Hijacking the Timeline

The first round of Dawn’s internal beta competition concluded with a crushing victory for Mu Qing’s blue team.

After the match ended, everyone exited the Twisted Forest combat map.

The screen faded to black, initiating a lengthy loading period.

Over ten minutes later, a translucent screen materialized before the players, including Feng Qi, who had been spectating.

The screen displayed detailed statistics from the match:

Kill counts Team damage output Individual damage output Damage taken Assist kills Healing output Buff status values And more

Scrolling down revealed additional data, such as individual art magic usage, casting efficiency, and more.

Each participant in the competition received a performance rating, ranging from S (highest) to F (lowest), divided into seven tiers: S, A, B, C, D, E, and F.

Additionally, the player with the highest overall score earned the title of ”Match MVP,” displayed as a pendant after their in-game name.

In this match, the outcome was never in doubt.

Mu Qing earned an S-Class rating and the ”Match MVP” title, which appeared as a pendant next to her in-game name.

Everyone accepted this result without complaint, acknowledging her superior performance.

They scrolled through the detailed match statistics, examining their individual contributions and weaknesses to identify areas for improvement.

At the bottom of the statistics panel was an option to replay the match.

Since this was a custom match, there were no changes to their ranked ladder points.

After exiting the game, Feng Qi created a group chat in his friends list and invited all the students.

Feng Qi: How did everyone feel about the match?

Lin Ran: I got completely stomped. It was a one-sided beatdown. I felt like I was just getting bullied. Next time, I want to be on Mu Qing’s team.

Jia Yi: +1

Yang Xiaoxin: +2

Yan Yue: +3

Huixu: +10086

Liu Yue: This game is incredibly meaningful. Although it doesn’t allow us to use sword intent techniques, the back-to-basics training effectively improves my sword skills. Can we play another round?

Huixu: @Liu Yue, Brother, don’t push it. Dinner’s almost ready.

Mu Qing: It was so much fun! I feel like controlling my power is easier in the game than in real life. In reality, I always have to hold back, which feels so awkward. But in the game, I can unleash it completely! (Smiling face.jpg)

Huixu: @Mu Qing, Senior Sister, after you completely crushed us, saying something so Versailles-like? Seriously? Does your conscience not hurt? Can you even sleep at night?

Cai Guo: Haha, I never thought being a support could be this fun! Senior Sister Mu Qing is just too strong—I’m in love! She’s the ultimate teammate!

Xu Hongyun: I was just a spectator the whole time. They told me to protect Cai Guo, but I ended up just standing there like a statue QvQ. I wanted to contribute to the team too!

Jia Yi: This game is great, but the unbalanced matchups can really make you want to quit. Thank goodness they added a ranked mode later. Otherwise, playing a few matches each day would just be a cycle of either crushing newbies or getting crushed yourself. If you’re unlucky enough to face several opponents like Senior Sister Mu Qing in a row—people who can completely dominate you—your mental state would definitely explode.

Xia Long: (Grinning widely.jpg) @Yan Yue, let’s set up a custom match after dinner and settle this once and for all!

After chatting for a while, Feng Qi glanced at the time.

It was already 5:30 PM.

Signaling everyone to prepare for dinner, he opened the game’s menu and pressed ”Exit Game.”

After about five minutes of waiting, he slowly opened his eyes.

The nutrient fluid in the game pod began to drain visibly.

This type of nutrient fluid was a single-use product. Once a player exited the game pod, the fluid would be automatically discharged into the connected sewer system, never to be reused. Regular replenishment was therefore necessary.

As a diluted product of the Scarlet Research Institute’s nutrient fluid, it was relatively inexpensive, capable of sustaining a player’s normal gaming activities for three days.

However, the fluid only provided basic nutrition and did nothing to alleviate hunger.

Once the nutrient fluid in the game pod had completely drained, the connecting hoses automatically detached and retracted.

As the game pod opened upward, Feng Qi bent over, stood up, and stepped out.

Turning around, he saw Lin Ran and the others’ game pods opening one after another, with everyone emerging.

”Change into your uniforms first, then head to the cafeteria for dinner. We’ll resume training afterward,” Feng Qi said, leading the way to the changing rooms.

Lin Ran and the others immediately followed.

Meanwhile, Mu Qing, Cai Guo, and Yang Xiaoxin went to another room to change.

Ten minutes later, the group gathered outside the gymnasium and headed toward the Academy Cafeteria.

Along the way, their conversation revolved entirely around Dawn.

Even the usually taciturn Liu Yue showed keen interest, casually suggesting they pull an all-nighter playing the game.

Having experienced it firsthand, they now grasped the game’s true significance—a solution to the long-standing deficiencies in combat training that had plagued academies for years.

Beyond addressing this critical gap, Dawn also promised to significantly enhance cultivators’ mastery of art magic and cultivate their combat consciousness.

Like Feng Qi, they eagerly anticipated the game’s official release. They could already envision the spectacular sight of massive ranked matches involving countless cultivators.

Trailing at the back of the group, Feng Qi grinned as he watched his companions chatting animatedly.

Dawn was less a game and more a factory for cultivating human warriors—a revolutionary invention that combined entertainment with combat training.

This was precisely why he had been so determined to create it.

Now that the groundwork was laid, he merely needed to wait for the seeds he had planted to sprout and grow, supporting a brand-new future in the river of history.

He remained ever hopeful for what lay ahead.

By the time they arrived at the Academy Cafeteria, it was already past six o’clock.

Feeling ravenous, the group grabbed trays and began selecting their food.

It was autumn, and today’s buffet featured a seasonal delicacy: Chinese mitten crab.

Unlike before the Cataclysm, all mitten crabs in this era were farmed, yet they remained incredibly delicious.

The buffet area where the crabs were displayed was swarming with students.

To meet the demand, chefs behind the buffet line were working tirelessly, periodically bringing out steaming pots of crabs to replenish the supply.

Feng Qi, naturally, wouldn’t miss out on this seasonal treat. He immediately grabbed three freshly cooked crabs from a steaming pot and placed them on his tray.

Each pot of crabs was emptied within minutes of being set out.

Eating mitten crabs without dipping sauce would be soulless.

He headed to the condiment station in the middle of the buffet, grabbed a small bowl, and added chopped scallions, ginger, garlic, and bird’s eye chilies. He then poured in soy sauce and vinegar.

After a quick stir with the communal chopsticks, he carried his tray to a quiet corner in the north of the cafeteria and sat down.

Soon, Lin Ran, Mu Qing, and a group of students arrived, gradually gathering in the north corner of the Academy Cafeteria, which had become their usual meeting spot.

Gourmet food had always been one of Feng Qi’s few indulgences. He reached out and grabbed a Chinese mitten crab.

The crab’s shell was coated with a pale yellow oil that had seeped from within, carrying a faint, sweet aroma.

The ingredients supplied to Star City Academy were always of the highest quality.

For the same price, suppliers invariably reserved their best produce for the academy’s students, recognizing that these students represented humanity’s future.

Thus, every crab was a premium specimen.

After untying the crab, Feng Qi meticulously removed the stomach, gills, heart, and intestines before splitting it in half.

He lightly dipped the meat in the sauce and took a bite.

October’s male crabs were large and meaty, their shells brimming with rich, fatty roe.

Steaming had preserved the crab’s natural sweetness, allowing him to savor the delicate strands of meat as he chewed.

Each bite left a lingering, savory aftertaste.

He quickly devoured the entire crab, leaving no morsel of meat on the legs untouched.

Then came the second, and the third.

The three Chinese mitten crabs he had taken were quickly devoured. Though still not fully satisfied, he refrained from getting more, deciding to fill his stomach first before indulging further.

After half an hour of eating, everyone stopped, their faces showing contentment.

Only Feng Qi and Mu Qing continued to eat.

After finishing the food on his plate, Feng Qi went back for another plate of Chinese mitten crabs, enjoying the delicacy while waiting for Mu Qing.

The logistics department at Star City Academy had clearly anticipated the students’ enthusiasm for the crabs.

The crabs were plentiful, the only issue being that the kitchen staff struggled to keep up with the students’ demand.

By 7:20 PM, Mu Qing finally stopped eating, a dazed yet satisfied smile on her face.

”Let’s take a walk around the sports field first. We’ll start the competitive training in Dawn at 8 PM. I’ll rearrange the red and blue team assignments later,” Feng Qi said, rising with his tray.

Seeing this, Lin Ran and the others also stood up and followed Feng Qi to the tray disposal area.

As they left the Academy Cafeteria, night had already fallen.

The academy’s streetlights had already come on, casting a faint red glow across the sky. Swarms of mosquitoes danced around the lights, clearly visible in the illuminated air.

Feng Qi led the students to the sports field for a leisurely stroll and conversation.

At eight o’clock, they returned to the gymnasium.

If the Star City Academy’s library was the busiest place at night, the gymnasium ranked second.

Students pursuing body cultivation often came here for intensive training sessions after dark.

If not for the gymnasium’s excellent soundproofing, passersby would hear the shouts and groans of trainees late into the night.

Following the corridor inside the gymnasium, they arrived at Room 1019.

After turning on the lights, everyone entered the cubicles to change into their game suits.

The next round of combat training was about to begin.

The previous session had made Feng Qi realize that Mu Qing was a major wildcard.

So, after creating a custom room in the game, he assigned himself, Mu Qing, and Lin Ran to the Red Team.

The remaining ten students were placed on the Blue Team.

By participating in the combat training himself, Feng Qi aimed not only to hone Liu Yue and the others’ practical combat skills but also to test his own abilities in a simulated battle environment.

As for the power disparity between the two sides, he wasn’t worried with Mu Qing on his team.

In the upcoming matches, he planned to focus on training the ten students’ teamwork and their individual positioning during team battles.

After over twenty minutes of preparation and setup, the mock battle officially began.

The randomly selected map was ”Cloudpeak Mountains,” a mountaintop shrouded in thick clouds with a crimson sun hanging in the sky, creating an exceptionally picturesque landscape.

A new round of the mock battle unfolded.

Over the next two days, Feng Qi led the students through intense simulated combat training.

They essentially played one match after another, with minimal breaks.

Apart from class and meal times, they spent the rest of their time in Room 1019 of the gymnasium.

The training proved remarkably effective.

Each student found their niche within the team.

For example, Liu Yue and Yang Xiaoxin emerged as the team’s primary damage dealers.

Yan Yue became the team’s main tank.

The Xia Family Brothers served as combat supports, coordinating with the main damage dealers to launch offensives.

Cai Guo, the team’s sole healer, focused on buffing teammates, healing injuries, and restoring stamina.

Xu Hongyun and the monk took on defensive roles, protecting the backline and rarely initiating attacks.

When necessary, they would even sacrifice themselves to safeguard the team’s primary damage dealers.

Finally, there was Jia Yi, the ”special support.”

Having studied formation studies, Jia Yi’s role remained somewhat fluid. He could provide support, launch attacks, or deploy formations to defend against enemy ranged art magic.

He could even use formations to set traps and ambush opponents.

Over these two days of training, the ten students gradually developed a more mature team battle consciousness, and their coordination improved significantly.

In the beginning, their voice channel was constantly filled with insults and recriminations.

Except for the taciturn Liu Yue, the other nine all blamed their failures on ”pig teammates,” refusing to acknowledge their own shortcomings.

After each match, they would hurl verbal abuse at each other.

This was precisely the toxic environment Feng Qi wanted to avoid.

So after every match, he, Lin Ran, and Mu Qing would analyze the reasons for their defeat with the ten players, identify their weaknesses, and offer specific advice.

Under this intense training regimen, Liu Yue and the others’ teamwork and coordination in Team Battles improved dramatically.

They learned to quickly assess their roles at the start of each battle, rather than floundering around like headless chickens.

Moreover, the rigorous training significantly enhanced their mastery of art magic.

Take Cai Guo, for example.

Over the past two days, she had repeatedly cast an amplification spell called ”Spirit of Nature,” gradually mastering its execution.

When she attempted to replicate the spell’s trajectory from the game in reality, she succeeded once or twice out of ten attempts.

While this was partly due to the ”Spirit of Nature” being a relatively simple spell, it still demonstrated remarkable progress.

This also demonstrated that the game Dawn could indeed help players (cultivators) improve their mastery of art magic and even learn entirely new techniques.

By the third day, with only two days remaining until the Rookie Tournament, Feng Qi changed their training methods.

This time, he brought Lin Ran, Mu Qing, and himself to the spectator seats.

Then, he added 200 AI opponents to the match.

While the AI lacked wisdom and struggled to perform effectively in a game that fully simulated reality, their sheer numbers and instantaneous spellcasting made them ideal for this training exercise.

In the Rookie Tournament, the other participating classes outnumbered Combat Class Three by several times.

Feng Qi intended to train their ability to fight outnumbered in team battles.

The results proved the effectiveness of the previous days’ training. Liu Yue and the others performed remarkably well against the 200 AI opponents.

In seven matches, they actually won two.

This victory was achieved even without Liu Yue using his sword intent.

This gave Feng Qi even greater confidence for the upcoming Rookie Tournament.

(End of the Chapter)

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