"What part of this is Absolute Defense..."
"It just straight-up ripped my defense stat out, didn't it?"
By all rights, the higher one's defense stat, the less damage one took.
Defense was a special stat that wasn't displayed in the data.
That was because it was affected by many factors.
Attack power was the same.
Strength + skills were what determined how powerful an attack was.
But now...
The amount of damage Chen Ming took was no longer determined by his defense.
"Does this count as an ability that directly changes the rules?"
From now on, the damage he took would only ever be one of two numbers...
A world with only 0s and 1s had come to pass.
"Brother Chen, Brother Chen!"
"Damn, don't scare me like that."
Sun Yang stared at Chen Ming, who had zoned out and was staring blankly into space. His mouth twitched.
Judging by the look of him, the blow had probably hit pretty hard.
Just how much of a shock had getting a C-rank class given Brother Chen?
He'd practically gone dumb!
"Hmm? What is it?"
After digesting his bug-like skill, Chen Ming finally came back to his senses.
"Phew..."
Seeing Chen Ming's expression return to normal, Sun Yang let out a sigh of relief.
"Looks like it hasn't reached the point of no return yet."
Then he solemnly placed a hand on Chen Ming's shoulder, his gaze unusually serious.
"Brother Chen, don't give up on yourself, no matter what."
"I'll take you leveling up from now on. A Shield Guard and an assassin make a pretty good combination, too."
At that moment, Sun Yang felt a great burden settle on his shoulders.
"Forget it. Go find a B-rank warrior or mage to team up with first, and get to level 5 as soon as you can."
Chen Ming poured cold water on him.
It wasn't that he didn't want to bring Sun Yang along.
It was just that the leveling method he was currently planning wasn't very suitable for bringing someone else along.
At the moment, his strengths and weaknesses were very clear.
His strength was Absolute Defense. He could charge around almost without fear of dying.
He wouldn't back down, no matter what monsters or demons he ran into.
His weaknesses were just as obvious...
Low attack and low speed.
So if he wanted to level up quickly, he'd have to challenge higher-level exotic beasts.
Other people at level 1 only dared to fight level 1 beasts. He was different.
He could not only fight above his level, but also take on an entire group by himself.
After all, he could grind the exotic beasts down to death.
In that situation, teaming up with him would be far too dangerous for Sun Yang.
He had a way to lock his health, but Sun Yang didn't.
One wrong move, and Sun Yang could end up in a perilous situation.
Once they'd raised their levels and secured their strength, they could form a team to challenge dungeons.
But for now, they naturally couldn't team up.
"We're not teaming up?"
Sun Yang looked at Chen Ming in confusion.
"Then who are you going to team up with, Brother Chen?"
Chen Ming gave a slight nod.
"I'll level up alone."
A team?
He didn't need one.
"Uh..."
Sun Yang was at a loss for words.
He lowered his head and muttered:
"Looks like it really is pretty bad."
It wasn't that he looked down on Brother Chen.
Before level 5, Class Changers teamed up to level up in the wilderness; after level 5, they challenged dungeons as a team.
That was basic common sense.
Otherwise, if anything went wrong, there'd be no one around to rescue them.
Only those all-around combat classes with no weaknesses and an S-rank or higher could manage on their own.
Anyone else fighting alone had too little chance of surviving.
One wrong step or unexpected mishap, and they'd be left to rot in the wilderness.
Half an hour later, everyone had finally completed their class-changing ceremonies.
Looking at the restless crowd, the director of instruction was overcome with emotion.
Another class of students had graduated successfully.
In this era, when exotic beasts ran rampant, universities had long since been abandoned.
For most people, graduating at eighteen meant stepping straight into society.
She stepped onto the high platform and gave a light cough.
"Students, changing classes is only the beginning."
"The Grand Exam over the next month will determine your graduation ratings from the Alliance. This is extremely important..."
The Grand Exam was the Alliance's assessment and test for every newly awakened class of Class Changers. Graduation ratings were an official certification, the "stepping-stone" needed to join major guilds, corporations, and Alliance departments later on.
At the same time, it was also a benefit the Alliance offered to newly awakened Class Changers.
That was because the Grand Exam came with generous rewards.
Just then, the enormous formation on the high platform began to rotate, blazing with light.
Right after that, every student in the great hall received a notification without exception—
[You have entered the "Huaxia Alliance Job Changer Graduation Exam" instance!]
[Time: Thirty days!]
[Current area: Cloud Sea City!]
[...]
"Holy crap, that's awesome!"
"It's starting, it's starting!"
"Is this the Grand Exam instance? I finally get to see it!"
"I'd heard about it ages ago, but this is my first time experiencing one of the Alliance's gigantic instances. I'm so excited."
That's right. The Grand Exam was actually a massive, artificial instance that covered the entire Alliance.
All the newly awakened graduates were Class Changers challenging the instance.
Different completion conditions corresponded to different ratings and final rewards.
The crowd grew excited all at once.
Quite a few people rubbed their hands together, already unable to wait to head out and level up.
Chen Ming looked at the dense mass of information unfolding before him, and he was moved as well.
"Lastly, students, remember one thing..."
"You only have one life, so be sure to stay safe!"
The class-changing ceremony was over.
The Class Changers from Cloud Sea No. 1 High School began filing out of the hall.
Everyone had the same destination now: the Exotic Beast Forest outside the city!
Chen Ming walked out of the hall alone, planning to follow the main group toward the edge of the city.
After confirming again and again with Chen Ming that they wouldn't team up before level 5, Sun Yang could only go look for temporary teammates first.
"Chen Ming!"
As soon as he left the hall, a man and a woman stepped in front of him.
The man was thin and wore glasses. He looked rather refined.
The woman wore a white short skirt and had her hair tied in a ponytail.
As they walked over, they drew quite a few looks from people nearby.
Chen Ming raised an eyebrow instinctively.
Because these two were none other than the nominal members of his Morning Light Squad...
Jiang Yi and Song Chuan.
What did they want with him?
"Chen Ming, we have something to discuss with you."
Song Chuan stepped forward, his expression serious.
He got straight to the point. "You know that because of the school's arrangements, the few of us formed a 'temporary' team, and you're the leader."
"Now that everyone's changed classes, we need to think about forming a real team."
"And you..."
Song Chuan pushed up his glasses, his gaze faintly contemptuous.
His meaning was obvious.
"I'll be direct. Transfer the team leader position, then leave the team yourself."
Chen Ming froze.
He even wondered if he'd heard wrong.
They wanted him to transfer the team leader position, then leave?
What kind of person had to have their ass where their brains should be to say something like that?
Everyone nearby turned to watch the drama unfold.
The famous genius with exceptional mental potential for the past three years was about to be humiliated in public?
"Do you not have hands? Can't you leave the team yourselves?"
Chen Ming's gaze turned cold as he looked at the two of them like they were idiots.
Before you continue