Chapter 26 - Rank Six
Lu Yuan walked past the four people, three men and one woman.
He went to the punching power machine.
The overall structure of this punching power machine was quite similar to the punching posts used for practicing punches, just much larger and more sturdy.
There was a display screen behind the machine, still showing the numbers 122.23kg.
He didn't know if the group that was here before forgot to clear it or intentionally left it there.
"Rank 1 punching power standard: 60kg
Rank 2 punching power standard: 80kg
Rank 3 punching power standard: 100kg
Rank 4 punching power standard: 120kg"
A table listing the punching power standards for different martial arts ranks was posted next to the machine.
It was the same as what Lu Yuan had found online before, except the word "Amateur" was omitted in the beginning.
It was probably done to make it look nicer and also serve as a form of motivation.
"One hundred, one hundred shouldn't be too difficult," Lu Yuan thought to himself.
One hundred kilograms of punching power was the minimum requirement to pass the official disciple assessment at the Yuan Martial Arts School.
That was also the baseline goal Lu Yuan had set for himself.
He stood in front of the machine and took up his stance, staring intently at the center indentation on the machine designed to absorb force. His gaze gradually became sharper.
Taking a deep breath, Lu Yuan threw a fierce punch following the motions of the Basic Boxing method that allowed him to exert the most power.
"Boom!"
The machine let out a muffled thud but barely moved at all. Its sturdy construction provided excellent shock absorption and noise reduction.
Lu Yuan looked up at the screen on the back of the machine to check the rapidly changing number.
His heart was already completely relaxed when the first digit, a 1, popped up.
It must have exceeded 100.
Soon the full number appeared - 173.56kg!
Over one hundred and seventy kilograms!
Lu Yuan was slightly surprised, but soon calmed down again.
It was an unexpected yet reasonable number.
After all, his Strength attribute was a full two points higher than average people, and he could easily bench press over 130 kilograms.
Lu Yuan pondered briefly, then tried two more punches.
The results were 168.33kg and 162.76kg, lower each time.
The first punch was clearly in the optimal condition.
"I just trained for over an hour before the test, so my stamina has dropped quite a bit.
The injuries to my ribs and back are also affecting me somewhat.
If I were in perfect condition, I could probably maintain stable punches at over 170kg," Lu Yuan thought.
170 kilograms was the punching power standard for amateur Rank 6!
In other words, he had already reached Rank 6 capabilities?
Even though the numbers were produced by his own punches, and the facts were laid plainly before him, Lu Yuan still found it a bit unbelievable.
"I should look up the specific assessment criteria and benefits for amateur Rank 6 later," he thought.
"For now, I just need to pass the official disciple assessment!"
After a brief moment of excitement, Lu Yuan calmed himself down.
Without wasting any time, he cleared the numbers on the machine and quickly walked out of the training room.
There was still half an hour before the martial arts school staff got off work at 11am. He had to hurry to get things done.
"I'll go get my Rank 4 certificate from the Martial Arts Association next week.
When I see that punk with the surname Lei again, I'll slap the certificate right in his face and see if he still dares to act arrogant in front of me!"
"Awesome, Mingyu! That Lei punk probably isn't even Rank 2 yet. Your Rank 4 certificate will make him kneel down and call you daddy!"
"The machines at the martial arts school and the Martial Arts Association are different, so the test results may vary.
To be safe, you should train more and try to pass it in one go.
You'll have to wait several days between each exam registration."
"Don't worry, do you think I haven't considered that?"
The short-haired youth smiled and casually responded, "I'll focus on strengthening my three power lifts these next few days. My punching power can probably still increase a bit more.
As long as I stay focused during the actual test, those minor deviations won't affect me."
Speaking as he went, the short-haired youth walked to the bench press station and laid down.
Gripping the barbell on the rack, he started exerting force.
The barbell didn't budge at all.
"Hmm?"
The short-haired youth was puzzled for a moment, then got up to check the weight on the barbell and immediately shouted, "Who changed this to 130kg?"
There were only a few people in the training room this morning.
He had set the bench press to 80kg before, but now it was at 130kg.
His companions all innocently shook their heads or shrugged, indicating it wasn't them who changed it.
"Now I have to reset it," the short-haired youth grumbled, slightly annoyed.
But it wasn't a big deal, so he just muttered some complaints and moved on.
But at this moment, the girl in the group suddenly said, "It must have been that person who came in while we were playing with the punching machine. I saw him training here for a while."
"That student?" The short-haired youth thought for a moment and did recall there was such a person.
A tall, skinny student wearing beginner's martial arts clothes, with a pretty-boy look.
"Yes." The girl pointed at the punching machine and affirmed, "He went over there to play with it when he saw us come in."
"Then it was probably him." The short-haired youth nodded without saying anything more, and started adjusting the weights.
He removed the extra weight plates from the barbell one by one, muttering as he unloaded, "Something's wrong with him, adding so much weight. Can he even lift it?"
Wait, that doesn't seem right!
The short-haired youth suddenly stopped and stared at the weight plates in his hand, a possibility popping into his mind.
"How's that possible? No way."
As soon as this guess emerged, he immediately rejected it.
He continued removing the plates, but was clearly preoccupied, his eyes flickering as if pondering something.
When the last plate was taken off, the short-haired youth lay back down on the bench press.
After trying 80kg twice, he abruptly stopped and stood up from the bench again.
"I must be crazy, how could that be possible?!"
Though his mouth uttered these words, his legs swiftly carried him towards the punching machine.
"Mingyu, what are you doing? Testing again?" His companion shouted.
But the short-haired youth ignored him completely.
Arriving at the punching machine in a flash, he glanced at the display screen and was unsurprised to see it had been reset.
He just tapped the screen a few times swiftly.
"View - History Data"
When a few numbers finally popped up before the short-haired youth, his pupils instantly constricted sharply. His entire body shuddered as if punched in the face.
He stared dumbfounded at the data on the screen, unblinking.
After a long pause, a curse slowly leaked from his mouth.
"Holy shit!"
"After filling out the application form, get it signed by your coach, then submit it to us. We'll arrange your assessment within one week," the girl at the martial arts school front desk patiently explained the application process for the official disciple assessment to Lu Yuan.
Hearing this, Lu Yuan paused halfway through filling out his form.
It seemed he might have misheard.
"It still needs the coach's signature? And I have to wait another week?"
"That's right," the girl nodded and explained, "That's the process. You need your coach's approval before applying for the assessment, meaning they have to deem you ready.
Also, the assessment won't be arranged specially for you alone. They are done in batches once a week by the school."
"Alright then."
Lu Yuan was a bit deflated instantly. The excitement from testing his punching power earlier was doused like a bucket of cold water over his head.
He had thought he could get everything done in one day.
He didn't expect there would be another week's wait.
Oh well, one week it was.
Lu Yuan swiftly filled out the rest of the application form. After double checking for errors, the receptionist kindly reminded him,
"There's still some time before they get off work at noon. Hurry and get your coach's signature.
If you can submit the form before they leave, you won't have to make an extra trip this afternoon."