CLANG, RUMBLE...

The armored car rumbled across the untamed mountain plains. The increasingly rugged road caused the vehicle to bounce and sway, while outside the window, gray clouds continued to roll by like a turbulent river. Liu Qi was telling Jiang Qiu about the Prodigy Project.

More specifically, he was mentioning the dangers of the upcoming Military Department test.

"Also, as you probably know, the war situation near Tianshan City is quite tense right now. The Demon Races near the major cities of the Northwest Province are all leading their Demon Beasts in a northward migration. The conflict is escalating, and it might only be a few years before we face another city-breaching war.

Most of the Demon Race and Demon Beasts from Dongqi Mountain, the closest range to our Gao Yuan City, have also migrated away, leaving it weaker than it has been in the past.

That’s why the location for this Military Department test is Dongqi Mountain."

The heavy words struck Jiang Qiu’s chest like a sledgehammer. His pupils widened, and he was momentarily stunned speechless. "Doesn’t Dongqi Mountain have a major Demon Race stronghold inside it?"

Ever since the Secret Realms reawakened a century ago, massive numbers of wild animals have mutated into Demon Beasts. The first among them to achieve Transformation gathered hordes of Demon Beasts in mountain ranges and deserts.

The Demon Race that had perennially threatened Gao Yuan City mostly resided in Dongqi Mountain, and the city-breaching war from over a decade ago had its roots there.

No matter how many of the Demon Race migrated, Dongqi Mountain couldn’t possibly be empty. There were bound to be many of their kind left behind to guard it.

Forget about demons at or above the Transformation Level—even an untransformed Top Tier Demon Beast would be enough to overwhelm all the students in the Prodigy Project!

At this thought, Jiang Qiu licked his dry lips. He suddenly felt the car jolt—the road was getting rocky. He glanced out the window at the undulating, unbroken line of mountains, which resembled a crinkle-cut potato slicer.

"The Demon Race stronghold is in the deepest part of Dongqi Mountain, a long way from the Military Department’s test site, so don’t worry," Liu Qi said with a grin, a cold light in his eyes like a blade carving flesh. "Besides, this isn’t some simple test where you just kill a few Demon Beasts and call it a day.

Our five Outer City high schools in Gao Yuan City were tricked by the hatchlings the Red Flame Spider Mother placed in the Secret Realm. Over three hundred excellent students died. How could we possibly just swallow that insult!

Since the Demon Race is migrating north en masse, we’re taking this opportunity to attack Dongqi Mountain and seize Dongqi Lake. Your mission is to kill as many of the Demon Beasts below High Tier as you can, which are gathered on the eastern periphery of Dongqi Lake.

The most common ones are the Iron Feather Birds, Cyan Feathered Birds, and One-eyed Owls."

"!!!"

Jiang Qiu couldn’t help but hold his breath, his fists growing hot.

’So this Military Department test is actually sending us to war?’

And the scale of the battle was no small thing. Dongqi Lake was a location right out of their general studies textbooks. It contained a Medium-sized Secret Realm, and the lake itself was rich with mutated minerals and plants!

’So even if the creatures above Top Tier Demon Beast were drawn away by the Military Department’s main force, the number of Demon Beasts still inhabiting the area would be huge—tens of thousands!’

At this thought, Jiang Qiu glanced at Liu Qi’s savage grin. His own cheek twitched, but then he felt an inexplicable sense of reassurance.

’The Military Department wouldn’t send all the students from the Prodigy Project to their deaths. This means victory is practically guaranteed. Overthinking it will only do me harm.’

’There’s only one thing I need to focus on: killing demons!’

’I have to kill the most demons and take first place. Then I’ll be part of the Prodigy Project, and not even that genius Yang Yu will be able to compete with me!’

’The more demons I kill, the more money I’ll make—enough to earn the tens of millions I need to cover the cost of refining Advanced Su Fragrance!’

’Maybe I can even raise my potential by another huge leap before I officially become a Martial Artist!’

"Hmm..."

Liu Qi casually glanced over at Jiang Qiu. When he saw the boy’s fiery gaze—like a hungry tiger eyeing a calf—an impressed glint flashed in his own eyes.

’Not bad. He’s only been outside the city once for a training hunt, and the strongest opponent he faced was just a Demon Plant at the High Tier Demon Beast level. Yet now, he hears all this from me without batting an eye.’

’He’s much better than some of the students already in the Prodigy Project. When they heard the test was in Dongqi Mountain, they practically beat my door down, asking endless questions, second-guessing everything!’

’With a mentality like that, Jiang Qiu is definitely the kind of talent who enjoys killing demons.’

...

CLANG, RUMBLE—

The grating sound of wheels crushing gravel continued intermittently. Liu Qi, having talked himself hoarse, had fallen silent. Jiang Qiu leaned back in the passenger seat with his eyes half-closed, his head bobbing along with the rattling of the vehicle.

"We’ve arrived at the temporary assembly camp."

With a screech of the brakes, Jiang Qiu’s eyes snapped open. He turned his head and saw that the sky outside had already grown dark. In an open field at the foot of a nearby mountain, scattered incandescent lights dotted the edges of army-green tents. A few young figures stood together, looking up in their direction.

"Director Liu is back from the city with someone."

"Who? The one who beat the top genius from First High and got a Storage Ring from General Mo?"

"Yeah, his name is... uh, something. Anyway, his surname is Jiang. I heard General Mo thinks highly of him and gave him special permission to participate in our test. The rank he gets will determine the resources he’s allocated."

"Huh? Isn’t that basically the same as being in the Prodigy Project? This big test is the most significant reward we can get before the college entrance exams."

"Shh... Don’t talk nonsense. Officially, he hasn’t joined the Prodigy Project. General Mo just arranged for him to take a rewarded assessment."

"That’s true. I heard Director Liu say he has to get first place to even get into the Prodigy Project, which is basically impossible. Still, for a student from an Outer City High School to even participate in our big test... if he managed to place in the top ten, that would probably be worth more than all the resources an Outer City High School sees in a year, right?"

"Top ten? If all he has is that rumored 200-meter shot through ten layers of armor, that’s not necessarily going to be enough, you know~"

"Go ask Sun Yongsheng. Isn’t he from Outer City’s Zone Eight?"

THUMP, THUMP, THUMP...

Liu Qi strode toward the assembly camp. Along the way, brawny men built like bears wearing black tank tops saluted and shouted, "Sir!" The youths walking together also snapped to attention and saluted. "Sir!"

But their gazes, subtle or not, all converged on Jiang Qiu walking by Liu Qi’s side, their interest piqued.

"Mm," Liu Qi acknowledged with a nod, his gaze landing on a youth with unremarkable eyes and a downturned mouth. "Sun Yongsheng, you’re also from Zone Eight. Get Jiang Qiu set up with a tent and brief him on the rules of the Military Department’s test."

"Yes, sir!"

Sun Yongsheng barked out the affirmation, then turned to look at Jiang Qiu out of the corner of his eye—

’A handsome and seemingly aloof young man. Are those calm eyes hiding a deep, unshakable confidence?’

’Then again, to be valued so highly by General Mo at such a young age, his talent must be miles above mine...’

"Jiang Qiu, go with Sun Yongsheng. He’ll help you get acquainted with the place. We’ll most likely have an emergency assembly tonight before heading into Dongqi Mountain, so be ready."

"Alright."

After giving his instructions, Liu Qi headed toward a large tent deeper in the assembly camp. A few youths built like oxen in black tank tops shot a few extra glances at Jiang Qiu and Sun Yongsheng before laughing and walking away.

Jiang Qiu followed behind Sun Yongsheng, studying the other boy’s profile as it was softened by the incandescent light hanging from the tents. He felt a strange sense of loss.

He’d heard the name Sun Yongsheng constantly back in middle school. His fame had been equal to, if not greater than, Li Juefeng’s in high school. In every middle school in Zone Eight, his was a name that teachers and students alike spoke with envy.

Who, when boasting, wouldn’t have said something like, "Maybe next year I’ll get to teach a student like Sun Yongsheng," or "Actually, my Martial Arts Talent is on par with Sun Yongsheng"?

He was the grandson of the principal of Eighth Middle School, the one and only genius from Outer City District Eight—or rather, from Eighth Middle School—to enter the Prodigy Project. Back then, hearing his name was like being a frog in a well gazing at the moon; he was an object of unattainable envy.

Eighth Middle School was full of legends about him, but now, meeting him in person for the first time, he didn’t seem as full of spirit and confidence as Jiang Qiu had imagined...

At this thought, a long-held breath of frustration escaped from Jiang Qiu’s chest in a quiet sigh. The old daydreams of boasting about his own talent had vanished.

The evening wind ruffled Sun Yongsheng’s short, finger-length hair. He walked at a relaxed pace, his hands in his pockets and his broad back slightly hunched. His unhurried voice slipped from his lips. "Director Zhao came to the Military Department personally to fight for an extra spot in the Prodigy Project for you. General Mo gave you a private gift of a Storage Ring to encourage you. Your Martial Arts Talent must be incredibly high, and your potential must be immense.

"I’ll be straight with you. Among the ten prodigies from the Outer City, I’m nothing special. And I can’t even compare to the seventy-two from the Inner City.

"Here, reaching Mastery in a single Spear Dao technique is just the baseline. For Bow Technique, proficiency means you have to be able to pierce the armor of a Middle Tier of Demon Beast from a kilometer away just to meet the standard.

"Right now, among everyone below the level of the Optimizers, only one person has reached Mastery in the Bow Technique. Her name is Yang Yu.

"Her Talent might not be the absolute best in our batch, but she’s definitely killed the most demons. She’s vicious and incredibly strong. It’s practically a foregone conclusion that she’ll take first place in this test.

"For instance, coming here to Dongqi Mountain, I worry about what to do if we run into too many Demon Beasts, or what happens if the Military Department’s Non-commissioned Officers and Martial Artists can’t protect us, or what if we encounter a Transformed Great Demon. She never thinks about any of that. She’s as cold as ice, her mind probably filled with nothing but the obsession to kill her way into the ranks of the Optimizers.

"If I weren’t human, I suspect I’d end up shot dead as another number for her kill count before I even saw her shadow..."

As he rambled on, a spray of spittle flew from his mouth, as if he were just getting warmed up.

After talking for a long while, he finally looked up at the rising full moon and let out a light chuckle. "Faced with someone like her, none of the rest of us are even thinking about first place. Only those truly powerful prodigies from the Inner City are still aiming for the top ten.

"You might have far better Talent than me; you might be an incredible genius yourself. But at the end of the day, you got here too late. Your Bow Technique can’t compare to theirs.

"And if you rely on your Spear Technique, you won’t necessarily be stronger than them, and your demon-killing efficiency will seem low.

"Take my advice: forget about first place. If you really want to make a splash, aim for the top ten. If by some miracle you actually make it, you’ll still get a portion of Gong Su Fragrance, a portion of Qiang Su Fragrance, a portion of Bone Su Fragrance, ten portions of Wusu Fragrance, ten Contribution Points, and an increased buy-back rate for your Demon Beast materials.

"I think that must be the real reason Director Zhao insisted on applying for the Prodigy Project on your behalf after learning how difficult the Military Department’s test would be.

"What do you think...?"