Chapter 12: Strength Testing
It was already the wee hours of the night, with darkness already reigning supreme when a tall and thin silhouette very silently flickered into existence within a small room on the top floor of a particular hostel.
This person was Tang Mu, and he had just returned to his residence after experiencing an almost inconceivable adventure in two connected dimensional spaces.
"Finally, back." Tang Mu sighed with relief.
He bravely disregarded the pain originating from the injured soles of his feet and found his way through the darkness. He quickly settled on his bed and remained there, dazed and motionless, watching the darkness and shadows around him with unfocused eyes.
All his experiences, including his entry into the Star God Pagoda, the trial on the first level staircase of the Celestial Gallery, the adventure within the painting world, and his meeting with Little Green, flashed through his mind like a motion picture on fast forward.
A confounding sensation exploded deep within his heart without warning, and he suddenly laughed so hard that he doubled over.
Despite his adult years, his laughter was unrestricted, pure, and childish. It reverberated in the otherwise silent room like thunder, threatening to wake the people residing in neighboring rooms. It was as if it contained all the bottled-up yearnings, dreams, and expectations he had hidden deep within his heart after experiencing a rebirth in the future.
Fortunately, Tang Mu quickly contained his emotions before alarming his next-door neighbors. He let out a deep breath and collapsed back on his bed. A calming silence returned to the room soon after, and he let the blissful sensation he was experiencing wash over him.
"After seventeen years, I have finally found a way forward." He mumbled.
He couldn't contain his joy after chancing upon something that could allow him to escape his mundane life and grow stronger.
The relief he felt was beyond anything words could describe, and quiet contentment slowly spread through him, seemingly as if he had just found his life's direction.
"Phew..." Tang Mu expelled another lungful of air.
I have to take things a step at a time.
I now have the Star God Celestial Diagram for meditation and the few origin essence crystals I just obtained from the painting world as training resources. According to Little Green, the two should be enough to push me to the level of a rank one psionic within days.
That implies that the Psionic Society's assessment won't be difficult as long as I train diligently over the next six days. I might even secure a good scholarship to study and train at one of the top universities.
A soft smile outlined Tang Mu's face.
He had been dreading the fast-approaching day of the Psionic Society's assessment. But after getting assurance from Little Green that the Star God Celestial Diagram would allow him to unlock one of his chakras and push him to the level of a rank one psionic within days, he had let go of all his worries.
According to the Psionic Society's past statistics, only one in a billion high school students on Mother Earth could break through the threshold and become true-blue psionics before joining university.
Thus, considering the fact that the whole Asia Metropolitan Region had a population of around twenty-five million high school finalists, Tang Mu would surely be a top student if he somehow managed to shatter the bottleneck of becoming a psionic before the assessment.
At that time, it would obviously not be him trying to find a university but the top universities fighting over him.
I better rest well tonight before beginning serious training tomorrow.
Tang Mu made a few silent plans in his mind.
He pushed himself up from his bed and headed into the bathroom. He took a warm shower before drying himself and smearing a pain-relieving balm on the injured soles of his feet. Then, without delay, he jumped in bed again and quickly sank into a dreamless slumber.
----
The following day was a Saturday. It was also a long-awaited day for most finalists who had just graduated high school to relax and chill after attending a rigorous three years of fast-tracked education.
Tang Mu slept until late in the morning. He only woke up way past after sunrise, at around ten, feeling like a newborn.
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He was without worries as the fatigue from the previous night had disappeared along with the pain that had plagued the soles of his feet after his adventure in the painting world.
He basked in the warmth of the morning sun rays streaming in through the open window as he enjoyed his home-prepared breakfast of milk and noodles in his room. Then, without probing the mysterious star orb hidden in his body, he took a warm shower and went about his day like any other high school graduate.
He watched a movie using his cheap virtual reality headset in the morning and then slept again until noon. After waking up, he gave himself a rare treat and enjoyed a sumptuous lunch at the canteen before heading to the gym in the afternoon.
The gym was located in the underground basement of the hostel building. It was quite an expansive space covering an area of about eighty square meters. Tang Mu didn't need to pay since he had already bought a monthly gym membership. He just entered after swiping his access card at the entrance.
Sweeping his gaze around the gym, he noticed a few other students working out on the smart exercise equipment. He nodded at those he knew, like Hu Ning, as he headed to the open area with weights.
He soon warmed up and got into a profound rhythm within a few minutes. He went through body-strengthening yoga routines with a one-track mind for about an hour before switching to lifting weights. After that, he remained as hard-working as ever while alternating between aerobic exercises and strengthening workouts until evening arrived.
By then, Tang Mu had almost exhausted his stamina. He was sweating buckets and almost out of breath. But even then, he didn't immediately return to his room to bathe and cool off after the exhausting training. Instead, he headed to the isolated room on the side that housed the strength testing machine.
Soon enough, he accessed the room after swiping his card and paying the required few Earth Cents at the door. He closed the door behind him and walked into the room. The automatic lights lit up the deserted place, allowing his eyes to observe everything inside.
The strength testing machine lacked any sophistication. It comprised a large punching bag hanging from the ceiling and a crystal display attached to one of the walls.
Tang Mu expertly went about switching on the not-so-complicated gadget before getting into position to test his strength. He then became as towering as a mountain and shifted his weight accordingly.
With one swift exertion, he tightened his muscles and punched out. His fist moved swiftly, cutting through the air like a bullet before hitting the punching bag before him.
"Bang!"
The explosive sound of the fist striking the punching bag sounded out the next moment as the bag swung upwards. Tang Mu ignored it. He stepped back a safe distance and turned his gaze to the display of the strength-testing machine.
"570 kilograms of fist force..." Tang Mu mumbled after taking in the readings on the screen. "This is still not enough. Let's test my leg power first."
Tang Mu approached the punching bag again after it stopped swinging. He got into stance and unleashed a blast kick after a stride forward. His imposing leg attack swept forth with great power, emitting a whooshing sound before colliding with the punching bag.
"BANG!"
A louder collision sound reverberated as his leg met the bag, sending it on a swinging trajectory. Tang Mu stepped back and again cast his eyes on the crystal-like display of the strength-testing machine.
"990 kilograms of leg power..." He furrowed his brows. "My fist force and leg power have improved by a few kilograms of force since last week. But this rate of improvement is still not enough."
After experiencing death and rebirth once, Tang Mu had set his priorities right. He always endeavored to remain focused and disciplined when tackling his training and education. He rarely missed a day of fitness exercises or meditation unless circumstances were beyond his control.
Over the years, his relentlessness gradually paid off, and he was among the students with the highest fitness index in Asia Metropolitan Region's 4th district's 4th high school.
His fist and leg strength were among the best among his peers, and he could run a hundred meters in less than seven seconds. Additionally, he had relatively strong willpower due to his uniqueness as a reincarnated individual.
But even with all those qualities, the sad truth was that he still couldn't be sure of passing the Psionic Society's Assessment and securing a government university scholarship unless he managed to become a pseudo-rank-one psionic.
There was no way he could outcompete all the geniuses of all the high schools in Asia to get a top university fully-funded admission spot unless he touched that threshold of opening one of his chakras.
Tang Mu had no master or psionic legacy to guide him forward. But even then, he still understood basic knowledge about psionics after reading countless textbooks.
A pseudo-rank-one psionic was a powerhouse just a step away from unlocking one of his chakras and attaining a connection to his esoteric body. From records, such an individual could exert a minimum fist force of 800 kg and leg power of close to 1200 kg with a single exertion.
Going by old conventions that reigned supreme before the era of psionic energy and superpowers, such a person was a monster beyond monsters who had already transcended human limits. And only such a person, who also possessed commendable willpower, had the right to tackle the mythical bottleneck of becoming a psionic.
At the moment, Tang Mu could only exert a fist force of 570 kg and leg power of 990 kg. He had also not yet sensed the base chakra within his body, meaning he was far from becoming pseudo-rank-one. As such, he was previously not some unrivaled genius who could effortlessly secure a sure government-sponsored admission spot in one of the top universities focused on intergalactic exploration and combat.
But now, after obtaining the Star God Celestial Diagram, everything changed. With the cheat in hand, he could finally compete with the most monstrous geniuses and break past the threshold of becoming an official psionic within days.
He could gain the qualifications to attend any top university all over the globe, moon, Mars, or Earth's other colonized celestial bodies on scholarship if he diligently trained using the Star God Celestial Diagram. His horizons had widened beyond the realms of the ordinary high school student.
"Let's hope that the information from Little Green is true..." Tang Mu mumbled and switched off the strength-testing machine.
He exited the side room and closed the door behind him. Then, he picked up his gym bag along the way and walked to the gym lobby, where he encountered a few of his hostel mates resting.