"Ah! He's going to die!"

"He's already on the verge of death, yet he's still not giving up!"

"He's mad, rus.h.i.+ng towards his death like that." Some of the female soldiers turned their heads or covered their eyes, unwilling to see Steve ripped open. The male recruits' faces became ashen as they antic.i.p.ated how tragic and wretched Steve's death would be. Just when everyone thought that Steve would be killed, the blackfrost wolf's claws stopped, mere inches from his neck, the tip of his claw p.r.i.c.king Steve's skin, and a drop of bright red blood dripping down. It was as if time had stopped. The blackfrost wolf froze in place, unmoving like Steve.

"a.s.sessment over, Steve has pa.s.sed!" Chief Instructor Wendy's voice rang out suddenly over everyone's confusion.

"Instructor Wendy has spoken!"

"Steve was almost killed; how could they allow him to pa.s.s?!"

"Even if she is the Chief Instructor, she can't be so blatantly biased with him—he was almost killed." Everyone's looked toward Chief Instructor Wendy and saw that she was no longer lounging on the sofa with her eyes closed, not taking any notice of the a.s.sessment. They didn't know when she had opened her eyes and fixed her gaze on the fight below. Instructor Leikas's expression was also one of confusion. Chief Instructor Wendy was usually fair and impartial, why would she favor Steve?

Right at that moment, the subtle sound of a sword slicing through the wolf's hide came from the ring.

Woos.h.!.+ Blood flowed like a fountain out of the blackfrost wolf's neck, and he toppled over like a building.

"D…dead?"

"The blackfrost wolf was killed? When was he killed?"

"What happened, how did the blackfrost wolf just die?" Everyone who thought Steve had been done for a moment ago now had shocked expressions on their faces. They couldn't make heads or tails of what had happened. Then, the crowd noticed a huge wound beneath the blackfrost wolf's neck, the dagger that had sliced him open still buried deep in the wound.

"I… I won! I pa.s.sed the a.s.sessment!" Steve took in big gulps of air, as escaping from death's clutches had brought on an enormous rush of adrenaline and happiness. He couldn't keep a smile from forming on his face. And straight after that, he too collapsed on the floor from sheer exhaustion. In order to kill the blackfrost wolf, not only had he put himself in danger, but his strength, heart, and mind were also drained. Thus, he was totally spent. The medical team on standby immediately came and carried him out.

They also carried the blackfrost wolf's body down at the same time, and people swarmed around it, wanting to know how he died. Even instructor Leikas went forward to take a look.

"That injury…it was from when we tried to capture him. Steve managed to discover it in spite of everything!" Instructor Leikas exclaimed in admiration. "The reason why he rushed forward just now was to aim for the fatal spot at the neck area. How nonsensical! He was almost killed by the blackfrost wolf!"

Upon hearing instructor Leikas's explanation, everyone's confusion was lifted. They gave Steve surprised looks, not knowing if his luck was good, or if his observation skills were really that sensitive. Instructor Leikas was grim-faced. This wound was deeply hidden and even he might not have been able to discover it. Not only was Steve able to, but he managed to use it to kill the wolf successfully. Did he really have the skills, or was it pure luck? In the opinion of the other trainee soldiers, Steve's good luck had to have played a big part.

From the second floor of the spectator stand, the corner of Wendy's mouth curled into a smile as she drank her red wine and said, "What an interesting fellow. Surprisingly, he was able to observe and detect the blackfrost wolf's fatal spot."

Chief instructor Wendy looked about the same age as Steve. The tight latex suit managed to showcase her supple b.r.e.a.s.t.s as if they longed to break free from the suit. She picked up the scoreboard and wrote an excellent on it while giving a score of 90.

…

The new recruits' a.s.sessment had continued for two more days before concluding. The soldiers who pa.s.sed had all convened at the parade square. Chief Instructor Wendy stood at the podium, sweeping her eyes over the new recruits.

"You have all pa.s.sed the a.s.sessment and are officially commissioned soldiers of Stanlos Base Camp. As soldiers, it is your responsibility to protect our homeland…" After a generic speech, Chief Instructor Wendy said, "And now, let the new recruits come up and take their oath of allegiance!"

The ceremony was formal, with a lot of people coming forward to take the oath. Soon, it was Steve's turn to go up on stage, and he read aloud his vows, "I, Steve Was.h.i.+ngton, pledge to serve humankind, to defend the safety of humankind, to bring light and hope to humankind, and I am willing to fight for the future of humankind…"

The solemn process of the oath-taking ceremony was over. Wendy handed over an official military uniform with a smart.w.a.tch and a clear crystal to each soldier and said: "From now on, you are the official soldiers of Wonder City State. Your smart.w.a.tch contains cla.s.sified military information as well as the rules and regulations, and the crystal holds the fundamentals of energy absorption."

Steve could barely contain his excitement as he accepted the items. The army was mysterious, and outsiders never knew exactly what happened inside the camp. And the fundamental practices of energy absorption were essential to Steve!

The fundamental practices of energy absorption would allow one to absorb cosmic forces at a faster rate, while one could normally increase the rate of cosmic force absorption only through food. Yet, there was a limit to the speed of absorption. The more of the same type of meat one ate, the more the results would decrease over time until finally, it became totally ineffective. The best method was to get your hands on one of the fundamental practices of energy absorption. However, the practices were monopolized by the government and n.o.bles—civilians could only get their hands on them by relying on the n.o.bles, getting into a university, or joining the army. Steve could not wait to check out the fundamental practices in the crystal. But Leikas walked over to him just as he was walking down from the stage.

"Recruit 9527, follow me to the back," Leikas said. Steve was confused, but he followed obediently. After turning a few corners, they arrived at one of the secret chambers in the base, and Steve saw that there was already nine people waiting inside. All nine of them were astonished when they saw him enter. Steve recognized all nine members, as they were always among the top ten performers when they were recruits.

"Recruit 9527, get in line!" Leikas barked. Steve went forward and fell in at the last spot.

Leikas's stare was sharp as he looked at them strictly and said, "The ten of you are the top ten performers for this a.s.sessment.

"Steve, total score 299 points. First place.

"Stuart, total score 285 points. Second place.

"Sofia, total score 280 points. Third place."

…

But, while Leikas was announcing the results, the other nine of them were looking at Leikas as if they couldn't believe their eyes. Steve, always one of the weakest during the sparring matches, was the champion this time around!