Chapter Fifty-Five: Deception Is No Vice in Warfare

The words had barely left her lips.

Swish!

Xu Yuan led the charge, her grappling hook striking the trunk on the slope, and in an instant, she soared into the woods.

Suddenly, the hiss of high-pressure gas echoed as the team moved out in unison.

Xu Yuan was at the front.

Du Huaishan, Li Anqi, and Lin Sizhi held the center.

Tan Hai and Sun Tian were on the left; Li Mingcheng and Chen Jun on the right.

The entire squad advanced in a triangular formation, resembling a modern fighter squadron, a sight both formidable and awe-inspiring.

Lai Yanlong's eyelids twitched as he watched, “This kid even knows tactical formations?”

Such precise, coordinated movement was clearly the result of meticulous training and rehearsal.

With the gas canisters fully unleashed, Xu Yuan darted nimbly through the forest, her military blade trailing like a bolt of lightning. With a swift flick of her strong arm, a flash of cold steel swept past, slashing a fierce gash in the metal plate at the heart of the huge straw target hidden behind the trunk.

“Three meters ahead on the right!”

Suddenly, Xu Yuan shouted, then shot to the left.

Swish! Her voice barely faded.

Li Anqi leaped forward, spotting the metal circular target hidden high in the canopy, and with a clang, struck it with his blade.

“Left front! Two! Right front—trunk, undergrowth—three!”

Xu Yuan’s shout rang out as she surged forward, agile as a phantom.

Du Huaishan and Lin Sizhi immediately split up, racing to the reported positions.

The grappling hook struck the top of the canopy.

Du Huaishan hung upside down like a spider, flipped midair, and crashed violently into the forest like a cannonball, his military blade whirling madly. Every gleam of steel claimed a target—clean, ruthless, and efficient!

On the other side, Lin Sizhi smoothly split two targets.

Mounted examiners and registration soldiers took notes, diligently recording the number of effective targets cut by the Seventh Training Squad.

Who could have imagined that in less than two minutes after entering the mountain, they would clear a territory of their own through such efficient teamwork?

They were nothing like a group of new recruits!

But such rapid expansion inevitably led to turf wars with other squads.

Soon, Xu Yuan stormed into the activity zone of the Thirty-First Training Squad.

Perhaps they had heard her reporting positions.

Three shadowy figures immediately darted in to seize targets.

But before they could approach Du Huaishan's core group—

Swish, swish!

Tan Hai and Sun Tian sprang out, blocking the three, locking them in place.

“What are you doing?!”

“What do you mean, what are we doing?” Tan Hai feigned ignorance.

Those few moments of hesitation allowed Du Huaishan’s group to strike down the metal targets.

By the time the intruders realized what had happened, the Eighth Training Squad had already cleaned out the area and moved on.

Such was the terror of coordinated team offense!

In the heart of the forest, before a tall pine tree, Xing Zhenhao’s skinny sidekick, Cai Zhizhong, had just launched his grappling hook at the canopy, hoping to cut down the target.

The next second, a figure rushed over, slashing a gash in the target.

The leftover force shook the branches, sending snow tumbling down and drenching Cai Zhizhong’s face.

In his bewildered gaze, he saw Tan Hai’s gleaming military blade flash past.

“Haha, Cai Zhizhong, sorry! We’re taking this target first!”

Was it really him?

Since when had Cai Zhizhong let Tan Hai get the better of him?

Swish!

Without hesitation, Cai Zhizhong raised his arm-mounted grappling hook and gave chase, shouting a warning, “Brother Hao! Du Huaishan and Tan Hai are here to steal our targets!”

He reacted swiftly.

But alone, he was either blocked by Tan Hai or suppressed by Sun Tian.

Even when attacking from the other side, Li Mingcheng and Chen Jun were there.

“Damn it! Playing me for a fool!!”

Mocked repeatedly, Cai Zhizhong’s anger flared. His sinister little eyes narrowed as he aimed his arm at Tan Hai’s back, leaping from the tree and pulling the trigger.

But—

The grappling hook shot out only a short distance, then wilted like a frostbitten eggplant, falling limp.

Disaster!

He was out of high-pressure gas!

Cai Zhizhong never expected to run out at such a crucial moment.

He could only watch Tan Hai’s figure recede into the distance, while he crashed to the snow like a rooster without wings.

“Damn! Damn it—!!”

Hearing the curses behind him, Tan Hai felt an inexplicable sense of satisfaction. “Haha, Cai Zhizhong, serves you right for playing dirty—enjoy your face-first fall!”

However, after Cai Zhizhong’s mishap, Xing Zhenhao and the others soon caught up.

“Brother Hao! Lend me a canister of gas! Quick! I can’t bear this shame! I’d be less than a man!”

Xing Zhenhao shook his head. “I’ve got less than a bottle left myself, but don’t worry, for the honor of Eagle Claw School, I’ll help you get it back!”

“Xing Zhenhao, I advise you not to compete with Du Huaishan. Our gas reserves are low—we should put steel where it counts and cut as many metal targets as possible!”

Guo Tingyu, standing nearby, reminded him.

“Guo Tingyu, why don’t you just join the Eighth Training Squad? You and Du Huaishan are practically partners!”

Cai Zhizhong thought he had successfully sowed discord.

But surprisingly, the rest of the Seventh Training Squad quietly sided with Guo Tingyu.

They had no conflict with Du Huaishan.

Everyone was here for the exam, for silver coins and the red marrow serum—no one would waste energy on petty grudges.

“Alright, Tingyu, the Seventh Training Squad is yours. I’ll go disrupt Du Huaishan's group alone, otherwise, we won’t get many targets.”

Xing Zhenhao offered a convincing reason.

“Fine, we’ll split up.”

There was nothing more to say.

……

“Du Huaishan, I really don’t know what’s in your head, but people just can’t help liking you! Haha!”

Deep in the woods, Li Anqi laughed heartily, slicing through a metal target.

Not just him—the rest of the Eighth Training Squad grew more exhilarated as the fight went on.

During this time, more trainees tried to challenge them for targets.

But they were either suppressed by the formation or ran out of gas, giving Chen Jun and Zhang Mingcheng a long-awaited victory.

“This isn’t the time for celebration. Old Wu’s First Training Squad still has plenty of gas reserves!”

Du Huaishan had barely finished speaking when—

Bang!

A gunshot rang out, the bullet striking the metal target he was aiming for just ahead.

“Huaishan! Leave some for us—hey!”

Speak of the devil, and he appears.

Wu Ming, rifle in hand, led the First Training Squad as they caught up from behind.

They had copied Du Huaishan’s formation, but with Wu Ming at the core.

Meanwhile, Xing Zhenhao revved up and chased from the flank.

“Increase integration! Last sprint attack!”

Du Huaishan uttered just one phrase before shooting forward.

In a flash, he pushed his demonized state to five percent, holstered his blade, and drew his great spear.

His heart surged with greater power, pushing his physical abilities to new heights.

The red marrow spear in his hand swept through the trees like a roaring dragon, kicking up snow and moving at incredible speed.

Clang! Clang! Ding! Ding!

Beside him, Xu Yuan’s body transformed as well, water-blue feathers sprouting from her cheeks—elegant as an elf.

She struck with a crisp slash, splitting the target before her in two.

Grass and snow exploded, dust clouding the air.

Du Huaishan and Xu Yuan—one black, one blue—swept the last metal targets from the dense woods with flashes of blade and spear.

“My god! How are those two so fast?”

“Old Wu, hurry up and shoot!”

“This damn thing’s a rifle, not a machine gun—I have to reload, you know!”

……

Wu Ming knew well that Du Huaishan had removed his weighted sandbags for today’s exam, but never imagined he’d be this formidable at full power.

Xing Zhenhao was even more stunned, his jaw nearly dropping.

Just recently, their abilities had been nearly equal—he even surpassed Du Huaishan in blade skills.

But now, Du Huaishan seemed to have been injected with adrenaline, suddenly becoming ferociously strong.

With a few leaps, he was nearly out of sight.

Clang!

With the last metal target skewered by Du Huaishan’s spear—

Tan Hai cheered on the spot, “Oh! So many targets—our Eighth Training Squad must surely take first place this time!”

“First place for sure!”

Li Anqi dangled in midair, raising both arms.

Sun Tian’s eyes shone with excitement.

He never imagined that an ordinary person like himself would one day earn such great honor.

Mother…your son will finally make something of himself.

You won’t have to burn the midnight oil, stitching and mending for others anymore.

Thinking of his mother’s failing eyesight and the rough hands pricked by needles, Sun Tian’s eyes burned. He soared up to the treetop with his grappling hook and, for the first time, shouted across the distance to Du Huaishan, “Huaishan! Thank you for today’s exam…”

Thud!

Before he could finish, a black spike shot from behind, piercing straight through Sun Tian’s throat!