Chapter 319: The Cruel Competition, The Iron Tree Sea, and Students' Schemes (4K)

Chapter 319: The Cruel Competition, The Iron Tree Sea, and Students' Schemes (4K)



Zhuang Qiu was almost naked, lying on the ground, his skin displaying a spiral pattern starting from the hand that had just gripped Sch Jing's palm, causing everyone who saw it to feel a shiver down their spines.

The onlookers, including the Zhi Ge Base members standing nearby, all wore peculiar expressions.

Some wanted to laugh, some felt embarrassed for the deputy captain, and some were astonished by the young man before them.

The result of this strength contest was an undeniable crushing victory.

There was no sign of a close match; this outcome only occurred when there was an absolute disparity in strength.

Although it was merely a contest of physical strength, strength was a significant aspect of martial prowess.

With such a vast gap in fundamental 'hard power', no one would believe that Zhuang Qiu could possibly defeat Sch Jing in a real fight.

Moreover, everyone present was a highly skilled martial artist with extraordinary perception. When Sch Jing twisted his wrist, causing Zhuang Qiu's entire body to spin like a top, it was evident that he possessed exquisite control over his power beyond just sheer strength.

"Impressive."

Squad Leader Yang Yingyu, a Limit-Breaking Master, couldn't help but narrow his eyes as he observed Sch Jing.

He was the only person present who almost saw through Sch Jing's technique.

In terms of pure physical strength, Zhuang Qiu, who had trained in the Forbidden Martial Technique and transformed his body, surpassed this young man.

However, the young man demonstrated an unreasonable level of skill in the manipulation of power that Yang Yingyu found incomprehensible.

Compressing power to amplify output... this wasn't a rare technique. Any expert with an understanding of power manipulation would know it, with varying levels of proficiency.

But no matter how proficient one was, they should still follow the basic principles.

The human body had its limits. No matter how skilled one was in power manipulation, they had to consider the body's endurance when performing dangerous maneuvers like compressing power.

But this young man... was strange.

According to theory, the maximum power compression a person with his physical strength could achieve was 1. Yet, this young man could achieve at least 3...

Far exceeding the normal limits of the human body.

If it weren't for the fact that the records clearly stated he practiced an ancient martial art and had a body transformation rate of less than 1%, Yang Yingyu would have thought he was practicing some kind of abnormal Forbidden Martial Technique.

'But I heard he's a Chosen One... that must be the reason.'

After pondering for a moment and finding a reasonable explanation for the unreasonable, Yang Yingyu shook his head and kicked Zhuang Qiu, who was still lying on the ground.

"Stop playing around and get up."

Yang Yingyu spoke calmly.

Hearing this, everyone's gaze shifted to Zhuang Qiu.

"..."

After a few seconds, Zhuang Qiu's fingers twitched, and he groaned, acting as if he had just woken up. He slowly propped himself up, sat down, and covered his head with his palms.

"Ah... my head is spinning."

"Slap!"

Yang Yingyu slapped him on the head, causing Zhuang Qiu to stumble:

"Stop pretending. Losing is losing, and being embarrassed is embarrassing. These things don't matter. What's important is to face your shame head-on; that's the way of the Seventh Metropolitan Circle's men."

Zhuang Qiu's lips twitched: "I just need a moment to recover."

As he spoke, he stood up and limped towards Sch Jing, inhaling sharply as he walked: "Ouch... it really hurts."

His entire body was tense, as if countless pincers were gripping and twisting his skin...

Zhuang Qiu gave Sch Jing a thumbs-up, his hand trembling slightly.

"This level... is more than enough. I acknowledge you!"

Sch Jing glanced at him: "I don't need your acknowledgment... Deputy Captain Zhuang, do you have any other advice?"

Zhuang Qiu was also a man with a big heart. After speaking, he seemed to let go of his shame, standing naked with his hands on his hips and speaking casually:

"What advice? In the Seventh Metropolitan Circle, we always respect the strong. There are no other useless rules. You're stronger than me, so I should ask you for guidance."

Sch Jing nodded and smiled: "That's good. I like it this way... I feel like I'll fit right in here."

...

Afterward, Sch Jing and the members of Zhi Ge Base chatted for a while and discovered that the people from the Seventh Metropolitan Circle seemed to be straightforward thinkers.

What they thought and what they said were straightforward, not foolishness but a way of thinking influenced by the overall atmosphere.

This mindset also led to their general exclusion of outsiders. They tended to be disdainful of outsiders who spoke and acted in roundabout ways and followed numerous rules. Of course, the most critical reason was the overwhelming power disparity.

The Seventh Metropolitan Circle is an extremely closed and highly competitive environment, almost completely isolated from the outside world in terms of martial arts. The honors achieved outside the circle hold little weight here, even for someone like Sch Jing, who is renowned as the strongest champion in U19 history. When the people of the Seventh Circle hear such a title, they instinctively feel a sense of disdain.

However, it's like being the king of the mountain without the presence of a tiger; it's not worth boasting about.

This is why Zhuang Qiu provoked Sch Jing, an underage outsider who dared to challenge the Heavenly Trigram and came to the Seventh Circle as an examiner for the Martial Exam. No one could tolerate such an act.

The people of the Seventh Circle have a stereotypical impression of outsiders, which is based on their overwhelming martial prowess.

A beating would set them straight.

This time, Zhuang Qiu inadvertently helped Sch Jing establish his authority and gained the recognition of everyone at the Zhi Ge Base in Silver City, unknowingly avoiding many future troubles.

After being accommodated at the Zhi Ge Base and assigned a luxurious standalone villa, Sch Jing and Ning Yuante headed to the 'Ninth Exam Hall'.

Ning Yuante drove a black SUV with a special military license plate, the brand of which was unknown, but it looked high-end.

Along the way, Ning Yuante asked casually while driving, "Brother Xue, they should have sent you the specific details of the exam, right? What's the situation?"

Sch Jing, sitting in the passenger seat and scrolling through his phone, nodded and replied, "Yes, they sent it... It's a 'Combined Exam'."

Ning Yuante scratched his head. "I knew it... I had a feeling that your transfer to the Seventh Circle wouldn't be a good thing."

The Combined Exam brings together students from multiple exam halls and places them in a controlled borderland for an activity akin to a battle royale.

Although the rules of each Combined Exam vary, they are all exceptionally dangerous and have a high casualty rate without exception.

"For this Martial Exam, there are a total of seventy-nine exam halls in Silver City. Among them, the Ninth, Twenty-Ninth, Thirty-Sixth, Forty-First, and Fifty-Second Exam Halls will participate in a cross-city Combined Exam with other cities in the inner ring."

"The location is... G651 Borderland—'Iron Tree Sea'."

Sch Jing read from the information on his phone.

"What? That place?" Ning Yuante exclaimed in surprise.

"Wow... The Seventh Circle's government is playing hardball."

Before Sch Jing could scroll further to the information about the 'Iron Tree Sea', he turned to Ning Yuante and asked, "How is this place so special?"

Ning Yuante nodded and explained, "To be precise, almost every borderland is quite special in its own way... The Iron Tree Sea is one of the harshest environments among them."

Sch Jing tapped the car window with his index finger and said, "Tell me more."

"The environment there isn't as extreme as the Burning Garden, with temperatures above 300 degrees Celsius. In fact, the climate is quite suitable for human habitation."

"But the key point is... there's nothing there that humans can eat."

Ning Yuante sighed.

"The Iron Tree Sea is a world dominated by 'iron'... The land is a conglomerate of metallic minerals, and the lifeforms are 'iron-based', existing in forms that are hard to comprehend, like Transformers..."

"Even the plants are all 'iron-based', and you can witness the miracle of iron trees blooming there. That's where the name 'Iron Tree Sea' comes from."

Sch Jing's expression turned peculiar. "If they're 'iron-based', can they still be called 'plants'?"

Ning Yuante clarified, "After all, their external appearance is similar to that of lifeforms on Terrestrial Star... Currently, there's no better term to describe them."

"In any case... that place isn't suitable for humans."

"Or rather, any carbon-based lifeform that requires metabolic cycles is not suited for the Iron Tree Sea. There's nothing there that they can eat or digest."

Sch Jing seemed to grasp the idea.

He vaguely understood what the designer of this exam had in mind.

"Since the Iron Tree Sea has been chosen as the exam location, there must be a rule restricting the amount of food that can be brought in."

Ning Yuante stated confidently.

"I estimate that it will be something like each person can only bring one portion of food, which will be quickly consumed, forcing them to steal food from others."

"This forces the students to fight among themselves... The Martial Exam of the Seventh Circle indeed has this flavor."

Sch Jing scrolled down a few pages and indeed found the rule on the introduction page: 'Each examinee and examiner is only allowed to carry one portion of food officially allocated. No private storage of edible substances is permitted. A thorough search will be conducted before entering the exam hall.'

Sch Jing rubbed his chin, his eyes flashing with an idea...

But he didn't dwell on it for now, and Sch Jing spoke up, "This arrangement is quite interesting."

"A situation where food is completely insufficient will intensify countless difficulties."

"It's not just a matter of filling one's stomach, but also various choices that test one's mental fortitude and wisdom. It's a great way to train, and the Martial Exam in the Seventh Metropolitan Circle does have its merits."

Martial artists' appetites were notoriously impressive.

Energy doesn't disappear or appear out of thin air; the formidable strength of martial artists, comparable to that of superheroes, required a massive energy supply.

Some highly advanced and powerful martial artists could go without food, water, or sleep for ten days, half a month, or even several months, but the prerequisite for this was—no consumption.

No fighting.

Once engaged in combat, the energy within a martial artist's body would rapidly deplete. Even the strongest of fighters, after an all-out battle, would soon starve to death if they attempted fasting.

Normally, high-nutrition and high-energy special pills or potions could provide some relief, but the exam rules strictly prohibited students and examiners from carrying any edible substances.

Thus, the examinees within the Iron Tree Sea would have to make choices.

When facing other examinees, fighting for food would not be worth the energy consumed in the battle.

But if they didn't fight, what would the others think?

Food, consumption, scoring, suspicion... All sorts of complex situations would make even the straightforward examinees from the Seventh Metropolitan Circle scratch their heads in confusion.

"However... my situation is quite different."

Sch Jing's eyes sparkled with a smile.

"We'll see when the time comes... Let's meet these students first."

The car smoothly drove towards the Ninth Exam Hall.

According to the information Sch Jing had seen, the Combined Exam would start tomorrow.

After the exam began, the examiners would first provide three days of training for the students to foster unity, discuss and plan, and make other arrangements.

Three days later, they would officially enter the G651 Borderland's Iron Tree Sea, where the seven-day exam would take place.

At this point, students who valued the Martial Exam should have already arrived at the exam hall in advance.

...

Silver City, Ninth Exam Hall, Xuanwu Mansion.

This mansion, built by the Silver City authorities, was specifically for the annual Martial Exam candidates. At the entrance stood a three-meter-tall Xuanwu stone statue, with a turtle and a snake intertwined, creating an artistic atmosphere, seemingly the work of a master.

At that moment, in the training ground inside the mansion, several young men and women were gathered.

"How is it? What do you think of my plan?"

A round-faced boy among them scanned the group and spoke up.

"Are you sure you can do it? That person outside is known as the 'Strongest in History.' It won't be easy, will it?" said a girl with thick eyebrows, her face filled with worry.

"Hmph, it's just the 'Strongest in History' in a competition. If this competition were held in our Seventh Metropolitan Circle, no one would give it a second glance. It's not worth mentioning."

"This exam is crucial for us, but they suddenly assigned an outsider from the outer circle as our examiner, and he's not even an adult... This is ridiculous! I thought it would at least be Wu Yinglong, or Gongsun Cheng... If not, it should have been Ye Tianling!" The round-faced boy expressed his dissatisfaction.

"Without a good examiner, we won't get good scores and won't get into those top universities... They're playing with our future!"

"We must prove that this person named Sch Jing doesn't have the ability to lead us. We have to force them to replace the examiner, or our future will be ruined!"

He glanced at another boy with a sly look, and asked, "He Han, what do you think?"

The boy named He Han looked innocent, "Can I not participate?"

After a pause, he explained, "It's not that I'm afraid; it's just that my Bode 3 just started a new cycle, and it's urgent. Can we do it tomorrow instead?"

The round-faced boy narrowed his eyes, "What nonsense are you talking about... Never mind, I didn't expect anything from you anyway. If you don't want to, then leave."

Upon hearing this, He Han stood up without hesitation and headed out, "Then I'll take my leave, guys~"

"Wait a moment."

The round-faced boy looked at He Han's departing figure and narrowed his eyes, "You won't go and report us, will you?"

He Han turned around, "What are you saying? My mouth is tighter than Zhou Gongjin's, and I have a reputation for it in the martial world. How could I possibly do such a thing!"

The round-faced boy nodded, "That's good, then."

...

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end