No matter how much Huang Yan tried to prevent it, the squad still went viral.
All it took was two videos.
One from yesterday afternoon when the four of them had a war of words with Santorini at the camp gate, and another from an interview this morning where they dropped a single line:
"Let them do the big talking. We are going to take the championship!"
As the saying goes, the invisible flex is the deadliest! Coupled with their identities and striking appearances...
How could the media let go of such a hot topic?
Many media outlets even kept making an issue out of their identities, leading to a lot of curses and backlash on the Star Network.
People were saying that since they only had one S-grade member participating in the league, they either bribed their way in or Qilin really had no one else left!
However, many viewers also found these kids from Qilin quite interesting!
They never let themselves be at a disadvantage when it came to talking! They could insult people without using a single dirty word, leaving listeners feeling absolutely refreshed!
It was true, after all! You are all military academies, so what are Santorini and Valke being so arrogant about!?
But the online drama did not bother the kids at all. That little storm from yesterday really meant nothing to them!
Now that their optical computers were confiscated again, Chao Hao and Fu Manli naturally would not bother telling the students about these things out of boredom!
So after Wang Tianwei finished plucking feathers from the head of Tiger Chao and wiped her mouth completely clean, she was thrown into the prep area by a disgusted Chao Hao.
Once the security check was finally over, the organizing committee confiscated their optical computers and issued intra-squad communication gear to everyone.
"This communicator only guarantees communication within your squad. You cannot use it to contact anyone else."
"Understood!"
"The paintballs are for shooting people. Do not aim your rifles at anyone..."
After the safety officer finished giving instructions, they led the contestants onto the aircraft.
The venue for the first survival competition was set on a small planet near the Dubhe star, which featured a rainforest covering about 560,000 square kilometers!
If ordinary people went in, even if they knew the route, it would take them at least a month or two to cross it!
Meanwhile, these military academy kids would be dropped at random locations without a map, immediately kicking off a seven-day survival match!
The rainforest was not only filled with dangerous animals and star beasts, but they would also face attacks from contestants of other schools!
There would be no food or water supplies during this period; they had to be completely self-sufficient.
If situations like illness or injury occurred midway making it impossible to continue, they could call it quits over the communicator and withdraw.
Before entering, everyone was issued an electromagnetic rifle and a paintball gun with twenty rounds.
Killing star beasts and mutant beasts would grant extra points. Eliminating people would not give any points, but it would remove a competitor and reset the opponent's points to zero.
At the end of the seven days, each squad had to collect 200 points; those who fell short would be eliminated!
The top three teams in points would have priority in choosing supplies for the next round of mecha battles!
Therefore, both points and personnel were absolutely crucial!
Chao Hao and Fu Manli watched the kids leave and couldn't wait to return to the conference room to turn on their optical computers to watch the live broadcast. They had to be careful!
Over a hundred students from ten military academies boarded different aircrafts. As soon as they sat down, they were required to blindfold themselves to prevent them from seeing the rainforest's terrain from the aircraft in advance.
Two hours later, when the aircraft landed again,
"Qilin Squad Four."
"Here!"
"Follow me. Take off your blindfolds after you get off!"
"Yes, sir!"
The group was dropped off by a riverbank. As soon as Huang Yan stepped off the aircraft, he spread out his mental power.
"There is no one else nearby."
"The distance between each team is quite far. The last team got off ten minutes ago, right?"
"Yes, Valke got off the aircraft even earlier."
Wang Tianwei was still fixated on Little Freckles, and since the two teams happened to be on the same aircraft, she kept her ears perked the whole time to hear when Valke Squad Four got off.
Jian Jingyu also said,
"Yeah, it's a pity we don't know where they were dropped... It would be great if we could run into them."
Huang Yan went to the river and checked the water quality,
"Fill up on water first. There's a star beast six kilometers away at our ten o'clock. We will grab the points first and find a safe place to camp before dark."
"Yes, Sir!"
Bullet comments rolled across the live broadcast screen,
"The Qilin team got dropped right in front of a water source!"
"The First Military Academy is usually so close; who knows how many times they've trained here!?"
"It's a territorial advantage, nothing we can do! Anyway, they will go to other planets for competitions later!"
"Please make sure to come to Planet Karen!!"
"Vega!! Is there Vega!?"
"...Wait, is that a crocodile in the water?"
"Did Huang Yan not notice it!? That can't be, right?"
Of course Huang Yan noticed the crocodile in the water!
But he had checked it out; it was just an ordinary crocodile, not a mutant beast. It offered no points and posed no threat to them.
When Jian Jingyu was fetching water, he didn't even use a cold weapon. He knocked one out with a single punch!
Grabbing its snout, he dragged the whole crocodile over.
"So lucky! We have our dinner!"
Zhang Lyra followed his example, but she hit a bit too hard. When she pulled the crocodile up, she found a dent in its skull...
"Uh... let's eat this one first."
Wang Tianwei was overjoyed.
"I knew it!! By sticking with you guys, your big sis will absolutely never go hungry again!"
The two soldiers deftly gutted and cleaned their dinner before tossing it into their spatial buttons, sighing in amazement at how much more convenient this was compared to their freshman training period!
Back then, if they couldn't finish it, they had to carry it or cut off a piece to take with them! Now, nothing would go to waste!
"...Can someone explain to me what kind of hell mode this Qilin freshman training they are talking about is? Didn't they say Qilin's training methods were much milder than the First Military Academy's?"
"Damn! That's a crocodile! It didn't even get to open its mouth..."
"I even saw a trace of bewilderment on that crocodile's face!"
"Pass it on... an A-grade heavy gunner smashed a crocodile's skull!"
After getting the water, the four of them sprayed odor blockers and insect repellent on each other. Huang Yan then led the squad members toward the direction of the star beast.
"Everyone be careful, don't leave any footprints."
Just as he finished speaking, a broadcast echoed through the woods.
"First Military Academy Squad One, plus ten points."
"A familiar voice..."
Wang Tianwei curled her lips; it was practically identical to the broadcast voice at Mount Juji!
"I haven't detected any movement. They shouldn't be in the same direction as us."
Huang Yan stayed silent for a moment before speaking. Jian Jingyu slowed his pace.
"Sir Huang, there's no need to constantly extend your mental power so far. You're due for another injection in seven days, so take it easy."
Over the past year, the squad members had learned that the reason Huang Yan became weak once a month was because he had to take an injection.
Lately, even his periods of weakness were much better than before! Sir Huang wasn't as lethargic anymore!
Still, everyone kept this matter in mind.
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
