Chapter 32 (2): The Soul Jolting Strike, AKA Limit Breaking Strike (Part Two)
The examiners then turned to Chen Chuan. “It’s your turn, 421.”
Chen Chuan walked forward. When Zhong Wu saw him, just like before, he said, “Hello, I’m Zhong Wu.”
Chen Chuan said nothing. He stopped in front of Zhong Wu and did not even look up. Zhong Wu could not see his expression clearly, but since Chen Chuan was standing in front of him, that meant that the exam had started.
He reached out to grab Chen Chuan with both hands.
Even though he looked like a simple, honest person, he had a unique perception that allowed him to intuitively sense his opponent’s strength, and Chen Chuan was making his alarm bells ring. That was why he did not underestimate him. When he reached out to grab him, he used a takedown-type refined force he hadn’t used before in the exam.
If he managed to send his refined force into his opponent, Chen Chuan would lose all his strength to fight back. He would be at Zhong Wu’s mercy, while the refined force would fill most of Zhong Wu’s body and make him virtually invulnerable.
Chen Chuan did not react, as if he did not see Zhong Wu move. The examiners could not help but feel nervous and get ready to intervene.
At that moment, the world around Chen Chuan narrowed down onto one point. He could only see Zhong Wu. When Zhong Wu’s hands came to grab him and his fingertips grazed his shoulder, his eyes turned sharp, and his second self overlapped with him. Then, he brought his knee up and kicked upward.
He poured all his strength into that kick, throwing caution to the wind by using the Limit Breaking Strike. All his muscles were torn by it, but his second self absorbed the damage.
Zhong Wu’s huge body possessed great strength, but his size also meant that he could not react as quickly as Chen Chuan could. Besides, with the second self enhancing Chen Chuan’s overall abilities, Zhong Wu was no match for him in terms of speed. Hence, Chen Chuan’s kick landed squarely on Zhong Wu’s chin.
Refined force covered Zhong Wu’s body, so even when faced with the explosive power from Limit Breaking Strike, he only felt a little dizzy. Even so, his once smooth movements froze for a moment. His hands landed on Chen Chuan, but he could not bring out his strength properly. Zhong Wu instinctively started to regulate his breathing so he could use refined force again like he had practiced hundreds of times before. He only needed a moment to regain his equilibrium.
Before he could send the refined force forward, Chen Chuan kicked him a second time.
While overlapping with his second self, Chen Chuan displayed an almost inhuman speed. Zhong Wu’s body reacted before his mind caught up, but Chen Chuan still kicked him in the ear.
The impact from the Limit Breaking Strike was like a bomb exploding in Zhong Wu’s head, and the sturdy giant lost consciousness immediately.
Mr. Jiang had been talking to his assistant about booking a place for dinner. He was not paying attention to the fight because he thought that there would not be anything worth seeing, so the loud thud caught him off guard.
“What’s that sound?”
Mr. Jiang turned around and saw Zhong Wu and Chen Chuan standing in their places, as if they had not moved since the start. From his angle, Zhong Wu put his hands on Chen Chuan’s shoulders, and Mr. Jiang sneered.
Chen Chuan had already won, but he did not stop. He kicked Zhong Wu again, then the fourth, the fifth, and the sixth time...
After losing consciousness, Zhong Wu should have collapsed, but Chen Chuan’s powerful kicks forced him to remain standing.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Since Chen Chuan was too fast, aside from the examiners, non-martial artists like Mr. Jiang, the medical staff, and even the teaching assistants, whose eyes were not as sharp, could not see his kicks. They could only hear the loud thuds.
After a while, even Mr. Jiang could see that something was evidently wrong with Zhong Wu from his rolled back eyes and swaying body.
The medical staff panicked and shouted, “Hey! Stop! Didn’t you hear?! Stop!”
Chen Chuan acted as if he did not hear them. He continued kicking Zhong Wu, who was like a punctured punching bag. Blood oozed out from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.
The Martial Valor University lecturers sat still. None of them told Chen Chuan to stop.
It was only when Zhong Wu’s blood flowed down onto the floor and even splattered across the tables that Gao Ping spoke up. “Stop.”
His voice was not loud, but everyone could feel their chests rumble along with his voice.
Chen Chuan stopped and let Zhong Wu’s body crash on the floor. He slowly put his leg down and smoothed out his slightly wrinkled shirt before touching his collar. He looked down at Zhong Wu and said calmly, “I’m Chen Chuan.”
The venue fell silent for a while. Only hurried, labored breathing could be heard.
After some time, Mr. Jiang finally realized what had happened. He shot to his feet. “The medical staff told you to stop! Didn’t you hear them?!”
Chen Chuan turned around and looked at Mr. Jiang before replying calmly, “Sorry. I didn’t hear them.”
Mr. Jiang glared at him. “You did it on purpose!”
“The examiners didn’t stop me, so the exam hadn’t finished. It’s one of the exam rules. It was even written on the bulletin board.” He turned to the examiners. “Am I wrong?”
Gao Ping picked up Chen Chuan’s file and said, “Chen Chuan, you defeated the upperclassman assigned to you. According to the rules of the exam, you will not receive any marks from us. You’ve passed.”
Yue Hong immediately followed up. “I have no objection to that. You passed.”
“You passed,” Bian Feng agreed.
“You passed.”
“You passed!”
“You passed!”
The other examiners all gave their evaluations without hesitation.
Mr. Jiang turned to them with a dark look in his eyes.
Yue Hong looked right back at him. “Mr. Jiang, please sign the papers. Of course, even if you don’t, it’s fine.” He smiled. “The examinee has defeated the upperclassman assigned to test him, so he has passed the test without any need for further evaluation. That’s the rule of Martial Valor University.”
“Yes. That’s indeed the rule of Martial Valor University,” Gao Ping said.
Everyone turned to Mr. Jiang, and while he felt nothing while facing the full brunt of the stares of the powerful Martial Valor University lecturers, his assistant felt as if his heart was about to jump out of his chest. His back was covered in cold sweat.
With a dark expression, Mr. Jiang took the list from his assistant’s trembling hands and signed it. He pressed down so hard that the pen nearly tore through the paper.
He was feeling frustrated not because Zhong Wu was defeated, but because he lost his fight against the university management and was even forced to make a decision.
After he signed the list, he threw his pen on the table and sat down with his arms crossed. As he looked at Gao Ping and the other lecturers, he sneered in his heart. They let an examinee pass, but what could one person do? The rules of the world were not going to change because of one person.
“Bring him out,” Gao Ping said.
The medical staff finally recovered from their nervousness due to the tense atmosphere and regained their composure. They hurried forward and placed Zhong Wu on the stretcher before carrying him out for treatment. The rest stepped forward to clean up the exam venue and wipe off the blood in the area.
“Chen Chuan, you’re done here. Pack up your things and wait for the new semester to start,” Bian Feng said.
Chen Chuan bowed to everyone. “Thank you, Sirs.”
He then straightened up, went back to the exam site to pick up his things, and exited through a side door. When he reached the outdoor corridor, the streetlamps were alight because the sky had turned dark.
Chen Chuan looked up at the endless night sky. After some time, he reached into his pocket, took out the beef jerky, tore the packaging open, put the jerky into his mouth, and chewed it slowly.
It’s good.