Chapter 343: Promoted (1/2)

Chapter 343: Promoted

Translator: OneshotwonderEditor: Hitesh_

The confederation had spared no expenses in making sure that the test was effective in picking the gem out of the sand.

As the students signed into the virtual space, they found themselves in a bleak-looking ancient battleground, as they waited impatiently for their turn of the test. Since there were no details of the test posted, no one knew what it entailed.

”Attention everyone, the test will start momentarily. The top ten contestants of the test would earn the right to enter the play-off directly, without partaking in the qualification matches.”

Outside Yalen's simulation room stood Zhou Sisi and the friends of the other contestants. Although Zhou Sisi was certain that Wang Tong would pass the test as long as it involved straightforward fighting, she was anxious for him, fearing that it would be tricky and require the contestant to use their brains more than their muscles.

The crowd inside of the simulation room boiled over after hearing the announcement. The reward for acing the test was tempting.

”Right now, you are at the starting location of your test, and before you is a maze filled with Zergs and virtual fighters. Your goal is to get out of this maze as quickly as possible, or kill as many monsters and vital fighters as possible. You will be graded in terms of both speed and number of kills. Only the top ten contestants will pass the test. The maze will open in five minutes. May the odds be in your favor!”

As the announcement faded away, the students saw a giant clock appear in the sky.

Outside the simulation room, the screen displayed a map with groups of shimmering dots, with each dot representing one player.

As soon as the clock started ticking, the contestants swarmed towards the entrance of the maze. However, there were a few fighters, such as the four inner court disciples, who didn't seem to be in a hurry.

Wang Tong and Hu Yangxuan didn't join the excited crowd either, as they waited for the crowd to dissipate. After a while, Wang Tong announced, ”Let's start!”

Hu Yangxuan nodded, and then the two disappeared into the maze.

Once the two stepped through the threshold, they found themselves alone in the maze—the virtual system had automatically switched to single mode. Inside the labyrinth, the system had made sure that the challenge was fair but unique to everyone.

The Inner Court Disciples were unruffled when they find out that they were separated from each other, since it did not affect the difficulty for them anyways.

This test format was not uncommon. However, the current test was much more intense than any other similar test the students had undertaken.

Wang Tong didn't want to waste too much time on the test, as he had seen through the illusions in the maze with ease.

Outside the testing room, the crowd watched as a couple hundred dots on the screen moved directly towards the exit; those players could see through the illusion of the maze just like Wang Tong did.

However, among the couple hundred who were heading towards the right direction, some could only detect the path right in front of them, and others could see the path miles away clearly in their head. The further they could see, the more time they would be able to save.

That being said, even if the contestant was able to wade through the illusions efficiently, they still had to face the real challenge, that was the Zergs and the fighter bots.

The Zergs and bots were powerful foes, even though their numbers were kept at the minimum. They were placed at strategic locations, so that an encounter was inevitable.

A few dozen out of the couple hundred contestants slowly outpaced the rest and formed the leading group.

The Tactics of the Blade was the bane of all illusions, and even the master of all illusions— the Enchantress—was helpless in front of Wang Tong, much less the illusions created by AI. To Wang Tong, differentiating the illusion from reality had already become an instinct.

Wang Tong darted towards the exit without taking any detours. All the while, he was eager to beat up some Zergs.

In addition to Wang Tong, a dozen others, including Li Shiming, were able to see through the illusionary walls with ease too, and they ran straight towards the exit.

Wang Tong soon met his first opponent —a virtual bot. The bot had about level four soul energy; it would be a tough opponent for any contestants except for Wang Tong.

With a single strike, Wang Tong had ended the bot's service life; the bot exploded behind Wang Tong, who had already pressed on. Cool guys wouldn’t look at explosions after all.

In a different virtual space, Li Shiming had also just finished his first opponent and was on his way again.