Absolute Choice 1

by Pear Lands In The Autumn Spring

  On the way, Lingcun would occasionally make conversation with Shi Xiaobai, mainly to inform Shi Xiaobai of certain things to look out for, for example, a few taboos regarding Instructor Hisith, or a few figures amongst the rookies in this batch that should not be provoked, as well as the power distribution amongst the [Annihilation] rookies.

  "This batch of [Annihilation] rookies are split into Team Blue and Red. Team Blue has always been in a dominant position, because their captain is a strong person at the fourth level of the Psionic Mortal Realm. As such, the team cohesion of Team Blue is extremely high, so they are united against external enemies. As for Team Red, we already have internal fractures."

  Lingcun sighed and gave his analysis. "Due to differences in opinion for voting, Team Red currently has three different factions. The strongest faction is Song Xiao's gang, and the faction that can barely compete with them is the one which Ye Jiaquan and I are in, the Han Feng group. The remaining weakest faction are comprised of those who believe voting should be personal, so they refuse to join any group."

  "Due to two rounds of elimination after voting, Team Red's internal strife has reached such an intensified point that it is irreparable. Although Song Xiao is the strongest person in Team Red, but I personally am dismissive of Song Xiao's exploits, so I do not wish you would join Song Xiao's group. However, after you join Team Red, we would respect your decision regardless of which faction you join."

  As Shi Xiaobai listened to Lingcun, he gently nodded his head, and occasionally issued an "Orh" as a response.

  Although Shi Xiaobai looked uninterested, Lingcun still carried on mentioning things Shi Xiaobai had to look out for with great patience.

  In fact, Shi Xiaobai did not listen to any of this. He was actually considering more important things, such as how did Ye Jiaquan's fist cause a depression in the wall over empty space? For example, how did Lingcun suddenly appear out of thin air? What sort of technique did he use?

  "This Steel Ox is only ranked third in Team Red, and isn't even in the top five when it comes to the all the rookies in [Annihilation]. This King can't even understand his fist!"

  As Shi Xiaobai recalled the power struggle between the factions described by Lingcun, he immediately felt the stress.

  "Looks like Violent Girl did not lie to This King. This King is probably ranked at the bottom of this batch of rookies."

  Shi Xiaobai felt somewhat indignant, but he had no choice but to admit that he was weak. As he glanced at the silver-haired youth and the muscular man beside him, he could not help but think of the words, "maybe Shi Xiaobai has always been by our side". Immediately, he felt a warm rush in his chest.

  "Whatever, whatever. This King shall use a millionth of my effort. A serious Shi Xiaobai even makes This King feel afraid of himself."

  "Wahaha, Laugh out loud! Be excited! Rookies of [Annihilation], your King is here!"

  With this thought in mind, Shi Xiaobai immediately felt his repressed moods swept away. He began to feel great anticipation for the rookie training.

  ...

  ...

  The steel building Ye Jiaquan used to practice his fist was not too far from the rookie training grounds. After a few minutes of walking, the three of them arrived at their destination. On the way there, they had encountered quite a number of rookies, however, only a handful of people casually greeted Ye Jiaquan, and looked at Shi Xiaobai with thoughts on their mind, while all of them completely ignored the extremely handsome Lingcun without any prior arrangement.

  Shi Xiaobai immediately began jeering in his heart how unpopular this silver-haired youth was. However, his mind was quickly attracted by the rookie training grounds.

  He saw a vast field, about the size of ten soccer fields, constructed out of steel. Sunlight reflected off the field in a hot intense beam, and there were several large arena rings dispersed around.

  Located around the field were five steel buildings. Each building had its own purpose. Some were used for lectures, while others were special training rooms. One of the steel buildings was where the Instructors rested. It was said that there were three instructors for this batch of [Annihilation] rookies in the beginning, but later on, Instructor Hisith felt that he alone was enough, and chased the other two instructors away.

  Regarding Hisith's unusual enthusiasm for teaching, [Gaia]'s upper echelons found it strange, but could do nothing about it. As the other two instructors appeared to have experienced a haunting encounter, they had firmly refused to return.

  From Lingcun's depiction, Shi Xiaobai slowly outlined a weird person who liked to play others, while seeking pleasure from the games in life.

  However, when Shi Xiaobai entered Hisith's office, and truly met him, he felt that the image in his mind was not weird enough.

  The man, named Hisith, in front of his eyes was beyond the description of weird.

  His red hair stood up like flames, and his crescent-shaped eyes squinted in a cheeky and playful look. He wore face paint: a star on his right cheek, and a teardrop on his left cheek. It was impossible to tell his age, and his mouth hung with a sinister-looking smile. He was clearly a man, but his facial features gave an illusionary coquettish look.

  When he stood up, he was tall, and had symmetrical muscles. He had long limbs, and wore a tight outfit, with long sleeves and pants. There were several golden rings that tightly bound his waist, making his waist look like a compressed spring. Under the rings' wrapping, his waist looked so thin that it seemed like it could be snapped with a tight grip.

  "You are here."

  At this moment, Hisith's office only had the two of them. The first person to break the silence was Hisith. His voice was gentle, and his footsteps were light. His slender figure was filled with a strange repressive feeling. Every step he took seemed to make the ground tremble.

  Hisith slowly walked in front of Shi Xiaobai, and a strange breath was released from his mouth as his eyes narrowed into a slit. His coquettish smile bloomed on his face.

  "So, what do you intend to do? My beloved little toy?"

  Hisith held up two fingers to raise Shi Xiaobai's chin, lifting his head high up. That motion was like a thug teasing a girl.

  Shi Xiaobai frowned and immediately wanted to retreat, but he was shocked to discover that his body could not move at all. His limbs did not seem like they were under his control. After using all his strength, he was only able to tremble his muscles slightly.

  Hisith focused his eyes to study Shi Xiaobai's face. His eyes sparkled with a strange glint, as if he was admiring his favorite plaything.

  From the bottom of Shi Xiaobai's heart, a sense of nausea suffused. He stopped struggling against the invisible bondage his body was experiencing as he said loudly, "This King, Tu Dahei, has missed classes for a few days. Am here for reporting!"

  Upon hearing this, Hisith issued a strange laughter as he released his hands and took a few steps back.

  "So that's what it is. Your choice is very interesting, but also very boring. You probably have the presumptuous thought that I would agree to your approach, and even help you conceal your identity. However, my beloved little toy, you missed out something. For me, I wish that the game will carry on proceeding and wish that it would become more dynamic. I like things that are different and out of the blue. I hate being read by anyone, and hate an ending that is obvious."

  As Hisith spoke, he pulled out a brand new deck of poker cards from his breast pocket. The back of the poker cards was a short sword that pierced through a six-pointed star.

  Hisith suddenly threw the poker cards into the sky and immediately dozens of poker cards scattered in the sky like falling leaves. However, surprisingly, the poker cards did not flutter to the ground as one would expect. Instead, they were frozen mid air, as if they were fixed in place.

  "Come, my beloved little toy, let us play a little game that no one can guess the outcome."

  Hisith charmingly smiled with squinted eyes.

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  Chapter28 Shi Xiaobai's Intuition

  Dozens of poker cards floated in mid-air and although it looked like a messy distribution, there were no two poker cards that overlapped each other. Shi Xiaobai even realized that in his range of vision, all the backs of the poker cards were facing him. It was probably deliberately done by Hisith.

  "Make your choice. Choose one card out of these fifty-four poker cards. If it has more than ten points, I will help you conceal your identity. If it is ten or below, I will directly eliminate you from the rookie line up. Make your choice, my beloved little toy."

  Hisith said those words with a sinister smile on his face. He had a savoring expression, but his tone was not to be doubted.

  Shi Xiaobai suddenly found his body relaxed. The invisible binding energy had been removed, but once he looked up, his eyes met Hisith's, causing a biting chill to immediately suffuse, as if he had been thrown into a dark forest where danger lurked at every corner.

  Shi Xiaobai instinctively felt fear, but he was unusually furious. The words Hisith said, "make your choice", made him recall that unforgettable sunset, as well as the cold voice that rang in his head.

  "Compared to filling in the blanks or short answer questions, This King prefers questions with options, but This King does not like being forced to make a choice. Why should This King choose from the options you provide? This King refuses. This King chooses—not to choose!" Shi Xiaobai said with a sneer as he looked straight into Hisith's eyes that were narrowed into a slit. He felt like there was the coldest blade hidden behind those slits. Every moment he looked at them made him lose a bit of his courage, but Shi Xiaobai did not shift his gaze.

  "Very good! Very good! Very good!"

  Hisith suddenly looked up and issued a harsh and sharp laughter hysterically. It was terrifying. Then he inserted his five fingers into his flaming red hair, his mouth pursed into a sinister arc.

  "Shi Xiaobai, O' Shi Xiaobai, my liking for you is truly increasing. Your choice makes me surprised, so I am very satisfied."

  Hisith put out his tongue to lick his lips. Suddenly, his body seemed to teleport through the densely hovering poker cards without them moving, as Hisith appeared in front of Shi Xiaobai.

  Shi Xiaobai's pupils contracted as he could not help but draw a gasp. Suddenly he found his body bound by that invisible force once again, there was no way to move his stiff body.

  Hisith leaned his face close to Shi Xiaobai, and whispered, like how lovers exchanged whispers, "But the game has already begun. I will not allow you to quit midway. So you still have to make a choice. If you don't, I will..."

  Hisith dragged out the word "will" before suddenly closing his mouth. This dragged out word that suddenly came to an abrupt stop sparked boundless imaginations. Shi Xiaobai could not help but begin thinking. If he insisted on not choosing, what would this depraved person do?

  Shi Xiaobai felt his heartbeat increasing rapidly, and his back was beginning to ooze with sweat. The fear that came from the bottom of his soul occupied his mind. The sinister face that was inches away from him looked like the face of a most ferocious wraith.

  "Relax, relax. Don't be nervous."

  Hisith laughed softly as he reached out his right hand, gently caressing Shi Xiaobai's cheek with a sharp nail .

  The cold nail moved across Shi Xiaobai’s face, immediately giving him goosebumps.

  "It's just a little game. This King can join you in this game, is that fine? Hurry up and take your hand away."

  Shi Xiaobai was extremely furious, but he no longer dared to put on a brave front. His intuition told him that the depraved person in front of him was very "dangerous".

  Upon hearing this, Hisith slowly retracted his hand. He had a slight disappointment on his face, as he turned around to take a step. In a blink of an eye, he had returned to the other side, across the poker cards.

  "Choose. Choose the poker card that you think is greater than ten."

  Hisith stressed the rules once again. As he said, this was a game no one could guess the outcome to. Success and failure only depended on luck.

  Of course, this game was considerably unfavorable for Shi Xiaobai. Amongst the fifty-four poker cards, the number of cards with faces greater than ten only numbered fourteen.

  Shi Xiaobai focused on the floating poker cards but could only see the six-sided star with the short sword face on the cards. He could not tell the difference, much less be able to find the fourteen cards amongst the fifty-four cards. It looked like he needed a certain amount of luck..

  "This card!"

  In three seconds, Shi Xiaobai had made his choice. He stretched out his hand to point at an unnoticeable card out of the dozens of cards. It was not at a corner, nor was it at a particularly unique location. In fact, it looked extremely ordinary.

  However, Shi Xiaobai's eyes were brimming with confidence. The demeanor of his expression and his tone was extremely determined, as if the choice he made was definitely correct. It seemed like he was destined to win despite the outcome of this game of luck being completely unknown.

  Hisith was standing on the other side of the poker cards, so he could immediately see what card Shi Xiaobai had chosen. His gaze stared intently at the chosen card, as he fell into a long silence.

  "You passed, my little friend, Tu Dahei. I look forward to the upcoming rookie training. I will definitely give you 'my love'."

  After a long while, Hisith finally announced the game's outcome. His voice was still coquettish, but was now apparently exceptionally cold. When he said the two words "my love", he even enunciated it with a tone that was absolutely terrifying.

  Shi Xiaobai felt the invisible bondage disappear immediately once again. Without another word, he hurried out of the office. He felt that every second he spent with this depraved person was dangerous.

  After Shi Xiaobai left, Hisith was still maintaining the same posture. His eyes were still on the poker card Shi Xiaobai chose.

  "A one in fifty-four chance. Was it by coincidence or simply inevitable?"

  Hisith stretched out his hand to hold the poker card Shi Xiaobai chose. The other fifty-three poker cards suddenly transformed into plumes of blue flames, turning to ash after burning for a moment.

  As for the poker card in Hisith's hand, it revealed its front side—it was the highest trump card, "Red Joker"!

  "It looks like you indeed possess the Perception of God, and it's the strongest one at that. Interesting, definitely interesting. As a toy, you are truly too extravagant for me."

  "However, the game has only just begun. I will 'teach' you well, and I hope you will not disappoint me."

  Hisith placed the "Red Joker" into his breast pocket as a sinister smile suffused on his lips.

  ...

  ...

  After walking out the office, Shi Xiaobai still felt panic-stricken. He hurried his footsteps, afraid that the hateful, depraved person would chase after him.

  "Yet another monster that covets This King's divine body. Thankfully This King was fast in getting away!"

  The more he thought, the more he felt fear after the event. However, just thinking of himself being able to choose a poker card that was greater than ten out of fifty-four poker cards made him happy.

  "There is indeed nothing This King can't do! Isn't it just a bet on luck? This King has never feared it!"

  While Shi Xiaobai was choosing the poker card, he thought of how he had blindly made a shot during the rookie evaluation’s ability test. Immediately, he had felt like he had invincible luck, so he chose without any hesitation.

  His intuition told him that the poker card was greater than ten.

  "Strange, why does This King keep having the thought that the poker card is the "Red Joker'?"

  This bizarre idea flashed in Shi Xiaobai's mind, but soon vanished.

  "Heh heh, there is nothing strange about that. The card chosen by This King is definitely the ‘Red Joker'!"

&nbs
p; Shi Xiaobai felt at ease and justified as he accepted his own explanation.

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  Chapter29 Do you need to go this extent just because of the Bathroom?

  The rookie training grounds had five steel buildings. The largest building was the classroom Instructor Hisith usually taught in.

  The internal layout of the classroom was very similar to the room where the Rookie Evaluation Test was held. There were two rows of seats on each side of the room, but the only difference was that the seats slanted, and joined together to form a V shape. In the middle of the V shape where the seats joined, there was a podium that looked like a lecture stand. And near to the podium was a wall that was probably a large LCD screen.

  After Shi Xiaobai left Hisith's office, he went along with Lingcun and company to the classroom. At this moment in time, there were only a handful of people scattered around the classroom, but soon, people successively came in, back from their break.

  Lingcun would keep entering a conversation with Shi Xiaobai for no reason at all. After having experienced the "torture" by Hisith, he was somewhat annoyed by Lingcun. However, he knew that Lingcun was not to be blamed, as "human nature" was something difficult to guess accurately.

  But in any case, his first step of concealing his identity had succeeded. Shi Xiaobai's name was now Tu Dahei.

  Many people who entered the classroom noticed a new face in Shi Xiaobai. A few people came forward to inquire, while Lingcun would take the initiative to explain to them for Shi Xiaobai. People turned thoughtful after hearing this. In fact, a number of people were suspecting if this so-called Tu Dahei was Shi Xiaobai, who had played truant for the past few days. However, since Instructor Hisith had vetted his identity, and they had no idea what Shi Xiaobai looked like, they could only hide their suspicions in their heart.

  The scenario of Shi Xiaobai concealing his identity developed as Lingcun expected. There were some frights but no danger.

  Afternoon break time ended very quickly as all the rookies returned to the classroom.