Chapter 174: It's Already a Force to Be Reckoned With—Who Can Stop It!

For two days straight, Qin Shi held a bow in his left hand and rubbed a Dimensional Slash in his right, acting with extreme high-handedness as he ravaged the entire Middle Layer Area.

With Hammer Younger Brother Yan Ren serving as a meat-shield tank to draw aggro, gathering monsters was easier.

Large numbers of Iron Rust Beasts were harvested like wheat fallen in a field.

Boom!

Yan Ren swung his great hammer, smashing a leaping Iron Rust Beast to pieces; in the instant its flesh and blood exploded, radiation scattered and turned directly into fist-sized fireballs.

He hurriedly retreated to avoid contamination, lured the beast herd into a sunken pit, then took off running.

The next moment, over a dozen streaks of arrow light descended from the sky like an aerial cluster strike summoned forth, "igniting" numerous Iron Rust Beasts.

Intense high heat swept through like a plague spreading, melting flesh and blood, leaving only roasted, scorching iron hearts.

These ordinary Iron Rust Beasts differed from Leader Level ones; their hearts were not highly ironized, mostly covered fifty to seventy percent, and some could not withstand the burning, bursting like pebbles with a crackle, shattering into pieces.

Qin Shi stood on high ground, looking down at the sea of fire below; this wave probably earned him less than five hundred points.

"Too slow, too slow. If another elite boss came, earning a few thousand points would be satisfying."

His thought had not yet faded when Yan Ren, carrying a great hammer, suddenly shouted:

"Help! A big one's coming!"

Qin Shi looked closely and saw a three-headed jackal-wolf over ten meters in size suddenly tear open the sea of fire, closely following behind Yan Ren.

The three heads flickered with ferocious light; the left head burned with pitch-black firelight, the right was wrapped in a layer of rusted metal, and the middle lower jaw split open, its mouthparts opening into four petals like a blooming man-eating flower.

"It's actually a 'Steel-chewing Jackal'."

Qin Shi's eyes brightened; the manual recorded clearly that Steel-chewing Jackals were mostly born in wasteland radiation zones, formed by mutated jackals fusing with a biochemical virus.

They could absorb mechanical wreckage and radiation, with high growth speed and adaptability, belonging to the top predators of the Great Rift Valley ecosystem.

Of course, what mattered most to Qin Shi was that a Steel-chewing Jackal was worth three thousand points.

"This one's evolution level isn't low; it's even grown three heads. It should be worth five thousand points, right?"

He stared fixedly at the foreign-race creature like a small hill; such large "beasts" were hard to deal with using only swords and blades.

Thick-skinned and tough-fleshed, with tenacious life force and an outrageously long blood bar.

Given the huge size difference between the two sides, chopping away foot by foot left too little margin for error; one careless moment and he'd be trampled to death.

"In this situation, a mage is often needed."

Qin Shi first stuck the Perfect Grade Electric Shock Military Saber into the ground, then placed the composite bow behind him.

He then rubbed the Dimensional Slash, whose proficiency was growing higher and higher, focusing his Spiritual Field Power; the Soul Meditation Technique made the atmosphere violently shake, squeezing out deep fissures like winding lightning, coiling in his palm.

The three-headed Steel-chewing Jackal chased Yan Ren, who carried the great hammer, with its blood basin mouth slowly dripping saliva like sulfuric acid, nearly biting the "food" several times.

Feeling the fishy heat behind him, Yan Ren was scared white; fortunately, since childhood he had taken his family's Secret Medicine, possessing the speed of an eagle and the agility of a leopard.

"Supermodel Brother, save me! I don't know where this guy came from, but he insists on catching me!"

Qin Shi said nothing, only kept rubbing the Dimensional Slash.

When the deep fissures like black lightning increased to fifteen, as thick as water buckets, he then unleashed his telekinesis, shooting them out!

Hiss!

Like a fierce electric light cutting through space, as if a long spear thrown, in a flash it had pierced the chest of the three-headed Steel-chewing Jackal.

The fatal weak point of this foreign-race creature was not its conspicuous head; it had three heads, and even if one was knocked off, the other two could still maintain control of the body.

To kill with one blow, one had to strike the chest, separating the head from the body!

Crash!

Yan Ren, fleeing madly, suddenly heard the sound of a waterfall pouring and a sluice gate opening.

Immediately after, large dollops of sticky blood splashed, drenching him from head to toe!

Bang!

A heavy object fell to the ground!

Three heads detached from the jackal-wolf's body and fell beside him.

It did not die immediately.

The middle head bloomed like a flower, four plump predatory mouthparts wrapping toward Yan Ren.

Even at death's door, it launched a counterattack!

"Damn! Your grandpa's!"

Yan Ren had been drenched in blood; if not for his strong enough life force, these corrosive liquids could have disfigured him, burning his skin open and flesh bursting.

He was also provoked into ferocity, raising his great hammer to smash it, shattering the mouthparts.

Then his body spun, like a tornado dancing wildly!

"Too ferocious, little brother."

Qin Shi walked over, looking at the mangled state of the three-headed Steel-chewing Jackal, and couldn't help but say:

"This pile of stuff, how am I supposed to find the energy core?"

Yan Ren took off his clothes, wiping the sticky blood that had congealed all over his body.

This stuff was like paint, sticky and hard to wash clean.

"I'll go in and feel around later, Supermodel Brother; your move is too unreasonable! Such terrifying killing power—even an ordinary mortal body of a specialized class might not withstand it!"

Yan Ren looked at the smooth, flat cut; almost in an instant, this three-headed Steel-chewing Jackal had been split in two.

He was secretly shocked; walking two paths was truly monstrous.

Have numbers when there should be numbers, have skills when there should be skills!

Plus the monstrous growth potential of the late stage!

How are others supposed to play!

"Speaking of which, is it time for the rankings to be announced?"

Qin Shi finished off the three Steel-chewing Jackals, his Spirit Sea empty, leaving him with a groggy sensation like a hangover.

He tilted his head back, looking up at the sky above the Great Rift Valley.

That slender wristwatch, thin as a hand-string, was counting down.

……

……

At the Temporary Command Base, Chen Ruofu had been standing guard here for nearly a week and a half.

His suspended heart finally settled; he no longer worried that Qin Shi would be blocked by other contestants.

Who would win the Top Hundred Tournament was still unclear, but if one were to judge by who provided the most death quotas for Center City contestants, Xiao Qin deserved it without question.

Every additional Center City contestant who died made Representative Zhou's face darken another shade.

After these few days, it was already like the bottom of a pot.

Even Fang Butang, who stayed behind with Chen Ruofu to monitor the tournament, couldn't help but say:

"That Xiao Qin of your Patrol Department, isn't he a bit too extreme?"

After all, strictly speaking, this is merely a campus-level competition spanning high school to university.

Yet a strongest high school student who kills at the drop of a hat emerged, leaving the Education Committee leaders unsure what to say.

"The Ying Clan broke the rules first; Xiao Qin acted in legitimate self-defense — he did nothing wrong!"

Chen Ruofu's attitude was very firm; he declared he would support him to the end.

"They outnumbered and bullied the few — five or six, seven or eight against Xiao Qin alone — and then gave up their lives for nothing; spreading the word would also be humiliating.

If this were in the Old Era's martial arts world, even the most overbearing sect would be too ashamed to directly seek vengeance!"

Fang Butang held his enamel cup, speaking leisurely:

"It's easy to make enemies this way, with how Xiao Qin operates. Why did Ying Lin personally pick the Top Hundred Tournament to perform, widely scattering money? Because this Trial gathers Hengzhou's most elite seedlings — not just academic talent and Path potential, but their family backgrounds are also extraordinary.

One comes, kill one; two come, kill a pair — sounds satisfying. But a series of troubles is unavoidable. Ying Lin's personality is paranoid and arrogant, but his brain isn't stupid; he's borrowing a knife to kill!"

Chen Ruofu looked at Fang Butang, who remained eternally calm with a Maitreya-like smile, and said:

"Still you, Old Fang — crafty and cunning, knowing these ins and outs."

Fang Butang glared and scolded:

"Can you not speak properly! Old Chen!"

Chen Ruofu laughed, then lightly corrected himself:

"Misspoke — it's far-sighted planning. What you thought of, I've also considered, but under heaven, where is a path that satisfies both sides?

Old Fang, think about it — our origins aren't bad, and these years climbing up, have we offended fewer people? Didn't we still have to fight openly and secretly to sit securely in our positions?

Even we are like this; how much more so Xiao Qin — his starting point is too low; how could he possibly climb up harmoniously and smoothly? Even without the Ying Clan, would other obstacles not exist?"

Fang Butang fell silent; as a man of officialdom, he understood the difficulty of climbing upward.

Without favorable winds to borrow strength, without noble patrons to help, it is indeed fraught with peril — like drawing water with a bamboo basket.

"As for the enmity you mention, Xiao Qin isn't a masterless drifter. I'm quite looking forward to seeing who has the audacity to go to the Nanhuang Dojo to pick a fight."

Chen Ruofu smiled deeply; Qin Shi, now a True Disciple of the Nanhuang Dojo, was no longer a poor student from Old Factory Street with no backing.

"Old Fang, you just put too much faith in that whole interpersonal web. The Martial Path, in the end, returns to killing and fighting. They're already stepping on your head, and you still return a smiling face, letting them continue to humiliate you? When it's time to draw the sword, you must draw the sword! Before, Xiao Qin had no backing, so I advised him to develop connections; but now he's made it, there's no need to be timid and fearful anymore!"

Chen Ruofu sat with legs splayed, faintly showing a trace of the domineering vigor of his youth.

"You old tiger — truly forgetting the pain once the scar heals; you used to charge recklessly and suffered plenty of losses."

Fang Butang coldly snorted twice, raising his hand to check his watch.

"First round score tally — guess what place your Patrol Department can reach? I feel it should be top ten."

Chen Ruofu raised his right palm, gesturing front and back, decisive:

"Top five!"

Fang Butang immediately sneered:

"Foreign creatures in the Core Area are often worth tens of thousands of points per head; however you look at it, Zhou Yuanchen, Ji Yuqi, Pei Han — they can't possibly fall behind. Top ten is already overestimating."

The talents the Taian Education Bureau invested in are precisely Ji Yuqi and Pei Han.

These two are "proper roots and red seedlings" — both fourth-year students at Qiguang Heng University.

Upon graduation they enter the Education Committee system — solid backbone material.

"We'll see."

Chen Ruofu brimmed with confidence, firmly believing Xiao Qin would give him a surprise.

The hour hand slowly moved toward noon.

When it passed twelve o'clock.

The Top Hundred Tournament's first round score tally began!

……

……

Score tallying is executed by United Pharmaceutical's Active Consciousness Entity 【Changqing】.

Through the wristwatch's material identification and clearance speed, a comprehensive judgment gives the score.

Under the Urban Circle's Iron Curtain Defense, United Pharmaceutical's Active Consciousness Entities operate; they resemble intelligent life, absorbing massive data, categorizing and organizing it completely.

"Results out yet?"

United Pharmaceutical's regional general agent waited anxiously; the Top Hundred Tournament's publicity push was huge, and with the Wilderness Trial restarting, the gimmick was full.

All parties were eagerly awaiting the first round results!

Besides the Patrol Department, Education Committee, and Martial Association leaders, there were also Tomorrow Group's editor-in-chief and reporters wanting first-hand news.

"Soon. The electronic blockade on the Great Rift Valley side is severe, so it's a bit slower than usual."

The Assistant lowered his head and said.

The intelligent life of a big company is equivalent to the position of a Chief Executive Officer.

The more a super consortium spans multiple fields and occupies a faucet position, the more it believes in the judgment of consciousness bodies.

Almost all employees serve the intelligent life.

Those powerful consciousness bodies possess strange powers akin to divine spirits.

Some can perform "cross-medium computation," converting natural phenomena such as planetary atmospheric turbulence and geomagnetic wave fluctuations into computational resources;

Some can deploy "distributed cognition," splitting off trillions of nanometer-scale biological spores to form a perception network covering a planet.

To a certain extent, these consciousness bodies are in no way inferior to Grandmasters of the martial path or spiritual path.

"Alright. Changqing has given the ranking order."

A few minutes later, the Regional General Manager received instructions and stepped into a vast room resembling a super-large machine room.

Silk threads of light like nerve tentacles connected to the Regional General Manager's forehead, and with a slight vibration, transmitted the information.

"First place, unsurprisingly, is indeed the Center City's hot favorite Zhou Yuanchen!"

After the transmission ended, the Regional General Manager excitedly left the room and released the first-round results to all parties.

……

……

Kang Yun'er, Editor-in-Chief of Tomorrow Group's "Outlook Weekly," was sitting on the terrace of a luxury suite enjoying tea snacks.

While admiring the Tai'an scenery, her mobile terminal suddenly vibrated; United Pharmaceutical, as promised, sent over the first-hand data.

"First place, Zhou Yuanchen, not unexpected. Center City's most dazzling supernova in recent years, but second place Qin Shi, what's his background? He actually ranks ahead of Qiguang Heng University's Ji Yuqi and Pei Han?"

Kang Yun'er couldn't help but feel curiosity; out of a media person's keen instinct, she felt this unfamiliar name seemed to have more room for exploration.

So, Kang Yun'er messaged the other accompanying reporters, having them gather information on Qin Shi, the dark horse who killed his way to second place, as fast as possible through the local TV station and other channels.

In under five minutes, she received a large amount of shallow-level content.

Such as originating from Old Factory Street, previously attended a suburb school, later tested into the Tai'an Metropolitan Area, the second-youngest participant in the Hundred Strong Competition...

"Grassroots, inspirational, parents died early, raised by elder sister, family support!"

Kang Yun'er's face was written full of excitement; she said excitedly:

"With so many buffs stacked, a born bestseller, a star-making seed!"

She immediately deleted the original draft "Ten Years Sharpening a Sword, Center City Supernova Reveals Edge."

Instead, she tapped a few times and drafted a text.

"From Old Factory Street to the Hengzhou Hundred Strong, Who Says No Qilin in the Fields!"

……

……

"Second! First-round score is nineteen thousand, ahead of Ji Yuqi and Pei Han!"

Chen Ruofu received the result and was also greatly surprised; the Outer Ring and Middle Layer two major regions fundamentally cannot get over ten thousand points, unless a carpet search is conducted, a thorough "full-map sweep," but that takes too much time, impossible to pass quickly and smoothly.

"There's an evolution-stage foreign race creature that Xiao Qin killed; this kid's luck isn't bad."

Fang Butang checked the details, then stood up, preparing to head out.

"Lao Fang, where are you going?"

Chen Ruofu asked.

"Of course going to find Representative Zhou, see just how black his face has turned."

Fang Butang was in high spirits, laughing cheerfully.

Although the Education Committee's favored Ji Yuqi and Pei Han fell behind, they are both good seedlings of the metropolitan area, nothing much to say.

On the contrary, Representative Zhou from the Center City Education Bureau belongs to the "parachute drop" type, and carries hostility.

First-round results out, Qin Shi, whom the Ying Clan tried every means to suppress, took second place.

Shows Xiao Qin is indeed as Lao Chen said, the situation has taken shape, unstoppable momentum.

"If after all that fuss, spending money and throwing resources, Xiao Qin still goes up. The Ying Clan really becomes a joke."

Fang Butang's heart was also hooked with a few thoughts of anticipation.

Currently, the only one who can probably block Qin Shi's steps is Zhou Yuanchen.

"If, if Xiao Qin can cross this mountain, from then on he is Hengzhou's number one, and will make a splash at the Star Cup!"

(Chapter End)