Out of awe for a powerful fighter,
and eager to see just how far Luo Feng could get,
the trainees at the front of the line exchanged glances and readily stepped aside.
"Luo Feng, you go first."
"That's right, you go first. We want to see how high your Trial Tower Level can reach too."
Faced with their kindness, Luo Feng didn't make a show of refusing. He simply nodded.
"Thank you."
Then Luo Feng strode into the vacant trial room.
The lights in the trial room came on.
Luo Feng walked over to the comfortable sofa and lay down, picking up the dark blue helmet beside it.
This was a Consciousness Sensor.
According to the trainee handbook, once he put it on,
he should be able to enter the Trial Tower.
"The farther I get, the better!"
Luo Feng murmured to himself, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.
Then he put the helmet on.
His consciousness wavered.
When Luo Feng opened his eyes again, he found himself on a vast silver plain that stretched without end.
He looked up to see the deep, boundless starry sky of the universe, dotted with stars.
And the only structure in this world
was a towering seven-story pagoda that seemed ready to pierce the firmament!
Following the virtual space's directions, Luo Feng walked to the Trial Tower's front entrance.
On a huge pillar to the left of the Trial Tower, clear information about him appeared.
Name: Luo Feng Gender: male Status: Elite Training Camp full trainee Trial Tower Level: 1
Following an electronic prompt from the virtual space,
an interface for selecting equipment appeared in front of Luo Feng.
Looking at the transparent screen floating in midair before him,
Luo Feng couldn't resist reaching out and gently touching one of the virtual buttons.
The sensation at his fingertip was remarkably real, with a slight coolness and resistance.
It was as though he had touched a real, physical screen rather than light and shadow.
"Amazing."
Luo Feng couldn't help letting out a heartfelt exclamation.
"This kind of incredible technology... I really can't imagine how those scientists managed it."
At that moment, in Luo Feng's mind,
the history he had studied as a student came to him.
Back in the early twenty-first century, the Great Nirvana Period had yet to descend.
Human society hadn't even fully entered the information age then.
Ordinary people still relied on public telephone booths by the shops on the street
to communicate with distant relatives and friends.
Only a few wealthy people could afford those bulky mobile phones known as "big brothers."
From that age, when even making a phone call was a luxury,
to the Great Nirvana Period, when humanity faced utter destruction, and then to the establishment of the present Base City era,
it had been barely more than half a century in all.
In just over half a century, humanity had come this far.
Incredible.
No sooner had the thought crossed Luo Feng's mind than Lin Mo's cold snort rang out in his sea of consciousness, tinged with disdain and pride.
"Earth's technology? Never mind a mere half century."
"Even if Earth were given several hundred more years, without intervention from an outside civilization,
it would be absolutely impossible to develop something like this on its own."
Luo Feng was puzzled. His brow furrowed slightly.
"Teacher, what do you mean? If it wasn't developed by Earth's scientists,
then where did this Trial Tower come from?"
Lin Mo explained calmly:
"The space you're in now is a small place that was barely put together with the help of the Virtual Universe Network."
"The Virtual Universe Network?"
Hearing this entirely new term, so grand in scope,
Luo Feng was instantly filled with curiosity. Even his breathing quickened.
"Teacher, what exactly is the Virtual Universe Network?"
"It's a vast world you can't even begin to imagine right now."
Lin Mo's voice grew distant, as though he had fallen into a long recollection.
"In the boundless Human Territory, there are five unshakable major powers."
"These five powers control the vast majority of humanity's resources and powerful fighters."
"And the Virtual Universe Company is one of these five peak powers."
"The Virtual Universe Network was created and is maintained by the Virtual Universe Company."
"Its capabilities are simply heaven-defying!"
"Across the whole Human Territory, there are a full 1,008 Universe Countries."
"In each Universe Country, more than a hundred million trillion users are online at the same time every day!"
"No matter what corner of the universe you're in, no matter how far apart you are,
as long as you send an invitation on the Virtual Universe Network,
you can instantly cross the endless starry sky and sit down for tea face-to-face."
"The most terrifying thing is that it can simulate reality with one hundred percent perfection!"
"In the Virtual Universe, the wine you drink gives you the real sensation of its burn and intoxication."
"Because it's so much like reality, and even more convenient and exciting,
countless powerful fighters in the universe spend thousands of years at a time in the Virtual Universe."
Listening to Lin Mo's breathtakingly grand description,
Luo Feng felt a surge of emotion, and the blood throughout his body boiled at that moment.
"Teacher, can I connect to that Virtual Universe now?"
Luo Feng asked eagerly in his sea of consciousness.
"Dream on."
Lin Mo unceremoniously poured a bucket of cold water on him.
"Are you strong enough? You haven't even reached the top of Apprentice Level, and you want to go online and have fun."
"Ah, what a pity."
Luo Feng sighed helplessly, forcing down the excitement in his heart.
"All right, enough nonsense. Put away those unrealistic fantasies of yours."
Lin Mo interrupted Luo Feng's daydreams, his tone turning stern and grim.
"Get on with the tower. With your current abilities, if you can't reach the sixth floor, you aren't qualified to remain my disciple."
Hearing that, Luo Feng's expression turned solemn, and he nodded firmly.
The sixth floor!
That was the floor Hong, Earth's strongest fighter, could reach.
Putting his thoughts aside, Luo Feng quickly changed into the combat suit he was familiar with.
He selected the Blood Shadow Battle Blade and a Hexagonal Shield, the weapons that suited him best.
With his equipment on, Luo Feng took a deep breath and tightened his grip on the battle blade in his hand.
Then, without the slightest hesitation,
he strode straight through the Trial Tower's dark, deep doorway.
In an instant, the scene before him sank into utter darkness.
It was as though even his consciousness had been briefly stripped away.
After just a second or two, his vision gradually cleared.
Feeling the lifelike touch of a breeze brushing his cheeks,
Luo Feng found himself on a vast grassland, its green expanse stretching as far as the eye could see.
The sky was azure, and the air was even filled with the fragrance of earth and grass.
But before Luo Feng could take a good look at his surroundings, his expression abruptly changed.
"My strength!"
Luo Feng instinctively clenched his fists, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.