End

Wang Hu suppressed the reluctance and regret in his heart, understanding that the old principal had made up his mind. He could only sigh softly and shift the topic:

"The procedures are simple. I've already prepared the application forms. According to school regulations, the First-Class Scholarship can only be decided after the final semester rankings are announced—the process is complicated and the slots are fixed. Since the semester is almost over, applying for the First-Class would be too late, and there's no way to make an exception."

"No matter." Huang Yuanting's gaze returned to the screen, his eyes softening slightly:

"I'll specially approve him for this semester's School-Level Second-Class Scholarship, with an amount of ten thousand yuan. This money should be enough to solve his immediate urgent needs and buy some basic Level 1 Blood Qi Potions. After your assessment ends, notify him to handle it as soon as possible."

"Yes! Thank you, Principal Huang!" Wang Hu's heart relaxed a little. Being able to secure this money for Li Wen counted as not wasting his efforts running around for his students.

Virtual Arena.

Li Wen knew nothing of the outside world's turmoil.

At this moment, Li Wen's five senses were pushed to their limit by [Absolute Focus].

He shut out all external interference, even blocking his perception of time's passage.

The arena was his universe, and the Green-Clad Man was his only enemy.

His world was reduced to cold calculations, extreme dodging, and the precise mobilization of every muscle fiber in his body—how to exert force to shed more of the staff's impact? How to swing the blade to block just a fraction faster? How to twist his body at impossible angles?

Blade light and staff shadows wove together like a storm of interlocking light.

The arena floor was cracked into fine fissures by the scattered force.

Breathing became a painful burn; every block made his bones groan under the strain, his internal organs nearly jolted out of place. His tiger's mouth had long split open, blood staining the blade's hilt.

But the flame in his eyes burned even fiercer!

A minute of stalemate stretched like an eternity!

Under the extreme pressure of [Absolute Focus], Li Wen nearly touched a deeper layer of the blade art. Many obscure points in the [Rainbow Light Blade Art] suddenly seemed to clear up.

Yet human strength has its limits.

The chasm in realm could not be easily bridged by talent and will alone.

After dozens of high-intensity exchanges, his body's fatigue finally exceeded the optimization limit of [Absolute Focus].

A tiny deviation in deflecting force was keenly caught by the Green-Clad Man!

A surge of hidden force, like a bursting dam, slammed violently through the staff's tip into Li Wen's blade.

Clang!

The immense force struck, Li Wen's tiger's mouth tore open completely, the standard-issue saber nearly flying from his grip. His entire body's balance shattered in an instant!

In a flash of lightning, old strength was spent, new strength not yet born—his body froze for that ten-thousandth of a second!

Enough! A glint of darkness flashed in the Green-Clad Man's eyes. His long staff shot out like a venomous dragon leaving its cave—fast, ruthless, precise!

In an instant, it became a straight line of death, carrying peak minor-accomplishment power and speed, ignoring Li Wen's last futile blocking motion.

Shiiing! The icy staff tip pierced cleanly through Li Wen's throat! The sharp pain briefly drowned his consciousness, and the white light of death swallowed his vision.

Everything faded into nothingness.

— Reality. Virtual Room Three.

"Ugh... haah—!" In the Virtual Pod, Li Wen's eyes snapped open, his chest heaving violently like a drowning man gasping for air.

The intense suffocation and the shadow of virtual death made his heart pound wildly. The phantom pain of being pierced still lingered in his throat.

"Tch..." The massive backlash from forcibly shutting down [Absolute Focus] followed immediately.

It was as if his soul had been ripped from its supporting frame. An indescribable weakness and a fierce tearing sensation in his spirit surged over him, fiercer than ever before.

A stabbing pain in his mind made him groan. His vision went dark in waves. His body felt hollowed out, limp and powerless, every movement—even lifting his hand to remove the helmet—felt unbearably heavy.

But accompanying this pain was an unprecedented sense of fulfillment and... surprise!

Battle! A real, all-out life-or-death struggle against a stronger foe! The gains were immense!

Panting, he resisted the overwhelming weakness and pain, forcing himself to remove the helmet and the metal sensor clamps on his hands and feet. Even sitting up made him sway.

"...The ranking should be solid." He recalled the statistics he'd seen before exiting the virtual world.

Among the examinees in his batch, only five were still persisting in the challenge.

This meant that, given the generally higher scores of the first batch, his "Martial Arts Skill Score" in this group was firmly in the top six.

Adding the six from the first batch who had successfully defeated the Yellow-Clad Man, only eleven people stood ahead of him in total.

Two more batches of classmates remained. By normal reasoning, each batch would produce no more than five top-tier talents. His final overall ranking had a strong chance of breaking into the top thirty!

"Haah..." Thinking this, Li Wen let out a heavy breath. Though his body and mind were in terrible shape, an irrepressible smile spread across his pale, sweat-soaked face.

In just over ten days of desperate training, he had gone from the bottom of the class in the midterm assessment to the top tier of the school, breaking into the top thirty!

This rate of progress could only be described as earth-shattering!

"The goal of top ten in the class for the midterm is basically achieved." Reaching this short-term goal meant he could claim a substantial "Most Improved Award" and "Top Ten in Class Award," enough to exchange for three Level 1 Blood Qi Potions!

"Next... Flying Star Class!" He clenched his fist, his gaze firming once more.

Physical level was his weak point, but with resources and a goal, he had confidence in sprinting upward during the break!

As the thought flickered through his mind, Li Wen endured the immense fatigue and waves of nausea, struggling to his feet and pushing open the heavy door of the Virtual Pod.

Outside air rushed in, carrying the clamor of voices.

The moment he stepped out of the virtual chamber, as if activated by his intent:

[Ding!]

The familiar and dear translucent virtual panel automatically unfolded before him.

A notification refreshed:

[You have engaged in a thrilling, limit-breaking cross-realm battle. Your comprehension of Rainbow Light Blade Art has deepened significantly. Blade Art experience +20]

[Skill: Blade Art (Mastery), Blade Art (Beginner 4→24/100)]

"24 points!" Li Wen's pupils sharply contracted. In an instant, his heart was flooded with immense joy, nearly washing away the extreme physical discomfort!

"One battle, directly raising experience by 20 points! This effect..."

But he quickly calmed down, his joy turning into contemplation. It couldn't possibly be this simple.

He was well aware of how difficult improvement was. If just any high-intensity virtual battle could grant this much experience, Unity Realm experts would be everywhere by now.

The reality was that the vast majority of martial artists were stuck at the Martial Artist realm for life, unable to even approach the threshold of a Super Warrior.

(PS: Friends... um... it's the end of the month. Don't let your monthly tickets expire.)