Practice assessments consist of fifteen subjects in total.
From [Spaceship Control] at the top, down to [Close-Quarters Assassination Combat Techniques] and [Alien Species Dissection] at the bottom.
It’s safe to say the variety is quite extensive.
Since [Combat Assessment] requires ranking through matches, and the battalion can’t accommodate multiple trainees in the same high time-flow virtual space simultaneously, the assessment was split into two days.
The first day took place independently in a high time-flow training space, with rankings confirmed by scores.
The second day was dedicated to virtual battles.
On the first day’s assessment, apart from being a bit rusty at [Alien Species Dissection],
Yun Ruoxi scored highly in the other subjects.
Unfortunately, her impressive performance didn’t earn her any screen time; she could only watch the protagonists and their groups shine in front of the cameras.
But she wasn’t discouraged.
Because the [Combat Assessment] on the second day was her true target.
As long as she matched with one or two members of the protagonist group, she was guaranteed at least a minute of screen time.
On the second day, after eating her raw breakfast, Yun Ruoxi arrived at the training space, spiritedly putting on her helmet.
In literature, there’s a “number one.”
In martial arts, there’s a “number two.”
Compared to the previous assessments with clear scoring criteria, the ranking and results confirmation for [Combat Assessment] were unusually simple.
It was just fighting — match after match, fighting until the rankings were fully confirmed.
In a way, this was part of the battalion’s violent tradition.
And in terms of combat techniques, possessing [Beast Combat Intuition] and having been carefully trained by Saxin Jingxin, Yun Ruoxi was absolutely among the top tier of the battalion; except for a few individuals, she feared no one.
She entered the familiar personal space.
Following instructions, Yun Ruoxi selected [Live Combat Simulation] and began matching her first-round opponent.
The combat ranking system was somewhat similar to the Swiss System she knew.
One-on-one battles would first select the winners’ bracket, who would continue one-on-one fights until the strongest emerged.
Then the strongest from the losers’ bracket would get a chance to challenge the champion.
A crisp notification sound rang out, indicating Yun Ruoxi had matched with her first-round opponent.
With a blink, she appeared on an arena, with no audience around.
Opposite her stood a tall boy.
In the Interstellar Academy, virtual space combat matches were common.
For fairness, participants usually maintained identical physical stats, with only slight adjustments in height and build allowed.
But in the battalion, each person’s virtual body stats differed, generated according to the battalion’s calculated data.
This was definitely unfair.
Petite and physically weaker, Yun Ruoxi was naturally at a disadvantage.
But the battalion didn’t care.
On the arena, the two sized each other up.
This was the first lesson after the combat course’s courage-building — observation.
Observe the enemy’s species, whether they had cybernetic implants, and potential weaknesses.
Combat in the Interstellar Age was this meticulous.
Treating the enemy as simply human right off the bat was a huge mistake.
“What a beautiful girl.”
The boy’s eyes flashed with a hint of admiration when he saw Yun Ruoxi, but inwardly he breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Such a soft, adorable little girl probably wasn’t proficient in combat, and her physical fitness certainly couldn’t compare to his.
Good, first round won.
Yun Ruoxi had no impression of the boy’s face at all, indicating he wasn’t even a background character.
She was confident in her combat skills; though her physical stats were lacking, as long as she didn’t encounter those few freaks from the plot, she was unbeatable.
“Battle start!”
The AI Referee’s voice sounded, and both moved almost simultaneously.
Yun Ruoxi crouched low, arms guarding her chest.
The instant she closed in on the boy, she suddenly ducked, skillfully dodging his swinging hook powered by longer reach, then smoothly pressed close to him.
Swish!
Her precise stabbing punch landed on the boy’s abdomen.
While front-rolling to evade his pain-fueled counterattack, she executed a back kick, striking hard at the back of his right knee.
Thud — the boy lost balance and kneeled on one leg.
Yun Ruoxi flipped nimbly like a hawk, landing behind him, legs locking his waist, arms tightly wrapping around his neck.
A naked choke!
The boy hadn’t expected the fight to progress so quickly; his anticipated easy victory turned into one-sided punishment.
He struggled, face red and ears burning, but it was futile.
His vision darkened swiftly, and he collapsed limply to the ground.
Then shattered into fragments, disappearing from the arena.
“Number 2195 defeats Number 4876. Matching your next opponent now,” the AI Referee’s cold voice announced.
Yun Ruoxi shook her wrist and slowly stood upright.
Her progress over the past month had been good, steadily ranking at the top, so she received a 100-point reward.
Her current score was 4,108, seemingly not much.
But since the top trainees couldn’t maintain the required learning pace, they were penalized with point deductions.
Naturally, Yun Ruoxi climbed 2,229 spots.
However, dormitory changes would wait until after the monthly assessment, once points were fully settled and numbers stabilized.
“Match successful.”
With the AI Referee’s cold prompt echoing in the arena, another figure appeared opposite Yun Ruoxi.
A boy of average height and ordinary appearance.
Winning the first round and entering the winners’ bracket indicated formidable strength, but he still wasn’t even a background character.
So he posed no threat to Yun Ruoxi.
She probed slightly and quickly confirmed his preferred combat style, then with agile footwork, easily won.
Third round, fourth round…
Yun Ruoxi swept through effortlessly, her winning streak growing.
Until the fifth-round matching results appeared.
She stared at her newly matched opponent, a flash of surprise crossing her face, soon replaced by excitement.
Finally, a big fish; her string of victories hadn’t been in vain.
She glanced at the anime feed in the upper right corner of her vision.
The camera was indeed focused on her now, and the comments began to erupt:
“So little Xi was hiding here all along! I thought she wouldn’t get any screen time this episode.”
“Oh ho ho, the male lead fights the female lead — domestic violence scene ( ).”
“Who are you rooting for? I’m definitely team little Xi. The little loli may be weak, but the male lead is gentle enough; how could he hit his wife?”
“Wait, Lin Zhen won four matches before matching with Xi — doesn’t that mean Xi also won the previous four rounds?”
“Whoa, only now that you mention it, doesn’t that imply Xi’s combat skills are not inferior to the male lead’s?”
“No, you got it backwards — it’s more like the male lead’s skills probably aren’t inferior to Xi’s!”
“True, the male lead already said the virtual space’s physical stats closely match reality. Xi’s delicate body looks easy to topple; if her combat skills weren’t ridiculously strong, how could she have made it this far?”