At about 7:50 A.M, a total of 60 people from Class Seven had arrived, each with different expressions. Some remained quiet and looked tense as they held their weapons and sulked in corners. Others appeared rather nervous. There were also those that looked rather excited, like Wang Dalin. He was carrying around his novice machete and engaging in conversation with everyone who cared to entertain him.
“Who cares about those Thunder Kingdom guys. I’ll kill them as they come!
“There’s nothing to be afraid of! Just follow me! I’ll cover everyone!
“What level did you reach in your elective courses? Hehe, I’m not gonna lie; I’ve reached Level Two in all my courses! It’s just foreign language that annoys me a bit, but it doesn’t matter since it’s useless anyway!”
Xiao Lin looked at the map for a while, but was so irritated by Wang Dalin’s loud voice that he was unable to concentrate, so he looked at the latter with a cold expression. Wang Dalin was trying to win over people’s hearts. Xiao Lin laughed slightly, ignored Wang Dalin, and turned his head to glance at the girl beside him.
Even in such a noisy environment, Gu Xiaoyue was still holding the map and scrutinizing it with her full attention. Her long, shapely eyebrows were knit in a frown, as if thinking about something. Her fair hand was holding a pen and she drew circles on the map from time to time.
Xiao Lin observed for a long time and could not help but ask in a low voice, “What are you drawing?”
More than ten seconds passed before Gu Xiaoyue raised her head and adjusted her drooping black-framed spectacles. “I’m looking for the army camp.”
“The Thunder Kingdom’s army camp?” One of the optional objectives of the combat mission was to draw a picture of the army’s defense. To do that, one first had to find the location of the Thunder Kingdom’s army camp.
Gu Xiaoyue lowered her head again and pointed to the circles she marked on the map. She then muttered to herself, “The number of troops in the Thunder Kingdom is between three to six thousand. There’s also the cavalry. It’s impossible that they’d be stationed in a very narrow position, and they have to be close to a water source. The locations that meet this condition in this topographic map are actually very limited.”
Xiao Lin opened his mouth and smiled wryly. “This is just an optional mission. Our main goal is to escape from kingdom troops’ pursuit. Survival is our bare minimum.”
“No, that’s not right. If their cavalry and infantry are stationed separately, then all these locations might not necessarily be suitable.” Gu Xiaoyue bit her lip and drew on the map again.
Xiao Lin sighed after being completely ignored. He was the only one who knew that the girl had two years left to live, but Gu Xiaoyue did not seem to care at all. She actually wanted to complete the optional tasks.
Exploring the army camp’s defenses meant that they would have to actively venture deeper, which in turn, was a sharp increase of the level of risk. Was she really so fearless in the face of death?
At 8 A.M, instructor Qin Chuan appeared in the public classroom again and looked at everyone. “The teleportation will begin in one minute. For this month’s exam, Xiao Lin will be your commander.”
Some people were stunned. Wang Dalin practically slammed the table and demanded to know why. He had just started forging relationships with everyone before the exam because he wanted more people to follow his lead during the exam.
Qin Chuan could not be bothered to talk nonsense with him. “For all team-based exams, the class monitor will receive commanding authority by default.”
Xiao Lin was not surprised to hear that. As the acting monitor, he roughly knew that he had authority, but he sighed to himself after seeing so many unsightly expressions. It was one thing to have commanding authority, but whether others accepted it or not it was another matter altogether.
One minute later, countless white rays of light fell from the sky in the classroom hall, enveloping everyone in it. Most were either surprised or nervous when they saw that their bodies were disappearing quickly. Soon, the noisy classroom was empty.
Xiao Lin could only notice that his eyes were getting blurry. Once his vision became clear again, he found himself standing on barren red soil surrounded by open clearings. In front of him was the steep entrance to the canyon. The sun hung high in the sky, and the heat produced billowing heatwaves in the unsheltered canyon.
The freshmen’s monthly exam had officially begun!
[Time: One week]
[Map: Sunset Canyon]
[Combat goal: Escape the pursuit of the Thunder Kingdom’s army within a week and arrive in a safe location. Those who complete the mission will get 10 credits and 100 redemption points. This is a team-based task. If 30% of the class and above arrive at the safe location, the task will be deemed completed]
[Optional tasks:
[1. Infiltrate the Thunder Kingdom’s border army and draw a map of the area where the troops are stationed. You are successful if the accuracy of your map exceeds 70% and you will get 10 credits, as well as 200 redemption points.
[2. Kill the wolf cavalry squadron’s captain. Reward: 15 credits and 300 redemption points.]
[Condition for failure:
[1. More than 70% of the class is wiped out by the kingdom’s army.
[2. The mission ends after one week.]
[Warning: This is a simulation of actual combat. 10 years of life will be deducted for each death.]
Everyone’s mind reverberated with the central computer’s reminder about the mission. Although those contents had been known in advance with the information released the day before, it was obvious that there are some additional details in the official announcement that day.
All 60 people in the class were there. In addition to the necessary weapons, everyone had an extra backpack, containing a box of compressed biscuits, a flask of water, a pen, and a notebook. That was the extent of the equipment they were provided.
Once they recovered from the short post-transmission silence, someone asked, “Where are we?”
“What a stupid question. We’re at Sunset Canyon.”
“Your statement is stupid. I’m asking about our exact location IN Sunset Canyon!”
The crowd had already started discussing and their gaze finally shifted to Xiao Lin. Whether they accepted it or not, Xiao Lin was acting monitor and theoretically has commanding authority.
Xiao Lin sat on the ground. He picked up his notebook and scribbled something quickly. Several other people were doing the same thing. They tried their best to memorize the canyon’s topographic map before the exam, and had to quickly draw it before they forgot it.
After a quarter of an hour, several people completed their drawings one after another. They then compared their results and made some improvements. The rough topographic map of Sunset Canyon was at least 70% to 80% complete. Many found it hard to understand why the academy forbade them from bringing any materials in.
However, Xiao Lin had no objection about that after talking with Song Junlang. He had a deeper understanding of the monthly exam’s significance. If it really was a simulated exercise, then it probably meant that America’s Judge Academy had an incomplete topographic map too.
“We’re probably here now, at Sunset Canyon’s south entrance.” Xiao Lin pointed to the topographic map that he had drawn up quickly, but because his drawing skills were poor, almost no one could understand it except himself.
“How do you know that this is the south entrance?” someone questioned, seemingly unconvinced.
“The information clearly stated that about a third of the Sunset Canyon is located in the Thunder Kingdom. The plains are behind us. If the kingdom’s army chooses to station, they’ll likely do so in the plains.” Xiao Lin glanced at Gu Xiaoyue. He patted his notebook and said loudly to the students approaching around, “So the current situation is actually very clear. Behind us is the enemy’s garrison, and in front is the canyon.”
Having said that, Xiao Lin could not help but sigh in distress.
Many people were still in a daze, but a few people were gradually starting to understand Xiao Lin’s words. They lowered their heads and whispered for a while, and soon the exchanges became louder and louder. Everyone then understood that they were facing a very awkward situation.