Not long after entering the woods, Xiao Li stopped.
"Since you're here, why not show yourselves?"
His calm voice drifted through the empty woods, yet the new students behind him felt their blood surge and their fighting spirit stir. Taking on fifty opponents alone, win or lose, Xiao Li was without a doubt the strongest person here today.
"Your strength is impressive. You actually dare to walk through these woods alone!"
The Black Fiend Team's captain stepped out from behind a tree. As soon as he finished speaking, he saw the dozens of people following Xiao Li.
Even the Black Fiend Team's members felt their heads buzzing. "Are this year's new students really that united?"
"What do we do now?"
"What, scared?" The captain's eyes were grave, but he refused to back down with his words.
"Captain, why are your legs shaking?"
The captain cursed the idiot in his heart. There were dozens of people on the other side. Of course he was scared, even as a one-star Dou Ling.
Not everyone was as monstrous as Xiao Li. Could a one-star Dou Ling really take on dozens of Da Dou Shis and Dou Masters at once?
The answer remained uncertain, because, to the Black Fiend Team captain's surprise, only one new student came forward.
Watching Xiao Li stroll toward them, the Black Fiend Team members stayed on guard, though they felt a little relieved.
"You can all come at me together," Xiao Li said coolly.
The Black Fiend Team members' mouths twitched. Something didn't feel right. Shouldn't they be the ones saying that?
"Enough. Attack. If they get away, the elders won't let us off easy." At the captain's command, the four members behind him unleashed their auras as well.
This year's Black Fiend Team was quite strong. Not only was their captain a genuine one-star Dou Ling, all four members were high-tier Da Dou Shis.
"Mountain Opening Palm!"
The Black Fiend Team captain barked. He tapped the tree trunk with his toes and shot down like a shadow, swooping toward Xiao Li like a bat hunting prey in the dead of night. In the span of two breaths, he was right in front of him.
A hard, dark iron sheen glimmered across his hand. His powerful Dou Qi sent dust billowing dozens of meters around him, lending the attack tremendous force.
Xiao Li silently raised his right hand and caught the captain's palm. With a slight squeeze, a sharp crack rang out, and the dark iron sheen shattered in every direction.
Looking at the man's face contorted in pain, Xiao Li said softly,
"Your palm isn't fast enough, and it's nowhere near ruthless enough."
He gave the hand a slight twist, then flung the captain away. The man smashed through several trees before finally coming to a stop.
The Black Fiend Team captain spat out a mouthful of blood and stared at Xiao Li in disbelief. "He stopped my Mountain Opening Palm with nothing but his physical strength? This kid is terrifying!"
Xiao Li looked at the other four, their faces stricken with shock, and swept out his hands. Four sharp cracks sounded almost at once. When they looked again, all four figures had been sent flying.
"Hand over your Fire Crystal Cards."
Looking at the Fire Energy on his Fire Crystal Card, now more than two hundred higher, Xiao Li finally smiled. With this much Fire Energy, it should be enough to cultivate in the Heaven Burning Qi Refining Tower until he reached high-tier Dou Ling.
"There's still the White Fiend Team."
Xiao Li murmured his next target and headed straight for the Hunting Competition's finish line. The other upperclassmen had all been eliminated, so the way ahead was clear.
Amid the whispers filling the air, Xiao Li arrived before a heap of piled rocks.
Five figures sat cross-legged atop the rocks, their breathing long and steady. The hushed whispers had not disturbed them in the slightest. All five wore white, matching their detached, icy bearing.
Of the five, the young man seated in the center had the strongest aura. He sat atop a boulder, heat billowing from him in stark contrast with his cool demeanor, baking the rock until it turned faintly red.
Xiao Li's mind remained undisturbed. He was nothing more than a slightly stronger one-star Dou Ling.
"You made it here so quickly. Looks like someone talented managed to unite all the new students this year," the young man in the center said coolly.
Lin Xiuya and the others wore strange expressions. Actually... it felt as if they'd just taken a leisurely spring outing all the way here. They hadn't even had a chance to fight.
On the stone platform on the hillside, Elder Su exchanged a glance with Hu Gan. Their eyes narrowed slightly as they looked toward Xiao Li.
"As expected of a monster. He's swept through everyone in his path. No one can stop him."
"Indeed. He's the most talented student Jia Nan Academy has seen in nearly a century." Hu Gan sighed.
Elder Su looked a little surprised. "Only in nearly a century?"
"I'm not saying he can't surpass the geniuses from more than a century ago. I just don't know anything about the geniuses from back then." Hu Gan pursed his lips. In other words, Xiao Li was the most talented monster he knew of.
White Fiend Team captain Bai Yi slowly rose to his feet. Waves of heat surged from his tall, straight frame. "You're Xiao Li?"
"You know me?" Xiao Li asked, a little surprised. Surely not many people in the Inner Academy knew who he was.
Bai Yi nodded. "I've heard about you from someone in our sect. Lightning attributes are rare. Of all the talented people I know, you're the only one with a lightning attribute."
Xiao Li understood. It seemed someone among Li Hao and the others had joined Bai Yi's sect and mentioned him.
"Enough talk. The sooner we finish, the sooner I can get back to cultivating." Seeing Bai Yi about to say more, Xiao Li quickly cut him off. He had no time to chat; there was still plenty he needed to do.
Bai Yi frowned. This man was arrogant. "In that case, I'll show you the difference between the Outer Academy and the Inner Academy!"
Bai Yi suddenly sprang forward, waves of scorching air bursting in every direction. He felt a touch of pride. Now the new students would finally see how powerful he was.
But to his surprise, Lin Xiuya and the others didn't change their expressions at all.
A one-star Dou Ling's aura was impressive?
Sorry, it didn't feel like anything. The pressure was less than one-tenth of Xiao Li's.
Bai Yi had barely made it halfway when Xiao Li moved first, seizing him by the throat and lifting him into the air.
"Black and White Duo? You've wasted enough of my time. Go play somewhere else."
The white-clad figure flew backward and crashed into the rock pile, buried beneath the rubble. Only a Fire Crystal Card appeared in Xiao Li's hand.
The other four members of the White Fiend Team hurriedly stopped, skidding to a halt in front of Xiao Li.
Xiao Li shook his head helplessly. "Doing the same thing over and over gets dull for me, too."
He struck out with four more palms, sending the rest of the White Fiend Team into the rock pile. Four Fire Crystal Cards were left in his hands.
After quietly raising the Fire Energy on his Fire Crystal Card to 1,300, Xiao Li shrugged helplessly and looked at Hu Gan, waiting for the verdict.
Hu Gan discreetly glanced up at the sky. Only about an hour had passed. Setting aside the time spent traveling, Xiao Li had seemingly defeated fifty upperclassmen in less than half an hour. What a freak.