Chapter 106

Heaving a sigh, Wang Hai immediately took the lead toward the disinfection tunnel, his gaze unable to resist drifting toward the White Dragon people on the other passage.

As the rest passed through the disinfection tunnel, their eyes also couldn't help but size up the direction of the White Dragon people.

Indeed, the appearance of this group was too eye-catching.

Zhang Yu thought to himself, "Yu Xinghan hasn't changed much compared to when I saw him filming that commercial last time."

"But Song Hailong, who's following behind, has changed a lot..."

Aside from the '1' on his chest and back turning into a '2', Song Hailong now had rough skin like weathered rock, and his limbs were far thicker than before—his forearm alone was as thick as Zhang Yu's waist, giving the impression... as if he had turned into a humanoid elephant.

Yet Song Hailong's change was still relatively mild; at least he still looked human.

Looking further back past Song Hailong, the more rearward the White Dragon people, the less human they appeared, their forms increasingly resembling demonic beasts.

Zhang Yu recalled the information Zhang Pianpian had told him.

"The body-tempering technique at White Dragon High School has indeed achieved a breakthrough, no longer as simple as just implanting elephant tendon and muscle like before with Song Hailong."

"They can now transform the students' muscles into imitation demonic beast muscles, forcibly breaking through their own physical bottlenecks and ushering in explosive growth in physical strength."

"The wealthier the student, the more imitation demonic beast muscles they have surgically implanted, making them look less human."

"However, this imitation demonic beast muscle is inherently plastic. If a student can fully master the power within it, they can gradually retract the beast features and become more human-like."

Zhang Yu stared at Yu Xinghan at the front, wondering for a moment whether this Core Formation disciple had undergone the imitation demonic beast muscle surgery.

After exiting the disinfection tunnel, the Songyang High School crowd found a rhino wearing a White Dragon High School uniform waiting for them.

Indeed, a rhino—whether it was his rough, gray-black skin, the horn-like thing on his forehead, his small eyes, elongated face, or thick limbs... he gave the impression of a humanoid rhino.

This rhino waved at Zhang Yu and called out, "Zhang Yu, long time no see."

"Oh, you probably don't recognize me now, right?"

The rhino smiled slightly and said, "I'm Chu Qiuhe, the White Dragon High School student you defeated in the last martial arts tournament."

Hearing the rhino's words, everyone present revealed a look of astonishment—Chu Qiuhe's current humanoid rhino appearance was so drastically different from before that it was like he had been reborn.

And the reason Chu Qiuhe came to see the Songyang people was simply because, after seeing the Songyang High School team, he wanted to confirm one thing.

Whether Zhang Yu, the champion of last year's high school martial arts tournament, was representing Songyang High School this time.

Chu Qiuhe knew he wasn't the only one curious about this; many students who had lost in the last martial arts tournament were looking forward to avenging themselves in this sports competition.

Seeing that Zhang Yu had indeed appeared in the Songyang High School delegation, Chu Qiuhe couldn't help but feel a hint of anticipation.

Chu Qiuhe looked at Zhang Yu and said with a slight smile, "A lot of people are looking forward to you participating in this sports competition..."

Just then, a loud crash erupted from the White Dragon people's team ahead.

Song Hailong suddenly drove his elbow toward Yu Xinghan's temple. Amid a thunderous sound like a cannon shot, Yu Xinghan's head twisted about four or five degrees under the blow, then stopped.

Then, with a sudden jerk of his head, Yu Xinghan flung the towering Song Hailong—nearly two to three times his size—violently away.

With a bang, Song Hailong, tumbling through the air, landed steadily on the ground, looking at Yu Xinghan with a resentful expression.

Yu Xinghan, however, commented calmly, "Not good enough, Xiao Song. That strike had way too much killing intent—no subtlety of a surprise attack at all. You still need to practice."

The White Dragon people seemed unfazed by this and continued following Yu Xinghan forward.

The Songyang High School crowd was inwardly shocked by this scene of infighting among the White Dragon people.

He Dayou was startled: "The second-year student dares to attack the first-year student? Has White Dragon's school rules changed?"

Chu Qiuhe chuckled casually and explained, "It's been like this ever since Yu Xinghan got first place."

Bai Zhenzhen frowned: "Is Song Hailong that petty? Does he ambush anyone who surpasses him?"

Chu Qiuhe explained, "Brother Hailong is certainly not that petty. Yu Xinghan asked him to do it—demanded that Song Hailong launch a full-force ambush on him five times within every 24-hour period, saying he uses this method for training."

Chu Qiuhe said with some emotion, "As the top student of the grade, Brother Hailong had no choice but to accept."

"Ever since then, his eyes and mind have been filled with nothing but Yu Xinghan—no one else."

"I suspect he's always thinking about how to take down Yu Xinghan; he's practically gone mad."

Shaking his head with a sigh, Chu Qiuhe patted Zhang Yu on the shoulder and said meaningfully, "Then I'll see you on the field. Looking forward to our match." Watching the retreating figures of the White Dragon people, observing their somewhat doggish appearances, Zhang Yu suddenly felt a wave of emotion.

"In the past, Red Pagoda High School, in pursuit of academic excellence, raised one demon beast after another into humans. Here at White Dragon High School, in pursuit of greater strength, they turned one human after another into demon beasts."

Guided by the reception teacher, the group walked among the pavilions and towers of Purple Cloud High School, soon arriving at a massive indoor stadium.

The reception teacher introduced, "This is the largest stadium in Purple Cloud High School. It's usually only opened for major tournaments and school-wide events."

Before they even entered, they could already hear the roaring crowd inside.

And the moment they stepped inside, the first thing they noticed was how bright it was—as bright as day.

Unlike the midnight environment outside, the ceiling of the stadium seemed to be covered with countless small suns, illuminating the entire indoor arena like broad daylight.

Next, they felt the sheer size of the indoor stadium and the massive number of people.

Unlike the dangers of martial arts competitions, this sports competition—since there was no worry of someone going bankrupt—allowed almost all key high schools and ordinary high schools that could attend to participate.

Everywhere in the huge arena, they could see students and coaches coming and going—some were warming up with medicine, some trading drugs, and some being humiliated by the three major high schools. A vivid picture of Kunxu's passionate high school youth unfolded before them.

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Besides the competitors, Zhang Yu and the others also saw peripheral staff and countless spectators in the stands.

He Dayou said in confusion, "There are so many people filming videos."

The reception teacher beside them explained, "They are all professional audience members invited by the sponsors of this competition—media reporters, internet celebrities, and people from various companies."

Zhang Yu looked up and indeed saw many figures in suits and leather shoes, their faces full of weariness, the "office smell" wafting over from a distance. They were clearly company people who had been working overtime for years.

Zhang Yu then turned his gaze to the spectator seats. This largest indoor stadium of Purple Cloud High School had tens of thousands of seats, and at this moment, every single one was packed.

Besides the students from the three major high schools, Zhang Yu also saw many things that were wrapped from head to toe, looking like mummy dumplings.

Just then, a hearty laugh came from nearby.

"You've finally arrived."

"Those are student spectators from other ordinary high schools. To prevent them from dirtying the venue, each person was given a clean suit upon entry, to avoid too much contact with us at Purple Cloud High School."

The newcomer was Lian Tianji of Purple Cloud High School. He nodded to the reception teacher and naturally took over the task of guiding the Songyang High School contestants.

Facing this major employer of his own clothing brand, Zhang Yu laughed and stepped behind Bai Zhenzhen, greeting enthusiastically, "Brother Lian, how do you have the time to come pick us up?"

Lian Tianji said, "I know where the rest area for Songyang High School is. I'll take you there."

On the way to the rest area, Zhang Yu saw all kinds of advertisements on the ground, the walls, the billboards... and many, many internet celebrities of all sizes filming the arena, interviewing students and company people.

There really were big and small internet celebrity bloggers—after all, the big ones were over four meters tall, the small ones under two meters. Their fan counts were basically proportional to their body sizes.

There were also company people in suits walking around, filming and recording something.

Feeling the clamor of the entire arena, Zhang Yu once again understood what Zhang Pianpian had said.

Zhang Yu murmured to himself, "This sports competition truly is an extension of the corporate battlefield—a battlefield for them to promote new technologies."

Along the way, Zhang Yu also saw many students whose whole bodies were purple, wearing Purple Cloud High School uniforms, bowing to Lian Tianji and not moving until Lian Tianji had left their sight.

The intelligence Zhang Pianpian had given him replayed in Zhang Yu's mind.

"Purple Cloud High School's technological breakthrough direction lies in enhancing cultivators' metabolic capacity and drug tolerance. They can take medicine more than ten times as fiercely as before, and all kinds of banned drugs can be taken as if they were ordinary supplements."

"But also because of the side effects of Purple Cloud's drugs, the fiercer they dose, the more purple drug residue remains on their epidermis. You could say the richer and more powerful they are (the more drugs they take), the more purple their whole body becomes."

"But going a step further, those who can rapidly refine the drug's power will have all the epidermal residue decomposed, leaving only a purple mark on the forehead. The more drug power they refine, the more complex the pattern on the forehead becomes, eventually forming the pattern of a purple eye."

Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen occasionally looked at Lian Tianji beside them, and they could see a thumb-sized purple circular mark on his forehead.

"We're here."

Lian Tianji smiled lightly and pointed ahead, "This is the rest area for Songyang High School."

Zhang Yu and the others looked up and saw that the area enclosed by partitions ahead had everything: sofas, power outlets, drinking water, energy drinks, and even fruit and snacks. Once again, they felt how heavily invested this sports competition was—even mere Songyang people received such hospitality.