Chapter 232: Beyond Sound

Ever since the first two rounds of the Foundation Establishment exam, where she had witnessed Yun Jing’s sheer power and realized the overwhelming disparity between their strength and financial backing, Bai Zhenzhen had come to a stark conclusion.

“If I just keep grinding and steadily improving, even if I pour everything into cultivation and eventually reach his level, the best I could hope for in a fight would be a fifty-fifty chance.”

“Which means that blindly focusing on raising my strength isn’t enough if I want to earn a Foundation License.”

“But that doesn’t mean I have no advantages… My advantage is that I was weak enough in the earlier rounds that he completely underestimated me.”

From the moment groupings were announced, she had pegged Yun Jing as her greatest rival. She had monitored him, studied him, collected intelligence.

“I know his Law Husk, his Techniques, and his Dual-Dantian technique… but he barely knows a thing about me.”

That asymmetry of information—borne of her weakness—was Bai Zhenzhen’s true edge.

“To fully exploit that information gap, I need to grow stronger in a targeted way.”

“My goal isn’t to surpass him—it’s to beat him on the ring.”

“That’s a completely different strategy.”

It’s like this: to surpass a student from Songyang High, you’d need to grind away day and night.

But to defeat one? You might just need a dump truck… or slip a bootleg Technique manual into their desk drawer.

It was that realization that led Bai Zhenzhen to radically shift her cultivation focus.

From her choice of new Techniques to how her Zhen Spirit Root would evolve them, from her combat style to her training priorities—everything was now honed toward one outcome: a one-on-one duel with Yun Jing.

She was shaping herself into the perfect weapon—not to become the strongest overall, but to defeat Yun Jing in a tournament.

Even if that meant sacrificing her progress in other areas, she would do it. All for that Foundation License.

…

As the third round of the duel began, Yun Jing heard Bai Zhenzhen’s declaration and immediately activated his Dual Dantian. Torrents of Mana erupted into a blazing inferno, bombarding her with wave after wave of fire.

Watching her duck and weave through the bombardment, Yun Jing sneered inwardly. “You talk big about defeating me with one strike—try getting close first.”

But then he noticed something strange. Bai Zhenzhen wasn’t charging him. Instead, she sliced through the firestorm one sword stroke at a time, as if the sea of flames itself were her real enemy.

“What the hell is she up to?”

“No—whatever she’s planning, I have to stop her.”

“I can’t afford to lose here. The Yun family’s future depends on me.”

“If the family company collapses, all I’ll have left is myself—and this Foundation License.”

A sense of dread surged in Yun Jing’s chest. With a roar, he pushed his Mana to the limit. His Dual Dantian bellowed like twin dragons, spewing molten force that coalesced into fire dragons charging at Bai Zhenzhen.

Touching one was enough to trigger an explosion. Only dodging could save her—blocking meant certain injury.

But Bai Zhenzhen’s expression was calm. She didn’t dodge. Instead, her longsword danced with the technique of the Infinite Sword Meditation, slicing straight through the oncoming fire dragons.

Each strike left burn marks on her body, but she pressed forward, unflinching.

One slash… another… and another…

Her sword shone with crackling lightning, each blow faster than the last.

It was the effect of a Level 10 Infinite Sword Meditation, refined through the Zhen Spirit Root—each move accelerated by Thunder Mana, climbing faster and faster, until the fifteenth strike would break the sound barrier.

And in an instant, she reached the fourteenth move.

Bai Zhenzhen’s aura shifted dramatically. Her eyes sharpened, locked onto Yun Jing across the sea of flames.

Then she activated the Technique she’d trained in secret for the past three months—Thunderstep of the Nine Heavens.

This Technique didn’t just boost movement speed with Thunder Mana. It also left behind electric Mana in the terrain, creating a localized electric field that continually accelerated the user’s footwork.

The longer she fought within that area, the stronger the field became, and the faster she moved.

After using her Zhen Spirit Root to evolve it further, the field’s duration and strength were massively improved.

This was a Technique handpicked and refined for one reason: to maximize her speed advantage in a tournament setting.

And the best-of-three format today? It played right into her hands.

She had intentionally stalled for time during the second round—not to win, but to saturate the arena with Thunder Mana, so that Thunderstep of the Nine Heavens could hit its peak performance in round three.

Now, lightning crackled across the arena floor, forming an invisible electric field.

Bai Zhenzhen could feel it tugging on every nerve in her body—like a coiled spring waiting to launch her like an electromagnetic cannonball.

“Still not fast enough…”

She knew she had only one chance to strike. One shot. One sword.

So she unleashed another Technique she had never used in front of Yun Jing before—Thunder God’s Lightning Blitz.

This Technique wrapped the body in condensed Thunder Force, boosting speed while shielding the user from the strain of moving at such extreme velocity.

The evolved version—crafted through her Zhen Spirit Root—allowed her to unleash all of her Thunder Mana in one burst, enabling a single sword strike beyond her physical limits.

From the Infinite Sword Meditation, to Thunderstep of the Nine Heavens, to Thunder God’s Lightning Blitz—Bai Zhenzhen’s entire toolkit had been engineered for one purpose: to win on the tournament stage.

As Thunder God’s Lightning Blitz roared to life, she felt every shred of Thunder Mana surge outward.

And under the influence of the Frost Soul Iceheart Technique, even as she depleted herself completely, her blood, muscles, and energy grew sharper—more vibrant than ever.

Boom!

In a flash of lightning, Bai Zhenzhen launched forward, cutting straight through the inferno.

Her fifteenth strike of the Infinite Sword Meditation tore forward like a rocket booster, shrieking through the air.

Powered by Thunder God’s Lightning Blitz, it contained the full sum of her Mana.

“Take it! Take everything—my Mana, my Martial Qi, everything I’ve got!”

She screamed inside her mind, pouring even her defensive Thunder Force into that one final blow, demanding more speed—more speed!

Without protection, her body tore apart under the crushing pressure. Blood and muscle split open in jagged fissures.

But through the booming shockwaves, Bai Zhenzhen raced ahead—surpassing sound itself, bursting through the flame wall like a missile.

This sword had been accelerating from the first round onward, and now, at last, it reached its peak—breaking the sound barrier.

Under the absolute focus of her Techniques and mind, time seemed to slow.

She saw her sword inching toward Yun Jing’s shoulder.

His eyes were wide, vacant. He hadn’t reacted at all.

“Just as I calculated… once I hit this speed, I’d exceed the detection limit of his Law Husk Eyes.”

She knew every parameter of that Artifact. The surest way past it was pure speed.

“All three rounds… were just to bring this one sword to this level…”

“No…” Her mind drifted to memories of a year of relentless training, of do-or-die duels, of standing tall beneath impossible pressure.

Of hiding her Spirit Root since childhood. Of burying herself in books for the chance to walk the Immortal Path.

“I’ve been accelerating for ten years… chasing you all for ten years…”

“And now… I’ve finally caught up.”

Bang!

The sword connected. Yun Jing’s skin, muscles, and bones shattered in sequence. A gaping hole tore through his torso, and he was launched through the air like a ragdoll.

But Bai Zhenzhen’s body had also reached its limit. Her flesh was in tatters, muscles torn, bones groaning on the verge of collapse.

As divine power swept over the arena, Bai Zhenzhen forced her eyes open and asked, “Did I… win?”

Huang Zichou looked down at her and nodded. “You did. One of today’s four Foundation Licenses is yours.”

Bai Zhenzhen gave a faint smile.

“Yuzi, Mom’s handled her part. The rest is up to you now.”

And with that, she lost consciousness.

…

In the stands, Laughing-Crying Emoji watched a full replay of all three rounds and muttered, “Interesting.”

“Bai Zhenzhen’s raw power may fall short of Yun Jing’s, but her tactical instinct and combat potential are clearly superior.”

“And now she’s got a Foundation License too…”

The moment he realized that, Laughing-Crying Emoji’s business instincts kicked in. He could already imagine universities scrambling to recruit her.

“Oh? She’s from Songyang City too?”

He glanced at her profile and chuckled. “Same school as Zhang Yu? Then I might as well hire her too.”

“By the time they start college, I should be back to work anyway.”

Even Smiling Emoji didn’t object to the idea. He nodded and said, “This Bai Zhenzhen may be dirt poor, but pulling a Foundation License on her first try? That’s talent. She’ll be useful in college too…”

“Just make sure to give her proper employee orientation. Set boundaries. Can’t have her dragging up poor-people habits into the higher tiers…”

Just then, Zhang Yu and Ye Lingxiao stepped onto the ring for the final showdown, and the crowd’s attention shifted with a roar.