Chapter 137: The Test

Walking along the simple gravel road, one passes rows of green tents. As the morning work concludes, workers covered in sweat carry their shovels, their faces beaming with smiles as they chat and bustle about.

Accompanied by family members, children roll an iron hoop, darting and playing amidst the crowd.

Along the path, banners hang from the tents, inscribed with slogans: "Labor is honorable; be proud of your work," "Humanity is great because of the laborer," "Laborers are the masters of society," and "Are kings, nobles, generals, and chancellors born of noble blood?"

Wherever Olina walked, she caused a slight stir. The workers would spontaneously stand at attention, their eyes filled with respect as they gazed upon her.

Olina returned their smiles, the scene reminiscent of a top-tier national performing arts troupe making an appearance. In truth, Olina was the celebrity image promoted by Xuanlü to stabilize the populace and nobility within the Lev territory.

In a society where the sanctity of the nobility is deeply entrenched, talking to the lower classes about revolution, liberation, or becoming the masters of their own destiny is futile. The common folk would only react with confusion and fear, while the nobles would be filled with vigilance and hostility.

No amount of popular education in a short period could make them trust Xuanlü. The ignorant masses would rather believe that all these benefits were bestowed upon them by the Duke of the Eastern Border and Princess Olina than believe in Xuanlü.

Because the concept of Xuanlü’s "people's democratic dictatorship, where the people are the masters of the nation" was far too foreign for them to grasp. To them, it felt illusory and false.

Having realized this, the relevant expert groups changed their strategy: to liberate the mind, one must first shatter the shackles binding these people. Only they themselves could break those chains; the primary goal was to ignite the consciousness of resistance among the masses.

Hence, the slogan: "Are kings, nobles, generals, and chancellors born of noble blood?"

This was not a revolutionary slogan in the traditional sense, but a tool to stir the latent rebellious thinking of the lower classes. Moreover, this slogan had a foundation in this new world: the many hunters of the Hunter’s Guild.

The vast majority of monster hunters were of humble origin, yet they relied on their own strength to stand on equal footing with the nobility.

This fact is the greatest weakness of the New World—a society built upon superhuman power—and an irreparable gap. After all, no one can deny that the vast majority of superhumans are born as commoners.

[According to Xuanlü's social research, preliminary evidence suggests that 95% of the superhumans born annually in the Kingdom of Dawn come from commoner families (data provided by the Hunter's Guild).]

This research, to a certain extent, disproved the idea of hereditary superhuman talent. The entire superhuman society was not as consolidated as imagined. Except for nobles above the rank of Count, the rest of the nobility rarely saw their wealth last beyond three generations.

Without a vast foundation to sustain them, once the next generation lacked talent, the entire family was destined to decline.

Watching the smiling workers along the road, the fatigue from her busy days vanished, leaving only boundless passion in Olina’s heart.

Their lives were truly changing for the better; this was no fleeting dream!

Rounding a corner, the scene suddenly shifted. Hundreds of people knelt on the ground, kowtowing to a group of gorgeously dressed individuals.

The banners overhead suddenly seemed somewhat ridiculous.

Olina’s expression froze, as if she had been doused with cold water.

The people enjoying the workers' kowtows noticed Olina, and their hearts sank, their arrogant expressions instantly crumbling.

Before Olina could intervene, the security patrol team arrived.

Several heavily armed soldiers surveyed the scene, a flash of annoyance in their eyes. The captain leading the group said coldly, "Stand up!"

Hearing the command, the kneeling workers stood up as if by reflex, though their knees immediately buckled, instinctively wanting to kneel again.

"Did you not hear the order? Stand straight!" the patrol captain barked in a heavily accented Common Tongue.

The workers immediately straightened their backs, not daring to move further.

The patrol captain turned his gaze to the gorgeously dressed group. Their flamboyant attire made it obvious they were nobles. The leader was a woman in a long red dress adorned with gold jewelry.

The Sixth Princess, Ginniss.

His gaze swept over the access passes hanging from their chests. "What is going on here?"

Ginniss shrugged, explaining with an air of innocence, "They knelt on their own accord. I have no interest in enjoying the kowtows of commoners; after all, they can't help me make money." She then pointed to the merchants behind her.

"They can testify for me. We are here to do business; we don't want to cause trouble."

These were Ginniss’s people, so their words held no weight, yet the patrol captain accepted the explanation and dispersed the workers.

This was not the first time such an incident had occurred. Since the successful establishment of a foothold in the Lev territory, coupled with Xuanlü's growing reputation, a large number of nobles had swarmed in for various reasons.

Under Xuanlü’s formidable military power, no one dared to cause trouble; the only nuisance was the inherent subservience of the populace.

Soon, the common disturbance subsided. Seeing the patrol team depart, the merchants of the Trade Alliance breathed a genuine sigh of relief.

Ginniss looked toward Olina, who was dressed in camouflage not far away, and nodded with an elegant smile.

Olina ignored her completely, walking past with a cold expression.

Ginniss showed no anger, merely watching her back calmly. Only after Olina was far away did the merchants dare to breathe, venting their indignation on her behalf.

"Your Highness Ginniss, these people are simply too rude! They don't respect you at all!"

"How detestable!"

"A mere daughter of a prostitute..."

"Shut up." Ginniss shot a cold glance at the merchants, and they instantly fell silent.

"Have you lived too comfortably that your brains have become clogged with fat? We are here to do business, not to pick fights."

With that, Ginniss walked with elegant strides in the same direction Olina had taken.

Before long, they arrived at a site surrounded by barbed wire, filled with more tents. The only difference was that those walking between the tents were heavily armed soldiers.

Everything was orderly, cold, and iron-blooded, making one unconsciously slow their breathing.

...

Olina arrived at the area housing the research team, where dozens of experts in various fields had been waiting for a long time.

A white-haired old man extended his hand and said in a very awkward Common Tongue, "Comrade Olina, hello, my name is Zhao Jianguo."

The last part, due to grammatical differences, was spoken entirely in the Xuanlü language.

"Hello." Olina shook his hand with both of hers, then replied in the Xuanlü language, "Sir, I speak Xuanlü."

Zhao Jianguo looked surprised, sighing, "Comrade Olina’s ability to learn is truly astonishing. Is this what they call the legendary first transformation of life?"

Zhao Jianguo had already witnessed the learning abilities of these superhumans. For instance, there was a lively green-haired girl at the base who was curious about everything, asking questions incessantly.

She had demonstrated terrifying learning capabilities—photographic memory, instant comprehension, and the ability to grasp complex theories just by being given the foundational material.

"I am not entirely sure, but I did only fully master the Xuanlü language after reaching the Upper Three Tiers," Olina replied.

"It seems superhuman power implicitly enhances the brain," Zhao Jianguo said, his eyes burning with excitement. His face flushed with such intensity that the accompanying medical staff immediately grew nervous.

"Comrade Olina, this way please!"

Surrounded by numerous researchers, Olina was led to a place filled with various strange machines.

Looking at the researchers who were staring at her with very peculiar expressions, Olina couldn't help but feel a bit tense.

Zhao Jianguo held a form and said, "First, we need to collect physical data: height, weight, and measurements."

To avoid impropriety, two female military doctors were brought in to conduct the physical examination.

Height: 175 cm.

Measurements: 95, 60, 90 (bust, waist, hips).

A perfect proportion, with distinct muscle lines that balanced health with feminine grace.

"Hmm... why hasn't the superhuman power evolved toward an even more perfect state?" Zhao Jianguo mused.

These proportions were indeed aesthetically pleasing, but from a biological perspective, they weren't perfect—the fat content was too low. It was as if the superhuman transformation of life was solely for the sake of aesthetics.

Or perhaps, once superhumans become powerful enough that survival is no longer a concern, biology shifts toward maximizing the transmission of genes?

"Next, weight."

Olina stood barefoot on the electronic scale, the data on the crude display changing rapidly.

[1509.253]

Seeing this number, the surrounding researchers were stunned.

1.5 tons? What kind of data was this?

Was this the kind of weight a human could register? Even if a superhuman’s body density was several times that of an ordinary person, the weight shouldn't be this exaggerated.

When they measured the King, he weighed only 300 kilograms, and other Third-Tier knights weighed around the same. At the same build, First-Tier superhumans showed no change in weight, Second-Tier were 0.5 times heavier than normal, and Third-Tier were 4-5 times heavier.

Olina was roughly 25 times the weight of an ordinary person—equivalent to a small truck without cargo.

"Is there a problem?" Olina asked, looking puzzled.

Zhao Jianguo asked blankly, "Comrade Olina, does your bed not collapse when you sleep?"

At 1.5 tons, a normal bed would surely collapse.

"No, I usually sleep on the floor," Olina replied.

Although Xuanlü’s beds were made of iron, they were clearly not as sturdy as the specially reinforced beds in the royal palace.

"That must have been hard for you," Zhao Jianguo said, suppressing his curiosity and confusion as he flipped the page of the form.

"Right arm strength test."

On the other side of the field, dumbbells of varying weights were laid out, from small to large.

One hundred kilograms, three hundred, five hundred, seven hundred, one ton...

Even the specially made two-ton dumbbell was lifted by Olina with ease, as if it were a plastic toy.

"Comrade Olina, how does it feel?"

Olina lifted and lowered the dumbbell, replying, "A bit heavy."

"We can't test it like this." Zhao Jianguo frowned, turning to his assistant. "Tell them to bring an armored vehicle and a tank."

He had thought they were sufficiently prepared, but he hadn't expected they wouldn't even reach her limit with a one-handed test. Two tons, and she only felt it was "a bit heavy."

Are all Upper Three-Tier superhumans this terrifying?