36: Chapter 36: Each Displays Their Unique Power! Practical Combat Drills

Simulated dawn light shone through the massive dome into the underground practical training field of North Star Military Academy. It was a breathtaking space, spanning several square kilometers. Beneath the towering dome, a realistic sky was simulated, with artificial sunlight moving slowly, illuminating the entire field.

The training field was meticulously crafted into a wilderness terrain, with jagged rocks scattered throughout and the metallic glint of sensor devices faintly visible among the low shrubs. The ground was covered with special sensing materials capable of monitoring every movement and energy fluctuation of the students in real-time.

The students stood in formation at the entrance of the training field, gazing at the realistic battlefield before them. Many faces showed a mix of nervousness and anticipation.

"Students," Instructor Zhou Cheng's voice came through the speakers distributed across the field, "today will be your first practical combat drill since enrollment. We are honored to be using the Real Illusion Training System, newly developed by the Holy Alliance."

He paused, a hint of envy in his tone: "This system employs the Holy Alliance's most advanced Holographic Neural Link Technology. The Zergling projections in the field are directly connected to the nerves of real Zerglings. Furthermore, as a bonus for purchasing this equipment, we've obtained a batch of live Zerglings, ensuring the realism of the training."

A low murmur of discussion rippled through the students; some were excited, while others were tense.

"The rules of the drill are as follows:" Instructor Zhou Cheng continued, "You have one hour to clear all Zerglings in the field. Free teaming is allowed, and the final score will be based on three aspects: kill count, time taken, and your own resource depletion and tactical performance."

His voice echoed in the training field: "Now, I'll give you ten minutes to form teams, then enter in order."

The training field immediately became lively. Students quickly began searching for teammates, and the noisy discussions rose and fell.

"Let's the three of us be a team." Without hesitation, Elia pulled Li Yuan and Laya along to register their team with Instructor Zhou Cheng, her icy blue eyes sparkling with eagerness.

Instructor Zhou Cheng followed routine by asking for Li Yuan and Laya's opinions.

Li Yuan nodded: "Our cooperation is already very proficient."

Laya happily linked her arms with the two: "With a powerhouse like Elia carrying us, we'll definitely take first place!"

Not far away, Saiwei Krol was organizing his team. Several exchange students from the Olympia Empire gathered around him. Sai Wei's golden hair fluttered, and a confident smile played on his face.

On the other side, Chen Jingyi stood quietly in a corner, her black hair cascading like a waterfall and her expression indifferent. Luo Lan walked to her side and asked softly, "Jingyi, want to team up?"

Chen Jingyi nodded slightly, signaling her agreement.

Ten minutes passed quickly, and Instructor Zhou Cheng's voice rang out again: "Teaming time is over. First group, enter!"

The first to enter was a standard Warrior-Mage-Priest combination. The burly student in the front row activated his Rock Armor talent, the mage-type student in the middle began chanting a Fireball spell, and the healer in the back was ready to cast healing spells at any moment.

They advanced cautiously and soon encountered the first wave of Zerglings. These crimson creatures were extremely fast, their claws and fangs glinting under the simulated sunlight.

"Hold steady!" the front-row student roared, and the sound of dense impacts immediately rang out against his Rock Armor.

Fireballs exploded among the Zergling swarm, sending out waves of heat. The light of healing spells flashed from time to time. They cooperated well and advanced steadily, but their efficiency was truly not very high.

Next to enter was the 'Great Fireball Sect'. Five magic-talent users stood in a row and began chanting simultaneously. Blazing Fireballs rained down on the Zergling swarm like a deluge, with continuous explosions.

"This is way too violent..." a student murmured to himself.

However, the drawbacks of this tactic soon became apparent. The continuous high-intensity casting rapidly depleted their mental energy, and there were always stragglers that broke through the fire net. While they were fast, their own damage was not small.

The performance of the 'Machine Sect' was even more eye-opening. Several mechanical-talent users summoned various strange mechanical creations—small mechs, floating turrets, and even swarms of micro-drones.

With ten thousand cannons firing at once, the scene was spectacular with thunderous booms. However, there were too many Zerglings, and this group of mechanical talents clearly lacked any trump cards in mechanical control, allowing many Zerglings to break through their lines. The loss of mechanical creations was significant, making several students' hearts ache with regret.

The most eye-catching was a four-person team with Electromagnetic Talents. They wore ethereal flowing robes, and behind each of them floated a light sword shimmering with electromagnetic light, giving off a sharp and piercing aura. The appearance of Eastern cultivators on a sci-fi battlefield was undeniably high-class.

"I have a sword that can move mountains, overturn seas, subdue demons, and suppress devils!" the leading student shouted loudly.

Four light swords flew out simultaneously, drawing gorgeous trajectories in the air. These light swords were clearly precisely controlled via electromagnetic force; they cooperated with each other, sometimes dispersing to attack and sometimes striking together, demonstrating exquisite coordination.

A blade storm swept through, and the Zergling swarm was instantly reduced to flying flesh and severed limbs. Unfortunately, their cool appearance didn't last three seconds; the light swords were, after all, only training supplies, and they stopped flickering after killing a few hundred Zerglings. Thousands of Zerglings swarmed forward, scaring the four Sword Immortals into turning and running.

While screaming, they threw handfuls of coins, activating Multiple Super-Electromagnetic Cannons to thin out the Zergling numbers. Although they eventually cleared the stage, their elegant robes had been turned into holey outfits.

"Next group, Sai Wei's team, enter."

Saiwei Krol led his team into the training field.

"Let's teach these bugs a lesson," he said to his teammates.

Sai Wei stood in the center of the team, his hands slowly rising. With his movements, the energy field within the training ground began to fluctuate violently. In the sky, dark clouds began to gather, and lightning flickered within the cloud layers.

"He's manipulating the weather!" someone in the viewing area exclaimed.

Sai Wei's teammates quickly deployed their formation. Two defensive talents held up energy shields in front, while the other three members began to compress the Zerglings' movement space.

The Zerglings seemed to sense the threat, emitting even sharper screeches as they lunged frantically toward Sai Wei's team.

Just then, Sai Wei's chant was complete.

"Thundercloud Storm!"

With his loud shout, the dark clouds in the sky suddenly pressed down, and countless bolts of lightning poured down like a rainstorm. Lightning leaped and exploded among the Zergling swarm, the blinding light forcing the spectating students to squint.

When the lightning dissipated, the Zerglings in that area had all been turned into charcoal.

"Clearing complete, time: three minutes and seventeen seconds," Instructor Zhou Cheng announced their result.

Warm applause rang out from the viewing area.

"Next group, Chen Jingyi and Luo Lan's team."

The two walked into the training field, and Luo Lan summoned a light combat vehicle.

"Hold on tight," Luo Lan said to Chen Jingyi, a flash of excitement in his eyes.

The vehicle's engine roared, and in the next moment, it shot out like an arrow from a bow. Luo Lan's Heavenly Drive talent was displayed to its fullest at this moment as the vehicle maneuvered nimbly through the dense Zergling swarm.

Chen Jingyi stood on the vehicle, her black hair fluttering in the wind. Her hands moved rapidly in the air, and countless tiny parts emerged and assembled around her.

Dozens of small drones took shape around Chen Jingyi, categorized into engineering drones and Attack Drones.

Immediately, the drone swarm became active. The engineering drones quickly dispersed, collecting usable materials on-site to begin manufacturing. The Attack Drones formed a three-dimensional combat network, precisely firing particle beams at marked Zerglings. As more and more drones were created, the two quickly completed the clearing.

"Clearing complete, time: four minutes and fifty-two seconds," Instructor Zhou Cheng announced their result.

"Next group, Li Yuan, Laya, and Elia's team."

The three walked into the training field. Li Yuan took a deep breath, soft white light gathering around him as a Light Guardian appeared by his side.

"Go," Li Yuan commanded softly.

The Light Guardian moved immediately. It wove nimbly through the Zergling swarm, lightly striking each Zergling with its light sword. This action caused almost no damage, but it successfully enraged the fierce creatures.

All the attacked Zerglings let out angry screeches and chased after the Light Guardian recklessly. Soon, a strange sight appeared in the training field—a Light Guardian running in front, followed by a massive, dark crowd of Zerglings.

"He's pulling aggro!" someone in the viewing area recognized the tactic.

The Light Guardian skillfully utilized the terrain, always maintaining a precarious distance from the Zerglings. It appeared to be fleeing, but in reality, it was consciously leading the Zerglings in a specific direction.

Elia stood in the center of the field, her eyes closed in concentration. Her long silver hair moved without wind, and an icy chill began to radiate from her body.

At that moment, the artificial sky in the training field suddenly darkened, and a bright moon appeared in the sky, casting soft Moonlight Power into the center of the Zergling swarm.

Immediately following...

With the Moonlight Power as the center, an icy blue ring of light expanded rapidly. Everywhere the ring passed, the Zerglings didn't even have time to scream before being instantly frozen into ice sculptures, then turning into a sky full of crystalline ice dust that scattered away.

The entire training field fell into a dead silence. The once noisy battlefield now only held drifting ice crystals and a pervasive chill.

"Clearing complete, time: one minute and forty-four seconds," Instructor Zhou Cheng's voice carried an unmistakable note of surprise.

The viewing area was pin-drop silent; everyone was stunned by the scene. This was way too easy!

Laya, who had coasted through another round, hugged Aria excitedly: "Aria is so amazing! Aria is the best!"

The pillar of Moonlight Power gradually faded, and the sky returned to normal. Aria's expression was as calm as ever; clearly, that strike just now was well within her capabilities.

Only her clothes were a bit messy—well, from being tugged by Laya.

The subsequent groups of students also completed their drills one after another, but no one else could surpass this result.

When all teams had finished the drill, Instructor Zhou Cheng began to announce the results.

"First place, Elia's team. Elia's Mass Freezing Ability is unquestionable, and Li Yuan's tactical arrangement of using a summoned creature to taunt and pull aggro was very sophisticated. The entire tactical execution was perfect, clearing with zero damage."

"Second place, Sai Wei's team. The power of Thundercloud Storm is indeed impressive, but while compressing the Zergling formation, some team members suffered minor injuries."

"Third place is a tie between the Great Fireball Sect team and Chen Jingyi's team. The Great Fireball Sect was faster, but Chen Jingyi's side cleared with zero damage."

Upon hearing the results, Sai Wei's expression turned somewhat sour. He was clearly dissatisfied with the second-place result.

"Today's drill concludes here," Instructor Zhou Cheng summarized.

Students left the training field in succession, discussing what they had seen today in small groups. Li Yuan, Laya, and Elia walked side by side, enjoying the joy of victory.

"My treat tonight," Elia said happily. "Let's go to that new dessert shop on the food street!"

"Awesome!" Laya immediately cheered.

Li Yuan couldn't help but smile at the excited look on the two girls' faces.

However, far away in a laboratory belonging to the Holy Alliance's simulation equipment supplier, a researcher in a white lab coat was staring at the data on the screen, a mysterious smile touching the corners of his mouth.

"Interesting... truly interesting..." he whispered to himself, his fingers moving rapidly over the console. "That summoned creature capable of precise aggro, and that girl who can channel Moonlight Power..."

What none of them knew, however, was that in the equipment room on the bottom floor of the training field, a Zergling that had been neurally linked was undergoing a bizarre transformation. Its body began to twist and deform, as if it were shedding some kind of disguise...