Chapter 111

On the arena.

Bai Zhenzhen’s body flickered like a ghostly shadow, zipping back and forth at high speed within the circle, constantly dodging steel pellets shooting in from all directions.

Through these two months of grueling cultivation, her physical body, under the repeated tempering of the Lightning Strike True Body and with the aid of her true spirit root, had continuously improved the reaction speed and explosive speed of her muscles.

At this moment, the nerves running through her body were constantly transmitting her thoughts, controlling her muscles to contract and then explode, allowing her to dodge each high-speed steel pellet while moving.

Because her body’s reaction and movement were too fast, as she left a trail of afterimages, she always managed to evade each pellet in the nick of time.

“Much slower than Yu Zi’s hand speed.”

Compared to Zhang Yu, who went all out during their combat training sessions, the steel pellets in front of her seemed much slower, allowing Bai Zhenzhen to even spare some attention to comment while dodging.

Meanwhile, almost all contestants from the three major high schools, like Bai Zhenzhen at this moment, were easily evading the high-speed steel pellets shooting from all directions, forming a stark contrast with the other contestants who were being eliminated one after another.

…

In the audience stands.

Gang Shan nodded and said, “Jing Chen, you’re right. These two students from Songyang High School have indeed caught up to the level of the three major high schools.”

Le Jingchen smiled and said, “This is the impact of breakthroughs in body-refining technology. Even students who used to be far below the level of the three major high schools, after undergoing surgical modification, have the possibility of catching up with the top students from those schools.”

Gang Shan said, “But their performance seems far from Le Mulan’s? They don’t look as effortless as Le Mulan.”

Le Jingchen nodded and said matter-of-factly, “The super metabolic surgery brings a comprehensive increase in drug tolerance, allowing excessive intake of various drugs.”

“And the effects of drugs cover all aspects—whether strength, speed, explosiveness, balance, flexibility, reaction, focus, digestion… every human function can be enhanced through pharmaceuticals.”

“In other words, the super metabolic surgery provides the most comprehensive improvement for a person, with no blind spots or weaknesses.”

“For a challenge like the one in front of us, besides the speed and reaction of the body, it also tests the brain’s focus and endurance—things most body-refining techniques can hardly train.”

“But for Le Mulan, who has undergone the super metabolic surgery, she just needs an injection into her skull—one shot, or two if one isn’t enough—and she’ll have focus surpassing all students on the field.”

Le Jingchen recommended, “If you’re interested in the super metabolic body-refining technology, everyone can check the official website of Ziyun Pharmaceuticals for more detailed information…”

After Le Jingchen had hyped Ziyun for a bit, Gang Shan asked curiously, “And is this surgery very expensive?”

Le Jingchen nodded: “Ziyun has always wanted to benefit the world with new technology. Although the cost of this technique isn’t low, the surgery fee has already been brought down to under one million.”

Gang Shan said, “That price is indeed not cheap, but coincidentally, the ‘Dare to Borrow’ platform recently discussed with me and we’ve jointly launched a special offer for everyone.”

“As long as you enter the ‘Dare to Borrow’ platform and borrow money from me, you can be exempt from six periods of handling fees.”

“If you’re my buddy, come borrow money from me…”

Le Jingchen quietly watched the other man advertising, sighing inwardly: “Although Gang Shan is a body-refining influencer, he neither sells drugs nor techniques, only does lending ads—the safest kind. His fans’ death rate is among the lowest in the body-refining influencer circle. As a streamer, he’s a clean stream who values his reputation.”

“I wonder how much the company paid to bring him here to promote the new technology.”

…

Meanwhile, just after Le Jingchen and Gang Shan each finished their rounds of ads.

All the ordinary high school students on the arena had been completely eliminated.

And as the dodging space continuously shrank, the key high school students also began to be eliminated one after another.

He Dayou was struggling to dodge the high-speed steel pellets shooting from all directions. As the dodge space shrank, his brain was highly focused, and sweat kept dripping from his forehead.

Suddenly, he felt a lag in his leg; the muscle exertion didn’t seem to keep up with his brain’s commands.

Then, accompanied by a series of crackling impacts, He Dayou fell to the ground in frustration.

The transplanted muscles had ultimately not been fully under his control, and after prolonged high-intensity operation, a mistake had finally occurred.

He checked his time—58 seconds.

With a regretful sigh, he returned to the resting area of Songyang High School.

Zhao Tianxing, standing nearby, looked at He Dayou with some envy, thinking to himself, “He actually lasted 58 seconds—that long. If I went up, I’d probably only last about 30 seconds at most, right?”

But He Dayou, whom Zhao Tianxing envied, felt no joy at all.

At this moment, He Dayou was looking longingly at the live broadcast on the big screen.

“Hasn’t anyone from the three major high schools been eliminated at all?”

"A new body-refining technique... If only I could undergo such a modification too."

……

Le Jingchen commented, "The top high school students have been mostly eliminated, the competition pool has shrunk by nearly half, and now it's time for the three major high school students to be hit."

Gang Shan asked curiously, "Jingchen, who do you think will ultimately win this round?"

Le Jingchen said calmly, "The students from Red Tower High School generally have large physiques, which puts them at the biggest disadvantage in this round. They should be the first among the three major high schools to be hit by the steel balls."

"The two students from Songyang have the advantage of small body frames, so they can hold out a little longer, falling behind Red Tower High School. They'll be hit together with most of the contestants from Ziyun and Bailong."

"As for the final first place... it should be between Le Mulan and Yu Xinghan."

"Although I have great confidence in my little sister's strength and Ziyun's new technology, Yu Xinghan is, after all, a Jindan disciple. The resources invested in him far exceed those of any other contestant here, and his statistics are the highest across the board. Mulan may not be able to defeat him..."

In Le Jingchen's commentary, although he praised Yu Xinghan highly, every word emphasized the other's status as a Jindan disciple.

Clearly, he wanted to ensure that if Yu Xinghan won, it would be attributed to being a Jindan disciple, while if Le Mulan won, it would highlight the strength of Ziyun's technology.

And the subsequent competition flow proved Le Jingchen's predictions one by one.

First, the students from Red Tower High School were hit by steel balls amid furious beast-like roars.

Then, some contestants from Ziyun and Bailong High Schools were hit by steel balls.

Bang!

Chu Qiuhe felt the impact of the steel ball against his arm. He snorted coldly and directly stopped evading, letting the steel balls slam against his body with crisp sounds while he calmly walked out of the room as if nothing had happened.

"Dodging back and forth is so annoying. Sure enough, just taking it head-on suits me better."

As he walked, he also cast his gaze toward the large screen, concerned about the performances of the students still competing. On the other side, Lian Tianji, after holding out for over ten more seconds, was also hit because he couldn't dodge in time.

Amid the admiring gazes of countless ordinary and key high school students, Lian Tianji walked toward the rest area while staring intently at the live broadcast screen to see who else was still in the competition.

A trace of regret showed on his face: "Sure enough, I still couldn't match Sacred First and Zhang Yu, huh?"

As students from the three major high schools were gradually eliminated one by one, Gang Shan was surprised to find that Bai Zhenzhen and Zhang Yu were still on the field.

Apart from Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen, the only remaining contestants on the field were Le Mulan and Yu Xinghan.

"Made it to the top four?"

Le Jingchen also found it somewhat surprising, but upon reflection, he thought it was normal.

"After all, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen's physical strength ranks 5th and 7th in this competition, and they have the advantage of small body frames. It's only natural for them to enter the top four in this round."

"I shouldn't have subconsciously underestimated them because of Songyang High School. After all, they must have also applied the newly developed body-refining techniques."

"These two may have the potential to rank in the top five in total physical competition scores."

This work is compiled and uploaded~~

Le Jingchen silently reflected, then looked at the field again.

At this moment, the circle had shrunk to almost only the size of one person. Zhang Yu had long activated his full concentration state, observing the steel balls coming slowly one by one, moving his body little by little, doing his best to avoid each steel ball.

Bai Zhenzhen, meanwhile, twisted her body repeatedly, making all kinds of incredible evasive maneuvers, compensating for her lack of focus with astonishing movement speed, neural reactions, and flexibility, managing to hold on.

But for the two of them, the hardest part now wasn't the dodging itself, but the need to constantly turn their heads and bodies to see the steel balls shooting from all directions while having limited space to evade.

Bai Zhenzhen gritted her teeth inwardly: "At this rate, I won't be able to see them all."

As the evasion space further shrank, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen's dodging became increasingly difficult, and they were eventually eliminated one after the other.

4th place, Songyang High School, Bai Zhenzhen, 2 minutes 13 seconds

3rd place, Songyang High School, Zhang Yu, 2 minutes 18 seconds

After leaving the field, Bai Zhenzhen and Zhang Yu, met with the awed gazes of the surrounding contestants, also turned their attention to the live broadcast screen, concerned about Le Mulan and Yu Xinghan, who were still competing for first place.

Bai Zhenzhen said reluctantly, "Those two... I have a feeling they can see the steel balls coming from behind them?"

At the same time, on the other side, Le Mulan had also lost her initial composure.

Her eyes and ears, sharpened to the extreme under the effect of a tenfold thrill-enhancing agent, were detecting changes in the airflow all around, judging where the steel balls were coming from.

Her brain, hyperactivated under the stimulation of a tenfold intelligence-enhancing agent, was continuously assessing the sequence of evasive moves ahead, following the optimal route to dodge each steel ball as it shot toward her.

Surging blood flowed like a great river, transporting the medicinal agent to every muscle fiber in her body, stimulating contraction and explosive power, causing every movement she made to leave a continuous trail of afterimages.

Even so, as the circle shrank, Yue Mulan felt that dodging was becoming increasingly difficult. Her brain raced at high speed, growing hotter and hotter, while sweat continuously seeped from her forehead, trickled down her cheeks, and slid along her snow-white neck.

Especially as the dodging space contracted, Yue Mulan could no longer turn around at all, relying solely on hearing to perceive the steel balls coming from behind, which became more and more challenging.

Bang!

The instant the steel ball struck her back, Yue Mulan suddenly relaxed, and with a flicker, she left the small room.

Second place, Ziyun High School, Yue Mulan, 2 minutes 25 seconds

When Yue Mulan, having left the arena, also looked up at the live broadcast screen, she was astonished to find that Yu Xinghan was still dodging within that tiny circle.

Shock filled Yue Mulan's heart: "How did he do it?"

Yu Xinghan perceived the slowed-down world; the third eye in his brain seemed to sense the shock of countless people present.

"Do you all think this is very difficult?"

The tenth level of the Heavenly Martial Heart Refining Art allowed him to see a world that had slowed down while in a state of full focus.

And the third eye in his brain gave him a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree field of vision.

Meanwhile, the highest physical strength among all the contestants, under his explosive power, displayed the most terrifying speed.

……

In the audience stands, Yue Jingchen watched Yu Xinghan's movements and thought to himself: "This guy... can he see behind his own back? Without any mana circulating, is that some kind of effect from body modification?"

"But White Dragon High School doesn't have any related technology either. Is it a trick from Master Xinghuo? Or... is this something innate about the guy?"

Yue Jingchen couldn't be certain, but he raised no objection.

After all, sports competitions test physical strength; if the body has peculiarities, it's either an innate advantage or a technological advantage, both within the rules.

And just at that moment, a burst of exclamations rose from the scene.

……

On the arena.

Just as the circle on the ground contracted to the point where it was increasingly difficult for Yu Xinghan to stand, he squatted down and then pointed one finger downward.

With a single index finger touching the ground, he sat cross-legged, steadily "sitting" in the circle.

Then, with his index finger still on the ground, he continuously adjusted the postures of the other parts of his body, like a silver tree dancing wildly, dodging the steel balls in all kinds of unimaginable poses that surpassed the limits of the human body.

In the next few seconds, Yu Xinghan displayed before the crowd strength, speed, balance, flexibility, reaction... a body so perfect it was astonishing, showing dominant-level ability in every aspect.

Only when the circle had completely contracted, becoming smaller than the space occupied by that single finger, did Yu Xinghan, amidst the stunned gazes of the entire audience, flicker slightly, press his fingertip hard, and leap into the air, dodging the last wave of steel balls.

And the steel balls shooting in from all directions also stopped as the circle fully converged.

When Yu Xinghan's figure descended from midair and once again stood in the room, not a single steel ball had struck him.

First place, White Dragon High School, Yu Xinghan, 2 minutes 33 seconds

Yu Xinghan on the big screen smiled slightly at everyone present and said calmly: "Xianyun Group will start offering imitation-beast-muscle body refinement services in Songyang City starting next month. Please look forward to it."