The scene became lively again.
An even more heated discussion ensued.
"Wow. Are you going to go this far? Once we get into the simulated battlefield, won't we have to fight each other to avoid being eliminated?"
" Captain Wang said he'd eliminate half the team, so they'll definitely have to fight each other to the death."
"I'm speechless. I thought the competition for the Command Camp wouldn't be so fierce, which is why I applied. Turns out, they're putting out elimination tests right from the start."
With his hands behind his back and a stern face, Wang Yile patrolled back and forth between each formation.
Xu Jintang stroked his chin, his eyes darting back and forth.
No, no, that's not right.
Since it's Command Camp, the assessment certainly can't just test survival skills, otherwise it would lose the characteristics of Command Camp.
Furthermore, the assessment rules also restrict and prohibit the use of supernatural abilities.
Mo Yuqi, standing to the side, also had her brows furrowed, probably pondering the purpose of this assessment.
Ten minutes passed quickly.
Wang Yile glanced at the time, then raised his hand to call a halt, "Time's up. Everyone get ready, we're about to enter the simulated battlefield."
Xu Jintang snapped out of his reverie.
She looked up and surveyed her surroundings.
A semi-transparent energy wave instantly enveloped them from above.
Then a strong feeling of weightlessness rose from within my body.
Xu Jintang's consciousness was instantly pulled away.
Everything went completely black for a moment, and the dizziness lasted for a few seconds before Xu Jintang regained consciousness.
Then, a wave of intense heat washed over me, like being in a steamer.
Chapter 146
Xu Jintang slowly opened his eyes.
The blinding sunlight appeared before my eyes, and nine round, red suns hung high in the sky, forming a magnificent sight of nine stars aligned.
Beneath my feet stretched an endless desert, with nothing but yellow sand as far as the eye could see.
"First round of individual survival test: High-temperature desert. All trainees are required to find the desert Oasis Base within one hour. Successfully reaching the base will automatically qualify you for this round of testing."
A cold, electronic notification sound rang out.
Xu Jintang gradually regained consciousness.
She looked around; in every direction was endless yellow sand, without a trace of an oasis.
I can only wander around for now.
Xu Jintang randomly chose a direction and set off.
If you keep moving straight in one direction, you'll always see something different.
"The first round of assessments is this difficult; it's unbearably hot."
"It's so sunny! I feel like my skin is going to peel off."
"Wait, where exactly is this Oasis Base? There's no clue at all? Are we just going to have to search like this?"
Several trainee soldiers dragged their heavy steps forward.
Hearing the noise, Xu Jintang, who was walking ahead, stopped and turned around to glance back.
"Who's there! There seems to be someone ahead." One of the trainee soldiers noticed Xu Jintang ahead and immediately became alert.
The other trainees also quickly assumed defensive postures.
Xu Jintang turned around and waved to the group, "Don't misunderstand, I won't do anything."
This is only the first round of assessments, and the competition among them isn't very fierce; there's no need to fight tooth and nail.
The trainee soldiers were on guard for a moment. Seeing that Xu Jintang didn't intend to make a move, one of them sent over to scout the situation. "Are you alone?"
Xu Jintang nodded and shouted across the street, "Yes! Just me, can I join you guys?"
The group hesitated for a moment, then exchanged glances for a few seconds before the girl in the lead walked over. "Are you the Leikdasi Military Academy student who just reported for duty today?"
Clearly, Xu Jintang's self-introduction today, stating that he was at the Fourth Tier level of mental strength, was very well received.
Xu Jintang nodded. "It's me."
"You can come with us. But let me make it clear beforehand that we're just traveling together; it doesn't mean we'll all help each other in case of danger. After all, this is an individual survival test, and everyone will prioritize their own needs."
Xu Jintang understood. "No problem."
She didn't expect that joining this group would lead to unity and mutual assistance; she mainly felt that in this desert, it was less likely to get lost if there were many people traveling together.
After Xu Jintang joined the group, they continued northward.
The blazing sun continued to burn high in the sky, and the temperature of the desert below seemed to rise even higher.
Xu Jintang couldn't help but unbutton the top of his collar and raise his hand to fan himself.
I was hoping to relieve the heat, but the airflow was also hot, and fanning myself only made me feel more stuffy.
"It's too hot. We can't go on like this," someone said, stopping in their tracks.
"Besides, there aren't any landmarks here. What if we're going the wrong way? There's no point in continuing like this."
"Exactly, we can't just keep wandering around aimlessly like this."
The girl leading the group stopped, turned around, and asked impatiently, "So what do you suggest? Should we split up and go our separate ways?"
By now, the temperature has become unbearably hot, and everyone is feeling somewhat resentful.
However, breaking up the partnership might not necessarily be better than things are now.
The complaints from the crowd quickly ceased.
"Forget it, let's try walking a little further."
Xu Jintang didn't say anything, but stood to the side and fanned himself vigorously, trying to reduce the heat in his body.
After resting for a while, just as everyone was preparing to continue their journey, a bulge suddenly appeared on the flat desert ahead.
"Wait!" The girl leading the group immediately raised her hand in alertness.
Everyone stopped in their tracks and turned their gaze to the strange protrusion in front of them.
Suddenly, a giant lizard emerged from the desert ahead. Its skin was bright red, covered with strangely shaped barbs, and its two scarlet eyes stared intently at the group, as if it were about to pounce at any moment.
"The weak points of this lizard-like monster are usually its abdomen and eyes," Xu Jintang reminded him.
No sooner had the words left his mouth than the lizard stretched out its long tongue and attacked the group.
The group, who were already prepared, quickly retreated and got ready for battle.
Xu Jintang also took a big step back, and without hesitation, activated the ruby sleeve dart on his arm. Several hidden arrows shot towards the lizard in front of him.
The use of supernatural abilities is prohibited in this assessment, so everyone can only fight using their physical bodies and magical artifacts.
Before long, the others reacted and quickly took action, using various magical artifacts to attack the lizard.
Fortunately, the group was quite strong and quickly managed to kill the lizard monster that had suddenly appeared.
The girl leading the group pulled the dagger out of the lizard's back, splattering blood everywhere.
"It's a good thing we left together, otherwise it would have been very difficult for one person to hunt down this lizard-like monster."
Without their superpowers, their combat effectiveness was drastically reduced.
The success rate of hunting monsters alone will naturally decrease.
The others exchanged glances. "Let's go together from now on."
Xu Jintang stood quietly at the back of the group, without making a sound.
"Hello, my name is Wang Qian." The girl leading the group suddenly walked up to us and introduced herself.
Xu Jintang was taken aback. "Hello."
"You just reminded us that the lizard's weak points are its abdomen and eyes. You seem to know quite a bit about monsters?" Wang Qian asked tentatively.
"Fortunately, I learned some things when I was studying at the academy." Xu Jintang remained modest.
Wang Qian's face showed an "I knew it" expression. "Great. From now on, you'll lead the team with me. If we encounter any more monsters, you'll command us in battle."
And so, Xu Jintang became the vice-captain of the small team, specifically responsible for leading the team to fight against the monsters.
Not long after the group left, several more demonic beasts appeared.
However, under Xu Jintang's command, the group's battles against the monsters went very smoothly.
It took about forty minutes to walk.
A touch of green slowly appeared from ahead.
"It's the Oasis Base!!" Someone noticed the greenery ahead and immediately shouted excitedly.
Xu Jintang looked up and saw a dense green forest in front of him, which stood out in the desert.
A gleam of joy flashed in Wang Qian's eyes. "Great! Speed things up!"
The group increased their pace and continued forward.
But for some reason, after walking for a very long time, the group felt they should have reached the Oasis Base by now, but they couldn't get any closer, as if they were stuck in the same place.
Xu Jintang sensed something was wrong and raised his hand to signal everyone to stop. "This shouldn't be the Oasis Base; it could be Mirage."
Chapter 147
Everyone stopped and looked up ahead.
Wang Qian frowned slightly.
At their current pace, they should have reached the Oasis Base by now, but it still looks quite far away.
"I'm impressed. I thought we'd actually arrived at the Oasis Base."
"But the existence of Mirage proves that the Oasis Base must be not far away, right?"
"More than forty minutes have passed. If we can't find the base soon, we'll all be eliminated."
After their expectations were dashed, everyone became irritable.
Wang Qian turned to Xu Jintang and asked, "What do you think is the significance of this assessment?"
"Survival?" Xu Jintang replied uncertainly.
Wang Qian frowned even more deeply. "But if it's a test of survival, why use finding Oasis Base —an event that relies purely on luck and probability—as the standard for whether or not someone will be eliminated?"
Without coordinates or clues, they could only grope around like headless flies, searching for the Oasis Base.
To some extent, this is entirely a matter of luck and has nothing to do with testing one's survival.
After being reminded, Xu Jintang suddenly realized something.
She looked up and stared at the Oasis Base not far ahead, then flicked out several Attack Inscription.
"Ding--"
A crisp collision sound rang out.