“Rankings?” Luo Feng looked at the names appearing one by one on the huge black dragon’s scales and couldn’t help but ask, “What’s the point of rankings?”
Yang Hui glanced at Luo Feng with a smile, “Do you really think that entering the Elite Training Camp means you can relax and that you’ve already become a top expert in this world? What a joke! The competition here is far more intense than elsewhere. Your rankings determine the benefits you receive!”
“For example, treasures unearthed from ancient ruins—unique treasures—who gets to use them?”
“The higher your rank, the more resources you can claim!”
“And those ranked in the bottom three—if you accumulate three times being in the bottom three—you will be expelled,” Yang Hui continued.
Luo Feng was shocked; he had never known that even within the Elite Training Camp, expulsion was possible.
“Don’t ask too many questions for now. Once you pass the B-Rank Trial, you’ll learn many of the rules. If you fail the B-Rank Trial, asking questions will be pointless anyway.” Yang Hui tilted his head to gaze at the giant carved black dragon before them, “Haven’t you noticed the most unique feature of this black dragon carving?”
“The aura,” Heng Xia spoke.
“The aura,” Luo Feng replied.
Earlier, they had all been overwhelmed by this black dragon carving. When its gaze locked onto them, it felt as if they were being stared at by a monstrous beast even more terrifying than a high-tier Lord-Class Ironclad Dragon, causing involuntary trembling and fear in their hearts. Remember, even when facing Ironclad Dragons, Luo Feng had never felt such intense fear.
“This is actually a real SS-Rank (King-Level) beast—a black dragon born from volcanic eruptions. The Camp Master killed it and later preserved its two dragon eyes, embedding them into this dragon carving.”
“This black dragon carving is made from precious materials throughout, but the most valuable part is naturally the pair of eyes—they are the real eyes of the black dragon!”
“When it was originally designed, the dragon eyes were positioned to face the entrance. So anyone who first enters the gate and happens to look up at the dragon eyes will be frightened,” Yang Hui smiled proudly, “Just this pair of dragon eyes is worth over ten billion credits!”
Luo Feng and Heng Xia exchanged glances. Good heavens! Using the real eyes of a black dragon as components for a giant carving?
How ruthless!
“Follow me, and remember—don’t wander off,” Yang Hui ordered.
“Yes.”
Luo Feng and Heng Xia, carrying their backpacks, followed Yang Hui.
Although called a training camp, the entire facility was breathtakingly beautiful, as if stepping into an ancient palace complex. Rare flowers and trees, small bridges over flowing streams, and elegant pavilions filled the area. Occasionally, young men and women in loose martial arts uniforms could be seen stepping out of the pavilions.
These youths included Caucasians, Africans, and Asians.
“Look, those youths in the distance are all official students of the Elite Training Camp.” Yang Hui pointed toward a massive nine-story tower at the very center of the camp. Though only nine stories tall, it was as high as a regular twenty-story building, “All the students are heading toward that tower—the Nine-Tiered Tower!”
Yang Hui smiled, “This Nine-Tiered Tower is where all the students study and train. Many special training rooms are located there as well!”
“Inside the training camp, aside from sleeping, students spend almost all their time inside the Nine-Tiered Tower.”
As they walked through the camp,
Luo Feng and Heng Xia remained very disciplined, as they were not official members yet. From Luo Feng’s perspective, each student’s gaze and aura were distinctly different from ordinary warriors outside. This was truly the gathering place of the world’s most monstrous geniuses.
“There are 182 students in total. Every year, 30 to 40 students graduate. Therefore, every year, 30 to 40 new students are also recruited,” Yang Hui said with a smile as they walked, “However, two-thirds of these recruitment spots are filled from our Basic Training Camp, and only one-third are recruited from around the world.”
Luo Feng suddenly understood.
No wonder…
With only about thirty spots each year, two-thirds were taken from the Basic Training Camp, leaving only about ten spots for the rest of the world.
“So Heng Xia, even after entering the Basic Training Camp, you still have a chance to enter the ‘Elite Training Camp.’ However, the number of students in the Basic Training Camp far exceeds that of the Elite Training Camp. The competition for spots is fierce. You’ll need to work hard in the future,” Yang Hui looked at Heng Xia.
“I understand,” Heng Xia’s eyes gleamed with excitement.
The Basic Training Camp had a three-year program, while the Elite Training Camp lasted five years!
“Heng Xia, wait here and don’t wander off. I’ll take Luo Feng inside to complete his check-in,” Yang Hui instructed.
…
A two-story pavilion, even the furniture inside was in ancient styles.
“Because the Camp Master is from our Huaxia culture and has a special fondness for ancient Huaxia culture, the entire Hongning Base City was built in ancient architectural styles. Especially this training camp, where even the furniture imitates ancient designs. So here, there are no sofas or televisions,” Yang Hui smiled, “Fortunately, the Camp Master is reasonable—he allows each person a laptop.”
Luo Feng was speechless.
No television, no washing machine—nothing like that. Fortunately, there were power sockets and electric lights.
“Just rest here. If you need anything to eat, just make a call, and someone will deliver it to you,” Yang Hui instructed, “Try not to wander off today. At noon tomorrow, I’ll take you to the Nine-Tiered Tower to undergo the B-Rank Trial. Only after passing the B-Rank Trial will you officially become a member of the Elite Training Camp. If you fail, you’ll be sent to the Basic Training Camp.”
Luo Feng nodded, “Understood.”
Soon after, Yang Hui left.
Inside the quiet pavilion, only Luo Feng remained. He went to the study on the second floor, dropped his backpack, and stepped onto the balcony, overlooking the entire training camp. “This is the world’s number one training camp? The environment is so serene, so peaceful,” Luo Feng leaned on the curved wooden railing, appreciating the scenery of the training camp.
Not far below the pavilion, a stream meandered toward a distant lake.
“Hey, a Huaxia person?” A voice speaking standard Mandarin came from afar.
Luo Feng turned and looked down. A yellow-skinned young man in a white martial arts uniform, with thick eyebrows and bright eyes, was holding an iron spear and waving at him with a smile.
“That’s right,” Luo Feng replied.
“My name is Tian Qiong,” the young man smiled and greeted him, “From the Northeast Base City.”
“My name is Luo Feng, from the Jiangnan Base City,” Luo Feng smiled.
Tian Qiong grinned, “Judging from where you’re staying, you must be here to take the entrance trial. Work hard! We Huaxia people have quite a few here… Once you officially enter the camp, let’s get together.” After saying that, Tian Qiong walked toward the Nine-Tiered Tower, holding his iron spear.
As he walked, he occasionally swung his spear.
Puuu!
The sound of the spear piercing the air sent chills down people’s spines. On the balcony, Luo Feng’s expression changed, “This person’s spear technique is far superior to Zhang Ke’s!” Luo Feng’s current level of martial arts was very high, yet with just a casual thrust, Tian Qiong seemed to gather the surrounding air into a single point at the tip of his spear.
“My sword techniques, although I named them ‘Thunderclap,’ are only at a basic level. Compared to him, I’m still far behind,” Luo Feng felt no pride anymore.
Just a random student here clearly surpassed Luo Feng in swordsmanship!
Luo Feng was awakened—
The people entering this training camp were all monstrous geniuses from around the world! Whether they came from the Basic Training Camp, having competed fiercely among countless talented warriors over three years to earn their spots in the ‘Elite Training Camp,’ or whether they were among the dozen or so warriors recruited globally each year.
They were all extraordinary talents!
“I must firmly establish myself in this Elite Training Camp. Otherwise, how could I ever challenge the two high-ranking warriors, Vulture and Scorpion?”
“Of course, first, I must pass the B-Rank Trial!”
…
Luo Feng continued cultivating his genetic energy in the pavilion and finally had a good night’s sleep late into the night. Although he had not yet officially entered the Elite Training Camp, the 182 publicly displayed rankings on the black dragon carving earlier, and the casual spear demonstration by ‘Tian Qiong,’ had left Luo Feng with a strange feeling…
The future in the Elite Training Camp would definitely be a fierce battleground of dragons and tigers.
At 11:00 AM, Luo Feng had a hearty lunch. It wasn’t until 11:50 that the warrior Yang Hui finally appeared.
“The weather isn’t very good today. It’s already midday, yet the sky has turned dark. Looks like there’s going to be a heavy rainstorm later,” Yang Hui walked in, smiling as he glanced at the dining table, “Not bad! You’ve got quite an appetite. Are you ready? Let’s head to the Nine-Tiered Tower.”
“Do I need to prepare anything? Weapons? Battle uniform?” Luo Feng asked.
“No need. Just come with me, empty-handed,” Yang Hui said.
Together with Yang Hui, Luo Feng headed toward the Nine-Tiered Tower!
Each floor of the Nine-Tiered Tower was about six meters high. The tower’s length and width both exceeded 150 meters, making it an absolutely massive structure. Though the exterior looked classical, the interior was completely high-tech. The floors were made of durable alloy, and one could easily hear explosive bursts of air and shouts echoing through the halls.
“Come on, let’s go to the ninth floor,” Yang Hui and Luo Feng entered the elevator.
The elevator was fast.
“Ding!”
The elevator doors opened, revealing the top floor of the Nine-Tiered Tower. The ninth floor was a vast hall. Inside, there were some mats, and several young men and women were casually chatting, some in English, some in French, and others in Mandarin. When Luo Feng arrived, many of them turned to look at him.
“Bro, are you from Huaxia?”
“Huaxia,” Luo Feng smiled and nodded.
“Good luck! With you joining, we Huaxia people will have one more member,” a bald young man shouted with a grin.
“Don’t dream,” a strange Mandarin voice came from a nearby black girl with a butterfly tattoo on her face. She glanced at Luo Feng with a sneer.
Luo Feng, under the guidance of Yang Hui, walked to the farthest part of the hall. There was a corridor here, with large rooms on both sides. Soon, Luo Feng was led into the innermost room. This room wasn’t very big and was somewhat dim.
“Click!” The lights turned on.
Inside the room were only two sofas, each with a deep blue helmet placed on them.
“These two helmets were painstakingly replicated by human scientists, imitating the consciousness sensors from ancient ruins’ virtual space equipment,” Yang Hui pointed at the helmets, “We can only replicate this simple consciousness sensor. As for the mainframe of the virtual space itself, it’s still that ancient machine buried underground for who knows how many years.”
Luo Feng stared at the helmet in disbelief: “Virtual space?”
It was too shocking.
This was something that only existed in science fiction novels. According to what Yang Hui said, current Earth scientists had only managed to create ‘consciousness sensors,’ while the mainframe for the virtual space was beyond their ability to replicate—it was still the ancient machine excavated from the ruins.
“The virtual space mainframe—human scientists can’t even understand it, let alone replicate it,” Yang Hui shook his head.
“Alright, put it on, and your consciousness will enter a virtual space with 100% realism, indistinguishable from the real world,” Yang Hui explained, “Once inside the virtual space, we’ll send you into the ‘Trial Tower’ to undergo the B-Rank Trial!”
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