41: Chapter 41 Newcomer Ranking Battle

The Black Well Outer Ring had been noisy since before dawn.

Eight black silver mirror platforms hung above the freshman area; once the mirror faces opened, the entire Zhuixing Divine Academy—plazas, corridors, and dormitory walls—could see the ranking battle light screens.

Today was the first round of the Freshman League, broadcast live to the entire academy via public planes.

Whoever performed well would see their name climb.

The rules shone blindingly in the center of the light screen.

[Freshman Ranking Battle]

[Scoring: Victory/Defeat, Point Capture, Battle Damage, Battlefield Value]

[Top Ten: Eligible for Academy Team Preliminary Screening]

[First Round Matchup]

[Black Well Class: Lu Jin]

[Class A Sponsored Top Seed: Zhou Jibai]

"The Black Well Class runs into the sponsored top seed right out of the gate; the academy really knows how to pick a spectacle."

"Zhou Jibai's heavy transport line is very stable for frontal assaults; if Lu Jin still thinks he can find gaps to drill through, he's going to die a miserable death this match."

"There aren't that many deep holes to hide in on a public plane."

The crowd buzzed, their words growing harsher by the minute.

Zhou Jibai arrived with great fanfare.

He wore a short gold cape on his shoulders, his sponsorship badge shining blindingly on his chest, followed by four magnetic cable constructs.

These were constructs specifically designed for placing metal traction cables; with a lift of an arm, they could pull iron carts, shields, and broken rails all at once.

Two silver-plated pack tiger machines stood behind him, thick and sturdy, their hooves striking the ground like drumbeats.

Beside him followed eight freshmen holding hook cables, all with bright armor and steady boots, clearly aiming for a frontal crush.

He looked at Lu Jin from across half a corridor and smiled.

"Last time in the transport battle, the terrain was rotten and the transport corridors were old, which is why you had a place to bite; today, I'll accompany you to fight cleanly."

Lu Jin stood by the Black Well railing, his expression calm.

"When you talk too much, your carts usually don't survive."

Zhou Jibai's smile paused for a moment, then turned colder.

"The ranking battle looks at the total score; even if you trade your life for a win, you won't make the top ten."

"Then let's see who loses points today."

Before the gong sounded, Lu Jin had already sunk his divine consciousness into the Dead Ash Mine.

In the Breeding Cave, the pale white incubation pool rose and fell gently, like a lung that had just awakened.

The White-Bellied Mother Rat lay by the pool, the white markings on its belly brightening and dimming.

That incubation crystal core was still beating—thump, thump—knocking into the strata with every beat.

The pale white shadow curled at the bottom of the pool didn't open its eyes, but it kept eating heat, eating fungus, and eating material.

This pool had just opened; it knew only how to swallow, not how to spit.

Lu Jin glanced at the grey fire fungus and iron sand piled on the outer layer and gave the order directly.

"Seal half the Breeding Cave."

"The White-Bellied Mother Rat stays put, the crystal core stays put, the incubation pool only gets fed basic heat material today."

"Grey Pupil, keep three parts of your consciousness by the pool; whoever dares to touch it, kill them on the spot."

Grey Pupil knelt on one knee, its ritual staff held horizontally in front of it.

"As you command."

It rose and left, pointing at twenty Red-Eyed Rats from the ritual guard column to stand guard on the outer circle of the Breeding Cave.

These Red-Eyed Rats had red in their eyes and the fiercest teeth, originally the hardest to suppress.

Now, trained row by row by Grey Pupil, they had begun to understand what it meant to hold a position and what it meant to follow orders.

With a raise of its claw, the ritual guard column immediately split into two rows: the front row crouched by the pool, the back row guarded the feed trough; no one scrambled inward.

Lu Jin looked at the battle array again.

Two Black Shield Bone Carriages were parked under the new wall, the wind-guiding wheel buckles on the outer edge of the wheels still carrying a cold light.

The shield surfaces had been patched, and grey gold fragments were pressed into the bone seams.

Six Fire Oil Throwers stood behind the carriages with triple fire troughs on their backs, twelve Ambush Rats lay prone in the shadows, ten Tunneling Rats ground their claws, and eight Cart-pulling Rats bit the bone ropes without letting go.

This was the main force he could bring onto the public plane today.

The incubation pool could not be drained, and the Breeding Cave could not be empty.

To win, he had to win cleanly.

"Take a section of the inner wall shadow."

Lu Jin raised his hand and pressed the Furnace Cave wall map into the battle array token.

As the new wall lit up, the black iron patterns on the edge of the mine slowly contracted, finally condensing into three short wall phantoms that sank into his Sea of Consciousness.

The wall shadows were not long—not enough to surround a city—but on the public plane, they were enough to cut off paths, block vision, and find landing points for the bone carriages.

The rat swarm by the well lowered their heads in unison.

The faith line pressed in, heavier and steadier than in the previous matches.

"Guard the pool and wait for my return," Lu Jin's voice was very low, "Today's match will get you enough rations to raise the next litter."

A swirl of white light from the Divine Gate cast the entire battle group directly onto the public plane.

The map was called Broken Rail Slope.

Simply put, it was a battlefield cut open by abandoned transport rails.

In the middle was a high slope with the main flag point standing on top, and on both sides were piles of broken rails and semi-collapsed cargo platforms.

The surface was open enough, and there were shallow seams underground—enough to drill into, but not deep enough to hide.

With eight live broadcast mirror platforms pressing down from the sky, even the cracks on the bone carriage wheels could be seen clearly.

The entire academy erupted in an uproar.

"Lu Jin actually pushed the rat carriages onto the public plane!"

"He still wants to use bone carriages to fight the ranking battle?"

"Zhou Jibai has a proper sponsored transport line—frontally thick enough, traction strong enough; how can the Black Well Class block that?"

On the other side, the white light dispersed, and Zhou Jibai's lineup landed.

Two silver-plated pack tiger machines pressed the front row, four magnetic cable constructs stood on the central axis, and eight freshmen holding hook cables divided into two wings, with two magnetic levitation transport carts following behind.

They were transport carts, but the fronts were fitted with battering rams and locking nets, clearly meant for charging the formation.

The referee's voice pressed down from high above.

"One main flag point, two side flag points."

"Battle damage counts toward the total score."

"Begin!"

As soon as the gong sounded, Zhou Jibai moved first.

"Constructs, lift cables! Pack tiger machines, press the center!"

The four magnetic cable constructs raised their arms simultaneously.

The silver traction cables flew through the air, first hooking and shattering the rails, then dragging and breaking the beams; all the metal wreckage on the central slope was brought to life by his pulling.

The two pack tiger machines stepped onto the cleared slope path and charged, the locking nets dragging behind them, and the eight-yard hook cable users pressed up behind, their momentum as immense as a running wall.

The public plane feared this kind of thing the most.

Steady, upright, hard.

Lu Jin didn't retreat even half a step.

"Left carriage, block the slope entrance; right carriage, take the diagonal rail."

"Tunneling Rats, dig shallow seams; only open them three inches, don't be greedy for depth."

"Fire Oil Throwers, don't hit the people; burn the rails first."

As the orders pressed down, the two Black Shield Bone Carriages pushed out, one left and one right.

The eight Cart-pulling Rats exerted force against the ground, the bone ropes tightened, and the wheels rolled forward, biting into the broken rails.

The ten Tunneling Rats dug frantically along both sides of the slope foot; what they opened weren't holes that could hide people, but shallow seams three inches deep, specifically used to catch hooves, trap wheels, and bury fire lines.

Four Fire Oil Throwers knelt halfway and swung their arms.

The grey-red fire bladders didn't hit the pack tiger machines but smashed into those old rails on the central slope that had been brought to life by the constructs.

Once the fire touched the iron, it drilled along the cracks.

The originally dry broken rails rattled as they were burned by the fire; thermal expansion and contraction caused the buckles to snap open section by section.

Zhou Jibai's eyes darkened.

"Pull them apart!"

The magnetic cable constructs exerted force suddenly, the silver cables tautened, wanting to tear those two bone carriages apart directly.

The bone carriages moved, but they didn't fall into chaos.

The three sections of inner wall shadow in Lu Jin's Sea of Consciousness slammed down simultaneously.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Three sections of half-person-high black walls protruded from the slope, wedged right behind the two bone carriages.

Once the walls appeared, the bone carriages had a root, so to speak; this tug by the magnetic cable constructs didn't tear the carriages apart; instead, it caused the constructs to stumble on their front legs.

The spectator stands were filled with gasps.

"What is that?"

"Wall map projection! Lu Jin brought the walls from his Divine Domain out!"

Zhou Jibai also froze for half a breath.

That was exactly the half-breath he was waiting for.

"Grey Pupil, cut the center."

Grey Pupil darted out from behind the left wall, its ritual staff smashing toward the knee of the foremost magnetic cable construct.

Two Ambush Rats drilled in along the shadow of the staff, biting specifically at the joints of its leg discs.

The construct's thick armor was hard, but the wheel seams in the joints were just enough for the rat teeth to wedge into.

With a click, the left leg of the foremost construct tilted, and the entire traction line immediately veered off course.

The two pack tiger machines had already rushed to the middle of the slope; as their front hooves landed, the fire lines in those three-inch shallow seams under their feet lit up simultaneously.

The fire wasn't big, but the position was poisonous, pressing right into the seams where they landed their hooves.

The first pack tiger machine stepped into empty air, the second was dragged askew by it, and the entire row of locking nets instantly turned into a mess.

"Charge through!" Zhou Jibai shouted sharply.

The eight hook cable users beside him raised their wrists in unison, and black hook cables flew out with a whoosh, hooking everything—bone carriage wheels, Cart-pulling Rats, and the edges of the wall shadows.

He wanted to drag them hard, to tear apart Lu Jin's framework of cutting the terrain.

Lu Jin stood at the back, his gaze very calm.

"Right carriage, release the rope."

The bone carriage on the right suddenly unloaded its force, sliding down half a section along the diagonal rail.

The eight Cart-pulling Rats immediately changed positions, instantly letting the bone rope that had been pulled taut go slack.

The hook cable users on the opposite side used too much force; the three in the front row were dragged forward and lunged.

Grey Pupil took the opportunity to rush up, striking the chest of the foremost person with its staff, hitting him until he groaned and knelt down.

Two Ambush Rats pounced on his wrist, biting right at the tendons.

The second round of fire oil had already arrived.

This time, it smashed into the joints where the pack tiger machines' front legs met the locking nets.

The grey-red fire lines darted along the silver-patterned locking nets, burning until the entire net shook wildly like a crazed snake.

The two transport beasts roared in pain and could no longer maintain their formation, veering toward the left slope while carrying the magnetic levitation transport cart behind them.

That was exactly where the second row of shallow seams dug by the Tunneling Rats was buried; once the wheels sank, half the cart body went horizontal.

Zhou Jibai's expression finally changed.

He pressed his palm down, lighting up the sponsorship badge on his chest, and a circle of gold-white traction patterns exploded beneath his feet.

All the ironware, broken rails, locking nets, and hook cables on the entire central slope were shaken by the traction; even the shield surface of Lu Jin's left bone carriage was jerked outward.

This was the sponsorship divine art.

Simply put, it was traction reinforcement stacked with money; once activated, as long as there was iron and cables on the battlefield, everything could potentially become his hand.

The live broadcast mirror platforms pressed this scene with extreme clarity; the entire academy seemed to hold its breath.

"Zhou Jibai activated the real thing!"

"Lu Jin is going to be counter-dragged this wave!"

Lu Jin's eyes, however, turned colder.

This was what he was waiting for.

"Ritual basins, press the energy path."

Two Fire Oil Throwers carrying ritual basins swung their arms simultaneously, smashing the grey fire ritual basins into the seams of the oldest section of track on the central slope.

That was an old energy path buried under this map; usually, no one dared to touch it, as it might explode upon contact.

With Zhou Jibai's traction pattern activated, all the power was pressed onto this path; once the fire basins landed, it was equivalent to someone taking a nail and driving it heavily into its most fragile point.

Boom!

The entire slope surface flashed with chaotic white patterns.

The broken rails that had been brought to life lost control first; the four magnetic cable constructs had the ground under their feet go empty; two knelt directly into the cracks, and the other two were whipped and thrown about by the silver cables that recoiled.

The magnetic levitation transport cart that had gone horizontal on the left slope fared even worse; its chassis was pierced by the white patterns, the front of the cart was lifted entirely, and the locking nets and metal boxes pressed on the cart rolled all over the ground.

Lu Jin didn't look anywhere else.

"Main flag point!"

Two Black Shield Bone Carriages pressed up the central slope, one in front and one behind.

The Fire Oil Throwers swung their arms continuously under the cover of the wall shadows, forcing away all the remaining hook cable users of Zhou Jibai.

Grey Pupil carried its staff and walked the middle path, rushing upward while stepping on broken rails and silver cables; whoever dared to block, it hit their knees or smashed their hands.

The Cart-pulling Rats bit the bone ropes to jam the slope entrance, dragging the one pack tiger machine that could still move and holding it dead in place.

Zhou Jibai gritted his teeth and charged up himself.

He raised his hand to grab a piece of the wildly flailing silver cable, used the force to spring up, and stepped his toes on the broken rails, pouncing straight toward the main flag point.

Before he even arrived, a hook cable had already been swung toward the flagpole.

He wanted to grab the final moment; as long as the main flag point lit up first, even if the frontal area hadn't been fully occupied, the score for this match wouldn't be lost too miserably.

Lu Jin looked at him and raised his hand, saying only two words.

"Watch your feet."

Zhou Jibai's heart sank.

But he was already too late.

The ground under the flagpole looked flat, but underneath, it was full of shallow shells that the Tunneling Rats had just hollowed out.

The shells weren't deep, just enough to let a person collapse half an inch the moment they stepped on it; half an inch—it didn't count for much usually, but it was fatal when grabbing the flag.

Click.

Zhou Jibai's feet sank, and the hook cable he swung out immediately veered off course.

Grey Pupil collided from the side, its ritual staff sweeping horizontally, hitting the sponsorship badge on his chest dead center.

Snap!

The badge cracked.

Zhou Jibai was knocked back three steps by this staff strike, a sweetness rising in his throat, his face a frightening shade of pale.

Two Ambush Rats had already pounced to his legs, biting not deeply, but specifically at the points where he was unloading force, making it impossible for him to unleash a second round of traction for a while.

The main flag point high in the sky lit up with a boom.

[Main Flag Point: Lu Jin]

Two lights on the side followed and jumped out.

The Fire Oil Bone Carriages blocked the broken rails on the left, and the Cart-pulling Rats and Tunneling Rats had long since occupied the side flag point there too.

The group of constructs on Zhou Jibai's right side still wanted to struggle, but they were rolled up by the disrupted old energy path and thrown directly into the waste rail ditch.

The score light pillar shot straight to the sky.

[Lu Jin: +31 match points]

[Zhou Jibai: -9 match points]

[Current Real-time Ranking Change]

[Lu Jin: 11th → 8th]

The entire plaza went quiet, then exploded.

"Eighth? He broke into the top ten in one match?"

"Zhou Jibai was beaten like this?"

"That set from the Black Well Class can really be brought onto the public plane to fight!"

"Walls, carriages, fire, rats... if this set of things really takes shape, the ranking battle is going to have problems."

Zhou Jibai stood under the main flag point, his chest heaving violently, staring dead at Lu Jin, his eyes looking like he wanted to bite him down.

He wasn't someone who couldn't afford to lose, but he had been overturned in front of the entire academy, and it was in his most stable frontal line.

Lu Jin, however, didn't look at him again, just lowered his head to glance at the battle damage.

Two Ambush Rats didn't get up, one Cart-pulling Rat had its spine crushed by a construct, two Fire Oil Throwers had their arms burned and cracked, and the shield surface of the left bone carriage had a corner broken off.

He won.

The injuries weren't light, but they were still within the range he could swallow; this was the most valuable thing in the ranking battle.

When the referee's voice fell, Ning Yanqiu was standing by the high-level observation gallery.

A Frost Crow was perched on her shoulder; she didn't speak, just looked at the three sections of black wall standing on the slope and the patch of shallow collapsed earth under the main flag point, the light in her eyes very calm.

Instructor Wu Heng was there too.

He leaned against the black railing, his black iron prosthetic finger tapping the railing lightly, as if keeping count for something.

"Once this match finishes broadcasting, the number of people watching him will double."

The instructor beside him said in a low voice, "The public battle method is exposed too much."

Instructor Wu Heng smiled.

"The more it's exposed, the more valuable it is to survive."

When the white light of the repository rolled them back to the Black Well, it was already dark.

The people of the Black Well Class almost flipped the reception room; Shi Jiukui roared until his face was red, Zhong Xiaoqi was laughing while holding the beehive, and even Duan Chenzhou's face, which was usually sullen, had relaxed.

Some were shouting "Eighth," some were shouting "Top Ten," and others were already digging through the light screen of the weekly ranking and the league ranking.

Lu Jin only simply treated his injuries and turned to walk toward the resource warehouse.

The ranking battle was won, and what was distributed wasn't empty numbers; star-patterned bricks, stability fluid, incubation nest powder, and repair paste would all enter the warehouse directly.

The incubation pool had just opened; this batch of materials today could sustain the entire pool to eat for a few more rounds.

Walking to the warehouse door, his footsteps suddenly stopped.

The door lock was still hanging.

The seal was also there.

But there was a hint of a very faint sweetness in the air.

Like inferior growth-promoting powder mixed into metal dust, sweet to the point of being cloying, even a bit choking if smelled for too long.

Lu Jin's eyes turned cold bit by bit, and he raised his hand to press the warehouse door open.

In the darkness, a row of resource boxes was piled up quietly.

The lid of the box containing the incubation nest powder, however, was slightly raised, leaving a crack.