Chapter 195 Overall Growth, Two Major Skills

With the success of the first player, the atmosphere in the square was completely ignited.

"I did it! My Spirit Guarding Incantation lit up!"

"Look at my Soul-Shaking Roar! It's weak, but it works!"

"Hahaha, so this is how you guide spirit! I get it, I completely understand now!"

Cheers erupted one after another from all directions of the square.

Those players whose intelligence was already a cut above the rest saw their Learning speed become incredibly fast under the 80% boost.

This group quickly mastered the knack and even began trying to condense their Spirit Shields more stably.

Meanwhile, the ordinary players who originally thought learning skills was a pipe dream, although they hadn't grasped the essentials yet, were far more efficient than before.

Of course, there were still many dull players who remained unable to comprehend anything.

Su Ze stood on the high platform, quietly watching it all.

He felt a sense of joy in his heart.

He hadn't expected his side could actually use this near-cheating method to allow more players to gain greater strength.

Compared to the "Survival of the Fittest" Halo of the Taoyuan Residential Area,

their Halo's buff effect was simple and crude: as long as enough people died, those who survived would become stronger.

His own "All Hearts as One," however, had many more restrictions.

It required all players to gather together,

and it also required a common enemy target to officially take effect.

So thinking about it this way, it seemed reasonable.

High risk, high reward; high difficulty naturally deserves high returns. Unlike the Survival of the Fittest Halo which has a time limit, the fact that their own Halo doesn't is its greatest advantage!

Time passed minute by minute.

From afternoon to dusk, and then until night fell.

Except for necessary eating and resting, the learning craze across the square never stopped.

Low roars rose and fell, and one by one, pale white Spirit Shields—though still unstable—lit up around the players.

Although most people's execution was still crude and their success rate wasn't 100%,

there was no doubt that the majority of players at Jinghai University had gained a preliminary mastery of these two key skills for fighting Supernatural Entities.

Su Ze was quite satisfied with this.

He stepped forward, his voice spreading throughout the square.

"Alright, today's collective training ends here."

"Everyone, return to your Dormitory, get some good rest, and recharge your energy."

"Yes! Boss!"

A response like a mountain tsunami rang out.

The players, filled with exhaustion and the excitement of mastering new skills, returned to their respective dormitories in an orderly fashion, like a receding tide.

...

At the same time.

On the top floor of the Global Financial Center, several kilometers away from Jinghai University.

In front of a massive floor-to-ceiling window, five men watched the lights go out at the distant Jinghai University and fell into a long silence.

Tens of thousands of people had gathered on that open ground from the afternoon until late at night; such a large-scale operation was hard not to notice.

"What... are they actually doing?"

Finally, the elegant-looking old man spoke first, breaking the silence.

"The distance is too great to see the specific details. But looking at that formation, it doesn't look like they're preparing for war; it looks more like... they're performing some kind of collective learning or ritual."

The old man's words made the others frown deeply.

"Learning?" The burly man with a buzz cut looked puzzled. "Tens of thousands of people gathered together to learn? Learn what?"

"It probably isn't anything good."

A frail young man wearing black-rimmed glasses tapped his fingertips lightly against the glass, making a 'da-da' sound.

"I have a hunch that when we see this group again, they'll be even harder to deal with than they were this afternoon."

"That might not necessarily be a bad thing." A decadent man with a face full of stubble yawned. "They made such a big scene today but had no intention of coming over to 'greet' us. It might mean they temporarily consider us neighbors who mind their own business."

"Neighbors?" The leading Middle-aged man snorted coldly, turning around to sit back at the head of the round table.

"Don't be so naive. One mountain cannot hold two tigers; this truth applies just as well in the apocalypse."

He looked around at everyone, his voice steady.

“The opponent's strength is extraordinary. That leader's individual combat power is ridiculously high.”

“If they really attack, with our current defensive forces, we won't be able to organize an effective counterattack; we'll just be sitting ducks.”

“I really don't get it. How did they manage to make their individual strength so powerful?” The glasses-wearing youth also walked back, his face full of confusion.

“I don't know.”

The Middle-aged man shook his head.

“But our paths are different. They follow the path of individual heroes, while we follow the path of collective production and technological dominance.”

“Don't forget, our resources are the most abundant. We have complete production lines and top-tier scientific research talent. That's something they can't match.”

“I'm just afraid that before our production lines can show their true power, we'll be directly annexed by the opponent's absolute force.” The last man sighed. “When that time comes, everything we're proud of will just become a gift for someone else.”

These words struck a chord with everyone.

The Middle-aged man tapped the tabletop heavily, his gaze becoming sharp.

“Therefore, we must speed up even more!”

“Pass down my order: tell Professor Qin and the others to drop all secondary projects and concentrate all resources. Those core projects must be on the production line before the next round of the game starts!!”

“Understood!”

Everyone nodded one after another, their faces showing a touch of determination.

Just then, a cold mechanical voice

resounded in the minds of all players, including Su Ze.

【Midnight has arrived. Two days remain in the Respite Period.】

【Note: New monsters will not spawn during the nights of the Respite Period, but all uncleared monsters within the area will awaken from their dormant state.】

The moment the words fell.

"Roar—"

"Heh heh..."

In every corner of the Jinghai University campus, those zombies that had been as still as statues during the day snapped their grayish-white eyes open. Roars rose and fell, piercing the quiet night sky.

Almost at the same moment, another series of much more pleasant notification tones sounded in Su Ze's mind.

[Ding! Congratulations, host, on obtaining today's free attribute points +2!]

[Ding! Congratulations, host, on obtaining today's intelligence *3!]

[Ding! Congratulations, your Dormitory has received today's refreshed supplies...]