As someone in sequence 001, I also want to give up today.

Finally, someone in the crowd came to their senses.

The middle-aged man whose face was covered in dust from the falling rocks wiped his face, stared at Li Yu for a full three breaths, and then suddenly raised his voice.

"Heartblade! I remember now! She's Heartblade! Heartblade from the Special Abilities Bureau!"

That shout was like pouring a ladle of water into a pot of boiling oil; the valley exploded on the spot.

"Heart Blade? The Heart Blade ranked third on the peak list?"

"That's right, it's her! No wonder she looked so familiar!"

"Mother!"

A group of people rushed towards Li Yu, their earlier leg cramps completely gone, and their eyes were burning with desire.

The young people wearing glasses rushed forward the fastest, holding their notebooks higher than their faces.

"Ms. Heartblade! Please sign your name! Just this page!"

Not to be outdone, the girl carrying the long sword handed the scabbard to Li Yu.

"Sign the knife onto the scabbard! I'll frame it when I get back!"

The middle-aged man went even further, immediately ripping off his jacket to reveal a white vest underneath.

"Sign here! Right in the middle! I'm going to walk all the way to the headquarters entrance and circle around it three times!"

Li Yu stood in the center of the crowd, her face expressionless.

She took the pen and carefully signed the two characters "Li Yu" in every place, her pen strokes crisp and decisive.

Among the crowd was a burly man carrying a cloth bag. He took out a jade-like spiritual plant from the bag and presented it to Li Yu with both hands.

Li Yu glanced at it but didn't take it.

"Keep it," she said. "The herbs in the secret realm are yours once you pull them up."

The burly man stood frozen in place, holding the spiritual plant, and was moved to tears.

Lingdang squatted outside the crowd, her hands supporting her chin, watching with great interest.

She was used to her aunt's routine.

The incident in the island nation was even more outrageous; a young man chased his aunt for half a block while holding his phone, and almost shoved the phone into her mouth.

She only dared to think these words to herself, her face bearing an air of profound knowledge as if she had known all along.

Before the pen could be handed back, Li Yu spoke first.

"Is everything signed?"

The crowd nodded repeatedly, like chickens pecking at rice.

"Alright then."

Li Yu capped her pen, her gaze sweeping from one end of the crowd to the other. Her voice wasn't loud, but it was like a block of ice being smashed into hot water.

"I have a question for you. What were you doing when those cyclops charged out just now?"

The lively atmosphere seemed to be gripped by an invisible hand, and instantly fell silent.

The middle-aged man's smile froze on half of his face.

"Your first reaction is to run, right?"

Li Yu continued, "Those who ran fast dashed off more than ten meters away, those who ran slowly stood still and stared blankly, and a few simply closed their eyes and waited to die."

"I counted, from beginning to end, not a single person thought of fighting back, not a single person thought of pulling the person next to them back, and not a single person thought of—even just shouting at the top of their lungs to bring everyone together."

Some people in the crowd quietly lowered their heads.

"You are all superhumans, Rank B."

Li Yu spoke each word clearly.

"Outside, he could easily overturn half a street's worth of B-grade fighters with one hand. With that kind of strength, a dozen people could flank him from both sides and divert that beast's attention; if they really can't beat him, two people could hold one down and drag him back, which would at least reduce the number of casualties."

"But what did you do?"

She paused.

He turned and ran. He didn't even glance at where his teammates were.

The valley was so quiet that you could hear the wind howling through the ravines.

The dozen or so Cyclopes' corpses lay scattered on the rocky beach, their dark red blood still wet, making the clearing seem especially silent.

The bespectacled young man opened his mouth, wanting to argue, but was frozen in place by a single look from Li Yu.

"I understand what you're thinking."

Li Yu's face was gloomy.

"It's normal to feel weak in the knees and have a blank mind when you encounter a strange beast for the first time. Everyone goes through this stage. But you're entering the Trial Grounds. The General Administration let you in so that you can learn this lesson in truly life-threatening situations."

Her voice softened, but became even deeper.

"Do you know why Elder Zhou insisted on holding this trial?"

No one responded.

"Since the establishment of the Wanling Sequence, the number of superhumans in China has increased several times, and their ranks on the records have risen one by one. But ranks are just on paper; courage and brains are what grow on the body."

"How many times have you, this generation, seen real combat after you awakened? The targets in the training room won't pounce on you, and the numbers on the grading device won't bite you. On the real battlefield, a B-grade on paper is worthless."

She pointed to Lingdang, who was squatting behind her watching the commotion.

"She's a B-grade."

The bell jolted, its ears perking up from under its hair.

"She doesn't even have any superpowers," Li Yu said. "She just used her brute strength to single-handedly take down a Cyclops. Even though that Cyclops was still a fledgling—"

Bell's tail swung violently inside the trouser leg.

Auntie, you could have omitted the word "baby"!

Also, my aunt said she "doesn't have any special abilities"?

She clearly had a fission effect...

But then I thought about it again, and realized that apart from Old Deng and my aunt, no one else knew about the fission.

Her aunt is covering for her.

The little bit of pride in Lingdang's heart quietly grew another notch.

Snowflakes peeked out from beside her feet, their white fur bristling, and muttered, "Bell is clearly the most powerful!"

Bell quickly covered its mouth, afraid that its leaky mouth would utter another word.

"—But what about you?"

Li Yu's gaze returned to the crowd.

"A dozen or so people, all fully equipped, were so terrified by a group of cyclops that they couldn't even maintain formation. She dared to charge alone, while you all just ran. Is this difference in rank a matter of class?"

The middle-aged man opened his mouth, then finally managed to squeeze out, "Ms. Heartblade... we've never seen anything like it. That thing can turn a person into a meat patty with one punch, we—"

Before he could finish speaking, he lowered his head.

He has studied mythical beasts for over a decade, and he knows their weaknesses, habits, and so on by heart.

But it wasn't mentioned in the book that if that thing really swung a millstone-sized rock at you, your mind would go blank.

He had been writing calligraphy for over a decade, and this was the first time he had ever felt slapped in the face by his own handwriting.

"Not having seen it before is not a valid excuse."

Li Yu interrupted him.

"Everyone has a first time. It's not shameful to have weak legs, trembling hands, and a blank mind when you first go to the battlefield. What's shameful is to stand still and wait to die after your legs have gone weak, without even thinking of pulling your comrades back to safety."

Do you know why I was angry just now?

Li Yu looked into his eyes.

"If you really can't win, I won't be angry. It's perfectly normal for you to lose if a dozen cyclops suddenly appear. What angers me is that you don't even have the will to fight."

She paused, her gaze sweeping across the crowd.

"When there are too many people, everyone thinks the person next to me will make a move, but no one does. Dozens of people standing together, all relying on others, is no different from one person standing there waiting to die."

These words, falling into the crowd, were like a drop of ink falling into clear water, slowly spreading.

"In this world, rank is meaningless; guts are what truly matter."

Li Yu paused for a moment, then added, "This world is not peaceful; there are many dangers. If you remember one more trick today, one less person will fall victim to those who rely on you in the future."

A young man in the crowd suddenly blushed.

As Lingdang listened, she suddenly realized that her aunt was talking a lot today.

What she didn't know was that Li Yu was saying more to herself than to them.

Old Zhou agreed. They can't keep their children in their arms forever; they have to let go and let them try their own way.

At the time, Li Yu thought it was just a routine operation, but now she understands.

Beneath the sign for the Trial Grounds lies a simple truth: hunters who can fight on the battlefield cannot be raised in a greenhouse.

Levels can be achieved quickly, but courage is lacking.