The Spectator Becomes the Spectacle

Lu Yuan and Zhou Wenwen had talked in a secluded spot, so hardly anyone noticed. His buddies thought he had gone to the bathroom.

If Chen Shihe had seen a girl hugging Lu Yuan and crying her eyes out, who knew what nice things he would have said? That was exactly what Lu Yuan had been guarding against.

But he had taken precautions for nothing. Chen Shihe wasn't there at all. Quite a while later, Chen Shihe finally sneaked back and asked his buddies with a shifty look, "Want some melon?"

"Huh? What melon? Hurry up and serve it!"

Everyone thought he had dug up some more gossip.

"Watermelon."

As if by magic, Chen Shihe pulled a huge watermelon out of his backpack.

"It's scorching out here. Aren't you thirsty? I saw someone selling watermelons outside just now, so I went and bought one."

"You can get back in after going out?"

"Yeah, you just have to show your admission ticket. Lots of people went out to buy drinks."

"Is this melon guaranteed ripe?"

"Quit yapping. Do you want some or not?"

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

There was no knife, so Chen Shihe picked up the watermelon and held it, trying to figure out what to do with a troubled frown. Quick-eyed and quick-handed, Lu Yuan split it with a chop of his hand.

Body-Protecting Shield had scored another success. What a happy occasion!

The buddies broke off pieces of watermelon and ate as they watched the spectacle.

At the same time, the examinees waiting outside had their attention completely drawn to Guanghua School.

Guanghua School was the strongest school in Jiangzhou City and the surrounding regions, and it ranked among the top few in the entire Divine Land. The students gathered there were all immortals.

Its cultivator admission rate was as high as eighty percent, leaving all the schools still waiting to eat its dust.

Quite a few Guanghua students had already received their results. They couldn't leave yet, as they had to wait for the entire school to finish testing so they could leave together. So they gathered outside the building's entrance hall and talked loudly as if no one else were around.

"How much Spirit did you get?"

"Only 133. What about you?"

"I didn't do well either. I've been in terrible form lately, so I only got 135. Looks like I won't make it into the Four Greats."

"We really are brothers in misfortune. Hahahaha."

They had deliberately spoken loudly. Clearly, showing off was a hobby shared by all humanity, but they did have the capital to back it up.

The examinees from other schools nearby heard them, and their eyes all turned red.

They called a True Essence score of over 130 terrible form, and themselves brothers in misfortune!

How were examinees like them, who could barely reach 110 Spirit, supposed to feel?

But the two brothers in misfortune only showed off for a little while, because a shocking number soon appeared.

A cultivator inside the building walked out the main doors and announced to the entire square:

"Zuo Wenxuan of Guanghua School, 154 Spirit!"

Boom!

Cries of astonishment swept through the examinees in the square.

This was a regular feature of the Cultivation University qualification test, commonly known as "going on the loudspeaker." It felt rather like a server-wide announcement in an online game.

Whenever a genius student scored over 150 Spirit, a cultivator would announce their name to the world. It was an honor for the school and a spur to the other students.

Besides the examinees, there were reporters in the square. They would tell the public the names of these geniuses, and the geniuses' parents would be able to walk tall for quite a while afterward.

Amid everyone's surprise and envy, a handsome young man walked out of the building. It was Zuo Wenxuan himself.

"Wenxuan, you're awesome!"

"154 ties the previous exam's record."

"Now Class Three's in for it."

The ones shouting were all Guanghua School students. This was their world. The examinees from the other schools below only had the privilege of cheering.

Lu Yuan was extremely impressed. Even with the system's boost, he only had 130 Spirit, and even if he used Beyond-Limit Point Allocation, he would only have 143. He couldn't compare to Zuo Wenxuan's 154 Spirit.

Clearly, the system wasn't all-powerful. There were plenty of exceptional people in this world, and Lu Yuan also knew Li Tao, who was even more outrageous.

Faced with everyone's compliments, Zuo Wenxuan appeared very modest, repeatedly saying, "Not at all, not at all. Let's see what Huchen gets."

Speak of Huchen, and Huchen appeared.

The esteemed cultivator walked out of the building again and announced loudly, "Zhang Huchen of Guanghua School, 156 Spirit!"

The examinees below were already numb and could only serve as a cheering backdrop. Lu Yuan and his three friends held up their watermelons and cheered loudly along with everyone else.

Amid the cheers, a young man with sharply defined features strode out.

Ignoring the compliments from his Guanghua schoolmates, he walked up to Zuo Wenxuan and thumped him on the shoulder.

"Brother, I beat you by a hair this time."

Zuo Wenxuan said, "That might not be the case next time."

The two burst out laughing, looking like the best of friends.

Just then, the reporter Ding Lin slipped out from who knew where. Seeing how young the two students were and yet how forthright they were, she couldn't help taking a liking to them.

Holding up her microphone, she asked, "Could I interview you two? At school, have you always been chasing each other for first place like this? Is it having a rival that gives you motivation?"

Ding Lin thought she had asked a perfectly normal question, but to her surprise, the two who had been laughing heartily instantly changed expression.

"Hey! Don't talk nonsense!" Zuo Wenxuan exclaimed, his face paling. "We've only ever competed for second place!"

Zhang Huchen was more straightforward and complained, "How could first place ever fall to us? With that crazy woman around..."

Zuo Wenxuan clapped a hand over his good brother's mouth. "Are you crazy? Do you have a death wish? What if she hears you?"

"I already heard."

Li Tao strolled unhurriedly out of the doorway.

Zuo Wenxuan and Zhang Huchen, who had just been laughing and chatting so merrily, instantly fell as silent as cicadas in winter.

Ding Lin, who had started it all, quietly slipped away. Her impression of Li Tao was so poor that she had no desire to interview her.

The esteemed cultivator walked out once again.

The examinees throughout the square held their breath. Everyone knew this meant another genius's name was about to be announced.

They just didn't know the exact number. 158? 160? Or even higher?

Holding a slip of paper, the cultivator froze for a few seconds, an unusual occurrence, as though confirming the number was correct.

Finally, he announced loudly, his voice carrying a rare hint of excitement:

"Li Tao of Guanghua School, 192 Spirit!"

Boom!

Everyone in the square made to cheer, but the cultivator suddenly cut them off.

"Wait before you cheer! Something needs to be clarified here. If I remember correctly, 192 Spirit has broken the highest record since the Cultivation University exams began!"

"You may cheer now."

No one cheered. In the vast square, a pin could have been heard dropping.

Just like that, it was a new world record?

They had just witnessed history with their own eyes!

This feeling was beyond envy, jealousy, and hate!

Zuo Wenxuan and Zhang Huchen exchanged a glance and smiled bitterly. That woman was truly terrifying!

"Li Tao!" "Li Tao!" "Li Tao!"

Everyone at the scene chanted Li Tao's name.

Li Tao raised her head proudly, accepting everyone's worship. She had grown up in the limelight since childhood. She was always first, always:

Bling bling!

Except for one day.

Li Tao walked down the steps.

As she passed Zuo Wenxuan and Zhang Huchen, she sneered, "I don't have time to settle accounts with you two today."

The two were overjoyed, as if they had been granted a pardon.

Li Tao continued down.

The cheering crowd automatically parted to make a path for her, like the Red Sea parted by Moses.

"She's so beautiful! Aaaaah, I'm going to turn gay!"

"Oh my god, someone this perfect actually exists. She must be the chosen one."

"Queen! Your Majesty the Queen!"

Li Tao paid no attention to the worship around her. A faintly mocking smile played on her lips, as if mocking the ignorance and tedium of ordinary mortals, and she continued forward.

Lu Yuan was eating watermelon with his three buddies at the moment. He regarded Li Tao as he would a hugely popular celebrity, and remembering what had happened during the test at Jiangzhou First Hospital, he began to brag to his buddies.

"Let me tell you, I've met Li Tao before."

"That day I went to Jiangzhou First Hospital to test my True Essence, she happened to be there too. She even smiled at me."

Chen Shihe pointed a finger at Lu Yuan. "TreeNewBee. Why would she smile at you?"

"She has a good personality. What's so strange about her smiling at me?" Lu Yuan defended himself without changing expression.

Li Tao had said that day that everyone was allowed to use her name to brag, so Lu Yuan felt no qualms at all.

Besides, Li Tao really was too beautiful, utterly flawless.

Even if she had a terrible personality, she was still a treat for the eyes from a distance. He wasn't living with her, so what the hell did her personality have to do with him?

Lu Yuan had no idea that he had actually met Li Tao a second time. That day, he had been badly injured and carried into the exam venue, so he hadn't seen that the person Ji Yin had tossed aside was Li Tao.

If he had known, he would probably have felt nervous now, but all he cared about at the moment was bragging.

"Never mind the details. Do you know how much True Essence Li Tao had at Jiangzhou First Hospital? 180 Spirit!"

"My god!" Zhou Xiyun sucked in a cold breath. "That means she gained twelve points in a month! How did she do it? Even the intensive class isn't that fast, is it?"

"She's a genius, obviously."

"Heaven is far too cruel to ordinary mortals like us."

"There are always people like that, I suppose," Lu Yuan said eloquently.

"There have always been a tiny number of geniuses in this world. The world is pushed forward by precisely those geniuses. Ordinary people like us just follow behind them, running errands."

"We shouldn't resent them, but be grateful. Think about it."

"It's precisely because people like Li Tao stand in the spotlight that we melon-eating spectators have a reason to exist."

With that, he took a fierce bite of his melon.

This melon is so sweet!

Ma Jin, who had been quietly eating melon the whole time, sighed and said, "I think Li Tao is walking toward us."

"Ha, Great Immortal Ma, are you daydreaming along with Lu Yuan?"

"She's just passing by. She can't be bothered to spare schools like our No. 1 High a glance."

"How am I daydreaming? Li Tao really did smile at me."

The buddies argued noisily, their voices gradually growing faint. Li Tao had stopped in front of them, and she really did smile at Lu Yuan.

Only her gaze was ice-cold.

Everyone in the square stared silently at Lu Yuan, curiosity and questions written all over their faces. Lu Yuan's scalp tingled. Who did I offend by standing here eating melon? How did I become the melon myself?!