Nine Cliffs

Countdown 90:00:00.

6:00 AM.

Outside of Whale Island, most students in the Outer World are still fast asleep at home; only a few of the more hardworking high school students get up at this time.

But it's different on Whale Island. Every morning at 6 o'clock, there is a group exercise session. You can get 10 points by running with the academy instructors once.

Now, it means you can earn points both in the morning and evening.

In the past, running exercises and studying were activities with no visible benefits, or rather, their benefits came too slowly, making it difficult for students to maintain such a long-term perspective.

But things are different now; Whale Island's revenue is readily available and predictable.

As a result, those students who were originally lazy suddenly became diligent.

Actually, this bonus point wasn't originally included.

Before the academy was established, there were already many people in the public who were resistant to centralized management, so Kunlun did not want the academy to have such a strong militaristic style from the beginning.

The college's decision-makers believe that the college needs a more open and vibrant atmosphere, and they encourage everyone to make various attempts and live different lives.

Therefore, there was no morning exercise in the snowfield at the beginning.

As a result, the girl named Chen Zhuoqu actually went to the college and made her own suggestion. "If Kunlun hopes that students here will have better and better living habits and become more and more self-disciplined, then they should open an early morning exercise program to encourage everyone to face a positive life."

"Although the college didn't have this program before, as long as it's positive, it can be offered."

After listening to Chen Zhuoqu's explanation, the academy thought about it carefully and realized there was really no problem. It just meant that the academy's teachers needed to get up early and work a little harder, but Kunlun wasn't afraid of being tired.

Thus, the running exercise program came into being.

Running exercises are not mandatory; anyone who wants to earn points can do it, so no one criticizes Chen Zhuoqu for being a busybody.

Chen Zhuoqu, on the other hand, ran exercises on time every day without fail, managing to raise her daily points to 70.

While others take three or four days to accumulate enough points for a single item, she can do it in just two days.

What sets students like Chen Zhuoqu apart is that while ordinary students simply do whatever projects are available in the college, students like Chen Zhuoqu create projects even when none exist.

In the eyes of these students, it seems that there are no difficult things in the world, only that they haven't tried hard enough...

Born to be a curl king!

There are at least several dozen such students in the academy. Zheng Yuandong commented that they are born winners, and the academy must pay close attention to them and try to recruit them into the Kunlun organization.

Those who are in college can be recruited directly, while high school students will be recruited after they enter college.

In any case, we can't let Jiuzhou take them away. These people are all capable of standing on their own in the future.

During morning exercises, everyone suddenly looked south, and someone murmured, "Am I having a memory lapse? There seem to be some mountains to the south? I've never seen them before."

"I've never seen it before either. It definitely just appeared recently, but... this mountain is so steep! From a distance, it looks like a smooth cliff."

Chen Zhuoqu, who was in the group, looked over and thought that something was definitely amiss. There was an Agricultural Academy that had suddenly sprung up in the academy, and then the academy launched those magical products.

Now that there are a few more mountains, something new is bound to happen.

She took out her phone while jogging, but there were no announcements.

That's strange, isn't it time to make the announcement yet?

At this moment, the instructor next to her looked at her and said, "Chen Zhuoqu, you are looking at your phone while running. You will be deducted 5 points."

Chen Zhuoqu sighed. She shouldn't have looked at her phone.

Inside the main teaching building, Zheng Yuandong stood atop a high building, looking down at thousands of students doing their morning exercises.

Ni Ergou came up behind him. "Boss, what are you looking at so intently?"

"I'm watching the students doing their morning exercises," Zheng Yuandong said. "This is quite interesting. In a free environment, most students just want to let loose and have fun. After all, they've just left their parents and no one is supervising them. In the first few days of school, some people were drinking until they passed out, private cinemas were packed every day, and some people were playing games all night in their dorms. It's like this in universities all over the Outer World now. But there will always be some people who stand out in this environment... Pay close attention to these students doing their morning exercises. Ambition is the driving force that supports their self-discipline. Among these people, there will definitely be some who will shine brightly in the future."

Under Zheng Yuandong's management, Time Walker Academy did not use methods such as daily dormitory checks, roll call in class, and raids on small woodlands to discipline students, as some disciplined schools do. Instead, it used a points system to guide students.

The former's management style is clearly inferior to the latter's.

Today, the academy is full of vitality. Except for a very few students, most students are happily earning points and growing at the same time.

This is exactly what Zheng Yuandong wanted to see.

However, that's not enough. He wants to see some elites emerge, who will be the key targets for Kunlun to cultivate and win over.

Of course, winning them over should be an easy task, since this is Kunlun's home turf and Jiuzhou can't interfere.

Zheng Yuandong asked curiously, "Weren't you cultivating? Why did you come out of seclusion?"

Ni Ergou chuckled and said, "I've been cultivating for more than three days straight, so I need to take a break. I'll continue my seclusion after breakfast. By the way, the Agricultural Academy suddenly submitted a rather outrageous points-based task, and I wanted to show it to you."

Zheng Yuandong took the tablet and gasped. "300 points, plus one each of Purple Orchid Star, Jingshan Tea, and Longevity Sky? This kid is too rich! What's gotten into him? Why is he so generous?"

Initially, he and He Jinqiu judged that the Agricultural Academy could guarantee a seamless transition of 5 people to Purple Orchid Star, and that they could only provide a few dozen portions of Jingshan Tea per month.

Later, they realized that Qing Chen should be able to ensure seamless coordination for more than ten people at the same time, and that was the limit.

Now, even the sixteen Golden Family from the Parent's Association have come to the island, including Xiao Qi, whom he had met before.

Qing Chen specifically arranged for these people to go to the island for seclusion, so how could he not guarantee a seamless transition for them to Purple Orchid Star?

Meanwhile, the Agricultural Academy has been shipping out basket after basket of Jingshan Tea and Longevity Sky since yesterday, all in an effort to empty the students' points so they can complete tasks for the Parent's Association...

It's like the Time Walker Academy is only for daytime!

Just today, Qing Chen submitted another outrageous plan, sending out Purple Orchid Star, Longevity Sky, and Jingshan Tea like they were free.

This is outrageous!

Zheng Yuandong suddenly realized that Qing Chen had deceived them all; the growth rate of Purple Orchid Star was probably dozens of times higher than Qing Chen had initially claimed...

But this is terrifying! If this were a conglomerate in the Inner World, it would be unreasonable if they didn't cultivate two or three demigods with these resources!

Ni Ergou added from the side, "This mission is limited to ordinary people, so not many people will actually pass it. However, he only has 300 points of access, which means we need to upgrade his access level."

Zheng Yuandong pondered for a moment, "Regardless, it's a good thing that he's willing to allocate so many resources to the students. As long as the Time Walker of the Outer World is growing, that's something Kunlun wants to see. Let's approve this task for him and upgrade his privileges, giving him unlimited points like me."

Ni Ergou nodded. "I've also investigated recently. Qing Chen knows what's important. The Agricultural Academy never sells goods privately; they only provide them to its own staff. People have tried to buy from the Agricultural Academy students, but none of them have been able to find any."

"Well, as long as it doesn't undermine the fairness of our points system, it's fine. As for his own power, as long as he keeps a low profile, he can do whatever he wants. After all, his status in the Inner World is already quite impressive; just being able to come to Whale Island is already a great achievement," Zheng Yuandong nodded. "Also, stop calling him 'this kid' all the time. Now he's the boss of Daylight, the leader of the Qing Clan Secret Intelligence Department, the next generation leader of the Knights, the Li Clan... Why does he have so many titles?"

As Zheng Yuandong spoke, he couldn't help but swear. Qing Chen's titles and ranks were indeed a bit too much...

He continued, "After such a 'big shot' gains honor and status, we in Kunlun must also learn to treat him as an equal, even though he will only be 18 years old in three months."

Ni Ergou nodded. "Don't worry, boss, I understand. I was just saying it offhand."

The college suddenly erupted in excitement, with students spreading the news.

It was all because the academy's app suddenly released a task announcement related to that suddenly appearing mountain!

The students walked along the road, excitedly discussing, "Holy crap, we can get 300 points just by climbing one mountain, and we can even get a set of each item? All of these things together are worth thousands of points! Just that cultivation aid item alone is something you can't buy even with points!"

"The announcement stated that the time limit for the first challenge, the 10-meter cliff, is only two days. After 48 hours, the mission will be canceled. If you want to continue participating, you will have to directly challenge the second challenge, the 48-meter cliff."

Now all the students were anxious and ran towards the hills, wanting to see what they looked like.

Given the current shortage of goods, the task of giving away three items at the same time is enough to motivate anyone.

Moreover, this task is limited to ordinary people (who can consume product 3), so those who have cultivated the Myriad Thunder Department are excluded.

This means that out of more than 60,000 students, only more than 16,000 can participate.

This is undoubtedly fantastic news for ordinary students.

Finally, there's a project where I don't have to compete with the gods!

Last week, the semifinals of basketball, football, tennis, and badminton tournaments turned into a battle of titans.

On the football field, some people kick the ball so hard it bursts, while others kick through the goal net. In one match, there are ten balls, one net, and three goalkeepers.

On the badminton court, a powerful smash pierced the net.

On the basketball court, dunking from the free-throw line is no longer enough to satisfy everyone's aesthetic sense. Everywhere you look, there are gods trying to dunk from the mid-court line. Ordinary people feel like they're risking their lives when they go on the court, as if they're going to die any minute.

Therefore, these sporting events have already revealed the polarized state within the Time Walker.

Now, there's a feature specifically for ordinary Time Walker, and everyone is so happy!

Moreover, there's no way to cheat with this thing. As long as you have a record of exchanging with the Myriad Thunder Department in the academy, you'll be directly blocked from accessing it.

Furthermore, there are people specifically responsible for supervision, and 50 points will be deducted if Awakened is found to be participating.

Qing Chen made this choice not to favor ordinary people, but because the path of the knight must be traversed by ordinary people.

In the Inner World, by completing seven tasks through the Knight of Heart's Inquiry, one can become a demigod; the eighth task has no conditions for completion.

In the Outer World, knights who do not use Heart's Inquiry or Breathing Technique need to complete eight tasks in one go to directly advance from ordinary people to A-rank.

If you want to walk the path of the Outer World, you must be able to endure loneliness and accept the reality that you are just an ordinary person.

But without a doubt, this is the path to mass-produced riders!

How many knights can emerge from over 14,000 people? Qing Chen didn't know the probability, but as long as 3 to 6 could be produced, everything he had done would be meaningful!

Qing Chen was not worried at all that those who walked this path would not be of one mind, because those who could walk this path would ultimately share the same beliefs, without exception.

This is the most rigorous selection process in any organization in the world, requiring eight life-or-death experiences.

At this moment, the ordinary students who had been feeling stifled went crazy and all ran towards the Green Mountain Cliff.

But after that, everyone was filled with despair again.

Before them, the lowest mountain was 10 meters high, and it was a vertical cliff that they had to climb with their bare hands!

This is quite different from indoor rock climbing projects, which at least have fixed handholds. But on this cliff, some places can only be held with half a fingertip at most, and one wrong step and you will fall down the mountain.

Moreover, 10 meters is a height that sounds low, but is actually quite high, taller than a four-story building.

In Olympic diving events, the highest platform is only ten meters.

Standing on the diving platform and looking down, the swimming pool seemed to have shrunk...

Beside the shortest hill, there is a safety rope retraction machine manifested by Jingūji Maki, which is large enough for more than a hundred people to try rock climbing at the same time.

Some students eagerly tied on their safety ropes, and after Xiao Qi and others checked the locks, they began rock climbing.

Then, these students immediately realized just how difficult this challenge was.

These people, who normally struggle to do ten pull-ups, now need to use their fingers to exert force, and their arms start trembling after climbing just two meters...

When they looked up at the distance above them again, they immediately gave up.

Some people finally managed to climb to the eight-meter mark, only to find that they couldn't find any obvious footholds to grab onto as they climbed further.

The climber accidentally fell backward, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Qing Chen also set a very strange safety distance for the safety rope machine; it only starts tightening the safety rope when the climbers fall three meters.

In other words, everyone who falls will be frightened.

If the challenger doesn't even climb three meters, they will fall to the ground.

Of course, don't panic if you get hurt. Xiao Qi and the others are waiting nearby with ten baskets of Chicken Blood Sprout they've collected over the past few days. They'll apply medicine for free if you get injured...

Qing Chen needs to do is first scare away those who are timid.

It was a bit of a loss, but it was extremely useful.

In front of the 10-meter cliff, groups of people took turns trying to climb it. Some failed, but still refused to give up and went to search for rock climbing tutorials.

Some people know they simply don't have the physical strength to do it, so they give up.

Those who give up after only a few attempts are not even in Qing Chen's consideration. What he needs are the resilient, the brave, and the fearless!

At this moment, Chen Zhuoqu looked up at the cliff and suddenly remembered the last sentence in the academy's app announcement.

"Are you afraid? If you're afraid for a day, you'll be afraid for a lifetime."

When Chen Zhuoqu saw this sentence, she was still thinking that it was just a small hill of 10 meters, what was there to be afraid of?

But now she realizes that success is really hard to achieve.

The expert in climbing points stood by and watched. Her first task was to observe the climbing routes and determine which route was the easiest.

Then she chose position 31, which was the easiest and had the most leverage points.

This running expert then began to observe and compare his own strength and weight with those of others to see if he had the ability to sustain himself to the top.

The conclusion was no; she would probably be exhausted after climbing to four meters, which was not her forte.

Chen Zhuoqu hesitated. She touched the two Longevity Sky Fruits in her pocket. If she ate these two fruits, would they give her enough power?

It seems possible.

But the donor who matched her sister's bone marrow... offered a very high private price; the other party was actually selling bone marrow.

She is still short 6 million.

These two fruits can now be sold for 600,000 yuan. Chen Zhuoqu needs this 600,000 yuan very much because her sister's surgery is next month.

She can't always snatch the fruits of the Longevity Sky every day; even with points, she might not be able to get them. Therefore, every single fruit is very important.

She had two paths before her.

One option is to give up and continue saving money for her younger sister.

The other option is to eat the fruit, but even if she had the strength, she might not succeed, because rock climbing also requires skill.

Chen Zhuoqu thought for a moment, then turned and walked out of the crowd.

But after taking two steps, she stopped again.

She didn't want to miss this opportunity.

Experienced gamers know one thing: when you're faced with a hellishly difficult challenge, the end of that path always holds the richest reward.

"At worst, I'll just work harder when I'm trying to earn points, or I'll just sleep at the entrance of the points redemption area every day," Chen Zhuoqu gritted her teeth and ate both Longevity Sky Fruits in one bite.

The force of 60 pounds flowed into her limbs and bones like a warm current.

This was the first time she had ever eaten food that she had redeemed with her own points.

Chen Zhuoqu tied all her hair back with a hair tie and resolutely turned around to join the queue.

She carefully secured her safety rope and then began climbing up from climbing point 31.

However, this was more difficult than she had imagined. She was indeed much stronger, but when she reached the six-meter mark, facing a rock wall that was only slightly protruding, she could not stabilize her body no matter how hard she tried.

"Oh no!" Chen Zhuoqu lost her grip on the next foothold and her entire body plummeted toward the ground.

Her rapidly falling body made her feel the danger of death. The next moment, the safety rope tightened, pulling her hard against the cliff.

With a thud, Chen Zhuoqu felt pain all over the right side of her body.

The pain was excruciating!

She then realized that strength alone was not enough for this kind of thing; skill was also essential!

The machine gently placed her on the ground. Xiao Qi came over with a bamboo basket on her back and handed her some Chicken Blood Sprout: "Your right arm and right leg are cut. Chew them up and apply them yourself."