SCOM - Chapter 14
Chapter 14
After leaving the Challenge Hall that night, Yan Yan didn't go back for two days. Guan Yuan had been ruthless, specifically targeting his chest and abdomen. On the surface, his limbs seemed fine, but once he returned, he realized the severity of his injuries.
"Aren't you going to the Challenge Hall anymore?" Ding Wuming asked curiously, having just returned to the dorm and seeing Yan Yan resting on the edge of his bed.
Yan Yan clutched his aching ribs and said in a muffled voice, "I'll go back in a few days."
Ding Wuming studied his expression and said with understanding, "I told you before that Guan Yuan is very strong, but everyone on the rankings is heavy-handed."
"Yeah," Yan Yan replied absently, his mind on other things.
"Speaking of which, you've become famous on the forums," Ding Wuming said, a little excited. "They're saying you're the first person to be beaten by both Ji Yuezhi and Zuo Luohuan, and now you've fought Guan Yuan too. Everyone's guessing you might be on your way to collecting the entire top ten of the Red List."
"Collecting what?" Yan Yan asked, snapping back to reality.
Ding Wuming's gaze shifted. "Getting a beating from everyone in the top ten of the Red List."
Yan Yan: "..."
Seeing the change in his expression, Ding Wuming quickly changed the subject. "I successfully joined the Disciplinary Committee!"
Normally, Yan Yan had no interest in the Disciplinary Committee; he hated the very thought of demerits. But today, he engaged with the topic. "What are the benefits of joining the Disciplinary Committee?"
That night, Zuo Luohuan had tossed him a crumpled invitation, only saying there were two Disciplinary Committees, giving him seven days to consider, and acting very perfunctory about whether he joined or not. Later, Yan Yan had searched the school forums but found no trace of a second Disciplinary Committee. All discussions about it were about the one he already knew of—the one that handed out demerits.
"Benefits?" Ding Wuming thought carefully. "Does being in the Disciplinary Committee being prestigious count? Getting in means you're one of the best at the First Military Academy. Plus, when you graduate and join the army, you'll have the Disciplinary Committee's network of connections."
Yan Yan fell silent after hearing this. He subconsciously felt that the Disciplinary Committee Zuo Luohuan mentioned was different from the one Ding Wuming was talking about now.
"Do you want to join the Disciplinary Committee too?" Ding Wuming asked, then added, "This year's selection is already over, but you can try next year."
"I don't want to join," Yan Yan denied flatly. "I just wanted to know why so many people want to, since there's no credit bonus."
Speaking of credits, Yan Yan was reminded of his pathetic two points. He was already teetering on the edge of expulsion.
"There's definitely no harm in joining the Disciplinary Committee." Ding Wuming didn't stay in the dorm for long. He gathered his things and said excitedly, "I'm off to my shift at the Disciplinary Committee."
The dorm room door closed. Yan Yan sat on the edge of his bed for a while longer before pulling out the invitation. He stared at it for a long time, then signed his name on it.
For some reason, he felt like he had just walked into a wolf's den.
Yan Yan still had a class to attend. He pushed himself up, carefully put on his military uniform, ensuring every button was in its proper place, and only then did he head out.
With only two credits, he didn't dare to be arrogant.
The single combat course had many instructors. Zuo Luohuan and Jiang Hong chose the S-class Alpha instructor, Kang Guang, who had served for ten years in the 78th Regiment of the Twenty-sixth Army Group. He was also one of the most popular instructors in the combat department.
"Pretty much every year, the S-class cadets from the combat department are his students," Jiang Hong said, walking beside Zuo Luohuan. "It's the first class today, I wonder what it'll be like."
"I'm more looking forward to the group combat course next semester."
"We'll have to wait for that," Jiang Hong said as he walked into the classroom alongside her.
The two-hundred-square-meter classroom was completely empty, except for the special material floor that was soft and felt slightly sticky underfoot. About thirty students were already standing inside.
Seeing Zuo Luohuan glance down at the floor, Jiang Hong took the initiative to explain, "This flooring is made of a composite material from the Capital Research Institute. It can simulate hundreds of geological conditions and has a significant impact on combat."
The environments on different planets in the Federation vary, so naturally, their geological conditions differ.
The two didn't talk for long before the instructor, Kang Guang, walked in with a blank expression. He wore the same black military uniform, but on his chest was a yellow wheat-ear badge with a red border—the insignia of a First Military Academy instructor. On either side of his mouth were straight scars that lined up so perfectly they looked like a single line, as if someone had swung a blade from the corners of his mouth, intending to slice his head in half.
"Is everyone here?" Kang Guang's eagle-like eyes swept over all the students in the classroom. He then raised his hand and waved toward the door. "Come on in."
As soon as he finished speaking, ten cadets walked in through the door—or more accurately, former cadets. These ten people also wore black military uniforms, but pinned to their chests were shield badges.
All the students in the classroom instinctively looked over, and someone couldn't help but whisper excitedly, "It's the Fierce Shield holders."
"Fierce Shield" was a title, represented by a badge of a shield surrounded by flames.
Every year, the First Military Academy enrolled as many as fifty thousand students, but only a little over twenty thousand graduated; nearly half were eliminated during the four years. Among the twenty-thousand-plus graduates, three thousand cadets had the chance to obtain such a badge. These individuals were privately known as Fierce Shield holders. Upon graduation, the various army groups would quickly snap up these graduates who possessed the Fierce Shield.
The requirements for a cadet to obtain a Fierce Shield badge before graduation were extremely strict. It wasn't enough to just be strong in combat; they had to achieve an 'excellent' grade in three main courses, and these three couldn't just be branch courses from a single department. Therefore, some people missed the opportunity right from the start with their course selections. Additionally, they had to accumulate ten thousand credits and finally pass a school review to receive the badge.
Attending regular classes and participating in the school's various challenge competitions was simply not enough to accumulate ten thousand credits. To earn that many, there was only one way: participate in missions issued by the First Military Academy.
The number of credits awarded increased with the difficulty of the mission, and not all three thousand Fierce Shield badges were claimed each year.
The First Military Academy had many rankings. The combat department alone had two: the Red List and the Alpha Ranking. The Red List included Alphas, Betas, and Omegas. The biggest difference with the Alpha Ranking was that pheromones could be released, meaning competitors could freely use their pheromones to suppress opponents. However, these rankings only applied to first and second-year students. By the third and fourth years, cadets could start accepting missions, and everyone was on a single ranking—the Fierce Shield.
"First class of the semester, I'm giving you all a perk," Kang Guang grinned, the scar that formed a single line splitting open, making it look even more terrifying. "I heard the combat department admires the Fierce Shield holders the most, so I specially invited ten of your seniors to come over and let you have a taste."
The students in the classroom: "..." It wasn't the joy of possessing a Fierce Shield badge they were about to experience, but clearly the feeling of being utterly thrashed by a Fierce Shield holder.
"First, line up in ten rows. One by one," Kang Guang said, then leaned against the wall in the middle of the classroom and sat down.
The classroom was divided into two sections. On one side stood the ten graduated seniors, and on the other were the second-year cadets lining up.
"Who's stronger?" Zuo Luohuan turned her head to ask Jiang Hong.
Jiang Hong looked at the ten Fierce Shield holders, thought for a moment, and whispered, "They're all very strong. Kang Guang picked some skilled fighters. The strongest two are the sixth and tenth from the left, tied for one-thousandth place on the Three Thousand Fierce Shield List."
The Three Thousand Fierce Shield List wasn't ranked by the people who received the badge each year, but by all the Fierce Shield holders in the history of the First Military Academy. From the moment they received the Fierce Shield, they would enter the ranking. Their ten thousand credits would be reset to zero, and their mission credits would be recalculated, stopping on the day of their graduation.
Currently, the first place on the Three Thousand Fierce Shield List was Ren Pingbo, thousands of points ahead of second place. Unfortunately, he had betrayed the Federation and joined the Gashiro Empire.
Zuo Luohuan glanced at the tenth person, who was closest to her, and said, "Her, then."
"I'll choose the other one, then," Jiang Hong said.
They didn't make their decision early, so by the time they got in line, they were near the back and could only watch for now.
Logically, with ten seniors fighting many students, those who went first would wear down their stamina and provide combat experience, giving an advantage to those at the back. But after one or two people, everyone regretted not standing at the front from the beginning.
Because this group of Fierce Shield holders was too vicious. Several people were beaten so badly they couldn't even control their pheromones, which flooded the classroom. A mix of Alpha and Omega pheromones filled the air, leaving everyone dumbfounded.
"What are you doing?" Kang Guang glanced at a spectating student who was pulling out an inhibitor, ready to inject it. He let out a low, grim chuckle. "In my class, in my classroom, things like inhibitors and scent patches are forbidden. No one can use them."
"...Fuck," even Jiang Hong couldn't help but curse under his breath.
It wasn't that he hadn't done desensitization training before—staying in a room filled with high-level Alpha or Omega pheromones for a period to control himself—but it was never a mix of a dozen S-class pheromones all at once.
The entire class was filled with S-class students, whose pheromones were much stronger than other grades. As an Alpha, not only did he have to endure the pungent scent of his own kind and fight the urge to vomit, but he also had to smell the naturally seductive pheromones of same-level Omegas in the air and suppress his desires. It was sheer torture.
"If you can't even endure this level of pheromones, you might as well just dig out your glands sooner rather than later." Kang Guang stood up, glared at a few students trying to cover their noses, and barked, "Get your hands down!"
Whether they were at the front of the line or the back, no student was having an easy time. Those at the front were beaten to within an inch of their lives, their pheromones running wild. They couldn't even leave the classroom after their turn, just weakly squatting or sitting. A few Alphas vomited directly, while some Omegas bit their own arms, huddled to the side, and didn't move. As for those at the back, the ones with weaker willpower had their pheromones triggered, and when facing the seniors, they lost within a few moves.
At this moment, the Betas in the classroom were the happiest. Betas were not sensitive to pheromones, so neither Alphas nor Omegas had a significant effect on them.
Zuo Luohuan quietly observed the senior on the far right. Judging by her build and attack style, she was most likely an Omega—agile and skilled at using softness to overcome force. Due to the pheromones, the waiting time in line was much shorter than she had expected.
Before two hours had passed, it was her turn.
The senior on the far right rotated her arm, looked up at Zuo Luohuan, and stated her name as per procedure: "Geng Yingyu." Before her voice had even faded, she launched herself forward, kicking at Zuo Luohuan's side.
Zuo Luohuan's expression didn't change. She reached out and grabbed her calf, yanking it hard toward herself. If Geng Yingyu had been pulled forward, a fist would have met her face in the next second. But the moment she was pulled, Geng Yingyu flipped in mid-air, using the momentum to break free from Zuo Luohuan's grip while simultaneously attacking with her other foot. This forced Zuo Luohuan to let go and push her away, creating a brief pause between them.
Zuo Luohuan gently clenched the hand that had just been holding Geng Yingyu's calf behind her back. The force of the opponent's attack had been so great that her hand was slightly numb from the impact.
The brief exchange allowed both to size each other up. Geng Yingyu attacked again, holding nothing back, her speed so fast it left afterimages. This time, Zuo Luohuan failed to dodge and was struck on the chin by her raised elbow.
Unable to dodge in time, Zuo Luohuan's lower lip was immediately cut and started to bleed. But that wasn't the crucial part. The force behind every one of Geng Yingyu's moves was immense, which was strangely at odds with her body's agility.
A Fierce Shield holder's strength was indeed formidable.
Zuo Luohuan raised a hand and wiped the blood from her lip with the back of her index finger. Switching from defense to offense, she closed the distance between them, giving Geng Yingyu no chance to evade, and engaged in direct physical combat.
"Her desensitization training is quite good," Kang Guang muttered to himself as he watched Zuo Luohuan gradually gain the upper hand. He then walked to a spot and made a gesture to Geng Yingyu.
Geng Yingyu was about to be forced to the ground, but she didn't let Zuo Luohuan go. She grabbed her collar with both hands, and in an instant, they both fell to the floor.
Even on the ground, Zuo Luohuan had ways to fight back, but her opponent suddenly laughed. The next second, an intensely hallucinogenic Omega pheromone washed over her.
A musk-scented pheromone, Geng Yingyu's greatest hidden weapon, capable of arousing an Alpha's desires to the maximum extent.
It wasn't just Alpha pheromones that could suppress Omegas; Omega pheromones could also affect Alphas. This was perfectly demonstrated in combat. As long as one side lost focus, the other could seize the opportunity to claim victory.
Never mind Zuo Luohuan, who was closest to Geng Yingyu; even Kang Guang in the classroom frowned and covered his own nose. As for the other students, they were completely wiped out. Some had even knocked themselves unconscious.
The pheromone wrapped around Zuo Luohuan like a shroud. She instinctively held her breath, and Geng Yingyu seized the opportunity, flipping over and kicking her away.
Zuo Luohuan dropped to one knee, pressing down mercilessly on the spot where she'd been kicked. Her eyes were ice-cold. She shot up abruptly, her speed even faster than Geng Yingyu's before, and directly grabbed her, slamming her to the ground. Her black military boot was about to stomp on Geng Yingyu's chest.
"Enough!" Kang Guang stepped in and pulled Zuo Luohuan away. "You win."
Zuo Luohuan's expression softened. She withdrew her foot and then extended a hand to Geng Yingyu on the floor, smiling. "Senior, you let me win."
Lying on the ground, Geng Yingyu looked at the hand in front of her, a chill running down her spine. If the instructor hadn't intervened, she had the distinct feeling she would have died right there. But she showed none of this on her face, took Zuo Luohuan's hand, and smiled back. "You're very strong."
By this time, the others had more or less finished their fights. Kang Guang finally showed some mercy and activated the classroom's circulation system, dispersing the chaotic mess of pheromones in the room.
"That's all for today's class. Next time, remember to bring a change of clothes. You'll wash up in the room next door from now on," Kang Guang said with a grin. "Don't go stinking up the place for the other students outside."
Zuo Luohuan looked down at herself, smelling the chaotic mix of pheromones on her clothes, and couldn't help but let out a "tsk."
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