Night City, one of the largest settlements on Planet Pandora, is ruled by the Church of the Dark Night. The city is a melting pot of all sorts of people and is divided into five districts. The headquarters of the Brooks Mercenary Corps is located in the West City.
In the slightly dim hall, the leader, Brooks, leaned back in her seat, her long, shimmering green hair falling naturally over her white feather shawl. Her two long, shapely legs, like white pythons, were crossed, and her beautiful eyes, like stars, were bright and dazzling, but at this moment they carried a hint of coldness.
"Is this how you lost the access key?" A clear, melodious voice uttered from slightly parted red lips. Following Brooks's gaze, a tall man was kneeling on the ground, trembling, with cold sweat pouring down his forehead.
It was Rig.
"We request the commander to punish him!"
Rig did not try to argue. He knew Brooks's character well. It was best to honestly ask for punishment when you did something wrong. If you dared to argue and try to shirk responsibility, the consequences would be very serious.
Sure enough, upon seeing Rig's trembling and remorseful attitude, the coldness in Brooks's eyes softened slightly. Just as she was about to say something, a burly figure stormed in like a storm, his warhammer tearing through the air with a mournful wail, and smashing down on Rig with the force of a thunderbolt.
"Insolence!" Brooks roared. Before she could make any move, the air in the entire hall suddenly froze. The octagonal warhammer, which moved as fast as lightning, remained suspended in mid-air as if Time Stop. No matter how hard the burly figure tried, he could not push it down even a little.
The one wielding the warhammer was an exceptionally burly and robust humanoid creature, dressed in dark red armor, with messy hair, mottled scales scattered across his skin, a strong and powerful tail on his back, and eyes that were vertical like those of a snake, cold and cruel, staring intently at Rig in front of him.
"Elia, what are you doing?" Rig shouted angrily after scrambling back more than ten meters.
The blow was too fast and too powerful; he barely had time to react. If Brooks hadn't intervened, his head would probably have exploded on the spot.
"Tula is dead, why are you still alive, why?" A hoarse voice, like the whisper of a raven, came from the humanoid monster's mouth, carrying a hint of hysterical madness.
Rig was taken aback, only then recalling the rumors circulating within the mercenary group about Tula and Elia. He had previously thought them to be baseless, but now it seemed...
"Alright, Elia, as a mercenary, there's always danger on missions. Death is like the wind, always by our side. You should understand that!"
Brooks said calmly and indifferently, releasing the pressure he had been applying to Elia.
Perhaps her words had an effect, or perhaps she knew she couldn't kill Rig in front of a Legendary being, but Elia didn't make another move and silently knelt on one knee.
"Please grant me the chance for Revenge, I will be eternally grateful, Commander!"
As the hoarse, icy voice, filled with Endless hatred, fell, the temperature in the hall seemed to drop slightly.
Brooks rested her near-perfect cheek on her right hand, while her left index finger gently tapped the wooden armrest, producing a soft, rhythmic thumping sound.
"Captain, that spider monster can control gravity, and its potential is unfathomable. Since we've already offended it, we must eliminate it before it grows stronger, otherwise the consequences will be unimaginable." Rig did not object to Elia's request because of her sudden attack earlier; he knew how terrifying that spider monster was.
Fighting opponents far stronger than themselves, possessing terrifying regenerative abilities, appearing and disappearing unpredictably, and vengeful to the smallest detail...
It's obvious that I've already made an enemy of it. Since it's an enemy, I need to deal with it as soon as possible, especially an enemy with such explosive potential.
And once I've defeated this spider monster and Elia has completed her Revenge, she probably won't bother me anymore, right?
Ultimately Tula wasn't murdered by him, unless this woman is mentally ill.
"Do you know the origin of this spider monster?" Brooks glanced at Rig.
The latter lowered his head awkwardly, "This subordinate did not know!"
"Do you know its activity area? Its living habits, whether it has a powerful backer..." A series of questions flew out of Brooks's mouth. Rig couldn't answer them and could only lower his head dejectedly, remaining silent.
"Knowing nothing, yet thinking of Revenge? What a foolish idea! I never imagined I'd have such a stupid subordinate." A mocking glint flashed in his long, slender eyes, as clear as Brooks water. His words were utterly rude, and Rig almost wanted to bury his head in the ground.
Elia remained unmoved and said in a low voice, "We can ask Ms. Diwoer for help."
Upon hearing this, Rig's eyes lit up. "That's right, Ms. Diwoer is a fortune teller; she'll definitely be able to pinpoint the monster's location."
Brooks narrowed his eyes but didn't speak.
Diwoer is a fortune teller and spellcaster who has entered the realm of Legendary. He mainly studies Fate and mysticism, and his methods are unpredictable and mysterious.
However, this person was not a member of the Brooks Mercenary Corps, but rather Brooks Spring's close friend. The two had a very good relationship, Diwoer would come to Night City for a short stay every now and then. This was a fact that was almost universally known throughout the Brooks Mercenary Corps and even among the major forces in Night City.
However, leveraging Diwoer's name to expand the mercenary group's influence is a completely different concept from directly asking this Legendary fortune teller for help.
The latter not only requires expending favors but also offering a sufficient amount of resources. After all, both spellcasters and diviners believe in equivalent exchange; friendship and business are two different things, a distinction that rational spellcasters clearly understand.
The key question is whether this spider monster is worth such a high price; hiring Diwoer is no small expense.
The mercenary group already has one key to guide the way; having another one wouldn't make a difference. Otherwise, instead of sending Rig's squad to steal it, the group leader herself would have descended upon them.
Brooks is weighing the pros and cons.
A few seconds later, she looked at Rig, "Recount your entire experience again, without any personal feelings!"
Rig nodded repeatedly upon hearing this, and then recounted the ins and outs of the incident in great detail once again.
Although he didn't let personal feelings get in the way, Rig deliberately focused more on the battle with the spider monster, especially mentioning the gravity and the reverse pursuit multiple times.
Gravity represents extremely high bloodline potential.
The reverse pursuit represents the spider monster's strong desire for revenge.
After saying this, Rig lowered his head slightly, waiting for Brooks to make the final decision.
After a long while, Brooks slowly exhaled a breath of stale air. "Do you have any of this spider monster's body parts on you? Or anything tainted by its scent?"
"Have!"
Rig was overjoyed and quickly took out a ball of semi-transparent spider silk. For Gustavo, spider silk was an essential consumable in battle, and unless facing a very weak enemy, it was almost impossible to retrieve it completely.
With a slight lift of his left hand and a flick of his index finger, the spider silk in Rig's hand floated up and landed in Brooks's hand.
"Excellent toughness, excellent concealment, superb energy conductivity... merely Mid-Rank Transcendent..."
Brooks murmured to herself, unconsciously clenching her delicate hand, a hint of murderous intent gradually appearing in her eyes.
Driven by a combination of hatred and self-interest, Brooks made a decision.
She took out a light pink rhombus-shaped crystal. This thing was a communicator produced by the Planet Guta, which was extremely advanced and could communicate in real time across several star systems.
"Diwoer is currently traveling on Planet Saila and will be visiting Night City in a while. I've already informed her, but given her lazy nature, she won't be back anytime soon."
Setting down the rhomboid crystal used for communication, Brooks spoke calmly.
Elia nodded silently, glanced expressionlessly at Rig beside her, and slowly retreated.
Rig said rather nervously, "Captain, Elia, she..."
"Don't worry, I'll warn her. Tula's death has nothing to do with you!" Brooks waved her Rig felt relieved and left the hall.
Crimson Alliance, Kahn Province, Bolake City.
As the provincial capital, Bolake City is far more prosperous than Leite City, with a population of over ten million and famous landmarks everywhere.
It was nighttime, and looking down from the aircraft window, the entire city seemed to be sculpted from colorful crystals. Neon lights fluttered like ribbons, and aircraft moved and were active like fireflies. All of this made the city at night appear magnificent and splendid.
"Yo-ho, finally arrived in Bolake City! The preliminary entrance exam for the Joint Entrance Examination exam, here I come Burke!"
In the seat next to him, Burke was shouting and yelling like a fat monkey. Lancelot, already used to his companion's personality, didn't mind and just enjoyed the city night view.
Tomorrow is the official start of the Joint Entrance Examination examination.
The preliminary selection is conducted on a provincial basis.
Leite City belongs to the Kahn Province. Transcendent individuals who want to participate in the Joint Entrance Examination must travel to Bolake City to participate. Travel expenses can be reimbursed by the Department of the Extraordinary.
"Registration is closed!" Rui, holding the communicator, suddenly looked up and said. It was exactly 8 p. m., and the registration channel for the preliminary test had been closed.
"Tell me quickly, how many people have registered for the Kahn Province this year? Has it exceeded 60,000 yet?" Cole asked hurriedly.
Rui said, "It's over 60,000! According to official data, there are a total of 82,759 people. The majority of them are Ability Energy, with over 70,000 having potential at levels D, E, or F. The rest are Ability Energy with potential at level C or above, or various types of Transcendent professionals!"
"Frog Fun, over 80,000 people, it's all over. Our hopes of making it into the top 3,000 are completely dashed!" Burke slumped down, his face full of sorrow, his previous cheerfulness gone.
According to the Joint Entrance Examination rules, only the top 3,000 candidates in the preliminary examination are eligible to participate in the re-examination.
Rui's expression wasn't good either. In the team, Lancelot was incredibly strong. Let alone the top three thousand, even the top thirty probably couldn't stop this guy.
Cole is second only to Lancelot, and making it into the top 3,000 should be no problem for him.
He and Burke are the weakest, and their chances of making it into the top 3,000 are really not high.
"There weren't this many people in previous years, only around 50,000 or 60,000. How come the number has surged so much this year?" Cole frowned. Although he was basically guaranteed to be in the top 3,000, he wanted to achieve outstanding results in the re-examination.
The more people there are, the greater the competition, and the harder it is to stand out. This principle remains unchanged whether in the realm of Transcendent individuals or at the level of ordinary people.
At that moment, the other members of the special training camp also learned through the internet about the surge in the number of people taking the Joint Entrance Examination examination. Immediately, a chorus of groans filled the cabin.
"Damn it, I trained hard for a whole year, and this is what you give me at the end?"
"It's over. I was hoping to make it to the interview stage, but now my hopes are basically dashed."
"Do you think that with more applicants, the number of places available for the second round of admissions will also increase?"
"Are you dreaming? The Joint Entrance Examination rules haven't changed in centuries. I remember over eighty years ago, there was a year in which 106,000 people participated in the preliminary exam in Kahn Province —it was practically hellish—but in the end, only the top three thousand were admitted to the second round!"
"Why? This isn't fair!"
"Fairness? Transcendent beings believe in Fate even more than fairness!"
There was much discussion and even heated arguments inside the cabin.
The instructors watched indifferently, without uttering a word.
The aircraft slowly landed at the airport, and the less competitive teams gradually disembarked, boarded a bus, and headed to their pre-booked hotel to wait for the preliminary test to begin.
In the elegantly decorated room, Lancelot sat cross-legged on the soft bed, meditating with his eyes closed.
On this last night, he didn't plan to exercise; he intended to rest and recuperate to get himself in good shape.
Moreover, he had an exceptionally keen understanding of his physical condition and knew perfectly well that even if he trained with all his might tonight, his strength wouldn't increase much.
After the operation to suppress the Revival Society, Lancelot quickly recovered from his injuries. He then trained at an extremely high intensity every day, relying on the Star Swallowing Technique and the Flow Method to rapidly absorb the Spring of Vitality and Condensed Moonlight Liquid. Finally, yesterday, his physical attributes broke through the shackles and reached 11 points.
After crossing this Dao Realm, his physical body underwent a slight transformation. His muscles and bones became stronger and more powerful, his skin became tougher and smoother, his blood became thicker and clearer, and every cell became more vibrant. His overall level of life was elevated to a new level, and his strength also increased considerably.
In addition, the development level of [Body of Steel] has been increased from Lv9 to Lv10, making it more controllable.
Under this extremely high-intensity training, the Lv19 [Flow Method] skill level also improved by one level, reaching Lv20, just one step away from the state of "Absolute Focus".
But this one step is far more difficult to traverse than going from level 19 to level 20.
The preliminary examination will last for five to seven days, followed by a three- to five-day break before the second-round examination.
If Lancelot wants to rank among the top in the retest, [Body of Steel] alone is not enough; he must reach the threshold for using [Sword-Armored Electric Eel Bloodline Potion] within ten days.
The physical attributes are no longer a problem.
Now I'm only 21 levels away from Flow Method.
Enhancing one's state of Flow Method involves two aspects: Divine Power and willpower!
Divine Power and mental attributes are two different things. The latter includes qualities such as mind, will, perception, and Divine Power, while the former is only a kind of mental strength.
To enhance Divine Power, one usually relies on meditation, but drugs can also be used.
However, potions that enhance Divine Power are not only extremely expensive, but also very rare.
Lancelot used every connection he had to obtain seven bottles of potions, which cost him a total of eleven million Crimson Notes.
The Joint Entrance Examination only prohibits explosive drugs, not the use of drugs that enhance strength; it only requires reporting it during drug testing.
With the improvement of Divine Power secured, as for willpower, nothing tests one's resolve more than a frenzied battle.
With potions and relentless combat, Lancelot is quite confident that he can complete the transformation into the Flow Method within ten days!