The More Tragic I Act, the Stronger I Get — My Fans Beg Me to Stop Killing Off My Roles-Chapter 294: Is This Kid Made of Iron?

The martial arts director's surname was Chen, known in the industry as Old Chen, a retired SWAT officer.

Everyone present understood the implication behind his words.

This was to give this newly arrived celebrity a harsh lesson.

Sun Zhou stood at the warehouse entrance, his heart in his throat.

He had personally witnessed how Old Chen trained those featured actors.

It wasn't training at all; it was torture to the brink of death. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Lei Zhong and Wu Gang didn't speak, only exchanging a knowing glance.

They stepped back with great interest, clearing the space.

They also wanted to see just how much substance this young man, who had just stunned them with his performance in the dialogue scene, truly possessed.

Jiang Ci took off his jacket, leaving only the thin white T-shirt on his body.

He looked at Old Chen and nodded.

"Let's begin."

The training began.

Old Chen showed no courtesy whatsoever. With a swift turn, his right leg cutting through the air with a whoosh,

a precise roundhouse kick landed solidly on the outer side of Jiang Ci's thigh.

"Thud!"

A dull impact echoed through the empty warehouse, making Sun Zhou's eyelids twitch violently.

That hit, forget ordinary people, even someone with training would be brought to their knees in pain.

However, Jiang Ci only swayed violently.

He steadied himself.

The moment 【Body of Steel (Basic)】 took effect, the excruciating pain that would have made an ordinary person's muscles cramp was reduced by sixty percent.

The remaining pain, far from making him retreat, instead pierced through some dormant switch within his body.

Adrenaline instantly surged.

He simply thought Old Chen had held back, not daring to use full force.

Driven by an inexplicable sense of responsibility, Jiang Ci decided to cooperate a bit.

He couldn't let Instructor Chen's harsh lesson fall flat, so he staggered a step with the force, bracing his knee.

Then he looked up, speaking with an utterly sincere attitude:

"Instructor Chen, you can use more force. I can take it."

The warehouse fell silent.

Lei Zhong had just pulled out a cigarette to light, but his hand froze mid-air upon hearing this.

Even Wu Gang's normally stern face showed a flicker of astonishment.

Old Chen's face darkened.

He felt challenged.

A kid in his early twenties, telling him, a former SWAT officer, to "use more force"?

Fine.

Very good.

"Alright, you said it."

Old Chen threw away the protective gear in his hand, his gaze completely changing.

If before it was just a "lesson," now, he was getting serious.

He sank his stance, took a step forward, and directly increased the force to seventy percent.

The fist whistled through the air.

"Thud!"

A straight punch smashed against Jiang Ci's blocking forearm.

"Thud! Thud! Thud!"

Side kick, elbow strike, combination punches.

The dense, meaty thuds of fists meeting flesh were terrifying,

each sound heavy and bone-jarring, tightening the hearts of everyone present.

The few stuntmen who had come with Old Chen,

who initially held a watching-the-show attitude, were now completely unable to laugh.

They even turned their heads away somewhat uncomfortably, not daring to watch anymore.

Sun Zhou's face was already as white as paper. He covered his mouth to stop himself from crying out.

Only Jiang Wen.

He stood in the shadows of the warehouse, motionless.

His square-jawed face showed no emotion, only a pair of eyes that shone frighteningly bright in the dim light.

Half an hour passed.

Old Chen's movements had noticeably slowed. His chest heaved violently, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

In contrast, Jiang Ci.

His white T-shirt was now covered in dust, his exposed skin a patchwork of shocking blue and purple bruises.

But he was still standing.

His breathing, though somewhat rapid, remained steady.

Those clear, bright eyes held only a kind of highly focused calm.

Is this kid made of iron?

Old Chen stared at this monster before him, decades of combat experience and understanding being slowly crushed to pieces.

In Jiang Ci's mind, the system's notification tone inappropriately chimed.

【Host, please note, Body of Steel is not invincible. Your bones are fine,】

【but subcutaneous tissue has suffered extensive bruising, soft tissue contusions are worsening. It is recommended to immediately cease this suicidal behavior.】

Jiang Ci ignored it.

He could feel the fatigue and pain accumulating in his body,

but that obsession originating from the character "Ice Chisel" overpowered his body's instincts.

He could not fall.

An undercover agent, before exposure, must never fall.

This almost masochistic persistence made Jiang Wen's eyes gleam with excitement.

This was exactly what he wanted!

This was the kind of madness—standing to die even with broken bones—that he wanted!

This was the undercover agent in his script, Jiang He,

who had lurked in the drug den for years, surviving on inhuman willpower!

"Hah—"

Old Chen let out a hoarse roar, mustering his last ounce of strength to throw a final punch.

Exhausted, his form was already broken, full of openings.

Almost instinctively, Jiang Ci raised his arm to block.

He just wanted to block this punch.

But the exhausted Old Chen seemed to crash into a wall,

the force of his own punch causing him to stagger back and finally collapse to the ground, sitting.

The stuntmen's jaws dropped.

Lei Zhong, the unlit cigarette dangling from his mouth, didn't even notice when it fell to the ground.

Wu Gang also rose from his chair, his face unable to conceal his shock.

He won? This kid, he took down Old Chen?

Sun Zhou felt like he was dreaming.

His brother... was this fierce?

For a moment, everyone thought Jiang Ci was a hidden martial arts master.

Jiang Ci was also stunned.

He looked at Old Chen sitting on the ground with a dazed expression, then at his own hands, completely confused about what had happened.

He just blocked once, didn't he?

Seeing the situation turn awkward, Jiang Ci's survival instincts instantly kicked in.

He hurried over, flustered, trying to help Old Chen up.

"Instructor Chen, are you okay?"

As he helped him up, he explained in an utterly sincere tone.

"The floor's slippery. The floor's slippery."

Old Chen: "..."

Everyone: "..."

From this moment on, the way everyone in the entire film crew looked at Jiang Ci completely changed.

They no longer saw a "pretty boy" who needed special treatment.

They saw a "tough guy" who was more reckless with his life than any of them.

Jiang Wen walked out from the shadows.

He went straight to Jiang Ci, not uttering a single word of comfort, and patted the dust off his shoulder.

Then, he turned to everyone and announced in his steady voice:

"Tomorrow, 9 AM sharp, everyone, we're going to the Martyrs' Cemetery to pay respects."

His gaze finally settled on Jiang Ci.

"After that, we start filming directly."

He paused, as if remembering something, and added.

"Jiang Ci, bring your instrument."

A flicker of confusion passed over Jiang Wen's face, something even he didn't notice.

"Though I really have no idea why you listed that as your special skill..."

He pursed his lips, ultimately not saying the name of that instrument out loud.