SWNOVELXO Chapter 89 - Dawn
Although five points may seem like a small amount, in fact, every point is precious for new students.
Each new student starts school with only ten points. This ensures that they don’t begin with zero or a negative balance, which is a consideration by the school for incoming freshmen. However, to earn additional points later on, they can only do so through training and exams, while there are countless ways to lose points.
The school’s penalties for point deductions are typically significant. For example, on the first day of classes, many students were penalized between ten to fifty points for being found with prohibited items.
As a result, many students ended up with negative scores from the outset, having to gradually make up for it by completing daily training standards to earn one or two points at a time.
However, Jiang Hui was essentially a training failure and barely met the standards, so she couldn’t earn many points.
Fortunately, she hadn’t lost any points, and during one training session last week, she received a reward of two points for her exceptional performance. Combined with the two additional points earned by the class as a group, she currently had fourteen points. The agent had cost her almost a third of her total points, which was quite painful.
However, before she could dwell on her regret for too long, it was time to set off on the next segment of the journey.
This temporary resting point is actually located partway up the mountain; they have not yet reached the summit.
As a result, the students trekked over steep and treacherous mountain paths. Upon reaching the top, the lead instructor marked a sign to indicate their team’s arrival at the summit.
Although there were no staff members at this point, there were automated recording devices that would capture their actions upon arrival and send the footage to the main observation station, where observing instructors would evaluate and award points.
However, the weather took a turn for the worse; shortly after they descended from the summit, it began to pour with heavy rain.
Was this some kind of extra atmosphere added to their training? It seemed like they weren’t being spared any discomfort, as everything was set up for them to experience.
The instructor quickly used a spatial storage compartment to set up a large tent and urged the students to hurry inside. The rainwater on Planet 732 is highly acidic and can be particularly corrosive to certain materials. Human skin is relatively delicate and sensitive, and contact can easily cause allergic reactions.
Afterward, the students retrieved their specially made raincoats from their packs and put them on, and the instructor then called everyone to set off again.
However, for a group of people struggling to walk, the rain felt incredibly unfriendly.
Although the specially designed raincoats could protect their delicate skin and evaporate some of the acidic and corrosive components, they were not airtight. The weakened and purified rainwater flowed down her neck and into the interior, where the acidic smell permeated the environment inside the raincoat, making it quite uncomfortable.
Throughout her life, Jiang Hui had always been someone with a very sensitive sense of smell and had high standards for the odors in her environment. This imbalanced environment caused her extreme discomfort, even more so than the arduous mountain path they had just traversed.
The instructor likely recognized that such an environment was harmful to the students’ physical and mental health, so he quickened his pace, constantly urging everyone to leave the area affected by the acid rain.
Although walking in the rain while wearing the raincoats was quite uncomfortable, Jiang Hui found some comfort in the existence of the raincoat. It was an all-encompassing design that also wrapped around the flag behind her, pressing against her back and providing a strong sense of presence. She didn’t have to keep turning her head to check if it was still there.
This descent did not lead them to a designated resting point at a symmetrical location, but the journey went relatively smoothly. Perhaps because of the previous preparations, their movements down the mountain became much quicker. However, some people were reaching their limits at this point.
The student in front of Jiang Hui seemed to be from the nursing program. While taking a break in the temporary rest area, she overheard that he was from an ordinary discipline. Although he was a tall and sturdy guy, the training was still based on standard norms, and after trekking over seventy kilometers to the summit, he was basically at his limit.
However, he was aware of his position in the middle of the group. If he fell behind, it could affect the students in front and behind him. So he gritted his teeth and persevered. At the same time, many other students were experiencing similar situations, and they still had nearly half of the journey to the final point of the training.
To encourage the students, the instructor continually organized them to chant slogans, reminding everyone that their core support was still present.
The sky was getting brighter, and it was nearing the hotter part of the morning, accompanied by significant acid rain, making the environment even worse. The temperature of the ground felt unusually high. After enduring the arduous trek, the students had reached their limits.
“Be careful!” Seeing that the student in front seemed about to collapse, leaning forward, Jiang Hui quickly pulled him back, waking him from his daze.
Although the training process didn’t require them to remain silent, the journey had already been so grueling that everyone was focused on the path beneath their feet, let alone chatting. Jiang Hui hadn’t spoken a word the whole way, but she realized her jaw had been clenched tighter and tighter, and at some point, her mouth had been bitten, causing her to taste blood. When she opened her mouth to speak, she could taste iron.
Jiang Hui had just shouted such a small phrase, just two words, when she realized that her voice had become so hoarse, sounding like a broken gong, with a sharp pain in her throat. Jiang Hui wondered if she had somehow injured herself by holding back.
Then she heard the person in front mumble something indistinctly, saying what sounded like “thank you,” but his voice was weak and faint, making it clear that he was utterly exhausted.
As a result, Jiang Hui didn’t think much of it and didn’t plan to engage in conversation, not wanting to waste the little strength he had left. However, she couldn’t help but feel a wave of pessimism about the journey ahead… When would this long road ever end? Some people were already unable to continue, so how long could she hold on?
They didn’t know how long they had been running through the wind and rain, but it seemed they had finally escaped the hot and stuffy acidic rain zone, and the sky was clearing.
Finally, the instructor told everyone that they had passed the mountain foot and were approaching a point for descent. According to the markers, there should be a temporary resting place ahead where they could stop and replenish their energy.
After enduring the oppressive conditions for so long, the students couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement upon hearing this. Finally, finally, they saw a glimmer of hope—though they knew it was only temporary, it was still a chance to catch their breath and not have to suffer endlessly without a glimpse of the way forward.
Now, there was no need for the instructor to shout slogans to motivate them. These exhausted freshmen surged toward the temporary resting place, their speed so quick that even the lead instructor found it hard to keep up.