51: Chapter 51 Points System
The entire venue was dead silent.
Everyone's gaze converged on Iron Bull, who was sitting on the ground, spitting blood, his eyes unfocused. Then, they mechanically turned to Wang Pingan, who was slowly retracting his fist with a straight posture.
Shock.
Indescribable shock.
If running ten thousand meters proved he was a tough nut, then this punch proved that his bones weren't just hard—they were damn prickly and could kill!
On the high platform, Thunderstorm's fierce face was finally no longer expressionless.
A hint of an extremely playful arc curled at the corners of his mouth, and his sharp eyes flashed with the excitement of seeing excellent prey.
"The warm-up ends here."
The first week passed in hell like this. Every day, these geniuses were trained like dogs by Thunderstorm, and Wang Pingan was no exception.
The Hell Week eliminated a total of 15 geniuses from other cities.
On the eighth day, Thunderstorm stood on the high platform.
His deep voice, amplified by equipment, clearly spread across the entire venue.
"Starting today, your good days are over."
Thunderstorm surveyed the group of rookies below—some shocked, some unwilling, some fearful—his tone filled with undisguised cruelty.
"Welcome to the true mode of the Special Recruitment Camp—the Point War!"
"Here, every breath of air you take, every meal you eat, every room you live in, and every training facility you use, all need to be exchanged for one damn thing."
"Points!"
"Daily training rankings, the outcome of actual combat practice, tasks performed outside... everything can earn you points."
"Of course, it can also make you lose points."
Thunderstorm paused, his cruel smile widening.
"A friendly reminder."
"Those whose points reach zero will be directly eliminated and packed off out of this training camp."
"I don't raise trash here!"
As his voice fell, he didn't even look at the reactions of the people below, his figure flickering and disappearing directly from the high platform.
But his words exploded like a blockbuster bomb across the entire training ground.
Points!
War!
These two words instantly tightened the nerves of all the Students.
They realized that, compared to what was about to happen, the so-called Hell Week was probably just a "warm-up."
A cruel internal elimination tournament revolving around limited resources had officially begun!
Heaven Grade Room Number One.
Wang Pingan closed the twisted door, cutting off all the noise from outside.
He took off his combat suit, soaked with sweat, revealing a body with smooth lines and well-proportioned muscles.
The high-intensity sprint and battle just now didn't consume much for him.
Under the precise control of the Eye of Truth and his perfected basic skills, his blood energy consumption was always kept within a safe limit.
He walked to the control console in the center of the room and extended a finger, tapping open the "Point Exchange System" light screen that had just been activated.
Rows of dazzling exchange options appeared before his eyes.
【A-Grade Synthetic Nutrient Meal: 5 Points】
【Gravity Room Usage Permission (1 Hour): 10 Points】
【Low-Grade Spiritual Energy Crystal (1 piece): 50 Points】
【B-Grade Alloy Combat Knife (Custom): 300 Points】
Wang Pingan's gaze scanned quickly, and he roughly had a number in his mind.
The prices here were not cheap.
To maintain high-intensity training, he needed to consume at least dozens to a hundred points every day.
His fingers continued to slide down, searching for entries regarding dormitory fees. Soon, he found them.
【Yellow Grade Dormitory (8-person room): Free】
【Xuan Grade Dormitory (4-person room): 50 Points/week】
【Earth Grade Dormitory (2-person room): 200 Points/week】
His gaze finally landed on the last line, the entry belonging to his room.
【Heaven Grade Room Number One (Single room): Independent spiritual energy pipeline maintenance fee, 1000 Points/week.】
One thousand points!
Per week!
Behind that line of small text on the light screen, there was a bright red exclamation mark flashing constantly.
【Note: Settled at 12:00 midnight every Sunday. If points are insufficient, the independent spiritual energy pipeline supply will be automatically shut off until the fees are paid in full.】
Wang Pingan's pupils contracted slightly.
He glanced at his own point account in the upper right corner of the light screen.
【Student: Wang Pingan】
【Current Points: 0】
His biggest cover, the source of his confidence to walk sideways in this training camp—that pipeline that allowed him to soak in spiritual energy twenty-four hours a day—was actually not free!
And it was an astronomical price!
If he couldn't earn one thousand points within a week, he would be knocked back to his original form.
From a "god-level genius" upgrading on a rocket, he would become a "mortal" who could only struggle bitterly to snatch public training resources like ordinary Students.
Thunderstorm's move was truly ruthless.
This wasn't just pulling the firewood from under the cauldron anymore.
This was installing a time bomb directly on his engine!
Meanwhile, in a room in the Heaven Grade section.
"Bang!"
An alloy water cup was smashed fiercely against the wall, shattering into pieces.
Cold's handsome face was now somewhat hideous, distorted by anger and jealousy.
"Trash!"
"Iron Bull, that idiot! He couldn't even beat a rookie who just broke through! He's simply a good-for-nothing!"
The two lackeys beside him were trembling in fear, not daring to even breathe loudly.
Just then, the door was pushed open, and a lackey ran in hurriedly, his face filled with irrepressible excitement.
"Big Brother! Big Brother! Good news!"
"The details of the Point System have been announced!"
He handed over a data pad in his hand, which listed the rules for earning and spending points in detail.
Cold snatched the data pad and scanned it quickly with a gloomy face.
When he saw the astronomical "maintenance fee" of one thousand points per week for Heaven Grade Room Number One, the anger on his face suddenly disappeared.
Replaced by a Cold, gleeful smirk.
"One thousand points..."
"Initial points are zero..."
He muttered, the spite in his eyes gradually turning into a sinister look of someone who had everything under control.
"Hahaha... Hahahaha!"
He suddenly looked up and laughed, his laughter filled with an indescribable sense of satisfaction.
"Heaven is helping me!"
"Truly, Heaven is helping me!"
A lackey beside him carefully leaned in and asked: "Big Brother, what do you mean?"
Cold stopped laughing and tapped his finger lightly on the line of text on the data pad, his eyes looking terrifyingly Cold.
"Thunderstorm won't let us touch him openly."
"Then we will play him to death using the rules!"
He raised his head, looked at his few confidants, and said word by word.
"Pass my word down."
"Contact all the Rank 3 Students you can reach, and tell them that I, Cold, said this."
"From today on, for any team mission or actual combat practice, whoever dares to team up with that guy surnamed Wang is an enemy of us all!"
"I want to make sure he doesn't earn a single point!"
"I want to see what kind of expression he'll have a week from now when he can't pay the 'rent' and is kicked out of Heaven Grade Room Number One in disgrace!"
"I want to make him understand that in this training camp, talent is useless!"
"Connections and circles are the true way!"
Over the next few days, Wang Pingan soon discovered something was wrong.
He walked to the mission hall of the training ground, where various team missions were scrolling on the huge light screen.
"【Clear out F-Grade mutant beast lair】, three-person team, need a speed type, leaving immediately!"
The hall was bustling with noise, with temporary teams quickly forming and leaving in a hurry after accepting missions.
However, when Wang Pingan walked over and tried to join one of the teams, the captain, who was originally loudly recruiting, saw him and his enthusiasm instantly vanished, replaced by an expression of wanting to avoid him at all costs.
"Uh... Sorry, we're full."
Wang Pingan didn't say anything and turned to walk toward another team.
"Sorry, we only recruit old acquaintances."
He asked seven or eight teams in a row, and all he got were various, bizarre reasons for refusal. The way those people looked at him was exactly like avoiding a plague god.
He was isolated.
An invisible, yet airtight wall separated him from the entire Special Recruitment Camp.
He had become the only isolated island on this island.
Just then, a tall, honest-looking young man pushed through the crowd and walked up to Wang Pingan, his face showing a mix of apology and anxiety.
It was Iron Bull, whom he had defeated with one punch earlier.
"Wang... Brother Wang Pingan."
Iron Bull scratched his head and spoke somewhat embarrassedly.
"Don't mind them, these bastards are just jealous of you! It's Cold! It's him playing tricks behind our backs!"
"How about... how about we team up? I'm thick-skinned and can take a beating! You have high attack! We will definitely be fine!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a young man who had been leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, watching coldly from the sidelines, slowly walked over.
It was Cold's number one lackey.
He walked up to Iron Bull and patted his sturdy shoulder with a fake smile.
"Iron Bull, are your injuries healed?"
"Some people are not for you to make friends with."
"Don't narrow your own path in the camp for the sake of an outsider."
The threat in his words was undisguised.
Iron Bull's honest face instantly flushed red, his fists clenched until they cracked.
But looking at the other person's fearless eyes, and then at the Students around them casting unfriendly gazes, he finally forced that anger down.
He was just a martial artist specializing in combat; in terms of family background, connections, and schemes, he simply couldn't compare to someone like Cold.
Wang Pingan glanced at Iron Bull and spoke calmly.
"I appreciate your kindness."
"However, this is my own business."
After saying that, he turned and left the noisy mission hall.
Time passed day by day.
There were only three days left until the deadline for paying the "maintenance fee."
On Wang Pingan's point account, that glaring "0" still hadn't changed at all.
He stood in the empty Heaven Grade Room Number One, feeling the rich and pure spiritual energy, his eyes deep, not knowing what he was thinking.
Just then, all the scrolling mission information on the mission hall's light screen suddenly disappeared.
The next second, a brand new mission, marked in deep red, suddenly appeared at the very top of the light screen.
【Mission Type: Solo Mission (Mandatory)】
【Mission Rank: Level Three (High Risk)】
【Mission Objective: Go to the training camp restricted area—the Abandoned Mine, and recover three lost "Energy Exploration Beacons."】
【Mission Note: According to the analysis of the last transmitted signal, there is an unknown high-energy biological reaction deep in the cave.】