Translator: CinderTL
Boom!!
A deafening explosion reverberated across the Training Ground, plunging the entire military camp into instant silence.
After several seconds of this eerie stillness, voices broke the quiet.
"What's going on?"
"Holy shit, is this an earthquake?"
Soldiers training nearby in the dormitories and those on cross-country runs nearby exchanged bewildered glances.
One after another, people rushed to balconies or high ground to investigate the source of the noise, quickly discovering the truth.
"Holy shit! Look!!"
Following the shout, everyone turned their gaze toward the center of the Training Ground.
There, within the area cordoned off by warning tape and spanning nearly a thousand square meters, a hundred-meter-wide cyclone of wind energy had swept across the landscape, uprooting vegetation and churning up the soil.
Piles of sandbags had been reduced to dust, their contents scattered in all directions.
The green netting surrounding the Training Ground vibrated violently, emitting a continuous, ear-splitting metallic whine.
Everyone stared wide-eyed at the center of the devastation, where a black-robed youth stood frozen in a punching stance.
In front of him, the so-called Titanium Robot had vanished completely, leaving only scattered particles of ash mixed with the grass and soil.
The central silver circular device beneath his feet was shattered beyond recognition. Spiderweb-like cracks spread for several meters, causing the entire testing apparatus to collapse inward, forming a pit a meter deep.
As for the blue light-flashing Force Field, which had once enclosed the ten-meter testing area like a transparent glass dome, not a trace remained. It had been completely obliterated by the surging shockwave.
"How...how is this possible?"
Every expert from Radiant Star Academy present at the makeshift experimental site, along with the high-ranking Military officials in attendance, stared wide-eyed, their mouths slightly agape.
Their expressions of astonishment and disbelief were remarkably similar. Fang Wen, the bespectacled youth who had confidently declared the power limit earlier, was fixated on the numbers displayed on the Virtual Display Screen, his eyes flickering with waves of shock.
"Three hundred tons..."
Someone rushed forward to check the test data, their expression freezing in place as they stared at the numbers.
The other Experimenters reacted similarly, because they all knew this was merely the instrument's maximum capacity, not the youth's limit.
In other words, the punch had definitely exceeded that figure.
"Could he be a Fifth-Tier peak?"
Fang Wen murmured unconsciously, finally realizing how foolish his attitude had been the previous day.
He quickly looked up to see the black-robed youth in the crater slowly retracting his fist, his expression calm as he gazed into the distance.
"Do you need me to strike again?"
The deep inquiry echoed, electromagnetic waves from the communication module arcing through the air.
After a moment of stunned silence, the middle-aged leader who had previously demanded three full-power punches finally snapped back to his senses and hastily shook his head.
"Grandmaster Chen, please, please take a moment to rest!"
His tone was now far more respectful and deferential, indicating that this test was complete and they would immediately prepare for the next.
Chen Feng nodded, remaining still.
Soon, a member of the Radiant Star Academy hurried over with mineral water and a folding stool, followed by a flurry of Experimenters, camouflaged soldiers, and professional Security Personnel, all working together to temporarily repair the crater.
"But aren't we supposed to collect data three times for accuracy? Doing it just once won't be precise enough."
"You idiot! What's the point of testing anymore? The Force Field Device we brought is completely wrecked, and the others are a whole tier lower, with even lower tolerance coefficients. They're useless now."
"That's right. Let's use three hundred tons as a temporary Pinnacle Realm data point."
Debates erupted across the makeshift experimental site. Chen Feng, through his Perception, clearly sensed the commotion but paid little attention, silently accepting the mineral water someone handed him.
Deliberately damaging the device had indeed been a calculated move.
This way, he could prevent his true strength from being fully understood, keeping his abilities ambiguous and more believable.
Moreover, there was a crucial reason that had led him to make this decision:
[Steel Bones LV5: 26/100]
The testing device, which incorporated Radiant Alloy, was perfect for providing nutrients to his Steel Bones.
Why not take advantage of this free opportunity?
"Grandmaster Chen, the next test will assess your neural reflexes," the middle-aged lead Experimenter's voice crackled through the communication module after a few minutes. "Since Pinnacle Realm cultivation grants a sublimation of will, leading to Pinnacle Intent, we want to see what other effects this has on your reflexes."
Following the instructions, Chen Feng remained in place, ready to react swiftly to various scenarios.
"Understood."
Chen Feng nodded and followed the instructions, returning to the previous location.
The deep pit had temporarily vanished, replaced by solid, liquid Titanium filling the shattered ground.
The test was about to begin, but outside the originally empty Training Ground, besides the dozens of camouflaged soldiers on guard, a group of figures was rapidly approaching.
"Director Su, that's the Training Ground. I don't recommend you go there."
"Captain Xu, that commotion earlier must have been caused by the Flame Tiger Grandmaster. I'm just curious and want to see him. Is that not allowed?"
Director Su, wearing sunglasses, walked briskly, her gaze fixed on the vast Training Ground separated by green wire mesh.
Trees swayed in the wind on both sides, dozens of soldiers stood guard outside, and special Force Field Devices had been activated, emitting blue light to reinforce the defenses.
Following a reminder from her Security Personnel, she was certain of the source of the disturbance.
That was precisely why she wanted to see the Pinnacle Realm Master, who was becoming increasingly influential in Feng Province.
"Director Su, please don't make this difficult for me."
The senior military officer accompanying her frowned and shook his head, trying to stop her.
But the more he resisted, the more curious Director Su became.
Finally, after repeated requests and even agreeing to certain preferential terms for a collaborative project, he reluctantly submitted a request, which was barely approved.
"Director Su, we don't want you to collect any data."
"You can only go up to 500 meters outside the Training Ground. Also, you must shut down all scanning and recording devices immediately."
"No problem," Director Su agreed readily. Once the necessary cooperation was complete, she strode quickly past the barbed wire and green netting.
Nearby, other soldiers were also curious, but they dared not approach due to orders.
The group moved swiftly, soon reaching the Military's designated boundary.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
At that moment, a piercing whistling sound erupted, audible even hundreds of meters away.
Standing behind armed and alert soldiers, the group looked up and could vaguely make out several black figures simultaneously appearing within a ten-meter area.
"Not him?" Director Su blinked in confusion.
But then—
"Wait!"
"Those are afterimages!!"
The Security Personnel's stern voice cut through the air. Only then did the group realize that new afterimages had remained in place.
It was like a teleporting shift, making it impossible to pinpoint the true location of the original.
Even the distant, automatically targeting red laser scanning instruments began to smoke and struggle to keep up with the speed of the movements.
"That's enough! That's enough!"
"Grandmaster Chen, the nerve reaction test is over!"
The middle-aged Experimenter in charge immediately shouted, his eyes anxious. The Virtual Display Screen in front of him was warning of an overheating anomaly and operational overload in the ray gun.
He didn't want to damage any more equipment; the research team's funds were already limited.
"Team Leader, Vice Dean Fang said we can proceed directly to the third defensive test since outsiders are present. Let's finish this quickly."
Someone came to relay the order. The Team Leader nodded repeatedly, having also noticed the Superhuman Group several hundred meters away.
After a brief exchange, Chen Feng agreed.
"Alright."
He stopped, standing on the repaired, sturdy Titanium ground, and nodded in approval.
His black trench coat billowed in the wind. His Perception detected the commotion and he saw two highly sophisticated machines emerge from the distant experimental equipment area.
Standing over two meters tall, they vaguely resembled humanoids.
Square display screens, resembling heads, displayed various data prompts. Mechanical arms held two large-caliber submachine guns, controlled by Experimenters behind them.
"Grandmaster Chen, we plan to start the test with the large-caliber submachine guns. Is that acceptable?"
"Yes."
"Excellent."
With approval granted, the middle-aged Experimenter in charge personally operated the humanoid machine.
The soldiers in the distance widened their eyes in astonishment, while Director Su and her party froze in place.
In the next instant, a deafening barrage of gunfire erupted.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Blazing muzzle flashes spat forth, blindingly bright.
Yet...
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
The metallic clang of bullets reverberated through the air. The black-robed youth stood calmly in place throughout the entire test, even appearing annoyed. He raised a hand to shrug off his tattered black cloak, revealing his bronze-skinned, muscular upper body.
His physique was sculpted with sharp, defined lines, each muscle mass stacked like stone blocks, incredibly solid.
Specially designed, large-caliber bullets—capable of shattering Radiant Alloy and leaving dents in ordinary Titanium—flattened and caved in the instant they struck his body, falling like a dense shower of dark golden raindrops.
Witnessing this scene, the experimenters fell into a brief silence, while the soldiers on guard and watching in awe were left stunned and numb.
Most of them were flesh and blood, having only received gene-enhancing injections at best. Without relying on cybernetic enhancements, no one could achieve such a feat. Even some Fourth-Tier Cyborgs at their peak would struggle to withstand this barrage of tests without sustaining any injuries.
"Pinnacle Realm Master..."
A murmur came from behind Director Su. She turned to see her trusted Fifth-Tier Cyborg Security Personnel wearing a grave expression, as if facing a formidable enemy.
A strange sense of admiration welled up within her. She turned back to the test.
The experimenters had temporarily paused the test, preparing to switch to other firearms.
But the black-robed youth shook his head slightly and finally spoke.
"No need to go through all that trouble. Let's start with the missiles directly."
He had probably realized they were worried about accidentally harming him and wanted to proceed step by step. But he didn't want to waste any more time.
His words fell like a thunderclap.
The Experimenters fell silent once more. Even Fang Mocuan, who had been mentally prepared, and General Zhang, the highest-ranking official present, were stunned for several seconds.
"Then let's do as Grandmaster Chen suggested."
"Alright, let's start with the second-generation micro-missiles."
The lead Experimenter nodded gravely, reminding Chen Feng and reinforcing the Training Ground's Force Field.
Soon, with a whooshing sound, the humanoid machine revealed its missile launchers, and two micro-missiles shot forth, leaving long white trails of exhaust.
Boom! Boom! Boom!!
A furious barrage erupted, shaking the ground like an earthquake as smoke and dust billowed into the air.
Another deep crater appeared, but the figure within remained unharmed.
"Continue."
The low voice echoed again, and the Experimenters fell silent once more before switching to more powerful missiles.
Boom!
Boom!!
Boom!!!
As they cycled through different missile models, a tank rumbled onto the Training Ground, its treads churning the earth.
Yet, from within the torn and cratered ground, the same low voice repeated:
"Continue!"
(End of the Chapter)
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