Do I Look That Old?

"Wait."

Before Bai Pu and Li Ling could get into the car, Wu Chen's voice came from behind them.

"Little General Wu, is something the matter?" Bai Pu greeted him.

Wu Chen stared at Bai Pu. "I have a proposal. I hope you'll consider it carefully."

It seemed Wu Chen had already calmed down.

"I heard you signed with the God Strategy Army. I hope you'll switch contracts and join the Superstar Alliance. The Superstar Alliance will cover all breach-of-contract penalties." Wu Chen sounded completely serious, not as though he were joking.

"Do you think that's possible?" Bai Pu asked in return.

"When it comes to Origin Blood, the Superstar Alliance has conducted the deepest research. In the Intersection Lands currently controlled by the Superstar Alliance, there is even the foundation of Evolution Source Blood—the Living Tissue of the Source Heart! Don't you desire it?"

Wu Chen's words were highly enticing. "If you join the Superstar Alliance, you'll be one of us. As long as you earn enough merit, sooner or later, you'll be able to transplant that piece of heart tissue. Your strength will soar, and advancing to a Heroic Profession or even an Enhanced Heroic Profession will be nothing unusual.

"You needn't worry, either. You're the person most compatible with Origin Blood. That piece of heart tissue is a gut-wrenching poison to others, but it would be an incredible boon to you. If we don't give it to you, then who should we give it to?"

A Heroic Profession!

It was the powerful Awakened template corresponding to a "Native Leader," the ultimate goal countless Awakened longed for! A powerful Heroic Profession Awakened could even fight a Native Leader like Blood Hand Colen one-on-one.

Li Ling looked somewhat worried. To be honest, even she had been tempted upon hearing such terms.

Bai Pu's gaze remained clear. He patiently listened to Wu Chen, then shook his head. "Little General Wu, since you don't need that piece of heart tissue, why not sell it to me? As for joining the Superstar Alliance, forget it. There's no way I'm turning back."

"You—"

Wu Chen took a deep breath, and his expression darkened. Through gritted teeth, he said, "Bai Pu, don't forget that the Clinical Medical Agreement contains another clause... After your death, your body will be donated to the Superpower Corporation free of charge!"

Li Ling cut him off. "Are you threatening someone from our God Strategy Army?"

"That doesn't count as a threat. I'm merely stating a fact."

Wu Chen gave a cold laugh. "Let me state a second fact... In the Spirit Realm, the Superstar Alliance is far stronger than the God Strategy Army! The Spirit Realm is a lawless place. Neither the military nor the government can control it!"

Bai Pu gently stopped Li Ling's heaving chest and said, "Actually, I rather like the Spirit Realm too, because the Spirit Realm Will is very fair... So what if the Superstar Alliance is stronger? The Spirit Realm Planes I can match into are all low-level. Mid-Level and High-Level Awakened can't enter them."

Wu Chen was ultimately wary of Li Ling, so he did not dare say anything harsher that could be used against him. He merely pointed at Bai Pu twice from a distance, left behind the words, "You've got guts," and turned to leave.

The army-green jeep cruised along at a steady speed.

"The military's Awakened forces have the advantage of sheer numbers, strict discipline, and highly standardized skills and equipment. In large-scale combat in the real world, they possess overwhelming superiority.

"But their shortcomings are also obvious. The military lacks top-tier Awakened with talent and strength, because true powerhouses tend to be independent, value great freedom, and cannot stand the restrictions of militarized management."

Li Ling looked at Bai Pu's perfectly sculpted profile and slowly explained:

"Transmission to the Spirit Realm requires tickets, and one ticket only allows one team to enter! Forming an Awakened team also requires costly Spirit Energy Points or rare Team Building Items. The military's advantage in large-scale operations cannot be brought into play in the Spirit Realm at all. This has resulted in the military having weak influence across the various Spirit Realm Planes, inferior to the large organizations that have cultivated them for many years."

"So... is that why the God Strategy Army was established?" Bai Pu asked.

"Yes. The God Strategy Army was an attempt by the military to see whether a relatively freer system could attract expert Awakened, making up for the military's lack of top-level combat power."

Li Ling said somewhat helplessly, "Unfortunately, the military's stern image had long been deeply ingrained in people's minds. The top Awakened we wanted to recruit would immediately refuse as soon as they heard of the God Strategy Army's background. So although the God Strategy Army has existed for many years, its results have fallen short of expectations."

That made sense. If I hadn't urgently needed someone to rely on, I might not have joined so readily either.

Li Ling took a deep breath. Her white shirt swelled high, then slowly sank back down.

She regained her spirits and said, "However, as early as five years ago, the God Strategy Army changed its approach. We decided to select Awakened with potential and talent from among low-level Awakened, bring them into the Genius Camp, and train them into top combatants! You debuted as a Reinforced Elite and have a rare tank profession. Of course I couldn't let you slip away."

"Five years ago? Then the first batch of talents you trained should have produced results by now," Bai Pu said.

Li Ling nodded. "The talented Awakened from the first Genius Camp formed the God Strategy Squad, and this year, they made it into the Class A League. You caught the last train for the second intake."

"The Superstar Squad sponsored by the Superpower Corporation seems to be a powerhouse in the Super League," Bai Pu said. The Class A League simply could not compare with the Super League in terms of influence. The former was Huaxia's domestic pastime, while the latter was an international competition.

"Yes, you still need to be careful. Just as Wu Chen said, the Superstar Alliance has far greater influence in the Spirit Realm than the God Strategy Army."

"I'm not worried about the Spirit Realm. I'm worried about the real world," Bai Pu said. "If they can't beat me in the Spirit Realm, they may try to strike at me in the real world."

"You don't seem panicked. Do you have a way to deal with it?" Li Ling asked.

"Yes. One way is to raise my fame in the real world," Bai Pu said. "The story surrounding me is actually quite compelling. Could you allocate some publicity resources to me? The more famous I become, the less likely the Superstar Alliance will be to use underhanded means against me in the real world."

"Publicity resources are extremely valuable. Fame in the real world affects roulette rewards, especially ticket quality, and no Awakened would take that lightly. Within the God Strategy Army, we also need to spend large amounts of Honor Points to exchange for publicity resources."

Li Ling shook her head. "I can put in a word and arrange one or two interviews for you, but to reach the point where it deters the Superstar Alliance, you would need to maintain extraordinarily high fame. That certainly can't be done without years of sustained publicity."

"Then there's only one last method."

Bai Pu leaned back tactically, lying against the rear seat's backrest. "Let me take the college entrance examination."

"Take the college entrance examination?" Li Ling did not react for a moment.

"Yes. The Top Scorer receives an enormous boost in fame. Please have the organization help me resolve my educational qualifications. I dropped out of middle school, so I'm not qualified to take the college entrance examination," Bai Pu said.

"It's not an issue of qualifications... The college entrance examination is a real-world 'world event,' and it has even been recognized by the Spirit Realm Will! The Spirit Realm Will monitors the fairness of the examination and grants world-event rewards to Awakened who achieve outstanding scores! Your educational qualifications are easy enough to handle. You only need to take a supplementary test to prove you have the equivalent of a high school education. But what about your age? The examination rules state that candidates cannot be older than eighteen! That can't be faked."

Bai Pu was speechless. He pointed at his nose. "Do I look that old? I'm only seventeen this year."