"You!"
Xu Xiao was choked by Lu Li, feeling a dull ache in her chest. She stomped her foot and huffily followed him.
The passage in the insect nest wasn't long. After bending down and walking for several tens of meters, the surroundings suddenly opened up.
Ma Han raised his Flame Longbow, surveying his surroundings by the firelight.
To his surprise, he almost peed his pants when he saw it.
The vast underground space was filled with dense, countless insect eggs.
Each of these eggs was about the size of an adult's head, slowly wriggling in the glow of the firelight.
"So many insect eggs... if they all hatch..."
Xu Xiao murmured, not daring to think further.
At this moment, she finally understood what Lu Li wanted to do and couldn't help but feel a little ashamed.
"Lu Li, if these insect eggs hatch, they will pose a huge threat to the school. We'll help you clear them out!"
"Whatever."
Lu Li didn't stop them. Anyway, his goal was to increase his Soul Point count, and having three more people help clear them out would save him effort.
The unhatched insect eggs, aside from being a bit disgusting, had no offensive capabilities.
After a period of busy work, Lu Li gained nearly 20 Soul Points.
"Ding! Player Lu Li's Soul Points have reached 50. Soul Soldier unlocked!"
Soul Soldier, as the name suggests, is the ability to reshape collected souls into soldiers.
Every 1 Soul Point is equivalent to 1 experience point.
With Lu Li's current Soul Points, he could reshape a Lv.2 Blade Arm Mantis.
Moreover, as long as Lu Li's Soul Points don't drop to zero, his Soul Soldier will be immortal and eternal!
There was also an unexpected bonus.
The unhatched mantis eggs were surprisingly judged to be Blade Arm Mantises, allowing Lu Li to easily complete his advancement quest.
"Detected: Player Lu Li has killed 100 Blade Arm Mantises! Ability Advancement Quest completed!"
"Quest Reward: Challenger's Treasure Chest x1, Ability 'Blade Arm' advanced to Platinum Grade!"
Choosing to temporarily put the rewards aside, Lu Li stretched contentedly.
Just as he was pondering where to go to kill monsters next, an announcement suddenly appeared on his data panel.
"Congratulations to Player Zhao Hui for becoming the first player globally to reach Lv.1! Reward: Black Iron Grade Upgrade Treasure Chest x1!"
..."Zhao Hui?"
Zhao Jin, who was at a loss as to how to complete Clan Elder Zhao's quest, stared at the announcement on the panel, a hint of joy appearing between his brows.
The name was unfamiliar; he wasn't a direct descendant of the Zhao family.
The coordinates in the announcement were at Yong City First Middle School, which was also very close.
He was a very good candidate for recruitment!
"A Hao," Zhao Jin called out.
A bald man with a scarred face appeared at the door.
"Jin Ge, did you call me?"
"Did you see this kid named Zhao Hui? Go there and bring him back to me. Make sure he's safe; I want a living person, whole and unharmed."
The bald man named A Hao nodded, preparing to leave.
Zhao Jin called him back again: "Hey, wait a minute. This is a special time, bring your gear."
A Hao's expression was blank: "There's no need, Jin Ge. Those bugs can't threaten me."
"If I tell you to bring it, then bring it. Also, bring ten yuan crystals. If you encounter an emergency, use them to level up."
"Alright."
...Inside the classroom.
"Damn it, what kind of setting is this? I can only absorb ten yuan crystals a day?!"
Zhao Hui stared at the panel in front of him and cursed loudly.
He had thought that with the yuan crystals he had gathered, he could at least level up two or three times.
He didn't expect that after absorbing ten first-order yuan crystals, the system would actually prompt that he had reached the absorption limit for the week?
With the level progression suppressed so much, how was a genius like him supposed to grow strong and powerful?!
Seeing Zhao Hui's sudden Wrath, Wang Xuyan, who was serving him, rolled her eyes and fawningly said:
"Zhao-ge, don't get angry. I actually think the system's level suppression is very beneficial to you."
"Oh? Why?" Zhao Hui asked, feeling the comfort spreading through his body.
"Think about it, since everyone has a limited amount of yuan crystals they can absorb each day, it essentially forces everyone onto the same starting line."
"And you have awakened a Diamond Grade ability, something those useless people will never get!"
"Under the same level, you will always maintain the lead."
"Not bad, so the upgrade restriction is actually beneficial to me, not harmful."
After hearing Wang Xuyan's explanation, a look of joy appeared on Zhao Hui's face. He tossed the unabsorbed yuan crystals forward.
"You can absorb these three yuan crystals. Follow me, and you won't be at a disadvantage!"
Wang Xuyan hastily caught the yuan crystals, her smile becoming even more fawning:
"Thank you, Zhao-ge!"
Ying Zi'an, who was nearby, saw all the yuan crystals fall into Wang Xuyan's hands, and his expression became somewhat gloomy.
As if to assert his presence, he spoke ingratiatingly:
"Zhao-ge, you are now the first Lv.1 player globally. I saw in the announcement that there's an upgrade treasure chest. Why don't you open it and let us brothers have a look?"
"Hmm? You want to have a look?"
Zhao Hui said with a half-smile.
Ying Zi'an immediately realized he had said the wrong thing, and cold sweat drenched his back:
"Uh, Zhao-ge, I didn't mean that..."
Before he could finish, he was hit on the shoulder by an electric arc, sending him flying backward, knocking over many desks.
"Wang Xuyan, heal him. Don't let my 'brother' die like this."
Zhao Hui ordered coldly.
Wang Xuyan nodded obediently. The next second, green light particles fell onto Ying Zi'an's body.
The injuries from the Lightning Arrow quickly healed as if new, leaving no trace.
But the pain didn't dissipate so quickly.
"Cough, cough... Zhao-ge, I was wrong..."
The recovered Ying Zi'an stammered, crawling on his knees towards Zhao Hui.
"Hmph, brother? If you're going to be a dog, you need to have the self-awareness of a dog. Don't try to be clever!"
Zhao Hui's words were indifferent, exuding an arrogance that treated Ying Zi'an as less than human.
"Go guard the door. I don't want to see your gloomy face right now!"
"Yes, yes! I am your dog, Zhao-ge. I won't dare again, never again..."
Ying Zi'an stumbled and scrambled out of the classroom.
"Hmph, I'm in a good mood today, so I'll let you all have a look."
Zhao Hui seemed very satisfied with Ying Zi'an's attitude, displaying the upgrade treasure chest he had obtained in front of everyone.
With a soft click, the entirely black treasure chest opened, erupting in a dazzling red light!
"Holy crap, what a dazzling light!"
"It truly is a treasure chest opened by the great Zhao Hui. It must have produced something rare!"
"Brother Hui is so amazing!!"
Before the treasure chest was fully open, the sounds of flattery had already risen in waves.
Only when the red light receded did everyone clearly see the item inside the treasure chest.
It was a yuan crystal, entirely blood-red.
"It's actually a second-order yuan crystal!"
Tian Yuhao was the first to speak, his voice loud enough for even Ying Zi'an outside the classroom to hear clearly.
As the only player under Zhao Hui with the Reconnaissance ability, he had already prepared to scout before the treasure chest opened, so he could immediately show his usefulness and flatter Zhao Hui.
"I thought yuan crystals only came in black and gray, but I didn't expect one could be red. Zhao-ge truly opened our eyes!"
Wang Xuyan immediately added, a hint of barely perceptible Greed flashing in her eyes.
She knew Zhao Hui had already reached his absorption limit for the week, and if she worked hard, she might be able to get her hands on the second-order yuan crystal.
Indeed, after checking the attributes of the second-order yuan crystal, much of the joy on Zhao Hui's face receded.
"It just has more experience points, no special attributes. Besides, I can't level up today, so keeping it on me is useless. Perhaps..."
A graceful figure appeared in Zhao Hui's mind.
It might be good to use this second-order yuan crystal to persuade Xu Xiao to join.
That woman's ability was very useful, but it was a pity she had some misunderstanding about his initial forceful methods.
But it didn't matter.
Women, after all, could surely be easily won over with gifts!
Thinking this, Zhao Hui couldn't help but reveal a lewd smile on his face.
A successful man like him, shouldn't he have several beautiful women standing behind him?
Just as Zhao Hui was envisioning a bright future, Ying Zi'an's voice suddenly came from the corridor outside the classroom:
"Zhao-ge, Lu Li is back."
...