ASER - Chapter 60
Chapter 60: What Does It Look Like?
Cheng Zhang could tell from their expressions that everyone was equally unskilled. His own expression relaxed a bit as he walked over to ask about the exam situation, hoping to learn from their experiences.
Regardless of past pettiness, when it came to future progress, no one hesitated to exchange experiences.
Rao Xueya sighed, "It's too difficult. I got killed before I could even land an attack on the monster after I went in."
"My attacks were effective, but then those flesh thorns shot out. One hit me, a 'poisoned' status appeared, and I died instantly." Tian Zhongxiang was also miserable. Logically, as a ranged attacker, she should have had an advantage, but she never expected the flesh thorns could be launched, and she failed to dodge—because the gravity was doubled, her reaction speed couldn't keep up.
It was too hard.
Couldn't even defeat a single toad.
Cheng Zhang frowned, "There wasn't just one. After I killed one, two more appeared. I died before I could even see where they were hiding."
It wasn't just Rao Xueya and the other two; everyone else around was also stunned.
There were actually three of those accursed toads in total!!!
"Damn it, don't tell me I won't be able to kill this toad even by the time of the college entrance exams!"
"Bro, don't jinx it like that!"
A group of people were complaining endlessly when suddenly, Yuan Shu emerged, his face longer than a donkey's. He looked at the hall and immediately asked, "Is Chen A'Diao out yet? What about Song Ling?"
They were all rivals, so why the differential treatment? Their Song Ling was beautiful, but A'Diao was cute too.
Tian Zhongye, annoyed with him, said, "Not out yet. Among the four of you, you died the fastest."
Yuan Shu's face darkened.
However, this remark reminded everyone, "There are still quite a few people who haven't come out yet. Those ranked at the top, and Chen A'Diao, Song Ling... Oh right, Bai He isn't out either."
The group of those who had "died" were all waiting for those who hadn't, waiting for them to "die" and come out too.
They waited... Beep. Zhou Xiuhe's name suddenly appeared on the leaderboard.
She had passed the first stage.
Oh-ho!
"Eh, not bad. That's two now, and school has only just started." The administrator, halfway through his coffee, smiled at the sight.
Everyone was surprised for a moment. They hadn't expected it to be Zhou Xiuhe; after all, she was generally acknowledged to be ranked fourth, yet she was the second to pass.
They wondered if Ming Zeye and Zhongchuan Mingxiu would be able to pass.
After a while longer...
Zhongchuan Mingxiu's name appeared.
The third person! He was the third person!
Yuan Shu and the members of his small clique were overjoyed, their spirits soaring.
Everyone suddenly felt that strength was indeed king. Look, those ranked at the top could all pass.
"Their Spirit Power is strong, so they can all pass. Maybe the others will soon too..."
Before these words were even finished, Guang Xiucheng came out.
She had "died," failing to pass the first layer, but her attitude was still good. An optimist, she even greeted Zhou Xiuhe and casually asked, "Are Tang Zhou and the others out yet?"
"They went in late, so they're not out yet."
"Uh, she's out."
The one who came out was Song Ling. She didn't look displeased, just calm. Yuan Shu breathed a sigh of relief. He wanted to make a couple of sarcastic remarks, but couldn't bring himself to do it when he saw her face. Moreover, thinking about how much longer she had lasted than him, he felt a bit sheepish, but still muttered, "Tang Zhou will definitely pass. That Chen A'Diao, though, not necessarily."
That's what he said, but she still hadn't come out.
"Anyone who has lasted this long without coming out is formidable; they have a chance of passing."
When Guang Xiucheng heard this, she was surprised and subconsciously looked at Song Ling, who was going to the administrator's counter to buy coffee. Guang Xiucheng couldn't help but follow her. "Song Ling, did that Chen A'Diao go in around the same time as you?"
"Yes."
"Ah..." Guang Xiucheng felt a bit pressured this time.
It wasn't because of the prejudice that internally selected students were superior to those admitted through the entrance exam, but because they all knew that Chen A'Diao and her group had started mastering Spirit Power several days later than them.
If Chen A'Diao could pass...
Just as Guang Xiucheng also ordered a coffee to calm her nerves, more news came from the other side.
Zhou Xiuhe's figure emerged. She glanced at the leaderboard and the hall, frowning. Had Zhongchuan Mingxiu lasted longer than her on the second layer?
At the same time, Ming Zeye's name appeared on the list, but he had surely gone on to challenge the second layer as well.
Now, the two male students, second only to Tuoba, were once again locked in a PK state.
"Besides those two, the ones still not out are Bai He, Tang Zhou, Dai Qiang, Chen Zhongze, Chen A'Diao, and Jiang Ye..."
Before the "Ye" in Jiang Ye's name could be fully uttered, the young, scholarly-looking boy with rosy lips and white teeth emerged. After greeting Guang Xiucheng and others he was friendly with, he came over to buy milk tea.
"It was a bit scary." He seemed still shaken by the experience. Being only 16, he appeared even more boyish and spoke with a soft voice.
Guang Xiucheng was amused and patted his shoulder to comfort him. Song Ling glanced at Jiang Ye, thinking that despite his young age, his achievements were extraordinary. If not for the resurgence of Spiritual Energy, he could have achieved great success with his intellect alone.
Her coffee was ready, and she was just about to pick it up.
"Holy crap, Brother Tang, you're out?! Where's Chen A'Diao? Why isn't she dead yet!" Yuan Shu exclaimed urgently, and everyone turned to look at the sound.
Brother Tang had also been looking for A'Diao. Hearing this shout, the pressure on him instantly increased.
"She's still not out? Is she running a marathon in there?"
"Who knows? Maybe she used stinky pickled vegetables to knock out those toads?"
"..."
Suddenly, Dai Qiang and Chen Zhongze came out. They had "died," but they had also made it onto the leaderboard.
Currently, none of the generally acknowledged top six had failed.
Only Tuoba, Ming Zeye, Zhongchuan Mingxiu, Chen A'Diao, and Bai He remained.
The first three were striving to conquer the second layer, while the latter two...
Thirty-five seconds later, a figure emerged.
It was Bai He.
Simultaneously, a name suddenly appeared on the leaderboard.
Everyone's breath hitched.
"Did Bai He pass?"
"Passed?"
"Pass... It's not him."
This name had three characters.
When Zhou Xiuhe saw Bai He come out and the leaderboard change, her thoughts stirred slightly, but the next second, she was stunned.
She wasn't the only one who was stunned.
Their mentality was—how could it be her!?
The one who cleared it was Chen A'Diao.
After seeing the name on the list, Bai He's heart trembled slightly.
He had persevered for so long with great difficulty, yet he had still failed. She succeeded?
Just as everyone was shaken, A'Diao appeared at the small door, her expression also looking quite grim.
Why? Because as soon as she reached the second layer, before she could even get a clear look at her surroundings, she was stabbed to death with a single blow.
Something from behind had stabbed her.
Insta-killed.
But fortunately, as soon as she came out, she harvested a large amount of Mental Energy Points, which startled her.
What the heck, they were all surging by one thousand, two thousand, three thousand.
In the blink of an eye, her Mental Energy Points soared to one hundred and fifty thousand.
Toilet: "I bet 99% of these Mental Energy Points are from people who hate you. The only ones who have a good impression of you are Song Ling and a few others."
But did A'Diao care? She only felt that she loved these classmates.
Including people from other classes, complete strangers, who also sent her Mental Energy Points.
Glancing at the few lonely names on the leaderboard, in order to farm even more Mental Energy Points, A'Diao maintained a miserable expression. With a melancholic posture, she leaned against the wall, let out a weak breath, clutched her chest, and said faintly to the crowd, "It was too terrifying. The monster on the second layer is truly too terrifying. I died before I even saw what it looked like. By the way, classmates, do any of you know? Can anyone describe it to me?"
From Yuan Shu +2888!
From Tang Zhou +3888!
...
From Bai He...
From Rao Xueya +2333!
She even managed to fleece her own teammates. Now that's professional.
Zhou Xiuhe, ever socially adept, sensed A'Diao's extraordinary potential and took the initiative to talk to her. Only then did A'Diao learn that what had stabbed her was a scarecrow.
"Fuck!" she cursed.
Zhou Xiuhe: "That's right. Straw. I was also stabbed to death later."
Song Ling: "..."
No matter how many times A'Diao cursed "fuck," right now she was undoubtedly the person of the hour, her prominence even surpassing that of Zhou Xiuhe and the others. Why?
Because it was expected for them to pass, but her passing was unexpected—she had started mastering Spirit Power several days later than them.
"Her Spirit Power is at least G3."
Tang Zhou said with a grim face.
"Impossible. How could she go from 0 to G3 in one day? Even if she spent 24 hours inside the Little Spirit Gate, it would be impossible, unless it was perfect absorption. But her aptitude isn't that high."
Yuan Shu also felt sick to his stomach internally. How could this be? How could he be so far behind her?
"Did she really smoke those toads to death with pickled vegetables?"
"Possible."
The two consoled themselves, but... a demonic voice suddenly sounded.
"Classmate Yuan, hurry up. Transfer the money to me while your big brother, Classmate Zhongchuan, isn't out yet."
"Oh right, you're paying Classmate Tang's share, aren't you?"
Neither Song Ling nor Yuan Shu had passed, so there was no outcome for their bet, but A'Diao had won against Tang Zhou.
Yuan Shu was so angry his gums ached, but he could only transfer the money to her with a livid face. "I admit defeat. I can still afford this ten million. But Chen A'Diao, don't be so arrogant. Even if you're strong, there are plenty of people in Class 1 ranked ahead of you."
A'Diao completely ignored what he said. "Hurry up. Next time, set up facial recognition payment. Entering a password is too old-fashioned, so slow."
Yuan Shu: "!"
Beep. Transfer successful. A'Diao felt great, truly great. The way she looked at Yuan Shu was like looking at a beloved son.
Yuan Shu felt like throwing up. Tang Zhou couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Chen A'Diao, we're all classmates. If you lose, you lose. Why be so malicious with your words?"
A'Diao: "?"
How was asking him to set up facial recognition malicious? He was the one who had come looking to be fleeced today.
A'Diao, with her crafty personality, smiled. She gave the two a deep look and said slowly, "You two had better pray for one thing."
What thing? The others couldn't understand.
Until Zhongchuan Mingxiu and Ming Zeye came out.
Zhongchuan Mingxiu's mood wasn't bad, because Ming Zeye also hadn't passed the second layer, so his advantage remained. But when he saw the leaderboard, his gaze still froze for a moment.
He was third, having cleared the first layer, but Chen A'Diao was seventh. She was on the list, meaning she had also naturally cleared the first layer.
They were actually on the same layer.
Even if there was still a difference in strength... but... the difference wasn't that huge anymore.
How could her progress be so fast? Was she truly exceptionally gifted?
This girl would definitely become a serious threat. Cui Liang's words had been correct.
Zhongchuan Mingxiu reined in his emotions, intending to put the matter aside for the time being. Suddenly, he saw Chen A'Diao smile, and that smile was very strange.
Sure enough, she then suddenly said something to Yuan Shu.
"Yuan Shu, do you know that a true big brother would know to remind his underlings to conserve resources and avoid risks? Even if he couldn't do it the first time, he would remind them later. Because with that big brother's strength and insight, he could actually see the upper limit of the person you're provoking. But he didn't remind you. Why is that?"
Zhongchuan Mingxiu's expression suddenly changed. Just as he was about to say something, A'Diao continued speaking.
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