhang Yu turned to look at the condition of the other contestants. Meng Tao had already curled into a ball, his muscles compressed by the terrifying pressure to almost half their size.
But on the other side, Ye Lingxiao still stood with his arms crossed, motionless. It was clear that the current depth was far from his limit.
The simulated depth continued to drop, finally reaching -1300 meters.
Zhang Yu felt as if the surrounding Netherworld Heavy Water had turned into heavy steel plates, pressing down on his skin, compressing his muscles and bones as if to crush his body completely.
Zhang Yu tried to use all his muscles to resist the overwhelming pressure, but gradually found that his current physical strength was beginning to fail to operate perfectly.