Chapter 701: Your Own Rhythm
After leaving Ninglan New City, I once again plunged into the role of a teaching assistant.
Yesterday, I cleverly returned to the city to spend the night, but once word got out, it would be difficult to do so in the coming days. Of course, it wasn’t just difficult for me; it applied to all the teaching assistants like me.
The difference was that I enjoyed one night, while they did not get to enjoy any.
And reality proved to be just as I suspected; after I revealed my identity at the city gate, it almost caused a stir in Ninglan New City despite the few people there in the morning!
This even made its way to the special website of the Plant Network, sparking discussions among many.
But this wasn’t something I needed to concern myself with. I only needed to manage myself well.
Last night, I actually thought a lot.
How should I proceed, and what was I here for?
Was it just to repay a favor to Teacher Lina? Or was it to monitor the stability of the Wanlian Main Network Tree and the Power Network?
In reality, ever since I signed the contract, all these reasons became excuses.
With such a large team controlling the Wanlian Main Network Tree experimental laboratory, did they really still need me to be responsible for this project?
Not at all.
Therefore, my original intention for coming here was to undergo a trial.
As for the specific content of the trial, I’ll set that aside for now and think about what I can gain from it.
Is it to eliminate the complacency bred from a year of continuous success and smooth sailing? Is it to sharpen the combat awareness that I currently lack? Or is it to make me realize that there’s no such thing as absolute strength?
These seemingly answer-like responses are filled with questions.
But this is the question I have pondered the most.
Before the joint exam, I had already considered these questions and arrived at somewhat similar answers, but in my heart, it always felt… wrong.
It wasn’t until this morning that I figured it out.
I was always considering from other people’s perspectives, thinking about what they needed me to understand, and never from my own position to feel what I truly needed.
After a whole day of chasing yesterday, I realized many things, and those who were chasing me were the same.
Life is not merely about being pursued and escaping; there are more meaningful things.
What are the more meaningful things?
That is the power to freely battle with opponents I like.
Currently, fighting with those students is unproductive; battling a large number of students is pointless because I am still indulging in low-quality matches.
I foresee that I would be chased by a large group of people. I have anticipated their actions, understanding the underlying logic and interests behind their pursuit, yet I am still wasting my energy with them.
After battling with these guys for an entire day, running and fighting for so long, this combat experience didn’t even compare to the few ambushes I faced when the joint exam first started, which left a deep impression on me.
Although those three were not particularly strong, they left a significant mark on my memory.
If those two had chosen not to flee but continued to confront me, it would definitely have been a less careless battle.
I should not expect the instructors to arrange anything for me. I don’t need to think about what intentions they have; I should walk according to my own rhythm.
Just as I realized that principle before, I won’t let enemies excessively attract my attention and energy, and equally, I won’t let my friends or instructors interfere with my rhythm.
Now that I have no opponent, I should seek out opponents myself. If individual students lack strength and can’t help me grow, then I’ll look for teaching assistants. If teaching assistants are inadequate, then I’ll confront mutated beast packs directly…
The world won’t cater to me, so I must find my own rhythm.
“Is that Teaching Assistant Xiao Han?”
On my way forward, I often ran into students unexpectedly.
“Yes, you’ve encountered the Boss Xiao Han. Want to make a move? If not, I’ll just keep moving on.” I looked at them, playfully calling out.
After all, they were a five-person team, and their professional configuration was rather rich.
“Huh? Xiao Han, aren’t you going to attack us?”
“Well, to be honest… I’m too lazy to fight?” I shrugged and spoke honestly.
“What a rare opportunity… Shall we make a move?” Clearly, all five of them were eager to try, and judging by their appearance, they should not have participated in the teaching assistant hunt yesterday and had been hunting mutated beasts step by step.
“I heard that Teaching Assistant Xiao Han was chased all day yesterday without anyone catching up. With our five-person advantage, I think we can do this.”
“I think we should give it a try too.”
“Alright! Then it’s decided!”
“Wait, aren’t we going to ask the opinions of the other two?” At this time, two of the girls among the five spoke up.
“We’re already at a 3/5 majority, okay… so what do you two think about trying?”
“Of course we should give it a try!” ×2
“So, are you two unhappy with what I just agreed to?” The leader slapped her face, as if she had just asked a stupid question.
“So you’ve decided to challenge me, right?” I also inquired at this moment, and then gripped the Box of Books in my hand.
“Yes, we’ve decided! We want to try to challenge you!” After the girl with the large sword finished speaking, the four behind her also prepared for the challenge.
“Let us experience your strength, Teaching Assistant Xiao Han!”
They looked at the health bar above my head, each of them eager to take action!
It was as if they possessed some kind of mysterious confidence.
Five minutes later…
Five figures opened their eyes in the resurrection array of the instructors, their expressions showing clear confusion.
“Who was the first to say they wanted to challenge Xiao Han just now?”
“Not me.”
“Me neither, don’t look at me.”
“You five, after dying, return to the safe zone, clock in again to exit the city, and do not harbor any notions of taking shortcuts; otherwise, any scoring actions during this period will not be counted into personal scores.” After the instructors explained, they disappeared from the spot.
At this point, I left with a five-hour wanted notice.
However, besides the five-hour wanted notice, there were other gains, for example… unlocking the fifth skill, “Wound Cleansing,” a type of healing magic.
The consumption of that powerful magic, similar to Flesh Healing, is incredibly high, so the healing spells in the Power Network consist only of Wound Cleansing.
Yet a simple Wound Cleansing has the effect of quick cleaning, disinfection, pain relief, and mild healing.
It is quite effective against general injuries, especially for clearing embedded stones, wood splinters, etc. It is also effective for bruises, rotting flesh, and mild toxic injuries.
This spell is like a universal remedy.
Even for students with undying properties, this spell also has considerable effect, as the conditions of wounds are complex and varied; this magic can quickly provide good self-healing conditions for the undying.
After all, nobody wants to be severely injured, have their wounds touch the ground, get contaminated with dust and small stones, and then under the effect of undying, heal back inside their bodies.
Just thinking about that situation is enough to make the scalp tingle, and even relying on self-healing to gradually expel those foreign objects from the body is even more uncomfortable.
Although that earlier battle seemed easy to win, I could still feel the pressure brought by a multi-person team.
Moreover, a team of five isn’t considered a large number, and the configuration is quite reasonable to a certain degree. This kind of team’s deterrent power is much stronger than the large crowd that chased me over the mountains before.
Yes, I referred to that large group of people as “a rabble.”
Being numerous does not necessarily mean strength; even if those crowds contained people like Tan Han and Luxien, I wouldn’t be afraid because the team would drag them down.
But the five-person team and their cooperation were different; just like the previous team, they had already forced me to use the Sense of Time.
The main reason is… the speed of combat reactions.
Each of the five had a different combat style but had basic teamwork.
If in the previous battle I thought it was simply strength + reaction speed, now under limitation, I understood another thing: rhythm.
The combat rhythm of the five is different, but their mutual cooperation can easily break my rhythm; all it takes is one unexpected move that exceeds my reaction speed, and I am crushed by the opponent on the rhythm.
And the reaction time given by the prototype of my Sense of Time made me realize one thing: ample reaction time allows me to adjust the combat rhythm for myself, rather than just thinking of countermeasures.
So after experiencing this battle, to repay them for the insights they provided me, I took them down completely with my strongest stance.
Initially, I intended to spare them a life, as I didn’t want to bear a five-hour wanted notice, but the inspiration they gave me was worth it.
They were just a team I had no particular impression of!
Yet they could threaten me, which served as a good warning.
However, a five-person team that initially restrained themselves from pursuing shortcuts was impressive in itself.
After leaving there, I continued to review that brief battle.
It seems I was indeed on the right track; I should engage in battles with high-quality teams instead of those rabble.
Just as I fulfilled Instructor Sheril’s words, since I had already predicted what those people intended to do to me, I should not enter their encirclement.
That group of rabble was swayed by low-level interests, so I could use this pattern to avoid them. My goal was never about them, but along the path of evading them, to find my people in unexpected ways because they are the ones who break those conventions — the truly capable ones.
They are also the ones powerful enough to fight me.
Coincidentally, now I have a wanted notice against me. Although it’s slightly beyond my plans, I also have my countermeasures.
The best way to obstruct these guys is… mutated beasts.
Rather than allowing them to drain my energy, it’s better to let mutated beasts exhaust theirs, and they’ll also help them discover hunting targets.
Moreover, let’s not forget that many mutated beast factions in the Expanding Realm have my clones.
Initially, to make these clones, I used the Mimetic Soul technique, the Reincarnation Rebirth Spell, and some derived techniques from the Great Knowledge Tree, such as techniques from Knowledge Shadow to enhance the communication of the clones’ consciousness.
After all, I don’t intend to become a true mutated beast, so the clones of those mutated beasts are very different from regular clones; they are more akin to my synchronized perception, while the body actions are still driven by the instincts of that mutated beast.
If I were to use a very vivid analogy, it’s like playing a “mutated beast simulator.”
I have complete control over this mutated beast clone. When I want to move forward, I merely act based on the behavioral patterns of the mutated beast’s instincts, without needing to truly learn how to walk on four limbs to control its actions.
Moreover, I also have an automatic idle mode.
Currently, the contract limits my extraordinary powers, but I have merely temporarily lost the ability to control the clones. All clones are still functioning normally in “idle” mode.
But I can still perceive basic information from the clones, like where there are large mutated beast groups…
I can preemptively understand this information to effectively block their search for me. Even if the candidates have my precise location, crashing into a mutated beast group along the shortest line directly leads to confrontation, and it’s not something you can escape.
If one really wants to get away, the large group will disband, and scattered individual candidates pose no threat to me.
So after making this decision, the candidates tracking me based on the wanted notice are in for a treat.
In just five short hours, they spent two hours being sidetracked by me during my exit from the Ninglan New City area. In the remaining three hours, they encountered two waves of medium-sized mutated beasts.
Don’t ask why there wasn’t a third wave; after the second wave, the allied group had nearly disbanded.
Don’t underestimate the mutated beasts within the Ninglan Realm. The ones that are still lively in this territory still have some brains left. They may not have the highest combat power, but they are definitely the most tenacious and aggressive.
And the mutated beasts beyond the Ninglan Realm are even more unthinkable.
Due to the alliance of the seven cities, there are currently no large mutated beast factions in the Ninglan Realm, while in regions outside the Ninglan Realm, there are mutated beasts without many natural enemies, practically like entering paradise.
After the wanted notice targeting time passed, I had some rare leisure time.
“Really interesting… Ah, the network really is a time-consuming beast.”
I looked at the information on the Knowledge Seed and stretched lazily on the tree.
After the Knowledge Seed exchanges with the Wanlian Main Network Tree, it not only connects the Power Network but also the Plant Network.
And the Knowledge Seed also links with the academy network; otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to obtain and replace the mobile operating system.
Currently, the coverage area of the Expanding Realm Academy Network is not very large, but the Plant Network has already covered the entire world, so someone has set up a temporary exchange website for joint exam hunting atop the Plant Network.
After all, hunting basically relies on intelligence; wherever prey is located, it all needs intelligence support rather than relying on luck.
The academy hasn’t prohibited this method; effectively utilizing newly acquired tools is also a demonstration of a student’s ability and performance, and the academy also synchronized some positions of special biological groups they released onto this website, serving as a form of recognition from the academy.
However, I only view these materials and posts for amusement. There are massive amounts of information being generated or disappearing on the Plant Network every moment; some are useful, while others are not.
“I found it.”
After opening a post and seeing the photos posted, I clapped my hands and leaped down from the tree.
The busy morning made me realize one thing: merely evading doesn’t serve much purpose; only by taking the initiative can I encounter worthy opponents.
“Although I didn’t see Tan Han, Luxien… well, they just happen to be not too far from me.”
