"The core node server room of the Floating Island completed final debugging three days ago. The plan should be starting soon, right?"
Ling Zichen nodded subconsciously as he listened to Zang Xin's question.
"Hey Lao Zang, can't you have some motivation? What's the point of just lounging around here all day..." Ling Zichen muttered.
"Oh, I'm not some great scientist like you who just coasts along. Anyway, I'm only in charge of security, aren't I?" Zang Xin said with a smile.
A few days ago, after Ling Zichen submitted the internal testing plan, Mo Yuan did not object and approved it quickly.
Therefore, the selection of the first batch of test users was launched simultaneously in the military and various academies, and the final list consisted of two hundred people.
One hundred are elite military personnel, eighty are high-ranking students from various academies, and the remaining twenty spots are reserved for ordinary Soul Master who volunteer and those who have received the Super Mutation Serum.
On the day of the closed beta test, two hundred people arrived at the Floating Island in batches from Eastsea City aboard transport ships.
Ling Zichen stood in the airport's guidance area, checking identities one by one.
She really wanted to go about her own business, but what could she do? She had offended Mo Yuan so badly.
It seems like we'll have to wear those tiny shoes until they fit.
Zang Xin: Not so optimistic...
The military's hundred men were the first to arrive, led by Zhou Tie, a battalion commander from the Blood God Legion.
Ironically, he was also a Fusion Warrior, one of the first Fusion Warrior sent to the Blood God Legion. Now he has a distinguished record of military achievements and has been promoted very quickly.
Behind him were veterans who had been rotated from the front lines, standing with perfect posture and piercing eyes, completely unlike the students from the various colleges.
The students from each academy arrived in the second batch, led by Lin Shuying, a high-ranking student from the St. Freya Academy. Her Martial Soul was ice element, at the Four-Ring, making her one of the top students in the academy.
The last group consisted of independent fighters, including twelve wearing standard jackets from the Fusion Warrior Division. The leader was a woman in her thirties named Zhao Qing, Fusion Warrior belonging to Anti-Entropy.
Three groups of people stood in the airport guidance area, sizing each other up; the atmosphere was subtle.
Ling Zichen didn't have time to worry about that and led the person directly into the access hall outside the core computer room.
Two hundred virtual pods were arranged in four rows. Each virtual pod was a mental access device containing various kinds of wires.
"I'll only explain the rules once." Ling Zichen stood on the platform at the front of the hall. "The place for this experiment is called the Star Dou Battle Net, similar to the Soul Ascension Platform. After connecting, you will enter the initial space of the Star Dou Battle Net. The system will automatically generate the scenario and mission objectives for this test. All sensations during the process will be real. Although the pain Simulation will be reduced somewhat, the feedback of mental impact will be fully preserved. If you can't take it, just shout 'Exit' in your mind to disconnect. Don't try to tough it out. If you develop mental problems, I will not be responsible, understand?"
The people below the stage responded enthusiastically.
Ling Zichen continued, "Very good. The test is divided into two phases. The first phase is an individual adaptability test, where the system will generate random scenarios, and you can deal with them individually. The second phase is a team combat test, where you will be randomly divided into two groups to compete in Simulation scenarios."
"Can we form our own teams?" Zhou Tie asked.
"It's random assignment." Ling Zichen shook his head. "It could be soldiers fighting cadets, or mixed teams fighting mixed teams. The system will balance the combat strength of both sides to make the confrontation as suspenseful as possible."
Ling Zichen didn't give them more time to talk. He clapped his hands and said, "Enter the virtual pod and prepare for access."
Soon, two hundred people lay down in the virtual reality pods one by one, put on helmets, and various detection devices were applied to them.
Ling Zichen pressed the start button on the central control screen, and two hundred Soul Guide indicator lights lit up blue simultaneously.
The lobby quieted down, with only the low-frequency hum of the equipment running.
Lin Shuying felt a sudden darkness before her eyes, followed by a brighter light.
She stood on a vast ice field, with a semi-transparent ice layer beneath her feet, revealing the permafrost beneath.
The sky was greyish-white, with the outline of snow-capped mountains in the distance. She looked down at her hands; they were transparent, with a pale blue halo.
A system notification sounded in my ear, "Personal adaptability test begins. Scenario: Icefield. Threat source: Blizzard. Mission objective: Survive the blizzard for ten minutes."
"A blizzard..."
Before Lin Shuying could take a closer look, the blizzard arrived.
The wind blew from the front, carrying ice pellets and snowflakes, which stung my face.
Her vision quickly shrank to only a few meters, and her body temperature dropped. Even with her Soul Power, it had little effect.
"Hiss--"
She tried to circulate her Soul Power to form a protective layer, and ice elements condensed on her body to form a thin layer of ice armor.
The ice pellets in the blizzard crackled against her ice armor. She stood still for a few seconds and noticed that the direction of the blizzard was changing, gradually shifting from the side to the front, and the wind was also increasing in force.
The system notification sounded again, "Additional quest: Ice elemental creatures exist in the blizzard and will attack on their own. Please defeat them."
Lin Shuying saw several pale blue shadows moving very fast in the depths of the snow mist.
She focused intently, and ice elements condensed in her palm.
Although the blizzard brought great pressure, it also amplified her power.
"Swish, swish, swish--"
Three minutes later, she successfully dealt with the tenth ice elemental creature.
Before she could even feel relieved, the eleventh ice elemental pounced from her side and rear. Ignoring her own exhaustion, she quickly continued her attack.
Shortly after, a system notification sounded, "Test complete. Time taken: 10 minutes. Eighteen ice elemental creatures killed. Soul Power consumed: 73%. Overall rating: A."
Before Lin Shuying could even read the detailed report, the scene shifted, and she was transported to a more open environment.
She was surrounded by dozens of people who, like her, had just completed their individual tests.
"Team-based combat test ready to begin." The system notification sounded, "Random grouping in progress."
The next moment, Lin Shuying saw Zhao Qing being assigned to the opposite side.
Zhao Qing was wearing the standard jacket of the Fusion Warrior Division and a special soul-guided arm guard designed by Mo Yuan on his wrist, looking no different from the real person.
After the groups were formed, the system generated a scene: an abandoned castle. The two sides each occupied one end, and the objective was to capture the control point in the center of the castle.
Lin Shuying's side had six Soul Master students and three military soldiers, while Zhao Qing's side had two Fusion Warrior and five military soldiers, with the remainder being several independent Soul Master.
After the battle began, Lin Shuying led three students to break through from the flank, preparing to control the field with ice walls.
But Zhao Qing's progress was much faster than they had anticipated.
Two Fusion Warrior stood at the forefront, their soul-guided arm guards forming shields that withstood the students' first wave of ranged attacks. Military soldiers flanked from both sides, forcing Lin Shuying and the others into a blind spot in the side hall of the castle.
Lin Shuying's ice wall lasted less than five seconds in front of the shield before being broken by the melee attacks of these Fusion Warrior.
Before Lin Shuying's ice element could even fully solidify, Zhao Qing was already right in front of her.
"You lost." Zhao Qing stopped in front of her, no longer attacking.
Lin Shuying, panting, looked at the woman in front of her who had no Soul Power.
"Your strength..." Lin Shuying said softly.
"Hehe, I only benefited temporarily." Zhao Qing shook his head.
Lin Shuying didn't say anything more.
If you're not as skilled as others, there's no need to make excuses.