26: Chapter 26 A Gathering of Heroes, and I'm No Less Skilled Than Youself

Fang Chuan listened to the lecture on believer talents with little interest.

What Head Teacher Chen Xingyue was teaching were all just basic theoretical concepts.

For instance, talent levels range from one to five stars, corresponding respectively to the five believer card ranks: white, green, blue, purple, and orange.

Believers with one-star talent have the lowest potential, with a level cap usually not exceeding 20, making them the most common cannon fodder in a Divine Kingdom.

On the other hand, believers with five-star talent possess infinite potential and, theoretically, have no level cap; they are the legendary units that every god dreams of.

Fang Chuan had long understood all of this clearly.

The five-star Saint Fara and the five-star Arrow Emperor Yi that he currently possessed were entities standing at the very pinnacle of the believer pyramid.

Head Teacher Chen Xingyue was still on the podium, earnestly teaching the students how, through acquired training, there was a tiny probability of allowing a two-star believer to break through to three stars.

He twirled his pen in boredom, his thoughts already having flown to the two SSS-rank geniuses Head Teacher Chen Xingyue had just mentioned.

Lu Hai's "Divine Grace" talent sounded like a super healer; he was likely following a support and buff path.

As for the other two SSS-ranks, what kind of monstrous talents would they have?

As soon as the bell rang, Head Teacher Chen Xingyue had barely stepped out of the classroom before Zhang Chao scooted over, his face full of excitement.

"Chuanzi, let's form a team! We must form a team!" He plopped down onto the empty seat next to Fang Chuan and shouted, "The two of us, plus Liu Ruyan, and we three will form an iron triangle! I'll be responsible for the charge, Liu Ruyan's Elven Archers will handle long-range output, and you... you can just be responsible for cheering us on from the back!"

Fang Chuan was so amused by his matter-of-fact arrangement that he laughed.

"Why on earth should I only be responsible for cheering from the back?"

"Hey, with your F- rating, if I don't let you cheer, do you want me to let you go up there and die?" Zhang Chao patted his chest, wearing a "Bro, I'm doing this for your own good" expression. "Don't worry, with me here, I guarantee you'll safely get a consolation prize, and maybe you'll even be able to snag some points to trade for something good!"

Fang Chuan shook his head helplessly.

He knew Zhang Chao meant well, but this feeling of being treated as dead weight was truly unpleasant.

"Alright, alright, forming a team is fine, but I'm not just going to be cheering from the back." Fang Chuan decided to reveal a little bit. "Let me tell you, my Goblins are no longer the same as they were before."

"Oh? How so?" Zhang Chao was immediately interested.

"I'm telling you, those Goblins of mine are exceptionally good at fighting now." Fang Chuan spouted nonsense with a straight face. "I got them some new equipment, and now they are all extremely fierce. You'll see when the time comes."

"Really? Are you for real?" Zhang Chao looked at him with a face full of suspicion. "With those few little green-skinned runts of yours, what kind of tricks could you possibly pull off?"

"Just wait and see." Fang Chuan smiled mysteriously and said nothing more.

The more he acted like this, the more curious Zhang Chao became, scratching his head and ears, dying to know what hidden cards Fang Chuan actually had.

Just then, Liu Ruyan also walked over.

She was wearing a light blue long dress today, her long hair draped over her shoulders, and her temperament was cold and aloof. The moment she appeared, she attracted the gaze of all the boys in the class.

"Zhang Chao, Fang Chuan." She walked up to the two of them and spoke softly. "Regarding the matter of forming a team, what do you think?"

Clearly, she had also heard Head Teacher Chen Xingyue's words earlier and realized the severity of this assessment.

As soon as Zhang Chao saw Liu Ruyan, he immediately stood up as if he had been injected with adrenaline and said eagerly, "School Beauty Liu, we were just discussing it. Me, Chuanzi, and you—the three of us joining forces will definitely be able to get a good ranking in this assessment!"

Liu Ruyan's gaze paused on Fang Chuan, her eyes carrying a hint of inquiry.

In her opinion, Zhang Chao's S- rating combined with her own B+ rating could indeed be considered a strong alliance. But Fang Chuan's F- rating was truly a bit... of a drag.

However, she had a good upbringing and didn't directly show this thought, only asking tactfully, "Classmate Fang Chuan, how are your believers... developing now?"

"It's alright, they won't starve to death." Fang Chuan shrugged and replied casually.

Liu Ruyan's eyes flickered slightly.

She was very clear that bringing Fang Chuan along would likely be a burden, but in order to win over Zhang Chao, a high-end combatant with an S- rating, bringing along an "accessory" wasn't entirely unacceptable.

Zhang Chao, however, carelessly draped his arm around Fang Chuan's shoulder and spoke for him, "Don't worry, Liu Ruyan. Even though my brother has a low rating, he's got a good brain! We'll make him our strategist to come up with plans! Leave the fighting to me!"

Liu Ruyan pondered for a moment and finally nodded. "Alright, then the three of us will form a team. Everyone go back tonight and look at the materials, and tomorrow we'll discuss the specific tactics together."

"Alrighty!" Zhang Chao agreed excitedly.

Fang Chuan also nodded, effectively agreeing.

To him, it didn't matter who he teamed up with. In any case, he would definitely be acting alone when the time came; teaming up was just to have cover during the early stages so he wouldn't appear too conspicuous.

Returning to his apartment in the evening, Fang Chuan immediately opened the encrypted file package in the class group chat.

The file wasn't large, but the amount of information inside was astonishing.

The file detailed the background setting of this virtual battlefield.

The battlefield was named "Meteor Wasteland," a demigod's Divine Kingdom that had been destroyed during a divine war. The environment inside was harsh, filled with various mutated ferocious beasts and fallen native believers.

The materials also included a detailed "Ferocious Beast Encyclopedia," which listed dozens of types of enemies one might encounter.

Fang Chuan read with great interest; this information was extremely useful to him.

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated.

As he read, he compared the data of these ferocious beasts with the troop types in his own Divine Kingdom, simulating various combat scenarios in his mind.

Seeing to the end, his gaze was drawn to a specially marked "Seed Player List" at the end of the file.

This list enumerated all the genius students with ratings above S-grade in this joint examination of the three schools.

Qinghe No. 1 High School: Zhang Chao, S-, Divine Kingdom Believer [Howling Moon Werewolf], Divine Talent [More Children, More Blessings].

Qinghe No. 1 High School: Chen Fei, SS, Divine Kingdom Believer [Six-Armed Demon Ape], Divine Talent [Bloodthirsty Hand].

Qinghe No. 1 High School: Lu Hai, SSS, Divine Kingdom Believer [Holy Light Human], Divine Talent [Divine Grace].

...

Qinghe No. 2 High School: Zhao Wuji, SS, Divine Kingdom Believer [Titan Giant], Divine Talent [Energy Storage].

Qinghe No. 2 High School: Qin Yao, SSS, Divine Kingdom Believer [Elemental Spirits], Divine Talent [Elemental Tide].

...

No. 3 High School: Li Hao, S+, Divine Kingdom Believer [Dragon Blood Warrior], Divine Talent [Crimson Eye].

No. 3 High School: Lin Xiaoxiao, SSS, Divine Kingdom Believer [Mechanical Heart], Divine Talent [Infinite Mechanical Control].

...

"Damn, this is truly a battle of the gods..."

Fang Chuan looked at this list and couldn't help but smack his lips.

Three SSS-ranks, six SS-ranks, twelve S-ranks.

Besides Lu Hai, Qinghe No. 1 High School also had 4 S-rank geniuses and 3 SS-rank geniuses.

But this wasn't the most terrifying part, especially those two SSS-rank geniuses from No. 2 High School and No. 3 High School; their talent abilities were hair-raising just by hearing their names.

Qin Yao's [Elemental Spirits] and [Elemental Tide] sounded like a super Archmage, likely following a world-destroying, massive AOE path.

And that Lin Xiaoxiao's [Mechanical Heart] and [Infinite Mechanical Control] sounded even more mysterious—could it be a mechanical path that could infinitely mass-produce troops?

If this were true, it would be even more terrifying than his Goblin mass-production path.

"Interesting, it's getting more and more interesting."

Far from feeling pressured, Fang Chuan instead felt excited.

The stronger the opponent, the more satisfying it would be to fight.

He closed the materials and sank his consciousness into his Divine Kingdom.

He wanted to go see his "old pals" and have a good "chat" with them, preparing thoroughly for the upcoming "hunt."

As his consciousness descended into the Divine Kingdom, Fang Chuan's perspective instantly rose to ten thousand meters in the air.

Looking down, the entire land of the Divine Kingdom was vibrant, a scene of prosperity.

With Baize City as the center, four new cities—Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise—surrounded it, forming a huge pentagram-shaped city cluster.

Wide roads connected the major cities, and countless Goblins were busy in the fields, mines, and workshops.

After this period of crazy troop production and infrastructure development, his Divine Kingdom's population had surpassed the 190,000 mark, and the Faith Points provided to him daily had also reached an astonishing number.

Fang Chuan glanced at his Faith Point balance.

152 million!

The believers were providing massive amounts of Faith Points every Divine Kingdom day; in the 10 hours from class until now, it had directly increased by nearly 18 million Faith Points!

"My God, you have descended."

Saint Fara's resonant voice rang out in Fang Chuan's mind.

The next second, Fang Chuan's consciousness descended into the Great Council Hall in the center of Baize City.

Inside the hall, the hundred-meter-tall golden giant Fara and the tall, straight-postured Arrow Emperor Yi, holding a longbow, were kneeling on one knee, respectfully welcoming his arrival.

Behind them stood three powerful Goblin Arrow Kings, as well as thousands of Goblin Tyrants clad in heavy armor and wielding giant axes.

This was Fang Chuan's most core elite force at the moment.

"Rise, all of you." Fang Chuan's voice echoed in the magnificent hall.

"Thank you, my God!"

Fara and Yi stood up and stood respectfully on both sides.

Fang Chuan's gaze swept over these powerful believers, his heart filled with confidence.

With just this team, let alone some virtual battlefield placement test, even if he were asked to attack a real, newly ascended demigod right now, he wouldn't be the least bit afraid.

"Fara, Yi." Fang Chuan spoke. "I give you two years. Arrange for all subjects with three-star talent or above to go level up!"

"As you command, my God!" Fara and Yi responded in unison.