Chapter Forty-Five: The Honor Roll of Battle Achievements

Inside the command room, as Lin Qingyun entered the building to rest, an inexplicable sense of relief washed over everyone present.

The Desert Wind King had just left as well, apparently with matters to attend to, and with his departure, the tense atmosphere finally eased. As conversation sparked up, the room gradually filled with the hum of voices once again.

Now, though Lin Qingyun’s location could be tracked, the ordinary alloy building could not completely shield the signal from his bracelet. However, they were unable to monitor his status in real time.

In the midst of the discussions, someone suddenly revealed a number that left many slightly taken aback.

Nearly eighty participants had withdrawn because of Lin Qingyun. Considering that tens of thousands had signed up for the Freshman Combat Trial, it wasn’t a huge number; but when one remembered that only about one hundred and seventy had quit on the first day, the fact that nearly half of those had been forced out by Lin Qingyun was astonishing.

“Look at his route. He’s going deeper, but he’s circling the city rather than heading straight in…”

“I think he’s no weaker than Nangong Lingyue and the others at the top. It’s a pity he hasn’t run into any of the real frontrunners yet—just Song Yichen, who’s barely in the top ten…”

“This trial has been thrown into chaos because of him. Shouldn’t we remind him to focus on hunting monsters and advancing toward the core zone?”

“President Nan, doesn’t your university have the authority to remind or warn your own students?”

“That’s right. For the sake of Haicheng University’s reputation, and his own ranking and rewards, he should be reminded not to cause any more trouble…”

The world of martial artists is a realm of human interaction, of relationships, of rights and wrongs.

With the Desert Wind King Nangong Aoshi gone and the day nearing its end, the atmosphere loosened and questions about Lin Qingyun’s actions resurfaced. Of course, given the clear stance shown earlier, no one dared voice opinions about disqualifying Lin Qingyun.

“Warn him? For what?” Nan Yutong, who had been standing silently behind Feng Shouyi at the front, turned to face the other university officials, her voice sharp and unyielding, leaving them momentarily speechless.

“You’ve watched for so long and you’re still bent on suppressing a student? Haicheng University doesn’t do things that way. If he breaks the rules, the command room will handle it. Otherwise, keep your worries to yourselves.”

“Do you know why Haicheng University keeps getting better? Because we don’t stifle our students. Let him do as he wishes. Stop meddling.”

With that, Nan Yutong spun around and strode out.

The trial would last a long while yet; even if they could endure, they couldn’t stand guard here forever. There would be injuries, withdrawals, and perhaps even casualties—many matters required their attention.

She had already spent long enough here today. Now she had other things to tend to.

“We’re only thinking of what’s best for Lin Qingyun, and for Haicheng University’s results. He could easily place in the top few…” someone muttered under their breath after Nan Yutong’s forceful retort.

“Let it go. Haven’t you realized who Lin Qingyun is? He’s Master Lin’s son, a major shareholder in the Lin Group, having just inherited his parents’ shares, and now has private assets worth tens of billions. Do you really think he cares about some rank or reward?”

Finding the debate pointless, another official shook his head and walked away.

Soon after, the rest of the group began to disperse as well.

Once the others had gone, Feng Shouyi and Qin Xiong remained. Feng Shouyi quietly sent a message to Qin Xiong: “What do you think the Wind King really means by all this?”

Qin Xiong’s gaunt face twitched slightly. He glanced at Feng Shouyi, who was still pretending to study the trial’s data with a serious expression.

“Lin Qingyun is Master Lin’s son. Master Lin’s sudden disappearance was a great loss for all of China—the military and the government have been searching for him to no avail.

“I haven’t interacted much with the Wind King, but I’ve watched him grow. Some say he’s ruthless, some say he’s fierce, but no one has ever called him unreasonable. He pacified several small neighboring countries with blood and iron, building his own domain, but to those who follow him, and to his friends, he’s loyal and values relationships above all.

“He has only one daughter, Nangong Lingyue, whom he treasures more than life itself. But he and Master Lin were once among the Three Heroes—decades ago, they were the brightest of their generation. Master Lin did him a great favor; it was on Master Lin’s word alone that he returned to serve the motherland.

“If you have any sense, you’ll realize—if the marriage goes through, Lin Qingyun will be the Wind King’s son-in-law. And if it doesn’t, the Wind King will still feel indebted to Lin Qingyun. Think about what that means.”

Feng Shouyi nodded in agreement, a faint smile playing at his lips. Wasn’t old General Qin just as gossipy as the rest? No doubt he had been mulling these things over while the Wind King was still present, just without voicing them.

Night fell over the ruined city. Venomous insects swarmed, and nocturnal monsters began their hunt, perfectly suited to the darkness—which made the night all the more perilous.

Inside a safe room, Lin Qingyun was cultivating.

He had already used his own medicinal powder to eliminate his scent from the area. Otherwise, the insects and monsters would never allow him a moment’s peace for cultivation.

In his previous life, thanks to his tribulation physique and powerful elixirs, Lin Qingyun’s progress had been meteoric. He had never taken the time to truly hone his cultivation methods. Now, seizing this opportunity, he resolved to train steadily and comprehend the changes.

With the Eight-Nine Xuan Yang Method running, he used just enough elixir to assist his progress, never forcing advancement with higher-grade pills, nor letting himself become impatient if daily gains were slow. He would not wait around for opportunities to rapidly improve by absorbing others’ tribulation breakthroughs.

It was like those who, after making a small fortune quickly, lose patience for steady, modest earnings. Sooner or later, that leads to disaster. That’s why gambling and other get-rich-quick schemes are so addictive—the easier the money, the harder it is to settle down and earn it slowly.

Cultivation is much the same. Once you’ve tasted the thrill of rapid progress, it’s hard to calm your mind and build up your strength bit by bit, like water wearing away stone.

Lin Qingyun believed in slow accumulation, in the patient effort that wears down stone. At this pace, it would take him at least half a year to advance from the seventh to the eighth level of the Lute Heart Realm.

What he didn’t realize was that, at what he considered a slow, steady pace, even the greatest prodigies in the country’s top academies—those seen once in a decade, or even a century—would have to fight tooth and nail to keep up. Only a rare few could match his progress.

Time in cultivation flies by unnoticed; the night passed quickly.

When his communicator buzzed, Lin Qingyun immediately opened his eyes to check.

He had known before the start of the trial that each day there would be an update on rankings, achievements, and certain messages—a way to motivate and guide the new students.

With only three minutes to check messages, the first thing he saw was the performance ranking: First—Nangong Lingyue. Second—Zhen Qiang. Third—Chi Ziyang…

Lin Qingyun wasn’t surprised to see Nangong Lingyue leading this combat zone. When she’d fought him before, she hadn’t even used her weapon; things were different now.

After the beating he’d given her, her pride had driven her to train even harder. Given her background and talent, it was natural for her to show significant progress in the past month.

Though Lin Qingyun hadn’t seen her lately, he could easily imagine how quickly she had improved. She had talent, resources, and previously had little pressure or motivation due to the stability provided by her father, the Desert Wind King, and the peaceful state of the nation.

But after being thoroughly defeated by him and with the trial looming, she was no longer the same.

He paid little attention to the others in the top ten, but two names did catch him by surprise: ninth place, Song Yichen; tenth, Zheng Haoyue.

The reason for his surprise was that, after dealing with Song Yichen, Lin Qingyun vaguely remembered encountering him in his past life.

Anyone who could cross paths with Lin Qingyun back then was either from a powerful family or a peerless genius—otherwise, they would never have left an impression.

Song Yichen was both. Thirty years later, he too became a super-strong figure, and his family was no less significant. In fact, his family had supported Lin Qingyun in the past, though their ancestral elder ranked low in his team and wasn’t in the top tier.

What surprised him was that, after being defeated, Song Yichen hadn’t withdrawn from the trial, but instead had broken into the top ten.

Then there was Zheng Haoyue. Lin Qingyun was genuinely astonished to see him in the top ten. He was known for hiding his abilities, but even so, his strength shouldn’t have reached that level—unless he’d had a breakthrough or some other trick up his sleeve.

Still, after a moment’s contemplation, Lin Qingyun simply moved on and checked his own ranking.

“Hm, I’m actually in the top thousand? Ranked nine hundred and ninety-eight. Interesting…” He was genuinely surprised; after all, he hadn’t focused on hunting monsters. Of course, if defeating other freshmen counted toward his score, he would likely have overtaken Nangong Lingyue for first place.

Just as he was about to check Super Bro and Chu Qing’s rankings, two messages arrived in quick succession.

“Boss, Zhang Baole left a message for me. He said to contact him immediately if I could, and report your location and any intel. What should I tell him?”

“Wow, Nangong Lingyue actually made it to first place…”

The first message was from Chu Qing; the second, from Super Bro.

Super Bro’s meaning was clear. Even though Lin Qingyun had beaten Nangong Lingyue with ease, and they all knew she was a prodigy and a leading figure at Haicheng University, they hadn’t expected her to take first place. His amazement was obvious—if Lin Qingyun had gone all out…

Of course, after all the intrigues he’d experienced, and especially after learning about Lin Qingyun’s situation, Super Bro was now extremely cautious. Even in private messages, he refrained from sharing sensitive information.

“I’m in the abandoned city’s financial district and will gradually head north, deeper into the former residential zone for the wealthy. Tell him that.”

If Zhang Baole wanted Lin Qingyun’s precise location at a time like this, it was clearly about more than just his well-being.

Given what had happened with Lin Qingfeng, and certain hints in Zhang Baole’s previous words, Chu Qing was still unsure of his intentions, but Lin Qingyun had already made up his mind—this man was planning something.

Within the trial, Zhang Baole’s options were limited, and Lin Qingyun wasn’t worried. This was also a chance to solidify Chu Qing’s trust. Zhang Baole himself wasn’t important, but through him, Lin Qingyun could indirectly investigate Zhang Xueyi and his second uncle.

As for his second uncle, Lin Qingyun knew that unless he rose rapidly and found powerful allies, it would not be easy to regain control of the Lin Pharmaceutical Group, worth hundreds of billions, as he had in his previous life.

“You’re only ranked around seventeen thousand. You’d better work harder,” Lin Qingyun replied to Super Bro.

He had already seen both Super Bro and Chu Qing’s rankings: Super Bro was over seventeen thousand, Chu Qing over twenty-three thousand—solidly in the lower half.

They chatted briefly about the rankings, and time slipped by quickly.

At that moment, everyone participating in the Freshman Combat Trial could view the leaderboards. Though communication would be cut off again after a few minutes, the rankings were preserved. Those with ambition and fighting spirit were like men possessed—rushing to action, energized as if injected with adrenaline.