Chapter 127: Hardship in the Bustling City

When Su Jie got home, it was already two in the morning. His parents were asleep, and his older sister, as usual, had spent the night at the company.

He didn’t wake his parents. After a quick shower, washing up, and tidying things, he lay down and went straight to sleep.

Four hours later, at six o’clock, he got up. The sky was bright, the streets already crowded with commuters hurrying to work.

Traffic in City S was notoriously bad. Some people who lived in the suburbs had to get up at five and spend two or three hours on the road just to get to work—it was exhausting. Su Jie quickly washed up and ate breakfast. His breakfast was simple: military field rations, plus an egg and a glass of boiled water.

He’d gotten home too late yesterday to buy groceries and cook. Fortunately, while the field rations didn’t taste great, they were rich in nutrition, packed with the vitamins and supplements soldiers needed in combat—perfect for someone training intensively.

These rations were actually expensive and unavailable on the market. They were designed for convenience, their only drawback being the flavor.

Zhang Manman had once said that these were developed by advanced nutrition labs specifically to address soldiers’ needs in war zones. Su Jie ate them happily—he didn’t care about the taste, only that they replenished his body.

“This stuff isn’t bad.”

While he was eating, his father, Su Shilin, got up. He glanced at the metal can on the table, scooped a bit with his finger, and tasted it. “You’ve been saying you were studying in City B these past few months. When did you go to a war zone? Are you trying to get yourself killed?”

“Dad, that’s disgusting,” Su Jie frowned as he watched his father dig his finger into the can.

“You little brat, you dare complain?” Su Shilin barked. “Forget that—what I want to know is, did you get shot over there?”

“Of course not,” Su Jie replied, feigning nonchalance. “It was just business negotiations. Dad, don’t imagine a war zone is as dangerous as it sounds. Haven’t you seen the videos online? People open restaurants there, screen movies, take on construction projects, run export businesses—the economy is booming. Even the foreign mercenaries there told me, ‘Bro, no problem.’ It’s not as bad as you think.”

“You think I’ve never been abroad?” Su Shilin snapped. “Enough. Today you’re going to school. The college entrance exam is only two months away. If you don’t come out on top this time, you’d better watch your legs.”

“Got it,” Su Jie said. “I’m heading out then.”

“Who said you’re done?” Su Shilin added. “After school, go pick someone up at the airport. I’ll send you the flight and contact details.”

“Who is it?” Su Jie asked.

“You’ll find out when you get there. Stop asking so many questions. Just go—you’ll benefit from it.”

Su Jie shook his head, cleared the dishes, washed up, shouldered his big backpack, and left for school.

Normally he woke up at three to train, but since he’d gotten home so late, he decided to prioritize rest and recovery. Besides, he’d realized that the saying *‘the perfect man moves like a machine’* wasn’t about external actions but about inner discipline.

“Still, I’ll have to resume training tomorrow. Can’t slack off. But where am I supposed to train…?” Su Jie worried.

Before, his morning workouts were simple—joint stretches, push-ups, Tiger’s Rest, running, jump rope, punching, kicking. Even though they were intense, doing them quietly in the park never disturbed anyone.

But now, that sort of exercise no longer did much for him.

He was practicing the “Thirteen Protectors’ Golden Bell Iron Shirt Dragon-Tiger Vajra Qi Gong.”

This kind of external hard-style training required stripping down, covering himself in ointment, and taking heavy blows that sounded like firecrackers going off. On top of that, he had to roar like a beast.

Tiger’s roar! Dragon’s cry! Furious shouts! Roars! Eagle’s screech! Crane’s call! Ape’s howl! Elephant’s trumpet! Horse’s neigh! Bull’s bellow!

These sounds, combined with the explosive movements, pushed his body to the limit—so that in the chaos of ten thousand troops, he would remain unshaken; against crashing waves, stand like a rock; amidst quakes and floods, laugh as if nothing mattered.

But in the city? Impossible to practice.

He’d thought about it many times but never found a solution. And he couldn’t skip training—this was his prime time for growth.

The only option was retreating to deserted mountains and forests, where he could unleash himself fully. He’d already noticed that training in the wilderness was far more effective than in a soundproof room. Out there, he could let his wildness out and be closer to nature.

‘If nothing works, I’ll just have to take leave again—and maybe head back to the Minglun Martial Arts Academy. There are mountains nearby, and I could talk more with Uncle Mang and Gu Yang,'

Su Jie thought as he arrived at school. But the idea of taking leave again made him wince.

In senior year, with exams looming, asking for leave all the time was unheard of.

If he didn’t always rank first, the school would’ve expelled him long ago.

When he entered the classroom, his classmates gave him thumbs-up. His old buddy Qi Shuai said, “Bro, you’re a legend—one leave lasts half a month. Today’s the mock exam. If you bomb it, the homeroom teacher’s gonna eat you alive.”

“Qian Zheng’s been working hard too,” another friend, Zhang Minghui, added. “He’s gunning for you.”

Sure enough, Su Jie sat down and looked over at Qian Zheng.

Qian Zheng had grown sturdier. His energy and spirit had transformed—brimming with vitality and determination. He wasn’t the same as before.

Before, his strength was only external. Now, something had solidified inside him, filled with a new aura.

Others might not notice, but Su Jie felt it clearly.

“Su Jie, it was a pity you left Starshine last time. Coach Hua Xing left too, teamed up with you, and opened a gym. That wasn’t very cool of you,” Qian Zheng said, walking up.

“My business and Starshine aren’t in the same field,” Su Jie replied. “You recruit students; we don’t.”

“But Coach Hua Xing used your win over Zhou Chun to promote you, and that hurt Starshine’s reputation in the industry,” Qian Zheng said, slamming his hands on the desk, tension radiating from him.

“Your real mistake was selling out to Haoyu,” Su Jie said. “You grabbed short-term profit but gave up long-term growth. I know you probably gained something, but keep going like this and you’ll lose yourself.”

“I’ve gotten stronger,” Qian Zheng insisted. “Much stronger. Strong in a way you can’t imagine. Haoyu brought us a whole new training system—yours is outdated. One month of mine equals a year of yours. After school, dare to meet me in the gym for a rematch?”

“Sure,” Su Jie nodded.

“It’s settled,” Qian Zheng declared. “This time, I’ll defeat you!”

Su Jie could feel the intensity of his obsession.

Soon, their homeroom teacher, Chen Juan, entered with a stack of test papers. She cast a sharp look at Su Jie. “Su Jie, you’ve been gone far too long. No sense of discipline. Sure, your grades are good, but don’t get arrogant. If you slip today, I’ll be watching you.”

She singled him out deliberately.

Su Jie only smiled, saying nothing.

The exam began.

It was as grueling as ever—denser and harder than the college entrance exam itself. That was the point: if you practiced with the hardest, the real test would feel easy.

Like at the start of the semester, the papers came from Haoyu Group’s AI-driven question bank. Back then, a full day of exams had left Su Jie exhausted. Now, it felt like sipping afternoon tea.

Every question, he only needed a glance, and the answer formed instantly in his mind. His pen flew across the paper.

His study speed was ten times that of a normal student, his mental reaction dozens of times faster.

When the results came in, Su Jie didn’t even need to look—he knew he was first.

Sure enough, he scored 749, essentially full marks, with only one point deducted from his essay by the system’s rules. Apparently, the AI had been programmed so that no essay could get a perfect score.

So really, 749 meant perfection.

Qian Zheng came second with 740, a massive leap—improving by 20 points at his level was shocking, like breaking a world record by tenths of a second.

“Impressive,” Qian Zheng admitted, giving a thumbs-up. “You skip weeks of classes and still get a perfect score.”

Even Chen Juan had nothing more to say. She just gave Su Jie a long, meaningful look.

“You wanted to spar, right?” Su Jie said to Qian Zheng. “Shall we head to the gym?”

“Of course.” Qian Zheng walked out.

The two went to the gym, with half the class swarming after them—students from other grades too.

“I wanted you to be my coach once, to learn your methods. But after Haoyu invested and brought in the new system, I realized yours is outdated,” Qian Zheng said as they faced each other.

Su Jie waved him on. “You ready? Let’s start.”

Roar!

Qian Zheng’s feet blurred, like gears spinning at high speed. His upper body barely moved, but in less than a second, he’d closed the distance, fists flying at Su Jie’s head, chest, and legs.

In that instant, Su Jie was reminded of Feng Hengyi’s two-punch knockout back at the Minglun Martial Arts Academy.