Qiu Xiaoyao

"Half a year ago?"

"Doesn't that mean Song Ningzhen broke through to Seventh Rank before even graduating from his freshman year?"

"This guy is monstrously gifted to an outrageous degree!"

For a moment, waves of startled cries rose and fell inside the bus.

No one had expected the prodigy ranked first on the Dragon Tiger Ranking to be this formidable.

He had already been a Seventh-Rank Expert half a year ago. No one dared imagine how strong Song Ningzhen was now.

Even among third-years, Song Ningzhen would not have counted as weak.

But compared with Song Ningzhen's strength, Lu Chuan was more curious about how many benefits Song Ningzhen could obtain from the Dragon Tiger Ranking each month.

Before long, Lu Chuan found what he wanted to see.

Rank 1 on the Dragon Tiger Ranking: 1,000 Academic Credits per month, one opportunity to enter a secret realm for cultivation, and one Sixth-Rank potion (choice of type)!

Top 10 on the Dragon Tiger Ranking: 500 Academic Credits per month and one opportunity to enter a secret realm for cultivation!

Ranks 11 to 30 on the Dragon Tiger Ranking: 100 Academic Credits per month!

Ranks 31 to 50 on the Dragon Tiger Ranking: 50 Academic Credits per month!

Ranks 51 to 70 on the Dragon Tiger Ranking: 30 Academic Credits per month!

Ranks 71 to 100 on the Dragon Tiger Ranking: 10 Academic Credits per month!

Looking at the densely packed Academic Credit rewards, Lu Chuan's eyes went wide. He could hardly wait to challenge the experts on the Dragon Tiger Ranking and make it onto the list.

Even the lowest-tier reward came with ten Academic Credits every month.

It did not seem like much, but over a year, it added up to 120 Academic Credits. That was no small amount.

Moreover, compared with the rewards for making the rankings, the hidden rewards of the Dragon Tiger Ranking were even more generous!

First, the various factions would grant certain rewards based on their students' performance on the Dragon Tiger Ranking.

Take Song Ningzhen, for example.

The moment he became first on the Dragon Tiger Ranking, the Dragon Guard Department would reward Song Ningzhen with 5,000 Academic Credits in one lump sum.

At the same time, for every full month Song Ningzhen remained on the Dragon Tiger Ranking, the Dragon Guard Department would grant him an additional 1,000 Academic Credits.

If he could advance into his third year while holding first place on the Dragon Tiger Ranking, the Dragon Guard Department would have a special reward for him as well.

However, the Azure Dragon Academy Encyclopedia did not specify what that special reward was.

Aside from faction rewards, whenever a student wished to challenge someone on the Dragon Tiger Ranking, they had to hand over ten Academic Credits to the person they challenged.

They also had to put up fifty Academic Credits as a wager.

If they won, the credits would be returned. If they lost, those fifty Academic Credits would be given to the person they had challenged.

For the geniuses at the bottom of the Dragon Tiger Ranking, these wagers were the real prize compared with the ranking rewards.

Having seen the benefits of getting on the list, Lu Chuan's thoughts immediately began to stir.

"Let's set a small goal: get on the rankings first!"

"Wei Quan, sorry about this. Get ready to accept my challenge."

Wei Quan, ranked 100th on the Dragon Tiger Ranking, was a peak Fifth-Rank Expert who had once defeated a Sixth-Rank Expert by fighting above his rank.

"Even the last-place guy is this strong. Getting on the rankings probably won't be so easy..."

Lu Chuan took a deep breath. He understood that he could not possibly be Wei Quan's opponent right now, but with the Simplification System, surpassing Wei Quan was only a matter of time.

Time flashed by, and before they knew it, everyone had arrived at the teaching district.

The skyscrapers they had seen earlier had vanished, replaced by ancient halls and pavilions with a distinct charm.

"We're here. Get off."

"I'll take you to the freshman reception area first. Your faction will come pick you up later."

Chu Feng called out, then got off first. The others hurriedly followed.

Led by Chu Feng, the group wound left and right until they arrived at an open-air plaza.

Quite a few people had already gathered in the plaza. At a rough count, there were at least five hundred of them.

Clearly, like Lu Chuan, these people were all specially recruited students of Azure Dragon Academy.

"I didn't expect there to be so many specially recruited students," Lu Chuan said quietly.

"For some reason, there have been especially many geniuses in recent years, so the number of specially recruited students has risen as well," Chu Feng explained from the side.

When quite a few teachers in the plaza who knew Chu Feng saw him arrive, they stepped forward and began chatting with him.

"Chu Feng, I heard your department recruited several geniuses this time? Bring them out and let your brother here have a look," a teacher on good terms with Chu Feng teased.

"Have a look?"

Chu Feng shot the man a glance. "What do you think they are, donkeys? You think you can just lead them out whenever you want?"

"My Combat Department finally managed to recruit a few students. What if you people steal them away?"

Chu Feng refused the teacher in a joking tone.

At that, the teacher narrowed his eyes.

He would not even let them take a look. It seemed the Combat Department had truly recruited some promising seedlings.

Tsk, tsk. Who knew whether those good seedlings could grow up properly? The Combat Department was declining with each passing day.

"Just keep them hidden. I'll find out sooner or later anyway."

After laughing it off, everyone resumed chatting, and no one brought up the matter again.

Time flashed by, and before they knew it, a large group of people suddenly arrived from outside the plaza.

The person leading them was not very old, but he radiated an exceedingly terrifying aura. Even Chu Feng showed a wary expression upon seeing him.

After sweeping his gaze around, the man said calmly, "New students of the Dragon Guard Department, follow me. If anyone else is interested in the Dragon Guard Department, you may also accompany me to Dragon Guard Academy."

"Dragon Guard Academy offers generous benefits and boasts formidable teaching staff. Everyone is welcome to join."

With that, Dragon Guard Academy ignored what the others thought or said and led its own people back to Dragon Guard Academy.

As for the members of the other factions, none of them switched sides at the last moment.

After all, specially recruited students were unlike ordinary examinees. Every specially recruited student had received more or less some promise from their own faction. How could someone poach them with just a few words?

Even the Combat Department at its peak could not have done that, much less the current Dragon Guard Department.

After those people left, quite a few more people surged in.

After arriving at the plaza, this group did not rush to take their own students away. Instead, under their leader's guidance, they came before Chu Feng.

"Chu Feng, I heard you ran into the Heavenly Principle Cult while carrying out a mission?"

"How was it? Nothing unexpected happened, did it?" the leader asked with a concerned expression.

"Thank you for your concern, Teacher Qiu Xiaoyao. I'm fine. Nothing happened," Chu Feng replied calmly.

"Oh?"

Qiu Xiaoyao said with a regretful look, "That's too bad."

Those words left even Lu Chuan bewildered.

At first, hearing Qiu Xiaoyao speak, Lu Chuan had thought he and Chu Feng were good friends.

But the longer he listened, the more Lu Chuan realized that this man and Chu Feng seemed to be at odds.

Thinking of this, Lu Chuan quietly moved beside Chen Mo and asked in a low voice, "Chen Mo, do you know that person?"

"Of course I know him."

Chen Mo looked at Qiu Xiaoyao with worship in his eyes. "Teacher Qiu Xiaoyao, the leading figure among the younger generation of the Conquest Faction, a peak Ninth Rank Expert!"

"Three years ago, Teacher Qiu Xiaoyao led six Conquest Faction teachers. With the strength of just seven people, they annihilated an entire race on the Starry Sky Battlefield!"

"That battle completely established the Conquest Faction's prestige and made Teacher Qiu Xiaoyao's name resound throughout the Starry Sky Battlefield."

"Even now, the name Qiu Xiaoyao the God of Slaughter can make countless races of the Ten Thousand Races tremble in fear."

"It was precisely because of Teacher Qiu Xiaoyao that I chose to join the Conquest Faction."