At the Imperial Canteen, because this was an academy specifically for training TPC personnel, the breakfast, lunch, and dinner provided were all professionally formulated for nutrition. Furthermore, the chefs here hailed from all corners of the globe, capable of satisfying the palates of 99.9% of the trainees. To a certain extent, the catering at the TPC Academy was even superior to that of the regular Defense Force.
The Defense Force was composed of the military units of various nations from the time before the TPC was established, and it consisted mostly of ordinary humans. However, being ordinary didn't mean they couldn't contribute; outside of the TPC, this was the place for ordinary people with high aspirations to serve.
Meanwhile, those who could enter the TPC Academy were either destined to be GUTS members on the front lines against monsters or researchers specialized in logistics and development. These were talents in short supply for TPC branches worldwide, so their treatment was naturally much better than that of the Defense Force.
After getting his set meal, Ye Feng walked over to where Qin Yuxin and the others were sitting.
In truth, the two of them didn't have a romantic relationship; they hung out purely because they both came from Hangzhou. Add to that their three-year rivalry for top rankings in high school, and they were simply familiar with each other. Furthermore, Ye Feng wasn't the only guy there—there were two other males. Qin Yuxin wasn't alone either; she had three roommates, and the other two guys were the boyfriends of those roommates, though they weren't in the same class.
"Hey, hey, hey, do you guys know where we're going tomorrow?"
The speaker was a man who looked as sharp as a monkey, named Lu Bai. He was quite easy on the eyes. His skin, due to a year of training, certainly wasn't fair and delicate, but among the males of this semester, he was considered quite pale.
However, life is full of surprises, and there were always exceptions—namely, Ye Feng himself. His skin was much the same as it had been in high school: vibrant and fair, yet he didn't look like a "pretty boy." Because in every month's combat test, Ye Feng ranked at the very top; it was impossible to say he didn't train. Because of this, his peers were quite jealous, and that included most of the female students. Why is it that we all train together, yet your face stays so white?
Among the jealous girls, Qin Yuxin was included. Fortunately, she hadn't tanned much; instead, she had developed the unique charm of an Eastern woman. But that didn't stop her from envying Ye Feng's skin, which seemed more resistant to the sun than a woman's.
"Oh? Looking at you, do you have some inside info?" the other male student asked curiously.
Ye Feng didn't ask, but curiosity was written all over his face; he was just a split second slower than his classmate.
"Hehe, I thought you weren't interested, Ye Feng. Turns out you care too," Lu Bai teased. He didn't spill the beans immediately, instead poking fun at the top-ranked student. He felt a small sense of pride in having something that could catch Ye Feng's attention.
"Listen, kid, don't play games with me, or I'll scrap you. Spit it out," Ye Feng said with a laugh, urging him to continue.
"Ahem, don't be in such a rush. It's not like I'm not going to tell you." Having experienced Ye Feng's fists before, Lu Bai didn't dare push his luck even if it was just banter. He smiled sheepishly and explained: "It's like this. When I passed the Principal's office yesterday, I heard him mention something. Apparently, starting about a week ago, planes have been disappearing one after another over a certain desert. Combine that with the desert our instructor mentioned, and I think that's our destination."
After Lu Bai finished, the other student, Lin Fei, asked in confusion: "But something like that is obviously the work of a monster. Shouldn't it be handled by the Defense Force or active GUTS members? Why involve us?"
In this world, everyone was practically immune to the shock of monsters appearing. Civil aviation disappearances, cruise ships vanishing, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes—nine times out of ten, it was a monster's doing. Truly, ever since the first monster, Muto, was discovered in 1942, the entire planet seemed to have entered a period of high monster activity. It hadn't stopped for a century.
"How should I know? But the Principal said 'desert' last night, and the instructor said 'desert' this morning. I can't help but connect the dots," Lu Bai shrugged, signaling he wasn't entirely sure of the 'why.'
Even though they were split into many classes, it seemed everyone from the Class of '42 had been assigned this task. As the instructor had said: it was to test the results of their year of training.
Ye Feng didn't speak; he was busy analyzing the situation. To be honest, Lu Bai's discovery wasn't baseless; on the contrary, it had high accuracy.
Amidst their thinking, Qin Yuxin offered a guess: "Do you think the Principal and the others have already confirmed the situation, and that's why they're sending us?"
"Eh?!" A girl sitting beside her asked suspiciously, "Yuxin, why do you say that?"
"Think about it. Since the instructor said it's a test of our year's training, the exam must have an element of danger. Plus, what Lu Bai overheard... I'm thinking that the higher-ups might have already confirmed the monster's threat level. They probably determined it has some strength but isn't overwhelmingly powerful, so they decided to let us handle it."
Qin Yuxin's reasoning made them pause. It really did seem possible.
"From what I know, for students like us who can materialize monsters, the TPC's first-year final exam is always a transformation battle," Ye Feng's voice rang out. Lu Bai and the others turned to listen to his explanation.
Seeing everyone looking at him, Ye Feng continued undeterred: "Based on what you guys said and the TPC's past tests, we will definitely be required to transform this time. This means we won't be using 'Dive-style' technology; instead, we'll be heading to the actual site to face real monsters."
Dive-style technology worked by connecting the user's consciousness to a virtual world, binding them to their monster card to materialize inside. In that virtual world, materialized combat was 99% identical to reality. It was a technology specifically for training GUTS members.
This was exactly the course Ye Feng and the others were supposed to take in their second year. Usually, every class would have their first "Dive" session at the end of their first year. At that time, the Principal, TPC officials, and other relevant departments would come to inspect, seeing whose strength was superior to determine the class rankings for the second year.
But based on Lu Bai's info and the instructor's briefing, their class was special. It was very likely they wouldn't be fighting in a virtual world, but engaging in a genuine monster battle.
There was a massive difference between virtual combat and reality. In virtual combat, you couldn't truly replicate the crushing pressure of the real world. After all, once they entered, students subconsciously knew they wouldn't actually die even if they lost, which prevented them from reaching the level of intensity required for real combat.
"That... gulp..." Lu Bai swallowed instinctively, his voice trembling slightly. "No way... are we really going to... face a real monster?"
"Yeah. Facing a real monster... even the seniors in their fourth-year internships struggle with that, right?"
"I heard that after seniors graduate from the TPC Academy, they usually need three or four years of field adaptation before they can officially join GUTS and participate in monster battles."
"Why is that?"
"Why? For more training, obviously! You need guts to fight a real monster. Do you have them?"
Except for Ye Feng and Qin Yuxin, the other five students all showed a clear reluctance toward fighting a real monster. Of course, Ye Feng didn't mock them. After all, people who could materialize and fight a monster immediately after their first awakening were far too few.
Thinking back to his own first battle, Ye Feng wasn't even sure how he had pulled it off. Looking back, it was probably the sense of security that came with becoming an Ultraman, coupled with a sheer determination to stop the monster's advance... right?
He was absolutely sure about the former. After all, who was an Ultraman? The natural enemy of monsters. Since he had transformed into Cosmos, even though it was his first fight, the preconceived notion that he was an Ultraman made fear unnecessary. There was no reason to be afraid. As for the latter, Ye Feng felt that at the time, he probably hadn't thought that much about it.
Listening to his classmates' complaints, Ye Feng looked up to see Qin Yuxin's expression. By chance, she was looking at him too. The two shared a look, said nothing, and simply smiled before going back to their food.
Lu Bai and the others, seeing how relaxed Qin Yuxin and Ye Feng were while eating, felt a bit annoyed. Great, even if your grades are amazing, we might be facing real monsters! Aren't you guys even a little bit scared?
"By the way, speaking of materialized combat, who did you guys actually awaken?"
Talking about tomorrow's potential battle made Lu Bai think of this. Strangely enough, the higher-ups had a strict rule: you couldn't disclose your monster information to others. It was a confidentiality policy.
For people like Ye Feng at the Imperial Academy, this rule really only applied to the first year. After all, once the year-end test happened, everyone would know who became what monster. However, after entering the school, they had all subconsciously tried to forget about it.
With the year-end exam starting tomorrow, those who had obtained Alien or Monster cards could talk about it if they wanted to. Those who didn't want to were likely trying to keep their information secret to maintain a tactical advantage during combat.
"Heehee, sure. But this stays between the seven of us, okay? Don't go blabbing to others."
"How about this? We all have our cards on us, don't we? Let's just pull them out and look."
"Good idea. Since I suggested it, I'll go first," Lu Bai said. He closed his eyes, and a card coalesced in his hand.
The cards weren't physically carried; since they were part of their own power, a simple thought would make the card manifest automatically. This way, they never had to worry about losing them. However, they still couldn't materialize the monsters without a Monster Ring.
As Lu Bai pulled out his card, Ye Feng looked over and was momentarily speechless.
•
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