105: Chapter 105: The Power Rankings Updated, and His Reputation Soars

"Welcome to the 'Heaven-Reaching Tower'. Your current Life Level is 43. You may challenge the third floor (entry requirement: Life Level 40~43). Do you wish to start the trial?"

"Yes."

As Fang Zhuo confirmed with his mind, the third floor's Phase A trial began, and 10 Level 42 Transcendent Exotic Beasts, the Single-Horned Rhinos, instantly materialized on the vast grassland.

They charged toward Fang Zhuo with their sharp horns, the ground trembling with every step.

Fang Zhuo gripped his blade with one hand. Under the mastery of Inner Scene Perfection, without any visible movement, his entire body's muscles exploded with power.

The blade pierced through the air, slashing out a fiery red blade aura nearly three meters long.

"Clang—!"

The blade collided with the Single-Horned Rhino's sharp horn, sending out a flurry of sparks.

"So hard?"

Fang Zhuo retreated two steps under the force of the rebound.

His current Life Level is 43, with a basic physical punch force of 318,092 kg. With the 20-fold amplification from Inner Scene Perfection and the additional 3.4-fold amplification from the fourth level of the Thunder Fire Blade...

His full-force strike exceeded 20 million kilograms!

However, the Level 42 Transcendent Exotic Beast, the Single-Horned Rhino, didn't have it easy either. The one bearing the brunt let out a shrill cry, fine cracks appeared at the base of its horn, and large patches of blood vessels burst on its scalp.

"Die!"

Fang Zhuo twisted his body and charged out. This time, the long blade in his hand was incredibly agile, its trajectory erratic, specifically avoiding the sturdy horns of the Single-Horned Rhinos.

In an instant, the nearly three-meter-long fiery red blade aura slashed across the necks, abdomens, backs, and chests of four Single-Horned Rhinos respectively.

Driven by inertia, these four Single-Horned Rhinos continued to charge forward, only collapsing to the ground right at Fang Zhuo's feet before twitching and gradually falling silent.

"Swoosh—"

Fang Zhuo slid his feet, his figure weaving flexibly among the remaining six Single-Horned Rhinos, and in an instant, he found the perfect angle to slash out.

The fourth level of the Thunder Fire Blade.

One strike, six slashes!

"12 seconds... I wasted some time."

Fang Zhuo timed himself in his heart. Without resting, he quickly started the Phase B trial.

The Phase B trial of the third floor of the Heaven-Reaching Tower continued to test combat capability, featuring a Level 43 Transcendent Exotic Beast, the 'Fire-Maned Bear'.

This Fire-Maned Bear had thick fur and stood nearly three meters tall. If it were in a game, it would definitely be a tanky boss with thick skin and maxed-out HP.

"This big guy... if my Body Control hadn't reached Inner Scene Perfection, I might not have been able to kill it quickly."

Fang Zhuo flexibly circled behind the Fire-Maned Bear and slashed out three times in a row.

Under the mastery of Inner Scene Perfection, his body recovered quickly and his precision was sharp. Almost in an instant, the three strikes overlapped and landed on the exact same spot on the Fire-Maned Bear's back, right over its heart.

"Boom!"

The Fire-Maned Bear's thick hide was first sliced open by two strikes, and then the third strike plunged from its back into its heart. It roared in anger, threw a punch, and collapsed to the ground.

From the moment it materialized to being slain, only 6 seconds had passed.

And only 18 seconds had passed since Fang Zhuo entered the third floor of the Heaven-Reaching Tower and started the trial.

At this moment, the martial artist data was synchronized by the 'Heaven-Reaching Tower', and the internal combat power ranking of the Starry Sky Group was updated.

Transcendent Ranking:

1. Wang Jinhua, Life Level 49, Body Control at Heaven-Reaching Small Achievement, Thunder Fire Blade sixth level, combat power amplification 120x (24*5.0).

2. Yan Long, Life Level 49, Body Control at Inner Scene Perfection, Breeze Blade sixth level, combat power amplification 100x (20*5.0).

...

23. Fang Zhuo, Life Level 43, Body Control at Inner Scene Perfection, Thunder Fire Blade fourth level, combat power amplification 68x (20*3.4).

...

As the group's most important combat power ranking, there were people from the six major departments watching it at all times.

Inside the Supervision Department.

A man wearing glasses was typing on his keyboard, occasionally taking sips of coffee. Suddenly, he pushed his desk hard and stood up from his workstation.

"Sister Lan, Fang Zhuo's information on the combat power ranking has been updated!"

"Oh."

Sister Lan crossed her arms and said indifferently, "Tell me, what rank did he reach?"

She was very calm and not very surprised—not because she had seen through Fang Zhuo's true strength early on, but because Manager Jiang Zhou had let the secret out to her.

Life Level 43, Body Control suspected to be at Internal Landscape - Great Achievement, maybe he had a chance to break into the top 50?

"23rd place!"

The bespectacled man subconsciously adjusted his glasses.

"What?"

Sister Lan also stood up from her office chair.

As one of the three major groups of the Blue Moon Federation, the Starry Sky Group even held the title of number one, and not only were there many Transcendent Martial Artists, but their strength was also formidable.

She had thought the top 50 would be very impressive.

After all, Fang Zhuo was only 21 years old.

But to suddenly reach the top 30! How was that possible? The top 30 Transcendent Martial Artists in the group were all Life Level 45 or higher, and their Body Control was uniformly at Internal Landscape - Great Achievement.

Many of them had also practiced the Thunder Fire Blade technique to the fifth level.

"What's going on? Where is the ranking list? Open it quickly and let me see."

Sister Lan urged.

"Yes."

The bespectacled man hurriedly opened the Transcendent Combat Power Ranking and scrolled to Fang Zhuo's row.

"Body Control at Inner Scene Perfection?!"

Sister Lan's pupils constricted, and she said in surprise, "This comprehension is a bit monstrous; it's not any weaker than that guy Wang Jinhua, is it?"

"If you count the Martial Aspect talent as well, Fang Zhuo's overall talent is definitely above Wang Jinhua's."

The tech-savvy man with glasses agreed.

He looked worried: "With this, other departments are going to pay a heavy price to snatch Fang Zhuo. In a few months, when his training period is over, will he really come to our Supervision Department?"

"Don't worry."

Sister Lan was confident and gave her colleague a reassuring look.

"I have a general understanding of Fang Zhuo's character. He already has a fairly deep relationship with our Supervision Department, and he won't easily switch to another department for a little benefit."

...

On the other side, in the Commercial Department.

"Manager, I really have no other way. Last time, in order to recruit Fang Zhuo, I gave it my all, but unfortunately, he didn't like me. He has a very good relationship with his wife, and he doesn't seem like the type to look for another woman."

The secretary with a good figure had been called into the office by the manager after the combat power ranking was updated and was pressured once again.

"No way?"

The Commercial Department manager's expression didn't look good, and he said coldly, "Go down and think! There will always be a way! Everyone has preferences; learn to cater to them. When the training period ends, you must bring Fang Zhuo to our Commercial Department!"

Manager Tang Tao's usually profound eyes were now burning with heat.

He stared unblinkingly at the computer screen.

Life Level is already 43, with a total combat power amplification of 68x. In the future, he will definitely have a chance to compete with the Future Group's Jiang Chen.

If he could steal the title of the number one Martial Arts Junior College student in history, the department's predicament in the advertising market over the years could all be solved!

"If Fang Zhuo doesn't join the Commercial Department next year, your annual performance review will only be a C."

"Conversely, your annual salary will increase by 50%. If the department head doesn't agree, I'll pay the difference out of my own pocket!"

Manager Tang Tao placed his hands on the desk and looked down at the secretary.