Easy Brick Breaking

On Hotel Street, two men and one woman emerged from a room, sprinting rapidly toward the Broken Post Station located at the academy.

"Hurry, the Soul Tool sensor indicates there are still enemies nearby."

Clutching the Mandel Brick and sensing its feedback, the female Spirit Master urged them on.

"It will be fine once we reach the Decryption Station at Heding City Academy," one teammate said.

"That's right. With the first spirit ring of my Flamingo spirit, anyone who dares to try and snatch our Soul Tool is as good as dead," a tall, thin young Spirit Master with fiery red hair boasted.

The Decryption Station of Heding City Academy was located on the path in front of the Administration Building.

The decryption device sat right on the path without any cover, making the station fully visible from the academy gate.

However, two rows of thick trees lined both sides of the path, serving as natural, sturdy combat cover.

"The Soul Tool alert has eased slightly; the enemies are also being cautious," the strongest male Spirit Master said.

"Because this Decryption Station is so exposed, they have to show themselves if they want to get close. I'll guard the gate; if the enemy enters through the gate, I'll ambush them from behind."

The Power Attack Spirit Master commanded, "Xiao You, go decrypt the Soul Tool. Miller, hide behind the tree and keep an eye out for enemies climbing over the side walls."

Following orders, the Flamingo Spirit Master Miller hid behind a tree next to the Decryption Station, Xiao You prepared to insert the brick for decryption, and the Power Attack Spirit Master hid in the guard room by the gate to lie in wait.

In front of the Decryption Station, the Control Spirit Master Xiao You pulled the Mandel Brick from her backpack, ready to insert it.

Just as the three were focused, contemplating from which direction the enemy might break through, a soft sound echoed from afar.

Xiao You, currently inserting the brick, shuddered. The light in her eyes vanished instantly, and her body slumped to the side.

At the gate, Zhang Yang, who had been crouching in the corner, stood up and quickly reloaded his magazine: "I won't miss this shot again."

A headshot with an iron-sighted M14 from a hundred meters away—with this shot, Zhang Yang had finally salvaged a shred of his reputation.

"Xiao You!"

Miller, hiding next to the Decryption Station, had witnessed Xiao You's body go limp with his own eyes.

Seeing his teammate die right before him, rage made Miller's eyes split. His Flamingo spirit instantly possessed him, and the hundred-year spirit ring at his feet flared to life.

"First Spirit Skill, Scorching Flame."

A ball of intense fire gathered in his hands. Miller flashed out from behind the tree, pushed his hands forward, and the scorching fireball hurtled toward the large iron gate.

Outside the gate, Zhang Yang saw the fireball rushing toward him from afar and couldn't help but dodge to the side.

Just then, Zhang Yang felt a fierce gust of wind. Looking up, he saw the Power Attack Spirit Master, wielding an eight-foot spear, had already vaulted over the wall and leaped directly above his head.

"First Spirit Skill, Spear Breaks Enemy."

The sharp spearhead, glinting with a biting cold light, thrust fiercely toward Zhang Yang on the ground, fueled by eyes full of rage.

"Go."

"Bang bang bang bang!"

As the bean-popping sound of gunfire rang out, the Power Attack Spirit Master's HP was depleted. His body collapsed limply to the side, and the spear spirit that had pierced Zhang Yang's chest vanished instantly, blood flowing like a trickling stream.

At this moment, Zhang Yang's own condition was not great.

HP: 82/147.75 (Bleeding)

Half his health was gone, and the durability of his Level 2 armor had also dropped by more than half.

"That move hits pretty hard and even has armor-piercing properties," Zhang Yang remarked with wonder.

It was rare to find a Spirit Master whose first spirit ring skill included armor-piercing properties.

As for the reason, Zhang Yang guessed that his combat readiness value was too high, and since this match had spawned a brick, the system had matched him with a group of powerful experts.

Zhang Yang pulled a bottle of health potion from his pocket, twisted off the cap, and downed it.

The 3-second activation time ended, and Zhang Yang's health began to recover rapidly at a rate of 12 points per second.

Five seconds later, the potion's effect wore off, and Zhang Yang's health was brought up to 142 points. Although he was still bleeding, it no longer hindered his combat ability.

Originally, Zhang Yang had intended to pop a painkiller, apply a surgical kit, and repair his armor.

Unfortunately, there was no time for such luxuries; the Flamingo Spirit Master named Miller was already charging over.

"Boss? Boss?"

After two or three shouts yielded no response, the Flamingo Spirit Master Miller could no longer hold back. Already hot-tempered and impatient, he abandoned his position and charged toward Zhang Yang outside the gate.

Rushing out of the academy gate, Miller saw his boss lying dead on the spot, blood pooling into a puddle.

Beside the boss's corpse, a child holding a strange spirit was looking at him coldly.

"Bang!"

The 11th-level spirit power released externally could not provide the slightest delay against the M14 bullet.

Miller, who had charged out in a fit of rage, was sent flying back with even greater speed. His body slammed into the iron-refined gate, slumped to the ground, and subsequently transformed into an operator crate.

At the same time, the corpses of the Power Attack Spirit Master beside Zhang Yang and the Control Spirit Master Xiao You by the Decryption Station also turned into crates.

"Phew..."

Zhang Yang let out a long breath, reloaded his magazine, and then hurried toward the Decryption Station.

GTI Commander: "Proceed to the Decryption Station. Be careful; the Mandel Brick will reveal your position."

GTI Commander: "Signal received. Decryption has begun. Defend the Decryption Station!"

Having retrieved the Mandel Brick from the box belonging to Xiao You, a Control-type Soul Master, Zhang Yang finished the Endgame Contact, slotted the brick in to start the decryption, and then darted behind a large tree nearby to buff himself.

He used a surgical kit to bandage his wounds and stop the bleeding, topped off his health, repaired his armor, and popped a painkiller to maintain the analgesic effect.

Then, Zhang Yang stuck a few needles into his arm, pushing his condition to its peak.

Yet, until the Mandel Brick finished decrypting and was sent out of the match, Zhang Yang never encountered any new brick-snatching teams.

GTI Commander: "Decryption complete. Data retrieved. Well done."

With the Mandel Brick sent away, Zhang Yang finally let out a sigh of relief: "Finally, I can taste some loot."

However, the loot from the Flamingo team didn't contain anything worth eating.

Including the two previous teams, everyone had come for the Mandel Brick, spending all their time fighting, tracking, ambushing, and raiding, leaving absolutely no time to eat.

"Fine, looks like there's no point in looting those two teams' boxes either," Zhang Yang said with some regret.

"Where to now?" Zhang Yang rubbed his still-hungry stomach and glanced at his meager 500k in-match earnings.

It wasn't just them who hadn't eaten; he hadn't managed to get his hands on anything good either while keeping his eyes on the Mandel Brick for so long.

"I'm right at the foot of the Administration Building; I'll head in and grab something decent."

Thinking this, Zhang Yang took off the Level 2 armor he had just repaired, swapped it for the Level 1 armor he had brought in from outside his backpack, and stepped into the Administration Building.

"Heding City Academy Uniform, White"

"Value: 2944"

"Durability: 25/25"

"Protection Level: Level 1"

"Armor Effect: None."

"Protected Area: Upper body (excluding head)"

"Durability Loss: Medium"

"In-match Repair Efficiency: High"

"Equipment Weight: 1.7KG"

"Standard-issue uniform for Heding City Academy students. Lightweight and breathable, but its defensive capabilities are truly weak."