Death Train: SSS-level talent right from the start!

South-facing rooftop platform.

Chen Ye held up the binoculars, his hand exerting a slight force.

He knew something was wrong.

He saw that the blue barrier formed by the Rubik's Cube that Jiang Ning threw out trapped Zhao Hai and the others inside.

"That bastard Jiang Ning!"

Wang Shuo punched the concrete railing at the edge of the rooftop.

"He's killing people!"

Li Zheng's voice also changed, and he gripped the butcher knife so tightly it made a clattering sound.

"Brother Ye, we have to go save Brother Hai!"

Qin Zhaoyang got up from the ground, clutching the fluorescent green slingshot in his hand.

"How can we save him?"

Chen Ye put down his binoculars, turned around, and glanced at the four people behind him: "That thing Jiang Ning threw out was probably a monster's item. We can't break it even if we go. Besides, Jiang Ning has fifteen A-level monsters with him. If the five of us rush over, we won't even be a match for them."

"So we're just going to watch Hai Ge die?"

Wang Shuo's voice was squeezed out from between his teeth.

"Who said Hai-ge would die? You underestimate Hai-ge too much. That item definitely has a time limit. Hai-ge's talent can last for an hour. An S-rank isn't that easy to kill."

Chen Ye raised the binoculars again, aiming the lens at Zhao Hai inside the barrier.

……

The plaza below.

Zhao Hai slammed his fist into the barrier wall. The metallic fist collided with the blue light screen, producing a "humming" sound. The light screen remained unmoved, and his fist was bounced back.

"What the hell is this thing?"

Zhao Hai threw another punch, which was also bounced back.

He heard the low growl of the lizard-headed monster behind him, but he didn't turn around; all his attention was focused on the blue light screen in front of him.

Outside the light screen, Jiang Ning stood still, her hands in the pockets of her sweatpants, a gentle and composed smile on her face.

The fifteen A-level students stood behind him, spreading out in an arc.

Zhao Hai turned around and looked at the lizard head.

The monster did not attack him.

It also noticed the suddenly appearing blue cage, its scarlet vertical pupils scanning the surrounding barrier walls, and it tentatively patted it with its right forepaw.

"Buzz—!"

The same buzzing sound was heard, but the light screen remained completely still.

The lizard tilted its head, patted it again, but still no reaction.

Its intelligence was clearly insufficient to understand the concept of a spatial barrier; it continued to bang and tap on the barrier's light screen, appearing rather unintelligent.

Zhao Hai glanced around and saw that besides him and the lizard-headed man, there were more than a dozen other people inside the barrier.

These people had no idea what was happening when Jiang Ning made that gesture. It wasn't until the blue light screen closed that they realized they were trapped.

"What's going on? What is this blue thing?"

A boy in a gray hoodie rushed to the barrier wall and slapped the light screen with his hand, but the light screen did not move. He then punched it, but it still did not move.

"Let me out! Let me out!"

A girl's voice came from the other side of the square, trembling with tears. She was also pounding on the barrier wall, her palms turning red, but the blue light screen remained unresponsive.

"Jiang Ning! What are you doing? Let us out!"

"Jiang Ning, are you fucking crazy? Let us out of here!"

"Fuck your mother! You dare to scheme against us?"

"Let us out! Do you hear me?!"

Curses came from all directions as the dozen or so people trapped inside the barrier all roared in Jiang Ning's direction.

Jiang Ning stood outside the barrier, her smile unchanged.

He raised his right hand, put his index and middle fingers together near his mouth, and made a "quiet" gesture.

"Dear students, please calm down."

His voice came from outside the barrier, sounding somewhat distorted due to the barrier wall, but it was still clearly audible.

"This barrier is called the Space Cube. It's a one-time use item that dropped when I killed a monster. Once used, it can't be canceled, but it only lasts for thirty minutes. That means the barrier will automatically disappear after thirty minutes."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the faces of everyone inside the barrier, finally settling on Zhao Hai: "So, if you all want to live, show us your true skills. You can't just coast along."

The Space Cube was originally a one-time use life-saving item, but in Jiang Ning's hands it became a killing tool.

The air inside the barrier suddenly froze.

The silence lasted for about three seconds, then was broken by a heart-wrenching scream.

"No—! You can't do this! Let me out! Please let me out!"

The girl who had been patting the light screen knelt on the ground, her hands bracing against the blue barrier, tears streaming down her face.

"Jiang Ning! I'll fuck your ancestors!"

A boy grabbed a steel pipe and smashed it against the barrier wall.

"Buzz—!"

The steel pipe bounced back, making his hands go numb, but the barrier didn't even ripple.

"It's no use, this barrier can't be broken."

It was Zhao Hai who spoke.

He stood in the center of the barrier, the metallic sheen on his fists had faded, and his expression was surprisingly calm as he looked at Jiang Ning outside the barrier.

Jiang Ning was also looking at him.

Their gazes met through the blue light barrier. Jiang Ning's smile remained unchanged, while Zhao Hai's eyes were filled with anger, though he suppressed it.

Instead of cursing, you should think about how to survive these thirty minutes.

Zhao Hai's voice wasn't loud, but everyone inside the barrier heard it.

The boy who was cursing stopped smashing the barrier and turned to look at Zhao Hai.

The girl kneeling on the ground also raised her head, looking at him with teary eyes.

The other trapped people also turned their attention to this tall man who was 1.95 meters tall.

Zhao Hai didn't look at them.

He turned around to face the lizard-headed monster, his fists re-metallized, their silver-gray sheen gleaming coldly under the blue light screen.

The lizard's head didn't move; it remained crouched in the north-central part of the barrier, tapping on the light screen.

The short arrows that Jiang Ning had shot were still stuck in its body, and black liquid was still seeping from the wounds.

But these injuries were clearly not fatal to it, and might not even qualify as "injuries".

Zhao Hai took a deep breath and silently cursed himself.

He still got carried away.

He failed to meet any of the three conditions Chen Ye mentioned.

He made his move when Jiang Ning stopped.

He didn't keep an eye on Jiang Ning's position.

The situation was not right, so he did not retreat immediately.

None of them were accomplished.

But what's done is done, and there's no point in regretting it now.

His gaze swept over the people inside the barrier, and he counted them; there were fourteen people in total, including himself.

Fourteen people were trapped in a blue cage, and a giant beast that was over two meters tall and had a shell as thick as an armored vehicle.

Of the fourteen people, who else besides him has fighting ability?

"Those with combat talent, step forward."

Zhao Hai's voice echoed within the barrier.

No one moved.

"I'm telling you, if you have any fighting talent, step forward. Now is not the time to hide your abilities. This thing won't stop eating you just because you keep quiet."