In the waiting area, Shen Heng's face darkened. He flicked his sleeve and turned away.
On the other side, Xuan Ziwen stepped onto the testing platform. He picked up Gu Mingyuan's Core Magic Array and examined it, then asked a couple of casual questions. He seemed satisfied with Gu Mingyuan's answers.
The awards ceremony ended quickly.
The head judge approached Gu Mingyuan carrying a dark-gold metal box.
Gu Mingyuan took it and lifted the lid. Inside lay the Flash Space Ring, an antique-looking ring of dark silver set with an irregular fragment of pink bone.
He closed the box, slipped the Flash Space Ring into his Storage Soul Tool, and turned to leave the arena with Xuan Ziwen.
Just then, someone shoved open the trial grounds' closed side door from outside.
Heavy boots struck the floor in perfect unison.
A squad of inspectors in black uniforms with gold trim and imperial badges on their chests swept past the academy guards at the door. They fanned out across the grounds and advanced straight toward the contestants' area.
Wang Shaojie sprang from his cushioned seat in the stands. Reaching over the railing, he pointed at Gu Mingyuan.
"That's him!"
The captain of the Imperial Inspection Team stopped before the testing platform. He produced his badge and an investigation order stamped in red, then held them out to Xuan Ziwen.
"Teacher Xuan, several students have gone missing from the academy in the past few days. Our investigation found that they all had conflicts with this man before they disappeared." The captain closed the document and looked at Gu Mingyuan.
"We need to take him in for questioning."
Xuan Ziwen took the document and glanced over it. This time, the authorization was complete and bypassed the academic affairs office. He could not simply throw