Chapter 71 - 70: Sky Tower
Finally confirmed their identities and qualifications, Jiang Ming and the others arrived at the virtual room, each sitting on a separate seat.
Under the guidance of the guardian teacher, they sat down, put on the helmets, and lay back halfway.
Ding ding ding…
There was a ringing sound outside.
There was also a prompt tone in the helmet.
“Now it’s 8:45, students, you can press the red button on the left side of the earpiece to enter the virtual battlefield in front of the Sky Tower. Remember, after entering, read the instructions, choose your weapons, and quickly adapt.”
“At exactly nine o’clock, the Martial Exam will officially begin.”
“You only have one chance.”
“Fight as much as you can!”
“For your future!”
“After death, you will automatically exit.”
“Or, quit actively!”
“As for safety, you don’t have to worry; there are three invigilators sitting in each classroom, along with real-time monitoring.”
“Now, start!”
With his virtual helmet on, Jiang Ming pressed the button decisively as the teacher’s voice fell.
As for entering the virtual combat network, all students have practiced in a simulation and are not strangers to it.
According to what he knew, the virtual combat network was said to be 100% realistic and totally authentic.
Jiang Ming felt an obscure fluctuation sweep over him, everything went dark as if he was traveling through time and space, and when it became bright again, he was standing in front of a towering pagoda.
Under his feet was grassy ground, a breeze was blowing, and he could smell the fresh grass scent.
Looking around, there was an endless grassland.
Besides the pagoda in front of him, there was nothing else.
He tried to sense his own body.
The power is complete and no different from his real body.
“Is this really virtual?”
Jiang Ming was still shocked.
His powerful soul, unparalleled body, and vast Dantian were all perfectly simulated, extremely real without any falsehood.
The only thing that wasn’t simulated was the seed in his Dantian that had never moved.
“What kind of ability can do this?”
Jiang Ming was baffled.
“Ding, welcome to the class of 9918, number 41… Jiang Ming, a candidate from Pingyang No.2 High School, Tianzhong Province, for 25 days.”
“Please choose a weapon!”
A list of weapons appeared in front of him, divided into protective gear: shields, arm guards, etc.
Weapons: saber, spear, sword, halberd, etc.
Auxiliary weapons: bows, crossbows, etc.
Hidden weapons: Flying Knife, Sleeve Arrow, etc.
Weapons for Mind Masters: Flying Blade, Flying Needle, Flying Shuttle, etc.
All were cold weapons.
Choose freely without any restrictions.
Jiang Ming chose a long sword with a sword sheath on his back, pulled it out and saw that the sword’s body seemed to flow with a pool of spring water.
With a gentle flick, it produced a crisp, pleasant sound.
Good sword!
Jiang Ming instantly had an evaluation.
He also chose three flying blades and tucked them at his waist, covered by his clothes.
With a wave, the weapon-selection screen disappeared.
“After choosing your weapons, please enter the Sky Tower to prepare for battle.”
“Reminder: There are three challenges on each level; after passing, you can enter the next level.”
“Reminder: The more you kill, the higher your points.”
“Reminder: There is a one-hour time limit on each level; once exceeded, the challenge is declared over, and point summary will begin.”
Jiang Ming did not hesitate and pushed the door open to enter.
As soon as he took a step, time and space shifted, and he found himself in a forest.
The trees were very sparse.
There were faint insect sounds and chirping birds.
Instead, it seemed very quiet.
When he looked up, he could see white clouds leisurely passing by.
A countdown also appeared in front of him.
Jiang Ming walked around, but only within a restricted range of ten meters, with no other effects. It seemed that he would have to wait for the countdown to end for the real test to begin.
He closed his eyes.
Recalling the feeling of entering the tower earlier, he raised his hand, applying a gentle pressure, and felt a subtle spatial fluctuation.
“The spatial realm is already at the edge of the entry level.”
This was not an illusion.
“Definitely not!”
Jiang Ming was confident. During his time in the World of Secret Realm, he had broken through the spatial barrier multiple times. His direct comprehension of space at that time was more intuitive, yet he still could not grasp the Spatial Realm.
However, since he obtained the ‘Master of Space’ talent, even without deliberately comprehending it, his understanding of space had unconsciously elevated to a terrifying level.
Just like now, he could comprehend the Spatial Realm at any time.
“Reminder: Countdown 30 seconds!”
“Reminder: Countdown 20 seconds!”
“Reminder: Countdown 10 seconds, candidates, please get ready.”
“Reminder: Sky Tower First Floor Guide, six wolves, three people, one person!”
“Reminder: Countdown over.”
“Reminder: Martial Exam begins!”
The countdown screen disappeared, and the surrounding barriers vanished as well.
“Based on previous Martial Exam experiences, the first floor is easy with increasing challenges. The more you kill, the more points you get. If you fail to pass, the longer the battle lasts, the more bonus points will be added.”
As Jiang Ming was thinking, a wolf emerged from behind a tree in front of him.
The moment it saw him, it snarled, arched its back, and charged at him with great speed.
A gray wolf, a common wild beast, was easily subdued by a Martial Artist with Muscle and Bone Resonance.
Jiang Ming walked straight forward, raised his hand, and killed the gray wolf instantly with a sword Qi.
He kept moving.
Two wolves appeared one left and one right in front of him.
“First one, then two, followed by three!”
Jiang Ming laughed.
Just as expected, after consecutively killing them, he walked out of the forest and came across a stone bridge.
One person here, two people on the other side of the bridgehead.
This was the second part of the first level.
Everything progressed layer by layer, honing step by step.
In the outside world.
There were three screens hanging on one side of the playground. One of them displayed the information of the top 100 Federal Exam candidates: Ranking, name, candidate number, and specific location – it was very detailed.
Only the top 100 were displayed.
The first place had already scored more than 500 points, obviously entering the second floor of Sky Tower. The speed was beyond the imagination of ordinary people.
The second screen corresponded to the provincial top 100, and the third screen showed the city’s top 100.
“You guys, look quickly! It’s Qin Zhiyan from our school’s Class Four. She’s so fierce, she’s gone straight to first place in Pingyang City. She’s also in the top twenty of the entire Tianzhong Province – our school’s super-genius who possesses both beauty and strength.”
“Her ranking is still rising. With this momentum, she has a chance to enter the top ten in the entire province, and even the top 100 in the Federation.”
“My god, such a fierce person has emerged from our school!”
“Hasn’t she just entered the Martial Arts Second Realm? How come she’s so strong?”
There were numerous discussions as everyone’s eyes were glued to the front screen.
At the same time, in every city and province, almost everyone was paying attention to the rankings, as well as live streaming.
In a lecture hall.
Elder Tang and Master Song had arrived, which surprised and delighted the principal.
Both of them were of extraordinary standings and yet they had simultaneously come to their school. How could he not be surprised? How could he not be overjoyed?
After all, it was difficult to see them even under normal circumstances.
Now that they were here, what did it mean?
It meant that there was a talent in the school who caught their attention.
“Is there really one?” The principal was puzzled.
What surprised him even more was that Mr. Chen, the head teacher of Class Four, was also invited to join.
“From Class Four?”
He secretly asked Mr. Chen, but the other party shook his head in confusion.
He pondered left and right.
Qin Zhiyan, Jiang Ming, Wang Zhan…
Although they were quite good, they were still far from the level that would make Master Song and Elder Tang take notice.
Strange!