Chapter 37: Your Grandpa

Li Xiaofei smiled like an innocent little white flower and said, "Respected Teacher Qin, I would like a pass to go hunting in the wilds outside the base city. Can you help me with that?"

"You want to go outside the city?" Grandpa Qin asked, puzzled. "There's no need to rush. The school battle team has plenty of opportunities for field practice. Besides, now that you have a super account, you can experience the sensation of fighting star beasts in the wilderness through the light-network mainframe."

Li Xiaofei's smile grew even more innocent.

"I'm trying to find a legitimate way for the brothers in the slums to make a living," he explained.

"Gang members from the slums?" Grandpa Qin frowned. "Letting them go outside the city to hunt star beasts? That's difficult. The government imposes strict restrictions on gang members from the slums, and there's no precedent for this."

"That's tough," Li Xiaofei muttered.

He murmured to himself, "I heard that as long as a reputable person from the rule-of-law district is willing to provide a guarantee, it's possible to get a pass to leave the city. I guess you and Principal Chen don't have enough clout. I'll have to think of another way and look for other respectable individuals."

Grandpa Qin felt a sudden sense of crisis. This couldn't happen. They had finally managed to attract a prodigious talent in ancient martial arts, and a hope for Red Flag High School's revival. What if someone else lured him away with such a small benefit?

"Wait a moment, I said it's difficult, not impossible," Grandpa Qin reconsidered, thinking of Li Xiaofei's test results and his terrifying cultivation speed. He instantly made a decision that went against the school's regulations.

He thumped his chest as he assured Li Xiaofei, "Here's the deal, if you can use the super account to reach 500 points on the base city's high school ranking, I'll get you a group pass. How does that sound?"

"Deal," Li Xiaofei grinned like a fox that had successfully stolen a chicken.

"Teacher, I'm off to earn those points," he said, leaving happily now that his goal was achieved.

***

In the light-core mainframe room.

The other team members were already immersed in the virtual light-network world like teenagers addicted to the internet.

Li Xiaofei approached Station 2. The light-core mainframe looked like a virtual cockpit. He inserted the super account key. The cockpit adjusted the size and the curvature of the backrest based on his body type, allowing him to settle into the optimal half-reclined position.

Li Xiaofei lay down and braced his feet against the pedals.

Zizz, zizz.

A faint metallic buzzing sounded as twenty-four tentacle-like star energy neural bundles automatically extended. Each of the pale silver neural bundles ended in a black, sucker-like mouth. These mouths resembled leeches as they gently adhered to his feet, thighs, waist, abdomen, arms, wrists, palms, and neck.

Li Xiaofei shivered slightly from the cold touch, but he remained composed. He knew this was necessary for a fully immersive experience in the light-network. The neural connections would ensure that his every movement and sensation in the virtual world felt real. With everything in place, Li Xiaofei took a deep breath and mentally prepared himself for the challenge ahead.

In the blink of an eye, the virtual world began to envelop his senses, drawing him into the realm where he would earn those crucial 500 points. Simultaneously, mechanical arms extended from the left and right sides of the cockpit, bringing forward two hemispheres that resembled two halves of a motorcycle helmet. These halves encased Li Xiaofei's head, fitting snugly and comfortably without any uncomfortable heat or claustrophobia.

"Mainframe startup initiated. Please close your eyes. Starting up... Please close your eyes."

"Startup complete. Please open your eyes. Welcome to the world of light-network, created by the Saints of the Star Council."

Li Xiaofei slowly opened his eyes, and a vast and vibrant world unfolded before him, teeming with endless possibilities and challenges. The environment was a perfect blend of reality and imagination, every detail meticulously crafted to provide the most immersive experience possible. Li Xiaofei felt a rush of excitement as he prepared to dive into this virtual realm, determined to earn the points he needed.

He felt a wave of astonishment wash over him.

"So this is the light-network virtual world?"

He was in a lush meadow surrounded by a sea of clouds. The meadow, roughly a hundred square meters in size and perfectly circular, was encircled by rolling white clouds. A gentle breeze blew, and the air was incredibly fresh, filling him with a sense of peace and tranquility.

Everything felt remarkably real, as if he had stepped into an entirely authentic world.

"What you see before you is your initial virtual base," the electronic voice of the light-core began to explain. "Every light-network user is assigned an initial virtual base by the system."

The base could be modified through in-game purchases. The currency system in the light-network world was linked to the real world. As long as you had enough financial resources, you could expand the size of your initial virtual base and transform it into a palace, island, mountain range, or anything else your heart desired.

Amazing!

Li Xiaofei stood on the meadow, examining his body. His appearance was exactly the same as in the real world. Following the mechanical prompts, Li Xiaofei quickly completed the steps of face customization, disguise, changing outfits, and choosing a weapon, finalizing the creation of his super account.

𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

His avatar became a tall warrior in black combat attire, wearing a silver cicada mask.

"Please name your avatar," the mechanical voice rang out.

Li Xiaofei stopped for a moment to think about the name. His identity in the light-network world was crucial, so he needed to think of a name that was cool, impressive, and memorable, something that others would never forget.

"Monkey King," he said.

"Sorry, this name is already taken," replied the system.

Huh?

Li Xiaofei tried again, "Undying Asura."

"Sorry, this name is already taken."

Damn.

"Supreme Demon Emperor."

"Sorry, this name is already taken."

"Vacuum War God."

"Sorry, this name is already taken."

"Strongest Man in the light-network."

"Sorry, this name is already taken."

Li Xiaofei racked his brain, coming up with several names he liked, only to find they were all taken.

Frustrated, he blurted out, "Your grandpa..."

Before he could finish his sentence, the mechanical voice chimed in, "This name is available. Registering... Registration complete."

Li Xiaofei was shocked and thought to himself.

What the heck!?! No way.

"Welcome new user, Your Grandpa, to the light-network world. The Star Council wishes you a legendary new beginning here."

"Detected that the account, Your Grandpa, is registered for the Great Xia Republic's Liuhe Base City High School War God League sequence. Would you like to start the ranking challenge immediately?" asked the system.

"Start."

"Would you like to enable the spectator mode to broadcast your ranking process?"

"Do not enable."

"Understood."

A humming blue, oval-shaped portal appeared and Li Xiaofei resignedly stepped into it.

***

Boom!

Li Xiaofei punched and killed a swooping Snow Winged Eagle in an icy, snow-covered landscape. Blood and feathers flew into the air, and the enormous eagle that had a wingspan over two meters disintegrated into dust.

"It's truly hard to believe that such a real sensation is just a virtual landscape in the network world," Li Xiaofei said as he lowered his fist.

He could hear the howl of the cold wind and see the pure white snow. His sense of touch, smell, and taste all felt exactly like in the real world. Li Xiaofei had even tried eating a handful of snow. The cold snow had melted in his mouth, and the sensation of the icy water flowing down his throat and into his stomach was so real, it was indistinguishable from the real world.

"Unbelievable," he muttered, marveling at the realism of the virtual world.

As someone who had traveled from 500 years in the past to this world, Li Xiaofei was truly awed by this virtual technology. He was in the first-level trial of the rankings, the Stormy Snow Mountain. Killing the star beasts known as Snow Winged Eagle here would earn him ranking points.

In less than ten minutes, Li Xiaofei had effortlessly killed twenty-one Snow Winged Eagles, earning 21 ranking points.

"This first-level trial is no longer challenging for me," he said. He reached out to light-core, saying, "I request transportation to the second-level trial."

"User, Your Grandpa, is being evaluated for the first-level trial..."

"Congratulations, your performance in the first-level trial has been rated as Transcendent."

"Permission granted to transport to the second-level trial."

After a series of electronic prompts, a blue portal appeared before Li Xiaofei. When he stepped through it, he found himself in the second-level trial, the Dark Wind Forest. Several pairs of red eyes began to glow ominously in the dark forest.