Practical Assessment

"It really is worth being custom-made; it looks fantastic."

Xu Ai stood before the mirror, satisfied, as the high-tech combat suit wrapped tightly around her body.

The combat suit was similar to a full-coverage exoskeleton; it was a bit troublesome to put on, but it provided a great sense of security.

On the other side, Xu Xin had also changed into her combat suit.

"It's alright, I suppose..."

Xu Xin was clearly not interested in such heavy gear.

This was the combat suit and weapon set specifically crafted for them by the Xu Family after they passed the Quasi-Martial Artist assessment, and the person in charge of this was naturally Xu Gang.

Xu Gang had put a lot of thought into the equipment during its manufacture. The combat suit was made of thin, lightweight S-grade material combined with other fabrics, with a weight perfectly suited for the physical fitness of Xu Xin and Xu Ai.

Although this material was thinner and lighter than standard combat suits, it was still difficult for even Beast-General-level monsters to penetrate, and its shock-absorption effect was excellent, making it easy to deal with H-level monsters.

As for their weapons, the blades were also made of S-grade material paired with A-grade components, with a weight suitable for the two of them to use, capable of harming even Lord-level monsters.

Although using this equipment for the actual combat assessment was a bit of an overkill, it was only because the family didn't know her true strength, hence their concern. Besides, there would always be opportunities to use them when they eventually went to the wilderness to hunt monsters.

As for Xu Xin, well, she really did need this combat suit!

"Sister Rui, let's go."

Xu Ai picked up her helmet, returned her long sword to its scabbard, and then called for Wu Rui to leave.

Wu Rui looked at Xu Ai and Xu Xin in a daze and nodded.

"Mm, okay."

Returning to the martial arts hall, although Xu Ai and Xu Xin were fully armed, no one found it strange. After all, this was a military camp, and they could be deployed to the front lines to clear out monsters at any time.

"Yo, it fits quite well."

Xu Gang looked at the high-tech combat suits on Xu Xin and Xu Ai and nodded with satisfaction.

Jiang Zheng also nodded: "Not bad. After all, this is their first real combat, so being cautious is indeed better."

"Many thanks to both brothers."

"That's right, Brother Zheng, you've also put in a lot of effort."

Xu Ai said with a smile. The equipment used for the actual combat assessment was all provided by the military—very basic combat suits and weapons. Jiang Zheng had put in a lot of effort to ensure she could wear this set during the assessment.

After chatting for a while, Jiang Zheng left to attend to his duties.

After all, there were many protective measures that needed to be handled for this actual combat assessment.

After resting here for a while, noon arrived. Xu Ai ate a nutritious lunch provided by the military in the cafeteria, rested a bit more, and the actual combat assessment was about to begin.

On the wide road, heavy container trucks drove past one after another, carrying a large group of the weakest H-level monsters, which had been subdued by the military with high-dose anesthetic needles and loaded into cages before being transported to Monster Town.

The convoy was long, and wave after wave was transported into the town, with the number of monsters in the town quickly reaching an astonishing figure.

"There are 1,736 quasi-martial artists participating in this actual combat assessment, so the number of H-level monsters deployed by the military is about 2,500 to 3,000. You only need to hunt 3 monsters to pass securely."

Xu Gang explained to Xu Xin and Xu Ai.

The condition to pass the actual combat assessment was to hunt more than 1 monster, and at the same time, the ranking of the number hunted must reach the top 60%. The remaining 40% would be considered failures and would need to wait for the next actual combat assessment.

3,000 monsters were not many; for 1,736 people, it averaged out to about 1.7 each. However, some rookies wouldn't be able to hunt even one, while some stronger rookies would be able to hunt more.

This number was specifically controlled by the military so that for the sake of safety, the quasi-martial artists would have to hunt more than three monsters, rather than hunting one or two and finding a place to hide, which would defeat the purpose of actual combat.

After all the monsters were transported and the convoy returned, an officer jumped onto the roof of a dilapidated three-story building, stated some rules and precautions for the assessment, and then announced:

"All quasi-martial artists, move out and enter Monster Town."

As the voice rang out, over a thousand quasi-martial artists surged directly into Monster Town. Xu Ai pulled Xu Xin and stayed at the back, waiting for the crowd to enter before they jumped a few times and rushed into Monster Town. As they entered, the gate slammed shut with a boom.

"Although it's said that hunting 3 monsters is generally enough to pass the assessment, we can't really stop after just hunting 3."

Not to mention anything else, Luo Feng from the Extreme Martial Arts Hall and that someone from the Thunder Dojo had both hunted dozens of monsters.

As a member of the HR Alliance, it wouldn't be shameful to lose to the geniuses recruited by these two major martial arts halls, but Xu Xin and Xu Ai were disciples of Hen Ren. Hen Ren was a Council Member, and if her disciples couldn't compare to the ordinary geniuses of the two martial arts halls, that would be very shameful!

Especially since they were essentially cheating, wearing equipment far superior to Luo Feng and the others.

"How many did those two actually hunt? Sorry, who knows? But 50 shouldn't be too far off. Or maybe just 100."

Xu Ai thought, looking at Xu Xin.

"Sister, let's split up and hunt monsters separately from here on."

"This... how about we stay together?"

Xu Xin really had no experience fighting monsters and was somewhat dependent on Xu Ai.

"Don't worry, we have special combat suits. The S-grade combat suit has a built-in shock-absorption design; mere H-level monsters can't hurt us at all."

Xu Ai first comforted Xu Xin, then began to fabricate a decree!

"Ahem, Master requires us to hunt 100 monsters, so we have to split up."

"I see..."

Since it was Hen Ren's instruction, Xu Xin had no choice but to agree.

"Remember, there is a penalty if you don't hunt down 100 monsters!"

"Ah!?"

The assessment had only just begun, and the number of monsters was at its peak.

Xu Ai and Xu Xin separated, avoiding the crowd, and jogged toward the interior of the Monster Town.

With the physical fitness of a Mid-level War General, even Xu Ai's controlled jog was far superior to these rookie Quasi-Martial Artists, and she soon took the lead, entering the inner layer of the town.

Compared to the battles already erupting on the outskirts, the inner layer was significantly quieter.

Xu Ai soon encountered a pack of monsters.

"Two Shadow Cats and three Iron-haired Wild Boar, what a great start."

The Monster Town was quite large, and the probability of so many monsters gathering in one place was not high.

Xu Ai deployed a kiting tactic, leading them far away. After using their 'calling for help' roars to attract a few more nearby monsters, she waited for a while to ensure no more would emerge before killing them in a few swift strikes.

"14 in total, 86 to go... take it slow, don't rush. There are still over ten hours until 6:00 AM tomorrow."

Xu Ai cut off their left ears, tucked them into her backpack, and left the area.

"Who is this girl? Her physical fitness should be at least at the High-level Warrior standard. Her sword technique and movement are definitely at the second level, and she has plenty of combat experience. Her mindset is also good; she doesn't vomit like some rookies do when killing monsters for the first time."

Zhuge Tao watched Xu Ai's combat with surprise. As an expert in talent investment, he definitely wanted to invest in such a talent!

Beside him, a middle-aged man in a military uniform lay on the sofa.

"She is indeed impressive. Let me see... she's from the Xu Family, and she's the one apprenticed to the Ruthless Councilor. You're out of luck."

"She is that person's disciple!?"

Zhuge Tao took the middle-aged man's phone in surprise, then couldn't help but shake his head and sigh, "What a pity."

Martial artists from prominent Chinese families either stayed home to build their careers or joined the military. As for the disciple of the Ruthless Councilor, it went without saying—there was no way she would ever defect to join the Extreme Martial Arts Hall.

Moreover, with the backing of the Xu Family and the Ruthless Councilor, he had no chance to invest. That was exactly why he felt it was such a shame...

After some time had passed, some Quasi-Martial Artists who were confident in their strength and rookies who lacked self-awareness began to slowly explore the inner layer. Overall, however, people were still very scarce.

While wandering in the depths, Xu Ai even ran into Luo Feng. He was busy leading a group of monsters to hone his Micro Level footwork and did not notice Xu Ai, who was scouting for monsters from a high vantage point.

Xu Ai didn't bother with him; as long as her sister wasn't by Luo Feng's side, it was fine.

However, she didn't know that shortly after she left, Xu Xin appeared...

Xu Ai wandered around, using her 'weak' strength to lead teams of monsters and slowly kill them one by one.

By the time the sky was just beginning to brighten, she had finally collected the ears of her 100th monster.

With her goal achieved, Xu Ai found a room on the second floor and sat inside to kill time.

Not long after, a piercing siren echoed throughout the Monster Town, followed by the voice of the officer who had spoken the day before: "Time is up. All Quasi-Martial Artists, report to the town exit immediately."

At the same time, the gates of the Monster Town opened once again. A group of martial artists and soldiers rushed into the town to treat severely injured Quasi-Martial Artists, collect the remains of the deceased, and mop up any remaining monsters.

Xu Ai had ventured deep into the Monster Town, but she moved quickly. By the time she exited, only a few other Quasi-Martial Artists had come out.

"Over here!"

Several soldiers waved at Xu Ai; they were the ones responsible for grading the Quasi-Martial Artists.

Xu Ai walked over and dumped the monster left ears from her pack into a metal pot.

The assessment officer counted them, and after a moment, said with a smile:

"Congratulations, 102 ears in total. You are currently ranked first. What is your name?"

I killed two extra? Did I miscount, or did this officer miscount?

Xu Ai was a bit confused, but it didn't matter. She reported her name anyway.

"Xu Ai."

The officer in charge of registration searched the computer and then logged Xu Ai's results.

"102 monsters, that's an exaggerated figure. Only the children of those War Gods and Councilors could pull that off, right?"

"Not necessarily. After all, it's everyone's first time seeing blood; no one knows how much combat power those children of the strong can actually retain."

"Either way, 102 is the highest kill count I've ever heard of. I haven't seen anything like it in previous years."

The surrounding Quasi-Martial Artists whispered about Xu Ai's results, but without exception, they kept their distance. Such a big shot was not someone they rookies could approach.

After her results were registered, Xu Ai stood in a corner. Xu Gang and Jiang Zheng were not at the scene; they were probably still fast asleep in bed, though it was also possible they were watching from the back.

Later, a few more Quasi-Martial Artists trickled out of the Monster Town. Xu Xin was among the later ones to emerge.

Hmm... and she was with Luo Feng...

Xu Ai stared at Luo Feng with an indifferent gaze. Her home had been raided—this was something she hadn't expected!

"Congratulations, 99, ranked second."

The officer said with a smile, registering Xu Xin's data.

Perhaps stimulated by Xu Xin, the number of monsters Luo Feng hunted reached 57, ranking him third!

"Big sister~"

Xu Ai called out sweetly, and then...

Right in front of Luo Feng, she whisked Xu Xin away...

Luo Feng, who felt like something was off but couldn't quite put his finger on it, stood there: "..."

After all the Quasi-Martial Artists had emerged, the only ones to come out next were the soldiers transporting the monsters and the casualties.

After some time, once the military had finished processing all the monsters, brought out the casualties, and tallied the final numbers, the actual combat assessment was officially declared over.

"102 monsters and 99 monsters—our family has swept first and second place. Not bad at all!"

Xu Gang patted Xu Xin and Xu Ai on the shoulders, beaming with joy.

"You're both much better than the geniuses specially recruited by the Extreme Martial Arts Hall and the Thunder Dojo!"

Especially that Luo Feng!

Xu Gang was still holding a grudge about the time Xu Ai had suddenly brought up Luo Feng a month ago...

There was no point in comparing them; they had cheated, after all...

Xu Ai smiled helplessly, but she still played along: "It's all thanks to this equipment. Otherwise, we never would have achieved such high scores. Thank you, brothers."

"Yes, thank you both."

Xu Xin touched the combat uniform she hadn't taken off yet. There were white marks all over it, making it clear that her Micro Level footwork hadn't played much of a role in her fight against the monsters.

It was estimated that she had simply overpowered them through brute force...

Jiang Zheng, standing beside Xu Gang, also said with a smile:

"Your results are indeed excellent. I'm just looking forward to when your eldest brother takes the Quasi-Martial Artist assessment so I can have a good laugh at his expense."

"Hey, hey, don't hit below the belt!"

The joyful expression on Xu Gang's face stiffened instantly as he glared at his good friend in dissatisfaction. The fact that he was about to be surpassed by his two younger sisters was too embarrassing for a big brother!

Jiang Zheng couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Xu Ai looked at the two of them; they were such a perfect match! She then looked at Wu Rui and felt a bit of regret.

Just like how she sighed that Wei Wen was a boy, she thought, if only either Jiang Zheng or Xu Gang were a girl, then I could have had Miss Wu Rui all to myself!

Xu Ai went to her room with Wu Rui, and with Wu Rui's help, she took off her combat uniform and changed back into her regular clothes.

During the process, Wu Rui was left stunned once again...

After eating breakfast and lunch at the cafeteria, Xu Ai and the others returned to the lobby to rest. By one or two in the afternoon, the military began distributing the Martial Artist Licenses.

With this Martial Artist License, one could enjoy various Martial Artist privileges. If one joined a major faction, they could also receive the right to live in a villa and some startup capital.

Of course, for Xu Xin and Xu Ai, this license was merely a professional credential and served no real purpose. There was no need to even mention the detached villa or startup capital; the Xu Family would satisfy any of Xu Ai's needs.

At five in the afternoon, Wu Rui gave Xu Xin and Xu Ai a big hug. After watching Xu Gang and Jiang Zheng bid a lingering farewell (from Xu Ai's perspective), it took a while before Wu Rui finally let them go, watching as Xu Gang, Xu Xin, and Xu Ai, accompanied by a group of HR Alliance members, boarded the train back to Yangzhou City.