On the day of the assessment, it was just dawn.

A cold morning mist enveloped the training ground at the foot of the mountain, and the air was filled with a sense of solemnity and tension.

All the trainees who had passed the previous rounds of selection, fewer than one hundred in total, stood ramrod straight in several square formations, completely silent. A solemn expression was etched on each of their faces.

They wore uniform training clothes, carried tactical backpacks containing individual rations, canteens, and first aid kits, and tightly gripped cold Type 56 semi-automatic rifles loaded with specially made paint bullets.

After more than two months of elimination, they are no longer the boisterous rookies they once were. Everyone knows that today's assessment will be the most brutal and bloodiest since the training camp opened.

Chief Instructor Lei Kuan stood at the very front of the formation, like an iron tower.

His weathered face was expressionless, and his sharp, hawk-like gaze slowly swept over everyone, causing all who met his gaze to instinctively tense up.

"Today is your test, your last chance to decide whether some of you stay or leave."

Lei Kuan's voice struck everyone's heart like a heavy hammer.

“The rules are simple.” He pointed to the vast, rolling, and misty mountains behind him. “From now on, this mountain will be your examination hall. From now on, you have eight hours.”

"Your goal is the flag."

An instructor brought over a wooden tray with flags of three colors on it.

"Inside the examination room, we placed flags of three colors. There were forty green flags; finding one would earn 10 points. There were ten yellow flags; finding one would earn 20 points."

A barely suppressed commotion arose in the crowd, and some people began to calculate rapidly in their minds. Four hundred points for the green flag and two hundred points for the yellow flag, a total of six hundred points, divided among nearly fifty teams, meant the competition was fierce.

Lei Kuan seemed quite satisfied with this reaction. He paused, raised his thick arm, and pointed to the top of the highest mountain in the distance.

"Do you see that?"

Everyone looked in the direction he was pointing, and there was a mountain peak shrouded in clouds and mist.

"At the mountaintop, there is a single red flag; 50 points!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a barely suppressed commotion arose from the crowd.

Fifty points!

This single number, like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, stirred up countless ripples.

What does this mean? It means that getting that red flag is practically a guaranteed spot in the next round! In fact, it greatly increases the chances of making it into the top three!

Everyone's gaze turned to the distant mountain peak shrouded in mist, and a flame called "ambition" instantly ignited in their eyes.

Su Tang stood quietly in the line, watching the crowd's enthusiastic reaction, but a hint of understanding flashed deep in her clear eyes.

Placing the biggest cake in the most conspicuous place to attract everyone to grab it is such an outdated tactic.

This red flag is not a reward at all, but a huge bait, a calculated scheme.

It will draw the vast majority of teams to the same most difficult climbing route.

On that road, everyone would exhaust themselves, restrain each other, and fight each other prematurely to seize the only "fruit of victory," resulting in heavy casualties.

The real scoring point isn't about "finding," but about "grabbing."

"Quiet!" Lei Kuan shouted in a low voice, and the commotion immediately subsided.

A cruel sneer curled at the corner of his lips: "Don't be too happy yet. The rules aren't finished yet."

Everyone tensed up and immediately held their breath.

"During the assessment, the guns you hold will be loaded with special paint bullets. If you are hit in a vital area such as the head or chest, you will be considered 'killed in action' immediately. Those who are killed in action must crush their signal flares immediately, wait for the instructors on the spot, and withdraw from the competition."