Chapter 33: The Tianhai Monthly Exam Begins (Request Follows)

In the following days, Lin Qi devoted himself entirely to martial training and improvement.

The life of a senior martial arts student was filled with monotony—eat, study, train.

Most of them spent increasing amounts of time training.

Since being thoroughly defeated by Lin Qi, Yang Lei had become utterly subdued, beginning to flatter Lin Qi, just as Jiang Tao had said—bully the weak, fear the strong.

Teacher Zhang Cheng once again raised his level of attention toward Lin Qi, offering occasional guidance.

Besides training, Lin Qi occasionally accompanied Jiang Tao to the Red Dome Martial Arts Gym for sparring.

What was once a part-time job had become a forum for exchange with Guo Heng; the sparring lasted only moments, the rest of the time spent directly in the Red Realm Arena.

In the Red Realm Arena, he had become an elite, his points continuously accumulating, his rank on the Red List steadily rising.

Everything was improving steadily; Lin Qi felt his strength increasing at a visibly perceptible pace each day, deeply fulfilling.

Time slipped by in a flash, over ten days passed.

Martial Calendar 2045, October 8th, clear weather.

On the first day after the National Day holiday, all senior students in Tianhai City faced their first monthly exam.

Tianhai No. 2 High School, Elite Class

The cold air from the air conditioning blew over everyone, dispelling the heat but not the tension in their hearts.

Lin Qi sat by the wall, his desk folded into a testing surface with a massive answer sheet; he held a pen and immersed himself in the exam, answering rapidly.

“What is the adult weight of a Level One Disaster Beast, Iron-Spined Wild Boar?”

Lin Qi scanned the question and knew the answer—400 kilograms!

He immediately moved to the next question; most of the test consisted of multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank, which were far too easy for him—he barely paused.

The academic exam lasted one day, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., totaling ten hours, with only a one-hour break in between.

The remaining eight hours were spent answering questions—a test for every student.

The exam covered Chinese, mathematics, geography, physics, biology, and martial theory, disaster beast knowledge…

Unnoticed, it was already 6 p.m.—the exam ended!

“Classmates, take a good rest. Meet in the martial arts classroom at seven for the martial assessment.”

Homeroom teacher Yan Hong reminded them after collecting all the test papers and answer sheets.

The exhausted students slowly left the classroom and headed to the cafeteria.

“Brother Qi, let’s go eat!”

Lin Qi and Jiang Tao went to the cafeteria together; Lin Qi took a stimulant potion from his backpack and drank it.

A cool sensation flooded his brain, relieving the fatigue from depleted brain cells.

“Time flies—before we knew it, we’ve been back in school for over a month.”

“We’ve worked hard for a month; now we’ll see the results. I’m ready to break into the top ten of the grade.”

Jiang Tao also drank a stimulant potion, his expression excited, fists clenched in anticipation.

Lin Qi rubbed his temples, curious to know his current rank in the school.

Even his rank in all of Tianhai City.

…

Principal’s Office

“Time flies—this is when my teaching results will be tested.”

Zhang Cheng sat on a leather sofa, one leg propped on the desk in a comfortable posture, grinning.

“Indeed, I hope to see some progress.”

Jiang Zhiguang looked anxious, watering a potted plant with a spray nozzle.

“I’ve seen you water that pot several times—it still hasn’t grown,” Zhang Cheng teased.

“Almost there, almost there!” Jiang Zhiguang muttered.

…

After seven p.m.

After a brief rest, all fifty students of the Elite Class gathered in the martial arts classroom, stretching and warming up.

Expressions varied—some indifferent, others laughing and chatting with friends.

Some felt suffocating pressure, palms cold, faces tense.

“Haha, looks like everyone’s ready—the punch strength tester and speed track are all set!”

A burly figure entered through the door, followed by a man and a woman.

As soon as Zhang Cheng stepped in, intense pressure settled over everyone; the martial arts classroom fell silent.

Zhang Cheng strode to the punch strength tester, slapped the machine, and spoke:

“No need for Feihua —everyone knows if they’ve worked hard; your score reflects your effort.”

“From now on, I’ll call names. When called, come up to test.”

“First, Chen Zichuan!”

Chen Zichuan stepped forward from the corner—he was ranked fiftieth in the grade.

Yet his expression was resolute, his aura sharpening further.

“Chen Zichuan? Always alone. Guess he’s getting kicked out of the Elite Class,” someone whispered mockingly.

Lin Qi smirked disdainfully—Chen Zichuan would shock everyone.

Seconds later

“Bang! Bang!”

Chen Zichuan’s fists slammed repeatedly into the target; numbers appeared on the digital screen.

“722.3 kg!”

“719.5 kg!”

“Over 700 kg punch strength?!” After the result appeared, many looked astonished.

The person who had mocked earlier felt his face burn.

After the speed test ended, Zhang Cheng nodded in satisfaction—he hadn’t misjudged; Chen Zichuan was a promising talent.

“Good.”

Chen Zichuan clenched his fists; as he stepped down, he saw Lin Qi and Jiang Tao giving him a thumbs-up.

A smile broke across his stoic face.

“Punch strength 672 kg!”

“Liu Yiheng, what have you been doing this past month?”

Zhang Cheng scolded; Liu Yiheng’s face turned pale. He failed the speed test, his complexion growing even whiter.

Zhang Cheng shook his head, saying nothing more.

“Punch strength 685 kg!”

!

“Wei Qing, improved!”

“Punch strength 690.2 kg!”

“Yang Lei, is this all the progress you made in a month?”

With each student tested, Zhang Cheng offered commentary; the atmosphere grew increasingly suffocating, like a trial of life and death.

“Next, Lin Qi!”

Zhang Cheng called Lin Qi’s name, sparking curiosity among most of the class.

“Go on, Brother Qi—show the whole class your strength,” Jiang Tao grinned eagerly.

Lin Qi nodded, stepped out of the crowd, brushing past Yang Lei as he descended.

Countless eyes wondered—what was the true strength of the man who had crushed Yang Lei half a month ago and drawn Zhang Cheng’s special attention?

“Huh~”

Lin Qi stood before the target, exhaled slowly, relaxing his body completely.

The next instant, his eyes sharpened, his aura surged; he focused his intent, muscles tensing.

His terrifying aura resembled a tiger descending the mountain—his spine arched like a dragon’s, power rising from his feet, driven by qi, transmitted through his waist like a chain to his arms.

His fist clenched, veins bulging on his forearm, blood and qi converging into his arm, channeling force into his fist.

His fist, like a sandbag, shot forward and slammed hard into the target.

“Boom~~”

The target shook violently, sending out a gust of wind; on the digital screen, a number appeared—“840.8 kg!”

Lin Qi’s expression remained calm.

But the onlookers’ reactions were entirely different.

“840 kg punch strength?!”

“Holy shit, is Brother Qi this strong?!” Jiang Tao was the first to gasp.

He knew Lin Qi had improved fast—but not this fast!

Others erupted in chatter.

“800 kg punch strength? No wonder he crushed Yang Lei—it makes sense now.”

“Yang Lei challenging him? Like an uncle carrying a lantern into the latrine—asking for death,” someone said.

“Good.”

Zhang Cheng spoke in praise, a smile finally appearing on his face as he quickly recorded the score.

Lin Qi nodded, his face expressionless, then walked over to begin the speed test.

As the infrared speed detector activated, he surged forward like a wild horse let loose, racing ahead.

His blood qi exploded, muscles fully activated, thigh muscles thrashing violently.

Those nearby felt a gust of wind sweep past their faces, accompanied by a figure as agile as a leopard.

“Swoosh~”

Lin Qi crossed the finish line and gradually slowed to a stop.

The electronic screen at the finish line flashed rapidly, displaying a string of numbers—“16.2m/s”.

“Punch power: 820kg, speed: 16.2m/s.”

“These numbers mean his blood qi must have broken 8.0.”

“In the grade, that’s already top-tier,” someone exclaimed.

“Lin Qi’s become this strong?” Kang Feiyue was astonished.

Qi Yuelin watched Lin Qi with interest, while Zhu Yuqi looked stunned.

Li Zhou, the top student in the grade, crossed his arms and smiled: “Interesting—he’s a genius too.”

“Yu Jing, he was in your class before. Do you know him well?”

Yu Jing shook his head: “Not at all. Just a punch power over 800kg.”

Others murmured among themselves.

Far away, Yang Lei watched this scene, his expression complex, feeling his earlier actions had made him a fool.

…

(End of Chapter)