Chapter 61: Survival Emergency Capability Test

"Is this guy even human...?"

In the queue of examinees, someone swallowed hard, their gaze flickering with shock.

If the seeded candidates performed exceptionally well, they could understand it. After all, those six young people were all prodigies nurtured by the government and conglomerates.

Yet this youth named Wang Xi clearly did not belong to any faction; he was an obscure ordinary person just like themselves.

However, his performance was not only equally brilliant, but it even overshadowed that group of prodigies.

He possessed no flashy abilities, nor any luxurious gear or props. He relied solely on himself and a single sword, balancing offense and defense to a degree that was suffocating.

A civilian prodigy?

No.

He should be called a monster!

"This assessment session is truly brimming with hidden dragons and crouching tigers."

In the corner on the right side of the arena, several examiners in tailored suits stood rigidly. One of them, a middle-aged man wearing glasses, sighed with emotion.

"The judgment of the Association President and the leaders of the Oversight Bureau was correct. Presumably, starting from this generation, the new generation of brave ones will rapidly emerge from now on."

"Bo, are you worried about being overtaken by the younger generation?"

Another slightly younger female examiner asked with a smile.

"Heh, of course I'm worried... If those who come after surpass the ones before, an old guy like me won't have such a good life anymore."

The middle-aged examiner Shi Bo joked.

But soon, he shook his head again:

"Yet, I also hope for it. Only when generations of increasingly exceptional brave ones appear can our descendants multiply and thrive on this land, and only then can civilization survive."

"Such rising stars..."

Shi Bo's gaze looking toward the arena revealed expectation.

"The more, the better!"

The remaining young examiners exchanged glances, their emotions stirred. They smiled ruefully and returned their gazes to the arena.

In the Cupid Domestic Services sofa area.

"Hey, hey! That handsome guy used this exact move back then, using just a crowbar to block the attack of those candy spirits during the aftermath of the disaster, and rescued me!"

Zhu Yuhe pointed at the screen on her phone, sharing it excitedly with her colleagues.

Raven, Gao Fen, and the others wore expressions of astonishment.

"With a powerhouse like Brother Wang protecting you, Zhu Zhi, there was no way you'd run into trouble..."

Yu Zihan said with a smiling sigh.

Unconsciously, he changed his form of address, calling Wang Xi "brother." In reality, he was a year older than Wang Xi. But in Yu Zihan's eyes, the strong were supreme, and calling someone older brother incurred no loss.

"Hehe, that's true."

Zhu Yuhe put on a lovestruck expression, holding her phone in one hand and cupping her blushing cheeks with the other.

"Hey, what do you think? If it's a boy, how about 'Wang Can', and if it's a girl, 'Wang Lan'?"

"..."

The group exchanged glances.

This...

She had even thought of the names for their kids?

"Zhu Zhi, don't you think you're considering..."

Yu Zihan coughed and spoke cautiously.

"Ah!" Zhu Yuhe snapped back to reality, her gaze somewhat evasive. "Indeed, I'm getting ahead of myself!"

Then she muttered under her breath:

"That handsome guy's physique is like a monster's; I'm afraid I won't be able to handle it. I'm starting to work out tomorrow!"

"???"

Everyone was dumbfounded.

Already... already starting active prenatal preparation?!

...

Around four o'clock in the afternoon.

The second phase of the martial arts assessment finally drew to a close.

Nearly seven hundred examinees in the entire arena had over half of their number injured.

Among them, more than a hundred suffered injuries too severe to continue participating in the subsequent assessments, forcing them to drop out midway for emergency treatment. Another nineteen accidentally suffered direct hits to vital points from the black spheres and died on the spot despite rescue efforts.

The originally clean and tidy arena was now littered with scattered black spheres, bloodstains, and fragments of equipment.

Tragic!

Most of the remaining examinees were panting, their faces pale. Looking at the environment of the arena and recalling the whistling storm of black spheres from moments before, they couldn't help lingering fears.

At the same time, they were filled with profound awe for professional brave ones.

Although this was merely an assessment, it was no child's play.

People could die!

"Next, we are about to enter the final test of the second round of assessments—the survival and emergency response capability test."

Middle-aged examiner Shi Bo led his team to the front of the crowd, his calm and steady voice echoing through the arena.

"The casualty rate in this segment is even higher. If you are not confident, you may apply to withdraw now."

The man swept his gaze over the crowd, his eyes serious behind his lenses.

His voice grew gradually chilling:

"Listen well, once the assessment begins, there is no turning back. Either you hold on until the end, or you die in the process of the assessment... This is the only chance you are given to choose."

As his words fell.

It immediately caused a commotion among the crowd.

The examinees' complexions shifted slightly. They looked at one another, whispers continuously rising.

Even through the camera lenses, millions of viewers in the live broadcast room could sense a tense atmosphere.

The entire arena was permeated with emotions of anxiety, hesitation, bewilderment, and reluctance.

"Examiner, I... I request to withdraw."

Finally, a pale-faced youth spoke up first, his voice low. He limped out of formation and lowered his head deeply.

Seemingly out of guilt, or perhaps unwillingness:

"My left leg is injured, and my physical strength can no longer sustain me..."

As he spoke, his voice trailed off.

Yet those around him vaguely caught mentions of his elderly parents and his sister still in school in his words.

Clearly, he did not have absolute confidence that he could survive the next assessment. And should he die, his family might be shattered as a result.

The middle-aged examiner shook his head.

It was not out of disappointment.

Rather, he offered comfort, signaling that it was all right.

"A brave one is not blindly courageous and fearless; sometimes, knowing when to retreat while the current is strong and making a decisive choice to preserve one's life to fulfill a grand ambition is not cowardly evasion."

The man nodded and said:

"Child, you need not feel ashamed. You have already done very well, and your family and friends will be proud of you."

"Thank you."

The youth clenched his fists tightly and took a deep breath.

The immense pressure, self-blame, and guilt in his heart dissipated like smoke under the other's words. At the same time, a fiercer fighting spirit welled up within him.

He bowed to the examiner, then turned and bowed to the assembled crowd and the camera.

"I'll come back again next year!"

The youth declared loudly.

With that, guided by Association personnel, he strode toward the exit of the arena.

Soon, other examinees successively made up their minds and applied to withdraw.

A short while later.

Fewer than four hundred examinees remained in the arena.

"Very well."

The middle-aged examiner swept his gaze over those who remained and smiled.

"It seems you possess the determination to defy death in order to become professional brave ones. Since that is the case, let me witness it."

"The second round of assessments, continue!"

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone felt the ground beneath their feet begin to tremble.

Rumbling noises echoed.

The all-metal flooring in this area began to slowly elevate, and within moments, they were lifted ten meters off the ground, reaching the upper heights of the arena.

The middle-aged examiner began explaining the rules for the final segment.

Survival and emergency response capability test.

Batches of examinees would undergo the test simultaneously, subjected to shooting from dummy targets positioned in all four directions of the arena.

Among the fired black spheres, a very small number were marked with numbers, symbolizing points. What they needed to do was survive the barrage and find the numbered spheres.

Exit passages would open randomly on the four iron walls of the arena. They could leave at any time carrying the numbered spheres they found, and their final score would be judged by the quantity of points.

"A word of caution."

The middle-aged examiner said in a deep voice.

"The longer you stay in the arena, the more points you can certainly obtain, but the danger will increase accordingly... It's very likely that when you want to leave, it will already be too late."

"If it truly comes to that—"

His expression was expressionless, his tone indifferent.

"Neither the examiners nor the Association personnel will step in to rescue you, so please make your choices prudently."

Soon, the first batch of examinees, including the six seeded candidates like Yu Jiali, walked down the steps on the side of the platform to the center of the arena.

The remaining hundreds watched from above.

Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang!!

The flooring in front of the four iron walls parted, pushing out rows of dummy targets.

Beep—

Accompanied by a prompt tone, the assessment began.

A series of roaring, popping sounds erupted continuously as the dummy targets in all directions opened fire simultaneously. In an instant, the people above could only see countless black afterimages forming an intersecting net, enveloping the twenty individuals in the center.

The examinees' complexions shifted slightly, drawing in sharp breaths of cold air.

This level of blanket bombardment was terrifying.

It was completely different from the previous defensive capability test; although equally dangerous, that only required facing a single dummy target. But now they were everywhere—front, back, left, and right—and a moment of carelessness would reduce them to pulp by the black spheres...

Even the spectators felt their hearts leap with terror, let alone those standing right in the center of the arena.

Their heartbeats threatened to stop at that moment.

Bang!

Bang, bang, bang!!

A young woman in a deep blue bodysuit flashed forward, striking out with both hands as a flurry of fists filled the air, striking the incoming black spheres with pinpoint precision and producing loud crashes.

Deformed black spheres were knocked away one by one, falling to the ground. Their outer rubber layers burst open, revealing metal cores bearing fist indents.

"Lin Xin'er! Don't break the spheres!"

Jiang Tianjie, a youth with a flat top, twitched his brow and hurriedly issued a reminder. At the same time, he produced a square tower shield and blocked another direction.

The loud clanging of impacts rang out consecutively, yet he did not retreat half a step, standing like a reef amidst a black tide.

His gaze swept over a fallen black sphere marked with a "9," and he reached out his hand to grab it.

A figure flashed past, and the sphere had already been snatched away.

"To each according to their ability."

Lin Xin'er said coldly without looking back.

As she spoke, she had already strode forward, breaking away from the group and actively approaching the dummy targets on the north side.

Jiang Tianjie frowned.

Holding his shield to parry the fierce barrage while dodging black spheres flying from other directions, he bent his waist and turned his head to say:

"What about you guys?"

"Same here, to each according to his ability." Carlyle said with a smile as he walked toward the east side. With a leisurely stroll, he raised his mechanical arm and grabbed a black sphere firmly with a *bang*, turning it over to see a "J" marked on it.

"Not bad luck, 20 points."

The blonde youth whistled.

In the rules explained by the examiner just now, J, Q, and K represented 20, 30, and 50 points respectively. They belonged to the hidden high-scoring face-card spheres.

After these two seeded candidates left, Xiao Yuzhe from the Oversight Bureau also silently broke away from the group and headed to the west side.

His actions made his intentions clear.

To each according to his ability!

"Fine then! Saves us from vicious competition!"

Jiang Tianjie let out a cold snort.

He turned to Yu Jiali and Nagada Xing:

"Let's cooperate, and we'll split the numbered spheres evenly!"

"Agreed."

The two attractive women nodded in consent.