Chaos

"Take her away."

Leo saw her admit it and could not be bothered to say another word.

"Waaah, I was wrong!"

Amid her cries, the female student was dragged out.

Leo swept his gaze over the remaining examinees. Not one of them dared meet his eyes now. Even those who had done nothing wrong lowered their heads one after another. When had they ever seen a scene like this? Every one of them was panicking.

"Starting from the back row, come out one at a time with your belongings and go through security again!"

Su Ming was the first to rise. He took his things and walked out under Leo's watchful gaze.

There were soldiers stationed in the corridor outside the classroom to conduct the inspections. They had even set up sophisticated inspection equipment there.

Su Ming looked down the corridor and clearly saw students from the other examination rooms being brought out one by one for reinspection.

Several were caught with cheating devices on the spot. They were immediately dragged away, wailing for their parents.

Watching this unfold, Su Ming's expression grew increasingly interesting. He had not expected anyone to dare cheat in such an important City Exam, much less that there would be so many of them.

Just then, Su Ming suddenly saw the green-haired boy, who was undergoing inspection, abruptly pinned down by the inspecting officer.

"What is this?"

The soldier demanded sharply.

"I don't know what this is! It's not mine!"

The green-haired boy defended himself in panic.

Unfortunately, it was useless. The inspecting officer announced without mercy,

"Cheating!"

Upon hearing the verdict, the green-haired boy instantly wilted like an eggplant struck by frost and collapsed completely.

At that moment, the red-haired boy was also dragged out of the classroom by a soldier. He hung his head, looking resigned to his fate.

Su Ming's mouth twitched slightly at the sight.

Those two idiots, Red Hair and Green Hair, had actually been stupid enough to take the wrong path. Then again, it was understandable. Although they had attended remedial lessons with Teacher Tang Yan, their diagnostic scores had hovered around ninety points the entire time, still far short of the 120-point requirement.

Now that these two had been dragged out, there should be one more.

The three of them had always been thick as thieves. If they did something bad, they would certainly do it together.

Since Yellow Hair had not been caught here, there was a good chance he had been caught at another school's examination site.

Thinking of this, Su Ming shook his head slightly.

Thirteenth District Central · Administrative Office Building.

Xiao Lie sat behind his desk with a steaming cup of tea in his hand. He blew gently on the heat, took a sip, and said,

"Ailan, how many students do you think our Thirteenth District will send to Imperial Court Academy through this year's City Exam?"

"This year should be better than previous years. I heard Haiheng Academy produced quite a few talented students. Perhaps someone might even get into the Inner Academy."

A refined-looking young woman respectfully replied. She wore an off-white blouse, a black short skirt, and red high heels, while her long hair was tied up.

"Really? If we truly produce an Inner Academy student, that would be wonderful."

Xiao Lie replied in a good mood.

Just then, Ye Wei hurried into the office and shouted at Xiao Lie,

"My lord Xiao, something terrible has happened!"

Xiao Lie was startled. His hand jerked, splashing tea everywhere. He then said to Ye Wei with some displeasure,

"What happened? Why are you making such a fuss?"

"The Imperial Court Cult suddenly appeared and took over all the examination sites! All our security personnel were driven out!"

Ye Wei said breathlessly.

"What did you say? Why would the Imperial Court Cult appear here?"

Xiao Lie set his teacup heavily on the desk and asked in a deep voice.

"My lord Xiao, I don't know why the Imperial Court Cult is here either. Everything's in chaos now. I heard they caught many students cheating, especially at First Academy. A great many were caught. And all the students they arrested were loaded onto armed transport vehicles and sent to Starlight City. I heard they're sending all of them to the front lines!"

Ye Wei continued urgently.

Xiao Lie's expression shifted repeatedly as he listened to Ye Wei.

Ye Wei anxiously said to Xiao Lie,

"My lord Xiao, many of the students from First Academy are children of important figures in our Thirteenth District. Sending them to the front lines means certain death for most of them!"

"What does that have to do with me? They brought it upon themselves!"

Xiao Lie slammed a fist onto the desk and replied angrily.

Seeing Xiao Lie lose his temper so violently, Ye Wei immediately fell silent and hurriedly shut his mouth.

In truth, they all knew perfectly well about the cheating.

Imperial Court Academy was incredibly difficult to get into, and with the limited resources of their Thirteenth District, only a few could pass through legitimate means. Thus, some capable people had chosen to take a risk and cheat.

They had turned a blind eye to the matter.

But they had never expected the Federation to send the Imperial Court Cult directly this time and have it take over the City Exam. Now everyone had been caught red-handed.

At that moment, Ailan gently said to the furious Xiao Lie,

"My lord Xiao, no matter how disappointing those children are, they're still our children. We can be angry about this, but we still need to find a way to handle it."

Ring, ring, ring—

The telephone and mobile phone on Xiao Lie's desk began ringing at the same time.

Xiao Lie glanced at the incoming numbers but did not answer. Without even thinking, he knew the calls were from people pleading for mercy.

Unfortunately, this time was different from the past. The Imperial Court Cult was not something he could influence or interfere with. Still, Ailan's words moved him. No matter how angry he was, he could not simply ignore the matter completely. Otherwise, his district would truly descend into chaos.

Thus, he said to Ye Wei,

"Ye Wei, go find out which lord from the Imperial Court Cult is in charge of our side."

"Understood. I'll go right away."

Ye Wei immediately hurried out.

Thirteenth District · Interstellar Military Airport Area.

A Level 4 Battleship, the Fish Pig, rested there. It was ten kilometers long, with a rounded hull covered in smooth gray armor.

Inside the ship's command room, a middle-aged man sat firmly in the command chair. His face had sharply defined features, thick eyebrows, graying temples, and deep-set eyes. Authority showed between his brows, and he wore a major general's uniform.

The enormous operating screen before him displayed rows of square images, each corresponding to one examination site.

From the footage, it was clear that every examination site was in complete disorder.

A woman with long black hair and delicate features approached in a colonel's uniform. She said,

"General Ams, all units have successfully taken over the examination sites. Everyone caught cheating is currently being escorted here."

"Xia An, don't report this kind of thing to me again. Send them all to the front lines."

"Understood."

"Also, begin the examinations immediately once the screening is complete!"

Amos issued the order in a deep voice.

"I'll pass that on immediately. In addition, District Head Xiao Lie of the Thirteenth District wishes to request an audience with you."

Xia An promptly continued her report.

"Denied!"

Amos replied coldly.

"Yes, sir!"

Xia An answered respectfully.