Chapter 162: Chapter 153 Drawing
Deng Zhijue extended both hands, and Zhou Leng also extended his hands. The two stood facing each other, tightening into horse stances, raising their hands upward to grip.
"I’ll keep my strength at the Early Stage of Body Refining, go ahead." Deng Zhijue said.
Zhou Leng took a deep breath, gathering his strength.
Pushing against the ground with his feet, his entire body tensed, the force permeated his whole being, and his arms suddenly thickened, his body pushed forward.
Deng Zhijue’s body swayed, pushed back three steps by Zhou Leng, then he gathered enough strength to stop.
"You’ve gained quite a lot." Deng Zhijue carefully examined Zhou Leng’s hands again.
"I was just lucky."
"Come, let’s have a stand-up fight, I’ll control my speed to around the Early Stage of Body Refining." Deng Zhijue said.
The two found their positions, standing still with their feet, circulating Qi throughout their bodies, not releasing it outward, only using their hands to attack.
Initially, the two were slow in making moves, but gradually, their hands moved faster and faster.
Their four arms turned into afterimages, with palms and arms constantly colliding, producing crackling sounds.
Deng Zhijue had harnessed Life Force for years, nearing the Innate stage, with extremely rich experience.
No matter how Zhou Leng attacked, it was easily resolved by him.
Unlike Zhou Leng’s unpredictable changes, Deng Zhijue’s attacks were straightforward, faintly similar to the orc masters.
At first glance, it seemed like a simple set of punches, yet it was extremely practical.
Every punch had gone through the grind of actual combat.
"Good." Deng Zhijue said, and the two stopped simultaneously.
Deng Zhijue pondered for a moment, then slowly began to comment.
"Your techniques are still too complex, but this is not a flaw, rather a necessary path."
"Only by going through this complex journey and continuing to hone can one return to simplicity."
"However, your combat awareness has reached a critical point and is about to form. It was only half a year ago that I approached the first realm of combat awareness, ’Micro Observation,’ through a life-death battle."
"In fact, just now I sneakily increased my speed and combat awareness to test your on-the-spot adaptability."
"I originally thought your techniques would fall apart."
"But from beginning to end, your technique was stable."
"This point is more important than any strength, technique, or True Qi by tenfold, even a hundredfold."
"At such a young age, being able to maintain a clear mind and make correct decisions during battle means..."
Deng Zhijue initially wanted to say Zhou Leng’s Martial Arts Will was strong, but thinking of the poison, he changed his words.
"This means your spirit is strong, and your will is firm. Very good. Keep this up, advancing to Innate won’t be difficult! Now, Qi combat."
The two slowly pushed out their four palms, pressing palms together tightly.
"Full strength?" Zhou Leng asked.
"Full strength."
Zhou Leng did not hold back, mobilizing all his True Qi.
Rumble...
With the rise of True Qi, an extremely subtle yet significant sound emerged from Zhou Leng’s body.
As time passed, the sound grew louder, the True Qi more abundant.
Their clothes rippled like waves, sleeves rolled up, and hair stood on end as mist steamed above their heads.
Beneath their feet, the dust scattered in all directions, forming a clean circular area on the ground.
"Use finesse." Deng Zhijue instructed.
Zhou Leng immediately manipulated the True Qi, employing various forces of the Sea Suppressing True Qi.
Sometimes like continuous waves, sometimes with hidden currents, sometimes a whirlpool of True Qi, sometimes firm and gentle like a storm...
After a minute, Deng Zhijue said, "Gradually close your Qi."
The two slowly retracted their True Qi.
Zhou Leng looked at Deng Zhijue.
Deng Zhijue slowly recalled the process, commenting once more.
"Your True Qi’s thickness in the late stage of blood transport is unheard of."
"Even those at the Mid-Stage of Body Refining mostly can’t match you."
"Perhaps helped by the Celestial Ladder, your control over True Qi is far above others."
"Honestly speaking, your mastery of certain details is even beyond mine."
Zhou Leng hurriedly said, "Instructor exaggerates."
Deng Zhijue replied, "Let’s be realistic. Back in my fourth year at the Martial Arts Academy, my True Qi manipulation never exceeded 95 points, and unlike you, I’ve never experienced the Celestial Ladder, so being inferior to you is normal. Your potential is inherently above mine."
"What I need to do is to guide you through this path."
"Also, there’s no need to hold back anymore. In the mid-term exams this month, aim directly for the top ten. Unexpectedly, you might only fall behind Mountain and River Origin."
Zhou Leng said, "I saw that the people in the first echelon have broken through to a Martial Arts Index of nine, already entering the Body Refining Stage. Even Rao Mingxian has reached the early stage of Body Refining."
"Before, your physical and Pill shortcomings were too severe, naturally incomparable to them. But now, you’ve mostly remedied those shortcomings. The benefits of the Celestial Ladder and the Dwarf World can’t possibly leave you behind even 50 million bodies. My experience isn’t wrong."
Zhou Leng nodded gently, without a practical assessment, still unclear about his concrete strength.
"Come on, let’s check your usual no-True Qi weighted squat data. Before entering the Dwarf World, what was it?" Deng Zhijue asked.
"700 kilograms."
"This time confident for 800 kilograms?"
"Yes!"
Zhou Leng followed Deng Zhijue, entering the class Martial Arts Hall.
Class 01 students were using various equipment to hone their bodies, sweating profusely.
"Zhou Leng?"
"Zhou Leng is back."
The crowd stopped, gathering around.
"Your skin looks like it’s been oiled, you’ve gained a lot!"
"You’ve grown stronger, truly deserving of the big beast title."
"Tell us, what’s the Dwarf World like?"
The crowd looked at Zhou Leng with great enthusiasm.
Zhou Leng spread his hands and said, "This experience was a bit special, there was a gag order, so I can’t go into details."
Wei Hong’s eyes lit up and said, "The more it’s like this, the bigger the deal, it seems you’ve gained a lot, got it!"
The crowd nodded lightly.
Deng Zhijue said, "Let’s continue training, let Zhou Leng try the squats. Oh, and don’t take random photos or spread them around anymore, understood?"
The crowd was stunned for a moment and shouted in unison.
"Understood!"
Some smart students stared straight at Zhou Leng.
It was obvious that something huge must have happened, that’s why Instructor Deng said so.
Previously, Instructor Deng had never given such a stern warning.
"Start with 800 kilograms." Instructor Deng installed the demonized barbell for Zhou Leng.
The whole place was filled with the sound of people sucking in cold air, and a few weaker students were stunned when they heard this number.
The students who loved the excitement were all thrilled.
"800 kilograms..."
"And that’s just the start..."
"No wonder we’re not allowed to take pictures and spread them around..."
"In Rucheng’s strongest West Sea Martial Arts Academy, besides Mountain and River Origin, the top-ranked daily weight training is only around 800 kilograms or so..."
"Is our class about to take off?"
The crowd quietly watched as Deng Zhijue stood behind Zhou Leng, raised the 800-kilogram barbell, and slowly placed it on Zhou Leng’s shoulders.
Deng Zhijue gently held the barbell with both hands.
Zhou Leng took a deep breath, squatted slowly, and then stood up slowly.
The onlookers’ eyes widened gradually.
During Zhou Leng’s squatting and standing process, the muscles in his legs gradually bulged, like a balloon slowly inflating.
Between the skin and muscles, veins popped up like earthworms.
Normally, the surface of leg muscles is smooth.
But now, the surface of the muscles has visible strands of muscle fibers, distinct and thread-like.
It even gave the illusion that these muscle fibers were standing tall, ready to pierce through the skin.
Amidst the beauty of the muscles, there was an indescribable sense of pressure and explosiveness.
Each muscle seemed ready to explode, turning into surging power to injure an enemy.
"This seems close to the legendary... muscle strands, the next step is the ’Steel Reinforced Rock Pattern’."
"I’ve only seen this kind of muscle in videos before; the impact and beauty are unimaginable. I didn’t expect to see it in person."
"Love it, love it, can I touch it?"
"Pervert!"
"Zhou Leng’s muscle fibers are pulling together, and you guys are creepy with your eyes..."
After standing up, Zhou Leng sensed the weight on his body and said, "Add another hundred kilograms."
Deng Zhijue’s gaze remained steady as he added a hundred kilograms on each side.
Some students rolled their eyes, realizing these instructors are all tough.
The students quietly watched the 1000-kilogram barbell press down on Zhou Leng, holding their breath.
Let alone martial arts school students, even in Ruda’s main campus first-year, no one had reached this number in the first half of the semester.
Zhou Leng carried the demonized barbell, squatted, stood up, squatted again, stood up again...
Repeated ten times, then stably placed the barbell on the rack, breathing deeply.
"That’s doable." Zhou Leng said.
"Awesome!" Wei Hong, Feng Wenhao, and the others cheered loudly.
This number definitely surpasses the Martial Arts Ten Great Levels, reaching the Yunhua Jinjing level.
After Zhou Leng’s breathing stabilized, he did another 1000-kilogram squat without true qi.
Completed four sets.
After four sets, Zhou Leng was panting heavily, his entire body flushed red.
Due to the heavy load, his leg muscles trembled slightly, as if electrocuted.
Afterwards, Zhou Leng sat down and ran his qi blood.
With just three cycles of qi blood, his muscles stopped trembling, no longer numb, and his body returned to normal.
The students couldn’t see the depth, but Deng Zhijue’s eyes shook.
This recovery ability was too strong.
Deng Zhijue said, "From now on, you will train without true qi here, and then go to the Fourth-year Martial Arts Hall for true qi training."
The students looked at Zhou Leng enviously.
The formal name of the Fourth-year Martial Arts Hall is "High-level Martial Arts Hall," which contains many high-load or high-technique demonized equipment.
Ruda is ultimately not Yunhua Jinjing, even among the first-tier students in their fourth year, few can reach the Vitality Stage.
Each year, only a few individuals can surpass the first tier to reach the Vitality Stage.
Deng Zhijue nodded, "Very good, continue training, strive to make a big impact during the midterm exams."
Zhou Leng nodded lightly, "By the way, Instructor, Brigadier General Chen from the Martial Arts Brigade gave me an invitation to the Lieutenant Camp, and in a few days, I might participate in the Celestial Ladder Lieutenant Camp."
"Not the Warrant Officer Camp? Oh, I see, good, then you just go directly when the time comes." Deng Zhijue realized that Chen Shouhu was even tougher than Wang Boxiong, pushing Zhou Leng with high intensity.
The students were stunned when they heard "Lieutenant Camp," given the renowned reputation of the Demon City Army’s competition camp.
Most students only dream of training in the Non-commissioned Officer Camp, who would have thought that Zhou Leng, in his freshman year, would directly enter the Lieutenant Camp.
"We should also work hard." Wei Hong said.
"Yes, we can’t let Zhou Leng pull too far ahead. We can’t still be stuck in the Blood Transporting Period when he graduates in the Innate stage."
"Let’s put some effort in! Aim to at least take down... one of Zhou Leng’s legs!"
"That’s a bit ambitious, maybe just a finger..."
Zhou Leng and his classmates continued their training in the martial arts hall while Deng Zhijue reported the progress to Wang Boxiong and mentioned the exchange of Replenishing Essence Pills for Strengthening Body Pills.