Chapter 140: Blame It All on Xia Jing

The martial arts instructor arranged a packed day of training for ten individuals, including Xia Jing, Chen Fang, Zhang Jie, and Hu Bing.

First, they warmed up with paired practice for fifteen minutes.

This was followed by the extreme running drill.

Extreme running involves starting at maximum speed, quickly depleting one's physical energy, and then relying on sheer willpower to sustain slow running.

Once they reached their limit, the instructor would tell them to stop, based on their individual condition.

But stopping wasn't for rest; it was to continue sparring with the instructor.

An hour and a half later, individuals were gradually being told to stop by the instructor.

"Wang Meng, attack me! Quick!"

The instructor cracked a whip.

"Tiger Roar Fist!"

Wang Meng charged at the training instructor, swinging his fists; his punches trembled, and his movements were severely distorted.

*Bang!* With a light kick, the training instructor knocked Wang Meng to the ground.

"Get up! You must believe in your potential and use willpower to control your strength," the training instructor said. "When you feel you can't go on, that's precisely when you train! Hurry!"

Wang Meng panted, his body ached, and every muscle trembled, but he still struggled to get up.

His body was completely out of control, and all his movements were distorted; at this moment, Wang Meng was like a drunken strongman. The training instructor easily dodged his attacks and knocked him down.

*Bang!* With his final fall, Wang Meng couldn't get up this time and simply passed out.

*Whoosh!* The medic quickly ran over and began treating Wang Meng.

"He only lasted less than an hour," the training instructor said, shaking his head slightly. "Wang Meng is the weakest in this group of ten and has the weakest willpower."

When they have ample physical energy, these martial artists can achieve 'unity of physical strength' and 'control over the entire body,' precisely controlling every movement and fully unleashing the power of their martial arts.

But after extreme training, this state is difficult to maintain. Only those with tenacious willpower can manage to execute precise moves, ensuring the power of their martial arts doesn't drop too much, even before collapsing.

After an hour and a half of training.

Only Xia Jing, Chen Fang, Hu Bing, and Zhang Jie were still running from the group of ten. The other six had already reached their limits much earlier, passed out, were treated, and completed a round of training.

"The gap between me and the geniuses from the Four Martial Divisions is still too obvious," Wang Meng thought, sighing inwardly as he watched the four people still running.

*Grrr.* As he watched, Wang Meng's stomach rumbled. He was hungry.

The other five were similar; after an hour and a half of extreme training, they were all very hungry.

But even hungry, they could only endure. Food supplies had to be grown by Zhao Xing, the military agricultural officer.

If he didn't grow it, they would have nothing to eat.

Enduring hunger was also part of the training!

"Do you think Zhao Xing can supply enough food and drink for all ten of us?" Wang Meng chatted with the person next to him. "Our group is very strong, and we eat a lot."

"Who knows?" The person next to him shrugged. "Chen Fang said that Zhao Xing is a top-tier genius from the Military Agricultural Bureau's Resource Cultivation Department. Such a genius shouldn't let us starve for too long."

"You can rest assured completely. In one day, the military agricultural officer should be able to grow enough Tier 2 supplies."

"It's similar to the logic of the first training drill. The higher-ups won't assign us a very weak agricultural officer to our group. During that 'incapacitation training,' the agricultural officers won as long as they persevered, while the martial artists scored points based on the number of knockouts."

"This implies that the food grown by the agricultural officers within a day is sufficient to support the recovery of the martial artists in the same group."

"Of the fifty flying ships that landed at the Resource Cultivation Department, the martial artists were all from a relatively strong batch."

"That's what they say, but if he intentionally made us starve, that's also possible, right?" Wang Meng asked.

"It's possible, but he needs to score points too," the person next to him scoffed. "Does he not want his own points?"

"What if other groups encountered weaker agricultural officers who weren't very good at farming? If there wasn't enough food, wouldn't they not get many points in the fast-food training?"

"It depends somewhat on luck. It's similar to the last round. Some people might get lucky and barely scrape by with a high ranking in the end, but usually that doesn't happen. Didn't I just say that the assigned agricultural officers are all quite similar, and there's enough for everyone to eat?"

"Of course, it's only been an hour and a half, so there shouldn't be much in the first batch."

"That's true," Wang Meng said. "Even if he has a conflict with Xia Jing, he wouldn't intentionally starve him... Hmm?" As Wang Meng spoke, he suddenly looked in a certain direction.

A green whirlwind stirred up not far away, flying towards them.

"Oh, speak of food, and food arrives!" Wang Meng's face immediately lit up with a smile. "It's only been an hour and a half, so Zhao Xing really isn't just an empty name."

"Brothers, the food's here!" The other six people stood up one after another.

The training instructor also noticed Zhao Xing's arrival.

He glanced at the green whirlwind, a strange look flashing in his eyes.

Wang Meng and the others couldn't see clearly, but he saw through it at a glance: the green whirlwind was carrying a large amount of fruit!

"Such a large quantity? Could it be Tier 2 supplies?" The training instructor was also quite familiar with the rules on the agricultural officers' side; supplies were divided into different tiers: Tier 2, 3, and 4.

Tier 2 supplies were easier to grow and naturally came in larger quantities. A thousand catties would only earn basic points, indicating the difficulty wasn't particularly high.

The higher the tier, the smaller the quantity and the more points awarded. That was when the agricultural officers' skills were truly demonstrated.

"Stop!" The training instructor called a halt to the training for Xia Jing and the other three. "Gather!"

Swiftly, the ten individuals quickly gathered beside the training instructor.

"Next, replenish your energy!"

Once the military agricultural officer provided food, they had to start eating. Fast-food training was also of utmost importance.

When Zhao Xing was at Minister Chen's residence, he also ate very quickly. Those were habits formed from long service in the military.

"You must eat the food grown by the military agricultural officer as quickly as possible to restore your combat strength."

"Every ten catties counts as one portion. The more portions you eat and the faster you eat them, the higher your score in fast-food training!"

Just as the training instructor was speaking.

Zhao Xing, controlling the gale-force wind, arrived in front of the martial artists.

When the ten martial artists clearly saw the quantity of supplies carried within the gale, they couldn't help but widen their eyes.

It was too much!

They hadn't expected that in just an hour and a half, Zhao Xing would deliver so much.

Judge Zhou Ming also appeared in front of the martial artists.

"Commander Liu," Zhou Ming greeted the training instructor Liu Yongli. "Zhao Xing of the Divine Might Army has already grown Tier 3 supplies, totaling five thousand catties. Please immediately arrange for the ten martial artists to begin fast-food training."

How much?!

Wang Meng was utterly shocked!

Tier 3 supplies, five thousand catties?!

Chen Fang, Zhang Jie, and Hu Bing, who were nearby, also widened their eyes.

That's too much! Was this really grown in an hour and a half?!

Xia Jing's mouth twitched, and he glanced at Zhao Xing in the sky.

The other party responded with a smile.

"Cough, cough... Alright," Liu Yongli said, pointing to the empty space nearby. "Please place them here."

*Whoosh!*

Zhao Xing waved his hand, and the gale-force wind gently swept across the empty space.

After a gust of wind, a small mound of "Mayu fruits" appeared on the ground.

"These are Tier 3 supplies, Mayu fruits. Consuming them quickly restores vitality."

Zhou Ming introduced them to the medic beside him.

The latter rubbed his forehead and started to retrieve his medical kit.

Hey, hey, hey! Medic, what do you mean by that? Can these Mayu fruits even be eaten? Why are you getting your kit?!

The ten martial artists nearby, seeing this scene, had an ominous premonition even before starting to eat.

"Sir, these Mayu fruits... How should they be eaten?" Wang Meng asked cautiously.

"It's not complicated. Just eat them with the skin," Zhou Ming said with a smile.

"Not complicated?" Why are you smiling then?

Does your schadenfreude have to be so obvious?!

Zhao Xing glanced at Zhou Ming. It seemed this judge also enjoyed others' misfortune.

"Begin," Liu Yongli gave the command.

The ten martial artists began to walk towards the small mound of Mayu fruits and started their "Gluttonous Eating Technique" training.

Zhou Ming didn't leave. He wanted to watch the fun.

Zhao Xing also didn't leave. He wasn't in a hurry to go back and replant; he had to watch Xia Jing eat to feel satisfied!

*Crunch!*

Xia Jing took a bite of a Mayu fruit. The taste was very astringent and hard to swallow.

After the skin broke, juice immediately flowed out.

A fishy smell wafted over, the stench was strong, like a fish that had been dead for days, its belly up, brought to the table.

Xia Jing had disliked eating fish since he was a child, let alone this kind. The taste was simply suffocating.

*Crunch!*

Forcing himself to endure the discomfort, he bravely swallowed it. His stomach immediately churned.

But Xia Jing didn't even frown.

He knew Zhao Xing was watching from above. If he showed any expression now, wouldn't that grant the other party his wish?

"I, Xia Jing, am a dignified Marquis's heir. How could I be afraid of this food?!"

"I'll eat it!"

In a few quick bites, Xia Jing swallowed a fist-sized Mayu fruit.

He didn't forget to smile at Zhao Xing: "Thank you, Agricultural Officer Zhao, for bringing the meal. These Mayu fruits taste good and are very much to my liking!"

Chen Fang, Zhang Jie, Hu Bing, and the others immediately looked at Xia Jing with strange expressions.

"You're too stubborn, man."

You can actually say this thing tastes good?

But seeing that Xia Jing was speaking towards the sky, they immediately understood.

He's being competitive!

"Brother Xia is too kind; this is merely a military agricultural officer's duty," Zhao Xing said with a smile. "I heard Brother Xia is the number one genius of the Azure Dragon Martial Division. Your Gluttonous Eating Technique must also be outstanding. In fast-food training, Brother Xia will surely be ranked first in the Martial Division."

"You're being stubborn, are you? Then I'll see how stubborn you can be!"

Zhou Ming watched the verbal sparring between the two and couldn't help but be amused.

Xia Jing refused to admit defeat.

Zhao Xing seized the opportunity to praise him to his downfall and put Xia Jing on the spot.

You, Xia Jing, the number one genius, surely can't eat less than everyone else, can you?!

"I certainly won't disappoint Brother Zhao!" After Xia Jing finished speaking, he quickly activated his Gluttonous Eating Technique to absorb the vitality from the fruit.

"Huh?" As soon as he activated the Gluttonous Eating Technique once, Xia Jing felt a jolt.

It was a tingling sensation, as if he had been electrocuted.

It wasn't very strong at first.

But every time he activated it, he would get another jolt.

Xia Jing's Gluttonous Eating Technique was at the third level, so his absorption efficiency was high, and the frequency of the electrical jolts was even faster.

"Damn it, the vitality from these Mayu fruits feels like an electric shock when absorbed!" Xia Jing cursed inwardly. But he had already boasted, so he could only pretend to be unperturbed and continue eating.

He ate two fruits in a row, but that was only one catty.

Ten catties made one portion, so to finish one portion, Xia Jing had to eat 20 fruits.

But when he was halfway through eating, Xia Jing suddenly felt a faint cramping pain in his abdomen.

The circulation of his Qi and blood became somewhat sluggish.

"Damn these Mayu fruits, they're even poisonous!!"

"Gluttony of Heaven and Earth!"

Xia Jing activated his cultivation technique and quickly expelled the toxins.

He was indeed impressive. After finishing the first portion, his speed was the fastest.

The others didn't pretend as much as Xia Jing did; their faces were filled with bitterness.

"Damn it, this is too unpalatable! My mouth tastes like rotten fish!"

"Brother Chen, Brother Hu, do you feel a tingling sensation when you eat?" Zhang Jie whispered.

"Yes, a tingling. The faster you absorb the vitality, the stronger the sensation," Chen Fang said, his brows tightly furrowed and not relaxing once.

"Oh no! I think I've been poisoned!" Hu Bing's expression changed slightly.

"What? It's poisonous too?" Wang Meng, who was nearby, was startled. "Why didn't I feel anything?"

"You're eating slowly. You haven't felt the trace toxins yet," Hu Bing said, quickly sitting cross-legged and activating his cultivation technique. "Once you finish a portion, you'll understand."

"This..." Wang Meng looked at the purplish-black fruit in his hand and was speechless.

He didn't seem very hungry anymore.

"Being assigned to Agricultural Officer Zhao for this training is really bad luck."

"Shhh, keep your voice down! Do you want to die?!"

"We can't blame Agricultural Officer Zhao. It's all Xia Jing's fault! Why are we in his group?"

"That's true. He was so stubborn, insisting it tasted good. Won't that just make Zhao Xing escalate things?!"

"Sigh..."

Zhao Xing, high in the sky, watched Xia Jing finish five portions before leaving.

After Xia Jing saw Zhao Xing leave, he immediately dropped his facade. His brows furrowed tightly, his stomach churned violently, making him want to vomit.

At this moment, Zhao Xing suddenly looked back and sneered.

He used his 'Discernment Eye' to observe for a full three quarters of an hour, finally confirming that Xia Jing's earlier stubbornness wasn't just about refusing to admit defeat but also contained other intentions.

"He wants me to think that digesting Mayu fruits isn't difficult for him."

"Is his goal to make me switch to a different food next time?"

"This means he dislikes that fishy smell. He hates strong-flavored food?"

"Good, very good."

Zhao Xing returned to his flying ship and immediately began searching through a bamboo box.

"You're stubborn with Tier 3 supplies? Let's see if you're still stubborn with Tier 4!"

"If I don't make you cry from eating, then I've been a military agricultural officer for nothing!"

Zhao Xing sneered as he rummaged.

"Found it!"

Zhao Xing searched through the Tier 4 bamboo box for a long time, his gaze finally landing on a seedling.

*Heh heh heh heh heh heh.*

After finding the desired seedling, Zhao Xing let out a strange laugh.

Zhou Ming, who was rushing back from the martial artists' side, saw Zhao Xing with a sinister smile, rummaging through things, and couldn't help but subconsciously take a step back. "Why does his laugh sound so creepy... Hmm? Is he planning to plant this?"

*Gasp!* "Xia Jing will have a lot to suffer for offending this guy..."