New and Old Alike!

In the forest, Wu Yan strolled along at the very back, watching the freshmen from his cohort hurry forward as though they believed that as long as the senior students failed to catch them, they could keep their crystal cards.

But they never stopped to think that the seniors had gone through this themselves before. How could they possibly fail to see through such thoughts?

Still, none of this had anything to do with Wu Yan. After all, there was no one among them he knew.

It would be fine if the seniors robbed them of their Fire Energy. That would save him some trouble. After all, attacking fellow freshmen was never something that sounded particularly good when spoken aloud.

Once their Fire Energy had been taken, Wu Yan would be able to collect even more when he made his move against the seniors.

Time passed bit by bit, and intense sounds of battle rang out from the dense forest from time to time.

The Academy elders flew through the air on Dou Qi wings, watching with great interest the annual spectacle unfolding in the forest below.

From their lofty vantage point, everything happening in the dense forest was clearly visible.

And the figure lagging behind at the very end was especially conspicuous.

"Walking alone at the very back... what is he trying to do?"

"Waiting for the snipe and clam to fight, then reaping the fisherman's profit?"

As the Inner Academy elders speculated, one elder suddenly voiced his guess without thinking.

Upon hearing it, the others fell silent for a moment before slowly nodding.

Just then, the gazes of the elders in the air met the gaze of the youth below.

"What sharp perception..."

The Outer Academy freshmen were destined to suffer a crushing defeat. Faced with seniors whose talent was no worse than theirs, who had cultivated longer, and who had access to a superior cultivation environment, victory was simply impossible.

Not to mention that the seniors had specially prepared the "Black and White Fiend Teams."

"Guess you lot are unlucky. You actually ran into our Black Fiend Team."

"The Black Fiend Team?"

The last few freshmen handed over their crystal cards with bitter expressions. They had never expected their luck to be so poor that they would encounter the Black Fiend Team, which was far stronger than the other seniors.

After collecting these freshmen's Fire Energy, the Black Fiend Team seniors were in no hurry. This was the final group of freshmen, and they had an organization behind them as well.

While they had the chance, they could recruit these junior brothers in advance.

"That's right. To prevent exceptionally talented freshmen from appearing among you, the seniors not only have our Black Fiend Team, with a nine-star Da Dou Shi, but also a White Fiend Team with a Dou Spirit expert."

"Exactly. Don't feel bad. We went through the same thing before."

"By the way, do you want to join our organization? Our organization is called—"

"Stop!"

The Black Fiend Team captain suddenly raised a hand, silencing the member who had been recruiting the freshmen.

The surrounding seniors looked at their captain in confusion, only to discover that he was staring solemnly into the depths of the forest.

Countless rustling sounds came from deep within the woods, as though innumerable venomous snakes were slithering through the undergrowth, rubbing against grass, leaves, and branches.

At that moment, the seniors who had just been proudly showing off before their junior brothers all swallowed in unison.

Tap~ Tap~ Tap~

The instant faint footsteps sounded, the seniors saw countless white little snakes radiating cold air shoot out from the forest and rush straight at them.

Those icy little snakes were incredibly fast. By the time they saw them, it was already too late to dodge.

Instinctively, they swiftly condensed the Dou Qi armor unique to Da Dou Shi, wrapping themselves up tightly for protection.

The next moment, when the white little snakes touched them, an icy chill instantly spread throughout their bodies.

In practically the blink of an eye, all five members of the Black Fiend Team were frozen solid and unable to move, with only their heads exposed.

"If you do not want to be crippled, tell me everything you know about the Inner Academy."

As Wu Yan strolled calmly over to them, an ice throne emerged from the ground, allowing him to sit down and leisurely listen to the seniors speak.

They tried struggling with all their strength, only to find that their limbs were frozen stiff and completely powerless. Even the Dou Qi within their bodies moved as slowly as a crawling turtle.

At that moment, how could the Black Fiend Team captain fail to understand? A monster had truly appeared among this batch of freshmen!

Over the next few minutes, the five members of the Black Fiend Team spilled everything they knew to Wu Yan as if pouring beans from a bamboo tube.

Under those nearly emotionless eyes, they did not dare lie, terrified that this fellow would snap their arms and legs.

After taking the Fire Energy from the Black Fiend Team, Wu Yan rose to his feet and left.

A few minutes later, the ice encasing the five Black Fiend Team members melted away on its own. Trembling, they looked at one another and revealed helpless, bitter smiles.

What happened to the Black Fiend Team was not an isolated case. It was only the beginning.

Over the next several hours, these seniors, who seemed as fierce as tigers in the freshmen's eyes, were treated by Wu Yan like roadside dogs, kicked to the ground one after another.

Then, amid the despairing gazes of countless seniors, the four White Fiend Team members were frozen as solidly as the others, with only their heads left exposed.

At last, the White Fiend Team captain, the one-star Dou Spirit expert in whom everyone had placed their hopes, broke free from the solid ice with all his strength and regained his freedom.

Yet in the next moment, Wu Yan kicked him dozens of meters away. He struck the cliffside, clung there for a moment, then slowly slid down.

Falling along with the White Fiend Team captain was the seniors' hope.

As he handed his crystal card to Wu Yan, the White Fiend Team captain asked in utter curiosity, "Can you tell me what your current realm is?"

"Eight-star Dou Spirit."

Tossing the crystal card in his hand back to him, Wu Yan stepped forward and followed the stone path toward the mountaintop.

The White Fiend Team captain stood there blankly, then bent down to slowly pick up the crystal card he had failed to catch, unconsciously murmuring the words over and over.

"Eight-star Dou Spirit..."

Upon reaching the mountaintop, Wu Yan saw the Inner Academy behind the Inner Academy elders, located within an enormous crater that looked as though it had been created by a fallen meteor.

The green forest and residential area interwove with one another, thoroughly embodying environmental friendliness.

It was just like the color of the Azure Flame Crystal Card in Wu Yan's hand.

"As the greatest winner of this Fire Energy Hunt, Wu Yan will receive an Azure Flame Crystal Card, along with fifty days of Fire Energy as a reward."

Elder Chen watched Wu Yan examine the azure crystal card in his hand and said with a smile:

"Little fellow, I believe you have already learned the uses of these crystal cards from those boys. This single azure crystal card alone can save you three hundred days of Fire Energy."

"Add that to the more than seven hundred days of Fire Energy in your possession, and you are already one of the wealthiest people in the Inner Academy."

"However, what interests this old man more is this: what rank can you reach on the Power Ranking?"