A Profitable Business

The sand and gravel amid the ruins rose as if gravity had reversed, then Ron lightly kicked them away, sending them flying like bullets.

A storm of sand and stones rained down upon the crowd like falling stars, grinding people into dust...

Several examinees' abilities were powerless against the gravel fragments that swept over them like rifle fire. They were beaten straight into sieves, transforming into Data Bubbles and dispersing completely!

The remaining examinees used every ounce of strength to block the falling sand and stones with their abilities. Scrambling and crawling, they fled into nearby ruins and used relatively sturdy concrete slabs as cover, finally gaining a brief chance to catch their breath.

"How did he do that... What kind of ability is this?!"

Someone panted heavily, staring at Ron, who floated through the air as though he were flying. For a moment, it all felt utterly unbelievable.

How had they never heard of this person before?

After all, in this College Entrance Exam, the truly capable participants had long since been fighting fiercely in the Hollow Battlefield. Those contestants at the top of the rankings with millions of points were proof enough.

These people had skipped the academic examinations at the fastest speed, then relied on Authority or sheer strength to clear the Gaokao Testing Committee's ability assessment and enter the Hollow Battlefield directly.

To accomplish that, neither money nor strength could be lacking.

In other words... if someone had arrived too late and could not be seen among the top ranks, which had more or less solidified by now, they naturally could not be stronger than those people.

After all, in Ideal City, money and power often represented "strength" itself...

But this guy... this guy who had clearly only just entered a Placement Match, why did he have such a powerful superpower?!

With an ability like that, as long as he demonstrated it, even if he had started out as a penniless nobody, plenty of major corporations should have been willing to invest in him!

Like that big guy backed by Noah Pharmaceuticals...

They said he had merely been some poor bastard from District D, but Noah Pharmaceuticals had taken a liking to him because of his powerful ability, allowing him to enter the Hollow Battlefield in the very first batch!

He had already fought his way into the top ten and was still pressing onward. It seemed he might even have a chance to compete for the top three!

Thinking of this, the examinee who had just led the attempt to surround and kill Ron and An Hui turned pale, no longer knowing what to do.

He had begun to suspect that the person he had just tried to kill was some super-rich young master who had slept in and only lazily woken up in the afternoon before coming to take the College Entrance Exam.

This ability felt like it was guaranteed to be top-ten material. In a match ranked around the top two thousand, he was a shark thrown into a goldfish pond...

He had thought he was the one here to farm easy kills!

How had things ended up like this?

No, no, this wouldn't do. No matter how strong Ron was, he had not exceeded Lv.2. There was still a chance...

As he watched Ron walk through the air step by step, treading on chunks of earth and stone as he approached, the lead examinee's heart pounded wildly, nearly leaping from his throat—

Forcing out a smile, he laughed awkwardly and said,

"B-Big Brother, we were a little too full of ourselves..."

As he spoke, he raised both hands and stepped out from behind cover, trying to show that he meant no harm.

"They're already dead, and you've gotten plenty of points, Big Brother. How about you let us go? If we get matched with you again, we'll definitely escort you with all our strength and follow your lead!"

What was he babbling about?

Did he really think I didn't know what little trick he was planning?

Ron gave the man a puzzled look, then simply stood there in silence, looking down at him.

After waiting for a long time, until sweat had formed on his forehead, the lead examinee still received no answer from Ron. In the end, he could not hold back any longer.

"What are you acting so arrogant for?! No matter how strong you are, you're only one person! With all of us attacking at full power, you might not be able to kill us all before your ability runs out!"

He instantly unleashed the ability he had been preparing for some time. A massive fireball appeared out of thin air, surging toward Ron with rolling heat.

The other examinees had been ready as well. Without hesitation, they leaped from the ruins and pushed their abilities to the limit.

In an instant, wind blades, water arrows, ice spikes...

Projectiles from these classic abilities came howling over like a violent storm, making Ron sigh.

They had survived just now by relying on these abilities to shatter the falling earth and stones.

But...

That did not mean abilities like theirs could gain any advantage before [Vector Manipulation].

Perhaps those with abilities that purely enhanced the body could pose some degree of threat to Ron if they got close while he was off guard—

But these projectiles flying at him from thin air were nothing more than toys he could casually squeeze in his palm.

"If this is all you prepared after all that time, then it's time to say goodbye..."

He lightly snapped his fingers, and the incoming projectiles froze just before reaching him.

The next moment, they shot back along their original paths at even greater speed!

"How can this be..."

The lead examinee's pupils shrank violently. Before he could finish speaking, his vision was swallowed by blazing red—

The fireball he had painstakingly condensed struck his body and exploded, blasting a gaping hole in the nearby ruins.

As for him, he naturally dissolved into pure Data Bubbles, leaving only several admission tickets behind on the ground, covered in dust.

The other examinees met the same fate beneath their own abilities, turning into bubbles and scattering away. All they could do was go back and watch GG to save up Resurrection Coins...

Behind Ron, An Hui blinked as the flickering electricity around her gradually dimmed and faded.

Looking at the scene before her, she could not help but feel an indescribable absurdity rise within her.

What had just happened?

It was... over just like that?

So easily?

She looked strangely at Ron, who had retrieved the admission tickets and was walking over in silence, hands clasped behind his back like some reclusive master...

"Are you pretending to be a master just because you're not talking?"

In the end, she could not resist ruining the atmosphere.

Ron immediately broke character, stumbling beneath his feet as he said irritably,

"Couldn't you let me finish posing? I took on all of them by myself and killed them all. That was cool, okay!"

"Yes, yes, yes, very cool, very cool..."

An Hui tilted her head with a grin and gave Ron a thumbs-up.

"Not bad. Now I acknowledge that you're qualified to challenge me."

"Shouldn't it be you challenging me?" Ron curled his lip. "Come on, you're the challenger!"

Another round of bickering followed.

The two went from arguing over "who exactly was the challenger" to "whether an ant the same size as a mouse could beat a mouse in boxing," then from there to "which cafeteria at a certain high school had better pre-made meals"...

Only after all that noise did they walk into the Evacuation Point, watching the admission tickets in their hands turn into Data Bubbles and merge into the green light.

An Hui suddenly raised her fist. "Then... let's wish the two of us great fortune in battle?"

Ron smiled and bumped fists with her as if well-practiced.

"Great fortune in battle!"

The Data Bubbles condensed into a human form. Ron opened his eyes and found himself back in the Preparation Hall at the center of the ruins.

The proctor leaned there with a calm, seasoned air. Seeing Ron come out so soon, he could not help but chuckle.

"Looks like you got off to a rough start? It's fine. Everyone has a first time. Losing once isn't a big problem."

He had seen countless people like Ron, who came out less than twenty minutes after entering a match.

Skillfully giving Ron a thumbs-up, he encouraged him.

"Whether or not you have money to buy Resurrection Coins, don't panic, young man!"

"You've already beaten plenty of people just by coming in early like this. The first time is unfamiliar, but the second time will be easier. After that, you'll have a chance to get full points and evacuate nice and fat.

Keep a good mindset for the exam. Go out and get some proper rest, come back on time after watching GG, and remember that the exam still has a long time left..."

He rambled on as he comforted Ron. "Let me see how many points you got. If your score isn't bad, I'll use my proctor Authority to help you apply for a half-price GG opportunity..."

He casually opened the ranking points query. Before he could finish speaking, his eyes slowly widened.

What... was this?

175,000?

He had gotten 175,000 points in less than twenty minutes?!

The proctor stared at Ron in astonishment, only to see Ron scratch his head and ask,

"Sir... after coming out, I'm not required to immediately enter the Hollow Battlefield again, right?"

He pointed at the ruins nearby and asked earnestly,

"That match just now tired me out a little... I want to rest in the Preparation Hall for a while. Is that allowed under the exam rules?"

"Y-Yes, of course it is..."

The proctor fell silent for a long while before speaking with some emotion.

"You can rest as long as you want... At your rate of earning points, even if you don't fight for the first two days and only take part in the tests on the last day, you could probably still charge into Ideal City's top fifty, right?"

With this exam system, where greater ranking gaps meant greater point compensation...

Even if he truly only fought on the final day, he could still contend for first place.

Ron silently added those words in his heart. He found a flat stone amid the nearby ruins and sat down, removing his [Superpowered].

Although Ron had appeared completely calm in the match just now, easily defeating the examinees who wanted to surround and kill them...

Only he knew the state he was truly in. He knew exactly how much wear he had suffered.

70%.

That was the wear the [Superpowered] profession had taken in the Hollow Battlefield after operating at full firepower.

Such wear was already enough to make Ron wary. If fighting nine Lv.2 examinees head-on wore him down to 70%, then it was clearly not enough to let him steamroll and slaughter every match.

Looking at it this way, An Hui's choice had truly been the right one.

Maintaining one's combat power and delivering a fatal blow when the enemy was most relaxed was absolutely the most efficient way to earn points.

If he wanted to accumulate points afterward, he should learn more from Huihui's fighting approach...

Ron was deep in thought when a phone ringtone suddenly sounded beside his ear.

An incoming call window popped up on his Intelligent Brain. The profile ID was familiar—it was the cheap senior brother Ron had previously been forced to add.

He could actually receive calls from outside during the ability assessment?

Well, thinking about it, that made sense. They were in the Preparation Hall, after all. That examinee earlier had even been able to livestream himself, so taking a call was normal...

But why was Kevin calling him?

Ron silently tapped the answer button. A jubilant blond head immediately appeared in the window.

"Damn, holder of the fastest rank-up record! Junior Brother, I knew I hadn't misjudged you!"

The moment Kevin saw Ron, his eyes sparkled as though he had found a million lying on the ground with no one around to pick it up.

"I watched the livestream of your match! Just as I expected, those people in the exam hall weren't even worthy of a single exchange with you..."

"Stop, stop, stop."

Ron made a mute gesture, cutting off Kevin's flattery.

"Senior Brother, let's save the celebration for after the exam. If there's nothing else, I'm hanging up..."

"Don't, don't, don't!"

Kevin hurriedly stopped him. "I called because I've got something good for you... I have a profitable business opportunity. Want in?"

A profitable business?

The moment he heard there was money to be made, Ron jolted awake, his ears perking up at once.

He withdrew the hand that had been about to end the call and asked solemnly,

"Go on."

"You examinees might not know this, but because this College Entrance Exam is livestreamed from start to finish, the Gaokao Testing Committee has created plenty of ways to monetize the broadcasts in order to turn the exam into a money-making project..."

"We won't talk about stuff like GG for now. The important thing is that the streaming platform has a 'betting' system..."

Kevin's voice brimmed with excitement.

"Every examinee can be bet on with Credit Points. You can wager on what rank they'll reach during a certain future period, or bet on which examinee they'll defeat in a particular test.

"You scored nearly two hundred thousand in your first match, so you'll soon be closing in on the top of the rankings...

"Although you're already gaining fame and lots of people see you as a dark horse, making you a minor betting favorite, there's definitely still money to be made if we get in now!"

"So what do you say, Junior Brother? Tell me what rank you think you can reach before tomorrow."

With a grand wave of his hand, he said boldly, "Your Senior Brother has a little stash of several hundred thousand Credit Points. I'll put it all in. Whatever we make, we split fifty-fifty!"

The Gaokao Testing Committee was even running casino odds themselves?

Well, since it had been outsourced to major corporations, this was indeed the kind of thing they would do.

But a money-making opportunity like this...

Ron felt tempted. He truly lacked money, and if he could make a fortune here, life would definitely be much easier once he started university!

But...

"Senior Brother, if you bet now that I'll win multiple tests and advance to a higher rank, the returns would be pretty low, right?"

Kevin paused, unable to understand what Ron meant.

"That's true. You're already a minor betting favorite, so the odds are low. But making a small profit won't be a problem..."

"But I don't want to make a small profit."

Ron's lips curled up, his eyes filled with desire for money.

"If I'm making money, I'm making a big score...

Senior Brother, bet against them! Bet that I won't move up a single rank or gain a single point tomorrow!"

"...Are you insane?!" Kevin's expression immediately turned serious. "I just want to make a little money. I don't want to hurt you!"

"The exam matters far more than this bit of money. If you don't accumulate enough points and fail to get a high ranking, your teacher will beat me to death!

"You need to understand that the city government gives out rewards to the top-ranked students every year. The money you can earn from ranking near the top is far greater than this betting money..."

"It'll be fine, Senior Brother. Even if I earn this extra cash, I can still take first place."

But Ron shook his head. Remembering everything that had happened in the previous match, he spoke confidently.

"In this exam, if there's a certain gap between your score and your opponent's, the lower your score is, the greater the point compensation you receive.

"And after just one Placement Match, although my points aren't high, I've already been placed into matches around Ideal City's top two thousand—perhaps even higher."

"Even if I don't take part in a single test today, when I enter another match tomorrow, or even the day after tomorrow, and hunt down those examinees at the top of the point rankings...

"My score will accumulate rapidly. I'll close in on the leading ranks at the fastest speed, stand with them on the same starting line, and then compete based on strength!"

Of course, although that was what he said, there was actually one thing Ron had not told Kevin.

...That meant an assassination from an unknown client.

After that test just now, the news that Ron was still alive must have been completely exposed; it was impossible for it to go unnoticed.

Although he was very safe inside the examination hall right now, if he kept participating in matches and carelessly lost even a single one...

Then he would have to leave the examination hall and face the blades of assassins lurking in the shadows.

Besides, the more of his ability he exposed in the live exam broadcast, the more dangerous his situation would become—

Vector Manipulation was his strongest ability. If the people secretly targeting him really figured out a countermeasure, wouldn't he be left at their mercy?

Therefore, maintaining a brief period of silence to hide his true strength while conveniently earning some Credit Points along the way—why wouldn't he do it?

Looking at Ron's incomparably confident expression, Kevin was silent for a moment, then gritted his teeth hard:

"I really wouldn't believe it if it were anyone else, but since it's you... with that ability of yours, you could take the top ten even without taking the test for two days!"

As he spoke, he opened the live-streaming software without hesitation and poured all his Credit Points straight in.

"This is my entire fortune... Ron, your senior brother awaits your good news!"

Meanwhile.

"Ring, ring, ring..."

The somewhat frail-looking teenager answered the phone:

"What is it, Father?"

"We've been tricked... Deng Yin's student didn't die. His ability is very strong, and he has already entered the Hollow Battlefield."

A slightly aged voice sighed:

"The corporation has already arranged for other examinees to look for Ron inside the Hollow Battlefield. Once he's found, he's to be killed on sight, and we'll find a way to drag down his score."

"But you still must be careful... That kid's ability is very strong, and he might just have a chance to threaten your ranking.

You must not lose to him in the entrance test; that would seriously affect the evaluation of Prometheus..."

However, before he could finish speaking, the frail teenager interrupted him.

"I won't lose, Father."

As he spoke, he gently clenched his fists, and distant ruined high-rises collapsed out of thin air, pulling together like magnets to transform into a giant stone sphere.

Then, it plummeted with a deafening crash, smashing out a huge crater.

"Before the exam, I had already reached Lv.3..."

His tone was calm, as if it were only natural:

"I will only be first...

Because I am the strongest."