The scene Chen Ming was putting on right now once again drew countless eyes.
He couldn't help it. He was simply too eye-catching.
Pale flames roared up around him, while bluish tail flames rose from the long blade gripped in his one hand.
As the blade swept through the air, wisps of embers trailed behind.
Though the flames looked somewhat illusory overall, as if they weren't real,
it didn't change the impression he gave: Chen Ming looked like a warrior striding through fire.
Anyone who didn't know better would think some S-rank fire-element warrior was using a skill.
But...
Aren't you a Shield Guard, bro?
"Psychic skill!"
On the high-rise behind them,
the moment the principals saw Azure Flame blaze over Chen Ming, several of them sensed it.
That energy carried powerful psychic fluctuations!
It was clearly a psychic skill.
"He actually awakened a psychic skill. No wonder..."
Even if awakening a psychic skill couldn't reasonably explain Chen Ming's terrifying defense,
at least now there was something to go on.
He wasn't just an ordinary C-rank Shield Guard who'd somehow reached a level they couldn't believe.
"Is that... Pale Flame?!"
Principal Wang quickly noticed the flames around Chen Ming.
He immediately took out the wisp of Pale Flame he'd obtained beneath the Valley Night Sky from his mental space.
A tiny spark, no bigger than a thumb, hovered over his palm.
Compared to the surging flames on Chen Ming below, the little flicker in his hand looked rather pathetic.
Of course, the two weren't really comparable. What he held was a resource, while the flames on Chen Ming were only a skill effect.
Still, wasn't the Pale Flame on that kid a little too fierce?
At the thought, Principal Wang's expression turned strange.
He'd nearly gotten himself killed to obtain that tiny spark.
The wounds the Pale Moon Wolf King had inflicted on him still hadn't healed.
"According to the information we received earlier, Chen Ming was leveling up in the Exotic Beast Forest a few days ago. Maybe he got lucky and happened upon this Pale Flame resource."
Principal Zhou thought it over, then offered an explanation.
Thinking of it that way, everything made sense.
Azure Flame Flowing Fire was a rare psychic resource to begin with.
After absorbing it, Chen Ming had awakened a psychic skill.
"Eighteen years old, just changed class, and already awakened a psychic skill..."
The more Principal Zhou spoke, the more excited he became, a smile spreading across his face.
"That should be a first in the entire Alliance, shouldn't it?"
He hadn't expected Cloud Sea No. 1 High School to produce a genius who'd broken an all-Alliance record this year.
"Gentlemen, do you still think there's anything wrong with Qin Zhixue teaming up with Chen Ming?"
Principal Zhou looked straight at Principal Wang and Principal Wu, speaking without mincing words.
Those two old geezers had wanted to poach Qin Zhixue for the Abyss Squad earlier.
As for Chen Ming, they hadn't even considered him.
Now they'd been thoroughly slapped in the face.
So what if Wang Yan and Wu Qingyang were S-rank Class Changers?
With just one psychic skill, Chen Ming's potential was already beyond ordinary standards.
Other people might not know what awakening psychic abilities meant, but how could the principals not?
Throughout the Alliance's history, every person who'd awakened a psychic skill had become famous, regardless of their class rank.
Principal Zhou also felt a measure of relief.
He hadn't expected Chen Ming to turn his fate around through his psychic talent.
At the attack-power testing platform,
Chen Ming didn't waste words. He drew his blade, infused it with Pale Flame, stepped forward, and struck the heavy metal wall before him.
The attack-power test was very simple.
You had to unleash your ten strongest attacks, and the highest score counted.
The moment Chen Ming's first strike landed, information lit up on the heavy metal wall—
[300 points!]
When everyone saw the score,
a chorus of relieved sighs rose from below the platform.
Everyone let out a huge breath.
An attack score of 300...
Well, barely passable.
Most B-rank Class Changers could manage that.
The result was like a shot of comfort for them.
His defense was already so absurd. If his attack were absurd too, how could anyone take it?
"Thank goodness."
"Watching Chen Ming draw his blade just now, I thought he was about to show off some terrifying strength again."
"Phew... this score's decent enough."
"Not bad, not bad. Attack power isn't a Shield Guard's main stat."
Quite a few people patted their chests and breathed out in relief.
The image of Chen Ming surrounded by Pale Flame, with fire coating his blade,
had truly scared them.
So it only looked cool.
At that moment, Chen Ming delivered his second slash.
The blade swept across the heavy metal barrier, leaving Azure Flame behind. It quickly turned to embers and faded away.
--[600 points!]
"Something's wrong!"
When Chen Ming's attack landed on the metal barrier,
the score displayed there jumped by an unbelievable amount.
600 points!
Twice the score of his first attack!
That score was already enough to put him in Cloud Sea City's top ten.
"Did he use an attack skill just now?"
"No, he just swung a second time."
The people below began to realize something was off.
Then Chen Ming swung again.
With a clang, his long blade struck the heavy barrier, ringing out with a piercing metallic clash.
--[900 points!]
"Holy crap, it went up another 300!"
People were starting to lose their composure.
900 points, second only to Qin Zhixue in first place.
Another slash.
--[1200 points!]
"Come on, man..."
The crowd started to panic.
Clang!!
--[1500 points!]
"Again?!"
--[1800 points!]
The sixth attack landed.
The score reached 1800 points.
Nearly twice Qin Zhixue's original top score!
This time, not a sound came from below the platform.
They were already numb.
They stared blankly as the score jumped higher and higher.
They had to give everything they had just to scrape together a few hundred points.
For Chen Ming, it was like he was racking them up for fun.
Were they even taking the same test?
Still, some people noticed what was going on.
Every time Chen Ming struck, the Azure Flame around him seemed to grow stronger.
Then his attack score would shoot up again.
Clang—
On the platform, Chen Ming's tenth attack landed.
His long blade struck the metal barrier with a ringing clang, sparks flying as it left a deep gash behind.
--[3000 points!]
[Testing complete!]
[Scores: 300, 600... 2700, 3000!]
[Highest attack score: 3000 points!]
New information appeared on the attack-power rankings displayed on the illusionary screen.
[1. Chen Ming - C-rank Shield Guard - 3000 points]
[2. Qin Zhixue - SS-rank Holy Radiance Angel - 998 points]
First place in both attack and defense!
At the same time, Chen Ming's final score appeared on the overall ranking by average score.
[1. Chen Ming - 6500 points!]
[2. Qin Zhixue - 949 points!]
A crushing lead.
Before you continue