Chapter 31

Standing in front of the strength tester, Sun Yan looked at his hands, then raised his head to gaze at the huge screen in front of the hall. His eyes were calm, showing no joy or sorrow.

Finally, he stood here, but his mood was vastly different from half a month ago.

Beside the strength tester, a staff member confirmed again, "Candidate No. 144, first strength test, prepare to start!"

Sun Yan slowly took a deep breath, relaxed his entire body, and without any show of force, raised his hand and threw a punch, which seemed light and powerless.

This action immediately caused a wave of ridicule from the surrounding candidates. What was this No. 144 candidate doing? Such a punch would probably not even register on the tester, as it would be ignored if the force was below 50KG.

In the rest area at the edge of the hall, Qian Li sneered and shook his head. This lump of mud really didn't disappoint him; he was so nervous that he couldn't even exert a fraction of his strength, worse than garbage. However, occasionally crushing garbage was a kind of fun.

Turning his head to look at Shui Lianqing nearby, a greedy look flashed in Qian Li's eyes. After the final exam, he would definitely get Shui Lianqing. Just thinking about this beautiful and cold girl, naked and white like jade, panting and begging for mercy under him, made a flame rise in Qian Li's lower abdomen, drying his mouth and throat.

Thud!

A dull sound echoed, like an iron hammer striking a war drum, the buzzing sound slowly reverberating in the hall.

Many candidates didn't understand what was happening and hadn't figured out where the sound came from. When their eyes fell on the number on the tester's screen, the entire hall fell silent, so quiet that a pin drop could be heard.

"2021KG!"

That light, seemingly powerless punch, actually had a force of 2021KG.

Machine malfunction!

This was the first thought that sprang to the minds of all the candidates. If such a punch could produce 2021KG of force, then their strength could break the ten-thousand mark, rivaling that of a high-level warrior?

It must be a malfunction!

Sun Yan took a step back, not hearing the staff member confirm his score. He looked over curiously and asked, "Is there a problem?"

The staff member's expression was stunned. He looked at Sun Yan, then at the number displayed on the strength tester's screen, and raised his hand to signal a supervisor nearby, "I'll check the equipment; it might be a malfunction. The exam will be paused for 5 minutes."

Not far away, Qian Li's eyes were wide open, staring intently at the number on the tester's screen. 2021KG? Was this broken machine malfunctioning? How could it produce such an absurd number? With Sun Yan's garbage strength, even 200KG would be a stretch, let alone 2021KG.

In the crowd, only Shui Lianqing's beautiful eyes sparkled with a different light. This boy had always been like this, so handsome that one couldn't look away.

In the monitoring room, a strange atmosphere spread. The homeroom teacher, Li Gang, was speechless, and after a while, he forced a smile, "Sorry! Everyone, it might be a machine malfunction. This student in our class usually has only a 'body forging' level of strength. I apologize for the inconvenience."

"Oh, only 'body forging'?" Guo Nu's face was expressionless, and his tone was unreadable. He sat down again, "Let's see. Xiao Ye, these strength testers are provided by your military department. If they malfunction after just a few uses, you should investigate this when you return."

Major Ye Zefeng nodded and sat down, "Commander Guo, rest assured. If the quality is substandard, I will report it to the relevant department."

Their conversation seemed to be about the quality of the strength testers, but anyone with keen eyes could see the underlying meaning.

Among the people present, apart from the three examiners, the highest-ranking person was the academy's chief instructor, Rodney. As a ninth-level warrior, his insight was far superior to that of other instructors at Nan Ying Academy.

Rodney had seen the punch of Candidate No. 144 clearly. Because he understood it thoroughly, his scalp had been tingling.

That punch was not light at all, and it was not something a student at the 'body forging' stage could produce. That punch clearly involved the circulation of inner energy, condensing and bursting, simulating a 'Crushing Fist' to achieve the effect of an initial-level 'Crushing Fist'. Moreover, the burst of inner energy alone could produce over 2000KG of force, indicating that the candidate's inner energy cultivation had reached the second-level warrior stage.

A warrior who could achieve the power of a combat technique with pure inner energy burst—what did this mean? It meant that the warrior's control over inner energy was extremely proficient.

A second-level warrior at 16 years old, with such proficient inner energy control, was a student in a C-class and a target of the 'Teacher Protection Measures'...

A series of thoughts flashed through Rodney's mind, making his head almost explode. He could only subconsciously sit down.

"Everyone, please sit down," Teacher Dao smiled, gesturing for everyone to sit. He sighed, "Ah, the quality of today's equipment is really not up to par. In the past, even the lowest-level strength testers from the military could withstand my punches. Ye Zefeng, when you return, please convey our opinions to the quality supervision department. If even the military cuts corners, we will be in trouble when war breaks out again."

"Commander Dao, you are right," Ye Zefeng bowed respectfully, "I will certainly convey your opinions to the quality supervision department."

Wang Sen sat to the side, watching Teacher Dao and the others. He was closest to them and could clearly sense something was off. But he didn't know what the problem was. Could that No. 144 candidate really have such strength? The academy would have known about such a student, and the Qian family wouldn't have caused trouble for themselves.

The 5-minute pause passed in a flash. The staff member's inspection results showed that the strength tester was functioning normally, with no issues.

The staff member looked at the number displayed on the strength tester, finding it strange but, with no problems, had to follow the rules.

"Candidate No. 144, first strength test score—2021KG."

Instantly, the hall erupted in a commotion. All the candidates found it hard to believe that No. 144's punch was actually counted as a score. Moreover, the score was exactly 1KG higher than Qian Li's.

Qian Li clenched his fists, his eyes almost spitting fire, "Malfunction, it must be a machine malfunction!"

Feeling Qian Li's glare, Sun Yan turned his head and smiled, "Hey, maybe it's a machine malfunction? Otherwise, how could my score be exactly 1KG higher than Qian Li's? But even if it's just 1KG higher, my final score should still be in the top 1000 records, right?"

In the strength test, candidates have three attempts, and the highest score is taken as the final result. This meant that even if Sun Yan's next two attempts were poor, the 2021KG score was secure.

Damn, damn, damn garbage! Qian Li raged in his heart, wishing he could rush over and beat Sun Yan up. But this was the final exam, and if he caused trouble, he would be disqualified, and his score would be zero.

"Wait and see, garbage! You'll show your true colors soon." Qian Li suppressed his anger, refusing to believe this. It was more humiliating than being stepped on by a pig.

Sun Yan smiled and ignored him. Why should he care about such a scoundrel? His goal was certainly not the 1000th place record.

He looked up at the screen hanging in the hall, where the 1000 records were constantly changing, indicating that candidates from other exam rooms were refreshing the top 1000 records.

His gaze slowly moved up to the top record on the screen—3999KG.

"Teacher, can we start?" Sun Yan asked with a smile.

The staff member was taken aback for a moment, then said, "Uh, yes. Candidate No. 144, second strength test, 30 seconds to prepare..."

Taking two steps forward, Sun Yan stood in front of the strength tester again. His shoulders slightly sank, and he suddenly exerted force with his feet, his body twisting slightly. His spine above the waist straightened, bursting with powerful energy. His left fist retracted, holding his waist, while his right arm bent, the powerful force instantly surging through his arm, making the muscles bulge. His right fist became even thicker, as if it had grown two sizes.

At the same time, a strange sound resonated, and with the trajectory of his punch, invisible waves seemed to ripple through the air.

Bang!

The ground seemed to shake, and the people in the hall felt a slight tremor under their feet. Candidates closer to the center of the venue even felt a gust of wind on their faces.

The number on the strength tester's screen kept changing, finally settling at—3999KG.

Not far away, Qian Li's sneer instantly froze. His eyes bulged, almost popping out. 3999KG! How could this garbage do it?

Shui Lianqing looked at the score on the screen, covering her mouth to prevent herself from screaming. Screaming in such a situation would be embarrassing, and others might think she was a fangirl.

However, while Shui Lianqing had such self-control, many other girls in the hall couldn't contain themselves. The dazzling number made many female candidates scream out loud.

"Ah—!"

"Too cool!"

"Heaven, I'm dying!"

The entire Exam Room 362 was in an uproar. The seemingly weak and powerless Candidate No. 144 had actually tied the top record in the strength test.

Who was this candidate? With such strength, why had he never been heard of at Nan Ying Academy?

In the monitoring room, there was a thud as the homeroom teacher, Li Gang, dropped the device in his hand. Cold sweat drenched his forehead and cheeks, dripping to the ground.

In the back row, Qian Juren and Qian Wei's faces were extremely ugly, dark as if they could drip water. What was going on? Wasn't Sun Yan the notorious lump of mud in Class C-69?

Teacher Dao adjusted the device on his wrist, bringing up Sun Yan's information and projecting it on the wall, each word clear and visible.

His smile gradually turned cold, "Martial arts cultivation—body forging? Can someone tell me, is the candidate in the hall an impostor? Or was his information recorded when he was still at the body forging stage, and he advanced three levels in half a month to become a second-level warrior, hmm?"

As he spoke, a sharp aura burst from Teacher Dao, the temperature in the monitoring room plummeting. Everyone felt their skin tingle, as if a sharp blade was about to cut through them.