"Alright, it's about time to start. You prepare a little more, and you can set off."

Chen Daosheng checked the time and reminded him again.

Lin Ye nodded in agreement.

When the advancement starts, there will be ten minutes for participants to enter the Secret Realm.

If one fails to enter the Secret Realm within those ten minutes, it will be considered an automatic forfeit, and if they still wish to participate in the competition, they'll have to wait until next year.

Every year, quite a few people don't manage to 'timely' participate in the competition for various reasons.

What these people actually think, only they know for sure.

Since there was still time, Lin Ye simply sat down to meditate.

With his attribute panel, even if he went several days and nights without rest, he probably wouldn't feel fatigue; under extreme conditions, even a month might not affect him much.

However, due to habitual reasons, prolonged lack of rest does indeed affect a Professional's combat power, so most Professionals still need proper rest.

It's not about how long to sleep exactly; generally, sitting and meditating for about ten minutes, like Lin Ye was doing, is enough to restore a Professional's mental state to its peak.

"The advancement has started."

About half an hour later, Chen Daosheng, who had been keeping watch, reminded him.

Meanwhile, Lin Ye opened his eyes almost simultaneously, clearly having reached his peak state of Essence, Qi, and Spirit!

Even Chen Daosheng could feel a subtle sense of pressure emanating from Lin Ye.

This left him somewhat shocked.

In terms of Level, he was way above Lin Ye, yet now he felt a pressure coming from Lin Ye.

This feeling was even stronger than the pressure he felt from those Third-Turn Professionals!

It even made Chen Daosheng wonder if he was experiencing some kind of illusion.

No matter how strong Lin Ye was, feeling this pressure from him seemed downright improbable and baffling.

But this sensation was fleeting, quickly and completely withdrawn by Lin Ye.

Chen Daosheng, momentarily dazed, couldn't be certain if that aura was indeed emitted by Lin Ye.

At that moment, Lin Ye had already stood up.

"Teacher, I'm off!" he said.

"Okay!" Chen Daosheng immediately nodded.

The next moment, a glow appeared beneath Lin Ye's feet, with a small Teleportation Array forming on the ground where he stood.

A flash of light later, Lin Ye vanished from Chen Daosheng's sight.

Seeing Lin Ye disappear, Chen Daosheng let out a long breath...

He felt a tinge of envy amid his relief.

He too was once young, having had dreams of dominating the world as a Professional.

But reality is harsh.

For most people, dreams are just things that, if you're lucky, can be realized in sleep. Once you wake up, things will return to normal.

With his talent and background, achieving his current status and accomplishments was already a stroke of luck.

If not for Lin Ye, he might still have been scrambling for a job after being unemployed.

"You are sure to come back with good results."

Chen Daosheng muttered to himself, full of confidence in Lin Ye.

...

"It's starting! Everyone, quick, get in!"

"I'm off, guys!"

"I suddenly have a stomach ache; I'm going to the restroom first!"

"No way? Backing out at the last minute?"

"Ah, I sprained my ankle... looks like I can't make it this time..."

"Ahhhh! Sand got in my eyes, I'm blind..."

The square was filled with all sorts of clamoring voices.

The students who had already decided to drop out for various reasons all began shouting.

Their reasons were peculiar, with some even collapsing and convulsing without warning, fainting away.

The entire square turned chaotic.

Being new recruits in military training, they couldn't withdraw without good reason, or else they'd get a warning, affecting their military training scores.

But everyone knew what was going on, so the instructors generally wouldn't make things too difficult.

As long as you don't boldly declare you're withdrawing, they'll usually give you a passing score to let you off easily.

As for the reason you use to withdraw, and how it looks in your record, that's up to you.

Some with no fear of disgrace came up with all sorts of bizarre excuses...

Just like the wailing withdrawal students now, each with their own ridiculous explanations, quite embarrassing.

But most students couldn't bring themselves to do such things; aside from a hint of envy at those barefaced individuals, they resolutely chose to enter the competition!

As they entered, the antics of those few rolling on the ground seemed all the more comical.

...

"Slaughter Jungle..."

Lin Ye looked around at his surroundings.

He found himself in a dense rainforest, surrounded by the sounds of various birds and flowing rivers.

Occasionally, the roar of unknown beasts could be heard.

Dappled sunlight filtered through the thick canopy, casting patches of light on the forest floor covered with thick layers of fallen leaves, preventing the environment from being too dark.

Even so, visibility in the dense forest was still low.

In this endless sea of woods, everyone's view was compressed to within ten to thirty meters.

Beyond that, giant trees obscured everything, impossible to see clearly.

This environment was almost identical to those regions in the Human World that had long been abandoned and reverted to primal forests.

"The crow's vision is limited..."

Lin Ye muttered.

This was his first time entering this Secret Realm.

In his past life, by the time he had the strength, he was already over thirty, no longer eligible to enter the competition.

Besides military training competitions, no one usually came to this Secret Realm.

There were no missions or pass conditions here, nothing to do except fight beasts and demons.

Choosing to come here was far less practical than brushing through a standard Secret Realm.

The crow was useless, but fortunately, Lin Ye didn't only have crows as puppets.

He tapped his Spatial Bag, emitting a glow, and at his feet appeared numerous Mechanical Puppet mice.

"Squeak, squeak, squeak..."

The squeaking was incessant.

"Go!"

Lin Ye ordered, and the small mice quickly scattered around.

"I still need to find some people to team up with..."

Lin Ye thought to himself.

Since healing counts as a contribution, there was no need for him to fight.

Unless someone was unwise enough to provoke him.

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