Perhaps We Can Win

The assessment area of the Northern Azure Spiritual Academy.

Two groups of people were facing off menacingly. One side had hundreds of soldiers, displaying the demeanor of heroes, while the other side exuded an astonishing aura, displaying the posture of a tyrant.

The weapons emitted a glow of Spiritual Power, the air was filled with a chilling atmosphere, and even the leaves blown by the wind seemed to split in two. On the surface, the side with fewer people was not lacking in the will to fight to the death, but human strength is ultimately insufficient, and the power of the will cannot overcome the gap in strength.

The dominant force, while guarding against the opponent's A Beast at Bay, suffers losses, allowing other opportunists to take advantage of the situation.

Therefore, the scene between the two sides was like a tiger and a wolf meeting. The wolf was afraid of death, and the tiger was afraid of being hurt, so for a time they were locked in a stalemate.

This scenario was ultimately unsustainable. Finally, one person from the numerically disadvantaged side stepped forward and clearly assumed a leadership position.

"I am Long Tianyu from the Northern Plains Dragon Family. Could you please give us some face and let us leave? We will surely repay you handsomely in the future."

"Snort!"

"The Northern Plains Dragon Family? What kind of backwater place does this nobody dare to announce their name?"

On the other side, the crowd parted, and a figure wielding a sword stepped out, exuding an air of arrogance. He spoke disdainfully to Long Tianyu's increasingly grim expression:

"While I was bathing in blood on the Spiritual Road, you were probably still molding mud somewhere!"

"The Spiritual Road?!"

Upon hearing this familiar name, Long Tianyu and the others were all shocked. On the other hand, they showed an air of pride, as if they were honored.

As a talent selection mechanism jointly organized by the Five Great Academies, the selection criteria for the Spiritual Road are only one thing: talent! Regardless of cultivation level or background, everyone who walks out of the Spiritual Road is a top genius, one in ten thousand.

The person in front of me is actually from Spiritual Road; he's a tough nut to crack!

Long Tianyu's expression was solemn, and he unconsciously tightened his grip on the Ring Pommel Greatsword in his hand.

"Oh? You want to fight?"

The sword-wielding leader noticed the former's subtle movements, feeling both disdain and slight surprise. After all, many people had run away immediately upon hearing about his background on the Spiritual Road, and some had even surrendered outright—it was utterly shameful!

Suddenly encountering a valiant hero, the leader couldn't resist his eagerness to hunt.

"Kid, I'll give you a chance because of your guts."

"If you can last ten moves against me, you and everyone under you can leave."

"Is what you say true?" Long Tianyu and the others' expressions changed, not expecting such an unexpected surprise!

A gentleman's word is as good as his bond.

"But..."

The leader then changed the subject, lightly stroking his longsword, and said in a sinister tone,

"If you lose, don't blame us for being ruthless."

Upon hearing this, Long Tianyu took a deep breath, then his eyes suddenly turned fierce, and he brought his broadsword down on the leader.

"Please enlighten me!"

The broadsword arrived in an instant, its sharp aura striking the skin and causing one to shudder. However, the leader remained calm and did not even use his sword. His body moved like a phantom, his light steps meeting the blade. With great skill and daring, he cut into the blade with his bare hands, casually slapping the blade with his palm, immediately interrupting the attack.

Then, the action changed, and the sound of metal clashing rang out. Long Tianyu's eyes widened. The seemingly indestructible and terrifying blade was actually caught by his bare hands, and he could not move!

"Bang!"

"I've already told you, you can't do it!"

The golden palm crushed the ring-pommel sword, and the leader almost instantly teleported in front of Long Tianyu, then swiftly struck out with his palm, slamming it heavily onto Long Tianyu's body.

"Boom!"

Long Tianyu was sent flying backward, smashing through several large trees before crashing heavily to the ground without a sound.

The leader flicked his finger, and Spiritual Power shot out from his fingertip, accurately shattering the Jade Pendant at the former's waist and sending it away, thus announcing the end of the former's trip to Northern Cang.

"Hehe~"

Having easily dispatched his opponent, the leader casually turned around, a sinister smile echoing through the crowd as he looked at the hundreds of trembling "lambs."

"Kill!"

A major battle is imminent. One side has a large number of people, strong troops, and a powerful leader, making them like a tiger among sheep.

On the other side, the trapped beasts fought fiercely, their ferocity rising, but they were leaderless and could only parry.

Given the vast disparity in strength between the two sides, the small group of just over a hundred people was quickly wiped out, while the other side paid the price with only a handful of casualties.

"Sigh! I'm a kind-hearted and good person too!"

"It's all the Spirit Academy's fault that we've made them kill each other."

After sweeping away all their opponents, the leader clicked his tongue in apparent helplessness, "tearfully" accusing the Northern Azure Spiritual Academy of its inhumane assessment arrangements.

"Clap clap clap..."

Just as the leader was wallowing in melancholy, a series of crisp sounds came from the forest. A group of people slowly emerged from the shadows. The team, fresh from a fierce battle, gripped their weapons warily.

"This fellow is right, the academy's assessment is indeed too inhumane."

The leader was a smiling fellow, whose mere appearance immediately set off alarm bells in the leader's mind, prompting him to tentatively feign compliance.

"This friend thinks the same way? Then we're of the same mind! Hahaha!"

"Since we all believe the academy's assessments are inhumane, do you have any plans to rebel against the academy?"

A smiling face is a sign of malice; the ancients were right!

At that moment, the leader had a profound understanding of the wise saying.

Rebel Academy, you're just planting gourds in front of your own door, do you really think you're the boss?

What kind of power is the Northern Azure Spiritual Academy? How many powerful figures have emerged from it? What does it mean to have disciples all over the world?

The leader didn't think his weak arms and legs could compete with those powerful and wealthy families; whoever made this suggestion was utterly wicked!

Out of respect for the strength of others, the leader continued to feign a smile.

"What insightful opinion do you have? May I offer my humble assistance?"

He will provide all assistance except for help.

"Oh, that's easy."

With a smile, he casually pulled out a palm-sized jade plate from his pocket that looked quite familiar to the leader. As the latter racked his brains trying to remember where he had seen it before, the former solved his doubts. He channeled his Spiritual Power into the jade plate, and a rope of Spiritual Power appeared out of thin air, instantly binding everyone tightly.

"Oh no, it's Array Disc!"

Only then did the leader remember the Array Disc, a novel contraption for the traditional Daqian people, and in his moment of carelessness, he had fallen into its trap!

More importantly, the leader never expected that he was only at the Spirit Origin Realm, how could he possibly be worthy of being served by a level three Spirit Array? That was the treatment reserved for Heavenly Fusion Stage expert!

What an incredible blessing!

Moreover, he remembered that the price of the Array Disc was much higher than that of the Spirit Array of the same level. Such a lavish move made him, a poor man for eight generations, envious and jealous.

Really, it's not that bad! The leader was on the verge of tears. You could have spent less money.

"Don't worry, brother, I will remember your selfless act."

With a smile, he patted the leader's shoulder briefly, then with a smirk, delivered a fatal blow to the throat. A flash of white light, and the one who was supposed to be sent to the enemy became the one who was sent to the enemy's head. Under the panicked yet pleading gazes of the remaining people, he ordered his men to escort the leader out of the country.

After everything was over, the smiling figure's smile vanished, replaced by a serious expression. He then took out a perfectly shaped "Shi Tou."

"Reporting to command, Squad 15, Captain Zhou Qing reporting: Obstacle cleared at point 233, 051. Report complete!"

I received a reply shortly afterward.

"Received. Order: Squad 15 proceed to location 741, 253 to rendezvous with Squad 37 and eliminate the stubborn enemy. Over!"

"Received, all done!"

After the communication ended, Zhou Qing looked at the brick in his hand with surprise. Was communication really that convenient?

There are indeed long-distance communication methods in the Great Thousand World, but without exception, they all require extremely high levels. Low-level communication talismans are almost always disposable, not to mention expensive and quite troublesome to use.

At least within the Northern Azure Spiritual Academy's assessment area, all organizations relied primarily on human communication, except for them, who achieved real-time communication.

There are 72 such bricks in total, each commanded by a squad leader of 100 people. They can communicate with headquarters and also contact each other. This huge information advantage makes Zhou Qing see other organizations as "primitive people".

It was precisely through the convenient communication network that they gradually unveiled the fog of information within the boundless assessment area, quietly waiting like hunters for their "prey" to slowly step into the death trap.

Only then did Zhou Qing finally begin to have a sliver of confidence in Xiao Mu's proposed plan.

Initially, he was just acting on impulse, believing that he could try anything, even if he didn't succeed. With his talent, even if he couldn't get into a top-tier academy like the Northern Azure Spiritual Academy, he could choose from the next-tier academies and wouldn't have to worry about not having a place to go. He had already mentally prepared himself for failing the exam.

But this time...

Maybe we can win?