Team System Unlocked?

Obsidian Martial Arts Hall, training ground.

Though it was already late into the night, the training ground was surrounded by a large number of players. Every one of them looked excited as they discussed today's main-story combat team dungeon, with no intention of sleeping or resting.

"I wonder how many rewards we'll get from this combat mission."

"Since it's a main-story mission, there should be quite a lot. But main-story missions usually depend on completion rate—the higher the completion rate, the better the final rewards."

"The combat system in High Martial Descent is just too real. I got hit by several arrows during the fight and nearly passed out from the pain. But the game system seems to have some protection. The arrows I took afterward didn't hurt nearly as much. Could it be that getting shot so many times increased my pain resistance?"

"You're right, it really does seem that way. The more it hurt, the more I got used to it. My pain resistance must have gone up. Otherwise, someone as scared of pain as me should've screamed the moment I got stabbed by a spear. But it felt like nothing much—nowhere near as painful as practicing the Breathing Technique for the first time."

Although many of the players present had participated in massive wars in other virtual games, taking part in High Martial Descent's dungeon group battle gave them an unprecedented sense of realism—something no other virtual game had ever possessed.

Especially during the battle, the enemies' fear, unwillingness, and desperate final struggles—their will and emotions had all been conveyed vividly through combat.

It was as if they had truly taken part in a great war. Even now, they could not forget it; it remained fresh in their memories.

And then there was Luo Wu Shang and the others' battle against the BOSS. It had been like a little monster fighting a giant monster. Their clash had battered the base's shipping containers until they were riddled with holes. It had been unbelievably exhilarating.

And that had only been a fight against an Intermediate Apprentice. They did not dare imagine what future battles against Peak Apprentices—or even Martial Artists—would be like.

"One Leaf, you really did well this time. You took the BOSS's first kill outright. Your settlement rewards are probably going to be ridiculously generous." Fang Zhen looked at One Leaf Floating Cloud with some envy.

Although their Mecha Squad had killed quite a few White Feather Gang members this time, how could ordinary mobs compare to a BOSS? Unfortunately, the BOSS wore protective gear and reacted incredibly quickly, so arrows could barely pose any threat.

On the other hand, One Leaf Floating Cloud had used Spiral Demon Spear Kill. Though he had crippled himself with that one move, he had taken the BOSS down with him. It was simply a godly skill.

"Not really. I was just lucky enough to recreate a Martial Artist level martial skill first. Once you all recreate powerful martial skills too, I won't have any advantage at all." One Leaf Floating Cloud was very modest, but the delight in his eyes could not be hidden.

Through this battle, One Leaf Floating Cloud felt that he had found a path to surpass professional experts. Though his true strength could not compare to monsters like Luo Wu Shang, with a powerful explosive martial skill, he could absolutely trade one-for-one.

It could be said that as long as the martial skills he created in the future were strong enough, he could trade one-for-one with anyone. In future BOSS fights, free-player teams like theirs might not necessarily lose to professional expert teams like Luo Wu Shang's.

"What a pity." Zhang Qingwei glanced at the overjoyed One Leaf Floating Cloud and sighed softly. "If my Surging Wave Blade had risen another level, the BOSS's first kill would have been ours."

"It's not bad that we accumulated so much experience fighting a BOSS this time." Luo Wu Shang did not seem to mind. She analyzed in a low voice, "This battle made me understand that weapons and protective gear are extremely important in this game—far, far more important than in other virtual games."

"Indeed." Zhao Hu, standing nearby, agreed deeply and took the initiative to say, "Back in Pilgrimage, all I needed were my iron fists. Even if others had divine weapons and sharp artifacts, I could block them with my fists. At most, the enemy's attacks would deal more damage. As for equipment, once you wore it, it made no difference where the opponent hit you—the damage was the same, aside from affecting your movements somewhat."

"But this game is completely different—or rather, it's too realistic. When I struck those captains' protective gear with Crushing Stone Fist, forget injuring them, they could not even be bothered to defend themselves. Yet when those captains attacked me, I had to dodge. If I got stabbed or swept by their weapons, I would be seriously injured."

"Looks like we'll have to buy some armor before future battles. Otherwise, we'll be at too much of a disadvantage." Zhang Qingwei nodded as well.

Zhang Qingwei could be said to have felt the importance of protective gear most deeply. When she slashed down with Surging Wave Blade, striking armor only inflicted minor injuries. And when her ordinary attacks could not be blocked, her opponents would use their protective gear to block them instead. Her chances of injuring them were exceedingly few.

On the other hand, when she was attacked, it was completely the opposite. Once she failed to block, she would suffer serious injuries—or even die.

Just as the players on the training ground discussed and reflected, Lin Qi carried an A4 sheet of paper to the notice board and posted it up.

"You all performed exceptionally well in this extermination mission. Every disciple who participated will be rewarded with one hundred Contribution Points and three thousand Points. Additional rewards for disciples who made major contributions have already been posted on the notice board for you to check yourselves." Lin Qi paused as he looked at the expectant crowd. "In addition, I have decided to open slots for Inner Disciples and Elite Disciples as rewards for outstanding disciples. I hope that in the future, you will bring even greater glory to the martial arts hall!"

Following Lin Qi's words, the players present immediately erupted into an uproar.

"What's going on?"

"The rewards for this mission are that generous?"

"Inner Disciples? Elite Disciples? Does that mean we can unlock more permissions within the martial arts hall?"

"This game is finally unlocking system permissions. I wonder what permissions Inner Disciples and Elite Disciples get. Can we leave the martial arts hall in our daily lives? If we can go out freely, that would be amazing."

"Probably not, right? If we could leave the martial arts hall freely, that would mean free-form gameplay was completely unlocked. If this permission can really be unlocked, I'd grind myself to death to become an Elite Disciple!"

Looking at the mission rewards, everyone felt that Lin Qi had been exceptionally generous. Leaving aside how many special missions it would take to earn one hundred Contribution Points, three thousand Points alone required a whole month of hard grinding. The rewards were undeniably lavish.

Soon afterward, everyone crowded around the notice board to check the system rewards from this mission and the details of the new identity permissions.

"One Leaf! You really struck it rich this time. You got three hundred Contribution Points directly, plus an extra five thousand Points. Even those who joined the siege and killed captains only got an extra one hundred Contribution Points and two thousand Points."

"Inner Disciples require three thousand Contribution Points, while Elite Disciples require ten thousand. That's an insanely high amount of Contribution Points."

"But Inner Disciples and Elite Disciples get amazing benefits too! Look at the Inner Disciple permissions. Not only do Contribution Point expenditures get a 5% discount in the future, they can also lead up to twenty disciples on Inner Disciple missions! That is absolutely a team system!"

"Exactly! This system update is insane! Inner Disciples can even directly rent a Big Three-Wheeler. Doesn't that mean a team leader can lead a team to take mine transportation missions? The earning speed would definitely be much faster."

"Not just that. Look, Inner Disciples can learn the first volume of a Martial Artist level palm technique, while Elite Disciples can learn the second volume."

"My god! A Martial Artist level palm technique! I remember One Leaf Floating Cloud used a half-finished Martial Artist level martial skill to one-shot the BOSS with a single spear strike. Can we directly learn something that powerful now?"

"Quick, look at the Elite Disciple permissions. Is this about to send us straight to heaven? Elite Disciples can have private rooms, completely their own. No one else is allowed inside without permission. Isn't that unbelievably awesome?"

At the information Lin Qi had suddenly announced, every player present sucked in a cold breath.

Although everyone had long known that this game company harbored enormous ambitions, they had not expected it to go this big.

Especially the many expert players present—when they looked at the introduction to Lightning Palm, the Martial Artist level martial skill that only Inner Disciples could learn, their eyes nearly popped out of their heads.

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