Each Relying on Their Own Abilities

With weapons acquired, Wei Yuan selected the heaviest armor with the strongest defense from all the available sets. This heavy armor came with a face guard, and the limbs extended all the way to the backs of his hands and feet, covering him almost entirely from head to toe. Most examinees opted for longswords, which would be useless against this heavy armor. Among the weapons in the treasure chests, there was a three-edged short sword with a prism hammer and mace designed to break heavy armor, but perhaps due to its lack of elegance or imposing presence, Wei Yuan didn't see anyone choose it.

After selecting his weapons and armor, the treasure chest vanished on its own. The heavy armor, however, appeared directly on Wei Yuan and equipped itself. It was, undeniably, heavy armor, and once worn, he could only manage a light jog.

Just then, two more people climbed onto the hill. Both wore the blue team's uniform. The person in front was small and slender, precisely the scout Wei Yuan had first seen. Beside him stood a burly blue team disciple, only slightly shorter than Wei Yuan.

At this moment, the slender examinee was saying to his companion, "I'm telling you, there's a lone big idiot here who doesn't even know how to use his weapon. Let's team up later and get an easy kill..."

Mid-sentence, the slender examinee saw Wei Yuan standing at the hilltop, heavy armor donned and spear held horizontally. He swallowed the rest of his words.

Wei Yuan didn't waste time with pleasantries. He strode forward, his spear striking like a dragon. He pierced both of them with a single thrust each. The soft leather armor they wore was elegantly designed and didn't impede their movement, but in front of the long spear, it was like paper.

South of the Illusion Realm, Li Zhi stood armored and sword at his side, at the front of the formation. He had gathered one hundred and twenty examinees, who were now divided into four teams—front, center, left, and right—arranged in a very orderly fashion.

Li Zhi was very satisfied with the neat military formation. Before the exam, he had painstakingly practiced formation tactics with a few confidants, and he had spent considerable time organizing the troops just now. These hundred-plus people already looked like a small elite force.

Outside the military formation, more than a dozen people stood scattered, all wearing dark yellow uniforms. These were individuals Li Zhi hadn't recruited, who had found their own way to their respective teams. A tall examinee holding a saber stood before these dozen or so people, pointing at a small mound not far away and saying, "You will defend that spot later. Without my command, you are not to retreat even a single step! Wait, before you go there, hand over all your pills and we'll use them collectively!"

The mound was located in front of the military formation, tasked with blocking the enemy's advance. Placed there, and with their life-saving pills confiscated, it was likely these people would be annihilated with the first enemy charge.

The scattered examinees weren't foolish. Someone immediately protested, stepping forward and exclaiming, "We came here willingly to join you, yet you treat us like idiots? We'll die the moment we engage from that position, so how many points will we get? In the end, we won't even secure a spot in the Crimson Tide Sect! We get nothing, so why should we listen to you?"

Li Zhi slowly turned around, looking at the examinee with a blank expression and saying, "Insubordination before the formation, disrupting morale! Execute!"

The examinee was stunned. Before he could even comprehend what was happening, the burly examinee beside him swung his saber and decapitated him!

The headless corpse of the examinee fell to the ground and dissolved into light.

The remaining scattered examinees trembled, no longer daring to resist, and obediently handed over their pills. Although the regulations clearly stated that killing a teammate would lower one's evaluation, they didn't specify by how much. Li Zhi dared to kill to establish authority, indicating he didn't care about that rule at all. Besides, Li Zhi hadn't killed the man himself.

Li Zhi turned back and announced loudly to the entire formation, "Everyone saw it. There are no jokes in the army! This is the Martial Assessment, essentially a real battlefield! We have fewer numbers than the enemy, so we must unite. The opposing side is just a rabble. As long as everyone follows orders, I, Li Zhi, will lead you to crush the enemy camp and enter the immortal sect together!"

Hearing the words "enter the immortal sect together," the examinees in the formation, despite knowing the hope was slim, were all filled with passion.

Inside the palace hall in the sky, the six evaluators were seated. They looked down, taking in everything within the Illusion Realm.

The old scholar stroked his beard and smiled, saying, "This Li Zhi, within a day, has managed to discipline a group of children into a semblance of military order. He knows how to kill to establish authority and also how to inspire people. Duke of Grace is fortunate to have such a good son."

However, the old scholar didn't say Li Zhi had his father's demeanor, as everyone present knew what kind of person Duke of Grace was.

The middle-aged scholar cupped his hands in greeting to all directions and said, "Regarding how Li Zhi is doing, everyone has seen it these past two days. The final round is very important to him. I hope everyone will be lenient. Our academy will naturally offer its rewards in return."

The young cultivator suddenly smiled and said, "You want to ensure Li Zhi gets first place, using that title to build momentum and soar to the heavens. That's not wrong. However, it just so happens that Miss Bao is someone who doesn't admit defeat and also wants this first place now. What should we do about that?"

The middle-aged scholar's thick eyebrows furrowed slightly, and he said earnestly, "Miss Bao is merely competing out of spirit. Even if she takes first place, there are no real benefits. It wouldn't hurt to yield, would it?"

The young cultivator chuckled, "It wouldn't hurt to yield? Go say that to the Bao family, it's useless to say it to me!"

"If Miss Bao is willing to fulfill our wish, then we will offer generous rewards."

The young cultivator sneered, "The things you poor scholars can offer, Miss won't care about!"

Seeing their argument escalating, the elder cultivator lightly stroked his long beard and coughed, saying, "Since we're at a stalemate, let's rely on our own abilities."

The middle-aged scholar nodded, "That would be best."

The young cultivator glared at the elder cultivator, then turned to look at Daoist Fu Feng and the monk. The monk had been silent since taking in Duan Yusheng, and his scoring had always been impartial. However, from another perspective, the monk was also the type who couldn't be swayed by anything, no matter what anyone said. All the evaluators had long given up trying to win him over.

Daoist Fu Feng was originally an extremely cunning old fox. After two assessments, no one knew which candidate he truly intended to support. The young cultivator looked at him, holding onto a slim hope, not expecting a response.

Among the six evaluators, only the two scholars from Four Saints Academy were united. The rest belonged to different factions, each with their own agenda and candidates they wished to support. This gave Four Saints Academy a significant advantage during the scoring. If they wanted to lower someone's score, they could potentially lower it all the way to the Cave Heaven level. Only the Bao family, with their immense power, was unafraid of Four Saints Academy and dared to openly compete for the top spot in the unified examination.

During the scoring, the young cultivator was alone, at a distinct disadvantage. It was easy to imagine that the two scholars would suppress Miss Bao's score. Therefore, to turn the tide, the young cultivator needed to find another ally and also suppress Li Zhi's score.

The young cultivator's face showed indignation, but his mind was rapidly calculating which faction he could win over and when he could stab Four Saints Academy in the back. However, after much thought, he found no solution.

Just as the young cultivator was at a loss, Daoist Fu Feng suddenly said, "In the Dao Assessment and Literary Assessment over the past two days, the two gentlemen took great care of my Taichu Palace disciples. After returning, I thought about it repeatedly, and I feel I have no way to repay them. Therefore, today, I will certainly respond."

The young cultivator was both surprised and delighted. The two scholars from Four Saints Academy were greatly shocked, unable to understand what had gotten into Daoist Fu Feng, why he would go against them. Wasn't he afraid that the two of them would join forces and give arbitrary scores to the candidates vying for Taichu Palace's spots, thereby ruining his grand plan?

The old scholar's long eyebrows shot up, and he said coldly, "Then I shall have no reservations. Do not blame me for my ruthless pen!

Daoist Fu Feng spread his hands, gesturing for him to proceed.

The old scholar's face turned ashen with anger. He sat motionless, his mind clearly calculating something, occasionally exchanging glances with the middle-aged scholar.

Just then, a loud bang echoed through the hall. The main doors of the hall were kicked open!