Huo Xiaoling

When the students received their missions before the trial, all they knew was that a fugitive was out there. They knew nothing else about him. The mission instructions said they had to find him themselves, and only now had they learned his name.

On the third day, all the students were shocked by the appearance of a woman in the skies above Northern Europe.

Huo Xiaoling, heir to the Huo Family of the Great Yu Empire, had long, fiery-red hair that fell to her waist. She was breathtakingly beautiful and serene, like an elf. Her status in the Great Yu Empire was even higher than Ras's, because the Huo Family was one of the empire's Great Families.

The moment Huo Xiaoling appeared, more than a dozen students hiding around Northern Europe emerged. They had been too wary of Qing Yu's strength to show themselves, but now they dared. Huo Xiaoling was an Integrating Realm expert. Although the trial had sealed her cultivation, an Integrating Realm expert was still an Integrating Realm expert—nothing like a Probe Realm one.

Seeing Huo Xiaoling, Qing Yu stood up, his eyes lighting up. "What an exquisite woman. I never expected to find someone with such grace in the frontier territories. Hahaha!"

Huo Xiaoling looked down at Qing Yu, who stood casually below. Behind him were twelve students, bound and in a wretched state.

"You're gravely injured. Even if you still have Integrating Realm power, you can't use it. All you can do is intimidate people with your star energy. Surrender, Qing Yu," Huo Xiaoling said coldly.

Qing Yu's lips curled. "So haughty. I like that in a woman." He stomped on the ground, sending an iron rod shooting up, then casually swung it at Huo Xiaoling. She frowned and dodged. Behind her, Qing Yu appeared out of nowhere, caught the rod, and swung it down again. The rod's path was perfectly clear, yet Huo Xiaoling felt she had nowhere to dodge. The world around them darkened.

Huo Xiaoling sensed danger. Flames blazed across her body, transforming into a phoenix's cry that shot into the sky and swept in every direction. Everyone who saw it was horrified. The snow on the ground melted in an instant, and even the sky turned red.

Qing Yu retreated, holding the rod as he stared at Huo Xiaoling in astonishment. Then he grew excited. "A talent! You actually have a fire talent. Woman, you deserve to follow me."

Huo Xiaoling's gaze was cold as she slowly raised a delicate finger and pointed it at Qing Yu. A fire phoenix soared into the sky. "Phoenix Spirit Finger!"

Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! In the distance, several students glanced at their personal terminals, their faces changing dramatically. "Four thousand one hundred points of battle power!"

Qing Yu grinned. "Now that's more like it. That strike could make an ordinary Integrating Realm expert retreat. Too bad you ran into me, Qing Yu Bai Ye." As he spoke, he spun the iron rod. In an instant, countless iron rods appeared, nearly blotting out the sky and plunging the world into darkness. Then one rod shot through the fire phoenix with enough force to pierce the heavens, and slammed into Huo Xiaoling's shoulder, sending her crashing into the ground.

The ground shook with a thunderous boom. The melted snow formed a river, and Huo Xiaoling had crashed right into it.

In the sky, Qing Yu stood tall, holding the iron rod as he swept his gaze over the area.

The watching students immediately fled. If even Huo Xiaoling had lost, they wouldn't dare go near him. She was one of the few Integrating Realm experts in this trial.

Soon, Huo Xiaoling climbed out of the river, soaked to the skin and pale as she looked at Qing Yu approaching. "Bai Ye... That surname. Are you from that family?"

Qing Yu crouched and reached out to hook a finger under Huo Xiaoling's delicate chin, smiling. "You know about it? So you're not completely ignorant. If you know, you should understand what this surname represents. You're worthy of being my woman. Think it over. I'll take you away from these frontier territories."

Huo Xiaoling slapped his hand away and clutched her shoulder. She fought through the pain and gasped, "Your wanted notice came from the Inner Universe. If you really are from that family, who would dare put out a warrant for you?"

Qing Yu grabbed Huo Xiaoling by her long hair and lifted her up. Looking into her furious eyes, he said coldly, "Don't get worked up. If you break through the seal and recover your Integrating Realm strength, you'll be out of the trial. Don't you want to join Starry Sky Tenth Academy?"

Huo Xiaoling's heart sank, and the immense star energy barely perceptible around her body receded.

Qing Yu sneered. "Just watch. This will all be over soon." He threw Huo Xiaoling toward the bound students. "That makes thirteen. This one seems to carry a lot of weight."

Qing Yu was right. Huo Xiaoling wasn't merely important—she was extremely important. The moment she was captured, Xiken Maldo at the monitoring station nearly stormed into Earth himself, but Mila stopped him.

"No one may interfere during the trial. That's the decision of the Cosmic Youth Council, General Maldo. Are you planning to openly defy the Council's ruling?" Mila said calmly as she looked at Xiken Maldo.

Xiken Maldo's expression shifted. He said gravely, "Miss Mila, please forgive me, but Huo Xiaoling is the daughter of Captain Huo Qingshan. She can't be allowed to come to harm."

Mila narrowed her eyes. "I know. So what? She could have broken through the seal on her own. What happened to her now was her own choice."

Xiken Maldo took a deep breath and looked at Mila.

The two stared at each other.

In the end, Xiken Maldo gave up. Before the Cosmic Youth Council, not just Huo Qingshan—even the Great Yu Empire was insignificant. They had destroyed many powerful forces, and the Great Yu Empire didn't want to share their fate.

Mila's gaze passed over Xiken Maldo to the screen, especially Qing Yu. That battle technique just now had seemed strangely familiar.

The regional network had already broadcast news of Huo Xiaoling's capture. At once, the many students who had been eagerly heading toward Northern Europe stopped and gradually regrouped.

In the Capital City, Ede was shocked. "Even Huo Xiaoling was captured. How are we supposed to complete the mission?"

Lu Yin was puzzled. "Huo Xiaoling? Is she that powerful?"

Ede nodded gravely. "In terms of combat strength, Huo Xiaoling is probably the strongest student in this trial, because she has Integrating Realm strength."

Lu Yin's expression changed. Integrating Realm.

"Not only that, Huo Xiaoling also has a fire talent. Her father is Huo Qingshan, the captain of the Great Yu Empire's Imperial Court Thirteenth Team's Fifth Team, a powerhouse who can hunt in the stars and whose battle power is enough to blow up an ordinary personal terminal. With a teacher like him, Huo Xiaoling is an absolute elite among the Great Yu Empire's younger generation. I can't believe even she lost," Ede continued.

Only Ede, Granny, and the other students were shocked by Huo Xiaoling's capture. Lu Yin was surprised, but it felt distant to him. His attention was now on the several students gradually approaching.

Before long, three students appeared outside the Capital City. They were all from the second batch of Trial Takers. They weren't from Yu Tang, but they were elites from powerful planets, strong enough to match or even surpass Ede. Unfortunately, none of them managed to escape Lu Yin. He captured them all and had now caught twenty-eight people—not a small number.

Just then, two more people arrived outside the Capital City: Gulles and Balaro, who had been hiding nearby all along.

Zhang Ding Tian was about to attack when Lu Yin stopped him. "What are you doing here? You'll get your armor back after the trial!" Lu Yin shouted.

Gulles's lips twitched. She forced a smile at Lu Yin. "I want to join you."

Lu Yin looked puzzled. "What? Join us? What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said. I want to join you," Gulles replied, lifting her chin as if they should be honored she was joining them.

Lu Yin considered it. "Why should we take you in?"

Gulles flew into a rage. "Take me in? Do you even know how to talk? I said I wanted to work with you."

"Why should we?" Lu Yin replied bluntly.

Gulles gritted her teeth. "Qing Yu's strength has reached the Integrating Realm. One or two students can't deal with him. His things are in the Capital City, so he's bound to come back. We should join forces to take him on."

Lu Yin thought about it. She had a point. Qing Yu seemed difficult to deal with, and it would be trouble if he came back to the Capital City. More people meant a better chance of success. "Fine, come in. But I'm warning you: don't try anything, or I'll tie you up."

Gulles snorted and entered the Capital City with Balaro.

She really wasn't plotting anything else. Qing Yu had put too much pressure on all the students. They could only stand against him by joining forces, and that was their only way to complete the mission. The students over in Northern Europe had already banded together too. She couldn't fight alone, and working with the natives would bring her more benefits than joining those students and sharing the credit.

On the outskirts of the Capital City, Xia Luo hadn't gone far. Instead, he was walking among the tide of corpses. Strangely, the horde didn't attack him, as if they couldn't sense him at all.

Xia Luo had spent three days here, his expression unchanged. He had been among the zombies the whole time, seemingly observing something.

After a long while, Xia Luo stopped and sighed. "As expected, I can sense their presence. They really are everywhere. What a pain."

Somewhere far to the south of the Capital City, a beautiful woman in a green robe, with long green hair, slowly flew north. She was dressed entirely in green, even her long boots, which were engraved with delicate patterns. She gave off a fresh, invigorating air.