```
"Damn!"
Fang Huai roared as he felt a surge of adrenaline shoot through his body and quickly switched hands to rest.
The effect of increased waist strength was undeniable, far from marginal. He had managed to keep his waist and hips in line up to now, his whole arm trembling violently, yet his waist was still holding up.
The strength of his hands and waist was clearly disproportionate.
He needed to get more rewards, and quickly!
But man, this system doesn't just hand them out! If he pushed past his limits a few more times, he could surely increase his strength significantly on his own, right?
Don't shout, don't shout!
Inside, Fang Huai was desperately pleading. In this state, it was fine as long as he kept up, as he could switch hands, but if he went down now, he really couldn't last three minutes.
Squad Leader Hao gave the Chinese team no quarters.
"One! The last one, hold on! Those on the ground, get up at once! Or I'll add another!"
Hao Chengbin began to pick up everyone from the ground, one by one.
"Ahh!!" Fang Huai let out another roar and pushed through.
"Roaring what? Fang Huai, look at Jiang Peng and Zhao Bing! They're holding on!"
Sweat was rolling down Fang Huai's forehead, and when he looked up, the acrid sweat stung his eyelids.
Jiang Peng seemed to be struggling, but Zhao Bing showed no signs of blushing or gritting his teeth in exertion.
Damn, my boy Zhao Bing, you're terrifyingly tough.
Fang Huai cursed internally, finding some psychological comfort, and unbelievably felt some strength returning.
"Squad leader... I can't hold on any longer!"
"Squad leader! It's really..."
One after another, people collapsed, only to be picked up by Hao Chengbin.
122 seconds.
107 seconds.
90 seconds.
His hands began to shake non-stop, and he started to gasp for air. Fang Huai's vision began to blur.
It seemed like Jiang Peng had gotten up, somewhat sneakily changing hands, but Squad Leader Hao didn't call him out.
Squad Leader Hao... seemed to be watching him.
70 seconds.
It looked like Zhao Bing had finally started to breathe heavily.
My son, Zhao Bing, with the demeanor of an emperor, I am no match for you!
Fang Huai silently chastised himself to gain some solace.
This damn Hunan rice farmer is just too fierce! I can hardly feel my hands anymore!
40 seconds.
Fuck your grandmother!
30 seconds.
"Two! Get up!" Hao Chengbin finally relented.
All of them lay on the cold ground, panting with tongues out, the cool ground now the most perfect sanctuary in the minds of the Squad Nine new recruits; they could even sleep there on the spot.
Fang Huai felt a gust of cold air blow in from the door after the person in front of him moved away.
It was like he breathed in two fresh breaths of air again.
Fang Huai and Zhao Bing were still lying there.
"Fang Huai, get up!" Hao Chengbin, seeing Fang Huai with his eyes closed, exuding sweat, started to worry.
This kid is quite stubborn.
"Zhao Bing, you get up too." Hao Chengbin thought Fang Huai was probably being competitive with Zhao Bing, so he turned to look at Zhao Bing.
Zhao Bing cracked a smile, nodded at Fang Huai with a pant, and said, "Squad... Squad Leader, I'll keep him company a bit longer."
Hao Chengbin frowned, "Get up!"
Fang Huai's entire back trembled, and his legs wobbled.
He wanted to say something, but he had to breathe heavily with his mouth, otherwise, his lungs might just explode.
The whole room was filled with Fang Huai's heavy breathing, the sound turning horse-like.
Seeing Fang Huai's condition, Hao Chengbin, who had sat down on the bed, stood up again, pointed at Fang Huai, and told Zhao Bing, "Your comrade is in that state, why are you being stubborn? Like lying down? Then lie down until noon!"
Zhao Bing quickly stood up, shaking his hands and legs around, clearly still having some energy left, unlike the new recruits lying on the ground.
Fang Huai still didn't get up.
Zhao Bing was also concerned, shouting loudly, "Brother, I lost, get up now!"
Fang Huai couldn't hear a thing; his mind was filled with a countdown slow as a tortoise's crawl, and his ears heard nothing but a droning chant.
He thought he saw his great-grandmother.
Without any more hesitation, Hao Chengbin strode over several people and pulled Fang Huai up.
Fang Huai's upper body was suspended in the air, and he finally exhaled a breath.
...
"Fang... Huai..."
"Make way!"
"Greetings, officer!"
People kept talking nearby.
```
[Task Completion.]
[Detection of host brain hypoxia, increasing oxygen concentration.]
Fang Huai closed his eyes, but the system's subtitles naturally appeared clearly in his mind.
It felt as though his collar had been loosened, a rush of oxygen poured in, and with the system's influence, Fang Huai instantly felt his mind become much clearer.
"Step back more! Open the windows for some air! Don't crowd around here, give him some space!"
"Squad Leader, should we give him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation? Press on his heart or something?"
"Nonsense! He isn't drowning! He's breathing on his own, do you want to choke him to death?"
Although Fang Huai felt utterly terrible, his ears were sharp and his mind alert. Hearing this, he couldn't help but laugh inside.
Will you dare to torment me after this?
Without doing three push-ups, you'll have to kneel and beg me! Beg me not to die!
Two minutes later, Fang Huai opened his eyes, but the cold sweat stung him, and he closed them again.
"He's awake, he's awake!"
"Yue Tao, go get some hot water for Fang Huai!"
As Fang Huai felt a warm towel placed over his face, his breathing had already become steady.
"Squad Leader, I'm okay," said Fang Huai with effort, raising his hand and giving a shake.
"Hao Chengbin, take him to Baiyun First Medical for a checkup."
"Yes!"
When Fang Huai heard a familiar voice and opened his eyes again, he found the surroundings very quiet. Turning his head, he saw several officers standing outside the door, with Hao Chengbin standing by, quietly explaining something.
The Lieutenant Colonel in the middle was gleaming with a dark shine.
Damn, Old Black.
With a jolt, Fang Huai shockingly sat up as if snatched back from death's embrace.
"Sss..."
His waist was fine, but his back ached.
"Greetings, Chief of Staff!"
The few people at the door were also a bit stunned, watching the new recruit who just a moment ago was pale, now suddenly sitting upright. Chief of Staff Yang Yonghua's eyebrows were knitted tight as he stepped forward to check again.
Just now, Wang Jian had come to ask whether a new recruit needed first aid and hospitalization.
As he hurried over, listening to the situation, by the time he climbed the stairs, Hao Chengbin reported that the breathing had already calmed down.
And not even two minutes later, the recruit was sitting up.
A medical miracle? Or a fleeting resurgence?
"Lie down, rest well!" Yang Yonghua came over and patted him.
"No worries, Chief of Staff, really, I'm fine. I just ran out of strength just now!" Fang Huai quickly explained.
If this caused trouble for the company, it would be a loss not worth the cost.
Yang Yonghua furrowed his brow, still somewhat doubtful he asked, "Did your squad leader hit you guys just now?"
"No."
"Forced you to do push-ups? Wouldn't let you get up?"
"No, it was my idea to see if I could last 10 minutes, but... I couldn't hold out."
Yang Yonghua felt both annoyed and amused.
Clearly able to give up, yet still managed to push himself to the point of fainting, that sure is strong willpower.
"Your spirit is commendable, but the method is wrong! Straining your body like this, you won't last two years before it's wasted!... Hao Chengbin!"
"Present!"
"Let this new recruit rest well this morning. He doesn't have to go to the training field for now."
"No! Chief of Staff, no need, I can get up," Fang Huai hurriedly stood up, enduring the pain, and twisted his waist, "Chief of Staff, moving around might actually make me feel better. Just lying here, my body cooling down, the more I lie the more it hurts!"
Yang Yonghua saw him jumping around proving himself, and couldn't help but laugh, "You really are a promising young man, keep it up! I'll see how your physical test goes when you finish training. If you can do 20 pull-ups, I'll apply for you to be an Outstanding Soldier!"
With that, he patted Fang Huai's shoulder.
Fang Huai was jolted by the pat, nearly falling back onto the bed.
"Yes, Chief of Staff!"
As Yang Yonghua watched his feigned strong appearance, he chuckled, turned, and left the doorway with several staff officers in tow.
A false alarm.
Left behind, Wang Jian, because of the prior tension, had his eyes wide open. Now he breathed a sigh of relief and stepped into the barracks, saying to Fang Huai, who had sat back down, somewhat reproachfully.
"Brother, on the first day, why push yourself so hard? You don't care about your life?"
"Company Leader, sorry for the trouble. Next time, I'll definitely... try not to let it happen again."
While Fang Huai spoke, he thought of this bizarre system, his tone also somewhat uncertain.
"Try not to?" Wang Jian's eyes widened again.
"I... Company Leader, overexertion leading to dizziness is quite normal, right?" Fang Huai said, troubled.
Hao Chengbin stepped forward at that moment, patting Wang Jian, and shook his head, "Wang Lian, I'll be watching over him. An incident like today's won't happen again."
Wang Jian and Hao Chengbin exchanged glances, then pointed at his shoulder's insignia.
"Buddy, this year... take it easy on yourself."
"Rest assured, Company Leader!" Fang Huai quickly stood up, promising.
"I'll definitely look after my own safety!"
Wang Jian rolled his eyes and left the room, hands behind his back.