Night!
Inside the Lin Family Villa.
"Smash!"
Another priceless antique vase was hurled to the floor by Lin Qiu, its shards scattering everywhere.
"Argh!"
Lin Qiu had none of the arrogance he showed in front of outsiders.
All that remained was impotent fury!
"Useless!"
"Zhao Wuji is useless too!"
"Wasn't he ranked third? Wasn't his body supposed to be invincible?"
"He actually got beaten by that guy in front of the entire school!"
Lin Qiu was beside himself with rage!
He wasn't sticking up for Zhao Wuji.
He was furious!
In his mind, after Jiang Hao entered the Key Class, his big brother was supposed to crush him—and even trample him underfoot!
But Jiang Hao's performance had turned out to be terrible news for him!
The more brilliantly his enemy shone, the more it reflected Lin Qiu's own incompetence!
First, he'd been defeated by Jiang Hao's spear in Class Two, suffering a humiliating loss.
Then, at the Key Class Assessment, Jiang Hao had comprehensively outdone his score of 9.35 with a blood-energy reading of 9.5!
And now!
Jiang Hao had even trampled Zhao Wuji!
With one battle, he'd become a legend!
He'd become the most talked-about student at the entire Eighth Martial High!
How could Lin Qiu possibly be happy about that?!
"Brother!"
Lin Qiu turned to look at Lin Fan, who hadn't said a word from beginning to end.
Lin Fan sat quietly behind his desk, his long fingers tapping rhythmically against its surface.
"Brother, say something!"
Lin Qiu took a deep breath.
"Jiang Hao even beat Zhao Wuji now!"
"Could you be next?"
"He's already received B-Class Treatment, and Su Qingning has taken an interest in him!"
"We should find a chance to—"
"I won't let anyone who opposes me get away with it!"
Lin Qiu made a throat-slitting gesture!
"Shut up."
Lin Fan's icy voice rang out, and his fingers stopped tapping the desk.
Lin Qiu fell silent at once, closing his mouth in deference.
A deathly silence settled over the study.
Lin Fan slowly raised his head. The warm, genial smile he'd worn before was gone.
Only a deep, unyielding gloom remained.
"I admit I underestimated him."
"I thought he was just a flea who'd gotten lucky and happened to have decent talent."
"I didn't expect..."
A trace of deep wariness flashed through Lin Fan's eyes.
"He's far more troublesome than I imagined."
Lin Fan stood and walked to the enormous floor-to-ceiling window, gazing out at Rongguang City's dazzling nightscape.
"From 8.1 to 9.99 in a month."
"Mastery of Basic Spear Technique."
"And he's also picked up a high-burst Martial Skill that even I can't see through."
"Someone like that..."
"He's no longer someone we can afford to underestimate."
At that, Lin Qiu immediately asked:
"Then what do we do, Brother?"
"What do we do?"
The corner of Lin Fan's mouth curled into a cruel smile.
"The Virtual Arena is just a childish game."
"What does winning or losing matter?"
"That useless Zhao Wuji only lost face. He didn't even lose a single hair."
"This kind of game is meaningless."
"Since he's become a threat..."
"There's only one way to deal with a threat."
"Before he can fully grow, we cripple him for good!"
"Cripple him?"
Lin Qiu's eyes lit up instantly.
"Brother! You mean..."
"That's right."
Murderous intent filled Lin Fan's eyes!
"We'll find an opportunity."
"When the time comes..."
Lin Fan gently brushed his hand over a potted plant on the desk.
"I'll handle it personally."
"I'll break those hands he's so proud of, and his legs, inch by inch!"
"I'll destroy all the blood energy in his body!"
"And make him go back to being the same good-for-nothing who can only gaze up at us from the garbage heap—for the rest of his life!"
At those words, Lin Qiu's face filled with glee!
"Ha ha ha!"
"That's great, Brother!"
"You'll definitely cripple that guy!"
Lin Qiu could almost see Jiang Hao's miserable figure, kneeling before him like a dead dog!
"Jiang Hao!"
"You're finished!"
"You trash think you can stand against me?"
"My brother's going to deal with you. You're dead!"
Meanwhile.
Elsewhere!
At the Su Family Villa.
Inside Su Anan's bedroom.
Two stunning young women sat on a soft carpet.
The enormous screen in front of them was replaying the day's duel footage on a loop.
"Bang!"
The footage froze at the moment Jiang Hao sent Zhao Wuji flying with a single spear thrust.
"Whoa!"
Su Anan cried out in amazement!
She grabbed Su Qingning's arm and shook it vigorously.
"Big Sister, look!"
"11.0! His attack power was definitely 11.0!"
"I told you!"
"Isn't my eye for talent the best in the whole world?"
Su Anan smugly lifted her adorable little chin.
She looked as if to say, "Come on, praise me! Praise me!"
Su Qingning's beautiful eyes remained fixed on the calm figure on-screen, standing with spear in hand.
Jiang Hao had given her a huge surprise!
"One month ago, he barely beat Lin Qiu."
"One month later..."
"He can already use a Martial Skill to defeat Zhao Wuji head-on!"
Su Qingning was deeply shaken too.
"He just entered the Key Class!"
"This talent..."
"Anan, you really did have a good eye this time."
"Hehe!"
Su Anan was delighted by her sister's praise!
"Of course!"
"Well, Big Sister? Surely you believe me now!"
"He's definitely a super-potential stock!"
"If you bring him onto your team, you'll be able to rule the roost once you get to university!"
At that, Su Qingning gave a slight shake of her head.
"Hm? What are you still hesitating about, Big Sister?"
Su Anan blinked in confusion.
Su Qingning's gaze grew more thoughtful.
"His performance was impressive."
"It even exceeded my expectations."
"But a person's potential isn't determined by a single burst of strength."
"What matters more is whether he can keep it up."
Su Qingning fell into thought.
"What if that burst of strength came at the cost of burning through his body's potential?"
"Huh? That can't be..."
Su Anan sounded uncertain now, too.
"So I need to keep observing him."
Su Qingning made her decision.
"I'll wait until the next round!"
"That's the Monthly Assessment, three weeks from now."
"If he can maintain this pace of improvement, it'll prove that his potential is inexhaustible."
"When that time comes..."
"I'll personally invite him to join the team."
The next day.
When Jiang Hao stepped into the Key Class Training Hall again,
he keenly sensed it.
The atmosphere today was completely different from yesterday's.
When he entered, the Training Hall was no longer filled with silence and whispers.
"Good morning, Junior Jiang Hao!"
A fit young man carrying a long spear on his back stepped forward to greet him.
Jiang Hao recognized him as one of the senior students who received B-Class Treatment.
"Good morning, Senior Wang Hao."
Jiang Hao paused, then smiled and nodded!
Wang Hao!
Blood energy: 10.6.
Wang Hao warmly patted Jiang Hao on the shoulder.
"Junior Jiang Hao, yesterday's duel was incredible!"
"Your Spear Arts are practically divine!"
"I use a spear too. After watching your fight, I feel like my bottleneck has started to loosen!"
"When you have time, we should definitely spar in the virtual system!"
Wang Hao's attitude was full of goodwill.
He was reaching out to Jiang Hao as an equal.
"Definitely."
Jiang Hao nodded.
"Classmate Jiang Hao!"
From the other side, a capable-looking girl with a high ponytail and a Battle Saber on her back came over too.
Liu Mei!
Qi and blood: 10.4.
"That Martial Skill of yours has incredible explosive power!"
"Zhao Wuji got what he deserved. No wonder he lost!"
"From now on, we'll all be classmates in the same class. I look forward to learning from you!"
"You're too kind, Senior Liu."
Jiang Hao replied politely as well.
Wang Hao and Liu Mei represented the Key Class's "core strength."
Their show of goodwill carried extraordinary significance.
It meant that they already saw Jiang Hao as their equal!
Just then,
two figures came over from a corner.
They looked a little nervous.
They were Zhang Yuan and Li Mo, from Class 1 and Class 3, who had joined the Key Class alongside Jiang Hao.
"Br-Brother Jiang!"
The two hurried over to Jiang Hao and called out respectfully!
Jiang Hao was taken aback.
"Brother Jiang, you were so damn awesome yesterday!"
Zhang Yuan said, a little excited.
"Yeah, yeah!"
Li Mo nodded beside him.
"Brother Jiang, you're practically our idol!"
"One spear thrust to defeat Zhao Wuji!"
"Too strong!"
Before you continue