For Fang Zheng, Stella's appearance was nothing more than a minor interlude. Although the other students were also curious why a student from another school had come looking for him, now was not the time to satisfy their curiosity.
"Clang... clang... clang..."
The bell rang. Julie turned her head and looked at Fang Zheng.
"Time's up, Zheng."
"Yeah."
Hearing Julie speak, Fang Zheng stood up and brushed the blades of grass from his clothes. It was already dusk, and for the next two hours, they would be engaging in a battle royale across the northern campus. Well, there was basically only one rule: defeat every enemy other than your own pair.
Some might choose to lie in ambush, while others might try to play it safe, but Fang Zheng's tactics were straightforward.
"Let's go, Julie. We're charging straight in!"
"Ja."
This test was different from the previous Rite of Qualification. During the Rite of Qualification, everyone had been fighting over a single slot, so they had no choice but to battle. This time, however, things were different. Even if they lost the New Blade Battle, no one would be expelled from the school. Of course, the victors would receive rewards, while the losers would face punishment. But overall, this was really meant to simulate a real battlefield for the students: how enemies fought, how they should act, think, explore, and then make their decisions.
Along the way, Fang Zheng and Julie were attacked by several groups of opponents. Their methods were all sorts of strange—some lay in ambush for sneak attacks, while others pretended to challenge them to a duel when they had actually formed secret alliances to take them down. One pair even, for some reason, tried to use a honey trap on Fang Zheng...
Before Fang Zheng could