Chapter 116: The Demonic Buddha Emerges, The Great Pugilist

The purple glow signifies the Earth rank, the blue glow the Mysterious rank, and the yellow glow is just above the "unranked" level, known as the Yellow rank.

In this ten-draw session, Zhang Wuyong obtained one Earth rank, two Mysterious ranks, seven Yellow ranks, and one unranked item.

Among them, the Earth rank item was a weapon called the "Black Demon Mountain-Breaking Spear."

The spear was pitch black, wrapped with swirling dark energy, its tip radiating a white light, exuding a killing aura.

Zhang Wuyong didn’t take it out but instead placed it directly into his inventory.

The inventory bar was beside the item bar; anything drawn could be shrunk into an icon and hung there.

The system’s storage space currently only had five small slots open. If he delivered takeout, he could place five boxes inside, without worrying about damage during transit.

Just imagining it was impressive!

Even now, he found it strange that the system had specially created this storage space.

But whatever, this system was strange to begin with.

The remaining Mysterious and Yellow rank items were mostly forging materials and medicinal herbs, including another box of Mysterious Glow Sand.

Previously, in twenty draws, he had obtained four boxes of Mysterious Glow Sand; after using three draws, he got another box.

Adding this one, he now had six boxes of Mysterious Glow Sand.

He glanced outside at the sky and checked the time.

Tonight, he decided to rest first and wait until tomorrow for the final high school graduation event.

...

Zhang Yiran was already sixty-seven years old but had not retired.

He worked at a mysterious research institute whose name was virtually unknown to outsiders.

His research was so advanced that it couldn’t be revealed to the public.

Over the years, many military successes of the nation had been partly credited to his efforts.

This time, Zhang Yiran sat in an off-road vehicle driving through Qinghai.

His expression was extremely serious.

Around him, military helicopters escorted and guarded the vehicle from the front, sides, and rear.

They were already at the edge of Tibet, where the terrain was extremely high and oxygen began to thin.

There was only one road, flanked by uneven desert terrain — desolate and barren.

Even this road had been cut through years ago at great cost by the state, thanks to the country’s advanced infrastructure, allowing him to travel from the capital to here in such a short time.

Ahead, troops that had been brought in earlier had already imposed martial law.

Armed soldiers set up barricades, blocking the way forward.

Someone ran up, and the leader of the front vehicle leaned out and spoke; the blockade was lifted, and they all proceeded deeper inside.

After disembarking, the leader turned to Zhang and said, “Old Zhang, I don’t understand the scientific matters. This side is in your hands now.”

Zhang Yiran nodded.

Protected by several soldiers, he moved forward.

Ahead, people in white protective suits came and went.

A middle-aged man stepped forward, holding documents, and greeted him, “Old Zhang, so far, no extreme radiation or harmful gases have been detected in this area.”

“But to be safe, please ensure everyone is properly protected on site.”

“All right!” With the help of a soldier, Zhang Yiran donned a complete protective suit.

Further ahead lay a huge, deep pit. The edges were neatly defined, with a wooden ladder temporarily set up leading down.

Though no dangerous substances had been detected, the pit gave off an inexplicably ominous and terrifying feeling.

“Did this pit exist before?” Zhang Yiran looked around.

“No!” The middle-aged man’s face darkened. “It wasn’t here before. It was formed the night before last.”

Zhang Yiran’s expression grew even graver.

He had seen many meteorite craters, but nothing like this.

Rather than being a pit formed by a massive object crashing down, it seemed as if some dreadful force had forcibly annihilated the surrounding soil and stones.

“That thing is just ahead!” The middle-aged man’s voice was low and hoarse.

Clearly, he had not even closed his eyes since arriving here.

At the same time, that oppressive and awe-inspiring tone stirred a thrilling emotion within Zhang Yiran.

He gazed solemnly forward.

Something warped the light, making everything before his eyes appear hazy.

As they advanced, the scene gradually became clearer.

Not only clearer.

From outside the pit, there was little to see.

Now here, a massive boulder stood as if it reached the heavens.

Zhang Yiran felt as though he had entered a mysterious and eerie wonderland.

He couldn’t tell whether they had become tiny or the boulder was truly as colossal as a celestial pillar.

Majestic and imposing, its presence was overwhelming.

He lifted his gaze and saw radiant beams scattering; on the cliff wall were inscribed ancient seal script characters predating the Qin era, six characters in total, arranged vertically.

—“Demon Buddha Emerges, Great Fist King!”

Zhang Yiran inhaled sharply.

Science... no longer existed!

—

Meanwhile, our Great Fist King, sporting a slicked-back crew cut and wearing scholarly glasses, stood under the sunlight with his classmates, listening to the final speech from the school leaders.

It had been raining for days, and the forecast predicted heavy rain for the next few days.

Today, however, the sun came out, and the weather was pleasant.

The whole crowd was loose, long since having lost formation.

The school leader spoke from the stage while groups below chatted here and there.

“Did you all see the comet the night before last?” Zhu Xiaoying said excitedly. “When I saw it, I rushed to make a wish, hoping the undergraduate cutoff score would drop below 410 this year.”

Qian Shu immediately doused her enthusiasm. “No matter what, below 410 is impossible.”

Zhu Xiaoying said, “Math was really hard this year...”

Qian Shu replied, “That doesn’t mean it’ll go that low... Ah!”

Zhu Xiaoying kicked him with her foot.

“Can’t say for sure!” Zhang Wuyong gave Zhu Xiaoying a glimmer of hope. “Yutong said the cutoff won’t be high this year.”

“Right? Right?” Zhu Xiaoying was confident. “But what exactly was that star? Experts say it was a natural phenomenon caused by light refraction?”

“Trust experts my foot!” Qian Shu scoffed. “Maybe it’s a new kind of UFO developed by our country.”

“No way!” Someone nearby challenged. “The sixth-generation fighters are barely out, and you think UFOs would just appear? Do you think you’re filming a sci-fi movie?”

“Zhang Wuyong, what do you think?” Zhu Xiaoying asked.

Zhang Wuyong, who had been looking elsewhere, suddenly turned around, startled. “Not my business!”

“Obviously it’s not your business!” Zhu Xiaoying rolled her eyes. “I mean, what do you think it really is? Also, is it okay that I made a wish on it? Really okay?”

“I’ve only heard of people wishing on shooting stars, never on comets,” Qian Shu teased her. “I think it’s unlikely to come true.”

Yao Xueqin from the neighboring class was walking over to greet them when she overheard this and turned pale.