Chapter 51: Playing with Your Life? Let's Try It!

"The most exciting moment is finally about to arrive!"

"Those Six Tigers are the finest batch of men sent over by the Fierce Tiger 2nd Reinforced Regiment in recent years. Although they all carry a bit of that veteran ruffian vibe, their overall individual capabilities are indeed quite good. Frontline units like our Sharp Blade don't have too many rigid rules; strength is the ultimate law. Even if the five recruits brought by Commander Leng possess extraordinary strength, I'm afraid tonight..."

Inside the command room, Regiment Commanders Nie Feihong and Zhu Xiaotian spoke one after the other as they watched the surveillance monitors, their voices tinged with eager anticipation.

Meanwhile, on the screen, the Six Tigers had already walked up behind Qi Tian and the others and come to a halt.

Among the six, a scarred-faced veteran raised his fist and threw a punch straight at Qi Tian, who was sleeping on the outermost bed, without the slightest hesitation.

He had no intention of exchanging pleasantries whatsoever!

The other five did not try to stop him, as if they were already accustomed to this barbaric and domineering way of seizing resources!

"Bang!"

Just as the fist, the size of a sandbag, was about to smash into Qi Tian's head, Qi Tian—who had been snoring heavily and seemed fast asleep—suddenly made a move, tightly grabbing the scarred veteran's fist.

The force was so great that it made the veteran's knuckles creak!

"Kid, you weren't asleep?!"

The scarred veteran's expression turned fierce as he swung his other fist toward Qi Tian's chest!

"I was asleep, but I was also keeping my guard up against you guys, and I was waiting precisely for this moment!"

Just as the words left his mouth, Qi Tian's left hand miraculously slipped a sharply whittled wooden spike out from under the bedding, lightning-fast, and pressed it directly against the veteran's throat.

This was an idea he had temporarily come up with when pushing the three single beds together earlier. Qi Tian was naturally adept at utilizing whatever was at hand to help himself get through the selection process, and this wooden bed naturally fell within the range of usable items!

"All together now!"

Seeing this, the burly, towering leader issued an order, telling the other four to disperse and form a encirclement around Qi Tian and his group.

Zhang Meng and the others, who had long been prepared for battle, quickly flipped off their beds, their eyes wide as copper bells, glaring at the veterans in front of them.

"When it comes to numbers, we can't match you, but when it comes to playing for keeps, wanna try?!"

The anger that Zhang Meng had been holding in all night finally erupted at this moment. The momentum of the top practitioner of ancient martial arts from the East China Sports Institute instantly stunned the four veterans in front of him, freezing them in place and preventing them from taking another step forward!

Lin Mang, Jiang Chong, and Song Wei simultaneously locked their focus onto the leader of the Six Tigers.

The moment a fight broke out, the three of them would risk their lives and charge forward to take down the leader!

This was the tacit understanding the five of them had cultivated through a month of grueling training: Qi Tian strikes first, Zhang Meng is responsible for frontal suppression, and the final three capture the ringleader first!

"Kid, I don't believe you'd actually dare to stab me with this wooden stick. Trying to scare your Grandpa Lu with this piece of junk? Keep dreaming!"

The eleven men inside the tent were running on full cylinders, none of them willing to give an inch. The scarred veteran, pinned down by Qi Tian, questioned him and deliberately thrust his neck forward, pressing it right against the sharp tip of the wooden stick in Qi Tian's hand!

"You're right, I might not dare to actually stab you, but I definitely dare to plant this wooden stick into your leg!"

With that, Qi Tian's hand holding the wooden stick suddenly flicked downward, aiming the sharp point directly at the scarred veteran's calf.

"A hit like this won't cause permanent damage to your body, but ruining your selection is a walk in the park! As for the rest of us, at worst, we just shout surrender in time and announce our withdrawal from the selection. After all, we're recruits; we'll have plenty of opportunities in the future. But what about you? Veteran, do you still have a chance?!"

At this point, Qi Tian abruptly changed his tone: "Song Wei, Jiang Chong, Lin Mang! Listen to me carefully. Once the fight starts, I'll take care of crippling this veteran, and the three of you will go all out to cripple their leader. As for Zhang Meng, try your best to pin down the remaining four. Even if we can't ruin their selection, we must not let these four veterans off easy! Don't these veterans want to stir up trouble? Fine, then none of us walk away cleanly. Let's see who has the capital to come back to Sharp Blade another day!"

"Understood, Brother Tian!"

Hearing Qi Tian's chilling and domineering command, the four of them responded in unison. Zhang Meng even ripped open the collar of his training uniform to reveal his fully developed, rock-solid muscles, glaring fiercely at the veterans in front of him!

It radiated a ruthless aura of not fearing death, and daring the others to try surviving it either!

The six tigers clearly had not expected these five recruits to be such tough opponents. For a moment, they did not dare to advance another half-step!

Just as Qi Tian had just pointed out, they no longer had the opportunity to participate in another selection. If they failed the Sharp Blade Amphibious Unit's evaluation this time, these six men would face collective demobilization and discharge next year.

To gamble their entire military career against five recruits—they truly could not afford to take that risk!

And it was precisely because Qi Tian had accurately read their hidden concerns that he now dared to lead four recruits in standing up to six elite veterans from a reinforced regiment.

"Boss, what's the plan? The brothers are waiting for your word!"

With the sharp tip of the wooden stick pressed fiercely against his calf, the veteran's complexion turned terribly pale. He swallowed hard and asked the leader behind him.

Before their leader could reply, Qi Tian preemptively stated his terms:

"Seven beds. We only want the innermost three; the remaining four are all yours. True, you won't be able to sleep one person to a bed like before, but pushing four beds together to accommodate the six of you for rest is definitely not a problem. We've already given you plenty of face. If you insist on gambling your lives on a fight, then we'll be forced to accompany you to the bitter end. Fight or make peace, give us a straight answer!!"

...

"Just a bunch of recruits, and you dare to stand up to Fang Jinxiang? Consider yourselves lucky!"

After a few breaths, the leader of the Fierce Tiger Regiment slowly relaxed his furrowed brow. Staring straight into Qi Tian's eyes, he bit out every single word:

"Remember my name. If the five of you actually manage to pass the Sharp Blade selection in the end, I promise to let you experience the full fury of an angry tiger. Brothers, fall back!"

The moment Fang Jinxiang finished speaking, he spun around and strode toward the outer wooden beds. Clearly, he had agreed to the terms proposed by Qi Tian.

Or rather, he neither wanted nor dared to gamble what little was left of his military career in a showdown against Qi Tian and the others. He genuinely could not afford this gamble!

Upon hearing Fang Jinxiang's command, the other five Fierce Tiger Regiment veterans quickly retreated several meters until they reached a safe distance from Qi Tian's group. Then, mimicking Qi Tian's method, they pushed the remaining four wooden beds together and lay down to rest!

On the other side, the other veterans keeping watch on their straw mats were completely dumbfounded by what Qi Tian and his group had pulled off.

"Without even throwing a punch, just by using a few words, they actually managed to bluff those six tigers? Damn, these five recruits are legendary!"

"Fang Jinxiang is famously hot-tempered in the Fierce Tiger Regiment. I never expected him to back down to five recruits today. That's quite a spectacle."

"Why didn't we think of using this kind of mutual-destruction gamble to keep Fang Jinxiang from starting a fight?"

"Nonsense! The veterans who came with you were already weeded out ages ago; you don't have what it takes to pull that off!"

"Besides, brother, don't forget that you're a veteran yourself. Do you think Fang Jinxiang would give a damn if you tried threatening him with that kind of talk?"

"The selection slots were already scarce enough, and now five quick-witted, highly skilled recruits have shown up. My chances in this year's selection are completely ruined!!"

...

For a time, discussions erupted throughout the tent, with voices overlapping continuously!

Meanwhile, in the surveillance room, the expressions of the two officers who had watched the entire scene played out before them were nothing short of spectacular!