Chapter 23: The President
Chapter 23: The President
Next, Zhu Qianqian informed Lin Yuan about some precautions when using the virtual world cabin before respectfully leaving the room.
"Virtual world cabin," Lin Yuan murmured as he examined it carefully before lying down inside.
A gentle buzz filled the air. Lin Yuan felt a slight tingling sensation on his skin, and then he heard a voice saying, 'Replication complete. Please connect to the virtual world, Evolver.' "Welcome to the Assessment World," Lin Yuan heard as he opened his eyes to see a stern-looking man observing him.
"Assessment World?" Lin Yuan questioned as he immediately checked his physical strength, the Yuan Power flowing within his body, and the spiritual power in his Niwan Palace. To his relief, everything felt the same as it did outside.
"The Universe Human Alliance is truly formidable," he thought, amazed at the perfect replication, which meant that there were no secrets here.
"Wait," he thought. "The Myriad Worlds Gate hasn't been replicated."
Lin Yuan's eyes narrowed as he focused his attention deeper into his mind, where the Myriad Worlds Gate should have stood tall, but there was nothing.
"Could it be that even the Universe Human Alliance can't replicate the Myriad Worlds Gate?" he wondered. "Or perhaps they didn't even sense its existence?"
Lin Yuan breathed a sigh of relief but couldn't help his curiosity.
"Evolver, please choose your assessment scenario," the stern man abruptly said, interrupting Lin Yuan's thoughts.
As soon as he finished speaking, various scenes appeared before Lin Yuan: boundless deserts, ancient forests with towering trees, and towering cities.
"Let's go with the desert," Lin Yuan said, making a casual choice.
"Scenario confirmed," the stern man said with a wave of his hand.
The surroundings shifted instantly, placing Lin Yuan in the middle of a desert with sand as far as the eye could see and a scorching heat.
"Based on the energy fluctuations within the Evolver's body, this assessment will start directly from the first stage," the man explained. "First, you will face an opponent at the first stage, first segment. You must defeat them to qualify for the next assessment."
"Understood?" he asked, his gaze calm as he looked at Lin Yuan.
"Yes," Lin Yuan nodded.
In a flash, the stern man disappeared. Not far away, a large patch of sand quickly gathered, forming a humanoid figure. This was a tall man with dark skin and a sinister black horn growing from his forehead.
"Die!" the horned man growled as he charged at Lin Yuan without hesitation.
"His speed is slightly faster than an ordinary Grand Master, but he poses no threat," Lin Yuan assessed, his expression unchanged.
According to the stern man, the assessments would progress from weak to strong, and the first opponent would be at the first stage, first segment. Only by defeating him would the next opponent, at the first stage, second segment, appear.
There was a crisp crack, and the horned man suddenly froze, his eyes dimming as his body turned back into sand and dissipated.
Lin Yuan remained standing in the same spot, not having moved a muscle. Against such an opponent whose strength was far inferior to his own, the fastest way to defeat them was through spiritual martial arts.
With Lin Yuan's 'spirit' strength at the Xiaoyao Realm, it would take but a moment to crush his opponent's spirit and soul.
The sand stirred once more, and Lin Yuan's opponent reappeared—the same horned man. However, this time, his aura had increased significantly, reaching the peak of the Grand Master level.
However, be it a Grand Master or...
The horned man took a step forward, his eyes deep and cautious. Unlike the previous eight opponents, he didn't immediately attack Lin Yuan.
"A spiritual master-type evolution path?" Lin Yuan wondered aloud. "This time, I've specifically strengthened my soul defense. Your spiritual attack methods will only be 60% effective against me."
A cruel smile tugged at the horned man's lips. Although he was mostly a product of data simulation, he still possessed basic emotions. Anyone would feel frustrated after being crushed eight times in an instant.
"Die!" he shouted, lunging at Lin Yuan once more.
But in the next moment...
Crack! A slender right hand appeared out of thin air, gripping the horned man's neck and twisting forcefully.
"Who said I only have spiritual attack methods?" Lin Yuan shook his head.
For those who followed the martial arts evolution path, the foundation was always the physical body. Spiritual power was merely a force derived from a powerful physical body.
"Y-You're not a spiritual master-type Evolver?" The horned man's eyes widened in disbelief before he turned back into sand and disappeared.
Spiritual masters were known for their bizarre spiritual attack methods, but their physical bodies were often their weakness. Even the most powerful spiritual masters who consumed gene potions to cultivate two evolution paths simultaneously struggled to completely erase this disadvantage.
Evolutionary Association After exiting the assessment room, Zhu Qianqian returned to her workstation. "I wonder what stage of evolution Lin Yuan will reach," she thought.
Zhu Qianqian was quite curious, her eyes fixed on the display screen in front of her.
To protect the privacy of Evolvers, the battles that took place during their assessments were not allowed to be publicized externally.
As such, even internal staff like Zhu Qianqian couldn't observe the specific assessment content. She could only determine how many stages the Evolver had passed and their final ranking by the number of light columns illuminated on the screen.
"Little Zhu, has that Mr. Lin gone in yet?"
Just as Zhu Qianqian sat down, the president of the Evolvers' Association approached her.
As the president, there was no need to pay special attention to any particular Evolver's assessment. However, Lin Yuan was not only an Evolver but also a second-class citizen.
The status of a second-class citizen was not something to be taken lightly, even if they didn't hold an official position.
Additionally, since the president had never heard of this particular second-class citizen, he had come specifically to meet Lin Yuan after his assessment and forge a connection.
From any perspective, befriending a second-class citizen was undoubtedly a wise decision.
"Ah? Mr. President," Zhu Qianqian stood up nervously, stammering, "Mr. Lin, Mr. Lin has already gone in."
"Don't be nervous." The president of the Evolvers' Association was in a good mood.
"Okay." Zhu Qianqian took a moment to calm herself before sitting back down at her workstation.
"Little Zhu, what do you think? Which stage will Mr. Lin reach?" The president asked casually, taking an interest in the conversation.
"Mr. Lin is a second-class citizen. Since he's come to register, he must have first-stage strength," Zhu Qianqian replied cautiously.
For ordinary people, becoming an Evolver was an incredibly difficult endeavor. However, in the eyes of higher-class citizens, there were many methods to achieve this, the simplest being to purchase a gene potion and follow the 'Gene Warrior' evolutionary path.
While Gene Warriors had significant shortcomings, lacked potential, and were highly dependent on external objects, there was no doubt that they were still Evolvers.
"Indeed," the president nodded slightly.
He also believed that Lin Yuan must have first-stage strength and couldn't possibly still be an unranked Evolver.
Typically, higher-class citizens were likely to be Evolvers, but many weaker Evolvers remained first-class citizens.
"I predict that Mr. Lin will be ranked between the first stage's second and third segments," the secretary accompanying the president spoke up.
This speculation caused the president to nod again.
While it wasn't difficult for higher-class citizens to become Evolvers, achieving the status of a powerful Evolver was another hurdle altogether.
And this hurdle lay between the first stage's third and fourth segments.
Out of the twelve segments of the first stage, each third segment presented a bottleneck. Advancing from the third to the fourth segment required not only dedication and effort but also a certain degree of talent.
Higher-class citizens might possess exceptional abilities in other areas, which allowed them to contribute to human civilization and earn the recognition of the Goddess of Wisdom.
However, evolutionary talent was something that even money couldn't buy.
While gene potions could forcibly enhance one's evolution, they carried a certain mortality rate, and higher-class citizens certainly wouldn't gamble with their lives.
"Well said, Little Zhang," the president praised his secretary with an approving glance.
Zhu Qianqian listened from the side, offering no objection.
Even though she had a good impression of Lin Yuan, strength was strength.
"Notify me when Mr. Lin's assessment is over," the president said as he turned to leave.
Just then, the display screen in front of Zhu Qianqian lit up with the first light column.
"It looks like Mr. Lin's assessment has begun," the president remarked, suddenly losing interest in leaving and opting to sit and wait for Lin Yuan's assessment to conclude.
In his opinion, Lin Yuan likely possessed strength equivalent to the first stage's third segment, and he would only need to pass three stages.
However, what happened next left the president stunned.
After the first light column illuminated, the second light column lit up in an instant.
Then the third.
The fourth.
The fifth.
Until all twelve light columns were shining brightly.
And during this time, the president hadn't even fully sat down yet.
"Did he reach the twelfth segment?" Zhu Qianqian asked, her eyes wide with surprise, while the president beside her wore a look of astonishment as well.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
