Absolute Choice 1

by Pear Lands In The Autumn Spring

  "The [Annihilation] rookies in the classroom now has a total of 73 people, 63 male, and 10 female. There are none below the age of ten, while there are fifty-two from the ages of ten to fifteen. There are twenty between the ages of fifteen to twenty, and only one person above the age of twenty."

  Lingcun mentioned a series of numbers that made Shi Xiaobai feel dizzy in the head. He finally summarized, "This batch of [Annihilation] rookies are quite average in quality, except Shi Xiaobai. Everyone else are here just to make up the numbers."

  Upon hearing this, Shi Xiaobai quietly gave Lingcun a big thumbs up. He liked honest people the most.

  Shi Xiaobai surveyed the surroundings and immediately noticed that the rookies sitting on the right side sat in a cluster, and seemed like a collective whole. It was quite obvious they were rookies from Team Blue. As for the side he was sitting on, there was a divisive split. It was probably the two fractured factions of Team Red that Lingcun had previously mentioned.

  Suddenly, Shi Xiaobai's gaze paused on a particular person. The person did not seem very tall, but looked very fit. He had sharp facial features and a calm expression. He looked like a sharp sword hidden in a scabbard. Shi Xiaobai felt surprised as this person was sitting alone in a corner. There was no one around him and he seemed like a loner, as if he had been ostracized by the two factions.

  Lingcun traced Shi Xiaobai's gaze and after seeing that person, he said, "That person's name is Xiang Wu. He is Team Red's third faction."

  Shi Xiaobai said in disbelief, "One person?"

  How could one person form a faction himself?

  Lingcun nodded and then sighed, saying, "Team Red's two factions happen to have fifteen people each. When votes are cast to eliminate someone, it results in a stalemate. As for Xiang Wu, he is the only person that does not belong to the two factions. His single vote can influence the outcome of the vote. But it happens that this person is extremely stubborn and refuses to join any of the two factions, hence he has been isolated."

  As an antithetical person who refused to join any group, he had the power to change the outcome. Clearly, the two major factions in Team Red saw him as a thorn in the flesh.

  Lingcun said with a sigh, "The third faction originally had three people. They called themselves the Xiang brothers, and were all pretty strong. As they thought that it was a despicable act of politics, they refused to join any of the two factions. Hence, in the previous two rounds of elimination, the two factions partnered up to eliminate two of them. As for the third round of elimination, if there aren't any surprises, Xiang Wu will be the one eliminated."

  Ye Jiaquan said with a dull voice, "Me thinks that it is very unfair. Me thinks that the Xiang brothers aren't wrong. The elimination vote should not be used to collectively target someone."

  Lingcun sighed and said, "If everyone were to vote according to his wishes, the outcome of the vote would be very fair. This ideal is very nice, but reality is very cruel. Under the elimination mechanism set by Instructor Hisith, the person who fails to make the mark will be the first to be eliminated. So for us who are not strong enough, we have no choice on the matter when it comes to joining a group. Our only choice is to decide on joining which group."

  “Song Xiao might be the strongest person in Team Red, but he is extremely authoritative. People who join his group have to abide by his decisions. It is equivalent to eliminating anyone he wishes. Although Han Feng isn't any better, he would at the very least, not deliberately deprive the voting rights of his peers. Han Feng's group will first have an internal vote before the candidate to be eliminated is decided."

  "Dahei, you must seriously consider it. Currently, you are very similar to the three Xiang brothers. It can be said that your choice can tilt the balance between the two factions. As far as I'm concerned, I would hope that you join Han Feng's faction.

  Shi Xiaobai felt his heart turn slightly heavy hearing this. It was no wonder he noticed so many people giving him strange looks when he walked in. The people that came to ask about his identity had queer looks in the eyes. So it was all because he was currently in hot demand.

  "Sigh, This King is always the focus of attention no matter where he goes!"

  Shi Xiaobai exclaimed, and could not help but consider Lingcun's words. Song Xiao and Han Feng were like a dictator and a constitutional monarch respectively. Personally, Shi Xiaobai would lean towards Han Feng.

  But Shi Xiaobai could not help but look at that lonely figure.

  Under the cruel elimination mechanism, once a group of people huddled together, their voting rights would collate into a distinctive force. The person left out would not be able to resist in the face of this force.

  People were selfish. No one wished to be eliminated, so hugging on to the biggest pillar was their best option. Clearly, Song Xiao and Han Feng were the two relatively biggest pillars.

  However, the groups gathered by Song Xiao and Han Feng happened to be fifteen each. As such, their voting strength reached an awkward balance. But as long as they gained another person, the balance would be broken. One side could then slowly devour the other group, ensuring that no one from their side would be eliminated.

  The three Xiang brothers were independent from the two factions, so it was clear that they could join any side to ensure immunity from elimination, and even throw the other side into a spiralling abyss. However, the three Xiang brothers would rather be eliminated one by one than choose to join one of the two factions.

  Why did they do that? Why were they so stupid? What were they trying to insist on?

  Shi Xiaobai looked at Xiang Wu who was sitting alone at a corner. Suddenly, he felt his heart palpitate.

  "This King..." Shi Xiaobai stood up.

  "I know!"

  Lingcun hurriedly stopped him with his words and got up. He stretched out his hand to press down on Shi Xiaobai's shoulders and said seriously, "Dahei, I know you don't want to join any of the two factions. I also know that you wish to help Xiang Wu! I share the same feelings as you, but you need to be aware of one thing. If you were to be left out like Xiang Wu, then the next person to be eliminated is very likely you. Dahei, are you willing to eliminate yourself the moment you arrive?"

  "This King..." Shi Xiaobai knitted his eyebrows slightly.

  Lingcun cut him off by saying, "Dahei, if you were to join Han Feng's faction, it is actually the best method to help Xiang Wu. After you join us, Han Feng's faction would have sixteen people, one more person than Song Xiao's faction. Then, in the next round, the sixteen of us can vote together to eliminate Song Xiao's members. As such, we can prevent the fate of Xiang Wu being eliminated!"

  "Sigh, This King..." Shi Xiaobai sighed.

  Lingcun cut him off once again and said seriously, "Dahei, I know you don't like to join the factions of others, and even more, you dislike voting out someone by combining forces. You advocate justice and believe in freedom, but, I wish you can seriously consider it. Joining Han Feng's faction does not mean you are ignoring your conscience, but it is a very rational and mature way of doing things. Not only will it protect yourself from being eliminated, it will also help Xiang Wu."

  "Dahei, whether you and Xiang Wu can stay behind or not all depends on a thought of yours!"

  Both of Lingcun's hands were already on Shi Xiaobai's shoulders. His pale blue eyes revealed a sense of anxiety. His handsome face was slightly taut, afraid that Shi Xiaobai would give a capricious answer.

  The rookies, who were already paying close attention to Shi Xiaobai, also began to look over. The rookies from Han Feng's faction, who were closest, pricked up their ears. From their conversation, this rookie named Dahei seemed to be on the fence?

  "This King—"

  Shi Xiaobai shrugged his shoulders, saying helplessly, "This King just wanted to go to the bathroom. Is there a need to be so nervous?"

  Upon hearing this, Lingcun was dumbfounded.

  So all the heartfelt advice he gave was all fucking nonsense!?

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  Chapter30 Another Game?

  In fact, Shi Xiaobai wasn't planning on going to the bathroom. Although the reason why he stood up wasn't as Lingcun thought, it was somewhat similar.

  He did not want to join Han Feng or Song Xiao's factions. He also did not want to stand up for Xiang Wu. He just had a simple belief that voting should abide to the individual's wishes. Although gaining safety by collectivising was beyond reproach, to use a collectivised force to kill the freedom of an individual was something that did not conform to Shi Xiaobai's kingly ways.

  Hence, the reason why Shi Xiaobai stood up was to head to another corner. Since Xiang Wu could become a faction himself, why couldn't he, Shi Xiaobai? He insisted on being isolated from the others!

  However, Lingcun had stopped him, and had managed to persuade him.

  Shi Xiaobai had forgotten which line made him give up his nearly silly idea, but Shi Xiaobai knew in his heart that the true reason why he abandoned that idea was because of fear—fear of being directly eliminated.

  Be it him choosing to conceal his identity, or choosing to use the excuse of "going to the bathroom, by indirectly agreeing to joining Han Feng's faction, it was something that Shi Xiaobai found difficult to accept. It should have been taken for granted that with his character, he would have roared out with laughter, saying "This King insists on not doing so".

  Shi Xiaobai, who was never afraid of the strong, was extremely afraid of weakness—he was afraid. He had always been a weakling.

  Having heard from others mention how much a genius Shi Xiaobai was, or how outstanding Shi Xiaobai's natural endowment was, Shi Xiaobai was the one who knew better than anyone else. He knew that even if he had entered the first level of the Psionic Mortal Realm, he did not feel like there was a shred of change. Be it Ye Jiaquan's fist, or Lingcun's mysteriousness, or Hisith's repression, they made Shi Xiaobai deeply feel—he was too weak.

  It was not because he was afraid of Ye Jiaquan's fists, nor had he yielded to Hisith's pressure, Shi Xiaobai only desperately worried when the moment of becoming stronger would come and when he would stop being weak.

  And the rookie training was by far the closest opportunity for him to become stronger. Shi Xiaobai did not want to let this opportunity slip away. He wanted to hold on to it tightly, whatever it took.

  For this, Shi Xiaobai caved. He had concealed his identity and joined Han Feng's faction. This was the one of the few compromises Shi Xiaobai had made.

  After using the bathroom, and returning to his seat, Shi Xiaobai's heart was heavy. The opportunity of him becoming stronger was clearly at his fingertips, but for some unknown reason, he could not feel any emotion of joy. It was as if he had lost something in his heart.

  Shi Xiaobai fell into silence, but his surroundings turned noisy. All sorts of noises entered his ears. Lingcun's voice frequently resounded in his ear, but Shi Xiaobai felt extremely irritated. It was as if there was a heat flowing through his body, making his every nerve feel uneasy.

  Shi Xiaobai couldn't help but glance at the isolated man named Xiang Wu at the corner. He sat there quietly, motionless. As if he was bound by the air, locked in time.

  However, Shi Xiaobai saw from his body—freedom.

  The freedom to not move was also a freedom!

  "It seems, This King is sick."

  Shi Xiaobai sighed as he slowly closed his eyes. He needed rest, because he was fighting himself.

  ...

  ...

  Shi Xiaobai's resting time did not last for very long as Hisith slowly walked into the classroom. The moment he stepped into the classroom, everyone shut their mouths, turning silent. The hustle and bustle immediately melted into silence.

  Shi Xiaobai involuntarily opened his eyes, and when his eyes matched Hisith's slightly narrowed eyes, his hair stood on end, just like a frightened cub that jumped up in fright.

  Thankfully, Lingcun, who was beside him, held him down by the shoulders in time, allowing Shi Xiaobai to calm down from the sudden repressive feeling Hisith gave him.

  “This darn depraved person must have done it on purpose. This King nearly got hit by his Samsara Eye Magic!"

  Shi Xiaobai cursed in his heart, and the inhibitions in his heart gradually faded away without him realizing it.

  Hisith slowly walked to the podium in the middle. His gentle footsteps sounded extremely clear in the quiet classroom. Everyone's heartbeats seemed to synchronize with each other, as if they were involuntarily being paced by his footsteps.

  Punctilious discipline was reflected fully in this classroom.

  "Relax, don't be nervous. I'm in quite a good mood today." Hisith spoke softly.

  The moment Hisith spoke, heaving sighs of relief broke out in the classroom. Shi Xiaobai felt that the tensed Ye Jiaquan beside him also seemed to relax.

  What would happen if this depraved person was in a bad mood?

  Shi Xiaobai could not help but have such a thought.

  "When Instructor Hisith is not in a good mood, he will usually play a 'game'. As for the contents of the game, you will see it when the time comes. I'll not talk about it." Lingcun leaned towards Shi Xiaobai's ears and used an extremely inaudible voice to tell him. His voice seemed to exude some fear.

  Shi Xiaobai was stunned, as a chill rose up from the bottom of his heart. A game that could make everyone so nervous was probably some abnormal game.

  Although all the rookies in the classroom had heaved a sigh of relief, they still maintained their silence. Every occasional motion was done extremely gingerly.

  "Alright, my beloved toys, let us continue from our morning lesson."

  Hisith clapped his hands and his eyes swept across everyone. The rookies who had been addressed as "toys" did not dare show any look of discontent. They all displayed an attentive posture.

  After a pause, Hisith began teaching.

  "For the past few days, we have been talking about combat. In fact, combat is nothing more than the interplay between four major systems—offense, defense, evasion, as well as superpower. Those who do not have any Psy-genes, then you actually only have three of the systems. You are naturally born to have one less combat technique than Psykers. However, I can tell you seriously that it is not difficult for Psionites to defeat Psykers. This is because every 'superpower' needs to fulfill three elements—function, condition as well as restrictions. If you can discern the weakness in your opponent's superpower's conditions and limitations, then the actual thing that determines victory is still the three major systems, offense, defense and evasion. And all three of these systems rely on Psionic Power. In terms of Psionic Ability cultivation, Psykers have no advantage over you!"

  Hisith threw out a series of sentences, and finally concluded, "In other words, the three major systems are the only things you can rely on to defeat a Psyker, and also your only remaining dignity and pride! You are different from Psykers who are naturally born with superpowers. You are all the most ordinary out of ordinary people, without any halo surrounding you. You have lost at the starting line the moment you were born. In various competitions in the future, you would suffer a crushing defeat. In the game known as 'Life', you were all losers from the very beginning!"

  "However, you can turn the tables. As long as you hone a powerful offense, a rigid defense, an agile evasion, then you would have the capital to fight Psykers. And for these things, I will teach them all to you!"

  Hisith seemed to transform into another man. That teasing expression turned serious. The tone in his voice sounded encouraging, he was like a dedicated teacher working hard at teaching his students.

  Shi Xiaobai noticed that the rookies beside him were short of breath, as their eyes burned with fighting spirit. Ye Jiaquan even clenched his fists tightly.

  Hisith's words had touched them and infected them. His final sentence lit up the desire they buried deep in their hearts.

  Shi Xiaobai began to gradually look serious. What
Hisith said about "a powerful offense, a rigid defense, an agile evasion", could he possess them?

  "However, the prerequisite of all this—is that you must hold on to the end."

  Hisith's tone changed suddenly, as his eyes narrowed slightly.

  "What a pity. This afternoon, another cute toy will be eliminated."

  A coquettish smile appeared on Hisith's face once again as he used a teasing tone to say the word "pity". It was heart-chilling.

  The meaning behind his words made the rookies from Team Red draw a gasp, while the rookies from Team Blue collectively laughed, seemingly deriving pleasure from those words.

  This was just the fourth day of rookie training, and today, a third person was to be eliminated?

  Shi Xiaobai felt that when Hisith said those words, his gaze had swept past him. That faint amused look made Shi Xiaobai's heart involuntarily palpitate.

  "It can't be that he is targeting This King again, right?"

  Shi Xiaobai felt a sense of foreboding.

  "Oh, right. Today, there is a rookie who returned after missing classes for many days. I happen to have thought of a fun game, and plan to let him participate in it."

  Hisith revealed a sinister smile as he looked towards Shi Xiaobai, saying, "Tu Dahei, come to the podium. Let us play a game...that is slightly more difficult."

  When everyone heard this, they traced Hisith's gaze towards Shi Xiaobai, who looked somewhat ordinary, seated in the row of seats. Immediately, they felt full of pity for him.

  Instructor Hisith said a "game", and not a "little game", and he had even used the qualifier, "slightly more difficult".

  The rookies who were unfortunate enough to encounter "normal games" found it impossible to imagine how perverse Instructor Hisith's "game that is slightly more difficult" would be.

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  Chapter31 You are actually a Demon, right?

  Shi Xiaobai was rendered speechless. Only recently had he played an uninteresting card drawing game with Hisith. Shi Xiaobai was not interested in Hisith's game at all, and wanted to keep a distance from the perverse Hisith.