Chapter 32: Mana and Physical Education

The Spirit Realm.

Beside him, Li Xingyu had been observing Zhang Yu's condition.

When he saw Zhang Yu's pain level reach level 37, he felt the other party had reached his limit.

"He won't be able to hold on at this rate."

Glancing at the top of Zhang Yu's head, Li Xingyu's perspective displayed parameters such as heart rate, respiration, and more.

"He has reached the limit of endurance; his pain level should be dropping soon."

"At this level, it's still within the scope of a Level 1 Dao Heart, right? Nothing special. To think he could actually comprehend the mysteries of the Celestial Martial Arts Diagram?"

Just as Li Xingyu was thinking this, he felt the aura surrounding Zhang Yu suddenly shift. The previously distorted expression gradually returned to normal, and even a hint of a sinister grin appeared.

"Hmm? He held on?"

"This kind of aura... it feels like the martial arts from the Celestial Martial Arts Diagram?"

Li Xingyu watched Zhang Yu's state with surprise, watching him endure second by second until the 60 minutes concluded.

His astonishment grew as he calculated: "With this level of willpower, his Dao Heart is about to reach Level 2."

"Even though he hasn't mastered the martial arts from the diagram yet, it seems he can use the profound insights gained from it to enhance his own willpower."

"This guy is pretty impressive. This intel should be worth some money."

With that thought, Li Xingyu transcribed Zhang Yu's information into text and posted it on an intelligence website, setting the price at 1,000 yuan.

After a moment's thought, he changed the price to 10,000 yuan.

Then, he titled it: 'Shocking! Peerless Martial Arts Genius Discovered at Songyang High School.'

...

Taking off the Spirit Realm mask, Zhang Yu stood up shakily. Even though he had left the Spirit Realm, he still had the illusion of stinging pain all over his body.

On a nearby bed, a student tried to stand up, only to have their legs give way, causing them to collapse onto the floor.

Similar scenes were unfolding on the surrounding beds; clearly, they were suffering from lingering aftereffects of the Spirit Realm.

One student immediately opened a portable medicine bottle and swallowed a pill.

Zhang Yu guessed it was likely a Dao Heart Buffer.

Although one could gradually increase their Dao Heart level through cultivation methods like Basic Heart Refining or the Heavenly Martial Heart Refining Manual—combined with the appropriate mindset—many students still chose to take Dao Heart Buffers.

This drug could adjust neurotransmitters and brain secretions, improving mood and motivation, thereby more effectively enhancing willpower and raising Dao Heart levels.

However, Dao Heart Buffers were not without side effects. The higher the quality of the drug, the stronger the effect, but it also meant a higher price, stronger addiction, and more terrifying withdrawal symptoms.

Often, once taken, one had to maintain long-term usage; otherwise, stopping the medication would lead to a regression of the Dao Heart.

The original owner of Zhang Yu's body had regressed from a near-Level 2 Dao Heart because he couldn't afford to continue the medication.

It was only through recent tempering and the comprehension of the Heavenly Martial Heart Refining Manual that Zhang Yu felt he had returned to that near-Level 2 state.

The current Zhang Yu had no intention of touching Dao Heart Buffers again.

Compared to drugs, he now placed more trust in his own potential and self-discipline.

At this moment, there was no more time for everyone to rest.

There was a second exam in the morning, so the many students could only quickly pull themselves together and rush toward the next examination hall.

...

Arriving at the Mana Examination hall, Zhang Yu saw that many assistant teachers and testing instruments were already prepared.

When it was Zhang Yu's turn, detection patches were applied to his arms, chest, and abdomen. Following the teachers' instructions, he began to circulate his mana, transporting it from his dantian to his palms.

The current mana testing was clearly more refined and accurate than usual to avoid any issues with the monthly exam results.

In addition to detecting the total amount of mana circulating in Zhang Yu's body, the patches were also used to detect the efficiency of his mana circulation each time.

This was to prevent cases where a candidate's mana volume was simply bought with money, lacking any actual quality.

Zhang Yu could clearly feel that, compared to the torture of the Dao Heart exam, the students were significantly less nervous during the mana exam.

After all, everyone's mana level was determined long before the exam; it had nothing to do with on-the-spot performance.

You either have mana or you don't; you either know how to use it or you don't.

Just as Zhang Yu finished his inspection, the assistant teacher responsible for recording the data let out a gasp of surprise and couldn't help but glance at him a few more times.

Zhang Yu asked, "Teacher, is something wrong?"

The assistant teacher quickly shook her head. "It's nothing."

However, she muttered to herself, "Such high mana circulation efficiency... he must be another rich kid."

...

Lunchtime.

The cafeteria was filled with students who looked like the walking dead.

Some had not yet recovered from the aftereffects of the Dao Heart exam, some were worried because they performed poorly, and some were even contemplating suicide...

Bai Zhenzhen sat down with a heavy sigh. "What a disaster!"

"The bastard who wrote the Dao Heart exam questions is a total piece of work. Is he going to open an online rating for his own questions and then shove his phone on vibrate up his own ass...?"

After more than two minutes of non-stop, varied cursing, Bai Zhenzhen finally stopped to take a bite of food when Zhou Tianyi walked over.

Zhang Yu believed that similar curses were likely drifting through the air above every high school in Songyang City right now.

As soon as Zhou Tianyi sat down, he couldn't help but say, "Have you heard? Several high schools have had students suffer mental breakdowns."

Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen's eyes sharpened, and they both looked at Zhou Tianyi instantly.

Zhou Tianyi continued, "It's because the rules for this Dao Heart exam were too harsh."

"For example, some students wanted to get high scores and accidentally pushed their pain level beyond their limit and fainted. They were kicked out of the Spirit Realm immediately, and their exam was marked as a zero."

He shook his head with a look of lamentation. "Some people couldn't handle it when they woke up and just broke down completely."

"A zero," Bai Zhenzhen muttered gloomily from the side. "It's the ultimate humiliation in high school. From then on, you completely lose your right to exist in the school."

"If it were me, I'd break down too. Ideally, I'd kill that bastard who wrote the questions before I break."

Zhang Yu asked, "In that case, the question-setter shouldn't be having an easy time, right? If there's a rich kid among them, won't their parents go on a rampage to retaliate against the question-setter?"

Zhou Tianyi looked at Zhang Yu as if he were an idiot. "How is that possible?"

Zhang Yu: "You're saying even the parents of rich kids can't get revenge? Does the question-setter have a very powerful background?"

Zhou Tianyi shook his head. "I mean, how could anything happen to a rich kid in school?"

"Every single one of them has paid security fees."

"The moment there's a problem, the whole school alarm goes off, and security or teachers rescue them immediately."

"Even if they jump off a building, they will definitely be saved by the emergency response team."

He said with an air of obviousness, "If a rich kid wants to die, they'll definitely find another way. Even if they jump off a building in school, they won't be able to die."

Looking at Zhou Tianyi's matter-of-fact manner, Zhang Yu had to admit that in this wretched Kunxu, that might actually be the case.

After eating, Zhang Yu took advantage of the end of his Specialization cooldown to adjust his Feather Book Specialization to the *Heavenly Cycle Qi Gathering Method*, and practiced his breathing a few more times.

*Heavenly Cycle Qi Gathering Method Level 8 (3/160) → (6/160)*

...

In the blink of an eye, it was time for the final exam of the afternoon.

The Physical Examination.

In the massive training grounds, Wang Hai was sitting in the judges' seats.

During the upcoming examination, he and several other first-year physical education teachers would score all the first-year candidates.

He lowered his head to scan the list of candidates, his gaze gradually coming to a halt on Zhang Yu's name.

In his impression, Zhang Yu was a model student who exercised well, took his medicine properly, and received his acupuncture regularly every day.

He had a serious attitude and good drug resistance; he had already become one of Wang Hai's observation subjects last month.

If he could keep this up, Wang Hai wouldn't mind grooming him to be a second Zhao Tianxing—a signature student who would achieve great results in the future.

But starting from this month, for some reason, the boy had repeatedly challenged his authority in class, even shouting the heretical slogan of "Natural Body Tempering."

Initially, Wang Hai suspected the boy had found another supply channel and that someone was behind him, trying to compete for the market of the Songyang High School first-year demonstration class.

However, after observing and reporting through Zhao Tianxing, he gradually dismissed this possibility.

Then, he heard the rumors spreading everywhere that Zhang Yu had been taken in as a disciple by a Golden Core True Person.

Although Wang Hai was one of the ace PE teachers at Songyang High School, he was not qualified to interact with the level of a Golden Core True Person.

He could not be certain whether the news of Zhang Yu being a disciple was true or false.

While Wang Hai was pondering these things, ten students walked onto the platform in front of him.

The students exposed their muscles one by one, and their bodies were covered in various detection patches.

*Roar! Roar! Roar!*

Then, accompanied by beast-like roars, the muscles on the ten students suddenly expanded, with bulging veins erupting with incredible power.

The data from the detection patches flashed rapidly on the screens in front of the PE teachers, informing them of the power exerted by every piece of flesh on these candidates just now.

This was different from the crude full-body strength tests of the past; it was a refined test of the physical strength of every part of the body at the exact moment the candidate exerted force.

At the same time, the gazes of Wang Hai and the others swept quickly over the candidates. By observing the shape of the flesh, the body structure, and the state of the burst, combined with the data just obtained, they scored each candidate on the spot.

Physical strength was not the only metric for the physical monthly exam.

The dimension, size, and structure of every piece of flesh on the body... were all very important.

Which structure was better suited for exerting force? Which muscle was more useful in actual combat? Which was "live" muscle and which was "dead" muscle? Experienced judges needed to evaluate these based on the data.

After all, even if physical strength was comparable, differences in body structure and size would lead to massive discrepancies in physical power, speed, and overall combat performance.

Wang Hai was long accustomed to this. As an ace PE teacher, he had seen countless slabs of white flesh weighing two hundred or three hundred pounds over the past decades; he had even seen many giant beasts weighing five hundred pounds.

After a quick glance, he recorded his score, and his mind drifted back to the matter regarding Zhang Yu.

"Let's see your score then."

"If your score has dropped significantly after being isolated for three weeks, then it proves you definitely cannot be a Golden Core disciple."

"And if that happens..."

At this thought, a trace of coldness flashed in Wang Hai's eyes.

Anyone who affected his "merchandise" should be expelled.

(End of Chapter)