Chapter 32 (1): The Soul Jolting Strike, aka Limit Breaking Strike (Part One)

The hall was much emptier when evening rolled around. There were few examinees left waiting. Their nervousness and eagerness had long ago turned into uneasiness and anxiety mixed with confusion and fatigue.

Even though the entire day of waiting was a test of their stamina, this was nothing to the examinees. The real struggle was its mental toll. This was plain torture.

Chen Chuan moved around during the scheduled breaks. Compared to the others, he had already picked up a breathing technique. So, before his exam began, all he needed to do was regulate his qi and blood slightly to get into the zone quickly.

As the examinees were summoned and their numbers dwindled, the female lecturer was no longer as stern as she was in the beginning. Instead, she stood at the door and looked outside silently. Chen Chuan wondered what was on her mind.

The remaining examinees relaxed a little and started talking to one another.

“It’s already so late. My sister is waiting for me outside. I wonder how much longer until it’s my turn.”

“Guys, no matter whether we pass or not, let me treat you to a meal. In any case, we’ve all become students of Martial Valor University, so we should celebrate.”

“By the way, Han something-or-other, your family owns a restaurant, doesn't it? You said you’re offering a fifty percent discount, right?”

The big boy laughed. “Yes, but it’s quite far away. I wouldn’t suggest going at night. You’re welcome to eat at my family’s restaurant during the day. If you pass the follow-up exam, you get to eat for free, but if you don’t, you only get a fifty percent discount, hehe.”

“I’m going to pass the exam for that free meal!”

A teaching assistant motioned to the female lecturer that the previous batch of examinees had finished their exams. She took out the list and turned around to recite another batch of numbers. “401, 16, 18, go to Exam Venue One. 392...”

Fifteen examinees stood up, including a few of the ones who had been talking. They picked up their things in a hurry and ran to their exam venues.

In less than eight minutes, hurried footsteps sounded outside, followed by surprised cries. Some of the examinees sitting near the entrance stood up and went to the windows and door to look outside.

Fang Zhiming put down his papers and asked in confusion, “What happened?”

The female lecturer went to the door to take a look before she said sternly, “Go back to your seats. The exam has been suspended.”

She then asked a teaching assistant to keep an eye on them before she left in a hurry.

“What happened?”

“I heard that someone from Exam Venue Five died...”

“S-Someone died?”

The examinees became terrified. They could understand getting injured, but hearing that someone died shocked them to the core, even if something like this had happened in the past.

“Isn’t that Zhong Wu in Exam Venue Five? Since someone died, the university will switch him out, right?”

“Yes. They’re definitely going to switch him out.”

“T-That’s great...”

Chen Chuan’s mind raced. Based on the numbers called last, one of the ones who went there...

He looked toward one particular seat. A few flyers to a restaurant were still on it, along with a packet of beef jerky.

Mr. Jiang sat in an exam venue in Exam Site Three. An examinee had just finished a fight against an upperclassman and was waiting for the examiners to give him his marks when Mr. Jiang’s assistant came over and whispered into his ear.

Mr. Jiang immediately took the situation seriously and asked, “What are the examiners’ thoughts?”

“They’re thinking about... switching him out. The student in question will be punished and will have to pay compensation to the examinee’s family...”

“If they do that, what are the other students in charge of the exam going to think? Can they still perform to their usual standard? Can they even bring out the true level of the examinees’ skills?”

The assistant felt troubled. “But the examiners—”

Mr. Jiang stood up and said, “I’ll meet them right now.”

His assistant turned to the side. “This way, Mr. Jiang. The examiners should be in the meeting room.”

Ten minutes later, Mr. Jiang showed up in the meeting room of Exam Site Four. The moment he went in, he said to Gao Ping and the other examiners, “I heard that you want to revoke the student’s right to test the examinees.”

“Yes. We’re discussing it. Zhong Wu was too violent and killed an examinee. Even if it’s just a mistake, we can’t let him continue testing the other examinees,” Yue Hong stated.

Mr. Jiang immediately rejected the idea. “I don’t think that’s right. This will have a huge negative impact on the student, and it’ll affect the other student examiners as well.

“I’ve read up about Zhong Wu. He’s currently a security consultant in the Interpreting Bureau. After graduation, he’s going to be a private consultant to a politician. He’s a very outstanding young man. If you punish him like this, this will be a stain on his resume. We have to take care of outstanding talents, and if you blow this matter out of proportion, what is the Department of Administrative Affairs going to think of the university’s graduates?”

Some of the lecturers did not like his way of thinking, but they knew that this was not the problem of a sole student. Mr. Jiang’s true goal was also not defending Zhong Wu. The root of the conflict lay in Mr. Jiang being the commissioned representative who wanted to seize control over the follow-up exam from the university management.

Yue Hong retorted, “I know that we have to take care of the students conducting the tests, but we also have to take care of the examinees. We need to mind their feelings. We have to think of both the students and examinees.”

Mr. Jiang gave him a surprised look, as if he found it strange that Yue Hong would say such a thing.

Yue Hong wanted to continue, but Gao Ping stopped him. “The examination has to continue. If you insist, we can discuss how to punish Zhong Wu after the exam. We won’t revoke his right to conduct the tests, but both of us will be monitoring the remainder of his fights.”

Mr. Jiang realized that the examiners were not going to make any more concessions, so he looked at Gao Ping and adopted a milder tone. “What you said makes some sense. I’ll accept it.”

Gao Ping leveled the others with a stern look. “Do whatever you need to do. The rest of you, come with me to Exam Venue Five.”

In Exam Site Four, Chen Chuan went to the window. Three medics carried a stretcher out of Exam Venue Five. The person lying in it was covered from head to toe, so only his hair remained visible.

A gloomy mood settled in the room. The examinees sighed. Most of them were worried about their upcoming exam and hoped that the student in Exam Venue Five would be switched out.

After a while, the female lecturer returned to the exam site. With a slightly more dejected tone than before, she said, “Return to your seats. The exam will continue.”

“What? Aren’t they changing him out?”

“They’re not? That’s impossible!”

“Check the bulletin board.”

The examinees checked the bulletin board but found no changes, which meant that Zhong Wu was not switched out of Exam Site Five. Everyone became uneasy and worried that they would end up going there.

Chen Chuan returned to his seat. His gaze became one of absolute calm.

The exam resumed, but the examinee who was assigned to Exam Venue Five chose to give up on the follow-up exam.

He had already passed the entrance examination. Even if he did not pass the follow-up exam, he would still be a student of Martial Valor University. He did not want to die for it.

With one setting the precedent, another gave up as well.

After a few batches of examinees took their exams, the female lecturer said, “96, 398, 421, to Exam Venue Five.”

Fang Zhiming trembled, because it was finally his turn. “I...”

Chen Chuan stood up and headed to Exam Venue Five. Not far away, the other examinee said, “I’m not taking the exam. I’m giving up.”

The examinee packed up and left with his head ducked.

Chen Chuan did not even turn around.

Fang Zhiming hesitated for a moment, but since Chen Chuan was walking to the exam venue, he gritted his teeth and followed. If Chen Chuan had the courage to go, how could he not? He could not give up without trying.

The remaining examinees stared at them in shock. How could they have the courage to take the exam in that venue? Did they have a death wish?

When Chen Chuan walked out the door, he brushed past the female lecturer. She felt goosebumps break out all over her skin, and her muscles tensed. She whipped her head around to stare at the examinee, who just left.

Chen Chuan did not stop. His gait was steady, but each step heavy. When he reached the end of the corridor, he took one look at the bulletin board beside him before pushing the heavy double door.

A spacious exam venue opened up before him. Two rows of long tables were on both sides of the empty space in the middle. Mr. Jiang sat in the middle of the long table to the right. Next to him were his assistant and one of the lecturers in charge of communications.

Across from Mr. Jiang was Gao Ping. Yue Hong and Bian Feng, the lecturer who admitted Chen Chuan, were next to him along with other lecturers. Some teaching assistants stood to the side. Not far away from the door stood medical staff. Some of them were staring at him in shock, pity, and sympathy.

In the center of the exam venue stood a tall upperclassman. He was more than two meters in height and looked incredibly sturdy, as if he had started growing horizontally instead of vertically as well. He personified the saying built like a brick house. The floor seemed to sink beneath his weight.

His eyes were just slits, and his neck was practically gone due to his shoulder and back muscles being too large. They were a match for the thick arms attached to ridiculously large hands that seemed capable of grabbing a person’s head with ease.

Fang Zhiming was shocked. He had imagined how the upperclassman may look, but when he truly saw Zhong Wu, he began regretting coming with Chen Chuan. But since he was already here, he could not just back out. So, he clenched his teeth and stood straighter.

One examiner asked, “Are you the only two here? 398, you go first.”

“In order to prevent any accidents, we suggest you wear protective gear,” Yue Hong advised.

Fang Zhiming decided to heed Yue Hong’s warning. Even if he could not win against Zhong Wu, he could exchange a few blows with him. He put on protective gear and went to stand in front of Zhong Wu.

At sixteen, Fang Zhiming was only 1.7 meters tall. Due to the huge disparity in their heights and sizes, the difference between them was evident.

It was at this moment that Fang Zhiming felt just how intimidating Zhong Wu was. The heat coming from the huge person before him made his throat dry.

“Hello, I’m Zhong Wu,” the upperclassman mumbled.

Fang Zhiming sucked in a deep breath and tried his best to say his name in a stable voice. “I’m Fang Zhiming.”

The exam started once they stood face to face, so Fang Zhiming decided to launch the first attack. Otherwise, he might not have the chance to do that. With a shout, he punched Zhong Wu in the stomach and followed it with a dozen other punches. But every time his attack landed, it felt like he was punching a sturdy rubber ball. Zhong Wu showed no reaction at all.

Fang Zhiming looked up, and Zhong Wu stared down at him. “Oh. You’ve already started?”

He then reached out to grab Fang Zhiming. The boy hurriedly moved to the side to avoid it, but while Zhong Wu’s hands seemed to be moving slowly, they were actually very fast. He just moved to the side and grabbed the boy’s arm.

“I-I surrender!” Fang Zhiming realized that the situation was going to go terribly, so he immediately gave up, but Zhong Wu did not seem to hear him. He picked the boy up like he was a chick, and Fang Zhiming screamed in horror and pain.

“Stop!” Yue Hong shouted out.

Zhong Wu ignored him.

Yue Hong shot to his feet and stared at Zhong Wu. “Stop! He has already admitted defeat!”

Zhong Wu narrowed his eyes and let go. Fang Zhiming fell to the floor and cradled his arm in pain. Zhong Wu scratched his head and said in a deep, but good-natured voice, “Sorry, Sir. I didn’t hear you just now. Sorry.”

Zhong Wu then bowed to his opponent.

Fang Zhiming felt a shadow cover his entire body and trembled in fear. While enduring the pain in his arm, he said in a quivering voice, “I-It’s okay...”

Zhong Wu slowly straightened his body, and light returned to Fang Zhiming’s world.

Yue Hong shook his head and sat down.

The other examiners remained silent, because it was common for examinees to get hurt during exams. Since the examinee could accept getting hurt, they could not blame Zhong Wu.

Bian Feng cast a deep glance at Zhong Wu. Earlier, Zhong Wu had killed an examinee due to a mistake, and now, he did this. Either he was stupid, or fearless. If it was the former, the Mutual Aid Group would not have taken him in as one of its members.

The medical staff came forward to examine Fang Zhiming. His arm was only dislocated, so he did not suffer any major injuries. After comforting him a little, they sent him out.