Chapter 59: Hundreds of Sailboats Competing |
On Sunday, Chen Chu was still wearing a casual outfit—a white T-shirt, black leisure pants, and flat shoes. He carried a backpack in his hand, containing two sets of clothes.
Zhang Xiaolan and Chen Hu walked him outside to the courtyard.
With a concerned expression, Zhang Xiaolan said, "Ah Chu, be careful. I heard that Kyrola is still in a state of chaos, with people dying every day."
Upon learning that Chen Chu would be going on a trial, Zhang Xiaolan had paid special attention to the matter. She had gone out of her way to inquire about it, quickly finding out about the trial being in Kyrola.
In contrast to Zhang Xiaolan's concern, Chen Hu was merely curious and excited.
Chen Chu smiled faintly and said, "Mom, don't worry. The situation there is already under Federation control. We’re just going there to get some combat experience. The teachers will be there to protect us and stop any of the more skilled rebels, and we’ll only be dealing with the small fry."
After comforting Zhang Xiaolan, Chen Chu exchanged goodbyes with them and then slung his backpack over his shoulder, heading towards the school.
At nine in the morning, when Chen Chu arrived at the school gate, two large buses were already parked there. The students who had chosen to participate in the trial were waiting in line. Seeing Chen Chu approaching, Xia Youhui quickly waved to him and said, "Ah Chu, over here."
This time, Chen Chu wasn't the last one to arrive. Lin Xue, Luo Fei, and the others hadn't come yet.
Most of the students here were motivated by the idea of earning extra contribution points. Accumulating combat experience was only a secondary objective; after all, there would be plenty of opportunities for honing their combat skills in the future when their cultivation levels were higher.
For individuals like Xia Youhui, who both wasn’t lacking in money and was a second-generation cultivator with a family providing high-level resources, this kind of risk seemed unnecessary. Steadily cultivating, waiting until next year to break through to the Third Heavenly Realm, and becoming stronger before participating in the trials involving mutated beasts, would be a safer approach.
Xia Youhui, however, was somewhat unwilling to accept it and huffed. "Ah Chu, are you looking down on me? If you’re daring to go, why wouldn't I?"
Chen Chu cast him a sidelong glance and said, "You’re speaking as if you're stronger than me."
Xia Youhui chuckled, pretending not to have heard that remark. "Actually, there's no specific reason. I just want to go and experience it, and my dad and older brother both support me. According to my brother, cultivating requires an unwavering conviction to forge ahead.
"If one doesn't dare to participate in these supervised trials at school, how can they face those terrifying colossal beasts in the future? Where will the courage come from to confront the great terror of death?
"My family doesn't object, so naturally, I won't be afraid. And on top of that, I’m bringing some good stuff this time. My cultivation is bound to soar. When that time comes, An Fuqing and Lin Xue, none of them will be my match. Hahaha..."
The more he spoke, the more excited Xia Youhui became. In the end, he even burst into laughter, as if he could already see himself rising in the trial, overwhelming all the geniuses of the same generation.
Cough…
Just as Xia Youhui became fully immersed in his imagination, Chen Chu cleared his throat and looked at him with a strange expression. "Old Xia, I think you might want to take a look behind before you continue laughing."
Suddenly, Xia Youhui's smile froze on his face, and a foreboding sense of unease surged in his heart.
I can't be that unlucky. She didn't overhear me again, did she?
Xia Youhui turned around slowly, only to see Lin Xue standing silently behind him, carrying a pink lady's backpack on her back. Yi Rui, Luo Fei, Lin Yu, and Jiang Jiameng were also there. The three girls were trying to hold back their laughter.
"Ha…Haha... Good morning, everyone." Xia Youhui chuckled and his face wore a natural smile, showing no signs of embarrassment whatsoever.
Lin Xue and the others were already accustomed to Xia Youhui's habit of exaggerating, so they just gave him a casual glance without much reaction.
Everyone waited for a while as other students arrived one by one. Following them were Lin Xiong, Pang Long, and several other teachers.
A total of fifty-seven students from Nantian Martial Arts High School were participating in the trial. Once everyone was confirmed to be present, both students and teachers boarded the two large buses.
Two hours later, everyone arrived at the suburban airport. After completing some procedures, the buses took Chen Chu and the others directly to the runway, where two large passenger aircraft with a touch of science fiction colors were parked quietly.
They were more like fighter aircraft, however. On each side of the planes’ fuselages were two large-caliber machine guns, and in the middle, there was a barrel about thirty centimeters in diameter, resembling a special weapon akin to an electromagnetic cannon.
In addition to that, short-range missiles, air-to-air missiles, and other aircraft weapons were suspended underneath both wings. There were even bomb launch ports on the belly.
With the continuous evolution of mutated beasts, many birds, especially some large raptors, had undergone mutations as well. In recent years, whenever satellites detected particularly powerful and large birds, the authorities would mobilize cultivators and fighter jets to eliminate them before they had the chance to reproduce. Otherwise, humans would gradually lose control of the airspace to these beasts.
With the sheer number of mutated birds, however, the extermination operations were reserved for the largest and most dangerous ones; these weapons were for the smaller birds, to prevent them from damaging the aircraft.
Everyone got off the buses, and Lin Xiong, holding a list, spoke in a solemn tone. "Your weapons and battle armor are in the cargo hold of the planes. Remember to collect them after getting off the aircraft.
"This time, we have two trial locations, Kurutoor City and Leisteru City. Now, I'll begin calling names. Those who have their names mentioned, board Flight 075. I will lead this team to Kurutoor City. An Fuqing."
"Present."
"Lin Xue."
"Present…"
The people who were called shouldered their backpacks and walked onto the plane.
After more than twenty people were called, Chen Chu suddenly realized that everyone from Class Three and Class Nine, except for him and Xia Youhui, had boarded Flight 075.
Unexpectedly, the team they had formed at the last minute was disbanded before they could even begin.
Chen Chu shook his head, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and followed Pang Long and the other two teachers onto Flight 076.
Due to modifications, a portion of the space in this large aircraft was occupied by weapons and ammunition. It could barely accommodate thirty people, including Chen Chu.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I am the flight attendant for this journey. The estimated duration of this flight is eleven hours. If you have any needs during the journey, feel free to approach me.
"Now, please fasten your seatbelts, and carefully read the flight manual placed at your seats. These manuals provide detailed instructions on what to be aware of in the event of a mutated beast attack during the flight..."
Buzz!
As the engines roared and the flight attendant continued to explain safety precautions to Chen Chu and the others, the two planes began to take off, soaring into the clouds.
In every city of East Xia that had first-class high schools, one or two combat passenger planes also took off, all heading in the same direction.
Looking from space, it looked as if there were hundreds of sailboats competing against one another across the river.