Xie Yi was also slumped on the ground. Ignoring the discomfort of his body, he forced himself off the ground. Opening his mouth, a plume of smoke billowed out as he grumbled, "D*mmit, a spiritual mutation ability causing harm to its user? How is that reasonable?!"

Xie Yi was undoubtedly miffed by this ability of his. His spiritual mutation had given him a very powerful ability, Electrify. However, in contrast to others who could control their spiritual mutation abilities perfectly, he had no way to control Electrify. Whenever he used Electrify, he would be harmed in the process as well, though the damage would be half of what his target endures. Still, even at half strength, it was not pleasant. Furthermore, Electrify was not helpful in piloting mecha, perhaps even completely useless — Xie Yi was very disappointed by this, thinking that it was better to have no ability at all over having this c.r.a.ppy one.

On a tree not too far away, two red-clad youths — one sitting, one standing and leaning against the trunk of the tree — were observing Xie Yi"s and Yuan Chen"s fight.

"The punk Boss told us to watch in his message sure is impressive ..." said the seated youth with a grin. He was very pleased with Xie Yi.

"Was there ever any doubt of Boss Lan"s judgment? ... I"m actually more curious about how Boss managed to send us messages ..." said the standing stern-faced youth. This was something he just could not figure out.

Once the grand armed melee started, all the students" communicators had lost their communicative functions. Aside from the notifications automatically given by the mainframe, as well as the surrender and ask for rescue b.u.t.tons, all other functions were disabled. But all this, to Ling Lan, did not seem to be a problem at all. It was the same back then on planet Demonbeast, and it was the same again here now with the grand armed melee.

"Why think so much ...?" The seated youth cast a moody glance at his companion. His friend just liked to think too much all the time — even simple things became complicated in his mind. "Jijyun, stop wasting your energy thinking about it. If Boss didn"t mention it, it just means that this is not something we can do."

He really understood his boss. If it were something they could learn, Boss would not be stingy and keep it to himself. Since Boss said nothing about it, it was probably something they could not do with their abilities. There was no point for them to worry about it.

The standing youth blanked out for a moment at his companion"s words, and then, coming to terms with his realisation, he chuckled wryly and said, "Qi Long, you really are the one who understands Boss the best ..." Qi Long"s words had parted the fog of confusion in his mind. Thinking back, it was indeed as Qi Long had said — as long as it was something they could use, Ling Lan would never keep it to himself. So, since Ling Lan had not said anything, that meant that this thing was not something they could know or bear ... In contrast to Qi Long"s simple thought process, Han Jijyun would still reflect on these things a little deeper.

These two people were none other than Qi Long and Han Jijyun. The two-man team had had a smooth time of it, easily defeating many 10th grade merit cla.s.s teams and Cla.s.s-B teams. In fact, they were rather disappointed that they had not encountered any 10th grade Cla.s.s-A teams.

And then, not too long ago, Qi Long had received a short text from Ling Lan, saying that a very interesting fellow had appeared in this location. Ling Lan had said that the boy was very strong, and had hidden his talents very deeply. He wanted them to come over and see, and if they were satisfied, they could take him in as the 6th member of their team.

They had stood here and watched for about 5 minutes, getting a general idea of the other"s capabilities. Even though the boy was a little weaker than Qi Long, he would probably be a match for Luo Lang.

"Eh? He seems to be using his awakened talent!" Qi Long surprised exclamation startled Han Jijyun from his thoughts. Han Jijyun looked over, and sure enough, that fellow"s body showed signs of using his innate talent. Ever since the term "awakened innate talent" had been brought up by Ling Lan, Qi Long"s team had no longer called "awakened innate talent" as "spiritual mutation" anymore. This was because they felt that Ling Lan"s term for it seemed more appropriate.

Regarding this new term, they were not at all surprised, because all kinds of new terminology had been spouting endlessly from their Boss Lan — they were already used to it.

The two of them watched until the final blow was dealt, also seeing how Xie Yi was tortured half to death by his own innate talent. Qi Long could not help but laugh, "This innate talent is really interesting, actually turning against its own user ... what a quirky talent!"

Watching the scene before them, even the typically serious Han Jijyun could not stop his face from twitching, unable to accept this reality for a moment. He had studied awakened innate talents, a.k.a. spiritual mutation, at depth, so all relevant information was known to him. And yet, he had really never seen mention of such a quirky talent — dealing 1000 damage to the enemy while dealing 800 damage to oneself? This was absolutely an ultimate move meant to drag an opponent down with you at the very end ...

Xie Yi suddenly stopped complaining about his ability, lifting his head to look in the direction of the two boys. "Hey, have you guys seen enough?" he asked coldly. Done with the fight, Xie Yi immediately sensed eyes on him as he calmed down.

"Haha, very cautious, and your senses are also very alert. Really not bad at all!" Hearing this, Qi Long immediately replied with a laugh. The more he looked at this fellow in front of them, the more he liked him. He really wished he could just invite him to join their team immediately.

Frankly, it was very easy to obtain Qi Long"s favour. As long as one was strong enough and able to fight with him often, then everything was OK.

Qi Long had barely finished speaking when he had jumped down from the tree, running over to Xie Yi. Seeing this, Han Jijyun could only follow him speechlessly. Qi Long had always been a man of action — Han Jijyun was really helpless to do anything about that.

"Qi Long!" The other being the consistent top rank of their grade, Xie Yi was still very familiar with Qi Long. His gaze then swept to Han Jijyun standing behind Qi Long, and a trace of recognition flashed through his eyes. These two have always been as thick as thieves — for them both to appear before him together was pretty normal ... the only thing was, why would they just happen to stop here and notice his fight? Could it be due to him being a white-coat, while his opponent was a red-coat? Xie Yi was trying to figure out the reason for Qi Long and Han Jijyun"s appearance here.

"I don"t know when Boss noticed you, but you"re really very strong. Inviting you to join our team, I approve," said Qi Long calmly after sizing up Xie Yi from head to toe.

"Join your team?" Xie Yi was bewildered, "Why?" Anyone would be confused and lost if a person suddenly appeared without warning to invite them to join their team.

Qi Long was just about to speak when Han Jijyun suddenly tugged on his sleeve, causing him to instantly close his mouth. Qi Long was a lazy person — since Han Jijyun was signalling that he wanted to speak, then Qi Long would happily back off and wait. He could save his words trying to convince the other.

Han Jijyun stepped forward, and with a serious expression, he asked, "May I know how I should address you?"

"Xie Yi!" Xie Yi was subdued by Han Jijyun"s formal and serious demeanour. This was the kind of person he found most difficult to resist.

"Schoolmate Xie Yi, are you currently in any other team?" If he already had a team, Han Jijyun would just end the conversation here. Although they truly still lacked a teammate, they would not go and steal members of some other team. This was something that was beneath them.

"As a matter of fact, no!" Hiding his true capabilities all this while, he naturally had no interest in joining those weak teams which approached him. Thus, he had been a lone wolf this entire time.

Hearing his reply, Han Jijyun"s stern expression eased a little, however, he continued to explain seriously and earnestly to Xie Yi, "It"s like this. Our team is currently still missing a member, and we"re planning to attempt the barrier-crossing mission in the virtual world soon. Being able to enter the real virtual world one step earlier to experience mecha combat — would you be interested?"

Xie Yi jerked his head up, eyes trained on Han Jijyun"s, trying to determine if he was truly being honest.

With regards to mecha combat, of course he was interested. The reason he had been going solo all this time was partly just waiting for the right bid. He had kept an eye on the 3 major teams in Cla.s.s-A, seeking an opportunity to cooperate with them. Of course, he had also once considered making his own team to complete the mission on his own, but unfortunately, all the capable students had been whisked away by the 3 major teams. As such, he had had no choice but to temporarily set aside that arrangement.

But now, to his surprise, Ling Lan"s team actually took the initiative to invite him to join. This surprised him greatly, his heart beginning to pound rapidly because of this invitation. No matter how much he had tried to keep a low profile, he was still a 13 year old youth at heart — he still wanted to be the centre of others" attention. If not for the grand goal he had set since young of making a grand entrance when he applied for the First Men"s Military Academy, he definitely would not have been able to tolerate and hold back for so many years ...

"A collaboration?" asked Xie Yi carefully. He needed to know whether this was a temporary team, or a team meant for lifelong companionship. Depending on the answer, his decision might very well be different as well ...

Han Jijyun instinctively turned to look at Qi Long, and they shared a glance, subtle amus.e.m.e.nt in their gazes. Han Jijyun then turned back to look at Xie Yi and said, "Collaboration?"

A trace of disappointment flashed through Xie Yi"s eyes; as expected, a stranger like him who joined halfway was only suitable for a temporary collaboration.

"No!" Han Jijyun"s subsequent words shocked Xie Yi so much that his jaw dropped, his expression filled with disbelief.

"We only take in companions. Collaboration? We have plenty others for that." Wu Jiong and Ye Xu, for example were all candidates for collaboration, but they would never become members of their team. From the very beginning Ling Lan had said that their team would rather go without than settle for someone substandard. Once someone joined them though, then that person would be a long-term companion, a friend they would trust at their back on the battlefield when they battled for their lives.

"If you only want to collaborate with us ... then, sorry, our invitation is void." When Han Jijyun said this, his expression was cold and unyielding, a sharp glint flashing through his eyes.

At this moment, Xie Yi"s feelings were extremely conflicted. Agreeing would mean that he would become a member of Ling Lan"s team. He would have to sign an agreement stating that he could not drop out of the team of his own accord. Most importantly, if he and his team leader happened to apply to and be accepted by the same military school, the team would be maintained, so he would not be able to join an even stronger team.

Mind you, whether it was Ling Lan or Qi Long as the team leader, Xie Yi believed that both of them were fully capable of successfully enrolling into the First Men"s Military Academy. In other words, this current decision of his may very well be a lifelong choice ...

As if sensing Xie Yi"s internal struggle, Qi Long and Han Jijyun did not hurry the other. After all, this was indeed a major decision that would affect his future — he could not afford to be careless about it. On their end, they also wished for the other to consider things thoroughly before making his decision. They wanted him to join full-heartedly as a loyal companion who could grow with them, and not join with lingering doubts and uncertainty in his mind, unable to view them as true friends.

Unable to make a decision, Xie Yi thought of Qi Long"s exploits as the top rank in the cross-grade challenges, and knew that the other"s capabilities were no weaker than his own. He also thought of the mysterious and unpredictable Boss Ling Lan behind Qi Long ...