Chapter 15: Unleashing Hidden Potential

What an insanely destructive force!

Bending over, he surveyed the enormous cavity blasted open by the torrent of sword energy, and Yenir’s eyes flashed with excitement.

With such terrifying killing power, even a slightly weaker second-stage peak would be instantly decimated.

Even a third-stage attacker caught off guard would sustain a crippling blow from a single strike!

And yet, right now, he was barely at 0-stage.

Releasing his power every 48 hours without any cost meant that every two days he could unleash a third-stage attack rivaling those of third-stage Awakeners!?

With such a trump card in hand, isn’t leveling up as easy as drinking water?

Yenir let out a soft breath as he swiftly reviewed the experience points he had just racked up.

On the system panel, two messages flashed:

“Beep: Defeated a first-stage peak mutant. Gained 5 Spirit Energy XP (Artificial instance, 50% deduction).”

“Beep: Acquired white equipment – Swift Hands.”

The system prompt was simple, yet it left Yenir momentarily stunned.

Having little Spirit Energy experience was normal.

He knew that in artificial instances all the XP came from Spirit Stones provided by the Battle Zone—unlike normal instances, for which the human side couldn’t bear the extra cost.

But could equipment actually drop?

Keep in mind that these instances were mainly for low-level Awakeners to practice; not only was there no gear, it was virtually nothing but experience.

After all, every supply in an artificial instance was provided by the Military, so costs were cut wherever possible.

When Yenir noticed the gloves materialize in his hand, he realized they were probably the Military’s top reward—an incentive for low-level Awakeners to dare challenge mutants. Still, the drop rate was outrageously low.

Luck was on his side.

After glancing at the equipment’s attributes, Yenir immediately put them on.

+1 Agility. Attack speed and shooting stability increased by 15%.

The stats looked ordinary, but for a piece of white gear, they were pretty decent.

Especially during the apocalypse, when gear drops were pitiful, even ordinary second-stage Awakeners might struggle to gather a full set of white equipment.

No exaggeration—the most mediocre piece of gear could easily fetch a few campus beauties for half a month of play.

In the apocalypse, strength is everything!

“Roar!!”

A roar came from afar. After glancing at the zombies from other zones drawn by the commotion, Yenir decided not to linger. The test had served its purpose; staying any longer was pointless.

“Exit the instance.”

No sooner had the command been uttered than he was whisked back into the Giant Tower.

…..

“Buzz”

With a flash of white light, Yenir’s sudden reappearance caught Captain Huang off guard.

Is he out already?

From the moment Yenir entered the instance to his exit, barely seven or eight minutes had passed—normally, that’s just when one would first encounter zombies.

The guide at the platform gave Yenir a peculiar glance.

Observing Yenir’s unruffled state after high-intensity combat, the guide couldn’t help but feel a surge of disdain.

Had he retreated at the very sight of zombies?

Well, it figures. Young men escorted by the Military Department were usually the pampered offspring of influential figures.

After a moment’s pause, Captain Huang studied Yenir’s profile and, as if to comfort him, said:

“Yenir, it’s completely normal to perform poorly on your first instance run.”

“After all, you’ve only just become an Awakener—you haven’t learned any skills yet.”

He chuckled.

“Trust me, even after we left boot camp and were thrown into zombie encounters, I was terrified during my first solo instance run.”

“City skirmishes with zombies are indeed challenging to handle.”

Tilting his head slightly, Yenir looked at the earnest Captain Huang, amused by how seriously he took even the smallest blow to his confidence.

Clearly, Captain Huang saw him as a ‘deserter.’

Shaking his head, Yenir didn’t bother explaining and simply smiled as he said:

“Captain Huang, could you please take me back?”

“And by the way, could you ask Commander Xiao how long it’ll take for the Capital to confirm the news?”

Captain Huang was taken aback by the request, his expression turning solemn.

After a heavy nod, he led Yenir away.

Once the two departed, a few of the previously silent receptionists immediately began whispering among themselves.

“Oh my god, did you catch what that guy just said? Commander Xiao? He actually knows Commander Xiao?”

An attractive female receptionist in uniform glanced toward Yenir’s departing figure, though she disapproved of his earlier performance.

Yet from what Yenir had mentioned, it was clear he was one of those privileged second-generation elites who could rub shoulders with top figures.

A single command had the Military contacting Xiao Hai directly—now that was mind-blowing.

With a mix of envy and wistfulness, several well-chosen young girls couldn’t help but exclaim:

“I wonder what his background is—I’ve never heard of any top Military brass with the last name Ye…”

“But that guy was pretty hot; it’s just that his strength was a bit lacking.”

Amid their banter, one girl teased the boy who had been watching Yenir leave:

“What, got a crush on him? But with someone of his caliber, you wouldn’t have to work hard for credit points anyway.”

“Who cares about lacking strength when he’s got a whole crew protecting him?”

“Yeah, I should’ve talked to him more earlier. It’s rare to run into such a young big shot.”

With a tinge of regret, the girls spoke candidly:

“If we ever run into him again, we absolutely have to chat him up. With someone who can issue orders like that, even a few days of hanging out might score you a much better deal—at least, your family could eat well…”

Amid the chattering, an Awakener responsible for maintaining the instance’s energy suddenly burst out of the tower, his face grim as he shouted:

“Who sent a first-stage squad into the instance again?! Didn’t it say that the instance is for solo runs?!”

Fuming, the maintainer scanned the hall as he spoke, desperately searching for the ‘culprit.’

A few of the chatting receptionists were taken aback, and one girl couldn’t help but ask the nervous maintainer:

“Brother Zhang, no squad entered… we wouldn’t dare…”

Before she could finish, the maintainer glared at her impatiently:

“No one!?”

“If not a single squad entered, then how did the first-stage mutant in the instance die!? Even the one and only piece of gear was dropped!”

“Damn it, there’s no way any second-stage slackers would just barge in for fun!”

Hearing the maintainer’s urgent words, several of the girls were suddenly startled, exchanging bewildered glances.

Only Yenir had entered the instance earlier; there was no one else.