Chapter Forty-Three: The Strong Are Unafraid of Adversity

So ruthless!

Many people secretly drew in a breath. In a live combat trial involving tens of thousands, having a few dozen contestants withdraw would normally be insignificant. Yet for twenty to quit so soon after the start—and half of them because of a single person, Lin Qingyun—if this wasn’t ruthlessness, what was?

“Who hasn’t withdrawn yet?”

At that moment, someone couldn’t help but ask. The staff had just recorded everything in detail. Before encountering Song Yichen and the three others, seven had already quit. Counting Song Yichen and his group made four, so there should have been eleven in total.

“Song Yichen hasn’t withdrawn.”

Upon hearing this, the staff immediately brought up a side screen. There, Song Yichen—clearly burned—was scrambling around on the ground, utterly unconcerned with his appearance, searching for something.

The camera zoomed in. Song Yichen was muttering to himself at the very spot where he’d failed to burrow into the earth, examining the patch of sand scorched and fused by fire.

“Alright, so that’s how it is. I lost fair and square…” His words were slurred and his mouth was full of blood, but this man was as tough as they came, utterly unfazed.

After his research, he got up, glanced around, and then suddenly dashed toward a patch of cacti.

With a swish, countless spines shot toward him, but just as they were about to reach him, he vanished.

In the next instant, numerous cacti exploded, earth churning beneath them. Though these cacti possessed some spiritual nature, they hadn’t gained true intelligence and couldn’t move. As more than a dozen burst, Song Yichen emerged from the ground, wrapped in their roots.

He checked his bearings and continued sprinting toward the abandoned city.

“Well done…” The vice-chancellor of Ningchuan University couldn’t help but clench his fist and cheer.

Failure was nothing to be ashamed of; only those who persevered could go further.

“He really shows promise. You’ve all seen it: despite being injured, Song Yichen presses on. Lin Qingyun didn’t deal them any lasting harm. Call it humiliation if you want, but it’s also fair to call it tempering. In fact, I believe Lin Qingyun intends to hone them. Look at Song Yichen—if he can turn shame into motivation, his future will be bright.”

“As for those who withdrew just because their clothes were burned off or they suffered minor injuries, do you really think they deserve our sympathy? Look at them—didn’t they bring it on themselves? We’ve all faced life-and-death battles; compared to fighting for our lives, this is nothing. If this is all it takes to make them quit, then clearly they need more tempering.”

As the vice-chancellor finished praising Song Yichen, many nodded in agreement.

If there hadn’t been this comparison, people might have accused Lin Qingyun of excessive humiliation. But with Song Yichen as a counterpoint, it was clear the injuries weren’t enough to affect combat ability.

The issue of clothing was hardly worth mentioning—only these fresh graduates would care so much. In real life-and-death combat, especially against monsters, such things were trivial.

“Report: five more have withdrawn; an entire team from Haicheng University’s Combat Department was forced out by Lin Qingyun…”

Before Nan Yutong could finish her praise, another report came in, and the screen was switched back to Lin Qingyun.

This time, because Lin Qingyun had taken out a five-person team from Haicheng University—and they had gone in as a group—a ripple of schadenfreude spread among the audience.

Just moments ago, Nan Yutong had been defending Lin Qingyun, but now her expression was ashen. If Lin Qingyun were in front of her, she’d probably give him a good beating.

This brat—here she was, speaking for him, and he was making her look foolish.

And those people from Haicheng University—what were they thinking? Nan Yutong glanced at Nangong Aoshi, the “Desert Wind King,” clad in golden armor.

The situation with Nangong Lingyue had clearly impacted Haicheng University. So many students going after Lin Qingyun over that matter—even during the freshman combat trial—was infuriating.

Only now did Nan Yutong realize that the school’s management had lapsed recently. It was one thing for students to gossip, but to run into someone this ruthless? Normally, even a fourth- or fifth-stage Heart of the Zither cultivator would be hemmed in and overwhelmed when targeted by so many, but no one expected things to unfold like this.

Within the abandoned city, Lin Qingyun was venturing deeper. He hadn’t hunted sandworms or monsters much; instead, he was dealing with the new students who came looking for trouble.

Glancing at his wristband, Lin Qingyun knew he’d already attracted the higher-ups’ attention by dealing with so many newcomers.

That was why he restrained himself—if he went too far, he might have to leave before the trial was over.

Given the circumstances, he was in the right.

Now that he knew he was under surveillance, Lin Qingyun acted with extreme caution. Doing things under a microscope required thoroughness.

When he had nothing else to do, Lin Qingyun would pop a pill—small doses, really just like eating candy.

He soon reached the tallest building in the area. From there, he could survey nearly eight miles around. After a rough assessment, he confirmed his destination lay in the city’s southeast—the very place he’d told Chao-ge and Chu Qing to avoid.

With several days left, it wasn’t time to go there yet; he’d hunt some monsters first.

The deeper zones likely contained formidable monsters set by the organizers—some as strong as seventh- or eighth-stage Heart of the Zither cultivators, meant as challenges for the truly powerful or for those who could coordinate as teams.

He could find one to take on alone, enjoying some peace and quiet—and if he ran into more Haicheng University troublemakers, all the better.

That area was likely Haicheng University’s main entry point.

While Lin Qingyun drew the command center’s full attention, Nangong Lingyue—wearing a mask and a sleek bodysuit—was entering the abandoned city from another direction.

Unlike Lin Qingyun, she didn’t waste time and plunged quickly into the city’s depths.

Suddenly, a volley of poisoned stingers burst forth—dozens of giant scorpions appeared, led by a clear Scorpion King, besieging Nangong Lingyue.

Chilling air swirled around her as she unleashed her weapons—two scimitars spinning so fast they blurred. Under her command, the high-grade magical weapons unleashed terrifying power.

With wind magic augmenting her strikes, she cut down the scorpions one by one.

But the Scorpion King was no pushover—its body had mutated a second time, and even her high-grade weapons could only injure, not kill, it in one blow.

Elsewhere, in a different direction, a bald, muscle-bound man wielding a staff was growing to over two and a half meters tall, smashing through giant sandworms like a humanoid beast.

And in yet another spot, a young Taoist in robes brandished a Bagua Mirror. With each flash of light from the mirror, beams shot forth—any monster short of a high-stage Heart of the Zither rank was reduced to ashes.

Haicheng University had two such talents; among the hundreds of other universities, there were two or three as well, all quickly slaying powerful monsters.

Compared to them, Zheng Haoyue—who had previously thrived at Haicheng University—was much more cautious.

He now had a full team at his side, including Mao Yiqiang and over a dozen others, forming a squad nearly twenty strong.

“In the combat trial, both individual and team combat are assessed. I’ve analyzed it: the rewards for solo hunting lesser monsters don’t compare to the bounty for taking down one of those monsters on par with a seventh- or eighth-stage Heart of the Zither cultivator.”

“Any monster strong enough to be a second-tier Beast King will be surrounded by countless others. No one can take one down alone—we need to join forces, so everyone can share in the rewards.”

Ahead, they were clearing lesser monsters. Though there were many, their numbers made it easy. Zheng Haoyue himself, and several other third-stage cultivators, didn’t even bother to step in.

While the others fought, Zheng Haoyue was busy motivating and indoctrinating his team.

Just as he said, toiling over minor monsters was pointless compared to bringing down a Beast King.

Every combat trial had a few Beast Kings comparable to seventh- or eighth-stage cultivators. Those who managed to kill them always ranked near the top for their war zone—and had a shot at the national top twenty.

Zheng Haoyue was realistic—every year, only the monstrous prodigies could solo such a feat. He’d studied their records; they were out of his reach.

So, he’d rely on numbers—lead a team, organize them to hunt as a group, and claim the final credit for himself.

In this way, he could still reap rich rewards.

“Send the signal…” After advancing into another area, Zheng Haoyue nodded to Mao Yiqiang.

He was gathering more people, seeking to dominate an entire region. Once his numbers swelled, he’d have his team drive out other freshmen from the trial.

He wouldn’t dirty his own hands—not even a little. He wanted to be a leader, a figurehead.

Each war zone always had a few who broke through the perimeter and began hunting Beast Kings on the first day—they drew special attention. Those like Zheng Haoyue, who could organize a proper team, were also watched closely.

But at this moment in the command center, although occasional reports came from other zones, nobody paid attention.

Because Lin Qingyun was running into wave after wave of challengers—some of them had insulted him on the transport plane, and he dealt with them just as swiftly, forcing them out of the trial.

There were also those who fancied themselves “Moonshadow fans,” or wanted to claim outside bounties—anyone who attacked him was promptly eliminated.

In the command center—

“Twenty-three… twenty-six now…”

“Here come two more… What are these people thinking? Didn’t they know about Lin Qingyun beforehand? Why keep coming to get thrashed…”

“Sigh… and there too. What is this coming to…”

“Old Qi, those are from your school. And these—those are from Xia Hai University…”

…