On the List

Without a trace of panic, Xu Ziming poured his entire heart and soul into the battle.

The spear technique on the other side had changed; when the opponent was intentionally controlling his blood-energy output, his spearwork had been somewhat conservative.

Now, however, the spearwork had become extremely fierce, with every move carrying a dense intent to kill.

Xu Ziming silently endured the storm-like onslaught from his opponent.

He did not activate his Qilin Body in response, wanting instead to see if he had the strength to fight back while his opponent was using performance-enhancing drugs.

Even now, he was not using his full strength.

He was, after all, afraid that if he used his full power, he might shatter the Dao heart of the brother across from him—after all, it had only been three days since they last fought.

Seeing Xu Ziming beaten into a timid, defensive state, and appearing to have complete control over the battle, Angry Haki-mi grew more and more excited, completely forgetting the fact that he had just popped a pill.

"Nothing special. I might not be able to beat a Silver, but I can't beat a Black Iron like you?"

He thought proudly to himself, failing to notice that in his frantic offensive, he had suddenly revealed a flaw.

At this very moment!

Xu Ziming's expression shifted in an instant.

From his original calm, his face turned fierce.

At this exact moment, his aura reached its peak, disrupting his opponent's focus.

The sword thrust out.

The sword technique, carrying a sharp killing intent, completed its transformation in that split second.

Without a trace, without any warning, it pierced through the chest of Angry Haki-mi in the blink of an eye.

"Puchi."

Accompanied by the sound of the blade entering flesh, streams of blood gushed from his chest.

Angry Haki-mi still wore the smile from when he had been suppressing his opponent, only realizing he had lost the moment the sword pierced his chest.

How is this possible?

How could someone improve so quickly?

A mere Black Iron...

His figure began to dissipate; though his face held unwillingness, he was powerless to change the outcome.

[Promotion match victory]

[Rank advanced, current rank: Silver]

"Finally reached Silver..."

At the same time Xu Ziming's rank reached Silver, the High School Student Ranking for Pengcheng City underwent a slight shift.

At the very bottom, Little Ming Who Can't Use a Sword quietly climbed onto the end of the list, officially stepping into the ranks of the strongest high school students in Pengcheng.

"Someone else made the list?"

Battle Net qualifications were opened after the mock exams, and at this stage, almost everyone who reached Silver could make the list directly.

There were only about three hundred people on the Pengcheng City leaderboard.

"Which school is he from?"

"Pengcheng No. 3 High School."

"It's not from our No. 1 High School? No. 3 has had quite a lot of talent these past two years, especially Shen Xingyue."

At the same time, in the office of the principal of Pengcheng No. 3 High School.

The telephone rang incessantly.

Principal Wang looked at the time, finding it strange to receive a call so late, and picked it up.

"Old Wang, your school has produced another good seedling."

The voice from the other end of the line came through, carrying a hint of joy.

"What do you mean, Old Liu?"

"Check the Battle Net leaderboard. Another ID, Little Ming Who Can't Use a Sword, has climbed onto the Pengcheng City High School Student Ranking. He registered his account using your school's credentials."

"Little Ming Who Can't Use a Sword..."

Could it be Xu Ziming?

His expression shifted rapidly, but he still laughed heartily: "He earned it himself; I've always thought highly of this child."

After hanging up the phone, he thought carefully; it seemed tomorrow was the day he had promised Ma Mingyu that Xu Ziming would spar with Zhao Yong.

"I originally just didn't want to embarrass Ma Mingyu, but I didn't expect that a truly good seedling would emerge..."

Xu Ziming was completely unaware of all this. He had been on the leaderboard for barely five minutes when his phone was flooded with a long string of messages.

Most of them were invitations from martial halls.

The highest offer came from Nebula Martial Hall, the martial hall run by the father of the original owner of the virtual avatar he had just defeated.

5 million a year! This figure deeply shocked Xu Ziming; it was the most money he had ever seen in his life.

However, he did not sign the contract immediately. He needed to wait until tomorrow to discuss it with Ma Mingyu before reaching a conclusion.

"Knock, knock, knock!" A knocking sound echoed.

"A-Ming, your father is calling, come out and see."

Hearing this, Xu Ziming logged out of his Battle Net account and immediately walked out.

His father worked on the front lines fighting against alien races, responsible for repairing equipment, and every communication connection took about a month.

Now, he had finally called.

"A-Ming, Yaoyao, your father has been quite impressive on the front lines lately."

As soon as Xu Ziming left his room, he saw his father smiling at him from the screen projected by his wristband.

Although his face was full of exhaustion and weariness, his smile came from the heart.

"The war on the front lines has been intense these past two days. Following the troops to the battlefield to repair machines pays three times the usual salary. I earned over 10,000 Blue Star Coin this month and have already wired it to your mother."

"Spend what you need for daily life, don't skimp, especially you, A-Ming. The college entrance exam is coming up, so buy some potions. If Dad performs more meritorious service on the front lines, I'll trade for some good resources for you."

Xu Father looked at his two children, his eyes full of happiness, as if the hardships of the front lines meant nothing to him.

"Dad, stop following the troops. The front lines are too dangerous. My grades have been good lately, and I can get a scholarship. The first-class scholarship pays 30,000 yuan every month."

Xu Ziming looked at his father with moist eyes.

"I knew my Ming'er would be successful. When the war eases up a bit, I'll take a long leave and come back to celebrate with you properly."

As he spoke, strings of massive artillery shells flew over from the battlefield, exploding continuously in the war zone.

"Enemy raid! Enemy raid! All personnel on alert!"

A warning sounded again in the war zone, and Xu Father immediately scrambled up.

"A-Ming, Yaoyao, I have to go to work now. You two behave yourselves at home."

"Beep-"

The sound of the call disconnecting rang out.

Xu Ziming turned his head slightly to look at his sister and mother, only to find that they had already started wiping away tears.

I must ensure my family no longer has to endure this kind of life.

He thought silently, the flame of effort reigniting in his heart.

And right now, the first thing that could change his family's predicament was tomorrow's competition.

He had to defeat Zhao Yong, win the first-class scholarship, and use the extra money to subsidize the household so his father could leave the front lines sooner.

"Mom, don't worry. Father has been on the front lines for so long; he surely has his own ways and won't get into trouble."

He stepped forward, pulling his mother and sister into his arms to comfort them.

"Mm, brother, don't work too hard either. We believe in you."

Xu Zhiyao wriggled out of his embrace, wiped her tears, and looked at him with trust in her eyes.

"Then I'll go back to my room to cultivate."

Xu Ziming nodded and returned to his room, assuming the cultivation posture for the Basic Body Forging Method.

Start training!

Basic Body Forging Method cultivation progress +1

The electronic voice rang in his ears again, and Xu Ziming's eyes were filled with determination.

Meanwhile.

"Brother Zhao, tomorrow is the day that Xu Ziming challenges you. Let's show him that being a clown isn't so easy."

"That goes without saying. I will treat him very well."