After finishing his short sponsor pitch, Yu Xinghan waved casually to the camera, knowing a hundred-thousand-spirit-coin ad payment was already inbound. With a smile, he stepped off the field.

On the sidelines, Song Hailong watched the replay coldly, expression unreadable—as if he'd already expected the outcome.

When it came to Yu Xinghan's strength, Song Hailong believed no one in the arena understood it better than he did.

"The winner of this Physique Tournament is him. No question."

"Everyone else is just fighting for second place."

"To defeat him… isn't something that can be done overnight."

Song Hailong had made up his mind: whether it took one year or two, he would defeat the strongest opponent he'd ever faced—before graduating high school.

The next moment, he flashed forward, and with a leg as thick as a pillar, unleashed a crushing sweep at the oncoming Yu Xinghan.

Bang!

Yu Xinghan casually raised his lower leg and stopped the sweep mid-air.

A gust of force exploded from between them as their strength collided.

Yu Xinghan smiled helplessly. "You're too blunt. How many times have I told you to at least try to conceal your killing intent? Attacking me head-on like that won't work."

Song Hailong refused to back down. "You can let me ambush you all you want—but I want to beat you fair and square."

…

In the spectator stands—

Gangshan gasped. "Yu Xinghan… what a monster of a body. Is he really just a high school freshman?"

Le Jingchen nodded. "He’s a Gold Core Disciple, after all. I heard he’s Xinghuo Zhenren’s final disciple. The level of investment behind him isn’t something normal students can even dream of."

"I wouldn't be surprised if he wins every round of the Physique Tournament from here on out."

After watching Yu Xinghan’s previous performance, Le Jingchen had already understood one thing clearly:

This year’s champion was already set in stone—Yu Xinghan.

So now, his job was to downplay the influence of Yu Xinghan’s body-refining skills, and instead emphasize his identity as a Gold Core Disciple. If possible, he wanted to credit all of Yu Xinghan’s victories to Xinghuo Zhenren alone.

…

Meanwhile, in the resting area for Songyang High—

Bai Zhenzhen glared begrudgingly at the screen, which was still replaying Yu Xinghan’s dazzling performance.

"Damn Gold Core Disciples really are freaks."

"I’ve got no shot at beating him unless my physical strength breaks through to level 5.0."

"But still..."

Bai Zhenzhen turned to Zhang Yu and said, "Yuzi, I think you’ve got a chance to beat him."

Zhang Yu chuckled as he sipped water. "Do I? Probably only two people in the whole stadium believe that."

Bai Zhenzhen raised a brow. "Oh? Who else has taste as good as mine?"

Zhang Yu laughed. "Me, obviously."

They exchanged smiles.

Bai Zhenzhen continued, "That guy feels like he’s got eyes in the back of his head. That’s probably how he got such a huge lead in the first round. But if we’re talking raw strength and speed? Sure, his body’s tougher than yours—but I think your control is way better..."

Level 10 Celestial Martial Heart-Forging Technique, level 10 Body-Refining Thirty-Six Forms, level 10 Back-Dragon Mountain-Flipping Strike, level 10 Crimson Marrow Primordial Energy, plus Excavator Palm, Crane Claw, Sports Car Leg, Elevator Leap—all level 10.

Zhang Yu nodded slightly. On this field, no one could surpass him in muscle control and body force extraction.

Even though his body strength was only 4.95, he could unleash speed and power on par with—or even beyond—the 5.0+ monsters on the field.

He instinctively touched his chest.

If only the competition were a bit later—if his heart had grown stronger—he’d be confident he could outpace Yu Xinghan in both strength and speed.

But right now...

"I not only have to win the next two rounds—I have to win big, or I’ll lose to him in total score."

The pressure weighed down hard.

Zhang Yu downed a Stamina-Recovery Medicine and immediately began resting, trying to recover every shred of stamina and focus lost in the last match.

On the side, He Dayou rolled his eyes so hard they almost stuck. In his head, he was already mocking their arrogance.

But he kept quiet. No matter how cocky the two of them sounded, their results were still crushing his.

In other words, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen had—without him noticing—earned the right to be arrogant in front of him.

After about thirty minutes, the arena walls trembled and began to sink.

In their place, a circular track appeared.

Round Three of the Physique Tournament was about to begin.

This time, the event was simple: a 5,000-meter sprint. Points were awarded based on completion time, with a maximum of 75 points.

As always, no mana was allowed—only pure physical strength.

Techniques like Sports Car Leg and Elevator Leap that required mana were banned.

Under these restrictions, simple running became the most efficient way to move for most competitors.

5,000 meters might be long for a mortal, but for these high schoolers? It was short. Most of them could keep sprinting the whole way.

Wang Hai stared at the rule summary on the big screen and thought to himself:

"The key to this round is pushing your physical speed as far as it’ll go."

…

Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen attached their Detection Patches and lined up at the starting line.

The bottom 20 from the previous round had already been eliminated.

Only 20 contestants remained.

Each wore standardized running shoes and uniforms provided by Purple Cloud High to prevent cheating with hidden Immortal Dao technology in clothes or footwear.

This was a Physique Tournament—it was fine to use pills or injections, but cheating via gear was a serious offense.

Zhang Yu looked to the side. Song Hailong, Hu Yuntao, Xiong Wenwu… and Yu Xinghan.

He took a deep breath and activated the Celestial Martial Heart-Forging Technique, purging all distractions from his mind.

One thought remained.

Defeat everyone.

And the moment he did, Yu Xinghan suddenly turned around and looked his way.

Zhang Yu, as if sensing it, looked back.

Their eyes locked, and both saw it: boundless battle intent.

Both of them realized at once—the other was also using the Celestial Martial Heart-Forging Technique.

Yu Xinghan smiled slightly. "That third-place guy from the last round? He knows the Celestial Martial Heart-Forging Technique? Right… I remember Senior Sister Li said they’d found another suitable successor here..."

His gaze flicked toward Zhang Yu, and he silently mouthed two words:

“Keep up.”

Then he turned back to face forward.

3!

2!

The announcer’s voice counted down. All twenty athletes tensed every muscle. The air around them seemed to freeze.

1!

The next instant—like twenty cannons firing at once.

With a thunderous bang, twenty afterimages tore down the track.

Boom boom boom boom—the pounding footsteps echoed as Hu Yuntao surged to the front.

This Red Tower High student, a Demon-Kin, dropped to all fours. His body, covered in dragon scales, bulged with powerful muscle, glowing with iridescent light.

Running on all fours gave him a massive advantage out the gate. He practically flew down the track, instantly pulling dozens of meters ahead.

The wind whipped across his eyes—now bloodshot with excitement and adrenaline.

"Father! Watch this—I’m taking first this time!"

The memory of his father's scolding after the last Martial Tournament filled him with fury, shame… and fear.

The fear of working factory jobs. The fear of being kicked out of the clan.

For the last two months, that fear had driven him to push past his limits in training—over and over.

Every time he thought of the "older brothers and sisters" who died on assembly lines, it gave him the strength to break past his body's thresholds again and again.

Especially now—he wasn’t running alone.

His father's blood, refined through his siblings' bodies, had awakened his Black Dragon heritage.

At this moment, Hu Yuntao could feel their blood burning in him—like fire—fueling monstrous strength.

Boom!

Each step sent shockwaves through the track.

"I can win!"

"This round—first place is mine—"

But just as Hu Yuntao accelerated even further, confidence burning hot…

A shadow fell across his vision.

A voice came from beside him: "Not bad, little kitty. Fast start."

"What?!" Hu Yuntao whipped his head around—only to see Yu Xinghan shooting past him like a meteor, and widening the gap fast.

"This bastard!" Hu Yuntao roared. His dragon blood boiled, steam gushing off his skin as he pushed his body to the limit.

He felt like his siblings' blood inside him was shouting:

"Run!"

"Run, Yuntao!"

"Run out of that factory!"

It felt like the factory gates had opened behind him. If he slowed even a little, they’d swallow him whole.

But despair crushed him.

No matter how hard he pushed, Yu Xinghan was still pulling farther away.

That guy… was like a star in the sky—utterly untouchable.

And worse—the frantic speed-ups were throwing off his rhythm. His massive frame brought extra weight and wind resistance. His stamina plummeted.

Then came another gust.

Song Hailong, Zhang Yu, Bai Zhenzhen, and Le Mulan blazed past him one after another.

Hu Yuntao stared in terror. He was running with everything he had—yet it felt like he was falling backward.

Falling… into those factory gates.

Only now, those gates had changed.

They’d become the gaping maw of a giant dragon…

Ready to devour him whole.