Li Ziyu ranked ninth? National Youth Martial Arts University League

On the edge of the central zone.

Xia Lin thrust her sword into the head of a Level 1 intermediate fierce beast, a Gluttonous Wolf.

The Gluttonous Wolf, over three meters long, let out a final howl of unwillingness as it fell to the ground.

"Phew... If my swordplay hadn't temporarily broken through to intermediate, and if I didn't have this Level 2 Asma Alloy weapon, I really wouldn't be a match for the Gluttonous Wolf."

Xia Lin leaned against a broken wall, panting heavily. She took out an energy bar, tore open the package, and began to chew.

Equipment and Battle Skills were both forms of strength. The Martial Arts Examination did not prohibit students from carrying weapons beyond their own level.

"Let me check my current ranking."

Xia Lin tapped a few times on the point bracelet on her right wrist, opening the ranking list.

Seeing herself ranked second, her expression showed a hint of surprise.

Her gaze continued downwards, searching for Li Ziyu's ranking.

Just as she saw Li Ziyu ranked ninth, a flicker of surprise appeared in Xia Lin's eyes.

"Huh? Classmate Li Ziyu is only ninth? Is he perhaps conserving his strength?"

"No wonder I'm second. If it were based on normal strength ranking, Classmate Li Ziyu should be above me, and I should be below him."

"Nangong Ao is first, Classmate Li Ziyu is second, and I'm third. This ranking should be the normal one."

"But looking at it now, Classmate Li Ziyu probably hasn't exerted himself yet."

"With his strength, besides Nangong Ao, being ranked seventh is definitely not a problem."

Also on the edge of the wilderness zone.

Wang Long's two-meter-tall body was bare-chested, his veins like winding earthworms, crisscrossing his form.

With a burst of air, Wang Long, enveloped in immense power, slammed his fist into the head of a Gluttonous Wolf in front of him.

Blood mist bloomed like falling flowers as the Gluttonous Wolf's head, several sizes larger than a basketball, was directly smashed to pieces by Wang Long's punch.

He opened the ranking list.

"Hmph! Nangong Ao, you're still first. You've got some skill, worthy of being the genius I, Wang Long, want to step on!"

"Huh? I know the other nine people, but who is this ninth-ranked Li Ziyu? I've never heard of him before?"

"Hmph, forget it. Even if he's ninth, he's ultimately not in the same tier as us."

"My goal is only Nangong Ao! Only to be the number one in Xu Jiang City!"

"Cousin, your strength is truly surprising!"

"Hmph! Li Ziyu's ranking is almost catching up to me. I can't slack off, I need to put in more effort, hmph! I, Bai Haoran, will not lose to you!"

"Li Ziyu's ranking... has already reached ninth..."

Scenes like this were continuously playing out in various locations within the Martial Arts Examination grounds.

Zhao Yanan, Bai Haoran, Xu Mengyao, as well as Li Ziyu's classmates and those who knew him, all widened their eyes in disbelief.

Ding, killed a Level 1 intermediate fierce beast, Qi and Blood +0.05.

Ding, killed a Level 1 intermediate fierce beast, Qi and Blood +0.05.

On the outer perimeter of the Martial Arts Examination grounds, Li Ziyu withdrew his blade from the beast's corpse. He opened the ranking list, his expression excited.

"Excellent, the point ranking has climbed to ninth, and I feel like I'll be able to improve my martial skills again soon!"

"Not bad. If this momentum continues, by the end of the Martial Arts Examination, all my martial skills might be able to advance to peak!"

"This Martial Arts Examination was definitely the right decision!"

"Mayor Wang, I heard that the difficulty of this Martial Arts Examination was increased to select promising talents for the National Martial Arts University League?"

"Mm, but that's only one of the reasons."

Wang Jiannan glanced at the cautiously attentive principal of the First High School beside him and replied.

Wang Defa was taken aback, a flash of curiosity crossing his face as he asked carefully:

"Only one of the reasons? Are there other reasons?"

"I occasionally heard a bit about the specifics from the Governor. It seems to be related to the conflict between the Martial Arts University Alliance and the two major martial arts halls, Limitless and Transcendence."

"But I don't know the specifics of what happened."

"Those things are a bit far from us. This Martial Arts Examination is mainly in preparation for the National Martial Arts University League."

The students who make it into the top hundred in this Martial Arts Examination will likely be key cultivated to represent the school in the National Martial Arts University League.

Wang Jiannan's face showed a hint of longing, as if recalling something.

But the longing quickly turned to regret.

"Sigh, it's a pity that it's truly too difficult to get into the national top hundred. Our Great Xia has vast territories, and there are millions of students participating in the Martial Arts Examination. To fight your way into the top hundred from millions of students would truly be finding a dragon among men, one in ten thousand."

Wang Jiannan shook his head and sighed.

"Is Nangong Ao a possibility then?"

"What do you think?"

Wang Jiannan glanced at Wang Defa, feeling a bit speechless. This left Wang Defa unable to respond, only managing an awkward, dry chuckle.

The main reason was Nangong Ao's dazzling performance, which had sparked fantasies he wouldn't normally dare to entertain.

But now, it seemed practically impossible.

He could only strive to compete for a ranking within Su Province.

"Sigh, last year, our entire Su Province only had three candidates break into the national top 100."

"Each of those three possessed the strength of a Peak Level 1 Martial Artist and had mastered one or even several intermediate Battle Skills, or even combat techniques. It was truly despair-inducing!"

Wang Jiannan stopped talking and refocused his gaze on the live broadcast screen, shifting his attention to the nearby points leaderboard.

Upon clearly seeing the points ranking, Wang Jiannan froze, blinked, and looked towards the leaderboard again.

Secretary Wang, standing nearby, noticed Wang Jiannan's unusual reaction and followed his gaze to the points leaderboard. As soon as he saw it, his eyes widened:

"Hiss, how did Li Ziyu jump from 49th place directly to 9th??"

"How long has it been? What happened in just this short while? Did Li Ziyu ride a rocket!?"

"Or did he just hide his strength?"

Secretary Wang's eyes were wide, filled with shock and confusion. He instinctively turned to look at Liu Youde, the principal of Third High School, standing behind him.

Li Ziyu was a student at Third High School, and Liu Youde, as its principal, should know.

However, Principal Liu Youde of Third High School was equally bewildered. He had been straining his ears to listen to the conversation between the mayor and the principal of First High School, and hadn't paid any attention to the live broadcast at all.

"Quick! Get me the playback video of Li Ziyu's previous fight!"

"Let's see what happened!"

Wang Jiannan was the first to react, hurriedly ordering the staff member responsible for operating the live video.

After saying that, he felt it was too slow and got up to walk towards the broadcast desk himself.

The rest of the group, including Secretary Wang and the other principals, seeing the mayor stand up, quickly followed suit.

In an instant, a bustling crowd gathered in front of the live broadcast screen.

With so many people watching, the staff member in charge of the broadcast dared not delay, their fingers flying across the keyboard.

Soon, the playback footage from the period when Li Ziyu's ranking had risen was presented in the center of the screen.