Chapter 12: Exposed? Zhou Yan, the Mentally Extraordinary!

Zhang Daosheng brought Li Guandqi with him.

"Elder Zhang, why did you come over as well?" Luo Xuan asked first.

Zhang Daosheng looked at her with a faint smile, "I was already in Xingdu cultivating with Guanqi. Coming over here is just a two-hour journey, and besides, with such a major event happening on your side, how could I not come?"

Cong Shiyun, standing nearby, showed a look of shame, "Elder, it was my negligence to let such a thing happen right under my nose."

Zhang Daosheng shook his head, his expression calm and steady, "What's done is done. The current priority is to eradicate the root cause and prevent future troubles; investigating responsibilities can wait until later."

"Furthermore," Zhang Daosheng said indifferently, "strictly speaking, this is all lingering fallout left from the failed operation of that year. Now, I am here to completely resolve this matter."

Cong Shiyun's spirits lifted, "Elder, has the higher-up approved restarting the eradication campaign against the rift and the Fiery Congregation within it?"

Hearing this, Luo Xuan's spirits immediately lifted as well. She constantly remembered that half a month ago, Zhang Daosheng had promised her that he would restart the mission where her father sacrificed himself, and let her participate as well.

Zhang Daosheng nodded, "Indeed, the palace has already approved the matter. The official order will arrive within five days, and arriving along with the order will be thirty True Realm martial artists allocated by the Vermilion Bird Palace."

"Thirty True Realm martial artists!?" Cong Shiyun's expression turned joyful, "With such massive support, this campaign is destined to succeed!"

"That's right. This time, there is no need for personnel below the transcendent limit to participate. I will lead the team personally, with you as my second-in-command, acting together with the thirty True Realm warriors." Zhang Daosheng kept his hands behind his back, his expression calm.

Luo Xuan stepped forward, her expression displeased, "Elder Zhang, you promised to take me with you."

Seeing the straightforward Luo Xuan, Zhang Daosheng helplessly shook his head, "I didn't say I wouldn't let you enter, but you must promise me that you will stick closely to the others and not act alone when the time comes."

"Deal!" Luo Xuan retreated in satisfaction and stood beside Zhou Yan.

Chu Wan picked up the topic from the side, "Alright, didn't we come here to test Zhou Yan's eligibility to use a Divine Machine?"

"Haha, that's right. Let's begin then," Zhang Daosheng said with a hearty laugh. "I've only ever heard you and my disciple talk about how much of a genius Zhou Yan is; now I can finally witness it with my own eyes."

With that, he looked at Zhou Yan, revealing a knowing smile that they both understood.

This old fox is really good at putting on an act. You were the very first one to come looking for me.

Zhou Yan's mouth twitched, but outwardly he just nodded respectfully, then walked over to Chu Wan's side upon her instruction.

The director, who constantly exuded an air of charm, smiled brightly at Zhou Yan and said, "Later, you will go to the center of the arena and complete the test according to my instructions. As for whether you pass or not, the two big bosses will judge for themselves."

A thought stirred in Zhou Yan's heart, and he asked, "So, what level of performance is required to gain approval?"

Chu Wan glanced at him and revealed a mischievous smile, "What? Want to know the standard so you can control your score and pass?"

"No—" Zhou Yan put on an innocent expression. "I just want to understand so I can mentally prepare myself."

How is this woman's intuition so sharp!

Chu Wan smiled and said nothing more. Instead, she answered his question with a serious tone, "You should have heard of this: roughly evaluating by physical power, the peak physical constitution of a Fierce-tier martial artist is 'four men's strength,' a Miao-tier martial artist is 'seven men's strength,' and a Jue-tier martial artist is 'nine men's strength'..."

"So... as long as your physical performance surpasses the Fierce-tier and enters the realm of the Miao-tier, it should be considered meeting the standard."

Chu Wan blinked at him and lowered her voice, "I heard you defeated Sword Monarch's disciple Li Guanqi. His physical constitution is solidly at the peak of the Fierce-tier, and he might have even stepped into the threshold of the Miao-tier. So you don't need to worry about your physical constitution; the key point is..."

Chu Wan's smile remained, "Spirit."

Spirit...

Zhou Yan nodded, recalling the drained, kidney-deficient appearance Luo Xuan had every time she used a Divine Machine.

Chu Wan patted his shoulder and lowered her voice, "Little brother Zhou Yan, I have a lot of confidence in your spiritual strength!"

"Alright, big sister has spilled all her secrets to you, so win some honor for me." Chu Wan chuckled, turned around, and walked out of the training arena toward the control room.

Zhou Yan looked speechlessly at her alluring back.

Bah, a terrible female boss who always teases her subordinates!

Sooner or later, I'll give you a taste of real intensity!

Thinking this fiercely in his mind, he turned and walked toward the center of the arena.

The next second, he felt a chill down his back and couldn't help looking back.

Luo Xuan was staring right at him.

Stare! (▼へ▼)

Good grief!

Zhou Yan gave a start and hurriedly quickened his pace, standing in the center of the arena.

Dozens of seconds later, the white floor in front of Zhou Yan parted, rising to reveal a horizontal bar connected to two metal posts.

Chu Wan's voice came from all around, "Zhou Yan, first is the strength test. Go pull that bar first, then lie down underneath and push the bar upward. To put it simply, it's a deadlift and a bench press."

Zhou Yan nodded and walked over, his hands gripping the bar.

Down below, Li Guanqi, who had been quietly watching, turned serious in his gaze.

Zhang Daosheng and Cong Shiyun were chatting casually and unconcerned. Both of them had already passed the stage of evaluating strength by mortal standards. Compared to physical strength, they cared more about Zhou Yan's spiritual potential.

Luo Xuan silently recalled Zhou Yan's past performance, remembering that it had only been about two months since he first came into contact with cultivation, yet now he had reached the point where he could test his eligibility for a Divine Machine under the watchful eyes of the Yinghuo Sword Monarch and the Lihuo Pavilion Master.

Deep in her heart, doubt rose once again:

'Before Zhou Yan lost his memory, was he really just an ordinary person?'

'Is his identity really what is described on that ID card?'

On the other side, Zhou Yan secretly deactivated the state of his Destiny Armament. In this state, his attributes only received a "40%" bonus from the arming:

[Attributes: Physique 100, Agility 88, Spirit 87]

In the unarmed state of the Destiny Armament, his values were originally around "70 to 80." After acquiring his new path ability, "Resonance," they increased once more, still bringing his physique to a strength of "100."

However, compared to a physique close to "200" while fully armored, this would at least make it easier for him to fake going all out...

Then, he gripped the horizontal bar and slowly began to exert force. The sides of the two metal posts connected to the bar immediately showed numbers rapidly jumping!

250, 300, 400, 500... 1,000! 1,230 kilograms!

The numbers fluctuated back and forth around 1,200.

Zhou Yan put on a face flushed with exertion, maintained this pulling force for about five seconds, then gently loosened his hands and let out a long breath.

He then looked toward the group.

Chu Wan's voice came through the loudspeaker: "Stable deadlift force of about 1,200 kilograms, close to five times the limit of an ordinary person, exceeding the Fierce-tier level!"

Hearing her voice, Zhang Daosheng and Cong Shiyun nodded slightly, exchanging a knowing smile.

This kid definitely held something back, but it basically matched their predictions.

Li Guanqi's gaze flickered: 'Zhou Yan, just looking at strength... I can barely reach this level too... You definitely didn't use your full strength. No matter, let's assume we're starting from the same baseline; in the future, I will certainly not fall behind you!'

Luo Xuan, however, had a completely different perception from the others.

Everyone else's impression of Zhou Yan was built on the premise that "this guy is a natural prodigy," so they felt that while him reaching this level was exaggerated, it wasn't unacceptable.

But Luo Xuan was the mentor who personally guided Zhou Yan onto the path of martial arts. She could deeply feel how massive the difference was between the strength Zhou Yan currently displayed and when they first met.

Zhou Yan... just who are you?

Luo Xuan made up her mind to find a way to dig deep into Zhou Yan's true identity after returning.

Next, under Chu Wan's instruction, Zhou Yan completed the bench press strength test, and the conclusion was roughly the same as the deadlift.

The strength-testing apparatus sank into the ground and disappeared. Soon, centered around Zhou Yan, a circle with a radius of about one meter outlined by light paths appeared on the ground.

Immediately afterward, at a distance of twenty meters from him, a ring of dozens of mechanisms resembling machine guns rose up.

Chu Wan's voice sounded:

"Next is the reaction and body control test. Your mission is to avoid as many sensing ball attacks as possible within the designated area while under the encirclement of the launchers, understood?"

So this is the method used to test "Agility"?

Zhou Yan nodded and silently stood in place.

Compared to controlling one's output of physical strength, trying to control one's reaction speed so it isn't too fast was much more difficult...

He slightly increased his focus, but tried his best not to reach the state of "total concentration."

"Begin!" Chu Wan reminded him.

The next second, a launcher fired a high-speed projectile ball toward him, and Zhou Yan slightly side-stepped to easily dodge it.

Immediately after, with his dodging motion, more and more launchers began firing at him, the ball speed getting faster and faster, and the frequency increasing as well...

Zhou Yan dodged while evaluating the intensity of the test. Feeling that it was about enough, he stopped increasing his performance and intentionally let the sensing balls hit him frequently.

Soon, all the launchers stopped shooting.

Chu Wan's smiling voice came through: "Data feedback: your reaction speed is seventeen milliseconds, while the limit for an ordinary person is about one hundred milliseconds. Your reaction and body control are actually stronger than your strength, rather interesting."

When saying these words, Chu Wan's eyes flickered slightly: 'Kid, you still didn't act convincingly enough...'

'A normal person's fivefold reaction speed is indeed around twenty milliseconds. But you, kid, are one-eyed with limited vision, which demands even higher reaction times, yet you can achieve this level. No wonder you were able to see me and Luo Xuan's sparring match this morning... Truly fascinating.'

Zhou Yan paused slightly. Judging from Chu Wan's evaluation, he had performed a bit too well.

It seemed he still hadn't controlled it well enough, but there was nothing he could do; unlike strength, this aspect couldn't be precisely calibrated.

The reaction test concluded, and all the launchers retracted. A unique machine rose a few meters in front of Zhou Yan.

It was a rather high-tech conical pillar, and at the top of the cone was a transparent blue circular crystal.

"Finally, the spiritual strength test. Zhou Yan, go to the instrument and attach the 'wafer' connected to the instrument to your glabella."

Zhou Yan took a light breath, walked forward, picked up the wafer connected to a large amount of coils from the prominent position on the instrument, and attached it to his glabella according to the instructions.

"After I start the instrument, you will gradually feel your spirit being 'compressed.' What you need to do is endure this special sensation and press the button in front of you when you can no longer bear it, understood?"

Zhou Yan nodded to indicate he understood.

He placed his hand on the button in advance.

"I'm starting the instrument," Chu Wan crisply reminded him.

The next second, a strange light lit up inside the blue spherical crystal in front of him.

Some strange sensation began to spread from his glabella, but for Zhou Yan, it was far from being a pressure.

As the light inside the blue crystal gradually brightened, Zhou Yan's feelings changed accordingly.

The formless pressure slowly became as if it had substance.

From a gentle breeze blowing, to feeling like needle pricks, then deepening further into nails, and then to hammer strikes...

Zhou Yan's brows furrowed tighter and tighter, until he felt something akin to an "electric drill drilling into his brain," whereupon he quickly pressed the button.

He felt he could still endure twice that amount of pressure.

The light inside the crystal in front of him instantly vanished, and the pressure targeting his spirit immediately dissipated.

He removed the wafer attached to his forehead, put it back, and turned around to look at everyone.

However, he saw that everyone was staring at him in shock.

Zhou Yan felt his heart skip a beat. Maintaining his composure, he asked hesitantly, "What's wrong?"

Cong Shiyun was the first to let out a joyful cry: "A supernatural spiritual individual!"

A look of joy also surfaced on Zhang Daosheng's face: "Spiritual strength far exceeding physical matching strength, he is indeed a supernatural spiritual individual without a doubt! Zhou Yan, not bad!"

Chu Wan's laughter also came from the loudspeaker: "Level 10 spiritual strength! Zhou Yan, your spiritual power is more than ten times that of an ordinary person, already reaching the True Realm standard!"

Did I overdo it?

Zhou Yan instantly felt immense pressure. Did this mean he was going to be studied and dissected?

Instead, Cong Shiyun let out a hearty laugh: "No wonder, no wonder! Everything makes sense now. The reason Zhou Yan grew so rapidly is entirely because his spiritual strength was naturally far superior to ordinary people. A legendary supernatural spiritual individual actually emerged from under my command, hahahahaha!"

Luo Xuan looked at Zhou Yan, surprise also appearing on her face.

Everything truly made sense now.

No matter what Zhou Yan learned, he understood it at a single glance and mastered it with a single study, growing in strength far beyond ordinary people.

So that was it.

He was the legendary supernatural spiritual individual who might not appear even among one billion or ten billion people!

Any natural supernatural spiritual individual represented someone who could grow to the level of a "Palace Master" in the future.

He was a genius among geniuses!

Zhang Daosheng directly waved his hand: "Keep today's test results strictly confidential. The emergence of every supernatural spiritual individual will inevitably cause a massive uproar. We will decide after I report this to the Palace Master!"

He looked at Zhou Yan as if looking at the most precious treasure in the world: "There's no need to continue testing. Cong Shiyun, take Zhou Yan to select his Divine Machine right now."

"No problem." Cong Shiyun also wore a joyful expression.

"Wait!" Zhang Daosheng added another sentence: "Don't go to the ordinary warehouse; go straight to the Secret Vault. I'll give you authorization."

"The Secret Vault!?" Cong Shiyun paused, and his smile widened even further:

"Alright! We'll go to the Secret Vault!"

***

Here they come, brothers!

In the next chapter, Zhou Yan's first Divine Machine is about to arrive—a special Divine Machine completely different from anyone else's!