17: D-level contract assessment

The contract assessment was scheduled to begin at 8 AM, and Shi Li arrived at the Monster Training Ground right on time.

Before he even walked in, he saw the three-man team with the big beard standing in front of the closed gate.

"Brother Yan."

Shi Li greeted them.

He had spent a lot of time at the training field recently and had become quite familiar with these older brothers.

They had also indeed taught him some outdoor knowledge that couldn't be learned from textbooks.

"Skipping class again today?"

Brother Yan, with the big beard, smiled.

"I told you, I took a leave of absence."

"But you've come at the wrong time."

"Oh?"

Shi Li didn't know why he would say that.

"Alas, today is the day of the Show Card Hall's contract assessment, so the training field is closed off."

Silver 5, standing nearby, spread his hands.

"I really envy those guys with cultivation contracts."

"Haha, don't even think about it. To get a contract, you'd have to be at least twenty years younger."

"You think being young is enough? You also need strength!"

As the three chatted, Shi Li had already walked to the gate.

"Big brothers, I'll be going ahead now."

He waved his hand, leaving them with his back.

"Didn't I tell you, it's closed off today?"

As Silver 6 just spoke, he heard the sound of the face-recognition system at the gate.

"Card Player Shi Li, welcome."

The glass door, which was closed to them, now opened in front of Shi Li.

"Huh?"

Silver 6 was stunned on the spot.

What did this mean? It meant Shi Li was one of today's assessment participants?

Could it be that he had obtained a cultivation contract?!

"No, wait a minute!"

Silver 5 had already opened his card player system to check.

It wasn't a big deal not to look, but when he did, he was shocked.

Hovering above Shi Li's head were the shining golden words: "Gold 1."

"Big Brother, he has already surpassed you!"

Silver 5's words left the big-bearded man with only a wry smile.

Shi Li walked into the hall and arrived at the assembly point, finding that there weren't as many people waiting for the assessment as he had imagined.

Three of the city's five major Card Halls issued less than 60 cultivation contracts each year.

For the Show Card Hall, that meant only about 20 people.

A portion of these were high school seniors from previous years, and their contract assessments naturally took place at the Show Card Hall in their university's location.

So, as a result, only ten people were participating in the assessment here today.

And coincidentally, all of the cultivation contract recipients issued by the Show Card Hall in Durian City so far this year were high school seniors.

"Shi Li! Why are you here too!"

He had just stood still when an unexpected shout came from behind him.

Shi Li turned around and found it was Gong Ping.

"What a coincidence."

So he greeted him.

He had only known before that this guy was listed as a cultivation target by one of the five major Card Halls, but he hadn't expected it to be the Show Card Hall.

"I won't lose to you in this assessment. Let's compete fairly."

Gong Ping wasn't overly surprised by Shi Li's Gold 1 ranking.

What's more, he hadn't been idle these past two weeks and had successfully advanced to Gold 2.

"Alright."

Shi Li smiled.

He casually glanced around and realized that the Gold 1 rank was merely standard here.

Besides the others who were Gold 1 and Gong Ping who was Gold 2, there was also a student who was Gold 3.

She was a short-haired girl with a pretty face, but her expression clearly showed arrogance.

Although she had only recently advanced to Gold 3, as the highest-ranked assessor, she certainly had reason to be proud.

"Alright, everyone is here. I am the person in charge of your contract assessment this time. You can call me Director Hou."

At this moment, a man with a beer belly walked out.

The nine people who had participated in previous assessments immediately became respectful, as this person was a highly ranked expert in the city's Show Card Hall.

His rank surpassed the Platinum peak line, reaching Platinum 15.

"Xiang Bei, you eight are on an E-Level Contract, stand on the left.

Shi Li, Gong Ping, you two are on a D-Level Contract, stand on the right."

Director Hou glanced at the information in his hand.

"What?" xN

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's gaze immediately turned to Shi Li.

Gong Ping, being Gold 2, having a D-Level Contract was reasonable.

But why was Shi Li, who was clearly Gold 1 like them, also on a D-Level Contract?

Even Gong Ping himself felt a bit surprised.

Especially Xiang Bei, who was Gold 3 but still on an E-Level Contract, now looked at Shi Li with a competitive glint in her eyes.

Director Hou saw this scene and wasn't surprised at all.

He had presided over many contract assessments, and it was normal for competition to arise among contract holders.

After all, these youngsters were probably the top performers in their respective schools, so it was normal for them to be competitive with each other.

As long as it was healthy competition, the Card Hall would encourage it.

However, it was Shi Li, who remained calm under everyone's gaze, that caught Director Hou's attention.

Because before the assessment, Vice Curator He had specifically instructed him that this contract holder was personally chosen by Curator Xiu and should be given extra attention.

"Next, I will announce the content of the assessment."

A thought flashed through his mind, and Director Hou continued, "The assessment standard for an E-Level Contract is to hunt 10 one-star LV4 demons within 12 hours."

Upon hearing this assessment standard, the E-Level Contract holders showed no change in expression.

One-star LV4 demons were actually quite easy for them to handle.

As long as they didn't encounter a troublesome guy like the Void Rend Wolf, let alone 10, even 20 would be a piece of cake.

Compared to combat, quickly searching for demons within a limited time might actually be the more difficult task.

In reality, their goal was all to aim for a D-Level Contract.

As long as they met the assessment standard for a D-Level Contract, an E-Level Contract could be upgraded to a D-Level Contract.

Similarly, a D-Level Contract could also be upgraded further.

"The assessment standard for a D-Level Contract is to hunt 15 two-star LV1 demons within 12 hours."

This standard announced by Director Hou was what everyone was truly focused on.

The basic number of two-star demons on a card table is 4 demon cards, and each card carries at least 1 trait.

Two-star LV1 means 3 one-trait demon cards + 1 two-trait demon card, and so on.

"I know many of you want to challenge the D-Level Contract assessment, but I still want to remind you: act according to your ability."

Looking at everyone's expressions, how could he not know their thoughts: "Additionally, there is a two-star LV5 demon in the deepest part of the training field. Whoever can defeat it can directly be promoted to a C-Level Contract.

But I do not recommend you try."

"C-Level Contract?"

Sure enough, as soon as these words were thrown out, they immediately piqued everyone's interest.

But upon deeper thought, a two-star LV5 demon was indeed not something they could challenge at their current level.

Because the basic stats of two-star demons are not only higher than one-star demons, but LV5 also means that 5 demon cards will appear on the card table.

For them, who can only deploy 4 character cards, there was effectively a chasm between the two.

Only those who reached the Gold 5 rank, the peak of Gold, and gained 1 additional deployable card, would have a chance to defeat it.

"Furthermore, for those who pass this assessment, we will give certain rewards based on their ranking."

The iron gate behind Director Hou rumbled open.

"Then, from now on, the timer begins."

As his words fell, everyone rushed out, seizing every second.

Only Shi Li walked leisurely at the very back.

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