160: Chapter 160: The Rules of the Competition Take Effect

The morning light was dim, and the mountain mist of the Qingheng Sect felt even more bone-chillingly cold than usual.

As the first ray of sunlight hit the bluestone slabs of the Main Peak's plaza, countless Scribes in black and white uniforms appeared like ghosts in every corner of the nine peaks. Without saying a word, they skillfully pasted notices emitting a faint golden light onto the most prominent bulletin boards, mountain gate stone pillars, and even the doors of the dining halls.

The content of the notice was not long, but every word seemed carved with an ice pick:

[Qingheng Sect · War Debt Liquidation Month Announcement]

I. Duration: Starting today, for a period of thirty days.

II. Rules:

Each peak must complete the daily war debt repayment targets issued by the Liquidation Office.

Core Assessment Criterion: "Battle Loss/Profit Ratio." Data is captured in real-time by the Heavenly Dao War Debt System to eliminate human interference.

Bottom-Out Elimination System: At the end of the thirty-day settlement, the peak at the bottom of the comprehensive ranking will be judged as a "Negative Asset Peak."

III. Disposal Plans:

Plan A: Voluntary Application for Merger (merging into another peak, restructuring for survival).

Plan B: Forced Liquidation (Peak Master sacrificed, assets confiscated, Disciples disbanded or enslaved).

This was more than just a piece of paper.

The moment the notice was posted, Shen Xingzhou felt the entire atmosphere of Hengchuan Peak change. Standing at the entrance of the Scrap Warehouse, he saw a semi-transparent System pop-up window forcibly appear before every Qingheng Sect Disciple within his sight.

The pop-up flickered with a heart-palpitating blue light, covered with labels like "Cannot be Closed" and "Pinned to Top."

[System Notification: Rule Implantation]

You have entered "War Debt Liquidation Month" Survival Mode.

Please check your personal panel for updates.

Daily Task: Generated.

Survival Countdown: 29 days 23 hours 59 minutes.

Warning: Passive work will lead to a decrease in the overall peak score.

Disciples waved their hands in panic, trying to dispel the light screen in front of them, only to find that it was like a brand seared onto their retinas, impossible to escape.

"This... what kind of sorcery is this?!"

"I can't close it! I can't close it no matter what!"

"It's over, is the liquidation really happening?"

Panic spread rapidly like a plague. Amidst this panic, the most intense reaction came from the usually high-and-mighty Lingjian Peak.

On Lingjian Peak's Martial Arts Arena, morning practice had been forced to a halt.

Hundreds of Disciples gathered around the bulletin board, their faces ashen as they stared at the glaring words "Bottom-Out Elimination."

"This is an absolute humiliation!"

A deacon, fuming with rage, kicked a stone lock aside and roared, "Our Lingjian Peak is the sword's edge of the Sect! We are a main combat peak with outstanding merits! And they want to compare our ranking with those trash-pickers? Who made these bullshit rules!"

"Exactly! This is clearly trying to drive us to our deaths!"

Among the crowd, the blood of the young Disciples was also stirred. They gripped their swords tightly, their eyes red. "I'd rather die a quick death on the battlefield than be merged! And I certainly don't want to be a Utility Disciple for Hengchuan Peak!"

"Charge up! Go find the Sect Head and demand an explanation!"

"Let's do it! At worst, we die!"

Roars of anger rose one after another, as if shouting loud enough could cover up the word "Elimination" looming at the bottom of the ranking list.

However, in Shen Xingzhou's System backend, a completely different picture was silently playing out.

[Real-time Data Monitoring: Lingjian Peak]

External Emotional Expression:

Anger Level: 90/100 (Extremely High)

Will to Fight: 85/100 (High)

Deep Psychological Subtext:

True Fear of Death: 98/100 (Off the Charts)

System Analysis:

Their anger does not stem from a defense of honor, but from a self-defense mechanism against an extreme fear of death.

They shout "rather die in battle" because they subconsciously know that under these new rules, if they don't fight with their lives, they won't even get the chance to "die in battle." They will simply be "liquidated" like trash.

Conclusion: Brave in appearance but weak in reality. They are a pack of trapped beasts waiting to be slaughtered.

Shen Xingzhou watched the red data streams quietly, devoid of any sympathy. Data doesn't lie, and neither does fear.

Compared to Lingjian Peak's hysteria, Hengchuan Peak was perhaps a bit too quiet.

On the open space in front of the Scrap Warehouse, dozens of Hengchuan Peak Disciples sat in a circle, looking at the light screens before them with complex expressions.

"Where... where are we ranked now?"

A young Utility Disciple asked cautiously, still clutching a piece of scrap iron he had just picked up.

Shen Xingzhou didn't speak, merely tapping his finger lightly.

Buzz—

A massive holographic projection map unfolded before everyone. It was the "Base Strength Distribution Map" of the nine peaks of the Qingheng Sect.

In the past, Hengchuan Peak was always at the very bottom, its bar on the chart not even visible, as if it were part of the foundation underground.

But this time, when Shen Xingzhou activated the hidden option called "Net Battle Loss Adjustment," the situation underwent a bizarre transformation.

Lingjian Peak's originally sky-high bar was instantly slashed in half because of false battle loss reports and concealed deaths, becoming precarious and unstable.

Meanwhile, Hengchuan Peak's originally short bar, though its value was still not high, had nothing to hide and nothing to lose since it had always been on the verge of "bankruptcy." Under the weighting of "Net Battle Loss," it actually sat steadily in the lower-middle tier.

"Look."

Shen Xingzhou pointed at that position, his tone flat. "As long as we honestly pick up scrap and honestly fill out the accounts without making major mistakes, there's a high probability we won't die this month."

"So... if you don't court death, you won't die."

Senior Sister Xie Handeng stood to the side holding her sword, looking at the chart and whispering thoughtfully.

"But..." the young Disciple was still a bit worried, "what if the peaks above us try to steal our resources to save themselves?"

"Then we steal them back."

Senior Sister Xie Handeng turned her head, a cold glint flashing in her eyes. "Or, we turn the people who want to steal our things into 'battle losses'."

Shen Xingzhou did not stop such a blatant statement. In this competition, that was the Law of survival.

Time passed in a tense atmosphere.

When the hour reached noon, nine long and heavy bell tolls echoed through the skies.

Dong—! Dong—! Dong—!

Those were not bells for class; they were war drums, death knells, and the sound of the starting gun.

The main System interface before Shen Xingzhou's eyes suddenly underwent a world-shaking change.

The originally deep blue interface instantly turned into a somber dark gold. Countless data streams, like a surging river, converged crazily in the center of the screen.

[System Mode Switch]

Current Mode: War Debt Liquidation Month

Status: Officially Started

Functional Modules Loading...

[Peak-Level Task Panel]: Online (Real-time display of task progress for each peak).

[Merger Progress Tracking]: Online (Special monitoring channel for Lingjian Peak opened).

[Public Opinion Influence Weighting]: Online (Su Ciyao's livestream popularity has been integrated into the scoring System).

At the very top of the screen, a massive countdown bar, like flowing sand, slowly began to shorten toward the left.

30 days.

This was only the first number. It would torment the nerves of every person in the Qingheng Sect every single day to come.

The first ray of morning sun finally fully penetrated the clouds, shining on Shen Xingzhou's face. He squinted his eyes, looking at the brand-new day refreshed on the main System screen.

Everything had settled, yet everything had just begun.

The data on the screen stabilized, freezing on a suffocating interface:

[War Debt Liquidation Month · Day 1]

Sect Comprehensive Risk: 72% (High Danger)

Merger Proposal: 1 (Target: Lingjian Peak, Status: Not Executed)

Public Opinion Status: Volatile (Various factions observing)

Current Ranking:

Luoxia Peak (Provisional)

...

Hengchuan Peak (Provisional)

Lingjian Peak (Provisional)

The image finally froze on this header, without any animation, leaving only a suffocating sense of stillness.

[War Debt Liquidation Month · Day 1]

Below that header was a massive, blank area, like a death warrant that hadn't been written on yet, waiting quietly.

Shen Xingzhou looked at that blank space, as if seeing countless pairs of eyes peering from the shadows, hearing the sound of countless blades being sharpened.

In that blank space, the System automatically surfaced a question that no one had written yet, but was about to be filled with blood:

"Who will be the first piece of meat served on the plate?"