At this moment, Alex closed his eyes, and a tree appeared in front of his consciousness.
This tree was less than a meter tall. Not only that, it also lacked any branches.
But there was a blue panel showing him the information about the tree.
[Tree Soul (Injured)
Level: Third Rank (785/800 NE)
Note: Due to the injured Tree Soul, evolution can't be continued
Ability: None
Note: Due to the injured Tree Soul, the ability can't be awakened
Soul Treasure: None
Control Method: Basic Qi Technique
Martial Art: Drumming Fist]
Looking at this, Alex sighed.
He was just a few NE away from reaching Rank 4. While average people's Tree Soul could only absorb 1NE per two days.
He was able to absorb 1NE per day. And, this was an injured Soul Tree. If it weren't injured, he would've reached Fourth Rank by now.
What was even worse was that to reach Fourth Rank, his body would need to go through an evolution.
Normally, people did have a chance to prepare for this as long as they stayed on the war ground and gained more resources.
But, he couldn't even do that. Because of his injured Soul Tree.
The same was for his ability.
Fortunately, he could merge with the Soul Treasure. But how could he afford a Soul Treasure?
Just like abilities, Soul Treasures were divided into seven ranks: S, A, B, C, D, E, and F.
Even F-Rank Soul Treasure would cost at least 5000 Credit Points.
His parents' savings were only 1000 Credit Points, and the pension was only 50 Credit Points per month.
He was able to survive on that for four years.
So, he never thought about acquiring a Soul Treasure. But thankfully, his parents did have the Control Method and Martial Arts.
Unlike abilities, these were created and evolved by human efforts. That's why even if Ravi did reach Rank Two, he wouldn't worry about fighting him.
After each rank, the body would go through an immense evolution where its blood could produce a separate energy through constant tempering.
This energy was called Qi.
When produced, Qi could be stored in the twelve meridians of the human body.
After a lot of training, his body was able to produce enough Qi to increase his strength by two times.
That meant his strength would be around eight thousand kilograms. And that was without including his Martial arts.
Unlike the Control Method used to produce Qi, Martial Arts were created to utilize that Qi.
Based on the amount of Qi and base strength, he could achieve the feat of destroying a large building with just a punch at his rank.
Unfortunately, doing this would exhaust his Qi.
Qi could be recovered, but without a proper improvement, the amount of Qi gathered for the second time would be much less.
That's why ranks and control methods go in tandem with each other.
And, just like abilities and soul treasures, Control Methods and Martial Arts were also divided into different ranks.
But unlike them, they only had five ranks.
Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary, and Transcendent!
His Basic Qi Technique and Drumming Fist were only of Common Rank.
If he could get the Rare Rank Control Method, he could even use other resources to improve his Qi.
That being said, even if he could get a Control Method, he wouldn't be able to afford the resources without entering the war zone.
While he was busy thinking about these things, Taylor was explaining some important aspect of the war zone to the students.
"Everyone, you have to be extra careful in the war zone. Especially you, Ravi! Currently, Alex is the strongest and also the most experienced."
"You have to listen to his orders. Unless you think it is completely foolish, you have to suppress your pride."
"If he turns out to be a good commander, even if you reach Rank Three, just keep listening to him. Otherwise, you will not just lose your life; everyone as well."
"The cruelty of War Ground is nothing like you can imagine."
"Remember, for every exotic beast, ghost, or spirit you hunt, you will be given a large number of credit points."
"Every month, there will be a merchant passing by your area. This merchant has been specifically trained to sell resources to the warriors."
"Never think of saving Credit Points. That's basically useless. You will need every bit of resources you can in that land, understand?"
"Your parents will give you different advice, but on this one, I want you to listen to me. Survival is important. Don't rely on luck!"
Hearing that, everyone nodded their heads. Even Ravi, who was feeling sad for losing to Alex, nodded.
"Good! Since you will be going there tomorrow, there will be no more classes today. Go back to your home and give this information to your family."
"They will panic. Certainly, you need to reassure them. After all, they survived that land, and so can you."
At this moment, she turned her head towards Alex and said.
"Besides, you guys might have an advantage that they didn't have."
She looked at five students. If not for Alex's reminder, she wouldn't even know there were five students whose bodies were constantly growing stronger.
Even though they hadn't reached the First Rank. Any extra Natural Energy absorbed by the Tree Soul would be used to strengthen one's body.
Although this strengthening effect wasn't that useful for most people, it wasn't the same for these five.
At this moment, she remembered Control Method and resources.
With these two, they did have a chance to produce a large amount of Qi in their body. And, it would be much powerful than normal Qi.
So, she understood why they were growing stronger, even more than First Rank, without reaching First Rank.
More importantly, their talent should also be high.
But she hadn't been that involved with this class for long. So, she didn't know their parents' identities.
So, she wasn't sure what kind of resources they could access.
Soon, the students left. She watched everyone leaving the academy and went straight to the principal's office.
"Miss Taylor, I was waiting for you."
The man didn't look surprised when he saw her coming.
"Then, you should also know my reason for coming here."
Taylor went to the chair in front of him and sat down. She looked straight at the principal's eyes and asked.
"Yes, I am saddened by this news. But you have to understand. We possibly couldn't afford a large number of Energy Gels."
"Each Energy Gel costs around 1000 Credit Points. There are thirty students in your class."
He took out several files and threw them in front of her.
"Out of thirty, twenty of them can afford Energy Gel, but the rest of them can't. That would be ten thousand Credit Points."
"On top of that, we will be spending at least a thousand credit points for a Battle Suit. That would be thirty thousand credit points."
"We can't spend forty thousand credit points in just your class."
Taylor was looking through their files when she noticed some powerful names and smirked.
"Then, why not ask for a donation? After all, their children are entering the war grounds this early. Only with a stronger unit can they make sure their children survive."
Hearing that, the principal raised his eyebrows and asked.
"Would you be doing that, Miss Taylor? Cause they might not listen to me!"
"Of course! I will be doing this. Because they will not only need a Battle suit but also a Soul Treasure."
When she said that, the principal stood up in absolute shock.
"Shut the flip! How dare you think you can convince them to buy a Soul Treasure for every student?"
She placed five different files on the table and said.
"Rose Family, Frost Family, Greenworth Family, Rockwell Family, and Singh Family."
"All of them have generational wealth. With their help, we should be able to afford the Soul Treasure for every single student."
Hearing that, the principal spoke.
"No, they will not give it so easily. They will definitely strike a contract to bind the students to their families."
"I know them very well. You are sacrificing the student's freedom, Taylor!"
"What's more important? Freedom or life?"
Taylor looked straight at his eyes and asked.
Then, she stood up and said.
"I will contact their family. It doesn't matter if they use a contract. We will let our students decide."
Hearing that, the principal placed his elbows on the table and put his chin in his hand, thinking about her idea.
'We never expected a new race to invade us. From intel we've managed to gather, this race is Droid.'
'If they manage to reach Earth, they will be able to infiltrate every data centre of our planet and get the important information to other races.'
'Three Earth Crushing Realm powerhouses have entered the war. Now, the situation of the war is quite difficult.'
'So, Taylor might have a chance. After all, these families do not want to lose their children.'