Surpassing the original protagonist [Litrpg]

Volume Ⅰ: Beginning.

Arc Ⅱ: Survival Trial.

Chapter 23: Clash between teams.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Time passed, as there were only five days remaining in the survival trial.

In the center of Mist Mountain Forest. ----

"They'll struggle to find food," Coach Chen remarked sternly, eyeing the animals before him.

All the animals were sitting and behaving like kids, listening to coaches and Elder Ning.

Most animals were controlled by elder Ning from Mist Mountain Forest, leaving only a few so that kids could experience the lack of resources ahead before they could actually experience them in their lives.

The wolves that Lei Chang and Xu Long hunted were also part of the few animals that Elder Ning left, as she didn't use her full power.

Even the one-horned wolf, a rank 1 ferocious beast, would be under the control of Elder Ning if she tried her best.

All the coaches had gathered at the center for a significant purpose. In the past, there have been instances where coaches assisted their favorite students in passing the survival trial.

However, the Mist Village Chief was adamant that such occurrences should not happen again. Therefore, they remained under the watchful eye of Elder Ning, who ensured they adhered to the rules.

"Go, go." Coach Wang cheered as Lin Qian and his team were getting chased by yellow monkeys.

[ Yellow Monkey

{Mortal Level}

 HP: 120/120

 Strength: 14

 Agility: 20

 Defence: 12 

 Constitution: 12

 Vitality: 18 ]

----

[ Yellow Monkey

{Mortal Level}

 HP: 150/150

 Strength: 17

 Agility: 21

 Defence: 14

 Constitution: 15

 Vitality: 19 ]

-----

---

[ Yellow Monkey

{Mortal Level}

 HP: 200/200

 Strength: 17 

 Agility: 22

 Defence: 19 

 Constitution: 20

 Vitality: 20 ]

The yellow monkeys' eyes were red as they chased Lin Qian and his team. Each of Lin Qian's team members had a banana stuck to their bodies.

Coach Wang stole the yellow monkey's purple bananas.

From monkey wine, a banana tree sprouts, bearing purple bananas. Monkey wine takes ten years to prepare, and the purple banana is a rank 1 low-level spiritual fruit.

Yellow monkeys are the protectors of purple bananas, and they won't give them to others unless they die, as it took so much of their effort to grow.

"Ahhhhhhh!" One of the kids yelped as the yellow monkey spanked his buttocks after he tripped and fell.

Seeing that, other kids and Lin Qian didn't even dare to stop.

Lin Qian possessed enough power to fight back and defeat the monkeys, but Coach Wang had placed a talisman on his back to diminish his strength. Additionally, stones were tied to his back and hands, rendering him unable to retaliate.

"Save us, Coach."

"Please, someone save me."

"Stop our training, Coach Wang."

"This isn't training, Coach Wang; it is suicide."

Lin Qian and his team pleaded for mercy from Coach Wang, but he didn't even move.

[ Ding! 

Due to excessive running beyond your normal speed

Agility +0.05 ]

----

[ Ding! 

Due to excessive running beyond your normal speed

Agility +0.05 ]

-----

---

[ Ding! 

Due to excessive running beyond your normal speed

Agility +0.05 ]

They get a status notification once in a while, but they couldn't check them due to their condition.

"Coach Chen, is that really training?" Coach Fang asked doubtfully, looking at the crying kids.

"Yes, it is agility training." Coach Chen said, looking indifferently at the kids.

This is the beginning of hell for failing the survival trial!

Lin Ha's team. -----

Lin Ha and his team scoured the surroundings in search of food, their eyes darting anxiously from side to side, peering into bushes and scanning the landscape. However, despite their efforts, there was no sign of any wildlife within a mile radius, intensifying their sense of desperation.

"Boss, when are we eating?"

"We have some meat, right?"

"Pretty, please, can we eat some meat, just a little?"

Lin Ha grew increasingly frustrated with his team. Despite the current shortage of food, he had taken on the responsibility as their leader to reserve some meat for emergencies.

However, his team members showed little concern for such contingencies and were more focused on consuming it immediately.

'I didn't expect that finding some animals to hunt would be this difficult.' Lin Ha thought, remembering that it had been five days since their previous hunt.

He had the foresight to save some meat from the beginning, which allowed him and his team to continue.

"No, that is for emergencies; only when we find some meat can we eat, or else there will be no food." Lin Ha said loudly, cutting everyone off from speaking.

"But we are hungry, boss."

"My stomach is burning."

"I can no longer go, boss."

"…"

"..."

'There are only five days remaining; we will eat the remaining meat on the final day or the day before to just survive.' Lin Ha planned cleverly.

"You will not die if you don't eat for a few more days; just wait until we find a hunt." Lin Ha shouted, looking at the angry team.

But his shout didn't deter his team members; instead, it intensified them.

They didn't eat for the full three days; their bodies have become visibly thin, which is why they are protesting against their leader for food.

"It looks like you have food, Lin Ha." A beautiful voice sounded, attracting everyone.

Lin Li, with waist-length black hair, delicate white skin, captivating eyes, and a cherubic face, is regarded as one of the most beautiful girls in Mist Village.

She had many followers who tried to get her attention, and Lin Ha is one of them.

"Li'er, what happened to your leader, Mu Guo? Did he kick you out because of a shortage of food?" Lin Ha inquired softly, showing concern for Lin Li switching from his usual behaviour.

Lin Li felt a chill run down her spine at Lin Ha's soft inquiry, but she composed herself, knowing she had to procure food for her team and herself.

Mu Guo and his team couldn't find the hunt, so he stated that whoever brought food would get some exp, and half of the food they bring will also belong to them.

This tempted all his teammates, so they went on their separate ways to find food.

"Can I have some food?" Lin Li asked quietly, holding Lin Ha's hands.

"Sure, Li'er." Lin Ha accepted and right away handed over the emergency food to her, placing it in her hands.

'So soft!! My lucky day ever.' Lin Ha had a smile while holding Lin Li's hands.

Lin Li pulled her hands right away, seeing a strange smile on Lin Ha's face.

Lin Ha's team started to question their leader's decision.

"Boss!! You said it was emergency food."

"It is not right, boss."

"You cannot hand the food over to her."

".."

"Shut up; I am the team leader; you all follow my command." Lin Ha shouted angrily, but his team members got very angry at him.

Lin Li slipped away quietly, taking food, when Lin Ha and his team began their quarrel.

Boom! Boom!

Lin Ha was brutally beaten by his team members, unable to defend himself against their onslaught. He was outnumbered and overwhelmed, left with a face that was now black and blue from the vicious attack.

All of them focused on Lin Ha, forgetting about Lin Li in their anger.

"She ran away with food."

"What?"

"…"

After venting their anger, they wanted to take back food from Lin Li, but she was nowhere to be found.

Lin Li smiled as her trick succeeded while rushing back to her team.

Somewhere in the western part of Mist Mountain Forest. ----

'I should have taken down those animals.' Lin An clenched her fists, remembering the number of animals running that day.

Her team was lacking meat to eat. They devised a strategy to consume only a quarter of their stomach full, ensuring they could sustain themselves.

"It's okay, it's not your fault," Lin Hua said with a reassuring smile, attempting to calm Lin An, who was blaming herself.

Swish!

Swish!

"Wait."

Lin An signalled with her hand, indicating that someone was coming. Lin An and everyone took out their weapons to face off.

"Chu Li!"

"Lin Hua!"

Lin Hua and Chu Li called out each other's names once they spotted each other. Chu Li's team and Lin Hua's team finally meet!

"Give me the food that you have in your hands, or else you will be beaten up." Chu Li threatened, looking at her opponent, Lin Hua.

She didn't waste time.

Everyone in the trial was facing a shortage of food. Only with a proper plan could they survive until then. Meanwhile, some teams went on a full hunger strike, saving their food for a time when they would reach the extreme limit of fainting.

"You should be the one who hands out the food." Lin Hua threatened back, looking angrily at Chu Li.

"Then let's settle this." Chu Li and Lin Hua shouted at the same time, rushing toward each other.

They were competitors in Mist Village, so they wouldn't back down from fighting whenever they got the chance.

Seeing their team leaders fight, they also began their fights.

Swoop!

Swoop!

Before Chu Li's team members could reach Lin Hua's team members, arrows priced the ground in front of them.

"I am warning you all if you step one more foot. Arrows will pierce your legs." Lin An said sternly, but her face was red due to shyness.

Chu Li and Lin Hua checked each other's stats.

[ Name: Chu Li

 Body Realm: Mortal 

 {Rank 0 Status}

 HP: 130/130

 Strength: 34 (+2)

 Agility: 25 

 Defence: 28 

 Constitution: 13

 Vitality: 18 ]

----

[ Name: Lin Hua

 Body Realm: Mortal 

 {Rank 0 Status}

 HP: 120/120

 Strength: 33 (+2)

 Agility: 26 

 Defence: 29 

 Constitution: 12

 Vitality: 18 ]

Chu Li drew her sword, whereas Lin Hua drew her sabre.

"Haa."

"Haa."

Sword and Sabre collided with each other. Lin Hua was overpowered by Chu Li's strength, but her skills with the sabre were powerful, allowing her to match her opponent.

Ding! Ding!

"Ha."

"Ha."

Sword and Sabre collided with each other multiple times, creating sounds.

[ Ding! 

 -1 HP ]

[Ding! 

 -1HP ]

[ Ding! 

 -0.5 HP ]

[Ding! 

 -0.5HP ]

Due to their strong clash, they felt discomfort in their hands and palms.

Team members didn't interfere, as this was a fight between team leaders.

Lin Hua pushed the sword away from Chu Li's hands with her sabre skills, spotting an opening.

She pointed her weapon at her opponent's throat right away.

"I win, 1512th win." Lin Hua said joyfully, looking into Chu Li's eyes.

"Hmm, it's still 20 wins less than me." Chu Li said mockingly, pushing the sword away from her throat.

"Soon, it will be the same number." Lin Hua retorted, feeling that she would get stronger.

"We should team up. If we want to survive." Chu Li said her opinion, taking her weapon from the ground.

"Sure, since it looks like there will be a tough situation ahead." Lin Hua agreed, looking at her team.

Chu Li and Lin Hua teamed up and started planning for the next few days.

In a certain cave. ----

Lin Rui's team was very unlucky from the start. Only for the first ten days did they find a hunt; after that, they didn't even spot the insects.

But they survived by eating leaves!

"Boss, sister Qi is poisoned." A thin boy said sadly, looking at Lin Rui.

"It looks like she ate some poisonous thing." Lin Rui said solemnly, walking towards Chu Qi in the cave.

Chu Qi's face was blue, and her breath was also blue in colour.

An air of blue is coming out of her nose.

Lin Rui sat near the poisoned girl and checked her skin and nose.

[ Name: Chu Qi

State: Poisoned (Critical) ]

He didn't forget to check her status.

"Blue star fruit." Lin Rui said, deducing the cause.

"Is that dangerous, boss?"

"Don't tell me that sister Qi will die."

Everyone was tense and looked at Lin Rui with hope.

"I cannot cure her. You have to use 'Light Signal Talisman'." Lin Rui said tensely, feeling that he had broken everyone's hope.

'Light Signal Talisman' is just a talisman that emits a huge light upon use.

It is used to signal for help.

Based on the rank of the talisman, the brighter and different would be the colour.

Coaches would spot the light right and come to pick them up, but like all competitions in the fantasy world, once they use that talisman, they are eliminated.

"What…"

"That means.."

"We are doomed."

"…"

"…"

Everyone turned pale upon hearing Lin Rui's words.

End of the chapter.__________________________

Did you like the chapter?

Should I stop focusing on other characters? And show only MCs?

Is this arc getting boring?

This arc will end in three to five chapters.