Chapter 1 The 'Swift Stepper'

Across the screen in Modu (魔都, Shanghai), during the 10,000-meter run test, a true 'Swift Stepper' appeared. As CCTV switched channels, the entire nation, engrossed in the spiritual energy test, was stunned to witness a spirited, tanned figure, like flying smoke, circling the track at an astonishing speed!

"Fu Yun-song, a student currently undergoing testing at the Modu Spiritual Energy Testing Center, is running at an incredible speed! Let's check her average speed... fifty-two meters per second!"

"Three minutes! Miss Fu even accelerated at the end! She completed the 10,000-meter run in just three minutes and eight seconds, exceeding the second-place runner by eight thousand meters!"

"Let's look at the data – cars on the highway generally travel at speeds between one hundred and one hundred twenty kilometers per hour, which translates to about thirty meters per second… Miss Fu Yun-song's speed even surpasses that of a car on the highway, and she can maintain this full speed for over ten kilometers!"

"Miss Fu looks very relaxed. Let's zoom in on her."

The camera zoomed in, revealing a sporty girl with a single ponytail and healthy skin tone. She had been running with an indifferent expression, completely calm, but her speed was as if she were flying. In the blink of an eye, she completed a lap.

But the most terrifying thing was that Fu Yun-song hadn't unleashed an overly powerful force. She was simply running close to the ground. Yet, her speed rivaled that of a highway car, proving that this speed was definitely not her limit!

At that moment, the television station also obtained Fu Yun-song's data, which displayed her cultivation level: Awakening Stage Two, spiritual energy affinity 58%, with a talent labeled 'information cannot be disclosed'.

"It's hard to imagine how fast Miss Fu will be after she takes her strength a step further."

"This is the power of cultivation."

Although Fu Yun-song left the other test takers far behind, the other outstanding transcendents still managed to complete the 10,000-meter run in about twenty minutes—almost everyone surpassed the world record by several minutes!

This surprised even these cultivating students themselves… But it wasn't strange, because with the support of spiritual energy, their physical strength wouldn't weaken from running ten kilometers continuously. They could maintain their optimal state at all times, running at nearly a hundred-meter sprint speed.

Long-distance running was already so shocking, let alone other events.

For the long jump, CCTV broadcast a student from Mengzhou. He jumped two hundred and twenty-one meters. It was more like flying than jumping. His body's descent and deceleration speed were almost nonexistent. He jumped out and drew a long arc in the air, almost jumping from the examination hall into the audience seats.

And the high jump was even more incredible. A candidate from Shanzhou with well-developed leg muscles jumped out of the open top of the stadium, the height calculated two or three times, and finally determined to be one hundred and twenty-seven meters, more than thirty-five stories high. The whole person became a small dot, and the speed of descent was also very slow.

As for the shot put, accidentally throwing the shot put out of the stadium, into the audience seats, smashing the tempered glass and leaving a large pit on the ground was even more common… This was also the reason why the audience had to be dismissed. The shot put propelled by a cultivator was truly lethal. If hit, the best case scenario was a broken tendon, and death wouldn't be surprising.

With spiritual energy, even students who hadn't received professional training had test scores and data that almost completely surpassed the original world records.

Not only the national audience, but even the commentators from various regions were shocked—physical examinations had passed for nearly half a year, and many students who had been unknown during the previous physical examination had achieved preliminary results after half a year of hard cultivation. Now that they were displaying their powers, many local school leaders didn't know that their students had such strength.

"This is the power of transcendence."

"Everyone can achieve it through cultivation."

At this moment, the CCTV hosts were still broadcasting conscientiously because that was their mission: "Cultivation is not a waste of time. Even if your talent is not good, as long as you persevere, you are destined to achieve something."

What they said was indeed correct, and it vaguely revealed a persuasive temptation.

Yes, cultivation is indeed not a waste of time. Even if your talent is really not good, what's wrong with spending a year or two to get one-tenth of the strength increase of these students? At least this thing requires less than fitness.

Even if there is only a little increase in strength, life is much easier.

This is the mentality of the optimists. After watching the TV broadcast, they immediately became interested in cultivation—in fact, most people were originally skeptical, coupled with the fact that life was very busy, there were no examples around, and they felt that they had no talent and cultivation was useless, so even if the country popularized cultivation methods, not everyone was willing to practice.

But now, after seeing the demonstration of the spiritual energy test, they finally understood—this is the power of transcendence, this is the power of cultivation.

Even, some people even felt fear about this.

"—If others cultivate, and I don't, and that cultivator wants to harm me, wouldn't I have no power to fight back?"

"Can't escape, can't escape at all. These people's physical fitness is simply not something ordinary people can compete against!"

And this kind of fearful mentality is actually what the Zheng Nation (正国, the Proper Nation) officials need.

——Whether it is expectation or fear, love or hate.

The era of spiritual energy has arrived, and no one can ignore it or deny it. Even if they are unwilling to accept it, they must face it and look at it directly.

No matter how much you hate it, it exists here, unless there is another Jue Di Tian Tong (绝地天通, severing the connection between heaven and earth), otherwise, this is the objective reality.

And this is the reason why the officials want to broadcast the 'Spiritual Energy Test' nationwide.

[Go cultivate. No matter who you are, no matter what your occupation or background. If you can, then go cultivate.]

[Otherwise, can you accept the reality of competing with these superhumans in the future?]

At this moment, the project has reached weightlifting. CCTV is watching a Guangdong candidate lift a specially customized iron cauldron weighing five tons. After his muscles bulged, he even shouted loudly and threw it more than ten meters away—this is equivalent to lifting a medium-sized car and throwing it more than ten meters away with the people inside!

There is no doubt that this is a genuine feat of lifting the cauldron.

"Now. Let's take a look at the situation of the candidates in Hongzhou."

But soon, the two hosts received relevant news, asking them to switch channels and switch to Hongzhou.

And at this time, Hongcheng.

Guan Wanjing, whose muscles were bulging, took a deep breath, held the bar with both hands, and then in the next instant, he shouted loudly, raised his hands, and directly lifted the super-heavy barbell, specially forged with high-density materials and applied with spiritual talismans, weighing ten tons, over his head!

Boom! It could be heard that the steel plate under his feet vibrated slightly because of his exertion! And Guan Wanjing didn't even use spiritual energy, but relied on his own body, which had been tempered over and over again and nourished by spiritual energy!

Pure physical strength, ten tons!

This scene shocked even the CCTV hosts for a moment. There was even a momentary pause in the commentary that was extremely difficult to detect.

At this moment, Guan Wanjing didn't feel the pleasure of surpassing his past limit. He looked worriedly at the figure next to him, who was relaxed but had a very serious aura.

"I also have high-density muscles. That monster, spiritual energy is one thing, but pure physical strength, it shouldn't be possible for him to exceed me, right?"

"If that's the case, then what's with the twenty-ton heavy iron barbell next to him?"

It could be seen that an entire engineering team was using a crane to lift a super-giant barbell that looked extremely terrifying… This scene not only attracted Guan Wanjing's attention, but also attracted the attention of the entire nation.

In an instant, CCTV directly focused the camera on this super-giant barbell.

"No way..."

Guan Wanjing's face was a little distorted. He muttered to himself softly with a bitter face, but the figure seemed to hear him, and even turned his head and smiled at him.

Even, a voice came: "Of course it's prepared for me."

"Otherwise, who else can lift it?" The camera turned, and Su Zhou said easily, walking easily towards the barbell, which was already many times larger than him, and looked like it was hanging two Dinghai (定海, Pacifying the Seas) iron weights.

At this time, even the CCTV hosts were shocked and stuttered a little.

"An astonishing scene has appeared at the Hongcheng spiritual test venue. A candidate is walking towards a barbell weighing twenty tons... Is that really still a barbell? Can it really be lifted?"

"Let's take a look at the data of this candidate… Student 'Su Zhou'. Shocking! The previous data of this student Su Zhou is also amazing!"

"The 10,000-meter run was two minutes and two seconds, exceeding Modu's Fu Yun-song by a full minute, and according to the video, it can be seen that he also didn't do his best, and even deliberately suppressed his speed... Ah, I understand, his strength is too great, so that he will accidentally fly out, so in order to ensure that he runs on the ground, rather than floating in the air, he deliberately lowered his output!"

"That's right, and if the speed is faster, the wind he creates will affect other students. Since the test cannot test his full strength, then it has to be like this."

"The long jump broke the four-hundred-meter upper limit... The high jump exceeded two hundred and seventy-eight meters, and this data is already twice that of the second place! His expression is very relaxed. It seems that he can fly? In this case, the long jump is meaningless, and it is difficult to test his true level."

"Let's return to the scene and see if this student can lift this special barbell weighing twenty tons..."

Then, the host's somewhat incoherent voice came.

"He lifted it! He lifted it!"