# 74
**Chapter 74 – 239 vs. 5**
The scene suddenly fell into dead silence.
The corners of Wang Mian’s mouth twitched madly beneath his mask. Rose clenched her fists. The expressions on the instructors’ faces were absolutely spectacular.
Only the recruits stood there in a daze, completely lost.
Was that… kneeling? Was it? No way, right?
What was he doing?
They might’ve guessed what had happened, but they didn’t dare to believe it. They were desperately trying to come up with a reasonable explanation for what they’d just seen.
Come on, this was the *Mask Squad*. There was no way they’d make such a rookie mistake, right?!
All eyes turned to Vortex.
Vortex knelt there, took a second to accept reality, hesitated for a moment, then slowly raised his hands…
And cupped them in a salute to the recruits.
“Vortex of the Mask Squad, wishing everyone an early Happy New Year!”
Then, with a *whoosh*, he stood up, chest puffed out, pretending nothing had happened.
Lin Qiye: …
Baili Pangpang thought for a moment, then leaned in seriously and whispered to Lin Qiye, “Qiye, do you think… the instructors ran out of budget and couldn’t hire the real *Mask Squad*, so they got a knockoff?”
“…Probably not.” Lin Qiye’s gaze locked onto Wang Mian at the front of the seven. His expression turned serious.
Lin Qiye could feel it—this man on the stage radiated a faint divine pressure.
Others might not notice, but Lin Qiye could.
Because they were both agents of gods.
At the same time, Wang Mian seemed to sense Lin Qiye’s presence. Their eyes met.
A moment later, Wang Mian looked away and continued his speech:
“We are the *Mask* special squad.”
The crowd gasped!
Yuan Gang’s lips curled slightly as his voice echoed across the training ground once more:
“Since you’re unconvinced, I’ll give you a chance—a chance to see your true selves, a chance to face real top-tier geniuses!
It’s now 2:30 PM. Before 9:00 PM tonight, if any of you 239 recruits can remove the mask of *any* member of the *Mask Squad*, using any means necessary, you win!
If you win, it proves you’re truly exceptional, and this year’s training will be unnecessary. I’ll personally apply for your graduation tomorrow!
But if no one succeeds by 9:00 PM, then you’d better flush your ridiculous pride and ego down the toilet! No matter what demands we make during training, you *will* obey!
Do you understand?!”
The recruits exploded in uproar!
Someone immediately protested, “That’s not fair! Most of them are River Realm or Sea Realm powerhouses, and we’re all in the Lamp Realm. How are we supposed to fight them?!”
“During this match, *all* members of the *Mask Squad* will suppress their cultivation to the Lamp Realm!
Same realm. 239 vs. 7!
You… don’t dare?!”
The crowd erupted!
If everyone was in the Lamp Realm, there was no fundamental difference in power. The rest came down to tactics, strategy, and combat experience. Even if the *Mask Squad* were seasoned veterans, they were still only seven people!
They could be overwhelmed by sheer numbers!
The recruits’ breathing quickened.
With such a massive numbers advantage, there was no way they could lose!
And if they won… not only would they skip a year of training, but they’d also earn serious bragging rights!
“Deal!!”
“I’m in!”
“Let’s do this!!”
“…”
The recruits’ morale soared. Their eyes burned into the seven gray-cloaked figures on stage.
Sensing their fighting spirit, Wang Mian narrowed his eyes and spoke coldly:
“To deal with you… we don’t need all seven.
We only need *five* to wipe the floor with you!”
That line ignited the recruits again. They shouted back in fury, the scene descending into chaos.
“They’re *that* arrogant?” Baili Pangpang exclaimed.
“They’re not being arrogant. If anything, they’re being cautious,” Lin Qiye shook his head.
“Only sending five people to fight all of us isn’t arrogant?”
“The rule is: remove *any* mask and we win. So the more people they send, the higher the chance one of them gets exposed. If they leave their weakest members off the field, there’s no risk of that.”
“You mean… they’re worried some of their members aren’t good in combat, so they’re just not sending them? That way, they have no weak links?”
“Exactly.”
“So… they’re actually *afraid* of us? We might have a real shot?”
“Not necessarily.” Lin Qiye glanced at the excited crowd. “We outnumber them, but we’re a disorganized mob. In this case, numbers become a disadvantage.
The *Mask Squad’s* five are a sharp blade. Our 239? Just a pile of loose sand.”
“…Alright.” Baili Pangpang sighed.
“Whether we win or not doesn’t depend on how many we have… but on how many *smart* ones we have.” Lin Qiye scanned the surrounding recruits.
Yuan Gang clapped his hands. “All weapons and gear are in the warehouse. The next seven hours are yours!
Don’t worry about damage—break whatever you want. We can fix it all.
Now… show me what you’ve got.”
With that, Yuan Gang and the instructors turned and left.
“Stick to the plan: me, Vortex, Rose, Tianping, and Moon Ghost. You two rest,” Wang Mian told the remaining two members, who followed the instructors out.
Now, only the 239 recruits and five *Mask Squad* members remained.
The tension skyrocketed.
All the recruits stared at the five figures on stage. Someone raised a hand and asked:
“Excuse me, when can we start?”
Tianping smiled faintly and pointed a finger at the crowd.
In the next instant, the questioner was hit by an invisible hammer, coughing blood and flying backward!
Amid the chaos, Wang Mian spoke coldly:
“Didn’t the instructor make it clear?
From 2:00 to 9:00…
Which means…
It’s already started.”