C3 Superpowered

Oh right, I recall the school hosting a craft exhibition a couple of months back. A guy from the metallurgy department crafted this massive saber, a full meter and a half in length, and even snagged a gold medal for it!

Lin Yuan's eyes sparkled at the memory. That saber had been a real showstopper at the craft fair.

But I remember a sports department teacher mentioning that ancient sabers never weighed more than ten kilograms. A twenty-kilogram one? That's just not practical for human use!

All the pieces from the exhibit were kept in the exhibition hall to the right side of the auditorium. Lin Yuan made up his mind on the spot to head there. If he could get his hands on that saber, his combat abilities would skyrocket!

Without hesitation, Lin Yuan slipped out the cafeteria's back door and caught sight of the field swarming with green-skinned Goblins.

The slaughter was over, yet numerous Goblins were still pounding their wooden clubs into the ground, delivering the coup de grâce to the not-quite-dead.

Lin Yuan bit his lip and stealthily dodged the Goblin patrols moving in and out of the buildings, making a beeline for the exhibition hall at the school's southeast corner.

Though Lin Yuan was already much stronger than the average Goblin, honing his weapon was never time wasted. Securing that saber was his top priority.

"Gu Gu," he muttered as he rounded a corner and came face-to-face with a Goblin squad, barely a meter away. Both parties were equally startled.

Before they could react, Lin Yuan swung his hefty iron plate with all his might, crashing it down on the squad leader's head!

The fifty-kilogram slab of metal crushed the captain's skull with a sickening crunch. Not waiting for the headless body to drop, Lin Yuan thrust his steel spear through the heart of a second Goblin, then quickly switched to his knife, charging at the remaining three.

Planting his left foot on the chest of the last Goblin, he sliced through the air with his knife in his right hand. The hiss of air escaping from the trachea was drowned out by the gush of green blood.

Lin Yuan nodded in approval. The fight was over in under a minute; his reflexes were sharp as ever.

A dark aura rose from the five Goblins, merging into Lin Yuan. The boost to his system was less pronounced than before, though.

Moving from Dark Iron Second Rank to Third Rank meant the experience needed doubled. He'd have to take down at least twenty ordinary Goblins to level up, and the physical transformation was no different.

Lin Yuan made his way to the exhibition hall with utmost caution, his brow furrowed in concern.

At the entrance, a horde of at least a hundred goblins had gathered, including a dozen elite archers. Clearly, there were people inside the hall, complicating matters significantly. The main entrance was impenetrable.

After a moment's thought, Lin Yuan turned and left, stealthily circling the exhibition hall to slip in through a side door.

Upon entering the equipment room backstage, he was greeted by the unmistakable gurgling of goblins. It was evident that the hall was also infested with them, and not in small numbers.

Lin Yuan cracked the door of the equipment room open just a sliver and peered out. About ten goblins had kindled a bonfire on the hall's polished terrazzo floor and were roasting chunks of meat, the charred aroma wafting through the air.

The source of the meat was all too clear to Lin Yuan, and with gritted teeth, he prioritized his mission. The exhibition hall was his first stop; he would deal with the goblins upon his return.

He spun on his heel and ascended to the second floor, then took the staircase to the auditorium's rooftop. Gathering momentum with a few running steps, Lin Yuan leaped toward the exhibition hall, ten meters away.

"Boom!" He landed heavily on the exhibition hall's roof. The four- to five-meter drop, compounded by his weight and the heavy iron plate he carried, caused a significant dent in the steel structure.

Wincing in pain, Lin Yuan climbed to his feet and saw that his right leg had suffered a nasty scrape, but thankfully, his bones were unharmed.

He located the maintenance passage leading indoors and ducked down to crawl through.

"The right door's about to give way! Block it, quick!"

Lee Xia, the squad leader, yelled at the top of her lungs. She grabbed a stool and charged forward, her comrades following suit, armed with stools of their own.

"Idiots, what good is a stool? Get the tables!" Young Master Soong bellowed. He and three other young men hefted a hefty exhibition table and made a beeline for the entrance.

In no time, everyone was heaving tables forward, barricading the right door firmly in place.

The relentless pounding on the doors continued, and soon enough, all three doors began to show cracks.

"Split into three teams, everyone! Each team takes a door!"

Young Master Soong ripped off his blood-soaked coat, brandishing his fire axe as he charged toward the central door with a roar. With a swift swing, he severed a claw that had breached the hole.

The group strained against the door, seizing every chance to strike at the intrusive claws with their weapons.

Amidst the frantic defense, Yang Yang, clad in a red dress, slumped to the ground, her face ashen. She stared at the deteriorating door, whispering in utter despair, "We can't hold them back. People are going to die, so many of us."

With a thunderous "Bang!" a massive hammer struck the door. The already damaged right door split open, and the force sent the barricading tables flying.

"Ah!"

Those huddled behind the door were sent sprawling by the impact of the heavy tables.

"Bang! Bang!" Two more resounding crashes echoed as the right door gave way to a gaping hole. A colossal Goblin, easily twice the size of the others, squeezed through the breach.

"Take him down, now!"

Noticing the others frozen in shock, Young Master Soong, axe aloft, surged forward first.

"Charge!"

Snapping out of their stupor, the rest followed suit, well aware that if the door fell, a relentless tide of monsters would pour through, leaving them with no escape but death.

Young Master Soong bellowed, hacking away at the Goblin with his axe, while the others flailed wildly with their weapons.

The trapped Goblin bellowed in terror, flailing his enormous limbs in a futile defense against the onslaught. Despite his efforts, the attackers were too many, and green blood sprayed wildly.

Though the Goblin was formidable, flesh and blood have their limits. Overwhelmed, he finally crumpled in the doorway, just as Young Master Soong, seizing the moment, cleaved through his neck with a well-aimed blow.

A cheer erupted from the group as they quickly re-fortified the entrance with the scattered tables. Meanwhile, Young Master Soong stood motionless, gazing at his hands in a daze.

As the monster lay dead, a sinister black mist seeped into his body, and he felt an overwhelming power coursing through his veins.

"Killing a monster and gaining power from it... it's just like something out of a video game!"

With a forceful swing, Young Master Soong sent his heavy fireman's axe slicing through a claw that dared to reach for him, severing it cleanly at the wrist. A slow smile crept across his face.

Crash! The left door burst open, and a goblin squeezed its way through the crack.

"I've got this!"

Young Master Soong bellowed, his axe arcing through the air to confront the intruder.

"Die!"

The axe came down hard, cleaving both the goblin's wooden club and its head in two!

As another wisp of black mist seeped into his body, Young Master Soong, axe aloft, cackled with glee as he turned to face another goblin scrambling through the opening.

After three goblins fell in quick succession, the assault from outside the door ceased.

The onlookers exchanged glances, worry etched on their faces as they watched Young Master Soong's unrelenting laughter. He seemed to have completely lost his mind since the fight began.

Lee Xia observed Young Master Soong's manic laughter and then glanced at Yang Yang, who was muttering to herself on the ground. Shaking her head, she couldn't help but think that both halves of this couple had slipped into madness.