CSMCDB - Chapter 12

Chapter 12

In that instant, Wen Yuncheng decisively used an Topspin Kick. The steel spike and armguard retracted into her sleeve in a flash. The beautiful kick struck Zhou Xuan squarely on the chin, sending him staggering, though he just barely managed to stay on his feet. Wen Yuncheng had already summoned a Pursuer, then reactivated her armguard and spike, launching a chaotic assault.

With a loud bang, the Pursuer self-destructed. The force of the explosion slowed Zhou Xuan's reaction by a couple of beats. By the time he raised his hands again, Wen Yuncheng's steel spike was already at his chest, a little further and it would have pierced him.

"Stop!" Teacher Jin declared the end of the match without hesitation. "Match over. Wen Yuncheng is the winner."

Host: Wen Yuncheng
Race: Human
Age: 15
Class: Mechanical Master
Level: 9
Experience: 115/1250
Points: 118

Wen Yuncheng retracted her armguard and extended her open palm toward Zhou Xuan. "A very good match."

"...Hmph." Zhou Xuan's expression was still sour. He stared at Wen Yuncheng for a moment, muttered "pretty boy," and slapped her outstretched hand. "I'll beat you sooner or later! Tell me, which class do you want to go to?"

"A-Class," Wen Yuncheng said with a smile. "I welcome the challenge, but once a day is enough." Zhou Xuan held no ill will toward her, so fighting him wouldn't yield the two points for defeating a malicious opponent. However, she had a combat mission that could only be triggered once per person per day. If Zhou Xuan challenged her daily, it would add up to a considerable amount of EXP over the year.

"Who has the time to challenge you multiple times a day! Stop being so narcissistic!"

Wen Yuncheng didn't know what she'd said wrong, but her opponent, who had been quite arrogant before the match, was suddenly furious again. She put on an innocent expression and looked at Teacher Jin. "Teacher, is there a reward for first place?"

"Other classes might have one, but G-Class doesn't." Teacher Jin gave a gentle smile. "After all, your teacher needs his Star Stones to marry a wife."

Wen Yuncheng was speechless. Fine.

So, this first place in G-Class… not only was there no reward from the system, but even the supervising teacher was unwilling to spend a single Star Stone to motivate his students? Wen Yuncheng sighed. The next step was to wait for the other classes to determine their top student, then begin the challenge matches to switch classes.

To maximize her gains, Wen Yuncheng planned to fight her way up from F-Class, all the way to A-Class! Of course, that was assuming she didn't fail along the way.

What? You ask what happens if she fails?

What else could she do? Just accept reality.

She was still 1165 EXP away from leveling up. Currently, her only stable source of experience was the 2000-meter run. By that calculation… she would have to run it 24 times? That was forty-eight thousand meters just to level up…

People used to use the phrase "a journey of a hundred and eight thousand li" to describe an impossibly long distance, but she never thought she'd face a similar reality herself.

"1947, do you have any food in your shop that can turn someone into a strongman in a second? The kind that lets you run forty-eight thousand meters without breaking a sweat?"

[Not out of breath? Of course you won't be out of breath if you're dead.] 1947 retorted sarcastically. [A Long Aotian must be down-to-earth! We must be practical and take things one step at a time!]

"But you're not a person."

[It's enough that you are.]

Feeling utterly hopeless, Wen Yuncheng embarked on her journey of running laps.

After finally completing two thousand meters, Wen Yuncheng took two steps before her legs gave out from weakness. Not caring about appearances, she sat right down on the ground, gasping for air.

"N-No… I can't… I can't live like this…"

[Elven Fruit from another world. Juicy and sweet. One can fully restore you. Only five points.]

"Hah, I'll think about it after I reach Star Practitioner and learn my skills." Wen Yuncheng steadied her breathing and climbed to her feet. "This won't do." At this rate, she wouldn't even reach Star Practitioner by the end of the placement tests, and who knew when she'd be able to complete the mission to join A-Class. It would take at least a semester… but by then, who knew if 2000 EXP would be a fortune or not even enough to scrape by?

"1947, that mission about bowing my head, do I just have to lower my head?" Wen Yuncheng browsed her mission list, her thoughts returning to the one worth 2000 EXP.

[You're dreaming. The requirements are clear. She also has to regret breaking the engagement!]

So just thinking about it wasn't enough? Wen Yuncheng rubbed her nose and turned her attention to her other G-Class classmates.

She returned to the competition grounds and went from class to class, asking any G-Class students she saw in the audience if they needed a sparring partner to prepare for the class selection.

And so… she rather smoothly found three sparring partners, earning 150 EXP. Unfortunately, by the time she wanted to find more, the matches were nearly over. Wen Yuncheng went to the cafeteria for a full meal, rested for a bit, and then ran another two thousand meters that night before returning to her dorm for a relaxing hot shower. She went to bed early.

"Who are you going to challenge from A-Class later?" In the G-Class area, Zhou Xuan saw Wen Yuncheng seemingly spacing out and hesitated for a moment before walking over. "I'm planning to challenge someone from D-Class."

"A random person from F-Class," Wen Yuncheng said. "Then a random person from E-Class, and a random person from D-Class." Although the academy didn't restrict students from starting their challenges at the lowest class, doing so would drag out the timeline. Thus, the academy stipulated that while you could start from the lowest possible class with no upper limit, you had to fight three consecutive matches. For example, if you were in D-Class and wanted to challenge upwards, you would have to fight students from C, B, and A in succession. There was only a five-minute rest period between each fight. If you lost a single match, your final placement would be the highest class you successfully defeated.

Because of this, students from higher classes would usually select a single target and have a few backup options in case they were challenged by someone else.

"It's a safe plan, but do you think you can fight three matches in a row?" Zhou Xuan couldn't help but frown. "Kid, even if you beat me, isn't it a bit too arrogant to think you can fight your way from F all the way to A?"

"How do you know I'll stop at A-Class?" Wen Yuncheng thought of her mission to challenge Lin Jinyu and winked at the boy. "We'll see how it goes."

"…" Zhou Xuan's expression turned strange. "Don't make such a girly expression at me, thanks." He paused for a second before adding, "Even if you're good-looking, it gives me goosebumps."

Wen Yuncheng's smile instantly vanished, replaced by an awkward but polite one. "Alright, bro."

[I told you you're a Long Aotian, can't you act like one?] 1947 retorted, [He's telling you: Sorry, I'm a straight man.]

Shut up! I'm not interested in little boys either!

The opportunity to challenge was determined by students drawing lots within their respective classes. Wen Yuncheng's luck was neither good nor bad; she was the third challenger from G-Class. The challenges started from G-Class and would proceed upwards, ending with A-Class… if anyone from A-Class wanted to challenge S-Class.

"I want to challenge F-Class, a random person." Wen Yuncheng walked onto the stage and looked at Teacher Jin. He handed her a box for F-Class, and Wen Yuncheng reached inside, casually grabbing a ball. It was marked with a "12."

"Number 12 from F-Class." Teacher Jin looked toward the F-Class instructor, who nodded. A girl stood up and walked onto the stage.

"Please guide me," the girl said, clasping her hands in a salute. But then she added, "And please go easy on me."

"Of course. I couldn't bear to lay a hand on a girl as cute as you," Wen Yuncheng readily agreed, making a "please" gesture.

The girl's face suddenly flushed at Wen Yuncheng's smile. She was still a bit dazed when "Begin" was announced. Then, she saw Wen Yuncheng unceremoniously retreat to create distance and summon a Pursuer.

She really didn't lay a hand on her.

Whether it was the Pursuer or the Topspin Kick, neither involved Wen Yuncheng's hands. Furthermore, it was the girl's first time facing such an unconventional opponent. She didn't immediately close in for melee combat and even tried to attack the Pursuer, only to be left stunned by the explosion.

By the time she finally understood the Pursuer's mechanics and managed to get close to Wen Yuncheng, she was met with a merciless Topspin Kick. Lying on the stage after the match, she was still thinking about Wen Yuncheng's bullshit promise: "couldn't bear to lay a hand on a girl as cute as you."

Teacher Jin declared Wen Yuncheng the winner. He went up to help the girl, thoughtfully popping her dislocated jaw back into place. The girl looked back at Wen Yuncheng, and tears welled up in her eyes.

Wen Yuncheng thought, I really didn't use my hands.

"Continuing the challenge. E-Class, a random person," Wen Yuncheng announced loudly, remaining on the stage.

Teacher Jin had expected this, so he simply nodded and looked at the E-Class instructor. The process of drawing a number was repeated.

This time, a boy came on stage. He looked at Wen Yuncheng with disdain, tilting his chin up to mock her. "I've seen through your tricks. I can't believe you're so harsh even on a girl! And after saying something like that before the match. Let me be the one to—"

"Alright, no need for the harsh words. You're right about everything." Wen Yuncheng raised a hand, then pressed her palms together and bowed apologetically. "But I still have to challenge someone from D-Class, so please, let's start quickly."

"You-you—Hah, fine, let's start! Don't blame me when I make you cry!"

"Of course. After all, I don't have parents to protect and comfort me," Wen Yuncheng said with a shrug and a smile. She looked at Teacher Jin, who cleared his throat and raised his hand. "Alright, both of you get ready."

"Begin!"

The boy claimed to have figured out Wen Yuncheng's strategy, so he rushed forward to close the distance right from the start. His weapon was a long staff, and he opened with a downward chop followed by a horizontal sweep. Wen Yuncheng sidestepped the sweep. She didn't summon a Pursuer at the beginning, understanding that anyone who had watched her previous match would likely try to overwhelm her with close-quarters combat, and summoning a skill so early would be easily interrupted.

Clang, clang, clang…

Wen Yuncheng raised her arm, blocking several consecutive strikes from the staff with her armguard. With a nimble backbend and a side flip, she dodged another sweep. The boy wielded his staff with extreme dexterity, changing his momentum fluidly. As the saying goes, an inch longer is an inch stronger, an inch shorter is an inch riskier. The boy's staff work was grand and powerful, his movements wide and sweeping, the weapon constantly whistling through the air. He channeled Star Power into his hands, and every time a downward strike missed and slammed into the floor beside Wen Yuncheng, she felt as if it could punch a hole right through it. Wen Yuncheng dodged several attacks by flipping and rolling. During a match, she couldn't care less about her image; not getting hit was all that mattered. Her arm was still a bit numb from blocking the first few hits, so only a fool would continue to block them head-on.

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