Chapter 184: The Frustrated Crowd
"Senior Brother Li Qing, Senior Sister Wang Zixuan." Lin Qi nodded in greeting.
"So, Junior Brother, you’re this year’s Dean of the Azure Sky Sixth Institute? I’m finally not the youngest anymore," Li Qing said with a hearty laugh, slinging an arm over Lin Qi’s shoulder.
"Finally, a Dean who uses a long spear," Wang Zixuan remarked with a sigh.
"Lin Qi, if I’m not around and you have any questions, feel free to ask your senior brother and sister," Mu Hong advised.
"Junior Brother Lin Qi, add me. You can ask me about anything you don’t understand in the future."
"Martial Arts are prevalent in the academy. The school doesn’t get involved in fights between students of the same grade, but upperclassmen bullying underclassmen is strictly forbidden."
"If any upperclassmen bully you, just let us know. We’ll help you take them down."
Li Qing took out his phone and patted his chest confidently.
Wang Zixuan also took out her phone.
"That’s right, you’re our junior brother now. Your business is our business!"
"Junior Brother Lin Qi, I’ll add you to our little group chat. There were originally two more senior brothers, but one has already graduated, and the other isn’t at the school right now," Li Qing said.
"Let’s get together this weekend. My treat."
"Okay!" Lin Qi didn’t refuse.
He could feel that Li Qing and Wang Zixuan had no ill intentions toward him; their enthusiasm was genuine.
...
A few minutes after Lin Qi left, only Mu Hong, Li Qing, and Wang Zixuan remained in the Martial Arts Room.
"Master, what do you think of our new little junior brother?"
"This is the first time you’ve taken a Dean as a disciple," Li Qing asked curiously.
Mu Hong smiled and said:
"All I can say is that Lin Qi lives up to his reputation as a Dean and a genius handpicked by the Vice Dean himself."
"Just now, I only gave him a few pointers, and his Spear Technique broke through to Tier Two Middle Stage."
Li Qing and Wang Zixuan exchanged a glance, shocked.
"Last year, it took me almost a month of your guidance, Master, to break through to Tier Two Middle Stage. He just arrived and already broke through... The gap is..." Li Qing swallowed hard.
"I had to use the Trial Tower for a while to break through to the Tier Two Middle Stage. Junior Brother Lin Qi is even more outstanding than we imagined," Wang Zixuan added in admiration.
"If you have any questions, ask them now."
Mu Hong said, getting back to the topic at hand.
"Master, we have questions about the Third Rank Spear Skill!" Wang Zixuan asked.
"The Third Rank Spear Skill, while controlling the body’s strength..."
...
Azure Sky Sixth Institute, Villa No. 01.
Lin Qi sat in the living room eating a Level 3 Nutritional Meal, thinking about Li Qing, Wang Zixuan, and Mu Hong.
’Senior Brother Li Qing and Wang Zixuan... they’re both in the top 20 of their grade. From now on, they’ll be part of my support system.’
’Master Mu Hong is a top expert of the Seventh Realm. Even Uncle Yue might not be able to beat him.’
’Besides Dean Liu, he’s my strongest backer.’
’At Azure Sky Martial Arts Academy, as long as you’re a genius, you can build a good network of connections.’
Lin Qi nodded to himself. Although his Talent was high, connections were also very important.
BUZZ BUZZ!
His phone vibrated. He glanced at it and saw it was a video call from Jiangtao, which he immediately projected in front of him.
"Brother Qi, do you know about the Calamity Beast Trial Tower? I noticed you’ve never been there," Jiangtao asked suddenly from the other side of the video call.
"The Calamity Beast Trial Tower..."
Of course Lin Qi knew about it. When Dean Liu had laid out his benefits package, he had mentioned the Refining God Tower, the Gravity Room, and the Calamity Beast Trial Tower.
They corresponded to the cultivation of Spiritual Power, Qi and Blood Value, and Martial Arts, respectively.
That morning, Senior Brother Li Qing had suggested he should experience the Calamity Beast Trial Tower more often, as it could greatly improve his Martial Arts.
"I haven’t been yet," Lin Qi replied.
"Brother Qi, I’ll take you to check it out this afternoon," Jiangtao suggested.
"Okay!" Lin Qi didn’t refuse.
...
「An hour later」
In the Martial Arts Room, Lin Qi lay down in an all-white Virtual Cabin and chose to log into the Red Realm.
[Welcome, Yang Jian! Welcome to the Red Realm!]
Personal Space
BUZZ BUZZ!!
When Lin Qi opened his eyes, he heard the welcoming voice. He looked at the pop-up panel and quickly logged into the official website for Azure Sky Martial Arts Academy.
He found the Calamity Beast Trial Tower option.
[Enter the Calamity Beast Trial Tower? Yes/No]
[Yes!]
The moment he made his choice, Lin Qi’s figure vanished. He felt the space around him shift, and he was transported to a completely new area.
He was in a boundless wilderness, the sky shrouded in gloomy, dark clouds.
A massive structure materialized before him, resembling an ancient and mysterious beast lying dormant on the earth.
The tower soared into the sky, its spire shrouded in swirling clouds and mist.
It was constructed entirely from enormous, dark-gray stone blocks, their surfaces covered with a dense array of carvings depicting various Calamity Beasts.
On the lowest level, Lin Qi even saw images of the Iron Spike Wild Boar, Mastiff Dog, and Shadow Cat.
On the upper levels, he saw the image of the Level 8 Top Disaster Beast Golden Gang Tiger.
"Brother Qi!"
A few figures approached from a short distance away. It was Jiangtao, Guo Heng, Wang Qiufeng, and Zhou Xiyin.
"The Calamity Beast Trial Tower simulates a realistic Calamity Beast invasion scenario. It’s the most dangerous kind, where dozens of Calamity Beasts surround you."
"We have to successfully kill all of them within a limited time while being besieged to clear the level."
"It’s even better than the Red Realm for honing our Body Technique and Martial Arts. I’ve completely given up on the Red Realm Arena now," Jiangtao explained with a smile.
As he spoke, they arrived at the main entrance of the Calamity Beast Trial Tower. The massive gate was flanked by two golden stone dragons that served as guards.
Above the gate, several large screens were projected.
Lin Qi looked up.
[Trial Tower Leaderboard (Overall)]
[Trial Tower Leaderboard (Second Year)]
[Trial Tower Leaderboard (Azure Sky First Institute)]
[...]
"This is...?"
"Brother Qi, this is the Trial Tower leaderboard."
"Of the three major facilities—the Refining God Tower, the Gravity Room, and the Calamity Beast Trial Tower—only the Calamity Beast Trial Tower ranks our performance."
"According to school regulations, it’s to encourage competition among students."
"It’s mainly divided into three leaderboards: Overall, Grade Level, and Institute," Zhou Xiyin explained.
"The individual Institute leaderboards update in real-time, while the Grade Level and Overall leaderboards update once a month."
"The most important part is that there are monthly rewards for all of them—the Institute, Grade Level, and Overall leaderboards," Guo Heng said.
Lin Qi’s eyes lit up. ’Any leaderboard with rewards is a good leaderboard.’
He quickly found the leaderboard for the Azure Sky Sixth Institute.
[Trial Tower Leaderboard (Azure Sky Sixth Institute)]
[First Place: Guan Mountain, Floor: 1]
[Second Place: Wang Qiufeng, Floor: 1]
[Third Place: Zhou Xiyin, Floor: 1]
...
After them were Guo Heng, Jiangtao, Li Zhou, and the others.
"Brother Qi, everyone saw you weren’t on the leaderboard, so they figured you’d never been here," Jiangtao said with a nod.
"Your Sixth Institute is a bit weak, huh? Not a single person has managed to break through to the second floor yet."
"Our Ninth Institute’s Ao Feng made it to the second floor on his very first try in the Calamity Beast Trial Tower."
"Joining the Sixth Institute was a dead end for you."
Two guys were discussing this nearby. A round-faced man laughed out loud, while the simple-looking guy across from him stayed quiet.
Their conversation wasn’t loud, but Lin Qi and his group heard it clearly.
The whole group instantly looked over. The round-faced man who had been speaking felt a chill run down his spine. He looked up, trembled, and saw more than a dozen pairs of cold eyes staring at him.
His face turned pale, and he immediately chose to log off, vanishing on the spot.
When the simple-looking guy saw Lin Qi, his eyes lit up.
The expressions on the faces of Guo Heng, Wang Qiufeng, and the others were not pleasant.
Lin Qi seemed to understand something and asked, "Who has made it to the second floor so far?"
"Currently, four people have cleared it and reached the second floor: Huo Wanyang, Ao Feng, Duan Chuchu, and Li Lei."
"Huo Wanyang cleared the first floor on the very first day of school."
"Ao Feng broke through to the second floor two days ago!" Jiangtao answered.
"Students from other institutes have also been breaking through to the second floor one after another."
"Guan Mountain is close, but not there yet."
Lin Qi nodded. ’So that’s how it is.’
’Students from the other institutes have already reached the second floor. Only our institute and one other are left.’
’If I don’t make a move, no one from the Sixth Institute will be able to break through to the second floor. That mockery just now clearly wasn’t the first time.’
’That’s why Jiangtao and the others were in such a hurry to find me.’
"It seems everyone is laughing at us."
"It’s only the second floor. I’m going in."
After speaking calmly, Lin Qi started walking into the Calamity Beast Trial Tower.
Jiangtao and the others looked delighted and followed him into the Trial Tower one by one.
"Lin Qi is entering the Trial Tower!" someone in the crowd shouted.
"Lin Qi’s finally making his move. It’s been tough getting mocked these past few days," a student from the Sixth Institute said, clenching their fists.
BOOM!!
Lin Qi felt a wave of dizziness wash over him. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in a field of ruins.
There were crumbling walls, fractured concrete surfaces, exposed rebar, and all sorts of broken signboards and furniture everywhere.
He was standing on a wide road, with a cracked asphalt surface beneath his feet.
The air was thick with the lingering smell of burning, gunpowder, and a foul stench.
[Student Lin Qi, welcome to the Calamity Beast Trial Tower!]
[Trial Tower First Floor: Kill 50 Iron Spike Wild Boars within 30 minutes. If the time limit is exceeded without meeting the goal, the trial will be a failure. Your Qi and Blood Value has been adjusted to 9.99.]
[You have 10 minutes to prepare!]
Lin Qi frowned when he saw this.
’A siege of 50 Iron Spike Wild Boars? In my combat training, the most I’ve ever faced was a siege of seven or eight.’
He quickly selected a black Combat Suit and a 100-jin heavy Black Great Spear.
He threw a few punches, jumped, and ran in place. He could feel that his strength and speed had dropped significantly, returning to the physical condition he had at a Qi and Blood Value of 9.99.
[Countdown: 3... 2... 1...]
[The trial officially begins!]
An emotionless female AI voice announced the start of the trial.
RUMBLE!!
Lin Qi clearly felt the asphalt road begin to tremble slightly. At the far end of his vision, a herd of all-gray Iron Spike Wild Boars suddenly appeared.
Their thick hooves trampled the ground, kicking up clouds of dust.
Their tusks, sharp as curved sabers, glinted with a metallic sheen.
Pairs of sharp tusks were raised high as they charged.
Lin Qi watched the charging Iron Spike Wild Boars. The shocking scene didn’t frighten him. His expression hardened, and his body exploded into motion.
He lunged forward like a ferocious tiger, brandishing his Black Great Spear.
"HROO! HROO!"
The 50 Iron Spike Wild Boars formed a gray tsunami that instantly engulfed Lin Qi.
The boars at the very front bore the brunt of the charge, coming at him like high-speed cars.
A fierce wind ravaged his face.
Seeing this, a golden light seemed to flash in Lin Qi’s eyes.
Power erupted from his entire body. His figure moved like a bolt of lightning, and his legs planted themselves into the ground like the roots of an old tree.
The veins on his arms bulged as he gathered over 1,500 kilograms of force and unleashed an upward spear thrust.
BANG!
It accurately struck the Iron Spike Wild Boar’s chin, the force of the blow flicking it into the air.
*PFFT~*
The spear tip cut through the air, pierced its tough, coarse hide, and ran through its throat. Power erupted, mangling its neck.
BANG!!
...