Chapter 322: Zhang Yu vs Gong Shu Jin

Wanfa University City, Floor 450.

When Zhang Yu stepped out of the primordial-magnetic passage, what met his eyes was a floor fully fifty meters high, along with the buildings on this level—dozens of ten-plus-story towers, crooked low houses, messy narrow alleys, and collapsed ruins.

"Looks just like a battlefield."

The scene before him felt oddly familiar to Zhang Yu, and then it hit him—this resembled the ruins of the wild factory he had visited before.

At the same time, a description of the examination ground appeared in Zhang Yu's eye display.

"So it really is simulated urban battlefield terrain, used for various kinds of training."

Zhang Yu thought to himself: "This place is probably used more by departments like Security Studies, the ones that care about combat, right?"

"But our Civil Engineering Department is also taking the exam here… Is it because of the University War?"

Following the guidance in his eye display toward the target location, Zhang Yu's gaze swept across the surrounding buildings and ruins.

With his current engineering experience, a closer look revealed that the construction quality of the buildings in this simulated battlefield was quite poor.

"The construction company for this exam field must have made a killing."

Just then, a message flashed in Zhang Yu's eye display.

Yu Xinghan: We're ordering meds together. You in?

Zhang Yu: Yeah, but do you have anything stronger?

After eating and drinking well for over three months on the wild worksite, Zhang Yu found upon returning that he could no longer stomach the standard meds.

He had never realized how bland and tasteless those simple nutrient agents, stamina restoratives, and mana restoratives were.

Yu Xinghan: Add flavor? Illusion mushroom powder? Neurotransmitters? Or mood modulators? Anyway, just pay extra for whatever taste you want.

Looking at the flavor options provided by Kunxu Pharmacy, Zhang Yu sighed inwardly but felt that paying extra was quite reasonable.

Zhang Yu: Forget it, I'll take the original flavor.

After ordering his post-exam meal of meds, Zhang Yu followed the arrow in his eye display to a crossroads.

There he found Gongshu Jin already standing.

Upon seeing Zhang Yu, Gongshu Jin nodded slightly but said nothing, fully immersing himself in his own world, sensing the power within his body, continuously adjusting his state to its peak.

Gongshu Jin thought to himself: "The top of the class in the first semester… will be me."

At the same time, through the exam ground's monitoring, Tu Lishan was also observing the test.

Tu Lishan thought to himself: "Unlike the pure physical body of the Qi Refining stage, after stepping into the Foundation Establishment stage, the body and mana gradually fuse into one, acquiring various immortal Dao characteristics. Body refining basically cannot be separated from mana support."

"At this point, testing pure physical strength in a body refining exam becomes increasingly meaningless."

"Instead, the focus is on how much data the body can unleash when enhanced by mana and amplified by cultivation techniques."

"As long as you're not using mana to cast a spell on yourself, any technique that strengthens the body or bursts its power is allowed."

"As for the dharma skeleton, that's even more a part of the human body."

Thinking this, Tu Lishan felt that in the upcoming exam, the gap between Zhang Yu and Gongshu Jin would likely be even larger.

Just then, with both Zhang Yu and Gongshu Jin present, lines of text appeared in their eye displays, explaining the rules for the upcoming test.

As the teacher, Tu Lishan could naturally also see the content.

"The body refining exam consists of two rounds: the Speed Round and the Power Round, testing the examinees' body refining level from two dimensions."

"The first round is the Speed Round, requiring high-speed movement across this simulated exam ground, traversing various complex terrains while avoiding attacks from high temperatures, explosions, and special mana."

Tu Lishan thought to himself: "This tests the examinees' comprehensive level of speed, reaction, and agility in complex terrain."

Just then, Tu Lishan saw a message from Director Gao in his eye display: "Lishan, are you also watching Gongshu Jin's exam?"

Tu Lishan immediately replied: "Yes, Director. I'm also curious whether Gongshu Jin can surpass Ji Yuanqu after these three months of training."

While Tu Lishan and Director Gao were exchanging messages, the first round of the exam officially began.

…

As the countdown appeared.

Zhang Yu took out a few regular pills and swallowed them.

Gongshu Jin, on the other hand, pulled out three syringes and jabbed them fiercely into his own neck, feeling the violent throbbing of his internal organs, his blood as thick as jam, his heart expanding to twice its normal size, and his meridians trembling slightly under the surging force of his mana.

Feeling all this, Gongshu Jin smiled slightly. "Excellent, I've reached my peak state."

If this were the younger, more naive Zhang Yu, he would have only cursed the other for not training his body naturally.

But now, Zhang Yu looked at the syringes discarded on the ground, at the residual medicinal liquid inside them, and wondered if he could pick them up and use them for a second-hand shot.

Fuji reminded him, "Have you forgotten the university exam rules? During the exam, you cannot borrow another's belongings; otherwise, it counts as stealing another's immortal potential and is considered cheating."

Zhang Yu cursed inwardly, "Damn Kunxu... each layer is more twisted than the last."

3!

2!

1!

With the countdown over, with a soft bang, Zhang Yu and Gongshu Jin vanished from their spots almost simultaneously.

Sharp air booms rang out continuously.

The two, one after the other, kicked up wave after wave of air, shooting out like lightning along the route marked in their eye bone displays, making high-speed turns again and again through the complex alleys and streets ahead, sprinting rapidly.

Mana surged through meridians, blood and qi roared in muscles and sinews. As the two continuously released the power within their bodies, Zhang Yu and Gongshu Jin's speed grew faster and faster, their figures becoming more and more blurred.

In Gongshu Jin's eye bone display, the status of each body part emerged, showing his current condition in detail.

Body temperature: 115°

Mana mobilization: 30%

Overall muscle and sinew power mobilization: 80%.

Currently running: Whaleswallow Netherbreath Method Lv.15, Boiling Blood Self-immolation Art Lv.14, Ten-thousand Li Flying Sword Step Lv.12.

Currently active heart method: Azure Dragon Soaring Heaven Heart Method Lv.15.

His gaze swept over his rows of data. Feeling the medicinal power dispersing within his body, Gongshu Jin felt his current state was as good as it could get.

"A body temperature of 115° is just right—it's the optimal balance between mana and blood mixing after running Boiling Blood Self-immolation Art, heat dissipation and bodily function performance, and also the best temperature for the medicinal power to circulate."

But with a slight glance, Gongshu Jin could sense Zhang Yu relentlessly chasing behind him.

"He's really pushing it."

"But I'm not even going all out yet..."

The next moment, with a thought from Gongshu Jin, the vertebrae in his spine trembled section by section, emitting a rumbling sound.

The Vajra Adamantine Construct spinal dharma skeleton could assist the user in executing techniques by connecting external nerves and meridians.

However, during any given period, this spinal dharma skeleton could only store and deploy one technique.

And for the sake of his score in this first speed round—to achieve higher speed—he had deliberately adjusted the technique stored in the spinal dharma skeleton, swapping out his original Lv.20 body-forging technique used for cultivation for a technique specialized in enhancing bodily displacement ability.

Ten-thousand Li Flying Sword Step—Lv.20 boost activated!

The mobilization of body and mana increased once more!

The next moment...

With a bang! Gongshu Jin's figure seemed to vanish instantly.

If someone, upon hearing a series of air-explosion booms, raised their eyes to look at the spot where the air waves burst, they would no longer see his figure.

Because under constant acceleration, he had surpassed the speed of sound, sprinting ahead of the explosive air waves.

And at such a terrifying speed, Gongshu Jin was like a bolt of lightning, flashing rapidly through the city simulation exam venue, quickly pulling away from Zhang Yu.

Watching this scene while running his Sports Car Leg and War Demon Lifespan-Sacrificing Art, Zhang Yu felt somewhat helpless.

"Tch... all that cultivation bought with money—how could it compare to the solid cultivation I built with my own blood and sweat?"

Though he thought this, Zhang Yu knew that in this round, it would be very difficult for him to surpass Gongshu Jin.

Ever since arriving at the second layer, he had seized every moment to cultivate his techniques.

Initially to advance the University Sacred Body, then the Earthwood Sacred Body, in this extremely tense cultivation time, he never had the chance to practice a Foundation Establishment stage technique that could increase his speed.

The practice of speed-type techniques could be said to be his weakness.

If it were the physical education exam of the Qi Refining stage, relying purely on physical strength, it wouldn't matter.

But after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, along with the increase in physical strength, the integration of body and mana became the trend.

The boosting effect of mana on the body, the immortal dao characteristics contained in the body—these are all important assessment items for body refinement grades, and speed-type techniques become very important.

Apart from that, he also had a huge disadvantage in this aspect: the heavy bones inside his body, reinforced and thus heavier.

Such an increase in weight would inevitably drag down his speed.

However, fortunately, the complex terrain of the exam venue prevented pure speed advantage from being fully displayed.

And the devices that detonated from time to time, the attacks of special mana like blade qi and sword qi surging toward him, also hindered Gongshu Jin's speed.

Looking at Zhang Yu, relying on the effects of his Third Eye Divine Ability and Time Remnant Demonic Pupils, he could calmly dodge various attacks; when he really couldn't dodge, he would rely on his robust physique to charge straight through.

Boom!

With a loud sound, Gongshu Jin had already landed on the finish line.

He let out a long breath, and rolling waves of heat spread in all directions.

Then the mana inside his body transformed into special mana of ice attribute, continuously cooling himself down.

But not long after Gongshu Jin reached the finish line, with a series of bangs and explosions, Zhang Yu also charged through the finish line amidst the eye sockets.

Gongshu Jin turned his head and looked at the other person with some surprise.

And thus, Gongshu Jin took a proper look at Zhang Yu's condition, somewhat surprised to find that although the other still had white hair, his cheeks were rosy and radiant, his eyes firm and spirited, like a completely different person from the weak appearance a week earlier.

"This guy's speed... not bad."

Making a judgment in his heart, Gongshu Jin hurried to the last exam venue.

"My performance in the speed checkpoint is pretty good. Next, if I do well in the strength checkpoint as well, I will definitely surpass Ji Yuanshu..."

Watching the performance of the two in the exam venue, Gongshu Jin's excellence was not beyond Tu Lishan's expectations.

Especially Gongshu Jin's advantage in spirit coins, which made Tu Lishan have to sigh that the other truly had astonishing talent, his immortal dao potential seemingly flowing out endlessly.

As for Zhang Yu's state, it made his heart stir, and he muttered to himself: "Zhang Yu's physical functions have recovered quite well. It seems that as he said, his constitution has special features, and his recovery ability is also very good."

"But it's also related to this venue. This venue amplifies the importance of reaction, agility, perception, speed variation, etc., and reduces the advantage of pure displacement speed."

Thinking of this, Tu Lishan couldn't help but ask: "Director, is the final exam of the Earthwood Department placed here to adapt to the future situation? Is it really... that severe?"

Director Gao said calmly: "The scale of university wars has been intensifying. Even we, the Top Ten... will eventually have to participate in the war. It's just that some incompetent people in the school still delusionally think the times will never change, that they can always keep lying down and making money like before."

"Alright, let's drop this. Let's see what performance Gongshu Jin will have in this last exam."