The next day was still sweltering hot, with the sun rising very early.
The battleship’s deployment last night had stirred some discussion, but most people just assumed a student had run into trouble and didn’t think much of it. Everyone resumed focusing on the competition. This desolate planet showed signs of once being inhabited by humans—even the area where strange beasts now roamed frequently was still surrounded by thick earthen walls.
But now, it was long abandoned. The crumbling ruins amidst the wind and sand had become nests for the beasts.
Plenty of people came here during the day to hunt them. Early in the morning, Team He Came pushed a cart that looked like an ancient roadside breakfast stand and approached from the distance.
The cart was something Rong Shao had cobbled together from parts at the supply station. Its wooden wheels creaked over the sand with a squeak, squeak sound.
Thinking they had developed some impressive new weapon, the onlookers immediately went on high alert.
Ji Tianjin’s spirit form formed a full barrier around the breakfast cart, shielding it from the heat. Under the wary stares of the crowd, Su Cha pulled out a few small watermelons he had grown overnight. Some were clearly under-ripe, barely the size of two fists.
“Selling watermelon,” he announced calmly.
“……”
Seeing no reaction from the crowd, Su Cha then brought out a few cucumbers and handed one to each of his teammates. The whole team stood there, munching on cucumbers while staring intently at the others.
The freshmen, exhausted from hunting beasts, instantly turned red-eyed. Who could bear this?
“Let’s rob them!”
Someone voiced what everyone was thinking.
With morale flaring up, their attack strength also surged. They now had only one goal—take down the beasts quickly, then stage a robbery.
Those injured weren’t too affected by the negative side effects of food. For example, Di Yuansi wanted to howl but didn’t have the strength, only managing a few weak whimpers. But Liu Xiqin and Rong Shao weren’t injured. With their power significantly boosted, the two joined forces and beat up the first person who charged.
“Holy—” a nearby freshman stared wide-eyed. “Did they eat some kind of super pill?”
But… how come none of them showed signs of weakness?
Su Cha seized the moment to introduce, “Classmates, this is a new variety of watermelon developed by our team. It cools you down, quenches thirst, and boosts strength. All hand-grown.”
“Observe: Step one—take out the seed. Step two—bury it in a barrel. Step three—stimulate it with spiritual energy. Oh, and don’t forget to add a bit of Jialejia fertilizer.”
Since his healing ability hadn’t fully awakened, Su Cha had kept it hidden. But his talent for planting didn’t need to be concealed. Last night’s assassination attempt had shown him that displaying some value was necessary—that was the only way to be truly noticed by the higher-ups. Otherwise, each attempt on his life would be brushed off lightly.
The melon sprout grew effortlessly, giving the crowd the illusion of “I could do that too.”
“If you dare rob us, I’ll destroy every last watermelon,” Su Cha said with a pleasant smile, having already seen through their intentions. “Of course, you could capture me—but I’ll immediately withdraw from the competition.”
Everyone began to reassess.
Teaming up to rob them wasn’t hard, but there were only a few watermelons on the cart. How would they split them afterward? The rules didn’t forbid fights between teams, and stealing supplies was allowed, but intentionally injuring others came with consequences after the match. And they couldn’t force Su Cha to farm.
Thinking it through, it didn’t seem worth the fight.
“How much?” someone asked suspiciously. “I heard from other teams yesterday that your food has strong side effects.”
Su Cha told the truth: “It’ll leave you with a trace of the spirit form’s traits, but it’s not poisonous—harmless overall.”
As he said “harmless,” his teammates either looked up at the sky or rubbed their noses, their gazes wandering.
Su Cha held up two fingers and smiled in the sunlight like a little fox. “One watermelon, in exchange for helping us cripple two strange beasts.”
Then he cautiously glanced up at the drone overhead.
Good—no flashing red warning lights. That meant voluntarily offering beasts wasn’t against the rules.
“Deal.” If the food really worked as well as it looked, it was worth it. Besides, in cooperation, they’d still get half the points.
Su Cha beamed. “Big brother is so straightforward.”
That “big brother” was both sweet and obediently said. The person on the other side suddenly felt—what’s two strange beasts? Three would be fine too!
Ji Tianjin raised a brow at that and gave a deliberate cough. “It’s business. Don’t get emotional with them.”
To be honest, he’d treated Su Cha quite well, and yet he hadn’t even gotten a single “big brother” himself.
“We want one too.” Another team spoke up.
Others decided to wait and observe.
One hand exchanged for a crippled beast, the other for a watermelon. After the buyer crippled the beast, Liu Xiqin would finish it off.
Those who got the watermelon eagerly began sharing and eating it. Previously, they had been reluctant to drink much nutrient solution, and hunting strange beasts was physically exhausting. The detector had already confirmed it was non-toxic, so they felt relatively at ease eating it.
“How does it feel?” someone watching asked.
“Very good, there’s a hint of sweetness,” one replied. The watermelon Su Cha grew had a faint floral fragrance that could be tasted. “The juice is sweet, the flesh is crisp, it refreshes the mind and fills you with energy.”
Someone nearby twitched at the overly detailed description.
Before the refreshing sensation of the first bite even faded, the person eating suddenly had their muscles bulge all over, and even their hair stood up like needles. Feeling his energy was now sufficient, his blood boiling, he actually tossed aside the small remaining piece of watermelon and shouted that he was going to hunt strange beasts.
The watermelon rind half-buried in the sand made others’ eyes go red with envy.
However, when others tried to buy more, the food cart was already gone.
Su Cha said, “The smell of blood is too strong here.”
Strange beasts in the desert—especially in Zone E—were relatively scattered. There were only five or six in this ruin altogether. But with so many people gathered and the scent of blood in the air, there was a high chance of attracting other dangerous creatures.
The “He’s Here” team officially set off with their food cart toward nearby areas. The rear of the cart had a shaded section under a parasol. Su Cha sat on a plank, wearing sunglasses, humming a tune while growing watermelon vines with his powers.
Behind them, someone watching the departing cart and figures muttered, “A mobile food cart?”
…
The mobile food cart’s journey wasn’t always smooth. Just like now—a mutated lizard suddenly burst from underground. It was long and shockingly fast, almost flipping the cart.
But the lizard was timid. As soon as they released some spiritual pressure, it fled without a trace.
Rong Shao: “With courage like that, how does it survive in the desert?”
As he spoke, his expression subtly changed, sensing something. From the ground came a rustling sound—something seemed to be moving with them not far behind.
Su Cha frowned. A sand dune? No, the color was darker, leaning reddish-brown. Suddenly, his eyes widened slightly: “Army ants!”
Almost the instant he finished speaking, the food cart shot across the desert like lightning. It wasn’t the wheels moving—it was the team members using their spiritual power to drag it forward at full speed.
Su Cha was bounced up several times, surrounded by walls of spiritual energy: “Let me down first, I’ll—”
Before he could finish, he was bounced again. Thankfully, his demonic power helped him glide down.
Are you guys bouncing on cotton?
“Just hang in there,” Di Yuansi, running almost parallel to the cart, said. “If we get caught, it’ll be a nightmare.”
Unlike the strange beasts, they couldn’t fly. Every second counted.
“Isn’t that the Cold Winter Squad?” Su Cha spotted a group running diagonally ahead. He still remembered them—they had tried to rob his team on the very first day of the competition.
The Cold Winter Squad wasn’t as fast as them. As they passed by, Su Cha turned his head and asked, “Hey friend, wanna buy some watermelon?”
Captain Zhou Li’s temple twitched. At a time like this, he’s still thinking about selling? But he had witnessed the power of that food firsthand.
“Want one?” Su Cha pressed.
Zhou Li actually hesitated. One teammate murmured, “Maybe we should stock one?”
It replenished energy, wasn’t toxic, and aside from the slight madness afterward, there didn’t seem to be any drawbacks. Thinking that way, Zhou Li made a quick decision: “Buy.”
Who knew what they might encounter while running—more strange beasts or other creatures? Any fight would drain their energy.
Su Cha, the fair-dealing seller, didn’t raise the price—still two strange beasts per watermelon.
Zhou Li glanced at his smart device. “Head southeast. We’ll trade in an area with active beasts.” Then he glanced at Su Cha. “Where’s the melon?”
“At work,” Su Cha wiggled his fingers. “Don’t rush.”
He kept nurturing the watermelon vines as he spoke.
“…”
Spectators could freely switch livestream cameras. Originally, the commentator had been focusing on A-Zone’s ace team led by Zhou Zhiyuan, but couldn’t resist and switched to Su Cha’s group, zooming in.
“The ‘He’s Here’ squad members are all somewhat injured. Last night, the signal briefly cut out—we don’t know what they encountered,” the commentator said, then smoothly shifted topics as if receiving instructions: “Team member Su Cha is working hard growing watermelons. Seems his ability relates to plants.”
The topic shift was natural, and most of the chat focused on the plant-growing ability, not the signal loss.
Chat comments:
Blood Dance: [Mystic-type ability?]
Cane-to-Battlefield: [I knew it. A general wouldn’t recommend someone for no reason. Those calling it nepotism, apologize!]
Ladder: [Jealous. With this ability, he could get into the First Military Academy without an exam.]
….
The barrage scrolled quickly. The commentator smiled and added, “Let’s not forget Su Cha has the ‘Rose Warrior’ medal. Even without a mystic-type ability, he’s eligible for the First Military Academy.”
“As the saying goes, all roads lead to Rome. For this young man, every road leads to the First Military Academy!”
Thankfully, the smart device wasn’t connected to the outside internet. If Su Cha heard this, he might’ve wept in the wind.
Midway, Ji Tianjin discovered a snake nest, causing the army ants to switch targets. The food cart finally slowed down.
Rong Shao sighed in relief. “The desert really is full of dangers.”
Su Cha was very practical: “As long as it doesn’t interfere with business, it’s fine.”
The Cold Winter Squad running beside them was speechless. Zhou Li suddenly halted, took out a telescope, and spotted warships heading toward a location. “Looks like someone called for rescue.”
Calling for rescue meant forfeiting the competition. Su Cha’s case fell under the investigation department’s jurisdiction, so Ji Tianjin still retained his qualification. But there wouldn’t be another ‘Fasite’ on this desolate star.
Several teams were running in their direction. Upon seeing the food cart, they paused.
Su Cha: “Classmate, what’s going on?”
One looked grim but didn’t hide it: “Royal-class strange beast.”
At these words, everyone except Su Cha and Ji Tianjin showed a visible reaction. Su Cha was just unfamiliar. “Is it strong?”
He hadn’t seen any entry on royal-class beasts in his earlier searches.
Ji Tianjin: “Royal-class beasts are incredibly intelligent. They can even understand human language.”
Su Cha froze briefly.
Ji Tianjin added, “There’ve been several cases—royal-class beasts secretly living in human settlements. Their goal wasn’t to attack, but to learn.”
“With such a big body, how do they hide?”
“Through underground routes or by leaving offspring in secluded places. Very hard to guard against,” Rong Shao chimed in. “Luckily, the capital has His Majesty watching over things, so their plots rarely succeed.”
Neither the Cold Winter Squad nor the “He’s Here” team wanted to provoke a royal-class beast before they awakened fully. They opted to detour.
Along the way, Zhou Li suddenly remembered something. “I recall that Fog Star once fought a planet ruled by a royal-class beast.”
Su Cha immediately feigned curiosity, knowing there was too little available information online. “When was that?”
Zhou Li shrugged. “Not sure. It started as a story from a vagrant on a desolate star. Everyone thought he was lying—until the beast attacks on Fog Star confirmed it.”
They were new students, not yet as time-strapped as seniors. Some gossip slipped in.
Liu Xiqin spoke up: “I heard there was a major battle more than ten years ago.”
Rong Shao: “To be precise, thirteen or fourteen years ago.”
Su Cha’s footsteps faltered.
Beside him, Ji Tianjin noticed it out of the corner of his eye.
Rong Shao, unaware, continued: “My old man mentioned it. Fog Star purchased a large batch of weapons back then.”
Fog Star was a semi-isolated planet, rarely contacting outsiders. This bit of old history piqued everyone’s interest.
“Part of the order came through my family. Fog Star provided a weapon blueprint, and His Majesty waived the cost. It was a smooth deal.”
…
Endless cosmos.
Dozens of cold warships pierced through a large, unstable wormhole. The violent currents inside occasionally formed whirlpools, seemingly capable of devouring anything—even ash.
When the ship’s wings scraped against one vortex, they forcefully cut through it and charged on.
These ships were merely the vanguard sent by Fog Star. A full legion was still en route.
Few dared to traverse such unstable wormholes, but they drastically cut travel time.
The pilot watched the control panel. “Estimated arrival at the interstellar battlefield in three days.”
The adjutant turned and bowed slightly to the marshal. “Many star pirates are active in that area. Interrogating them one by one is too inefficient.”
“Exterminate them,” the marshal said coldly. “Slaughter them until they’re terrified—until someone gives us the name of the pirate who harmed the child recently.”
There were no children on an interstellar battlefield. This suggested a star pirate had taken on a very specific job.
A marshal in charge of an entire legion was never someone brave but brainless. Star pirates were numerous and ruthless—no force could realistically kill them all.
“Send a message to the king—ask if we should establish diplomatic ties with the Galan Empire.”
Two blades pointed at the same enemy would surely yield results quickly.
