Chapter 27: Clues

Chapter 27: Clues

Zhu Ning had lost once and, in theory, could have chosen to attend basic training before retaking the assessment. But she had skipped the basics and came straight for the assessment, believing that getting beaten up more would help her improve.

Zhu Ning's fighting style, if one could call it that, was rather crude, but she had excellent physical coordination and learned quickly. Moreover, this assessment had no specific requirements; it was just a free-for-all fight.

She thought her crude skills were pretty good until she encountered the demon hunters and realized how far behind she was.

The mechanical girl hadn't expected Zhu Ning to come back for a second round and asked, "Are you sure?"

Zhu Ning nodded. She mainly wanted to test the effects of the gene serum she had taken. Besides, after injecting the serum, she felt a surge of energy and a need to release it.

She desperately wanted to get into a fight.

The mechanical girl, who had just broken someone's shoulder blade, felt a bit awkward and asked, "Shall I go easy on you?"

This was an offer to hold back, but Zhu Ning replied, "No need to go easy on me."

The mechanical girl understood. For warriors, holding back was a sign of disrespect.

"Wow," said the onlookers, "she’s so confident?"

"Is she provoking her? Fight, fight!"

Li Nianchuan and Xu Meng watched with apprehension. This time, they felt even more nervous for Zhu Ning. If she lost again, she might face severe criticism.

People loved to build up heroes only to tear them down. This would surely cause a storm.

A crowd gathered around, some bringing snacks and folding chairs, while others placed bets.

"I heard she just took the gene serum. Who do you think will win?"

"Zhu Ning stands a chance. I’ve seen her surprise everyone each time."

"It’s hard to say," another person replied. "Chu Ling is from the Gray Eagle squad, and her record has always been perfect."

"Gray Eagle?" someone said. "Isn’t that the unlucky team that got penalized by 50% salary reduction after encountering a misrated contaminated area?"

"Yeah, that’s them. Do you think this is a clash of enemies?"

Zhu Ning: "…"

She overheard their conversation and felt a sense of unease.

Good news: she now knew the name of the mechanical girl in front of her—Chu Ling. Bad news: it seemed Zhu Ning had inadvertently angered her.

During their last encounter in the sewers, the entire team was in armor, and Zhu Ning hadn't noticed any female members. At the time, a man passing Li Nianchuan had called him weak.

No wonder Chu Ling was eager to face Zhu Ning this time. Was she planning to take revenge and turn Zhu Ning into a punching bag? Indeed, Zhu Ning’s luck seemed to be lacking. Maybe she should allocate all her purification points to luck next time.

"Get ready." The combat instructor found the situation interesting and reminded both fighters to prepare.

The rules of the combat training ground were lenient. After all, they were colleagues, not enemies, and no one wanted to kill anyone else. It was enough to make a point.

The rule was simple: only the feet could touch the ground; touching the ground with any other part meant losing.

Zhu Ning and Chu Ling shook hands. As soon as Zhu Ning steadied herself, Chu Ling charged forward.

Something was different.

Zhu Ning could clearly feel the change within herself. After mechanization, Chu Ling moved faster than a normal person. During their first bout, Zhu Ning couldn’t even see Chu Ling’s moves and ended up on the ground before she could react.

This time, Zhu Ning could see everything as if in slow motion. She could observe every move Chu Ling made.

Almost instinctively, Zhu Ning shifted slightly, and Chu Ling’s punch grazed her nose. Simultaneously, she bent her knee and kicked Chu Ling in the abdomen. Chu Ling reacted swiftly, blocking with her hand.

Both of Chu Ling’s hands were mechanized, and Zhu Ning expected to hit metal, potentially breaking her leg. Surprisingly, the anticipated pain never came, and Zhu Ning quickly retreated.

Her foot felt a slight odd sensation, but nothing painful.

Was this the power of the gene serum? Her skin had hardened, like a layer of soft armor.

Zhu Ning tilted her head. Before trying, she had doubted whether she could defeat a mechanized human.

Now, it seemed possible. A competitive spirit surged within her.

Chu Ling was surprised. In just three hours, Zhu Ning had improved dramatically.

Initially, Chu Ling had considered going easy on Zhu Ning, but now she saw no need. She clenched her fists, treating Zhu Ning as a true opponent, and attacked again.

Zhu Ning raised her hand to block. This time, she could match Chu Ling blow for blow, each punch landing with a dull thud.

Chu Ling noticed that Zhu Ning fought fiercely, targeting a single spot relentlessly, like a wolf cub refusing to let go of its prey.

Unfortunately, Zhu Ning was still inexperienced. Whenever Chu Ling exerted force, Zhu Ning had to retreat.

Zhu Ning managed to withstand three punches while retreating, eventually reaching the edge of the ring.

Zhu Ning had excellent physical attributes but lacked systematic training, which left her unprepared for a full-on assault by a seasoned demon hunter.

Chu Ling cornered her, showing no mercy, and locked her arms around Zhu Ning, preparing for a back throw. If Zhu Ning fell, she would lose.

Xu Meng and Li Nianchuan held their breaths.

Mechanization allowed lifting ten tons, and Zhu Ning, being a mere girl, was lifted effortlessly.

It looked like she was about to lose. Li Nianchuan couldn’t bear to watch.

As Chu Ling flipped Zhu Ning over, just before she hit the ground, Zhu Ning adjusted her position and kicked Chu Ling’s unmechanized right knee with all her strength.

No matter whether they were enhanced by gene agents or not, human instincts and reflexes remained intact.

There was a slight thud.

Before Zhu Ning hit the ground, Chu Ling's right knee had already smashed into the floor a split second earlier.

Chu Ling: ?

Zhu Ning landed clumsily, adjusted her stance, and quickly got up—she won.

"Zhu Ning wins!" the combat instructor announced.

Chu Ling: ...

Was this cheating?

"Wow," someone said, "That doesn't count as winning, does it? Zhu Ning fell to the ground too."

"A split second is still a split second. Chu Ling is just too kind, while Zhu Ning is clearly more cunning."

The cunning Zhu Ning: ...?

Try living in the zombie world for a few days; I guarantee you'll be even more cunning than me when you come back.

Chu Ling, accepting defeat, stood up, "You won."

Zhu Ning still had some pride, "I used a bit of trickery. You're still more skilled."

If not for the parts of Chu Ling that weren't yet mechanized, Zhu Ning wouldn't have won today. She just used a bit of trickery.

The combat instructor didn't acknowledge Zhu Ning's skills either, "Zhu Ning, stay for extra training."

Zhu Ning didn't mind; she figured she'd be coming here often to get beaten up.

Chu Ling: "Wanna be friends?"

Zhu Ning: ?!

Chu Ling: "There are very few girls in the Demon Hunters. I only wanted to spar with you after watching your video. You're indeed strong."

So she wasn't here for revenge but to admire her! She was being appreciated by a female warrior!

After sparring with Chu Ling, half of Zhu Ning's irritability vanished. Now she felt refreshed. She happily added Chu Ling as a friend, and their fight turned into a budding friendship.

"Chu Ling!" someone called from a distance.

Zhu Ning looked up and saw three men, likely members of the Grey Eagles. The leader seemed to be almost 1.9 meters tall.

The trio looked at Zhu Ning with obvious displeasure. In comparison, Chu Ling was the most friendly towards her.

Chu Ling: "I'll be off. Let's work together sometime."

Zhu Ning nodded; Demon Hunters and Cleaners often had opportunities to collaborate.

Watching Chu Ling walk away, Zhu Ning noticed that the Demon Hunter team consisted of five people. Even without armor, they stood like a well-trained army. Indeed, Demon Hunters were different.

Zhu Ning turned her gaze back and asked, "By the way, what's our team called?"

Chu Ling's team was called the Grey Eagles. What about theirs?

Xu Meng: "Cleaning Team A70265"

Zhu Ning: ...

Why do they sound so cool, while our team name sounds like a license plate number?

Xu Meng operated on the panel, "Zhu Ning cheated, failed combat class, train again tomorrow."

Zhu Ning: ... oh.

Over the next few days, Zhu Ning trained in the combat room, or rather, got beaten up. She was beaten up in various ways by different types of Demon Hunters.

She had attracted too much attention before, and many Demon Hunters wanted to challenge her, or rather, beat her up.

One must pay the price for one's arrogance.

Many onlookers wondered why she could win against Chu Ling on the first day but then kept getting beaten up afterward. She was so beaten down that she lost all her spirit.

Zhu Ning improved quickly in getting beaten up. She could retaliate the next time she encountered the same method of being beaten.

Her progress was rapid; anyone else would have been deemed qualified by now.

After a few days of getting beaten up, Zhu Ning figured out the combat instructor's criteria. If he thought there was still room for improvement, he would keep marking her as failing. If he thought she had reached her limit, he would find a similarly skilled opponent to end the course.

Unfortunately, the combat instructor always believed Zhu Ning hadn't reached her limit. This girl could definitely take more, no, endure more beatings.

Thus, Zhu Ning "failed" combat class and was stuck in a loop of daily beatings.

After three days of beatings, Zhu Ning felt her inner frustration growing stronger. She consulted Doctor Fu again, who said it was still normal.

Doctor Fu watched Zhu Ning's videos every day on the forum, acting like the president of her fan club, shaking his head while watching: "You still don't understand combat."

Zhu Ning: ?

You understand, you try it!

...

According to the Cleaning Center's new rules, all three team members needed to qualify before going on missions. Zhu Ning was held back in combat class, and Li Nianchuan was held back in shooting class.

Xu Meng was frustrated. Clearly, our A70265 squad has Zhu Ning, who has the highest mental value in the entire center, so why are we ranked last in points?

Xu Meng: "Li Nianchuan, extra training today. Zhu Ning, keep a low profile for the next couple of days."

Li Nianchuan let out a wail.

Li Nianchuan: "What kind of rule is this? Isn't it going to cause delays?"

Xu Meng: "The task volume at the Cleaning Center has drastically decreased over the past week. Apart from emergency tasks, many tasks are not being assigned. However, most teams can still pass within five days. Hunters especially can qualify within three days. We speculate that the Cleaning Center will gradually resume operations after ten days."

Zhu Ning and Li Nianchuan have already been in training for six days. If they don’t qualify soon, they might be laughed at by the entire Cleaning Center.

Zhu Ning and Li Nianchuan were subjected to extra training, and Zhu Ning was beaten up by a combat-skilled Hunter for an hour.

Zhu Ning thought about combat during meals and while sleeping, trying to figure out how to win. Near the end of the shift, Zhu Ning was changing clothes in the locker room when her secondary brain beeped.

Liu Niannian sent a message with a cat face emoji and a note: "Boss, the information you wanted."

Information on Yongsheng Pharmaceutical? Do they have leads on Yongsheng Pharmaceutical?