AAISBMEBF Chapter 78: Testing Abilities
Three people, one and a half million. Meng Jiangtian furrowed his brows. This number felt astronomical.
If they were to kill zombies to collect crystal cores, it would require one thousand five hundred cores.
Killing one thousand five hundred zombies wouldn’t be hard for Meng Jiangtian, given his strength.
However, zombies, like humans, awakened with powers very rarely possess crystal cores. To gather one thousand five hundred cores, he would need to kill at least ten thousand zombies.
Moreover, if Meng Jiangtian had one thousand five hundred crystal cores and consumed them all, he would become invincible. There would be no need to take a helicopter back home—he could just fly back himself.
“Don’t be intimidated by the one and a half million number. If you work hard at completing tasks, you’ll be able to earn it sooner than you think.
Right now, there’s a shortage of earth, wood, and water ability users in the safe zone. The food produced is insufficient, and as more survivors are rescued, the shortage of food grows.
There are many supermarkets outside that haven’t been fully searched yet. If you find food, the contribution value won’t be low.
I checked the records, and it seems like you brought back quite a bit of food. Was it all you who retrieved it?” Liu Shenghui asked Meng Jiangtian.
“Yes,” Meng Jiangtian nodded.
“Though most of it was distributed to the survivors, every time survivors are rescued, we’ll provide them with a free meal. Since they ate your food, this can be considered as you providing free meals to the safe zone.
The contribution value will be credited to you. Zhou Yao, please calculate the contribution value based on the records and transfer it to Meng Jiangtian’s contribution card.”
“Understood.”
Mr. Bai secretly observed Liu Shenghui's expression. He had written down that Meng Jiangtian deliberately withheld food, letting the survivors starve, a wicked deed. Liu Shenghui had likely seen that, but hadn’t spoken up. Mr. Bai couldn’t help but feel disappointed. If these two could clash, he might benefit from the situation.
“I checked, and the food you distributed should give you around five hundred contribution points. Let’s go. I’ll take you to get your ID cards and give you a tour of the safe zone.”
Liu Shenghui stood up, but before he could take a few steps, the satellite phone rang.
Liu Shenghui stepped aside to answer it, speaking for a while before hanging up and saying to the group, “I have something urgent to attend to. Bai Zhenxiong, please take them around and show them the safe zone.”
“Alright.”
Bai Zhenxiong led the group downstairs. Upon arriving on the first floor, he said to the group, “I’ll take you to test your ability levels and then get your ID cards.
The ID card serves as both an identification and a bank card. You must keep it safe, and if lost, report it immediately. If the password is leaked and someone uses your contribution points, we will help catch the thief. If we can’t catch them, please understand.
This is, after all, the post-apocalyptic world. We can't handle cybercrimes like before.”
Bai Zhenxiong led them into a room on the first floor. Inside, there were a few machines with unusual designs, resembling large thermometers.
A thick mercury tube ran to the ceiling, with numbers marked on the side, from 1 to 10. At the bottom of the tube was a large red rubber ball.
“This is the device for testing abilities. All you need to do is attack the red rubber ball at the bottom with all your strength. The mercury inside the tube will rise, and that’s how we determine your ability level. Who wants to try first?”
Bai Zhenxiong explained while looking at Meng Jiangtian. He was eager to know Meng Jiangtian’s level.
Everyone turned their gaze toward Meng Jiangtian.
Meng Jiangtian walked up to the device. As the buzzing sound started, the staff member activated it. The once dim red rubber ball began to glow and fill up.
“Just aim and attack it. Don’t hit anything else. If you break it, you’ll have to pay,” the staff member said, stepping aside.
Meng Jiangtian formed a wind sphere in his palm. He hesitated for a moment, not sure if he should use all his strength. Standing out too much could attract attention.
He glanced at Cui Xisheng, whose big eyes were staring expectantly at him.
This little wild cat was really captivating. His rival seemed to have many competitors. Perhaps it would be a good chance to show his power and intimidate his rivals.
Meng Jiangtian hesitated for a moment, then focused and released all his power into the wind sphere, launching it at the red rubber ball.
There was a loud bang as the ball was hit, and the rubber exploded. The mercury inside the tube surged upward quickly, eventually stopping at 3.8.
Bai Zhenxiong widened his eyes, swallowing hard.
Even Liu Shenghui’s level was only 3.2. He was the highest-level person in the entire safe zone, which was why he had emerged as the new leader among the old leaders.
In the post-apocalyptic world, power was paramount. If Meng Jiangtian had any ambitions and challenged Liu Shenghui, it was hard to say who would win. The leadership of the safe zone could easily change hands.
Zhao Huanrui and the student council president didn’t have much concept of ability levels, nor were they as shocked as Bai Zhenxiong.
After knowing Meng Jiangtian’s level, the student council president was eager to try. He wanted to see how he compared to Meng Jiangtian.
The staff replaced the rubber ball, which turned out to be disposable.
They pressed the switch, and the ball filled up again. The student council president launched a water attack on the ball. The ball cracked but didn’t explode like Meng Jiangtian’s.
The mercury rose quickly, stopping at 1.8.
He immediately felt discouraged, seeing that he was two points lower than Meng Jiangtian.
Meng Jiangtian glanced at him indifferently. The attack wasn’t strong, but it was highly insulting.
The student council president’s face turned crimson with embarrassment.
“Almost level two. Not bad. Most ability users who come to the safe zone are barely level one or less,” Bai Zhenxiong said with a smile, trying to ease the atmosphere.
Seeing that the two weren’t smiling, Bai Zhenxiong awkwardly changed the subject and turned to Zhao Huanrui, “Why don’t you give it a try? I’m curious about your level.”
Zhao Huanrui eagerly stepped forward, using all his energy to strike the ball. There was a dull thud, and the ball wobbled a few times before returning to its original state.
The mercury swayed around the 1 mark for a moment before dropping to 0.9.
The atmosphere became truly awkward. Bai Zhenxiong’s smile froze, and he couldn’t manage even a forced laugh.
Three ability users, all in the same place for seven days, yet only one had reached a decent level. The others were far behind.
“Ahem... Well, let’s go get your ID cards,” Bai Zhenxiong coughed awkwardly, leading everyone out of the testing room.
Zhao Huanrui walked last, feeling downcast.
With Bai Zhenxiong’s help, the group quickly skipped the line, and their ID cards were issued without delay.
The three ability users received silver cards, while Cui Xisheng and Liu Anna received green ones.
Bai Zhenxiong glanced at Meng Jiangtian as he fiddled with his ID card and said, “The food you distributed has earned you five hundred contribution points, which are now on this card.
With this card, you can go to the stores outside to buy things. There’s also a mission hall where you can take tasks if you want to earn more money. There’s a trade window where you can sell crystal cores and food.
It’s almost mealtime. You haven’t eaten, have you? Let me take you to the restaurant. The food there is grown by ability users.”
Bai Zhenxiong then suddenly turned to Zhao Huanrui, who looked disheartened, and asked, “You’re an earth ability user, right? The farm is in urgent need of earth, wood, and water ability users.
If you don’t want to go outside, you can try working at the farm. They’ll definitely welcome you. The pay is decent too.”
“Really? How much is the pay?” Zhao Huanrui’s spirits lifted instantly.
He didn’t want to face zombies outside. He didn’t need to be rich, just enough to survive on his own. He didn’t want to rely on anyone else anymore. Being around these monsters was too discouraging.
“Depending on your level, the minimum is thirty thousand contribution points per month. It’s not much, but it’s enough if you’re careful with your spending.
Also, the food at the farm is free, since you grow it yourself. Food is precious right now, and a decent meal would cost at least thirty to fifty thousand contribution points.
Plus, working there helps you level up your abilities. You can train and eat fresh food. We abilities users who can’t farm envy those who work at the farm.”
Bai Zhenxiong spoke earnestly. He truly envied those who worked at the farm. It was easy work, no danger, and fresh food every day.
Unfortunately, as a metal ability user, his power would just produce heavy metal crops.
“Where’s the farm? I want to go try it now.” Zhao Huanrui, excited, didn’t even want to wait for the meal.
“Hold on, let’s eat first, then I’ll send you to the farm. If you don’t go, the farm will come to find you once they know an earth ability user is here.”
“No, I want to go now. Please send me now!” Zhao Huanrui insisted, his urgency clear.
“Alright then.” Bai Zhenxiong sighed and called for someone to send Zhao Huanrui off.
Zhao Huanrui got into the car, and Bai Zhenxiong turned to the student council president and said, “You’re a water ability user. Do you want to work at the farm too? They’d be thrilled with someone of your level.”
In the car, Zhao Huanrui’s smile faded instantly.
“No, I don’t want to work on a farm,” the student council president firmly rejected.
He had bigger ambitions. How could he possibly work on a farm?
In the car, Zhao Huanrui sighed in relief.
The student council president saw Zhao Huanrui's small gesture, sneering internally. He would eventually get back at him for his betrayal, but he wouldn’t waste too much time on him.
“Mr. Bai, I’d like to ask you about someone,” the student council president said after Zhao Huanrui left, not wanting to remain alone with Meng Jiangtian’s gaze.
“Who?”
“Li Yanguang. He’s my older brother. He used to be in the military.”
T/N: Please give support on my ko-fi page, thank you🌸🌸🌸
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