Liu Chuan had just rushed to the gathering point at the school gate when he realized that Lin Sisi and Old Li had already arrived. Seeing this, Liu Chuan hastened his footsteps.
"Hello, Teacher Li."
"Oh."
Liu Chuan greeted Old Li. Seeing that Lin Sisi was still as calm as before, he secretly heaved a sigh of relief.
"You two must be the two students from Ping An High School participating in the training this time. Please get in the car."
A man dressed in the uniform of the Federation walked forward and spoke to Liu Chuan and Lin Sisi. The man was about 30 years old. He had a well-proportioned body and a kind face.
Old Man Li nodded at the two of them, indicating for them to get in the car.
Without another word, Liu Chuan and Lin Sisi opened the door of the SUV and got in.
Then, the car started slowly and sped towards the training ground.
…
"Brother, where are we going this time?" Liu Chuan asked the driver.
"Ha, you'll know when the time comes," the man in the Federal uniform said slowly.
Liu Chuan was helpless. There was no difference between this reply and not receiving any reply at all.
"There are now thousands of high schools in the entire Federation. Thus, there are more than ten thousand people participating in this collective training. Everyone will be assigned to one of 100 areas for the collective training. Before reaching their destination, we are not allowed to disclose information about your training area."
When Liu Chuan heard the man say this, he did not say anything else. After thanking the man, he shut his mouth.
After that, the car fell silent. Lin Sisi seemed to have obtained a cultivation technique as well. After getting into the car, she sat cross-legged with her eyes closed, unlike Liu Chuan, who was wasting his time asking questions.
Liu Chuan hadn't eaten anything today. When he realized that there were some compressed biscuits in the car, he didn't stand on ceremony and ate them before drinking some water. After filling his stomach slightly, Liu Chuan also entered a meditative state.
Along the way, faint sounds of bones colliding could be heard from Liu Chuan…
The middle-aged man who was driving looked at Liu Chuan with surprise. Gradually, the man's expression changed from surprise to shock.
This tempering process was too intense and too fast. Furthermore, it had lasted for too long.
Meanwhile, Liu Chuan was cultivating with his eyes closed, not noticing all of this.
…
"We're here."
The two people who were cultivating opened their eyes one after another when they heard the middle-aged man's voice.
"Is this place… the wilderness?"
Liu Chuan and Lin Sisi were stunned when they saw this scene.
After the resurgence of spiritual energy on Earth, all kinds of plants and animals besides humans started to evolve after absorbing the spiritual energy.
The plants were still alright as most of the plants were not aggressive after evolution. They could even produce some spiritual fruits for humans to eat.
However, it was different for animals. Their physical fitness was extremely high to begin with. Thus, when they were nurtured by the spiritual energy, these ordinary animals posed a great threat to humans after their evolution.
Up till now, humans could only build huge city barriers to prevent these evolved mutant beasts from invading.
"Yes, it's the wilderness. Do you see the base in front? That's your gathering place. I wish you all good luck. Goodbye." The middle-aged man started the car and left without any hesitation.
Liu Chuan finally understood why the students weren't told where their destination was.
If they knew that they were in the wilderness, there would definitely be many people who would abstain from the training or forfeit their opportunity. After all, not all parents wanted their children to make a name for themselves. Being safe was also a blessing.
What Liu Chuan didn't know was that after the middle-aged man drove off, he started making calls to report the situation.
"It's Liu Chuan from Ping An High School. Yes, his talent should be extremely high. His constitution should be above 100 points. You can focus on observing and nurturing him."
…
The two of them understood how dangerous it was in the wilderness. Although the base was right in front of them, there was no telling when a foraging beast would appear. If that was the case, then they would truly be unlucky. They then quickly ran towards the base.
The two of them ran to the entrance of the base and saw many people already inside.
Liu Chuan and Lin Sisi each received their own backpacks at the door. Liu Chuan opened them and saw only some food and water, as well as a short sword. There was nothing else. The backpack was marked with numbers. Liu Chuan's number was 67, while Lin Sisi's was 68.
According to the numbers, two-thirds of the people had arrived.
The people here could be said to be geniuses in their own schools. Some of them were eloquent and were forming groups. Some were silent and cultivated silently, while others had cold and arrogant expressions that seemed to be disdainful.
The stage was filled with people from the Federal government. They just sat there quietly and watched. They didn't announce the contents of the trial.
More than an hour later, all the trainees had finally arrived.
"Silence, gather! Gather!"
After a person from the Federal government shouted, the students quickly gathered in the middle of the square in front of the podium.
This person was close to 40 years old. He had a tall and sturdy figure, and his eyebrows emitted an forceful aura. He was imposing without being angry, and had the demeanor of an expert.
"Hello, I'm the Chief Instructor of your training this time. My name is Wu Chuanjiang. You are very lucky because this is the first round of training for the martial arts examination. It might also be the last round," said Chief Instructor Wu Chuanjiang.
The students below the stage all stood up straight. No one interrupted the Chief Instructor. After all, they were all elites from various schools and were all smart people. Naturally, they could tell that the person on stage was extraordinary.
"The content of this training is very simple. Survive in the wilderness for a month. No matter what method you use, as long as you live, it's fine. You are only allowed to advance. You are not allowed to stay around the base," Wu Chuanjiang continued.
At this moment, the people below the stage could no longer stand still. They were starting to show signs of clamoring.
Wu Chuanjiang glanced at the crowd below the stage and said, "If you have any objections, you can raise them, but I won't listen. You can choose to withdraw, but you will be disqualified from the Martial Examination for life."
"Becoming a martial artist does not mean that you will live like royalty in the future. Carry your backpacks and walk out of the base. Of course, if any of you can kill mutated beasts above Rank-E, you can end the training early and I will personally give you a spiritual weapon."
"Alternatively, if someone can pass through these mountains, I'll consider that person to have passed the training."
Like the others, Liu Chuan stood silently below the stage. Deep down, he didn't feel afraid, but he was slightly disgusted by Wu Chuanjiang's dominance.
"Killing mutated beasts above Rank-E? If I can complete my body tempering and work with Dogshit, perhaps I can do it." Liu Chuan thought to himself.
Although they all knew the consequences of withdrawing were severe, there were still a few people who couldn't bear the fear in their hearts and chose to withdraw from the trial. No one spoke, and no one mocked them.
At this moment, Liu Chuan looked at Lin Sisi and said seriously, "Lin Sisi, follow me later."
Lin Sisi also looked at Liu Chuan with a determined gaze.
She did not expect Liu Chuan to say this.
This made her feel somewhat ashamed. She had actually looked down on him before.
"Okay."
She understood that her aptitude was not top-notch, and that Liu Chuan wanted to protect her.
Liu Chuan also understood that this seemingly weak but actually stubborn woman could not quit the training.
In that case, he could only do his best to help her. They were classmates, after all, and he would not leave her in the lurch.
As someone who lived in peace all year round, Liu Chuan was extremely kind-hearted.
"The training begins. Good luck, everyone."
Wu Chuanjiang's authoritative voice sounded as the collective training officially began.