Martial Arts Assessment Begins

"Fuck, what shit luck! How did I end up in the first batch!" Not far from Li Wen, Huang Yu wore a bitter face, complaining to Wang Ruiming beside him.

"Just hoping the virtual director has mercy and doesn't cut to a close-up on me, or else where will I put my face!"

"Ha~ If I believe you, I'm a dog!" Wang Ruiming shot back a middle finger without hesitation, clearly still holding a grudge over Huang Yu playing the fool in last math exam. "Last midterms, your martial score was over ten points higher than mine! Quit pretending to be some big shot!"

"I'm not lying to you this time!" Huang Yu's expression was dead serious. "I was so nervous last night I couldn't sleep, my hands are still weak!"

"Heh~" Wang Ruiming curled his lip, his face full of disbelief.

As a comrade who soaked in the martial arts training room together every afternoon, he knew exactly what Huang Yu was made of.

Though not on par with the students going all out for the martial arts exam, among the few focused on academics, Huang Yu's skill was definitely top-notch. Last midterm, he even outshone Li Wen, who specialized in martial arts.

Thinking of this, Wang Ruiming subconsciously turned his head, his gaze slipping through the crowd to land on Li Wen sitting there.

This figure, who had been silent for over two years but had recently seemed to awaken and rise fiercely, was now sitting with eyes slightly closed, as if conserving energy.

His quiet demeanor created a subtle contrast with the bustling surroundings.

"By the way," Wang Ruiming lowered his voice, "Which batch did Li Wen draw?"

"Seems like... the second batch?" Huang Yu recalled the list. "Why ask? Worried about a classmate?"

"Just asking," Wang Ruiming said vaguely. "You think, with his current Advanced Blade Mastery at perfection, he has a shot at breaking into the top fifty of the grade?"

"Doubtful. I remember at midterms, there were already nearly thirty people with Top-tier Technique Initiation." Huang Yu shook his head, analyzing pragmatically.

"Half a semester's passed since then. The number with Top-tier Initiation has probably exceeded fifty. If he can crack the top hundred and make a big leap in rank, that's already terrifying enough."

"What if..." A bold thought flashed through Wang Ruiming's mind. "He's initiated Top-tier Blade Technique too?"

"Pfft!" Huang Yu nearly choked. "Dude, are you awake? It's only been three days since news of his blade mastery perfection came out! Three days! And yesterday was a solid day of academic exams—when would he have time? Top-tier Blade Technique isn't some cabbage!"

"That's true..." Wang Ruiming nodded, also feeling his idea was too far-fetched.

While initiating a Top-tier technique wasn't impossibly hard, three days? That was practically unheard of.

The only one in the class with Top-tier Initiation, Xue Jun, had taken over ten days back then. The legendary monstrous prodigies who'd signed B-level contracts with the four major powers ahead of time supposedly managed it in three days. Li Wen? He was far from that level.

Just then, a crisp broadcast voice rang across the square:

"Attention, students in the first batch of the Martial Arts Assessment! There are thirty minutes until the assessment begins. Please proceed immediately to your designated virtual rooms!"

Rustling—nearly a quarter of the students rose in unison, forming a stream that surged toward the special area on the other side of the teaching building.

Over a dozen from Class 21 stood up too, including the grim-faced Huang Yu, and the composed class first Xue Jun and second Deng Yuefei.

Deng Yuefei was the guy who'd first noticed Li Wen's breakthrough in blade technique and called it out that day. He also trained in blade arts.

"Quit your whining, let's go!" Wang Ruiming gave Huang Yu a shove with a hint of schadenfreude.

Huang Yu sighed and groaned but scurried to catch up with the group.

Li Wen slowly opened his eyes, his gaze lingering on Deng Yuefei's back for a moment, calm and unruffled.

Xue Jun walked shoulder to shoulder with Deng Yuefei.

"Heard... you broke through last night too?" Xue Jun's tone was casual, like discussing the weather.

"Tch, that fat bastard Yue Ruijie has a big mouth!" Deng Yuefei admitted reluctantly, but couldn't hide the spark of pride from his breakthrough. "Was gonna surprise you guys."

"Oh?" Xue Jun raised an eyebrow, a playful curve tugging at his lips. "So that means Li Wen's got a bit more work to do if he wants to snatch your second-place spot?"

"He only reached perfection three days before me." Deng Yuefei waved a hand, his tone modest but laced with confidence, clearly seeing himself as a strong contender catching up from behind.

"Without stepping into the Top-tier threshold, aren't we all still floundering in the same big realm?"

"Exactly!" Xue Jun nodded in agreement, his expression relaxed.

Three days to Top-tier Initiation? Deep down, he thought it was pure fantasy. That was a story for a whole other level.

The crowd moved quickly.

Qingshi No.3 High School's square was centrally located, not far from the virtual rooms.

About ten minutes later, the massive screen in the center of the square buzzed and suddenly lit up.

Hundreds of nearly identical battle scenes instantly filled the screen, as if the same image had been replicated countless times—the initial waiting area of the virtual space. But this monotonous calm didn't last long.

Just a few minutes later, the layout shifted abruptly.

In the center of the screen, dozens of originally equal-sized small frames were suddenly magnified several times, forcefully dominating the main view like stage spotlights, locking onto the students who'd first entered the assessment scenes.

"Close-ups are here!"

"Public execution begins!"

"Whoa, let's see who's slacking off now!" Excited shouts and chatter erupted across the square, mixed with nervous and even gleeful laughter.

This live-stream focus design, which made countless students both love and hate it, was one of Qingshi No.3's most successful motivational tools in recent years—a cure for all kinds of coasting and laziness, because you never knew if your embarrassing moment would be blown up in front of the whole school the next second.

In Li Wen's vicinity, many students craned their necks, scanning the first batch's many frames for familiar faces, especially... Huang Yu, still struggling through the crowd.

Li Wen closed his eyes again, the square's noise seeming to be walled off.

Yet, the hand resting on his knee unconsciously clenched slightly, knuckles turning white.

His father Li Hong's morning cough—fierce, blood-flecked, barely suppressed despite his best efforts—that pale face and the back he'd strained to keep straight, replayed with piercing clarity in his mind.

The crushing financial strain, the exorbitant cost of Level 1 Blood Qi Potions, the immense consumption required to sustain the minor success stage of [Fracture Edge Gold Sha Method], and the shadow of his father possibly losing his job due to severe illness...

All of this was like heavy chains.

Grow stronger! Only by becoming stronger could he grasp that sliver of hope!

The blood qi energy at the minor success stage of [Fracture Edge Gold Sha Method] subconsciously began to flow more efficiently within his body, a trace of scorching heat dispelling the morning chill.

He knew that his own battlefield was about to unfold.