Chapter Thirty-Five: Duel! Leading the Charge!

“Of course they can! I have confidence in the people I choose. Who cares if my pick has an F-rank potential? As long as they’re strong, that’s all that matters. Mu Yuqing, don’t even think about watching me make a fool of myself!”

“Heh… someone with F-rank potential is destined to have limited strength in the future. What a waste of such a beautiful face.”

“Your potential is high, but aren’t you just a second-rate fighter right now? A mere B-rank martial artist. Who knows, maybe you’re not even as strong as Lin Yi.”

The two were once again at odds.

This woman, of course, was Mu Yuqing, who had always been at odds with An Miaoyi.

The more An Miaoyi spoke, the more unsettled she felt inside.

This time, it seemed, everyone’s recommendations were not only highly talented but also very powerful!

All An Miaoyi could do was silently pray that Lin Yi wouldn’t embarrass her. If his potential was lacking, let his strength make up for it. Lin Yi, you must get a good ranking.

In front of Lin Yi and the others stood a two-meter-high, three-meter-wide electromagnetic gate.

The gate was about to open. No one knew exactly what the three trials would entail.

All they knew was that they needed to complete the tests as quickly as possible.

Pills and official positions were just ahead!

“If you want to show off your genius and strength, you should be the last to start. Let’s see who has the guts to be the last off the line, but still has the confidence to finish the test first.”

“Exactly, let’s see who’s the last to start—who’s the true genius with real courage!”

As the test was about to begin, everyone boasted that the most daring, courageous, and gifted would be the last to start.

With a screech, the electromagnetic gate opened.

The test had officially begun!

The voice from the loudspeaker echoed out.

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Seventeen figures shot forward like wild horses unleashed, arrows loosed from the string.

No one hesitated!

At this moment, anyone who stayed behind would be a fool! All their previous talk was empty bravado.

The clatter of armor, the clashing of weapons—swords, sabers, spears, halberds, axes, hooks, and forks—all rang out in a chaotic symphony.

The gate was only three meters wide, enough for five or six people to pass side by side, at most seven or eight if they squeezed.

To fight for the lead, some had already started making moves.

Whoosh…

Among them, a scrawny man wielded a massive iron spear. With a whoosh, he swung it through the air!

In an instant, the air itself seemed to be sliced apart.

The iron spear, being so long, was used in imitation of the famous General Zhao Yun’s signature sweep and thrust.

In the blink of an eye, the spear blocked several people!

Beside him, two others—including the burly, muscle-bound woman known as the She-Dragon—were prepared. She had already drawn a pair of nunchaku.

Bang! Bang!

The giant spear was halted by the nunchaku.

But using the momentum, the thin man with the iron spear leveraged the force and surged ahead, overtaking the rest.

Others quickly followed suit.

Song Ziyang, an S-class potential, second-rate B-rank fighter, took advantage of his small stature and, shamelessly, began rolling forward like a ball.

Roll, roll, roll—

He’d already left the others behind.

A brawl erupted right there and then.

To get through as quickly as possible, many abandoned all decorum.

Lin Yi saw it all; when it came to verbal sparring, these people might not be his match, but in shamelessness, they surpassed even him.

But that didn’t matter—Lin Yi was already leading the pack.

This was the one time in his plan where he intended to stand out, so he made no effort to hold back.

From the very start, he surged ahead, leaving everyone behind.

The others focused on obstructing their direct competitors, paying little attention to Lin Yi.

They all assumed Lin Yi was weak and not worth worrying about.

Beside Lin Yi, Xu Lianyou brandished a steel saber, aiming straight for Tu Honglie and a woman in a bulletproof vest.

The next second, Tu Honglie exploded into action.

In the blink of an eye, he moved with a burst of speed!

Even as Xu Lianyou swung his saber in that direction, Tu Honglie was already upon him.

The strike missed entirely, and Xu Lianyou—who always considered himself the strongest—was dumbfounded!

Someone was faster than him?

Xu Lianyou gritted his teeth and sped up.

Only then did he realize how heavy his armor was, slowing him down.

But the next second, something even more astonishing happened.

Xu Lianyou saw that Lin Yi, that so-called second-rate B-rank fighter with F-level potential, had charged to the very front!

How could this be... His mind was a swirl of question marks!

Lin Yi, flushed with excitement, glanced back—surely he’d taken some forbidden drug before the test, breaking through his physical limits for a temporary speed boost.

“Well, Lin Yi, daring to use such drugs? Just wait, your body will break down soon enough. You might barely make it past the second stage, but the third will be mine for sure,” Xu Lianyou muttered.

Everyone’s eyes were now fixed ahead.

The least-favored, F-rank Lin Yi, had shot forward, leaving everyone stunned, then gritting their teeth in resolve.

Some, like Xu Lianyou, thought Lin Yi must have taken something.

But whatever the truth, Lin Yi was in first place, about to disappear from sight—who could stand that?

Seventeen of them raced forward, dropping all pretense.

“You think I need drugs? Only you would! I rely on real skill!” Lin Yi called back, shaking his head at Xu Lianyou.

That look of disdain nearly made Xu Lianyou explode with rage.

Sparks crackled in the vast, dark hall as pairs of oily, green eyes shone from the shadows.

With not a single light on, those glowing eyes made everyone’s blood run cold.

The next moment—bang, bang, bang!

It sounded as though rockets were launching, the thunderous noises and heavy footsteps making the entire floor tremble.

Robots, almost as tall as normal people, appeared.

Those eerie green lights were their eyes.

Their bodies were made entirely of alloyed metal.

Even in the darkness, their metallic frames gleamed silver.

Just then, a loudspeaker blared:

“Your images have all been input into the robots. Their exteriors are made of alloy, hard and durable. They’re quite fast, too. To pass the first stage, you must press the switch on top of the robot’s head. Only then can you advance to the next round.”

As soon as the words finished, the robots started swinging their arms and charging the group.

There was no time to prepare.

This was alloy metal—even a second-rate B-rank warrior couldn’t damage them with bare hands or feet.

So, pressing the switch on their heads was the only way forward.

Some, armed with weapons, rushed ahead, iron spears swinging at the robots’ heads.

But the robots instantly raised their arms to block—completely unafraid!

With a loud clang, the iron spear was sent flying, its wielder’s hands going numb from the shock.

Before he could recover, the robot kicked out—fast as lightning!

The kick created a sonic boom in the air.

With a thud, the man was sent flying, blood spurting.

Song Ziyang grinned, rolling on the ground with his special technique.

In a flash, he was behind a robot.

He leaped up, reaching for the switch on the robot’s head.

But the robot ducked at the last instant, evading his hand.

Then, with a move like a tiger’s tail sweep, the robot kicked Song Ziyang out of midair.

Even the most skilled, trying to be clever, hadn’t managed to hit a single switch.

Xu Lianyou laughed, grabbing his steel saber. “Watch me!”

He charged ahead, armor clattering.

He swung his saber at a robot, but the robot instantly turned, grabbing for the saber with one arm.

Seizing the chance, Xu Lianyou jumped, vaulting over his own saber.

The saber kept its downward arc, colliding with the robot’s arm.

He let go of the saber, leaving himself light and agile, landing atop the robot’s head.

With a slap, he pressed the switch.

For a brief moment, Xu Lianyou had performed admirably.

No one expected him to be the first to stop a robot.

Xu Lianyou was immensely pleased with himself.

But before he could savor his triumph, still midair, his eyes widened at a sudden metallic crunching sound—clank, clank, clank...

The sound of metal being battered.

Turning to look for the source, he and the others witnessed a shocking sight—Lin Yi was responsible.

Standing before a robot, Lin Yi casually swung his fist.

The robot crumpled like a feeble straw man; its alloy armor caved in, circuits sparking and fizzling inside.

With a crash, the robot hit the ground—not in pieces, but clearly disabled.

Lin Yi left without a backward glance, vanishing up the stairs to the fourth floor.

If Xu Lianyou had thought he had any chance before, that notion was now utterly crushed—he felt foolish for ever believing it.

His own saber had barely left a dent in the alloy armor, incapable of damaging it.

But Lin Yi’s punch had flattened the robot’s chest, caving in the metal. No drug could account for such strength.

Stunned, Xu Lianyou barely noticed that, although his robot had stopped, someone nearby slyly maneuvered another robot toward him.