Hearing this, Lin Xinghai looked slightly surprised.

He was also a bit curious about what the other party wanted to ask, so he said directly, "Go ahead and ask. Of course, I don’t have to answer."

Jiang Zijin didn’t mind Lin Xinghai’s attitude. He asked directly, "I want to know how you found us. I was certain I didn’t leave many useful clues when we fled, and I even laid down several false trails."

This was what puzzled him the most. And it wasn’t just Jiang Zijin; the other members of the Celestial Book Brigade all turned to stare at Lin Xinghai. It was a question on all of their minds.

"You did indeed clean up your tracks. I lost your trail after only the third intersection. But besides tracking, there’s actually a brute-force method to find someone."

"You start from the point where you disappeared and search outwards in expanding circles. As long as you’re fast enough, you’re bound to find them."

Of course, there was something Lin Xinghai didn’t mention. This method also required a large-scale detection ability. If his Perception Ability couldn’t cover a 600-meter radius, allowing him to scan several nearby streets at once, he might not have found them even if his Speed were doubled.

Jiang Zijin was slightly stunned, but his expression soon turned rueful.

He hadn’t expected the other party to use such a method to find him. ’This wasn’t my failure,’ he thought. ’His abilities are just too strong.’

"I have one more question," Jiang Zijin said, collecting himself. "Honestly, with the number of Energy Balls you have now, plus your existing Points, getting first place on the leaderboard is pretty much a sure thing. Why did you still come to take ours?"

This was what he really couldn’t understand. From their brief interaction, he didn’t get the impression that Lin Xinghai was the type to stir up trouble and make enemies for no reason.

After a moment of silence, Lin Xinghai said calmly, "You should know I have three other teammates. I plan to take all of the top four spots. They’ll give me the Credit Points they’re awarded, and I’ll have enough to buy an Earth Level Martial Arts manual."

The moment Lin Xinghai finished speaking, a deathly silence fell over the area.

No one had expected Lin Xinghai to have such a bold plan. But more importantly, it wasn’t just bold—it was likely achievable.

Now, it wasn’t just the regular members of the Celestial Book Brigade; even a top genius like Jiang Zijin looked at Lin Xinghai with a trace of envy.

Earth Level Martial Arts! That wasn’t something you could just pick up anywhere. Forget a newly enrolled freshman; even top third- and fourth-year students who had broken through to the Body Shaping Realm might not possess one.

After his shock passed, Jiang Zijin sighed softly. He knew that with an Earth Level Martial Arts manual on the line, Lin Xinghai wouldn’t care about offending them—he probably wouldn’t care about offending every single contestant.

So, without any hesitation, he took the three Energy Balls from his combat pack and tossed them over.

Lin Xinghai was surprised as he watched the Energy Balls fly toward him. He hadn’t expected someone of Jiang Zijin’s status to hand them over without a single word of protest.

’Aren’t these top geniuses supposed to be incredibly arrogant?’ he wondered. ’This guy is completely different from what I’ve heard.’

Regardless of what the other party was thinking, Lin Xinghai collected the Energy Balls and gave a polite cupped-fist salute.

"Lin, I have one more question. How many Energy Balls are you planning to collect in total?" Jiang Zijin asked quickly, seeing that Lin Xinghai was about to leave.

"Around 50. Why?" Lin Xinghai saw no reason to hide it and answered directly.

Jiang Zijin thought for a moment before saying, "So you’re planning on harvesting from all the strong teams? That way, you’ll have almost enough Energy Balls, and you’ll also slow down our collection speed to ensure it doesn’t interfere with your plan."

"That’s right." Lin Xinghai nodded and glanced at him. ’This guy is definitely smart,’ he thought. ’I only said a few words, and he figured out my entire plan.’

"In that case, if I continue to collect Energy Balls later, you won’t come to take them again, will you?" Jiang Zijin asked.

"My goal is to take the top four spots, not to suppress you. As long as you don’t pose a threat to my plan, we’ll have no conflict," Lin Xinghai said with a smile.

Soon, the two parties went their separate ways. Lin Xinghai, relying on his memory, headed toward the location of the next strong team.

About ten minutes later, Lin Xinghai found another strong team with three Energy Balls. This one was led by a top genius named Qian Xingxiu.

Although he wasn’t as famous as top geniuses like Qiu Liang, it was only because his Superpower was more support-oriented, not because his talent was inferior.

Besides, in a team battle like this, it was hard to say who was stronger or weaker. The fact that his team had already secured three Energy Balls was the best proof of that.

Unfortunately for him, he ran into Lin Xinghai. Under the circumstances, the outcome was predictable.

After struggling for five minutes, and after Lin Xinghai had eliminated the few Defensive Superpower Users on their team one by one, Qian Xingxiu had no choice but to helplessly hand over his Energy Balls.

Having acquired six Energy Balls in just half an hour, Lin Xinghai was in a rather good mood.

Of course, that didn’t stop him from immediately setting off in search of the next strong team.

When the time reached 4:45, Lin Xinghai finally found his next target.

It was the Feiyan Brigade, led by Yan Feijie.

When Yan Feijie saw Lin Xinghai, his expression was complicated.

Two days ago, he had already marked this person as the greatest rival of his life, but only now was he seeing him in person.

Lin Xinghai was quite different from how he had imagined.

In his mind, someone who could slaughter Zombies so easily should be a brawny, muscular type. However, the Lin Xinghai before him was lean with well-proportioned muscles. He didn’t look like someone with powerful close-combat abilities at all.

"You’re finally here," Yan Feijie said in a low voice, slowly exhaling.

"Hand over the Energy Balls, and I’ll leave immediately." Lin Xinghai had no time for Yan Feijie’s complicated and inexplicable emotions, getting straight to the point.

"Heh, I’m ranked second on the Points leaderboard, you know. You may be strong, but do you really think I’ll hand over my Energy Balls that easily?" Yan Feijie scoffed.

"Then I understand." Lin Xinghai didn’t say another word, simply raising the dark muzzle of his gun.

RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT!

A dense barrage of gunfire erupted in an instant.