Chapter 9 — Beyond the Milky Way: The Miner Who Became a God of War

Just as Tinh Nhược predicted, the third round of the Great Trial was announced in the form of a team competition, titled "Simulated Battlefield". The contestants remaining after the first two rounds are randomly divided into groups of five people, put into an area simulating real battlefield terrain with full of obstacles, traps, and even "enemies" that are fighting robots programmed with increasing levels of difficulty.

Lam Vũ was paired with a team of four other contestants, luckily none of them had any direct enmity with him, but none of them were friendly either — all of them looked at him with questioning eyes after rumors about the strange energy signature in his match with Địch Vũ Khang spread throughout the Abyss Arena.

"We need to cooperate if we want to survive this round," a female contestant on the team, named Lãnh Thư Nhã, spoke up as the group gathered in front of the entrance to the simulation area. "Regardless of personal grudges, right now we are teammates." Lam Vũ nodded in agreement, although inside he was still wary of the probing eyes around him. The door to the simulation area opens, revealing a vast terrain simulating a ruined city, filled with obstacles and fighting machines lurking in the shadows.

The battle was fierce from the first minutes. Lam Vũ's team is constantly attacked by waves of fighting robots with increasing difficulty, forcing the group to work closely together to survive. Lam Vũ, relying on the fighting skills trained by Bốc Vấn Sơn and Tinh Nhược, quickly became the leader in coordinating the team's tactics, although he tried not to use the power of War God Chi to avoid attracting more attention.

Midway through the match, their team encounters an unexpectedly high-level fighting machine — a giant robot equipped with powerful energy weapons, far beyond the normal coping abilities of a group of beginner contestants. Two team members were quickly defeated, eliminated from the match by the simulation system with a shrill warning sound.

"We can't win against this monster with normal fighting methods!" Lãnh Thư Nhã shouted, narrowly avoiding an energy attack.

Lam Vũ looked at the giant machine and realized that if he continued to fight this way, the whole team would soon be completely eliminated. He looked around, searching for what he could use from the surrounding ruined terrain, and a daring idea flashed in his mind.

"Cover me for thirty seconds!" He shouted to his teammates, then rushed towards a collapsed pillar near the machine, using all his strength to push it down, blocking the giant robot's path. In the moment the machine stopped to recalculate the route, Lam Vũ took advantage of the opportunity and rushed forward to target the weak joints in its legs - a weakness he quickly realized after a few minutes of observing the robot's movements.

This time, he did not let the power of the God of War explode completely, but tried to control it to a minimum level, just enough to enhance the power of his blow without creating a noticeable energy blast like last time. The hit the target, the robot's joints shattered, causing the giant machine to lose balance and collapse, being judged by the simulation system as "disabled".

Lam Vũ's team completed the round with three members remaining, qualified to advance to the next round. After the match, Lãnh Thư Nhã came to Lam Vũ, her eyes full of admiration.

"You saved the team," she said. "The way you found the weak point of that machine, not everyone can do it in such a critical situation."

"It's just luck," Lam Vũ replied humbly, even though in his heart he knew it wasn't entirely luck — it was a combination of the skills he had trained hard and a bit of hidden power he was gradually learning to control better.

After the round, Tinh Nhược found him in the common rest area, her eyes shining with satisfaction. "You had much better control than last time. This time you didn't show any obvious energy flow."

"I tried my best to keep it to a minimum," Lam Vũ replied. "But I still feel it, like a stream of water waiting to overflow the dike at any moment."

"That's a big step forward," Tinh Nhược commented. "Controlling power is not just about learning how to summon it, but also about learning how to suppress it when necessary. You're learning quickly."

That night, Tinh Nhược arranged a secret meeting between Bốc Vấn Sơn, who had found a reason to stay near the Abyss Arena area in the name of a temporary logistics officer, and herself, to review the encrypted data that Tinh Nhược had copied.

Bốc Vấn Sơn looked through the encrypted symbols on the small storage device screen, his face gradually changing as he recognized a few familiar details. "This... this is the ancient administrative symbol of the Tà Huy Village area before it was erased from the official map. I recognized it because I saw it on family documents before the massacre."

"So this data is really related to the massacre?" Tinh Nhược asked, her voice full of excitement mixed with tension.

"It seems so," Bốc Vấn Sơn replied, his eyes becoming serious. "But I need time to completely decipher the rest. I will do my best, but you must be patient."

"While we're waiting for you to decode it," Lam Vũ said, "I think we should find a way to contact other survivors from Tà Huy Village, if there are anyone besides me and your mother. Maybe they know more details that I've never heard of."

Bốc Vấn Sơn shook his head, his face heavy with painful memories. "I tried searching for years after the massacre, but couldn't find anyone else. There were rumors that some people had escaped to the edge of the galaxy, but I never confirmed whether the rumors were true or not. The Holy See erased Tà Huy Village from all official maps, pretending it never existed."

"If there are indeed survivors," Tinh Nhược interjected, her eyes flashing with hope, "The Freedom Fleet may have clues. We still maintain a network to collect information on communities oppressed by the Holy See over the past decades. When I have a chance to contact my old comrades again, I will ask."

"Do you still have a way to contact the Freedom Fleet?" Lam Vũ asked, a bit surprised.

"Very limited and dangerous," Tinh Nhược admitted. "I have a backup encrypted communication channel, to be used only in cases of absolute emergency. If I use it now, there is a risk of being discovered and tracked by the Holy See. I need to wait for a more suitable time, when the risk of discovery is lowest." Bốc Vấn Sơn nodded in agreement with that caution. "That's right, any hasty action now could ruin the entire plan. We've waited twenty years, we can wait a little longer to ensure safety."

The conversation lasted until Tinh Nhược's flashlight began to fade, signaling that it was time to break up before being caught breaking curfew. Before leaving, Bốc Vấn Sơn held Lam Vũ's hand tightly, his old eyes filled with an indescribable pride and worry.

"You've grown so much in just the past few weeks," he said softly. "I'm proud of you, but I'm also afraid that you're embarking on a path of no return. Always remember, no matter how great your strength is, you still need teammates, need people you trust by your side."

"I will remember, Uncle Vấn Sơn," Lam Vũ replied, his voice choked with emotion.

The three people parted ways in the dark, each carrying their own hopes and worries, but sharing an unwavering determination: to find the truth, even if the cost could be their own lives. On the way back to the cabin, Lam Vũ looked up at the artificial sky above the arena, wondering if those fake stars could ever reflect the true light of a future of freedom that he was yearning to win for his mother, for Bốc Vấn Sơn, and for himself.

The three people continued to discuss late into the night, clearly feeling that they were getting closer to the truth that had been buried for the past twenty years. But none of them could have imagined that, somewhere else deep in the heart of the Abyss Arena, the silent surveillance eyes of the Holy Light Palace were also tightening the siege around all three of them day by day, patiently waiting for the ripe opportunity to take decisive action.