The training ground was filled with the sound of heavy breathing, strained muscles, and palms slamming against the floor.
Rows of trainees struggled through their punishment exercise, sweat soaking their uniforms as instructors paced around them like wolves watching prey.
At the center of everyone's attention was Zhao Mu.
With Instructor Xie Yingxue sitting calmly on his back as added weight, Zhao Mu continued doing push-ups at a terrifying pace.
One.
Two.
Three.
His breathing remained steady.
His movements were smooth and powerful.
There was no shaking, no slowing, and no sign of fatigue.
To everyone watching, it looked less like punishment and more like a warm-up.
Zhao Mu had once completed five thousand push-ups in one uninterrupted session. Since then, his physical strength had risen dramatically. Compared to his former limits, sixteen hundred push-ups were hardly worth mentioning.
If Xie Yingxue had not been sitting on his back, he doubted he would have even broken a sweat.
As he continued, a notification flashed in his mind.
Innate Divine Strength proficiency increased: 212
Zhao Mu silently estimated his current strength.
At this point, he could likely lift a barbell weighing more than four hundred jin with both hands—far beyond the world record for his weight class.
Not bad.
Very not bad.
Less than an hour later, Zhao Mu completed the final push-up and rose to his feet as though nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the field…
The Miserable Control Group
Shao Han was suffering.
Originally, many trainees had sympathized with him.
He had looked like a lone warrior enduring a cruel punishment, bravely struggling under impossible conditions. Some even admired his perseverance.
But Zhao Mu's performance had completely ruined that image.
Everyone suddenly realized something.
Wait.
If Zhao Mu could do the same task so easily…
Then maybe the punishment itself wasn't unreasonable.
Maybe Shao Han was simply weak.
That realization spread through the crowd instantly.
Now, instead of sympathy, people looked at Shao Han with subtle contempt.
Shao Han's arms trembled violently as he continued his push-ups. His elbows shook like loose hinges, and his body rose and fell unevenly like a dying fish flopping on shore.
By the time Zhao Mu had finished all sixteen hundred push-ups, Shao Han had only reached thirteen hundred.
He still had three hundred left.
And every remaining repetition became torture.
He had to rest after nearly every push-up, gasping for breath before forcing himself downward again.
Zhao Mu stood nearby and looked at him quietly.
Then he sighed loudly.
A long, meaningful sigh.
"Sigh… tsk, tsk, tsk."
He shook his head slowly.
He said nothing else.
But somehow, he had said everything.
For one second, the field was silent.
Then someone snorted.
Another trainee laughed.
Then another.
Soon laughter spread through the ranks like wildfire.
"Pfft!"
"Hahaha!"
"That expression!"
Shao Han's face turned red enough to burst.
Unable to endure the humiliation any longer, he collapsed face-first onto the ground.
Collective Punishment
Instructor Zhang Biao glanced at Shao Han with complete disdain.
"Drag him aside," he said coldly to an assistant instructor. "He still has to finish later."
Then he turned toward Team Two and roared:
"Your captain performed poorly, so the entire team shares responsibility!"
"Three hundred push-ups!"
"Start now!"
Team Two froze in horror.
What?
Wasn't only the captain being punished?
But no one dared protest.
Instead, all their anger instantly shifted toward Shao Han.
"If Zhao Mu were our captain, he'd handle everything perfectly!"
"Shao Han was supposed to be a B-rank special recruit? This is all he can do?"
"If you don't have ability, why rush to be captain and show off?"
"What a disgrace!"
The complaints were not whispered quietly either.
Shao Han heard nearly every word.
His face twisted with rage.
He was exhausted, humiliated, and furious all at once.
At that moment, if looks could kill, Zhao Mu would have been devoured on the spot.
The Dead Dog Phase
An hour later, Shao Han finally completed the last of his sixteen hundred push-ups.
Then he collapsed again.
This time, he truly resembled a dead dog lying in the dirt.
He did not want to move a finger.
Normally, after such an event, the team would lift their captain in celebration to build morale and unity.
But after the contrast Zhao Mu had created, no one had the slightest interest in honoring Shao Han.
Even Instructor Zhang Biao couldn't be bothered.
He simply looked away.
The first official training exercise ended with clear results.
Zhao Mu's team had tied for first place with the team led by Mo Guanguan due to their low mistake rates.
Both teams received double points.
Shao Han's team received nothing.
The afternoon sun began to lower, and with Shao Han barely alive, the instructors finally announced a meal break.
After several routine drills afterward, the first day of boot camp came to an end.
A Strange Discovery
As trainees dispersed, Mo Guanguan approached Zhao Mu.
"Zhao Mu, are you going to the Training Hall later?"
Zhao Mu looked surprised.
"I go there every day. But I've never seen you there."
The academy's training halls were huge, but Zhao Mu had already encountered many students from their intake.
It was strange that he had never once seen Mo Guanguan or some of the other elite recruits.
Mo Guanguan blinked.
"I've never seen you either. Don't you meditate in the quiet rooms at night?"
Zhao Mu frowned.
"What quiet rooms?"
After a brief conversation, both sides realized something absurd.
They had not been using the same facilities at all.
The training hall Mo Guanguan used was a higher-tier facility reserved for elite recruits.
It included:
Advanced meditation chambers with greatly improved focus effects
Private training rooms
Better equipment
More flexible access rights
Meng Qiuqiu explained from the side.
"That's a privilege only B-rank and A-rank special recruits receive."
He shrugged helplessly.
"Ordinary trainees like us can't enter."
Then he continued listing the benefits.
"Special recruits receive monthly meditation capsules to aid cultivation."
"They also receive spirit sources to help raise combat level."
"They unlock extra permissions when enrolling."
"And they even get a free Intermediate Combat Technique."
Zhao Mu rubbed his nose.
"So obvious differential treatment."
Reality and Resolve
A familiar truth stood before him once more.
No matter how well he performed in the entrance trials or boot camp, the world still judged talent first.
Those with high spiritual energy aptitude were believed to have limitless futures.
Those with low aptitude were expected to struggle forever.
Even if they gave everything they had, they might never touch the shadows of true geniuses.
Zhao Mu turned toward Lu Yan.
"Then why do you still use the ordinary Level One hall with us every day?"
Lu Yan scratched his head sheepishly.
"I just wanted to stay with everyone."
Zhao Mu laughed.
"In the future, go use the quiet rooms for meditation. Don't waste your privileges."
In truth, Zhao Mu himself did not care much.
Most ability users needed perfect silence and carefully controlled environments to meditate effectively.
But Zhao Mu had the Turtle Breathing Technique.
With it, he could enter a meditative state quickly even in a noisy dormitory.
If conditions were poor—
He would simply create better ones through skill.
Unexpected Encouragement
Mo Guanguan suddenly looked at Zhao Mu seriously.
There was admiration in her eyes.
"Zhao Mu, keep working hard."
"I truly believe you won't be limited by your E-rank talent."
She paused.
"I can feel it."
"You're going to become someone extraordinary."
Zhao Mu grinned shamelessly.
"Of course I am."
Mo Guanguan burst into laughter.
"You really don't know how to be modest!"
Then she gave him a thumbs-up.
"But honestly… that's a good thing."
With a playful flick of her twin ponytails, she turned and walked away.
Zhao Mu watched her leave, smiling faintly.
The Engineering Department
After dinner, Zhao Mu headed directly to the Engineering Department.
There he found Liang Gongchi reclining lazily on a sofa while watching swimsuit models on a screen.
"Teacher," Zhao Mu said calmly, "I've basically mastered Spirit Pattern Engraving."
Liang Gongchi nearly rolled off the sofa.
She sat upright so quickly it looked painful.
Then she stared at Zhao Mu as if he were some unnatural life-form.
"You…"
"What did you just say?"
Zhao Mu spread his hands innocently.
"I worked hard for almost a month."
"Mastering Spirit Pattern Engraving in that time isn't too unreasonable, right?"
Her eye twitched.
"Not unreasonable?"
She gritted her teeth.
"Not unreasonable at all."
But the expression on her face clearly said something else entirely.
It said she wanted to strangle him.
Because ordinary students needed months or years to reach that level.
And Zhao Mu had casually walked in and announced he had done it in one month.
Some people trained.
Some people worked hard.
And then there was Zhao Mu—
The kind of person whose existence made everyone else question life itself.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)