Ren Zhong was incredibly determined to get his hands on "Sid Meier’s Armored Insights".
He was not truly swayed by the advertising jargon into losing his mind.
He had his own judgment.
This was knowledge, a strategy, something that could be memorized, valuable experience.
Even if unfortunately he perishes again in the future...
Hmm, memories and the Contribution Points accumulated through sleeping could both be "taken" back, becoming fixed assets, the spiral accelerator for the next startup, enabling him to take fewer detours.
One purchase, benefiting for several lifetimes.
The more he dies, the more he earns.
On the eighth day, on the return journey.
"Ren, take it slow tomorrow, you were too fierce today! With you pushing so hard, our bodies can hardly keep up! Oh no, I need to drink a bottle of quick-absorbing nutritional liquid to recover when we get back."
Zheng Tian, driving with her left hand, was beating her thigh with her right as she lamented.
At this moment, she appeared somewhat unkempt, her dirty hair was even tangled, and her face was covered with dense sweat marks.
The others in the car weren’t in much better shape.
Chen Hanyu in the passenger seat finally put down the tablet and reclined to rest her eyes.
Bai Feng was leaning weakly against the right window, his prosthetic arms which reached his knees slightly trembling.
Even the usually chatty Ou Youning was lackluster, like a frost-beaten eggplant. All the pockets on him were empty. All bombs and explosives had been used up, not a drop left.
As for Wen Lei, well, he was lying face down as a cushion. The sound of thunderous snores came from underneath.
Ren Zhong was not much better than the others, his hands shaking like a sieve.
Hearing Zheng Tian’s "complaint" from the front, he forced a smile and said, "Thanks for your hard work. I really trained well today."
He actually wanted to tell the others, how can you change your destiny without the momentum of giving your all every day?
But he didn’t want to let go of the "Pu Cha Officer" façade for now, and couldn’t say things that would not adhere to that character setup.
After dealing with the professional team’s extortion in the morning, under Ren Zhong’s relentless urging, the squad’s actions suddenly became unrestrained.
The Thunderbolt Car charged over fifteen hundred kilometers like a mad dog, sweeping through three concentrated areas including Rat Cliff Mountain.
Unlike the past where the squad always intentionally avoided the Second Level Ruined Beasts, today, they hadn’t let any Second Level Ruined Beast they encountered slip away, except for a very few.
The squad didn’t rest the whole day, either fighting or en route to a battle, or preemptively discovering the tracks of Ruined Beasts and setting traps.
The group fought until four in the afternoon, nearly everyone being out of ammunition before they called it a day.
Counting the harvest, they destroyed 36 First Level Ruined Beasts, 3 Second Level Ruined Beasts, with a net profit of up to 150 points, an income even higher than yesterday’s initial entry into Rat Cliff Mountain.
The main reason for this phenomenon was Ren Zhong’s fierce outburst.
Yesterday, he was just testing his combat power, a small trial, but today he was fiercer and more valiant than yesterday. His fighting style shifted from his usual definitive planning to becoming a delicately reckless brute with a rough exterior.
Besides, under Chen Hanyu’s step-by-step guidance, Ren Zhong borrowed her gloves to tentatively dismantle six First Level Ruined Beasts.
The first two, he messed up, losing nearly half their value.
The next two, according to Chen Hanyu, he barely reached a beginner’s standard of First Level Demolition Master, though he didn’t manage to achieve Perfect Level, it was above the 70% value of the excellent level.
On the fifth one, Ren Zhong’s luck burst, achieving a Perfect Level product.
The sixth, a regular performance, reached another excellent level.
After being fiercely struck by his Mecha warrior potential, the group was once again brutalized.
Turns out there are people in the world who can do anything.
Perhaps this is the monster often mentioned in mythologies.
Facing everyone’s shock, confusion, amazement, and envy with jealousy, Ren Zhong instead felt a bit puzzled.
Isn’t it quite simple?
Without trying, he didn’t even know it was so easy to become a Demolition Master.
Just need to first memorize the physiological structure of these Ruined Beasts like a Butcher, then like a surgical doctor, using only his 51.3 Brain Reaction Index and insignificant hand stability, operate it like wielding full-body Armor, seamlessly integrating with the gloves.
He only tried twice and found the feeling, truly not understanding why everyone was so startled as if they had never seen the world before.
In short, considering the squad’s ability to continuously challenge Second Level Ruined Beasts was mainly due to Ren Zhong’s burst, the other members unanimously decided to give him 50 Contribution Points. The remaining 100 were divided among the other five.
Everyone had to admit, after this undercover "Pu Cha Officer" joined the squad as a temporary member like he was just fooling around, the entire team improved both in spirit and professional standards.
Leaving aside the hidden high-level connections, the changes Ren Zhong brought just by personal ability were no less than the Thunderbolt Car, even surpassing it.
This kind of mindset everyone had is commonly known as "dependency".
After selling off the loot and dividing the spoils, Zheng Tian said she had something come up and wouldn’t join everyone for dinner, leaving without saying where to.
Ou Youning and Bai Feng each went to meet their lovers, as hot-blooded youths in their prime, they needed a gentle harbor to rest after a big battle.
Chen Hanyu, seemingly stimulated or perhaps finally having saved enough money, went to the Military Weapon Store to buy Second Level disassembly gloves.
In the small courtyard, only Ren Zhong and Wen Lei were left staring at each other.
Wen Lei, with a bowl in hand, was shoveling large mouthfuls of the mixture of synthetic minced meat and organic material from a super-sized bowl into his mouth.
This stuff was more nutritious than what the bottom-level poor people ate, and pricier, but tasted about the same.
"Ren, I’ve decided, starting tonight, I also want to train in the intermediate zone of the training field for four hours every day."
Wen Lei, with his mouth full of food, mumbled.
Ren Zhong, who finished eating first and was now staring at a tablet self-learning demolition master knowledge, was taken aback. He put down his teacup and asked, "What happened? You got stimulated?"
Wen Lei nodded, then shook his head, "It’s not exactly stimulation. My current Brain-Machine Synchronization Rate is 15%, Brain Reaction Index exactly 40, carrying power 33.2 kilowatts, Physical Index 46. Still far from Second Level warrior, but it seems everyone wants to push for this month’s assessment, I... I also feel a bit unwilling."
Saying this, the two-meter-twenty-six tall man was subconsciously stroking the pocket watch on his chest with the hand holding chopsticks.
Ren Zhong instinctively asked, "Why such a big difference between your carrying power and Physical Index?"
Wen Lei put down the hand stroking the pocket watch, sighed, "Ren, have you heard Manager Ju say about the joke they made during my test? Sigh, my initial synchronization rate was 13%, but after over half a year, it’s only 15%. The low synchronization rate is the reason for the huge gap between my carrying power and Physical Index."
Ren Zhong calculated, "Counting it all, you can only train for another eight nights before the assessment. You have just enough money, but can you reach the Second Level?"
Wen Lei clenched a fist, "I want to set the Enhanced Training Armor’s load mode to the highest, force a lift for a while. Additionally, I also want to fight with the robots for four hours, just as vigorously as you do, back and forth. You, being in a high position, can persist, I believe I shouldn’t be weak anymore. I have to learn from you!"
Ren Zhong, "Aren’t you already exhausted today?"
Wen Lei shook his head, "But I can still hold on. I feel that, giving it a shot , even if I’m a bit off in all parameters during the assessment, it doesn’t mean there’s no chance of performing exceptionally and passing through luck. After all, the assessment tests combat power, not parameters. I’ve heard of a Mecha warrior called Sid Meier, really fierce."
Seeing Wen Lei’s determination to go all out, Ren Zhong’s lips trembled, but he couldn’t say much.
"Hmm, keep it up. Let me know when you’re out of money, I’ll settle the bill for you. If convenient, I’ll also ask Ju Qingmeng for more nutritional meals for you."
"Hmm! Thank you, Ren!"