What Meng Ao saw in Wang Zheng was his round-the-clock vigilance, while Lie Wuqing saw his callousness and decisiveness towards both monsters and other men.
Even though their focal points differed, the three generals all found something they had needed.
It was past noon. Happy times came to an end as the Zergs began moving about. But having adapted to things from the day before, the students could at least unveil their abilities this time around.
Having met a few people along the way, Zhang Shan bumped into Meng Tian.
“I wonder how Wang Zheng and Zhang Runan are doing. The people from IG are really ruthless! To think they’d actually use the real stuff on us! But I think we can still cope given our capabilities.”
“Don’t get excited too soon. Yesterday was just a warm up. If my guess is correct, the program officially begins today. Zergs appearing one by one is nothing short of abnormal.”
“…you mean they will come at us in groups today?” Zhang Shan was stunned.
Meng Tian nodded. “That’s why we’ve got to gather quickly.”
“But how do we go search? We haven’t got a clue, and it’s not good to just go about randomly.”
Meng Tian thought for a while. “Let’s split up. Mark ZS on the trees and look for food while searching for them. Wang Zheng and Runan will know when they see it.”
“Great idea. Let’s do as you say.”
Zhang Shan clapped his hands and immediately got into action. He really admired Meng Tian. This cold, petite girl was truly amazing in crucial times like this. She was unlike the other girls who acted as if they could do everything in school but would reveal their weak personalities in a battlefield like this.
Almost everybody was looking for help, but there were exceptions too. Zhang Runan had remained at the same spot, waiting. It was just that there were two caves in her vicinity.
During the day, the students were able to deal with things rather easily. Moreover, the numbers were small, so when they struck, the Zergs were no match.
But at night, it was the Zergs who ruled the Island.
“Damn. The numbers are huge this time.”
“Killing these little Zergs really gives no sense of satisfaction. Where are the Queen Zergs, Milo? Can you sense them? The eight of us must kill a Queen Zerg each before we can be considered to have passed,” Atos said.
“Don’t put on a strong front, Atos. The Zergs’ numbers are hard to estimate. We’ve got no mecha, and relying solely on these few guns is too risky.”
Achilles’ Eight Stars had already come together. With Milo around, there was no need to worry about being split up. The present level of threat was of no threat to the eight of them now.
As for the others, they wouldn’t dare to provoke this group in an encounter. Provoking the Eight Stars was courting trouble. While Achilles was amazing, the eight of them had their own reputations as well.
“It’s too dangerous. A normal Queen Zerg has the protection of at least a few thousand Zergs, and that is further split into three different levels. Even if all of us attacked together, it would still be too dangerous,” Milo explained.
There would always be female members on teams from the Moon. A female’s attention to detail and their cool-headedness could provide the team with some great suggestions. If the female had abilities in this area, her role would be even more important.
“Milo is right. We should sit back and see what happens.” The person who spoke was Dong Xiaosa, the largest amongst the eight.
“Brother Xiaosa, the strength-type Ability X user from Ares College makes a good match with you. You two can form a formidable team.”
Pi Xiaoxiu laughed. One ought to never be tricked by Pi Xiaoxiu’s gentle voice. He was a typical guy who saw insulting others as a form of art.
“Pi Xiaoxiu, are you tired of living?”
Everyone burst out laughing. Although they were on a special training mission on Demon Island, it did not seem to have any impact on these eight people.
Lear watched the eight people in silence, grinning to himself. Moon people had such high self-esteem. While it was undeniable that the Zergs were of no threat to the group of eight, this was not the main point or motive of this whole test.
The stronger their abilities, the less they ought to come together. If they were in a group, then they should have aimed to do something bigger.
Being steady, stable, and safe also meant losing many opportunities.
Adventurism?
No. Lear never liked adventurists. He was an opportunist.
At nightfall, the smell of danger hung in the air. Everyone waited quietly for the attacks to begin, and people began making traps and finding good hiding spots.
Zhang Runan started a fire and stared blankly at it, her alloy spear placed on her knees. She could hear rasping noises getting louder and louder by the second.
Fire. The smell of humans. These were the things that exposed the targets to Zergs in the dark.
Just the first batch alone that approached had more than 10 zergs in it. It seemed like the second night on Demon Island was not going to be easy.
As the shadows neared, Zhang Runan’s eyes gave off a different glow. A huge shadow descended from the skies and the alloy spear in Zhang Runan’s hands lashed out in the open.
Zoom!
Zhang Runan got up, spear in hand. One by one, Zergs climbed out of the surrounding forests, glaring at their prey with fist-sized eyeballs.
All of a sudden, Lie Wuqing slapped his head. “I remember now!”
“You only recalled it now?” Meng Ao laughed.
“This girl went to Academy X! But she dropped out just after one week.”
Zhang Runan’s looks had given her much trouble. Now that they were all grown up, people were more or less kinder with their words. But in her childhood, children did not filter their words, let alone in Academy X. It was a bad experience, and Zhang Runan eventually chose to leave.
When Zhang Runan’s ability had just started taking form, it was not too strong, so the school did not insist that she stay. Moreover, Academy X picked only the best, but it seemed that they had missed out on something.
“Her ability is pretty good.”
“Let’s look at the duration of it.”
On the screens, Zhang Runan had already begun battling. She was sharp, ferocious, and very skillful in using the spear. It was clear that her arm strength was the strongest. Zergs’ shells were thick, and even though the spear was sharp, a lot of strength was needed to pierce through them.
But using only brute force in a battle was not good enough. No matter how strong one was, that strength and energy would eventually be used up. Without the right allocation and tactical knowledge, the strength would be of no use.
It was a pity. With this ability, if tactical knowledge had been nurtured from young, her battle skills would have definitely been stronger. Even though Zhang Runan’s attacks were ferocious, they were all over the place.
Soldiers were particular about speed, accuracy, and strength. Some military clans even had a stronger set of skills, but with logical, specific formulae and steps. Zhang Runan’s methods, on the other hand, were highly irregular; they were almost entirely forceful, brute attacks.
The generals and the five leaders downstairs laughed as they watched her.
“This ugly girl has highly unusual strength.” Taros felt disgusted. He had nothing against women who were physically strong, but he just couldn’t withstand this monster.
Lear remained motionless. Achilles as well. The looks in their eyes turned from relaxed to heavy.
They both noticed the change in each other. They took a quick glance at each other and turned at the same time.
But Lie Xin said it. “That’s not right! It looks like there is a formula to her steps. It just looks messy.”
Lie Xin had been missing a bodyguard, so Zhang Runan was simply made for her.
“What do you guys make of this?” Meng Ao laughed.
“Surprising. Looks pretty relaxed. There’s a poetic feeling to it!” Drachmach exclaimed. This was definitely an unexpected discovery. Strength-type Ability X was in itself a feat, but without formal training, she had managed to figure out a battle tactic on her own, and it seemed like the tactics were coming together to form a system.
Lie Wuqing was no ordinary man. He had in his possession the Lie family’s secret tactics. But Zhang Runan’s attacks appeared to have their own style and levels. Even though she had Strength-type abilities, she seemed to have mastered her own way.
A genius!
Even Meng Ao did not expect Earth to bring them two surprises, and both were highly talented warriors.
With her skills, the 10 odd Zergs were no match for her. It didn’t take much effort before they all fell to the ground.
Zhang Runan looked at the Zergs, let out a soft sigh, and sat back down beside the fire.
In fact, while Zhang Runan was battling, there were already a few people watching, but none of them came out.
“Not only does she look like a monster, her skills are monstrous too.”
“We’d better leave. This person’s antics are sure to attract lots of zergs.”
“To think Earth is capable of nurturing powerful fighters!”
“Well, Earth is the cradle of all men. Having been sitting around for so many years now, it’s only normal for them to have a few odd talents.”
“This is really interesting.”
“Hurry let’s go. A huge swarm of Zergs is making its way here.”
The shadows shuffled amongst the tall grass, and within moments, everyone had dispersed and gone away.
Zhang Runan remained quietly seated by the fire, as if she did not hear a thing.
Meng Ao frowned. Given the situation earlier, Zhang Runan should be sufficiently confident in herself, but she remained numb and apathetic. It seemed that there was a problem.
Could it be that she was keen to get herself killed?
Seeing that she had kept quiet the whole time, it was evident that her physical appearance was a huge source of problems, all of which she kept to herself. People with X factors were not spared from mental health problems. In fact, these issues often came stronger than that of ordinary men and women.
This was caused by a lack of guidance. Could she be unconfident in her own existence?
Right about then, the sounds of footsteps could be heard growing louder and louder. Student Wang entered, carrying a huge backpack.
“Aha! I’ve finally found one.”
Zhang Runan looked up and glanced at Wang Zheng. Student Wang plopped down. “I’m dead beat! Where on earth did Meng Tian and Zhang Shan go? I’ve been walking around the entire day and I couldnt find them.”
Seeing that Wang Zheng had taken a seat, Zhang Runan frowned. “You’d better leave quickly.”
“Why? There’s a fire ready, just perfect for a barbecue. I didn’t bring a laser gun along, and it’s exhausting to manually start a fire myself.”
Wang Zheng opened up a package. In it laid a wild badger and a pile of fruits. He couldn’t help but salivate. “You know what that is? It’s fine cuisine! I’ve seen it in pictures before, but I’ve never thought I’d have the chance to try it once for myself. What a pity though. We could make hundreds of thousands if we auctioned this on the Internet.”
“You only get to taste it if you can stay alive,” Zhang Runan said while her stomach rumbled uncontrollably. She had only had some fruits the entire day.
Wang Zheng laughed. “Here. You can have half of it. Have some fruits and bear with it for a little while.”
Wang Zheng skillfully withdrew his knife and skinned the badger, preparing it for the barbecue.
“If you don’t leave now, you won’t be able to leave later. There are about 50 Zergs making their way here right now. I’m not too confident myself. I don’t want you getting in the way, so leave. Go as far as you can.”
“That doesn’t seem like a nice thing to do. We are classmates and teammates; going through life and death may be a bit too much of an exaggeration, but fighting hand in hand is reasonable. Don’t worry, I’ll be the first to escape if we can’t beat them.” Wang Zheng chuckled.