Changes

After all, he already knew how things would turn out, so there wasn't much to look forward to. And seeing the students on the verge of going wild, Guan Ning figured it was best to slip away while he could. What came next would be even more shocking.

Seeing Guan Ning move, Shi Jiang understood at once and nodded.

Guan Ning turned on his Communication Watch, and his slightly boyish voice came through. "Senior Brother Shi Jiang, I'm heading back first. Tell Senior Sister Zhao Ruo for me!"

"You're going back? Aren't you staying to see the final results?"

Before Shi Jiang could answer, Zhao Ruo began chattering excitedly.

Hearing her shrill voice coming through the watch, Guan Ning rubbed his ears. "There's no need to see the results. The rankings won't change much. Neither Luo Feng nor I are likely to drop out of the top hundred; that's practically certain. There's no point in staying any longer."

"Don't you want to see Luo Feng's final ranking?" Zhao Ruo seemed to realize something and asked with a mischievous grin, "Did seeing Luo Feng get so far ahead of you make you feel bad?"

Feel bad?

Did he?

Guan Ning wasn't sure himself. Maybe he did.

After all, he'd worked his tail off for a whole month, and he'd had Tuoshan Deer fawns to supplement his nutrition. His conditions had been far better than Luo Feng's, yet he still hadn't managed to surpass him. Naturally, he felt a little unwilling to accept that.

But the feeling passed in a flash. After all, his goal had never been to surpass Luo Feng, but to keep moving forward—to see the wondrous, magnificent places Earth, the Black Dragon Mountain Empire, the Virtual Universe Company, the Original Universe, the Universe Ocean, and the Hunyuan Continent.

"Hey, say something. What are you spacing out for?" Seeing Guan Ning lost in thought, Zhao Ruo joked, "No way. Did I really hit the mark, Ning—"

"What are you talking about? I think if I don't leave now, I won't be able to get away later." Guan Ning looked exasperated. "Sister Ruo, Senior Brother Shi Jiang, I'm heading out."

"Mm." Shi Jiang had always been very friendly toward him and Luo Feng.

Zhao Ruo understood what Guan Ning meant, too, and waved. "Go on back. I'll come find you later."

After ending the call, Guan Ning left. Luckily, he was off in a corner, so he made it back to Jiangnan Pavilion without any trouble.

Not long after Guan Ning left, at 11:20, the rankings refreshed once more—No. 68 Luo Feng (570403).

At that moment, the nearly hundred students beneath the enormous Black Dragon Sculpture, along with several War God instructors, stared at the name in shock.

Everyone knew the students who'd gone out to hunt had already returned. The chances of the rankings changing were extremely slim.

In other words—Luo Feng's April ranking was No. 68. It was practically set in stone.

"This is huge!"

"Where did this freak named Luo Feng come from?"

"Oh my God!"

Even the calmest people were stunned by this ranking. No. 68 by itself wasn't all that remarkable, but a student who had just joined the Training Camp taking No. 68 in his very first month was something else entirely. That was worth more than an old student who'd spent four or five years there claiming the top spot!

At that moment, in Hongning Base City, intelligence agents from the military organizations of various countries, special administrative organizations, family conglomerates, mercenary groups, and more discovered that the Elite Training Camp's Black Dragon Ranking had refreshed. As competent intelligence agents, their leaders didn't wait for midnight—they immediately reported to their headquarters!

Luo Feng.

Ranking No. 68 in his first month made him far more impressive than the top hundred alone would suggest. More importantly, he was only nineteen!

Guan Ning.

His ranking was only No. 86, which seemed inferior to Luo Feng's, but the two were actually on par. After all, Guan Ning was only seventeen, two years younger than Luo Feng.

For super-powerful organizations like the five great powers and the Two Great Dojos, physical fitness could be improved quickly. There were publicly known methods like Dragon Blood, as well as special items that weren't publicly available...

But movement techniques, punching force, and blade techniques couldn't be forced. They could only be improved through one battle and training session after another, through "experience" and "comprehension"! In the Elite Training Camp's words... this was "Combat Power Amplitude."

Luo Feng and Guan Ning were both young, and their Combat Power Amplitude was clearly very high!

They were exactly the kind of talent these organizations wanted to recruit.

The powerful figures who received the news didn't bother to rest. They immediately drew up a series of recruitment plans and warned their own members in the Training Camp never to provoke Guan Ning or Luo Feng.

That way, even if they failed to recruit the two, they wouldn't make enemies of them. Large organizations and powerful factions always prepared for every possibility. It was called being prudent.

At the same time, John McClane, watching the Black Dragon Ranking with mixed feelings, received a message on his Communication Watch. It contained just one line—

"No matter what it takes, you must get Guan Ning to forgive you. Otherwise, you know exactly what the consequences will be. —Nicole Berg"

When John saw the name "Nicole Berg," his face filled with terror. He broke into a cold sweat as if he'd seen a demon.

The leader of the Demon Spider Mercenary Group, the world's second-largest, was Nicole Berg. Not only was she a Beyond War God powerhouse, she also had a Three-Eyed Demon Spider that she'd raised from when it was young. It was the source of the mercenary group's name.

John knew plenty about Nicole Berg's methods. He absolutely didn't want to suffer the terrible consequences, so his only choice was to find a way to earn Guan Ning's forgiveness.

At the thought, John felt a pang of regret. Other than his time in the Gravity Room and the Trial Tower, what else did he have that Guan Ning might want?

John wasn't the only one. William, Candice, and the others who'd clashed with Luo Feng also decided to leave him alone.

The others received warnings, too. The students in the Training Camp all sighed,

"The wind has shifted!"

Guan Ning, who'd left early, knew nothing about any of this. Even if he had, he wouldn't have cared. His gaze was no longer confined to Earth; it had already turned toward places higher and farther away...

Sitting in his study, Guan Ning looked at the ranking displayed on his laptop and smiled. "Not bad, not bad. I finally made it into the top hundred."

During that month, Guan Ning had either been in the Gravity Room or in the underground chamber. With Tuoshan Deer fawns to feed him, he naturally didn't need to go to the cafeteria.

Every day, he did nothing but practice his swordsmanship. What's more, he had the Basic Sword Technique to guide him along a clear path; Teacher Feng Mu to answer his questions; far more time using the imitation Gravity Room than anyone else; a soul that kept transforming and comprehension that kept growing; and Tuoshan Deer fawns to nourish him.

With all these advantages, his strength had improved by leaps and bounds. He'd made progress in every area, from physical fitness to swordsmanship and movement techniques.

First, there was his physical fitness. Over the past month, he'd eaten sixty kilograms of venison and four deer antlers. The venison was one thing, but deer antlers were a powerful tonic that nourished vital essence and blood and strengthened the muscles and bones. And these came from a Lord-level fawn, so their effects were incredible.

Guan Ning's digestion was fast, and he needed four or five kilograms of venison a day. After removing the bones, the Tuoshan Deer fawn he'd brought back had yielded more than eighty kilograms of meat. He'd eaten over twenty kilograms at a barbecue with Luo Feng and the others, and finished the remaining sixty kilograms over the month.

It shouldn't have been enough, but the deer antlers were incredibly effective. Those four small antlers alone contained more nourishment than sixty kilograms of venison.

The consumption was enormous, but the results were gratifying. On April 3, his strength had been 8,500 kilograms. Now it was 17,200 kilograms, putting him over the threshold for the intermediate War General Level.

He'd gained 8,700 kilograms in a month. It seemed unbelievable, considering Luo Feng had only gained two or three thousand kilograms in a month in the original story, but in Guan Ning's case, it made perfect sense.

The Tuoshan Deer fawn needed no explanation.

Luo Feng had only two hours in the imitation Gravity Room, while Guan Ning had eight.

As for the Ancient Civilization Gravity Room, Guan Ning had three hours there. Not only was that longer than Luo Feng's, but it was also more effective. After all, he trained under twenty times gravity, which greatly increased his efficiency—by far more than double.

With ample nutrition, efficient training, and an exceptionally long training time, gaining more than eight thousand, nearly nine thousand kilograms in a month made perfect sense.

His intermediate War General Level physical fitness met his goal for the month.

That covered his physical fitness. Next came swordsmanship and movement techniques. Despite all the advantages he had, Guan Ning hadn't broken through to the third realm in either, but he could now hold on in the third realm for five minutes. The Dugu Sword Art was unusual: swordsmanship and movement techniques advanced together. There was no situation where one reached mastery while the other only reached subtlety, or one reached proficiency while the other reached perfection. They complemented and reinforced each other.

Even five minutes was enough for him to challenge the Trial Tower. Guan Ning's first attempt at the tower was scheduled for noon on the ninth, during the 12-to-1 p.m. slot. The Training Camp granted new students this privilege during their first month.

On the first floor of the Trial Tower, Guan Ning had already passed the A-Grade Trial. The remaining B-Grade and C-Grade Trials were nothing to him, and he passed them in a little over thirty minutes. His Trial Tower level then rose to 2.0.

If he hadn't deliberately slowed down to temper himself, he could have wiped out the Reckless Bull herd even faster!

On the second floor, the time limit, number of monsters, and monster levels remained the same. What changed was the species.

The monsters on the first floor were Reckless Bulls. They were huge, so only three or four could attack him at once, and their attacks were simple: they either charged or gored him. Overall, they just barreled straight at him, making them easy for Guan Ning to dodge or attack.

The second floor was different. Iron-Armored Scorpions were smaller, and more than ten—sometimes over twenty—could attack Guan Ning at once. On top of that, the desert environment suited them perfectly, making them as comfortable as fish in water. Their stingers struck from the air, their pincers from the ground, and their stingers from underground. They attacked from above, on the ground, and below it! They also dodged erratically, making them extremely difficult to deal with.

Still, Guan Ning's movement techniques and swordsmanship were good. Even when an Iron-Armored Scorpion occasionally hit him, his combat uniform protected him, and his defensive amplitude kept the blow from causing much trouble.

He passed the A-Grade Trial on the second floor in under ten minutes. The B-Grade Trial was much trickier, and he only barely passed before the thirty-minute limit ran out.