Anderson also looked over, and his face immediately darkened slightly: “Ryan Lincoln?”

　　This virtual world was incredibly realistic, even Anderson’s emotions were fully displayed.

　　Anderson then gave an awkward laugh: “Look at my luck, it’s just terrible! Ryan, for the sake of being classmates for so many years, can you—”

　　Beep! Beep! Beep!

　　Suddenly, three alarm sounds rang out in the arena, and a burst of red light shone from above, enveloping Anderson.

　　Anderson was no longer able to speak.

　　His previous remarks involved cheating, so the system muted him.

　　However, Anderson’s eyes were still watery as he looked at him, full of pleading.

　　Unfortunately, Ryan Lincoln’s heart was as hard as stone.

　　As soon as the battle began, Ryan Lincoln charged forward and finished Anderson with a single slash.

　　Anderson’s recent ranking in the class was around 20th; if it were the old Ryan Lincoln, it would have taken about a minute to win.

　　But now, his Scarlet Thunder Blade was already at the master level, and he finished the fight in an instant.

　　The duration of each battle determined Ryan Lincoln’s combat score, and the combat score determined his overall ranking.

　　Ryan Lincoln wanted to make it into the city’s top 100 and win the school’s reward—how could he hold back in the very first match?

　　Besides, in the future, those variant companies would also look at their actual combat results when recruiting.

　　This Anderson didn’t have a great relationship with him either, so Ryan Lincoln would never go easy on him.

　　In the next seven consecutive battles, Ryan Lincoln finished each one with incredible speed.

　　The longest battle didn’t even last fifteen seconds.

　　He took a moment to check his ranking—currently, he was 142nd in the entire city from Base Nine.

　　Ryan Lincoln was secretly surprised; he had already been finishing battles very quickly.

　　Including waiting and preparation time, he fought seven battles in ten minutes, yet his city ranking had just entered the top 150.

　　There were only nine variant academies in the entire Base Nine city, but they were full of hidden talents.

　　At this moment, another graceful figure appeared before Ryan Lincoln.

　　Ryan Lincoln looked at the name above his opponent’s head—Linda Warren.

Chapter 5: Scarlet Thunder Nine Slashes

　　“Ryan Lincoln?”

　　When Linda Warren saw Ryan Lincoln, her expression was clearly a bit surprised: “You actually made it into the city’s top 200?”

　　She couldn’t check Ryan Lincoln’s ranking, but according to the rules of the practical assessment, the system should match her with an opponent within fifty ranks above or below her.

　　Linda Warren had defeated six opponents in ten minutes, and her current ranking was 183rd.

　　Ryan Lincoln’s face turned slightly cold at her words.

　　This woman’s way of speaking was really annoying, with a condescending tone.

　　So only you are allowed to make it into the top 200?

　　Ryan Lincoln thought of those videos saved in his smart terminal.

　　The original owner of this body had worked harder than most could imagine.

　　He gave everything, training day and night without a single day of slacking, just to catch up with others in terms of resources.

　　In Ryan Lincoln’s view, even if he hadn’t transmigrated, the original owner would still have had a good chance of making it into the city’s top 200.

　　Although the meridian implant quality of Ryan Lincoln was only level two, he had trained his martial arts to a rather advanced level.

　　Especially with the Scarlet Thunder Blade, the original Ryan Lincoln was already close to mastering its most powerful secret move, ‘Scarlet Thunder Nine Slashes’, able to perform seven consecutive slashes.

　　Although this achievement wasn’t as good as George Bennett’s, it was still outstanding among his peers.

　　Ryan Lincoln had never shown this at school, just to amaze everyone in this practical assessment.

　　Seeing that Ryan Lincoln didn’t respond, Linda Warren was a little annoyed.

　　But in her impression, Ryan Lincoln was always like this—cold, aloof, and unsociable. Except for Little Sam Warren, no one in the class could really get along with him.

　　Linda Warren slowly drew the sword at her waist: “Didn’t expect to actually meet you in the practical assessment. Good, I told you before, I’d let you see the results of my month of hard training.”

　　She lowered her stance slightly, her gaze sharp, staring at her opponent like a leopard.

　　Linda Warren had been full of confidence, believing that if she faced Ryan Lincoln, she would definitely defeat him.

　　In the practical assessment, their physical attributes were the same, but their mental strength was determined by previous test results.

　　Mental strength was the most crucial ability for a ‘variant walker’. It not only determined their control over variants, but also the power of their martial arts and the duration of their combat. An outstanding variant walker must have exceptional mental talent, so the Federation government would not insist on absolute fairness.

　　Linda Warren had thought she had a huge advantage in this area, and that even if it came down to endurance, she could outlast Ryan Lincoln.

　　But in the previous mental strength test, Ryan Lincoln’s score was actually higher than hers!

　　This meant that if she wanted to defeat Ryan Lincoln, she would have to end the fight quickly.

　　The two of them had only thirty seconds to prepare. As the countdown ended, both Linda Warren and Ryan Lincoln stepped forward with their right foot at the same time, their bodies pouncing toward their opponent twenty meters away like leopards in pursuit.