F-class thief? Sorry, I can steal anything.

Chapter 271 My First Experience with the Tower of Ascension!

The next day, Chen Yifan and his two friends skipped class together.

The consequence of skipping class is the deduction of academic credits.

But this cost is insignificant compared to today's goal.

Tower of Ascension.

This is the true core of Kyoto University of martial arts.

Credits, resources, equipment, status... everything is closely related to this tower.

Instead of listening to those dry theories in the classroom, it's far better to come here and experience it for real.

As long as the final credits are met, no one will investigate the process.

Chen Yifan's gaze fell on the towering black tower that pierced the clouds in the very center of the campus.

The tower's body, made of an unknown material, is a single, seamless piece without a single seam.

Above the tower, light flowed like mercury, outlining intricate and mysterious runes.

So this is where it is.

That's the reason why Kyoto Martial Arts University can remain the top university in China, just as his high school principal once said.

With it, students' growth will be accelerated to the extreme, solving multiple problems such as upgrading, equipment, and materials once and for all.

It truly deserves to be called a mecca for professionals.

The three arrived at the bottom of the tower, where a huge circular plaza immediately came into view.

At this moment, the place is bustling with noise and crowded with people.

Above the square, more than a dozen huge holographic light screens floated, displaying densely packed data at millisecond speeds.

[Overall Ranking], [Grade Ranking], [Career Ranking], [Fastest Completion Ranking]...

Countless students craned their necks, gathering under the light screen, sometimes exclaiming in surprise, sometimes sighing in regret; the atmosphere was even more heated than the most bustling stock exchange.

"Holy crap, there are so many people, it's even more ridiculous than the Spring Festival travel rush."

Wang Fugui looked up at the seemingly endless giant tower, his neck almost breaking.

"Fanzi, look at that number one on the overall leaderboard! Holy crap! 1.37 million credits! Is he living in a tower?"

Chen Yifan's gaze also fell on the top of the largest light screen.

First place on the overall ranking: Xiao Zhan, Combat major, senior, number of floors reached: 72.

Seventy-two floors.

This number brought a touch of seriousness to Chen Yifan's eyes.

Xia Nan's information clearly states that the difficulty of climbing the Tower of Heaven increases exponentially; after the fiftieth floor, each floor becomes an insurmountable barrier.

This senior student named Xiao Zhan was able to reach the seventy-second floor, so his strength must have reached an extremely terrifying level.

"Stop looking."

Chen Yifan withdrew his gaze, his voice calm.

"It's none of our business now."

"Our goal is to clear the first twenty floors and take full advantage of all the benefits in the newbie zone."

"Hehe, with you saying that, I feel much more confident!" Wang Fugui clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking like popping beans. "Today, I'll show these Beijing bastards what a formidable dragon from Jiangcheng looks like!"

"Keep your voice down, and stop acting like a teenager."

Chen Yifan gave him a disgruntled look.

The three squeezed through the crowded throng and arrived at the entrance at the base of the tower.

In front of several enormous photon portals, students were queuing in an orderly fashion, swiping their identity bracelets lightly on the authentication device before being sucked in.

"Challenge mode is divided into solo and team modes, which one should we choose?" Lin Xiaoyu asked softly.

"Team up, captain, it's me."

Chen Yifan's words were concise and to the point.

In team mode, rewards are split equally, but all rankings and honors are credited to the team leader.

The spotlight was enough on him; Wang Fugui and Lin Xiaoyu could hide more safely in the shadows.

Furthermore, the number of challenges in single-player mode and team mode are calculated separately.

While encouraging individual heroism, the school also highly values ​​teamwork.

"Okay!"

Wang Fugui and Lin Xiaoyu confirmed without any hesitation.

[Team: Jiangcheng Squad]

[Captain: Chen Yifan]

Team members: Wang Fugui, Lin Xiaoyu

Looking at the team name that Wang Fugui had casually picked, Chen Yifan's eye twitched, too lazy to complain anymore.

"Identity verification successful. Jiangcheng team, best of luck with your challenge."

As soon as the cold, electronic voice finished speaking, the portal in front of the three of them shone brightly, and an irresistible suction force instantly swallowed them up.

After a brief feeling of weightlessness, I felt a solid sensation under my feet.

Before me stretched an endless grassland, the sky a deep blue with fluffy white clouds, and the fresh air carrying the fragrance of grass and trees, making one feel relaxed and refreshed.

"This is just the first floor? It's like a spring outing."

Wang Fugui looked around curiously.

"Don't be careless."

Chen Yifan's expression suddenly turned sharp.

He rapidly deployed tactics:

"According to the data, the monster on the first floor is a level 10 'Wind Blade Wolf,' a speed-type monster whose attacks have a tearing effect and whose weakness is its eyes."

"They live in groups, starting with twenty."

"Fatty, engage the enemy and hold the front. Xiaoyu, stand behind me and get ready to apply crowd control."

"receive!"

"clear!"

The moment the command was given, a rustling sound came from the grass not far away.

The next second, more than twenty giant wolves with bluish-gray fur and agile bodies emerged.

They bared their fangs, growling menacingly, their emerald green eyes gleaming with bloodlust as they locked onto the three of them.

"Awooo—!"

The alpha wolf howled to the sky, and all the Wind Blade Wolves responded and moved!

They suddenly exerted force with their limbs, their bodies transforming into swift blue shadows, rushing towards the three from all directions!

"Well done!"

Wang Fugui roared and stomped his right foot on the ground, unleashing the aura of the [Taunt] skill!

All the Windblade Wolves instantly shifted their focus, their frenzied killing intent concentrating entirely on him alone.

"Jingle bells!"

The dense claw strikes and bites landed frantically on Wang Fugui's S-class lightning armor, splashing up a series of dazzling sparks, but not even a white mark could be left.

"Gua sha?! That's all the strength you've got!"

Wang Fugui burst into wild laughter, swinging his Thunder Hammer in a dazzling arc of lightning, tearing through the air with a whistling sound, as it crashed into the wolf pack.

Since donning this top-of-the-line armor and weapons, he is no longer the pure tank who can only take hits.

At this moment, he is a mobile fortress of thunder!

"Bang!"

A Windblade Wolf was hit head-on by the hammer, and its entire body exploded into a ball of white light in mid-air, turning into experience points that flowed into the bodies of the three people.

Chen Yifan frowned slightly.

His current level is 40.

You need 160,000 experience points to advance to the next level.

As with a normal dungeon, the monsters are of the same level.

Normal monsters give about 400 experience points, elite monsters give 2000, normal bosses give 4000, and lord-level bosses give 8000.

As for the King-level BOSS, the experience points are approximately 12000.

This monster of the same level was divided among the three, with each person receiving only 50 points.

That's far too little.

"Fatty, stop messing around and hold the line!"

Chen Yifan's cold voice rang out.

Just as Wang Fugui drew all the firepower, his figure disappeared from the spot.

No fancy skills were used.

It relies solely on the micro-management skills of [F-level Hand Speed ​​Boost] and terrifying attributes far exceeding those of ordinary people.

His figure transformed into a blurry afterimage, moving ghostly through the gaps in the wolf pack's attacks.

The unassuming dagger in his hand flashed and accurately grazed the Windblade Wolf's eye socket with each strike.

"Pfft!"

"Pfft!"

Blood splattered.

Amidst screams, the bodies of the Windblade Wolves stiffened, then turned into specks of light and dissipated into the air.

At the very back of the line, Lin Xiaoyu stood with a focused expression.

The vines of the Bloodthirsty Poisonous Vine coiled around her.

But unlike before, the vines were no longer scarlet, but pure white, swirling with a chilling aura, as if sculpted from ice crystals.

With a thought, the ice crystal vines grew rapidly, piercing the ground.

Frost spread wildly from her center, and a layer of icy ice instantly formed beneath the wolf pack's feet, turning their once-proud speed into a fatal weakness.

She is gradually gaining control of the power of the Elemental Heart.

The three of them are beginning to work together.

Wang Fugui is that unshakeable thunderous wall.

Lin Xiaoyu is the most reliable frost-covered fortress.

Chen Yifan, on the other hand, is that silent blade that roams the battlefield and reaps lives.

The entire process was efficient and ruthless, with not a single unnecessary movement.

In less than three minutes, more than twenty Windblade Wolves were slaughtered.

[Congratulations on clearing the first level of the Tower of Ascension, in 2 minutes and 47 seconds.]

[Rewards: +10 credits, +3.3 credits per team member.]

[The portal has opened. Please choose to proceed to the second floor or leave the Tower of Ascension.]

"Damn, only 10 credits? That's so stingy!" Wang Fugui looked at the notification on his bracelet and was very dissatisfied.

"Just the first level."

Without wasting words, Chen Yifan took the lead and stepped into the light gate leading to the second floor.

Meanwhile, outside the Sky Tower.

At the very bottom of the freshman rankings, the name "Jiangcheng Squad" quietly appeared.

[Rank 98888: Jiangcheng Squad (Captain: Chen Yifan), Current Floor: 1, Completion Time: 2 minutes 47 seconds.]

This achievement was insignificant among tens of thousands of new students and was instantly drowned out by the subsequent flood of data.

Only a handful of sharp-eyed students noticed it.

"Hey, you're from Jiangcheng? That's pretty fast, more than a minute faster than average."

"Tch, isn't the first level easy enough for anyone? Let's see how long they can last on the second level."

The second level is the desert, with the level 50 "Venomous Sand Scorpion".

Chen Yifan's instructions remained concise: "Fatty, watch out for the tail needle. Xiaoyu, prioritize antidote. I'll focus on killing."

Three minutes later.

[Congratulations on clearing the second level of the Tower of Ascension, in 3 minutes and 02 seconds.]

On external rankings, the "Jiangcheng Squad" jumped several hundred places in the rankings.

The third level is a swamp, with "mud crocodiles". Four minutes.

Fourth level, forest, "Ghost-faced Ape". Five minutes.

Fifth floor!

When the name "Jiangcheng Squad" appeared on the fifth floor clearance record, a small commotion finally broke out among the crowd in the square.

[Jiangcheng Squad (Captain: Chen Yifan), Floor: 5, Total Time: 18 minutes 21 seconds.]

[Ranking: 99th on the Freshman List!]

"Am I seeing things? Breaking through five floors in less than twenty minutes?! Is this some kind of freshman?!"

"The captain's name is Chen Yifan? I've never heard of him. Which powerful family is he a direct descendant of?"

"Whoever it is, they're definitely a formidable character! At that speed, they're already close enough to touch a sophomore's butt!"

Amidst the murmurs, a team also wearing freshman badges emerged from the portal. The young man at the head of the team looked at the data on the leaderboard and let out a disdainful sneer.

"A bunch of bumpkins who've never seen the world, so what if they swipe a little faster? What's so great about that?"

His name is Sun Hao. Relying on his family's wealth, he spent a lot of money to buy a set of top-notch equipment and formed the "Fiery Battle Team" in his class.

Having just cleared the third floor, they were coming out to enjoy the attention of everyone.

"Exactly, Brother Hao!" the henchman chimed in immediately. "They're definitely on drugs and pushing themselves to their limits. They're probably at their limit; they look good but are useless!"

Sun Hao smugly adjusted his shimmering combat uniform and loudly proclaimed to those around him:

"Watch closely! Our 'Fire Team' is going to break into the top 50 of the freshman rankings today! We'll show those country bumpkins what real strength is!"

After saying that, he led his team and, under the watchful eyes of everyone, walked arrogantly back into the portal.

Inside the tower, in front of the portal on the fifth floor.

"Fanzi, we've broken into the top 100! But this speed... can we go even faster?"

Looking at the rankings, Wang Fugui scratched his head, somewhat unwilling.

"Slow down?"

Chen Yifan glanced at him, a faint smile playing on his lips.

He was rapidly calculating in his mind.

The first ten levels are a beginner's area, with low difficulty and average rewards.

But this is precisely the best place to get the team working together and familiarize themselves with new skills.

Wang Fugui and Lin Xiaoyu, in particular, need time to fully transform their newly acquired power into muscle memory and fighting instinct.

Until every single one of their gears meshes perfectly.

This is their time to step up.

"Alright, stop talking nonsense."

Chen Yifan's gaze fell upon the portal leading to the sixth floor.

"Warm-up complete."

"Next stop, the tenth floor!"