71: Chapter 71 The Major General Snatches the Person, the Zhao Family's Murderous Intent

"Hahaha! Good! Delightful!"

In the silent Arena of a hundred thousand people, a deafening burst of laughter suddenly erupted from the very center of the rostrum.

This laughter was full of vigor, like the clash of iron cavalry and weapons, instantly shattering the dead silence of the entire venue.

Everyone's eyes swiveled toward it in unison.

The one laughing heartily was none other than the highest military representative presiding over the rostrum—Major General Lei Wuji of the Zhenyuan Army.

This iron-blooded general, who had clawed his way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood on the Star Gate front lines, stared intently at the slow-motion replay on the holographic screen with his sharp, hawk-like eyes, which flashed with undisguised fanaticism.

A recruitment director from a top university sitting next to him frowned and asked tentatively, "General Lei, did you spot something? This student doesn't have a single trace of spiritual energy fluctuation. Could he have used some kind of Advanced defensive Spiritual Artifact?"

"Spiritual Artifact? Are you bunch of office-dwelling research nerds blind?!"

Major General Lei Wuji barked coldly without holding back.

He stretched out a calloused finger and tapped heavily on Su Chen's two fingers pinching the sword blade on the screen.

"Look closely! Look at the muscle texture and skin pressure points on his fingers when he pinched the blade! If he had a Spiritual Artifact protecting him, the spiritual energy barrier would create water-ripple-like refractions on the outer layer. But he doesn't have that!"

Major General Lei Wuji took a deep breath, his voice trembling slightly with excitement. "That is his pure Physical Body! It's the ultimate demonstration of controlling the blood and Qi in his body to the Peak!"

The surrounding university representatives looked at each other, their faces filled with disbelief.

"That's impossible..." A mentor gasped. "Catching an A+-grade wind-attribute Sword Qi with bare hands... Even a Tier 1 Martial Artist's Physical Body would be sliced open. Unless..."

"Unless his physical density has reached an absurdly high level that defies common sense! Even more terrifying than those high-tier mutated beasts in the wilderness that specialize in defense!"

Major General Lei Wuji took over the conversation, slapping the table in front of him. "No need for spiritual Spells, no need for starting stances. All his power is restrained within his flesh and blood, exploding in an Inch-Force. This kid is practically a killing machine born for the battlefield!"

Major General Lei Wuji whipped his head around, looking at his military adjutant who stood straight as a ramrod behind him.

"Immediately!"

Major General Lei Wuji's tone was urgent as he issued a strict order: "Go and retrieve all of Su Chen's files right now! From his birth to the present, I want to see every single detail!"

The adjutant stood at attention and saluted. "General, what if the major universities also set their sights on him...?"

"Snatch him!"

Major General Lei Wuji interrupted without hesitation, "I don't care if he has spiritual energy affinity or not! And I don't care which prestigious school comes to fight me for him! Even if our Zhenyuan Army has to throw in double or triple the resources, we must specially recruit this once-in-a-century Body Refining Genius into the military! If anything happens, I'll take the fall!"

"Yes, sir!" The adjutant took the order and quickly turned to leave.

Major General Lei Wuji did not deliberately lower his voice, so his words traveled clearly to several seats in the back row of the rostrum.

Sitting in the back row, the principal of Jiangnan City No. 3 High School and the Dean looked as if they had just been fished out of water, drenched from head to toe in cold sweat.

The Dean clutched a handkerchief, desperately wiping the sweat from his forehead, but his hands were shaking so violently that he could barely hold onto it.

"It's over... It's all over..."

The Dean muttered to himself, his teeth chattering uncontrollably.

The principal turned around, his eyes bloodshot with rage and terror. Staring intently at the Dean, he growled in a low voice, "This is the F-grade trash you told me about?! This is the garbage whose entry pass you confiscated yesterday, wanting to kick him out of school?!"

The Dean's legs went weak, and he almost slid off his chair.

"Principal, I... I didn't know! During the Awakening ceremony, the machine clearly judged him to be a useless trash with zero spiritual energy affinity! And... and yesterday, the Zhao family spoke up, telling us to find an excuse to suppress him. I only did it to secure the Zhao family's sponsorship for the school..."

"Shut up!"

The principal wished he could slap this idiot to death right now.

"The Zhao family? Can the Zhao family compare to the Zhenyuan Army?!" The principal suppressed his voice, which was laced with despair. "Didn't you hear what General Lei just said? A once-in-a-century Body Refining Genius! The military wants to specially recruit him!"

The principal glanced at Major General Lei Wuji, who was giving instructions to his adjutant, and felt his scalp go numb.

For a talent they wanted to specially recruit, the military's intelligence department would definitely dig up Su Chen's background inside out.

Once the military found out that they had deliberately made things difficult for Su Chen in the Academic Affairs Office yesterday to curry favor with the Zhao family, and had even tried to strip a top Genius favored by the military of his college entrance examination eligibility...

It would definitely not be as simple as losing their jobs.

The laws of the Great Xia were extremely strict. "Sabotaging military talent cultivation" and "manipulating college entrance examination eligibility behind closed doors"—these charges combined were enough to send both of them straight to a military tribunal, spending the rest of their lives mining in a dark wilderness prison!

"Pray," the principal slumped back in his chair, his face ash-pale. "Pray that this kid doesn't hold a grudge. Otherwise, both of us will end up without a grave."

On the rostrum, some were rejoicing while others were worried.

Meanwhile, sitting in the VIP main seat on the other side, Patriarch Zhao Batian, the head of the Zhao Financial Group, had a face so grim it looked ready to drip water.

Holding his teacup, Patriarch Zhao Batian stared gloomily at the black-clad figure walking down the Arena stage on the large screen.

Like the Dean, he had originally thought Su Chen was just a loudmouthed clown who knew a few flashy but useless moves.

But now, he felt a genuine sense of apprehension.

"A Physical Body taking an A+-grade spiritual weapon head-on..." Patriarch Zhao Batian calculated in his heart, "This is definitely not something a common mutation can achieve. This kid is hiding a massive secret."

What made Patriarch Zhao Batian feel an even stronger surge of murderous intent was Major General Lei Wuji's attitude.

If Su Chen was really specially recruited by the Zhenyuan Army today and gained the military's backing, the grudge he had previously formed with Zhao Kuang would become a major threat to the Zhao family!

To pull up weeds, one must destroy their roots, or they will grow back with the spring breeze. This was Patriarch Zhao Batian's sole creed after decades in the business and martial arts worlds.

"He must not leave the exam venue alive."

A vicious glint flashed across Patriarch Zhao Batian's eyes.

He set down his teacup and rested his wrist seemingly casually on the armrest of his chair. His finger gently pressed a miniature bone-conduction communicator hidden in his sleeve.

This communicator was directly connected to the inner frequency of Zhao Kuang's Brilliant Gold Battle Armor helmet in the waiting area.

"Kuang'er, can you hear me?" Patriarch Zhao Batian's lips moved slightly, his voice transmitted via bone conduction.

Inside the waiting area.

Zhao Kuang was staring at Su Chen walking back with a livid face. Hearing his father's voice, he immediately pressed the side of his helmet. "Dad, I saw it. That kid is a bit bizarre."

"Not just a bit bizarre, he's extremely troublesome."

Patriarch Zhao Batian's voice rang in Zhao Kuang's ear, carrying an unquestionable chill. "Major General Lei Wuji of the military has taken a liking to him. If he finishes the exam, the Zhenyuan Army will take him away directly. By then, if our Zhao family wants to move against him, it will be harder than climbing to heaven."

Zhao Kuang gritted his teeth. "Dad, what do you mean?"

"Kill him," Patriarch Zhao Batian uttered those three words.

"But... the holographic exam venue has a protection mechanism, and there are supervisors watching..." Zhao Kuang hesitated.

"I will deal with the supervisors. Accidents happen in the exam venue every year."

Patriarch Zhao Batian coldly laid out his tactics: "Listen. Although his Physical Body is strong, mentally and psychologically, he is still just an eighteen-year-old student. You need to throw him off balance."

"In the next round, your opponent will be that fat kid named Jiang Feng. As far as I know, the two of them are extremely close."

"Do not hold back." Patriarch Zhao Batian's voice was like a viper's hiss. "Don't easily knock him off the stage. Use your fire to slowly burn him right in front of Su Chen. Cripple that fat kid for me! The worse, the better! I want you to completely infuriate Su Chen and force him to lose his mind!"

Zhao Kuang's eyes suddenly lit up, a cruel smile curling at the corner of his lips. "I understand. Dealing with a beast that has lost its mind is much easier than dealing with a calm opponent."

"And one more thing."

Patriarch Zhao Batian paused, his tone growing heavier.

"If you face Su Chen in the finals, do not test his physical toughness. The moment you enter the stage, directly activate the Brilliant Gold Battle Armor's 'Overload Mode'!"

Hearing the words 'Overload Mode', Zhao Kuang gasped. "Dad! Overload Mode will burn out the battle armor's spiritual energy circuits! That costs tens of millions..."

"What are tens of millions?!"

Patriarch Zhao Batian interrupted him sharply, "As long as we can kill him, our Zhao family can well afford tens of millions! Once Overload Mode is activated, your flame temperature will exceed three thousand degrees, forming an absolute sea of fire Domain! No matter how strong his Physical Body is, without a spiritual energy shield to isolate oxygen and high heat, he will be roasted alive!"

"Burn him to ashes at all costs! If someone dies, your father will cover for you!"

The communication disconnected.

In the waiting area, Zhao Kuang slowly lowered his hand from his helmet.

He turned his head to look at Su Chen, who was sitting on a chair not far away with his eyes closed, resting, and the burly fat kid standing beside him.

"Hehe."

Zhao Kuang laughed in a low voice. The laughter was filled with uncontrollable madness and bloodlust.