Stunning the Crowd (Part 2)

Inside the conference room, a chorus of discussion arose, curiosity written across every teacher's face. "Level 20.1." "That's the second student whose Life Level has reached Level 20 since the assessment started, right?" one teacher remarked thoughtfully. Even in Martial Undergraduate programs, only a minority of students who had just entered their senior year could reach Life Level 20, let alone at a Martial Junior College. "Yeah. There were two during the junior-year final assessment as well, both included in the first batch of the recommendation list." "His name is Fang Yu?" "I found his record. During the junior-year final assessment, his Life Level was Level 15.5." A teacher had already begun looking up past assessment scores. "He gained nearly five levels in under two months?" "That extreme?" "He hasn't awakened a star aspect. Is his family wealthy?" "How come I don't remember him? I know every student in the school whose family has assets in the hundreds of millions." "Could his technique have broken through?" "It's possible. His technique scores were already very high before, so that's most likely the case." "He's in Teacher Yan's class." The teachers buzzed with discussion, guessing back and forth. While surprised by Fang Yu's sudden surge, they were not overly astonished. After all, they were all Advanced Martial Artists at Life Level 30 or higher. Year after year, having observed tens of thousands of students, they regularly saw sudden breakthroughs during the Junior-College-to-Undergraduate Upgrade assessment, and some remarkably dazzling martial talents even emerged. Late bloomers were never unprecedented. Only Yan Fu harbored a sliver of nervous apprehension alongside immense anticipation. *His physical martial technique has to be at Great Accomplishment of Entering the Minute... If he merely relied on purchased treasures to temporarily stack his Life Level to 20 without awakening a Void Star Aspect, he might not necessarily secure a spot on the recommendation list.* Void Star Aspect, martial technique, Life Level... Under normal circumstances, having one exceptional attribute while the other two remained above average was enough to make getting recommended fairly certain. However, if one attribute was entirely lacking, the requirements on the other two became exceedingly steep. So far this year, not a single student in Yan Fu's class had guaranteed a recommendation spot. Time ticked by. Under the watchful eyes of the gathered teachers, Fang Yu completed the base punch force test, base speed test, and others in succession. When the punch force tester displayed "2,122 kilograms," Yan Fu felt half the weight lift from his heart. Tests preceding this relied on multi-dimensional evaluations of vital energy, biological magnetic fields, and other metrics, leaving room for errors or even cheating. That was why raw punch force and speed tests were mandatory supplements. "The technique test is next." "Let's see if he's reached Great Accomplishment of Entering the Minute." Every teacher watched intently. This would determine whether Fang Yu could firmly secure a recommendation spot, an outcome intertwined with everyone's interests. Before long, Fang Yu's technique score came up as a perfect "120 points," and the peak punch force tester displayed a figure of "3,866 kilograms." Chatter instantly erupted in the office once more. "Indeed! Great Accomplishment of Entering the Minute!" "He's a lock!" "Teacher Yan, congratulations." "Congratulations." Every teacher offered their congratulations to Yan Fu. As martial arts head teachers, the three most critical metrics in their annual performance reviews were the Level 15 attainment rate, the Entering the Minute rate, and the number of Junior-College-to-Undergraduate upgrades. "Haha, just luck." Yan Fu was in high spirits. At the very least, his count of upgraded students would not be zero this year. ... On the ninth floor of the building, inside another office, six figures were also quietly watching a surveillance projection displaying Fang Yu undergoing his assessment. Leading them was a brisk, valiant female teacher in gray martial arts robes, who appeared to be around twenty-five years old. "Fang Yu?" "Great Accomplishment of Entering the Minute and Life Level 20. He should secure a recommendation spot," the female teacher remarked softly. "It's just that he still hasn't awakened a Void Star Aspect. His chances of awakening one are probably slim." None of the six figures showed any surprise at Fang Yu's performance, merely recording the results methodically. As teachers from Huguang Martial University, they had seen far too many outstanding students. "Yes." "The higher the Life Level, the stronger the mental strength, and the higher the probability of sensing a dormant Void Star Aspect," an adjacent middle-aged teacher around forty nodded in agreement. "At Level 20 without awakening, he's either aspectless... or his Void Star Aspect is extraordinarily weak, bottom-tier even among Lower-Rank Star Aspects." "If he could awaken a Void aspect, even a Lower-Rank Star Aspect would make him promising material," another teacher beside them added. "He might even have had a chance to enter the Earth Academy." "A pity." Empathy and mild regret rippled through the remaining teachers as they nodded. Within Huguang Martial University existed several elite colleges that concentrated greater cultivation resources and superior martial arts instructors. Only a handful of outstanding students could gain admission into them. The Earth Academy was one such renowned special college. True to its name, the Earth Academy aimed to foster Earth Martial Artists. The tests proceeded in swift succession. Soon, on the surveillance display, Fang Yu arrived at the final assessment: the practical combat exam. "He should score around ninety points." "With physical Great Accomplishment of Entering the Minute, his bodily control is extremely high, so his combat skills ought to be quite solid." The Huguang Martial University teachers discussed the matter with casual detachment. ... On the first floor, within a testing arena covering nearly a hundred square meters, Fang Yu was fully armored and gripping a combat saber. Even though the weapons used in practical combat exams were unsharpened, for students who were already martial artists, every strike carried an explosive force of over a thousand kilograms, capable of fracturing bones and tearing sinews at any moment. Full-body armor was therefore mandatory. "I'm ready," Fang Yu called out clearly, fixing his gaze on the robotic examiner opposite him. Nearly indistinguishable from a living human, it also held a combat saber. Practical combat exams were typically presided over by robots to ensure relative fairness. Having a human examiner made falsification and favoritism far too easy. "Weapon selection: Saber." "Examiner model selection: Humanoid." The humanoid martial arts robot in charge of the assessment spoke in an indifferent, mechanical voice. "Please prepare for combat." Fang Yu waited quietly. *Boom!* The humanoid robot moved with lightning speed, crossing six to seven meters in a fraction of an instant to strike right before Fang Yu. *Swish!* The saber in its grasp slashed down toward Fang Yu simultaneously with furious, lightning-fast momentum. If that strike landed squarely, the impact would be terrifying. *As expected of a calibration set to a Level 20 martial artist,* Fang Yu inwardly remarked. This was his first time battling an opponent at the Intermediate Martial Artist level. The practical combat exam primarily tested technique, which meant the examiner robot's power output adjusted to match the candidate. *Whoosh!* Yet as though gifted with foresight, Fang Yu drifted like a gust of wind. Stepping aside, he effortlessly evaded the heavy, momentum-laden blow. With a backhand sweep, his saber slashed out. *Boom!* Dark Force surged through his body, his vital energy churning as his explosive power peaked in an instant. *Flash!* It was like a streak of lightning slicing through the air. *Thud!* Accompanied by a dull crash, the examiner robot was knocked backward like a boulder, hurtling seven to eight meters through the air. As an Intermediate Martial Artist with physical Great Accomplishment of Entering the Minute, Fang Yu's instantaneous explosive power was entirely comparable to that of many Level 22 or even Level 23 martial artists. After all, most Intermediate Martial Artists had yet to bring their physical technique to Great Accomplishment. A moment later, the readjusted examiner robot charged Fang Yu once again, saber in hand. This time, its speed was even more ferocious, and its saber technique was far more nimble and varied. Even as a baseline model, a combat robot was constructed with exceptional durability, forged from special metals mined from the Primordial Star. Even an Advanced Martial Artist would need multiple heavy strikes to destroy its crucial internal components. *Clang! Clang! Clang!* Rapid clashes of sabers rang out across the enclosed testing room, generating sharp shrieks in the air. Fang Yu remained like a gust of wind, effortlessly evading the robot's repeated attacks. At the same time, the power through Fang Yu's muscles and bones erupted completely. The combat saber in his hand fell with the weight of a thousand jin, crashing down like rolling waves and surging forward like an unstoppable boulder—the Thousand Mountains Saber he had practiced for years. He forced the readjusted examiner robot into retreat step after step. *Your strength exceeds mine.* *Your speed exceeds mine.* *Yet your saber technique and footwork remain only at the peak of the basics. How could you possibly stop me?* Fang Yu's saber momentum raged furiously, but his mind remained calm; everything unfolding before him was entirely within his expectations. *Whoosh!* With the final slash erupting, the examiner robot was swept off its feet once more, collapsing to the floor and failing to rise again. Two seconds later, a synthesized voice echoed through the testing room. "Practical combat exam concluded. Evaluation: Perfect score! Junior College Perfection!" ... Up on the second floor, the previously bustling office had fallen dead silent. Dozens of martial arts teachers stared in shock at the surveillance projection. Fang Yu had outright defeated an examiner robot pushed to its absolute limit. Only after a long silence did an uproar finally erupt. "A perfect score on the practical combat exam? How!" "How is that possible?" "That hasn't happened in years, has it?" "I can understand his footwork reaching Entering the Minute, but his saber technique... his saber technique has definitely reached Entering the Minute as well!" A tremor of shock ran through the martial arts teachers' voices.