The air in Mingcheng was stifling at night, and sweat spread across clothes that had dried countless times.

Back at Mingda University, Li Changzhou didn't eat anything, immediately took a shower, and then went to sleep. It was only 9 p.m.

......

......

In Yangcheng, the capital of the Great Xia Dynasty, a medium-sized conference room under heavy security.

At this moment, before dawn, dozens of people were already sitting inside.

Smoke filled the air, documents were scattered on the table, pens lay on the floor, and someone was asleep in a chair in the corner.

Clearly, it wasn't that they arrived early, but rather that they hadn't left the room all night.

The mess in the room also indicates that things were so urgent that there was no energy or inclination to tidy up.

"What time is it?" The middle-aged man in military uniform, sitting at the head of the table, pinched the sides of his nose and asked the person next to him.

"4:58, today's report will be here soon," the man replied.

"Wake everyone up." After giving the order, the middle-aged man rubbed his face to wake himself up.

There was finally some movement in the meeting room as people woke each other up.

After the commotion subsided, there was silence again until the conference room door was pushed open.

She was a female soldier, holding a thick stack of documents.

She raised her hand to salute, but the middle-aged man waved his hand to interrupt her: "Just say it."

"Yes!" the female soldier replied, and then quickly got into position.

"On September 7th, which was yesterday, a total of 53,608 people from various military regions entered the qualifying rounds, and 49,150 passed."

"On the same day, a total of 94,361 civil servants from various regions entered the qualifying round. The data has not yet been reported, but it is expected to be available before noon."

"Last night's second competition had approximately 900 participants, with x deaths, and participants gaining skills..."

"The military region and government have completed the internal culling of animals, and zoos and botanical gardens are also under close monitoring. There are currently awakened animals..."

A series of numbers that make one's head spin.

Several people in the room kept slapping their faces to keep themselves awake.

"Any news about the abilities of the animals we're paying special attention to?" a robust old soldier asked the female soldier.

"There's news about the mantis shrimp."

"Speak!" Everyone instinctively sat up straight.

A mantis shrimp can punch at a speed of 100 kilometers per hour, instantly raising the temperature of the surrounding seawater to that of the sun's surface.

Studies have shown that if the punch were delivered to a human size, the force would be at least 700 tons.

Knowledge that used to be only used for fun science is now being discussed in this office because humans can actually acquire the abilities of mantis shrimp.

"An official struggling in Oman learned how to throw a punch using the official currency provided by the government."

"And then what happened?" someone immediately asked.

"That man's right arm turned to ash, and his entire body was burned inside. He died on the spot. The punch he threw carved a trench a hundred meters long in the ground, and the surrounding soil was burned into crystals."

The female officer placed a document in front of each person present.

Silence fell over the meeting room.

The middle-aged man above put down the documents in his hand. The photos of the test site showed a level of destruction comparable to the latest technological weapons.

He picked up the special cigarette case, intending to smoke one, but the case was already empty.

The middle-aged man sighed, put down his cigarette pack, and said:

"The game of value has just begun. The human body cannot yet withstand excessive power, but from a developmental perspective, it is only a matter of time before humans master this power."

It sounded like he was talking to himself, yet also like he was warning everyone.

"Is there anything else to report?" he asked the female officer.

“A soldier named Zheng Qing requests permission to have a direct video call with you, as he has information related to the strugglers.”

This is something that would have been absolutely impossible before the value game.

From the moment the Special Operations Bureau was established, all its members were granted this right: to request and report directly any intelligence they deemed necessary, bypassing their immediate superiors.

The middle-aged man sighed wearily, but quickly rallied and said, "Take it."