"Everyone, enter the spaceship in an orderly fashion," Lu Donglei's voice rang out.

Li Hao didn't know whether to laugh or cry. *Damn it, if this keeps up, won't I be expelled? Principal Long will beat me to death.* "Alright, everyone, back to the team. This training camp will last for a long time."

The team members returned to the team one by one, but the way everyone looked at Li Hao had completely changed.

When it was Sky Capital Mech Warrior Academy's turn, Li Hao, Zhou Naiyi, and the others registered one by one. Even the soldiers registering them looked at Li Hao in surprise. In the corridor, Zhou Naiyi and the others were silent, all giving Li Hao strange looks.

"Damn, don't look at me like that. If you have something to say, say it. You guys looking at me like this is creeping me out. Class Monitor, can you set a good example?" Li Hao said helplessly.

"Ahem, Captain, have you ever... been in the underworld or something? Like a godfather?" The huge Huo Ying was like a curious baby.

"One against six dragons, what the hell?" He was genuinely envious. This was practically the script he imagined every day: coming to the Mid-Season Competition, being powerful and domineering, and having all the experts bowing down at Grandfather Huo Ying's feet.

"Bullshit! We're familiar, but don't slander me. And don't include me when you're bragging!"

"Brother Hao, we thought it was strange when Orffy and the others came before, and we thought it was just them. But it turns out that more than half of the top experts on Earth know you. It feels like a dream that we're actually in the same dormitory," Ma Long murmured. "Zuo Xiaopang, what are you laughing at?"

"He's laughing because he finally has a big shot to rely on," Zhou Naiyi said pointedly. "But that's just wishful thinking. Haven't you noticed that Zhao Qinglong sees Li Hao as his mortal enemy? And this time, there's no room for reconciliation with Perkins. That guy is extremely sinister. Everyone needs to be careful during the upcoming training."

"Sorry for causing trouble for everyone," Li Hao said, scratching his nose.

So much time had passed. He thought it was all over.

"What are you thinking? You're our captain. Opposing you is opposing us. We don't care if they're mad dogs or dumb dogs. Who's afraid of who!" Zhou Naiyi said.

"Well said, Class Monitor! We came to the Mid-Season Competition to make a name for ourselves. This is exactly what I wanted!" Huo Ying gave a thumbs up.

Zhou Naiyi smiled slightly. She actually knew that Li Hao didn't want to cause trouble, but the moment Li Hao stood up for them when Perkins insulted them, Zhou Naiyi had no complaints.

Each team had its own independent cabin. At this moment, another team entered: the Samod Academy led by Uxiya. Uxiya was one of this year's three supernovas. Similar to Sky Capital, she single-handedly raised Samod's ranking to 15. The Samod members were also secretly looking at Li Hao. Uxiya had already walked up to Li Hao. "Senior Li Hao, I've heard so much about you. One of my wishes for this Mid-Season Competition is to fight you."

"Ahem, actually, not fighting is also fine. There are many experts here..."

Uxiya smiled. Her green, crystalline eyes radiated a brilliant light. "The Demon King has returned. How can I miss this? More than half the people here came for you. Be careful."

After speaking, Uxiya followed the soldiers into the cabin next door. The team members behind her also followed. The soldiers on Li Hao's side didn't urge them. Zhou Naiyi and the others were used to it. Before coming, they thought no one would know Sky Capital Mech Warrior Academy. After arriving, everyone knew Sky Capital Mech Warrior Academy.

Ma Long felt regret. It was such a pity. If Tianxun was still around, they could have filmed the confrontation just now and posted it on the homepage. *Damn, that would have been awesome! At least I contributed something. The pinnacle of life!*

As soon as they entered the cabin, Ma Long and the others were stunned. What was this?

All the team members entered the arranged cabins. The Mid-Season training camp had begun. Each team reacted differently, because there was a surprise in each room. During the journey to their destination, all the team members had to stay in the same room as a giant insect and enjoy the giant insect's mental massage.

The top teams would find it very easy, but in order to make them enjoy it as well, the types of giant insects were different depending on the level. They all had to fully enjoy this massage treatment. At the same time, scoring for each team also began. Of course, the higher the level of the giant insect, the higher the score, so that a comprehensive training effect could be achieved.

The biggest goal of this Mid-Season Competition...

... was to find the strongest sixteen teams, and not just internal rankings. To put it bluntly, it would be useless in the S-match. This time, the other three major leagues' objectives were very clear: to stop NUP from winning three consecutive championships at all costs.

Therefore, the first stop of this Mid-Season training camp was Mars.

Sazerac and Lu Donglei were in the spaceship's command cabin, their eyes fixed on the sea of stars.

"Old Lu, do you know something? What's the background of that kid from Sky Capital?" Sazerac asked.

"I also heard it through the grapevine. Do you know about the Apocalypse Youth Class?" Lu Donglei said.

Sazerac frowned. "I've heard of it. It seems like an inhumane exploration of the limits of human potential. There were many problems, and it was disbanded. All the files were also destroyed."

"There were many casualties and sequelae. But the most embarrassing thing back then was us on Earth. Five years have passed, and now, many elites of the younger generation in the solar system came from that class of Apocalypse. The Six Dragons, NUP's Fan Leivitt and Maxis, the Three Wolves of Mars, and several kids from Titan, they're all from there. Geniuses always tend to emerge in clusters at certain periods."

"I remember that your teacher was one of the organizers of Apocalypse back then, right? The files are gone, but he was the main person involved. He must still know something. We're all in the same boat now. If our performance is poor this time, our promotions may be completely gone," Sazerac said.

"Haha, my teacher didn't say much, just told me to pay more attention to this Li Hao. According to my inquiries from various sources, this kid and Zhao Qinglong were among the fiercest back then, but they didn't have any background. We bowed to the pressure from the moon and made this kid the scapegoat. Now that we want him to contribute, he may not be willing," Lu Donglei said with a smile.

Sazerac's expression was serious. "To become a leader, who hasn't grown up swallowing grievances? At least he's still alive. As long as he's alive, there's a chance. The question is, after so many years, does he still have enough strength?"

"That's also what I want to see. Judging from his reaction just now, this kid really had some clout back then. And he and Zhao Qinglong should have a deep grudge. In a way, that's a good thing. Maybe it can stimulate Zhao Qinglong and help him break through."

"I'm not optimistic. Haven't you noticed that Zhao Qinglong has changed tremendously compared to last year? His aura has settled down. If it were last year, he would have taken action long ago. This time, it feels different. To be honest, if the other five of the Six Dragons had even close to his strength, we wouldn't be so passive."

"That's why we need to pay close attention and try everything we can," Lu Donglei said with a wry smile. A skilled cook can't make a meal without rice. Having one person dominate isn't necessarily a good thing for USE.

On the big screen, there were views of the conditions in each room. In the rooms of the third-tier teams, there was a Razor Bug in each room. In the rooms of the second-tier teams, there were two Razor Bugs. And in the rooms of the first-tier teams, there was a Lurker.

The prepared teams quickly adapted. During the journey to Mars, they would continue to fight the giant insects. Those who weren't prepared encountered unprecedented difficulties. Fortunately, there was only one giant insect, leaving room for maneuvering. But if a team couldn't handle even one giant insect, then there was really no need to participate in the subsequent training.

In this S-match, it was impossible to go far without sufficient mental strength to activate K23. Furthermore, strong mental strength must be supported by a strong body, otherwise it would also be impossible to go far.

The first test of the training camp was to test the mental and physical toughness of the team members.

The faces of the team members from some of the lower-ranked teams were ashen. They felt like they had been rubbed by a dog, and several times at that. They really weren't prepared for this. Although their willpower was strong, they were still devastated. But now they could only grit their teeth and persevere. The soldiers outside the door had already said that they could give up to be free, but that also meant they would be eliminated.

No one who could come here was weak, and the military still had some restraint. Six team members fighting against a Razor Bug, even without preparation, wouldn't collapse immediately.

Overall, the difficulty for the third-tier teams was a bit high, but no team had given up so far. The second-tier teams were well-prepared and knew to unite to conserve their strength. Of course, they were assigned two Razor Bugs, so things were slightly more difficult.

The sixteen teams in the first tier were assigned a Lurker. The Lurker wasn't as fierce-looking as the Razor Bug, but the fear it instilled was different. It wasn't a tearing fear, but a powerful sense of danger, constantly harassing and entangling, a feeling that made people extremely uncomfortable, always struggling on the edge of death. This was a more advanced kind of giant insect fear.

Originally, Sky Capital Mech Warrior Academy's ranking wasn't high enough to enjoy this kind of treatment. There was no choice. Although they passed the first test easily, they had to endure this more advanced massage technique.

Fortunately, they had similar experience before. Unfortunately, they had no experience fighting Lurkers.

"Brother Hao, quick, quick, block it!" Ma Long couldn't help but shout. "This thing is too weird. Let me catch my breath."

Li Hao was stunned. "How do I block it?"

"Like at school! Didn't you always block it as soon as you tried?" Ma Long said anxiously.

"Can't you see I can't move right now?" Li Hao helplessly pointed to the seat belt on his body. Everyone was fastened to their seats.

"Then what do we do? Damn it, Zuo Xiaopang, you have no humanity! You're invisible again!" Ma Long couldn't help but complain. Originally, they were supposed to fight together, but once Zuo Xiaotang lost his aura, he would enter "invisibility." The giant insect wouldn't bother him, but the pressure would be distributed to the others.