In the vast training hall, students participating in the exam stood in line, looking up at the invigilator at the front.
This middle-aged man with a scar on his face and an intimidating aura was none other than Lei Jun, the martial arts teacher of Zhang Yu and his classmates.
Among the five major subjects of high school cultivation, Dao Heart, Mana, and Physical Education were the foundational courses, while Martial Arts and Dao Techniques were more about the practical application of cultivation techniques.
As for which was stronger or more useful—martial arts or Dao techniques—cultivators had differing opinions.
Zhang Yu still remembered the bold statement Lei Jun made during their first martial arts class: "Martial arts are highly useful in this world, while Dao techniques are useless. Practicing Dao techniques will only make you poorer, as all your money will end up in the pockets of corporations. On the other hand, martial arts are cheaper and just as effective. Only by practicing affordable martial arts can you prosper and grow wealthier."
This was Lei Jun's philosophy on martial arts.
As the invigilator for today's exam, Lei Jun didn’t rely on any Dao techniques.
His approach to the monthly exam was always to have students with similar scores from the previous month draw lots and engage in one-on-one combat.
Each match consisted of three rounds, with each round lasting three minutes.
If someone was knocked down or stepped out of bounds within that time, the round would end.
After all three rounds, the teacher would grade the students based on their performance.
This format was quite similar to the martial arts practical exam in the college entrance exam, except that during the college exam, students fought against Huangjin Warriors rather than each other.
However, since this was just a monthly exam, it wasn’t feasible to use the college exam standards, especially since not hiring Huangjin Warriors saved the school some money.
After Lei Jun finished explaining the rules, the large screen above flickered, and names began to appear as the drawing of lots commenced.
Once the draw was complete, the results were sent to each student’s phone, instructing them to proceed to their designated locations for the combat exam.
The training hall was divided into small squares, each about ten square meters in size, serving as individual arenas.
Zhang Yu, following the draw, walked to Square 12, where He Dayou was already waiting.
Seeing He Dayou nod politely with a smile, Zhang Yu returned the gesture.
"Finally, you’re here," He Dayou thought, suppressing his inner aggression as he slowly walked into the square.
To teach Zhang Yu a lesson "legitimately," He Dayou had used his privilege as the son of a school board member to ensure that Zhang Yu, who ranked 10th in last month’s exam, was drawn as his opponent, despite He Dayou being 3rd.
According to the rules, their scores were close enough that no one would question it.
"He’s probably fallen behind in all subjects except Mana this month. His real ranking should be around 20th to 30th," He Dayou thought to himself.
He was confident in his abilities, maintaining his position in the top three overall, and his Hand-to-Hand Combat had recently reached Level 2. He had also learned a new martial art in a private class.
"I won’t even need to use my new martial art. Level 2 Hand-to-Hand Combat is enough to deal with this poor guy," He Dayou mused.
"The only question is… should I injure his hand or his leg?"
As he pondered, He Dayou and Zhang Yu stood facing each other in the center of the square, about a meter apart.
He Dayou’s eyes scanned Zhang Yu’s body, planning how to strike him.
Outside the square, an assistant teacher began recording the match with a phone.
After the exam, Lei Jun and the other martial arts teachers would review all the videos and assign grades.
"Are both of you ready?" the assistant teacher asked.
Zhang Yu and He Dayou nodded.
"Then, the first round between Zhang Yu and He Dayou begins… 3, 2, 1, start!"
As soon as the assistant teacher gave the signal, He Dayou suddenly struck, his right arm becoming a blur as he aimed a palm strike at Zhang Yu’s neck.
At the same time, he had already anticipated Zhang Yu’s possible counterattacks.
As a wealthy young man, He Dayou had the time and money to hire people for daily combat training.
He had experienced and trained for every possible reaction to his strike, giving him confidence in his victory.
"Let’s go for the hand," He Dayou thought, channeling his mana into his palm.
Boom!
A loud noise erupted from He Dayou’s abdomen.
His vision spun, and he felt the hard ground beneath him, along with pain all over his body.
It took him several seconds to realize what had happened—he had been knocked out in one move by Zhang Yu.
"Was I defeated in an instant?" He Dayou’s face turned red with embarrassment.
"How is this possible?"
Seeing He Dayou’s agitation, the assistant teacher played back the recorded fight to avoid any disputes.
In the video, as He Dayou launched his palm strike, Zhang Yu dodged it by crouching and then slammed into He Dayou, throwing him out of bounds.
The entire sequence took less than a second, making it look as if He Dayou had deliberately let himself be thrown.
He Dayou felt even more frustrated.
He hadn’t even used his full strength or his newly learned martial art.
A single moment of carelessness had cost him the match.
"I underestimated Zhang Yu. I was distracted during the fight," he thought, feeling increasingly bitter.
But he knew that no matter how much he regretted it, making excuses now would only make him look worse.
Taking a deep breath, he nodded at Zhang Yu.
"Well done. Let’s continue."
The assistant teacher checked if He Dayou was physically okay, and after confirming he was fine, the two returned to the square.
Standing a meter apart again, Zhang Yu smiled inwardly.
"My combat score should be pretty high this time."
The effectiveness of his Level 3 Hand-to-Hand Combat had exceeded his expectations.
Although he assumed his combat experience was inferior to He Dayou’s, his mastery of the 15 moves of Hand-to-Hand Combat allowed him to predict He Dayou’s actions and exploit their weaknesses almost instantly.
In the previous match, as soon as He Dayou moved, Zhang Yu knew what he was going to do and where his openings were.
His body reacted before his mind could fully process it, charging forward with mana surging through his arms and throwing He Dayou out of bounds.
"In a Hand-to-Hand Combat match among first-year students, as long as my opponent’s level is below Level 3, their reaction time will likely be slower than mine," Zhang Yu thought.
"Plus, my physical strength isn’t weak either. I probably won’t lose to any first-year student in a Hand-to-Hand Combat match."
Meanwhile, He Dayou’s expression was serious, a stark contrast to his earlier confidence.
He decided to focus entirely on the second round, determined to defeat Zhang Yu with his full strength.
This time, he wouldn’t give Zhang Yu any opportunities.
"Second round between Zhang Yu and He Dayou. 3, 2, 1, start!"
As soon as the assistant teacher gave the signal, He Dayou unleashed his full power, his right fist surging with mana as he aimed a fierce punch at Zhang Yu’s face.
Boom!
Another loud noise echoed through the hall.
He Dayou’s vision spun again, and he felt the cold, hard ground beneath him, along with pain throughout his body.
He struggled to get up, bewildered.
"Was I defeated again in an instant?"
The assistant teacher played the video again.
This time, as He Dayou threw his punch, Zhang Yu had already kicked him in the chest, sending him flying.
The speed of their movements made it seem as if He Dayou had lunged into Zhang Yu’s foot.
The third round began.
This time, He Dayou didn’t rush in with full force.
Instead, he adopted a defensive stance, carefully observing Zhang Yu.
Zhang Yu thought to himself, "After being defeated twice in a row, he’s being cautious now."
The reason he had been able to defeat He Dayou so quickly in the previous rounds was that he had anticipated He Dayou’s moves and exploited his weaknesses the moment he attacked.
By using the combined speed of their movements, Zhang Yu had overwhelmed He Dayou before he could react.
But now that He Dayou was being cautious and not attacking recklessly, Zhang Yu couldn’t replicate his earlier victories.
However, Zhang Yu had a plan for this situation.
Both his mana and physical strength had improved significantly, and he was confident that he wasn’t far behind He Dayou, who was ranked third in their grade.
Even in terms of physical strength, they were evenly matched, as neither of them specialized in brute force.
Since He Dayou wasn’t attacking, Zhang Yu decided to take the initiative.
He channeled his mana and struck at He Dayou’s chest with a palm strike.
"Here it comes!" He Dayou’s eyes gleamed as he blocked the strike with a punch.
But then Zhang Yu struck again with the same move.
"The same move? What’s going on?"
After blocking three consecutive palm strikes, He Dayou felt his arms going numb, and his mana was in turmoil.
Zhang Yu’s mana was far more robust, and his physical strength was stronger than He Dayou had expected.
Zhang Yu’s strategy was simple: he was forcing a direct confrontation.
Zhang Yu’s Level 3 Hand-to-Hand Combat not only made him more familiar with the techniques but also allowed him to unleash greater physical strength and mana with each move.
This gave him a significant advantage in a direct clash.
He Dayou quickly realized this, but a faint smile appeared on his lips.
"You want to go head-to-head with me? Let’s see who’s tougher."
He activated his newly learned martial art, the Little Heavenly Star Palm.
The mana in his dantian transformed into a cold, sinister force that surged through his palm as he struck at Zhang Yu with full force.
Early update for the week, hoping for more readers.
The next chapter will be updated at noon tomorrow.
Thanks to 'Memory Scavenger Forever' for the generous reward.
(End of Chapter)