Chapter 36: 10,000 Tons!
’What a sadistic class I have,’ Bruce muttered internally.
He already knew it. His class thrived on pain, destruction, and pushing limits others would never dare touch. But after stepping into the Mana Pressure Chamber, after feeling 2,000 tons of crushing force breaking his body apart from the inside out, he now fully understood just how merciless it truly was. The pain was too much.
He exhaled slowly. ’Well, it is all for the better. No pain, no gain.’
With casual determination, he started jogging in place under the still-active 2,000-ton gravity. Sophie, watching from outside, raised a hand. A silent signal to pause.
Bruce stopped.
Without a word, she pressed another button.
+500 tons!
BOOM!
The pressure doubled down on him instantly. His knees nearly buckled again, but he gritted his teeth and forced his body upright.
Then Sophie hit another switch.
VRRRRMMMM!
The floor beneath Bruce began to move. A treadmill mode activated under 2,500 tons of crushing force.
His lips curled into a grin. ’Smart woman.’
He had planned to push his agility next, running under pressure is the perfect way to do so, and Sophie instantly caught on just from one glance at him jogging earlier. She did not just understand him, she read him. Matched his intentions. Supported him silently.
His chest warmed. ’She is not just beautiful and well proportioned. She is dangerous in the best possible way. I like it.’
Bruce began jogging again, slowly at first. Each step looked painful, his body fighting against invisible mountains. Then his movements smoothed out. Became cleaner. Sharper. Faster.
Then faster!
Faster!!
Until his limbs blurred. Until shockwaves rippled from each step. Until the chamber trembled under the force of his accelerating stride.
Outside, Sophie’s eyes widened, not in fear, but awe.
’Monster.’ She sighed...
She had grown up surrounded by power. Her father, Bane Reign, was feared across the empire. He’s SSS-Ranked. Bruce speed can’t be compared to his. She had seen beings known as calamities, walking natural disasters, but watching Bruce was different.
Watching her man hit differently.... Knowing that he was still so young, her age to be precise but already so close to the peak of this world warmed her heart.
Her heart thumped.
"Unbelievable," she whispered, unable to hold back a breath of admiration.
He was not using mana. Not reinforcement. Not skills. This was pure physical strength, and he was doing it while enduring 2,500 tons of gravitational pressure.
It was like sprinting while dragging a fortress. Like trying to run underwater, but instead of water, it was like being crushed by gravity, buried under incomprehensible weight.
’If he is this fast while being crushed by 2,500 tons, then without gravity...’
Her breath caught. ’Then his normal combat speed will be at least five times this! Maybe ten!’ Her pulse raced. Her crimson eyes glowed.
And the more she watched, the deeper the truth sank in. He will break every record in this hall.
He would shatter limits, physically, mentally, and in raw destructive potential. His path was not ahead of others. It was above them.
’If he could reach this level with pure physical strength, then once he starts using mana, the boost he will get will be monstrous. Then there are his mana core rings. If he uses those, his power will skyrocket even further.’
Most people did not truly understand the gap between A Rank and S Rank, but Sophie did. What made S, SS and SSS Ranks terrifying was not just their raw power and mana pool but the mana rings within their cores. Once an S Rank was forced to circulate mana through those rings and use it, their entire existence was enhanced: strength, speed, perception, regeneration, everything. They’re boosted by leap and bounds!
A single ring gave around a 10 percent boost when used. The second brought that boost to 25 percent. The third pushed it to 45 percent. The fourth was already 70 percent, and by the time someone used five rings, their overall power doubled. That was why the world feared S Ranks, respected SS Ranks, and treated SSS Ranks as walking calamities.
But Bruce did not just possess five rings. He had ten, if Sophie knew this she’ll be shocked beyond words..
Ten rings. Something absolutely impossible by this world’s standard. And not only that, his core was formed in the most extreme mana environment possible, the heart of Velmora itself. So just imagining the kind of boost he would get when he fully activates his rings...
It did not follow logic anymore.
Even so, there was a reason S Ranks did not recklessly use their rings all the time. The more rings they used, the heavier the burden on the body. It damaged the foundation of their existence, strained their cells, and drained their lifespan. It was left as a last option when there was no other way because it made S Ranks burn themselves out young, reduced to broken bodies that would take extremely long to recover after only a few battles fought at full power.
That was the cost of forbidden power in this world. That was the wall everyone eventually hit.
But Bruce was different.
With his ability to heal and adapt endlessly, his class being an EX Rank anomaly, he could recover from any strain. Unlike everyone else, he could push further without fear. He could fight at full power again and again, and his body would only grow stronger from it!
He was not just breaking limits. He was rewriting them. He’s the real definition of Infinite Potential!
...
Well, to Bruce’s surprise, Sophie’s method was even faster than his own approach. Since she only increased the gravity by 500 tons at a time, he adapted far more quickly than before. Her timing was perfect. She pushed him exactly when she needed to without letting him get comfortable.
And so, the numbers climbed.
5,000 tons!
6,000 tons!!
7,000 tons!!!
8,000 tons!!!!
9,000 tons!!!!!
10,000 tons!!!!!!
Two tons is more or less the weight of one SUV, so at this point Bruce was enduring the weight of five thousand SUVs crushed onto his body, and yet he stood beneath it, unbroken!