69: Chapter 69 Teammate Replacement Right: Not a Reward, But a Knife

[White Tower First Floor Reward Preview]

[Reward Name: Teammate Replacement Right]

[Description: Can replace one unstable member in the current squad with a higher-compatibility sample]

The words on the blackboard glowed quietly.

No one spoke in the old classroom.

Chen Ye, who had just been complaining about only getting three hours of sleep, was now wide awake.

He stared at the five characters for "Teammate Replacement Right" for a long time before finally blurting out:

"This reward is pretty wicked."

No one refuted him.

Because the statement was too accurate.

This so-called reward sounded like a way to reinforce the squad.

Unstable members.

Higher-compatibility samples.

Taken literally, it even sounded like a very rational optimization plan.

If someone in a team was dragging them down, replace them.

If someone wasn't in good condition, replace them with someone more stable, stronger, and more suitable.

For an ordinary combat squad, this choice might be very tempting.

But they had just seen in 104 what the so-called "team survival takes priority over individual integrity" would eventually turn into.

It would turn teammates into spare parts.

It would write off sacrifice as optimization.

It would package abandonment as a reward.

Shen Tingxue looked at the blackboard, her voice cold.

"The White Tower's first floor isn't giving us a reward."

"It's making us admit first that teammates can be replaced."

Lin Jin nodded.

"Correct."

"As long as we accept this reward, even if we don't use it for now, it's equivalent to admitting that squad members are replaceable."

Zhou Heng sneered.

"In other words, whenever it wants to replace someone, it can claim that we ourselves accepted the rules."

Chen Ye's expression grew even uglier.

"Doesn't that just mean it's handing us a blade so we can stab our own teammates later?"

Lin Jin raised the rule correction wrench but didn't use it immediately.

The wrench was slightly hot.

The Hand of Rules provided a prompt.

[Target: White Tower First Floor Reward Preview]

[Status: Not Yet Officially Effective]

[Nature: Prematurely Deployed Choice Inducement]

[Fault: Binds Squad Stability to Member Replaceability]

[Danger: If the squad admits the reward is reasonable in advance, the White Tower's first-floor difficulty will decrease, but the team's definition will be corrupted]

[Hint: Cannot be forcibly corrected at present; must handle the official reward rules after entering the White Tower]

Lin Jin recited the prompt's content.

Chen Ye was even more annoyed after hearing it.

"It really knows how to make a deal."

"Admit teammates can be replaced, and the difficulty goes down."

"Don't admit it, and it'll probably torture us to death later."

Qin Shanhe stood at the doorway, not leaving immediately.

He looked at the reward preview on the blackboard, his face grim.

"The first floor of the White Tower has always been a screening layer."

"It won't kill people right from the start."

"It first sees what you are willing to trade for clear-through efficiency."

Chen Ye asked:

"Did this reward exist before?"

Qin Shanhe shook his head.

"Not necessarily."

"The White Tower's rewards are generated based on the squad's structure."

"You just established a Mutual Verification Contract, so it gave you a reward that can dismantle that Mutual Verification Contract."

Lin Jin's eyes grew colder.

"It knows exactly what we fear the most."

Shen Tingxue looked at the Ice Key on the table.

The blue light spot inside the Ice Key pulsed gently, like a frozen heartbeat.

She whispered:

"The first-floor reward Shen Qingshuang warned about must be this."

"Do not trust the first-floor reward."

This sentence finally had a concrete meaning now.

Not all rewards were fake.

Some rewards were real.

And precisely because they were real, they were dangerous.

The Teammate Replacement Right might genuinely be able to swap in a higher-compatibility sample.

For instance, replacing Chen Ye with an A-rank Guardian Knight.

Replacing Zhou Heng with a more mature Thunder-type Barrier Breaker Position.

Replacing Shen Tingxue with Shen Qingshuang's Ice-type residual projection.

Or even, replacing Lin Jin with the maintenance remnant left behind by Lin Shoushan.

Every option might be stronger than they were now.

And more like the "perfect sample" the White Tower wanted.

Chen Ye suddenly pointed at himself.

"Let me state this first."

"If it brings out an S-rank Shield God and says it can replace me, don't you dare get tempted."

Zhou Heng glanced at him.

"You're quite self-aware."

Chen Ye glared back.

"Don't be so happy either."

"If it takes a younger version of your second uncle to replace you, can you handle that?"

Zhou Heng's face instantly darkened.

"Chen Ye."

"Did I say something wrong?"

Chen Ye spread his hands.

"You know in your heart I'm not wrong."

Zhou Heng clenched his fists. A flicker of lightning appeared, but he forcibly suppressed it again.

This time, he didn't refute.

Because Chen Ye had hit the nail on the head.

If the White Tower wanted to replace Zhou Heng, the most likely "higher-compatibility sample" it would provide was the Deputy Director Zhou Chengyue from twenty years ago.

A mature Barrier Breaker Position.

A member of the old 104 squad.

A complete sample taken away by the Department of Education.

Whether in terms of experience or compatibility, he might be stronger than the current Zhou Heng.

But in that case, Zhou Heng would be completely written off as a failed substitute for the path of Deputy Director Zhou Chengyue.

Lin Jin looked toward the blackboard.

"We can't wait until we enter the White Tower to think about this."

"At least we need to clarify this matter tonight."

Shen Tingxue asked:

"How?"

Lin Jin was silent for a moment, then walked to the blackboard.

He didn't take the rule correction wrench.

Instead, he picked up a regular piece of chalk.

Qin Shanhe saw his action, his eyes flickering slightly, but he didn't stop him.

Lin Jin wrote the first line of text below the reward preview.

[Higher compatibility does not equal the correct teammate.]

Chen Ye looked at this line, his eyes brightening.

"This is good."

Lin Jin continued writing.

[Instability does not equal replaceability.]

Shen Tingxue nodded gently.

"Stability can be trained; it shouldn't be solved by replacement."

Lin Jin wrote the third line.

[The value of a squad member is not ranked by White Tower compatibility.]

Zhou Heng stared at this line, silent for a long time.

This sentence stung him the deepest.

Because he had lived in rankings his entire life.

Professional grading.

Family resources.

Thunder Spear compatibility.

Combat ranking.

He had always believed that the strong should stand in the front.

But the truly terrifying aspect of the White Tower's rewards was that it pushed this ranking to the extreme.

Whoever was more compatible stayed.

Whoever was unstable was replaced.

In the end, what remained in the team might be the optimal samples.

But they would no longer be human.

After writing the three lines, Lin Jin put down the chalk.

"This isn't an official contract."

"It's just a preset judgment."

"When we enter the White Tower, if it tries to induce us with rewards again, we will judge based on these three rules first."

Chen Ye immediately said:

"I agree."

Shen Tingxue nodded.

"I agree."

Zhou Heng didn't speak immediately.

Qin Shanhe looked at him.

"Barrier Breaker Position, what about you?"

Zhou Heng frowned.

"Don't call me that."

Qin Shanhe said calmly:

"It's written on your chest."

Zhou Heng looked down at his badge, his expression souring further.

After a few seconds, he said coldly:

"I agree."

"But I'm adding one more."

Lin Jin stepped aside.

Zhou Heng walked to the blackboard.

He held the chalk, hesitating to write.

Something like this was harder for him than thrusting the Thunder Spear.

Finally, he gritted his teeth and wrote the fourth line.

[A person who is replaced does not equal a failed product.]

After writing this line, it was as if Zhou Heng had finally pulled a thorn out of his heart, but he became even more silent.

Chen Ye uncharacteristically didn't tease him.

Shen Tingxue looked at that line and said softly:

"This one is very important."

Because what the White Tower might truly exploit wasn't just "stronger people."

It was also the self-doubt in the hearts of those who were replaced.

As long as someone believed they weren't good enough, that they were dragging the team down, or that it was reasonable for them to be replaced, the reward rules would have gaps to exploit.

Lin Jin looked at the four lines on the blackboard.

[Higher compatibility does not equal the correct teammate.]

[Instability does not equal replaceability.]

[The value of a squad member is not ranked by White Tower compatibility.]

[A person who is replaced does not equal a failed product.]

The four lines of chalk writing didn't glow.

They held no rule-based power.

Yet, they made the oppressive atmosphere in the old classroom stabilize a little.

Qin Shanhe finally spoke:

"This is more useful than just cursing the White Tower."

Chen Ye asked:

"Director, does that mean we can pass the first floor of the White Tower?"

Qin Shanhe glanced at him.

"Keep dreaming."

Chen Ye:

"..."

Qin Shanhe walked to the podium and tapped the desk.

"You now only know what the blade looks like."

"But when the blade actually falls, it's you who will feel the pain."

"The White Tower won't directly ask you if you want to replace a teammate."

"It will show you a scene."

"It will make you feel that replacement is the right thing to do."

The classroom fell silent again.

Qin Shanhe looked at Chen Ye.

"It might make you see Lin Jin dying behind you because you couldn't block an attack."

The smile on Chen Ye's face faded bit by bit.

Qin Shanhe looked at Zhou Heng.

"It might make you see the entire squad being reclaimed by Number Nine because you were too slow in breaking the barrier."

Zhou Heng's gaze darkened.

Qin Shanhe looked at Shen Tingxue.

"It might make you see Shen Qingshuang right in front of you, but your teammates cause you to miss her."

Shen Tingxue's fingers holding the Ice Key tightened slightly.

Finally, Qin Shanhe looked at Lin Jin.

"It might also make you see your father's residual consciousness just one step away from being saved."

"But the price is replacing a teammate who is slowing you down."

Lin Jin didn't speak.

This kind of inducement is what's truly dangerous.

Because it won't force you with fake malice.

It will use what you want most to force you to make a decision that seems reasonable.

Chen Ye whispered:

"Then this first floor is just specifically designed to stab us in the heart?"

Qin Shanhe nodded.

"The White Tower has always screened people this way."

"A squad that can be torn apart by a reward isn't qualified to enter the second floor."

Zhou Heng said coldly:

"Then did the last batch back then pass?"

Qin Shanhe was silent for a moment.

"They passed."

When these two words fell, everyone looked at him.

Qin Shanhe said slowly:

"Lin Shoushan's squad entered the White Tower."

"And they at least passed the first floor."

Shen Tingxue's eyes moved.

"Was Shen Qingshuang there too?"

"Yes."

Qin Shanhe looked at the Ice Key on the table.

"The Ice Key in your hand must be the one she left behind in the White Tower back then."

Lin Jin asked:

"Was the first-floor reward also the Teammate Replacement Right?"

Qin Shanhe shook his head.

"I don't know."

"The White Tower records were sealed by the Department of Education."

"I only know that after they came out, there was a serious conflict among the team members."

Zhou Heng looked at him.

"Does it have to do with Deputy Director Zhou Chengyue?"

Qin Shanhe didn't deny it.

"Very likely."

At this, Zhou Heng's expression looked even worse.

The White Tower, 104, Deputy Director Zhou Chengyue, Shen Qingshuang, Lin Shoushan.

These names and locations were like an old web, entangling their generation twenty years later.

Lin Jin copied the four points from the blackboard into his notebook.

"Tomorrow's training will revolve around these four points."

Qin Shanhe nodded.

"I will have Teacher Xu Wenzhou prepare a White Tower first-floor simulation."

Chen Ye's expression changed.

"Teacher Xu still has to teach?"

"He is the Homeroom Teacher."

"Temporarily."

"Even if it's temporary, he still has to work."

After finishing, Qin Shanhe turned and walked out.

"Sleep now."

"Three hours, don't miss a single minute."

Upon hearing he could finally sleep, Chen Ye immediately slumped onto the desk.

"I declare that the Protection Position is entering low-power mode."

Zhou Heng looked at him with disgust.

"Can you act a bit more like a combat professional?"

Chen Ye replied with his eyes closed:

"Sleeping the moment you can is exactly what a combat professional looks like."

Shen Tingxue didn't slump down.

She leaned by the window, holding the Ice Key, closing her eyes to rest.

Zhou Heng sat in his seat, staring blankly at the badge on his chest.

Lin Jin placed the rule correction wrench on the table and covered it with his jacket.

He had intended to close his eyes too.

But just as he did, the Hand of Rules suddenly displayed a prompt.

[Detected residual changes in the White Tower first-floor reward preview]

[Teammate Replacement Right candidate samples are being generated]

[Currently generated candidate one: Youth projection of Deputy Director Zhou Chengyue]

[Currently generated candidate two: Frozen projection of Shen Qingshuang]

[Currently generated candidate three: Unknown S-rank protection sample]

[Currently generated candidate four: Maintenance remnant of Lin Shoushan]

Lin Jin opened his eyes sharply.

The chalk on the table rolled by itself.

Without anyone writing, a line of small text slowly appeared at the very bottom of the blackboard.

[White Tower first-floor question pre-loading complete]

[Please select one person from the four candidate samples to replace your current teammate.]