Chapter 555: Chapter 337: Clearing the Level

"He actually passed this trial?" Sun Tao was taken aback.

Xu Yang shook his head. "His grandfather is the Peak Master of Medicine King Peak, after all. Though his temperament is somewhat lacking, he has been using various Medicated Baths to temper his Root Bone since childhood. His physical body is bound to be well-refined."

Not long after, another familiar figure stepped forward. It was Ye Qiuling.

This woman was deeply calculating. To achieve a Secondary Dragon Ascension, she didn’t hesitate to weave her way among the various geniuses. However, a Secondary Dragon Ascension required more than just a few strong allies; one also needed considerable personal strength.

With a soft shout, Ye Qiuling threw a punch. A one-inch-deep fist seal appeared on the spirit monument.

"She actually passed too!" Sun Tao’s face showed his surprise once more.

"Without a certain level of strength, how could she have such grand ambitions?" Xu Yang said with a smile.

Ye Qiuling was no fool. She naturally knew that relying solely on outsiders wouldn’t get her into the Celestial Strategy Academy. She had to possess impressive strength of her own to risk her reputation by mingling among all these geniuses.

More people stepped forward. Liu Rumei left a two-inch-deep fist seal on the spirit monument, while Zhang Jun’s result was an inch and a half.

"You two, I’ll go test the hardness of this spirit monument first." Unable to hold back any longer, Gu Qingfeng stepped up for the test. He achieved a result of nearly four and a half inches, slightly better than Huo Xiaochen’s.

"Junior Brother Xu, aren’t you going up yet?" Sun Tao was also starting to feel restless.

"Senior Brother Sun, you go try first," Xu Yang smiled. Going up early or late was all the same to him. He was in no rush. By observing a few more people, he could better decide exactly how much strength to exert.

"Then I’ll go first."

Sun Tao strode toward the spirit monument, but ultimately only managed a result of nearly two inches.

This result was even worse than Liu Rumei’s, catching countless people off guard. Logically speaking, a genius like him who could exchange blows with Lin Jingyu shouldn’t have such a weak physical body.

"What a weak physical body!"

"Sun Tao’s shortcoming is way too obvious."

"With such a weak body, Sun Tao’s talent is likely limited."

Many who originally had high hopes for Sun Tao couldn’t help but feel greatly disappointed, thinking they had overestimated his talent in the past. They had no idea that his rise to prominence had been too brief, leaving him with no time to polish his physique.

"Look, that’s Yang Ao, ranked ninth on the Lingyun List. He can’t sit still anymore either."

The crowd suddenly grew noisy. Xu Yang looked over and saw a man with a somewhat arrogant expression striding toward the spirit monument.

Everyone held their breath as they watched. Yang Ao’s skin shimmered with a metallic luster as his fist blasted out like a cannonball.

BOOM!

A deafening, muffled boom echoed across the mountain peak. His fist traced a circular arc and smashed heavily onto the spirit monument, causing the usually immovable slab to sway slightly.

A five-inch-deep fist seal was embedded in the monument. Everyone was visibly moved; this was the deepest mark yet.

"Terrifying!"

"With this kind of strength, an ordinary Celestial Essence Martial Artist could be beaten to death in two or three punches."

"As expected of the ninth on the Lingyun List. Even Lu Wei is probably only at this level."

"Xu Yang’s Body Refining Talent is very strong, but who knows if he can produce a fist seal like this."

Yang Ao didn’t say a word. He turned and walked away. On the spirit monument, the five-inch-deep fist seal slowly healed.

However, he stopped after just a few steps, turning his head to stare at the man walking toward the spirit monument right behind him.

This man had a burly build, resembling a giant bear standing on its hind legs. His arms were actually thicker than an ordinary man’s thighs, exuding an astonishingly oppressive aura.

"What a robust body," Xu Yang remarked with a sidelong glance. It was the first time he had seen someone so heavily built.

This man had thick, wild hair and stood close to two point two meters tall. His aura was overbearing, making him look like an iron tower. From the murmurs of the surrounding crowd, Xu Yang learned that this was Tu Gang, ranked eighth on the Lingyun List.

"Watch me break your record!" Tu Gang looked at Yang Ao and let out a wide grin, his wild, thick hair dancing in the air.

The Qi-Blood flowing through his body actually seeped through his skin, enveloping him like a layer of raging flames.

Everyone gasped. It was hard to imagine just how vigorous Tu Gang’s Qi-Blood was for it to seep out of his body and become visible to the naked eye.

"Nice Physique!" Xu Yang was also a bit surprised.

Among all the geniuses on the Lingyun List, this was the first time he had seen someone whose Qi-Blood was as vigorous as his own, reaching the point where it could manifest as a tangible entity. Although it wasn’t as intense as his own, achieving this step already made him one in ten thousand.

BOOM!

The air let out a muffled roar. Tu Gang, like a Fierce Beast, smashed his fist—which was the size of a pot lid—heavily against the spirit monument.

The monument trembled violently. A fist seal over six inches deep appeared on its surface, with a web of cracks spreading out around it.

"What a terrifying physical body. This guy has probably reached Perfection in a Bone Marrow Cleansing Realm Body Refining Technique."

Even the geniuses on the Lingyun List were visibly shaken at this moment.

Striking the spirit monument seemed simple, but the monument was not an inanimate object. The stronger the attack it endured, the more terrifying the rebounding force. Although Tu Gang’s fist seal seemed only an inch deeper than Yang Ao’s, the true significance of that difference was far from simple.

Chu Nanguai and the senior students of the Celestial Strategy Academy all looked over in shock.

"Xu Yang’s Body Refining Talent cannot compare to Tu Gang’s at all."

Xu Yang was famous for his Body Refining Talent. During the battle royale, he had used his physical body to suppress and slay Lin Jingyu. However, in the eyes of the majority, his Body Refining Talent was definitely inferior to Tu Gang’s. Tu Gang had already achieved the state of Qi and Blood Transformation, whereas Xu Yang had not reached that step at all.

"What a tyrannical physical body. This guy is practically an Exotic Beast." Sun Tao looked utterly shocked. Having already struck the spirit monument himself, he naturally knew how strong one’s body needed to be to leave a six-inch-deep fist seal. If the physical body wasn’t strong enough, the rebounding force could literally vibrate a person to death.

"No, he’s more of an Exotic Beast than an actual Exotic Beast," Gu Qingfeng said. "It’s said that this guy possesses Innate Divine Power. By the age of twelve, he had a thousand pounds of Divine Power and could tear apart tigers and leopards with his bare hands. These people think he reached Perfection in a Body Refining Technique to obtain such a fearsome physical body, but that’s not the case at all.

"His Comprehension is average, and to this day, he still hasn’t grasped Martial Dao Imagery. The only reason he has such a terrifying physique is entirely due to his natural body, which is as tough as a flood dragon or a mammoth."

Xu Yang couldn’t help but sigh, thinking that some people were truly the favored sons of heaven. He had endured untold hardships to reach his current level, yet here was someone who hadn’t even grasped Martial Dao Imagery but could still achieve Qi and Blood Transformation.

As if to compete, after Tu Gang stepped back, Lu Wei, ranked seventh on the Lingyun List, walked forward.

Instantly, everyone held their breath, eager to see the physical body of the man known as the number one figure below the Spirit Bone Celestial Prides.

Lu Wei’s expression was calm as he cast a faint glance at Tu Gang.

The next moment, his bones and muscles roared. A wave of Qi-Blood, like raging flames, burst from his body as his fist tore through the air and struck out.

Everyone’s eyes widened. Lu Wei’s physical body had actually reached the same level as Tu Gang’s, his aura manifesting tangibly.

BOOM!

The fierce, unyielding fist smashed into the spirit monument. The monument swayed, and a fist mark over six inches deep appeared on it—it was even slightly deeper than Tu Gang’s.

The surroundings fell dead silent; everyone was absolutely stunned.

"As expected of the number one figure below the Spirit Bone Celestial Prides. This Lu Wei is likely a genius with the Dual Perfection of Root Bone and Comprehension," Gu Qingfeng said with a solemn expression.

Lu Wei’s control over his strength was clearly superior to Tu Gang’s. His power was completely concentrated at a single point of explosive impact, which was why the fist seal he left looked as if it had been carved into the spirit monument, unlike Tu Gang’s, which was surrounded by cracks.

However, from another perspective, Tu Gang’s raw power was actually greater. If he had been able to focus all his strength into one point, his fist seal would definitely have been deeper than Lu Wei’s.

Lu Wei retreated, and the trial continued.

"Brother Xu, aren’t you going to step up?" Gu Qingfeng asked with a smile. He was very curious to see just how deep a fist seal Xu Yang—the man who had suppressed Lin Jingyu with his physical strength—could produce.

"Alright then!" Xu Yang glanced at the sky. It was already afternoon, and there weren’t many people left to be tested. After observing so many participants, he had already decided exactly how much power to unleash.

With that, he strode forward.

"Xu Yang is making his move!"

"I wonder how deep a fist seal he can produce."

"Four inches at the very least, but it’s hard to say whether he can reach five inches."

Everyone looked over curiously, full of anticipation.

"A strike of four and a half inches, close to five, will do," Xu Yang thought to himself. He had no desire to show off or compete for the limelight with Tu Gang and Lu Wei. Unleashing the same amount of power he had used to beat Lin Jingyu to death that day would be sufficient.

Suppressing his Qi-Blood so it wouldn’t burst out of his body, he controlled his bones and muscles, causing them to roar as he threw a punch.

With a loud BANG, a fist seal nearly five inches deep appeared on the spirit monument.

"Nearly five inches!"

"This is a result second only to Lu Wei and Tu Gang, just a tiny bit shy of Yang Ao’s."

"He indeed possesses very strong Body Refining Talent."

"How could someone who beat Lin Jingyu to death with his bare hands have a weak physical body?"

To many, this result wasn’t surprising. After all, they had witnessed Xu Yang’s physical prowess before. They had been hoping Xu Yang could overpower those two fierce men, Tu Gang and Lu Wei, but unfortunately, they had overestimated him.

"Brother Xu’s physical body is indeed formidable!" Gu Qingfeng laughed. Xu Yang’s result had surpassed his own; in the path of the physical body, even he was inferior to Xu Yang.

Of course, he wasn’t envious of Xu Yang. His Body Refining Talent might not match Xu Yang’s, but his Root Bone and Comprehension were both superior. How far a Martial Artist could go primarily depended on their Root Bone and Comprehension—unless their Body Refining Talent could reach a monstrous level like Tu Gang’s.

Sun Tao smiled and nodded without speaking. He was wondering if Xu Yang was holding back on an occasion like this.

"If he is hiding his true strength, wouldn’t his physical body be on the same level as Tu Gang and Lu Wei?" he wondered. The thought startled him, and he dismissed it as highly unlikely. Xu Yang shouldn’t be hiding anything anymore.

"Though his talent isn’t as great as Tu Gang’s, he’s still a good seedling," Chu Nanguai said, his gaze fixed on Xu Yang.

"A Martial Artist’s strength does not solely rely on the physical body." Li Chuyang’s heart surged with the will to fight. Even though Xu Yang’s physical body had exceeded his expectations, he still wanted to fight him, despite Xu Yang’s track record of slaying Lin Jingyu.

Lin Jingyu being beaten to death by Xu Yang wasn’t because his talent was inferior to Xu Yang’s, but rather because he was at a disadvantage in age.

"Body refining is merely for brutes; Cultivation is the true foundation," Huo Xiaochen said, his expression cold and stern.

If Xu Yang’s physical body were as terrifying as Tu Gang’s, he would truly have to be somewhat wary. But as it stood, he didn’t care at all. In a one-on-one fight, he was confident he could suppress and kill Xu Yang.

The most important factor was that the cultivation of the physical body was not only slow in progress but also consumed a massive amount of resources. Without a Thousand-Year-Old Noble Family backing him, Huo Xiaochen was confident he could quickly surpass Xu Yang in Cultivation.

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