Chapter Twenty-Two: Return

Two hours later, Wang Xu and the others returned to the vicinity of the train. 

A faint purple energy barrier opened, revealing a middle-aged man who resembled an officer, standing in front of them with a smile. "Welcome back alive."

The middle-aged officer didn't appear to be joking; his tone was sincere and it was evident that he was genuinely pleased to see Wang Xu and the others return safely.

After handing over his backpack and arranging for the injured to be taken to the medical room, Wang Xu finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Moments later, the middle-aged officer returned and said with a smile, "The insect beast fragments in your backpacks have been counted and verified. Congratulations, Wang Xu, Tang Yan, Ying Xing, you three have passed the graduation trial assessment. You have a month to prepare; we will send someone to escort you to the location of the battle group in a month."

Ying Xing's expression remained unchanged. As a fifth-tier student, joining the genius battle group was a given for him; he didn't need an assessment. However, he was frustrated because he had just been overwhelmed by Whelon without any ability to fight back.

Wang Xu and Tang Yan were noticeably excited. The genius battle group posed a significant challenge for them, and passing the assessment served as the greatest affirmation of their strength.

"By the way, Senior Sister Yun and Senior Brother Li Ming's scores should be quite high. Why didn't they pass the assessment?" Tang Yan asked.

The middle-aged officer smiled gently. "Let me clarify a few things for you, so you're not left in the dark."

"The structure of the genius battle group is quite simple. It consists of various battle groups. Once you enter, you'll need to join one of them, and then accept various missions. Missions will reward contribution points, which can be exchanged for technological weapons, armor, resources, and even allow you to hire a 'master-level' expert as your coach for one-on-one training."

Upon hearing this, Wang Xu's eyes lit up. Points from the Extreme Path Ancient Hall could be exchanged for items, so the previous options didn't move him. But the last sentence—"you can hire a 'master-level' expert as a coach for one-on-one guidance"—was precisely what he desired.

The title "master-level" could only be obtained by seventh-tier genetic warriors, each of whom was incredibly powerful, capable of tearing apart A-level weapons with their bare hands. The sheer terror of their strength was no exaggeration.

Having such a coach would surely accelerate his progress, whether in ancient martial arts or realm cultivation! 

A single instruction from a master could save someone years of wandering off course—this was the power of strong mentors.

"...though contribution points are enticing, the tasks are not simple. The trials you're currently experiencing are just one of the task regions."

"The battlefield to be conquered by the genius battle group lies in the world beyond the barriers. There are no laws to speak of, and you will face terrifying insect beasts and treacherous human hearts. The graduation trials are merely a microcosm of what you'll face. If you can't survive the graduation trials, what good is passing the assessment? It would be akin to handing your life away."

The middle-aged officer's tone grew serious. Wang Xu completely understood; the graduation trials were just one of the simpler adventure zones of the genius battle group. If they were injured to this extent in such a seemingly minor challenge, how could they complete missions in the future?

Although Li Ming, Yun Yang, and the others came from the inner courtyard and had talents far superior to Wang Xu, Zhang Xing, or Lin, if they became severely injured during the trials and were unable to act, they would be no different from the dead.

The genius battle group sought not dead geniuses, but living warriors!

Suddenly, a strong smell of blood wafted in, and a dark figure appeared not far off, striding toward the train.

Zhang Xing.

He was covered in blood—whether it was his or someone else's was unclear—and blood stained his face. His gaze was icy, devoid of any emotion. Even from a distance, Wang Xu felt an overwhelming aura of murderous intent, which startled him.

How many people had he killed?

The overwhelming killing intent caused Tang Yan and the middle-aged officer to turn to look. Tang Yan's face turned pale, while the officer remained unaffected, continuing to smile warmly, "Welcome back alive."

Zhang Xing carried two oversized backpacks that seemed ready to burst. He casually tossed both packs into the train and stepped inside.

With a wave of his hand, the middle-aged officer signaled for two attendants to take the packs away for counting.

Once Zhang Xing returned to the train, he retrieved his spatial ring and changed into clean clothes, but the lingering smell of blood still clung to him.

After a moment, the attendants whispered a few words to the middle-aged officer, who nodded.

"Congratulations, Zhang Xing, you've passed the graduation trial assessment and are now a member of the genius battle group. Someone will come to escort you in a month," the middle-aged officer said with a warm smile.

Zhang Xing nodded expressionlessly, not sparing a glance at Wang Xu or Tang Yan, and closed his eyes to rest.

"Alright, all personnel from the seventh safety zone have arrived. Let's depart!" commanded the middle-aged officer, signaling for the train to begin moving.

...…

"Dad, Mom!"

As soon as he disembarked, Wang Xu waved goodbye to Tang Yan and headed straight home.

Wang Zhenguo was greeting guests in the living room while his mother, Lin Hui, busied herself in the kitchen. Upon seeing Wang Xu return, her face lit up with joy.

"Xu'er is back!"

The warmth of home and the affectionate greetings filled Wang Xu's heart with a warmth that flowed through him. 

This was family; it didn't require many words or glances—just a gentle greeting was enough.

"This must be Brother Wang's son! Truly handsome!" a guest remarked upon seeing Wang Xu.

Wang Zhenguo was pleased; no parent likes to hear criticism of their child, and Wang Xu was indeed capable.

"Brother Chen, no need to praise him so much, or he might get too full of himself," Wang Zhenguo replied.

"Hehe." Wang Xu rubbed his nose.

"By the way, my daughter is eighteen this year, Brother Wang. Why not see if there's a match?" Brother Chen suggested.

"Hmm, that's something that needs to be considered. Xu'er is already nineteen, so it's time to think about this aspect," Wang Zhenguo pondered. "How about this, Brother Chen? Let's arrange a time to meet."

Wang Xu felt a bit embarrassed. He was only just nineteen, and they were already discussing marriage—wasn't that rushing things a bit?

"Haha, that sounds perfect! I have been fond of Wang Xu! It's decided!" Brother Chen laughed heartily. 

Wang Xu shook his head in resignation, headed to the bathroom for a shower, and changed into clean clothes.

"Ding!"

As soon as he turned on his computer, a mechanical notification sounded announcing the arrival of an email. 

"Student Wang Xu, congratulations on successfully passing the genius battle group assessment. We will grant you a set of B-grade armor and 10,000 contribution points. You can access the 'Battle Group Shop' online to choose items. Below are your unique account credentials; please do not disclose them to third parties. Wishing you a pleasant day!"

Free B-grade armor? The genius battle group is indeed generous.

However, it was a good thing too; Wang Xu's armor had sustained damage during the graduation trials and its durability had dropped to below 20%, so he desperately needed a new set.

Immediately, Wang Xu entered the battle group shop's website, typed in his account credentials, and began selecting B-grade armor and weapons.

Moments later...

"The genius battle group truly displays its prowess; the variety of armor and weapons available is more abundant than that of the Extreme Path Ancient Hall," Wang Xu marveled.

The shopping venue for the Extreme Path Ancient Hall catered to the strong, mostly featuring high-priced equipment, while the genius battle group built its structure to effectively cater to individuals of Wang Xu's level, making more suitable equipment available for him.

"Although there are many items, it's a shame that the truly valuable ones are too expensive; 10,000 contribution points won't even buy an A-grade weapon," Wang Xu complained upon realizing this.

The points from the Extreme Path Ancient Hall were highly valuable due to their scarcity, with a low exchange ratio. In contrast, the contribution points of the genius battle group had a high exchange ratio. A typical Tier-3 insect beast would earn 30 points in the Extreme Path Ancient Hall, but in the genius battle group, it would yield 100 points—over three times more.

This situation resulted in the granted 10,000 contribution points being worth less than the 3,000 points from the Extreme Path Ancient Hall.

Closing the webpage, Wang Xu planned to save up the contribution points for an A-grade armor or S-grade weapon.

...…

Time passed swiftly, and before he knew it, a month had gone by in the blink of an eye.

During this month, Wang Xu made significant progress; he had shattered and reformed his internal "core" five times. With guidance from several brothers in the Extreme Path Ancient Hall, he ventured outside the safety zone for a taste of adventure, but disappointingly, the journey was completely uneventful.

"Are you Mr. Wang Xu?" one day, a man resembling an officer approached him politely.

"An escort?"

"Yes, the month has come to an end. I am here to escort you to the genius battle group."

Wang Xu immediately stood up.

"Let's go!"