Chapter 81: Lin He comprehends the Six-Pole Thunder Rings, and the return arrives!
Inside the Six-Color Thunder Pool, Lin He suddenly opened his eyes.
Crimson, orange, gold, cyan, blue, and purple—six types of thunder light flowed simultaneously along his meridians.
Previously, when activating the Six-Color Ancient Thunder, every type of thunder power wanted to seize the main meridians.
When two were used together, their power could still be suppressed, but three or more would collide with each other.
Lin He could only switch between them in turns.
Now, after the final Body Tempering in the thunder pool, all thirty-six of his main meridians were flushed open again by the thunder liquid.
The six types of thunder power each traveled along a collateral Meridian, finally converging in his Dantian.
For the first time, the Six-Color Ancient Thunder truly connected into a complete cycle.
"Come out!"
The voice of Thunder King Thunder King Yue Jinglei came from outside the pool.
"The thunder pool load has already reached one hundred and eighty percent. If you soak any longer, you'll be boiled through!"
Lin He struck the surface of the water with a palm, leveraging the force to leap out of the thunder pool.
The staff immediately turned off the power supply device, and the thunder pool receded back to the bottom of the pool.
A test battle puppet had long been prepared nearby, and its defense Level had been adjusted to the highest tier open to examinees in the training center.
Thunder King Yue Jinglei threw a set of training clothes to Lin He.
"Being able to circulate six types of thunder power together only counts as passing the first hurdle. Open up the Six-Pole Thunder Rings, and let me see if your suffering these past few days was in vain."
Lin He put on the clothes and walked to the center of the testing area.
"Six-Pole Thunder Rings! Ha!"
The first thunder ring lit up from his right wrist.
"The second, the third..."
The six types of thunder wrapped upward along his arm, finally turning into six thunder rings fastened around his wrist, forearm, and upper arm respectively.
With each additional thunder ring, his physical body, strength, speed, and defense would double.
After the sixth thunder ring stabilized, the enhancement reached sixfold.
Lin He stomped his foot.
The speed-measuring sensor light on the ground had just lit up when he had already appeared in front of the battle puppet, smashing a fist toward its chest.
Boom!
The six thunder rings tightened simultaneously.
The moment his fist contacted the battle puppet, the highest-tier protective shield caved inward, and red cracks rapidly crawled all over the surface of the shield.
Bang!
The protective shield exploded.
The test battle puppet flew backward, crashing into the buffer wall behind it.
The defense value on the screen jumped a few times before finally turning completely red.
[Highest-tier defense test: Shattered!]
Lin He looked at his right hand, his breathing somewhat rapid.
Thunder King Yue Jinglei walked into the testing area and glanced at his arm.
"It's done."
Joy appeared in Lin He's eyes.
"Teacher, if I use the Six-Pole Thunder Rings and the Thunder-Self Esoteric Art together, how much can it boost?"
"Don't think about activating them together just yet."
Thunder King Yue Jinglei raised his hand and tapped him on the shoulder.
"The Six-Pole Thunder Rings elevate your physical body. When all six rings are opened simultaneously, your fists, speed, and strike resistance are all enhanced, while the Thunder-Self Esoteric Art is responsible for increasing the power of your cultivation technique."
"If you activate both sides simultaneously, the pressure on your meridians will also rise together. The provincial exam requires fighting for eight hours, which is equivalent to a marathon. Don't consume too much all at once."
Lin He put away the six thunder rings.
"Understood, I will control my consumption."
Thunder King Yue Jinglei turned around and opened the metal box beside him.
Inside the box was only a section of a silver-white hilt.
Just as Lin He wanted to reach out, Thunder King Yue Jinglei pressed the activation pattern on the hilt first.
Hum!
A blue-white light blade popped out from the hilt, and the surrounding thunder-attribute energy immediately gathered toward the sword body.
[Tier 4 Weapon: Leiguang Sword!]
"It has no physical sword body, weighing less than three catties."
Thunder King Yue Jinglei handed the sword to Lin He.
"The light blade is fast, and its compatibility with the thunder attribute is also high. You have no problem wielding it now. Usually, this light sword can be used as a Tier 3 weapon, and at full power activation, it becomes Tier 4. However, how long you can use it depends on how long your meridians can hold out."
Lin He took the hilt and gave it a gentle wave forward.
The blue-white light blade left a thin line in the air, and the metal target a few meters away was already split down the middle.
He lowered his head to look at the Leiguang Sword, his fingers gripping tighter and tighter.
"Teacher, this truly is a divine sharp weapon! It can even control its Level!"
"Lu Lingxiao's Poyue Spear is at Peak Tier 3."
Thunder King Yue Jinglei smiled with confidence.
"In terms of weapons, you are one tier higher than him. As for strength, go try it out in the National Virtual Battlefield now."
Half an hour later.
Lin He lay down into the virtual battlefield access capsule, and the data of the Leiguang Sword and the Six-Color Ancient Thunder were completely scanned.
The national unified virtual battlefield has a total of seven stages.
The first six stages test burst, speed, defense, and continuous combat.
The seventh stage has no clearance standard; Peak Tier 3 Demonic Beasts will continuously increase, and the longer one persists, the higher the evaluation.
Lu Lingxiao's public record was displayed on the leaderboard.
[First six stages: All passed!]
[Seventh stage: Four minutes and nine seconds!]
The virtual capsule closed, and the test began.
Stage One.
The six thunder rings lit up, and Lin He punched straight through a Demonic Beast's chest.
In the third stage, the Leiguang Sword was unsheathed for the first time. Just as a dozen or so Demonic Beasts rushed halfway, their bodies were already sliced open by the light blade.
When the sixth stage ended, Lin He took a claw to the shoulder, and the thunder armor blocked most of the damage for him.
He rested slightly and directly entered the final stage.
Three Peak Tier 3 Demonic Beasts appeared simultaneously.
Lin He dashed forward, wielding the Leiguang Sword.
The timer jumped to four minutes and ten seconds.
Inside the observation room, a staff member looked at the timer.
"He has surpassed Lu Lingxiao."
Thunder King Yue Jinglei did not speak, his gaze remaining fixed on the battle screen throughout.
In the fifth minute, Lin He's left arm was bitten by a Demonic Beast.
He used the thunder rings to forcefully resist the sharp teeth, piercing through the Demonic Beast's skull with a sword in his right hand.
In the sixth minute, two more Peak Tier 3 Demonic Beasts joined the battlefield.
Lin He's six thunder rings began to flicker, and his footsteps also slowed down.
He still did not quit.
Just as the seventh minute arrived, the Leiguang Sword swept horizontally, cutting the Demonic Beast that lunged before him in half from the waist.
Another Demonic Beast simultaneously smashed into his back.
The screen went dark.
The access capsule opened.
[First six stages: All passed!]
[Seventh stage: Seven minutes and three seconds!]
Lin He sat up, his chest still heaving.
"How is Lin Chuan's record?"
The staff member checked it over.
"In the unified virtual battlefield, there is no public score for him."
"Hmph, then I'll compete with him in the provincial exam."
Lin He walked out of the access capsule.
Thunder King Yue Jinglei threw the Leiguang Sword back to him.
"By this ruler, you are now ranked ahead of Lu Lingxiao. However, when it comes to actual combat in the provincial exam, things will be different."
"Understood, I will go all out in the provincial exam."
Lin He caught the hilt.
"When that day arrives, I will let everyone see clearly that the gap between Lin Chuan and me will only grow larger and larger!"
As an Imperial Level bearing the name of S, Lin He had his own self-esteem and pride.
Haicheng Lin Family.
Six demonic blades were shuttling back and forth in Lin Chuan's cultivation room when a System prompt suddenly popped up.
[Bound enemy Lin He completed Six-Color Thunder Pool Body Tempering! Mastered Six-Pole Thunder Rings!]
[Six-Color Ancient Thunder development degree has increased!]
[Triggered a thousand-fold return!]
[Purple Heaven Divine Thunder development degree increased!]
[Grade A Martial Technique "Zixiao Thunder Rings" achieved Great Mastery!]
[The burden of the Thunder-Self Esoteric Art on the physical body and meridians has decreased!]
Ten purple thunder rings rose successively from Lin Chuan's wrists, slowly rotating along his arms.
He tried to circulate a wisp of the Thunder-Self Esoteric Art.
The Purple Heaven Divine Thunder pressed into his palm, and only a slight swelling sensation came from his meridians.
The previous tearing pain had already weakened by more than half.
Lin Chuan raised his hand and struck with a palm, caving in the chest of the training battle puppet on the spot.
The six demonic blades stopped in mid-air.
"Good younger brother! Awesome!"
Lin He's test results quickly spread.
Inside the hotel suite, Shen Ye placed his phone in front of Lu Lingxiao.
"Seventh stage, seven minutes and three seconds, nearly three minutes more than your public record."
Lu Lingxiao glanced at it.
"I can see it."
Shen Ye said, "The virtual battlefield only compares frontal confrontation. The provincial exam also requires finding Demonic Beasts and traveling. Even though Lin He can last three minutes longer in the seventh stage, he might not necessarily get more points in eight hours."
As he spoke, he opened the reorganized map.
"The three high-scoring routes have already been marked; you can temporarily switch based on the entrance."
Lu Lingxiao raised his head to look at him.
"Three minutes higher is three minutes higher; there's no need to cover for me."
He reached out and took the map.
"In the provincial exam, I will win these three minutes back."
In another training gym in the provincial capital, Tang Hanyi had just finished her eighth consecutive round of combat.
The team-leading teacher handed Lin He's score to her.
"Lu Lingxiao is already troublesome enough, and now Lin He has surpassed him. Are you still going to take the inner canyon?"
Tang Hanyi removed her protective gear and picked up yesterday's route map.
The safe route remained on the outermost side.
Along the crease, she directly tore that part off.
"Now I have to go even more."
"I don't believe that, being similarly an S-Level, I would be worse than them."
Tang Hanyi smoothed out the remaining map again and circled two more positions in the inner layer.
"High-tier monsters appear very frequently at these two nodes."
The team-leading teacher shook his head.
"Let's stop here for today. If you keep practicing like this, you'll end up in the hospital before the exam even starts."
Tang Hanyi did not argue this time, handed her protective gear to him, and turned to go to the recovery room.
On the same day, Ye Qinghe also completed her registration for the provincial exam.
After receiving her registration receipt, she sent a message to Lin Chuan.
"The grey zone allows temporary team-ups. Lin Chuan, do you lack a pharmacist?"
Lin Chuan replied very quickly.
"I do, I'm extremely lacking."
"Then let's team up together."
"Alright, it's an honor."
Two seconds later, Lin Chuan sent another one.
"Which university do you want to attend? Send me the score threshold. I'll get enough points for you first, and then I'll go take the top scorer title."
Ye Qinghe stared at that sentence for a moment.
"Take care of me first, aren't you afraid someone will snatch the first place?"
"Brother is extremely confident; I can let them run seven hours in advance."
Ye Qinghe suppressed the corners of her mouth twice, but still couldn't hold it back.
She lowered her head to type.
"Then, thank you."
Chapter 82: Grey Zone Provincial Exam, Province-Wide Live Stream!
Several days later.
[Bound enemy Lin He diligently cultivated the A-LevelMartial Technique " Thunder Sword Technique ", triggering a 1300-fold return. The host's " Thunder Sword Technique " has been elevated to the Ultimate Realm!]
[Bound enemy Shen Ye diligently cultivated the A-Levelmovement technique " Nether Shadow Step ", triggering a 500-fold return. The host's " Nether Shadow Step " has been elevated to Perfection!]
[Bound enemy Lu Lingxiao diligently cultivated the A-Level Martial Technique " Mountain-Breaking Spear Technique ", triggering a 1023-fold return. The host's " Mountain-Breaking Spear Technique " has been elevated to Perfection!]
[Bound enemy Tang Hanyi diligently cultivated the A-Level Martial Technique " Chilling Moon Sword Technique ", triggering a 650-fold return. The host's " Chilling Moon Sword Technique " has been elevated to Perfection!]
[Bound enemy silver-masked assassin of the Tianyi Cultdiligently cultivated the A-Level movement technique " Blood Shadow Escape ", triggering a 2100-fold return. The host's " Blood Shadow Escape " has been elevated to Perfection!]
[Bound enemy Spirit Reader of the Tianyi Cult diligently cultivated the A-Level spiritual Martial Technique " Soul-Splitting Sting ", triggering a 1750-fold return. The host's " Soul-Splitting Sting " has been elevated to Perfection!]
[Bound enemy black-robed deacon of the Tianyi Cultdiligently cultivated the A-Level secret technique " Blood-Burning Technique ", triggering a 5000-fold return. The host's " Blood-Burning Technique " has been elevated to the Ultimate Realm!]
...
During these days, Lin Chuan received all kinds of notifications every day until his hands grew soft from collecting rewards.
At this moment.
Haicheng Martial Arts Association training room.
Six demonic blades flew closely across the ground, striking the moving targets from six directions.
As the last target fell, the Mental Strength detector on the wall also displayed the results.
[Mental Strength: 1225 marks!]
Lin Chuan withdrew the demonic blades and glanced at the number.
One thousand marks was the threshold for the second transformation of a Spirit Reader.
At this step, Mental Strength and Soul Power could undergo Fusion, transforming into soul thoughts that could truly interfere with reality.
However, the Fusion required a soul-casting secret technique.
The " Myriad Phenomena Soul-Casting Diagram " that Lin Chuan had his eyes on was still listed in the reward catalog for the top scorer of Dongzhou Province.
His Mental Strength was enough now, but he was still lacking the method of sublimation.
The Martial Dao Realm was the same.
Lin Chuan had already reached Martial Artist Perfection, and his Qi and blood as well as his meridians had all reached the limits of his current Realm.
To step into the Grandmaster Realm, he needed a Grandmaster cultivation technique that suited him.
These days, Lin Chuan had gone through all the A-Levelcultivation techniques and Martial Techniques in his hands.
The Perfection-level Martial Techniques corroborated with each other, driving his Martial Dao techniques upwards as well.
According to the previous testing standards, Grade Seven definitely couldn't suppress him.
As for what exact grade he had reached, even he himself did not know.
Pei Wubing stood at the doorway and glanced inside.
" Are you still testing your technique Level? I've already greeted the people at the Martial Arts Association. "
Lin Chuan inserted the six demonic blades back into their scabbards.
" Let's test it after the exam. If I test it today and it increases again in a few days, it will be a hassle for them to re-register it. "
Pei Wubing's eyelids twitched upon hearing this.
" Why are you so good at bragging? "
" I'm telling the truth. You guys never believe the truth, which troubles me quite a bit, " Lin Chuan said with a punchable expression.
" If you weren't my disciple, I would definitely block your doorway and beat you up every day. Hurry up and get lost to pack your equipment. "
" Alright, calm down, excessive anger hurts the kidneys. "
Lin Chuan left the training room with a smile.
For this provincial exam, his heart was very steady.
It felt like a Fields Medalist going to take an elementary school exam.
The position of the provincial top scorer basically had no suspense.
On the day of the provincial exam.
Outside the entrance of the Seventh Grey Zone in Dongzhou, over a hundred assembly areas were completely packed with people.
Over fifty thousand examinees wore combat uniforms and carried various weapons, stretching as far as the eye could see.
Live broadcast platforms had also been erected on both sides of the grey zone entrance, and hundreds of drones hovered in the air.
Just as Lin Chuan got out of the car, someone nearby recognized him.
" Lin Chuan is here! "
" Is that the guy from Haicheng who chased and hacked the Bronze Captain? "
" It's him. He really came to take the provincial exam. "
Several examinees immediately gathered around.
One of them wore a full set of third-tier battle armor and immediately called him Brother Lin.
" Brother Lin, my Clan does herb business in the provincial capital. If we meet after entering the grey zone, please take care of me. When the exam is over, my dad will definitely reward you generously. "
Lin Chuan asked, " How much is the generous reward? "
That examinee choked up for a second.
" This... will definitely satisfy you by then. "
" Is there a deposit? I am not someone who accepts empty promises. "
The examinee didn't know how to answer: " This... "
" This and that, which one is it? Without sending gifts to my home in advance, you still expect me to cover you during the exam? What kind of dream are you having? "
Lin Chuan patted his shoulder.
" You're not a pretty little sister, and you still expect me to cover you? Pray for your own blessings once you go in. "
The other party wanted to say more, but Ye Qinghe had already walked over from behind.
" Excuse us, we are going to register our team. "
The few people had no choice but to step aside.
After walking away, Ye Qinghe glanced at Lin Chuan.
" People already called you Brother Lin, and you didn't give him any face at all? "
" Just a 'Brother Lin' and he wants me to risk my life? Am I that cheap of a person? "
Lin Chuan tugged at the scabbard on his shoulder.
" If he took out the generous reward first, I could still consider it. "
" Aren't you afraid that after taking the money, you won't run into him once you go inside? "
" That's why I didn't accept it. I value integrity in business. "
Ye Qinghe smiled and reached out to check the portable camera on his chest.
" The camera is crooked. "
She straightened the camera for Lin Chuan and pressed the fastening buckle tight.
" I am of the support class, and my score has a weighting. As long as I get one-third of those points, I can be specially recruited into a good university. "
" Rest assured, today I am mainly carrying a girl, and the provincial top scorer title will be taken effortlessly. "
" Alright, Brother Lin, you're really nice. "
" It still sounds much more comfortable when a pretty little sister calls me brother, " Lin Chuan said with his head tilted back as he smiled.
The two walked towards the equipment registration area together.
On the official viewing platform, dozens of screens had already lit up.
Every examinee had to wear a recording wristband and a portable camera.
Inside the grey zone, there were also fixed camera towers and live broadcast drones, and the entire exam was open for live broadcast to Dongzhou.
Ordinary live broadcasts had a thirty-second delay.
The images seen by the Examination Institute, Zhenyuan Division, and Grandmaster observers remained synchronized in real-time.
Pei Wubing, the Northeast Tiger Wang Fanbiao, Thunder King Thunder King Yue Jinglei, and Ning Zhaoyue were all sitting in the viewing area.
The admissions heads of the three top universities had also arrived, with the profiles of Lin Chuan, Lin He, Lu Lingxiao, and others placed on the table.
Fanbiao saw the six demonic blades and the thunder blade behind Lin Chuan and chuckled.
" Good fellow, it's all weapons. Why isn't he wearing armor? "
" This kid's physical body is comparable to weapons. "
Pei Wubing leaned back in his chair.
Thunder King Yue Jinglei looked towards another screen.
Lin He had just emerged from the registration channel with a thunder-light sword hanging at his waist and a full set of thunder-attribute equipment on his body.
" This provincial exam is eight hours long. Hopefully, no accidents will happen. "
Pei Wubing said, " Save your crow mouth, speak less. "
Thunder King Yue Jinglei turned his head to look at him.
" Your mouth is even more annoying than your student's. "
Pei Wubing picked up his teacup.
" On the contrary, in this regard, my disciple is ten times stronger than me. "
The chief examiner soon ascended the central high platform.
The loudspeakers in all the assembly areas sounded simultaneously.
" This provincial exam will last for eight hours. The examination ring will record everyone's movement routes, combat processes, and score changes. "
" Demonic Beast points are calculated according to Level. The first examinee to inflict irreversible fatal injuries on a Demonic Beast will receive all the points. "
" You can cooperate, form teams, or plunder the Demonic Beasts that other teams are hunting. Living Demonic Beasts can also be yielded to teammates to deliver the final blow. "
The chief examiner paused for a moment.
" Listen to the whole sentence. Plundering Demonic Beasts is allowed, but intentionally attacking examinees will result in point deductions at best, and disqualification at worst. If lives are lost, it will be handled according to Daxia's laws. Whoever wants to use the exam to kill people, the people from the Zhenyuan Division are waiting outside. "
The discussions in several assembly areas quieted down.
The chief examiner continued to read the rules.
" Weapons, armor, potions, and disposable items are not restricted in Level. All items must be registered in advance. After entering the grey zone, off-site supplies are prohibited, and remote control by outsiders is forbidden. "
Many people off stage looked at those examinees carrying high-Level equipment.
Just fourth-tier weapons alone, there were more than a dozen of them today.
Some came from a Clan, some were temporarily rented from martial arts halls, and a few were lent by elders to Juniors to keep up appearances.
The chief examiner swept a glance over the crowd.
" The Martial Dao College Entrance Examination never talks about resource equality. If your Clan can borrow a fourth-tier weapon, or if you yourself can make others willing to lend one, these all count as ability. "
" However, let me remind you once more. The formation patterns of fourth-tier weapons are designed according to Grandmaster power. If a Martial Artist forces them to activate, a single time could drain seventy to eighty percent of their True Qi, and if their meridians are torn, the examinee's results will be completely ruined. "
" Most examinees using second-tier and third-tier weapons can display even stronger strength. "
Equipment registration had also reached its final stage.
Lu Lingxiao's mountain-breaking spear was placed on the testing platform, and the spear body emitted a muffled sound.
[Third-tier Peak weapon: Mountain-Breaking Spear!]
The Tiangang inner armor on his body was also registered, and both pieces of equipment were highly compatible with the Tiangang Battle Physique.
In another passageway, Lin He activated the thunder-light sword.
The blue-white blade light popped out, and the fourth-tier mark on the detector immediately lit up.
The staff looked at the registration results.
" The thunder-light sword is conventional third-tier, and full-power fourth-tier. This truly is a good weapon! "
" That's the characteristic of technological weapons. My teacher gave it to me. "
Lin He turned off the blade light and passed through the detection door with the full set of thunder-attribute equipment.
When it was Lin Chuan's turn, the testing platform sounded several times in succession.
" tier 4 thunder saber, six psychokinetic demonic blades, Bagua mirror, third-tier thunder bead, third-tier poison bead... "
The staff checked the inventory list and looked up at him.
" You're carrying quite a lot of things, Young Master Lin. "
" It's eight hours long; if I don't carry a bit more, can my heart feel at ease? "
" You have to consider weight capacity too! "
" Rest assured, these six blades of mine can fly for a whole day, and I won't get tired at all. "
Lin Chuan took a step forward, and the six demonic blades simultaneously left their scabbards, flying in a queue through the detection door.
The staff stared at them for a few seconds.
" Fine, pretend I didn't say anything. "
The thunder beads near the guard of the thunder blade glowed with purple lightning, and the test results were consistent with the previous filing.
The equipment provided the thunder power, and the tier 4 thunder saber was responsible for amplification.
At least in public records, that purple thunder slash that split the street open still had a reasonable source.
Ye Qinghe's medicine chest was also registered.
The two recording wristbands gently touched, and the team information updated simultaneously.
[Temporary team registration successful!]
[Team members: Lin Chuan, Ye Qinghe!]
Not far away, Shen Ye also found Lu Lingxiao.
After the entrance numbers were announced, he took the initiative to apply to join Lu Lingxiao's temporary team, and even carried the spare equipment box for him.
Soon, more and more people completed their entry.
Over fifty thousand recording wristbands lit up simultaneously.
All the live-streaming drones in the air started up, and the provincial exam live-streaming room opened at this moment.
The number of online viewers exceeded ten million in just over a dozen seconds.
A huge grey light barrier lay horizontally in front of the examination hall.
Behind the light barrier was the Seventh Grey Zone, riddled with Demonic Beasts and ruins.
The chief examiner raised his right hand.
All examinees, get ready!
A countdown appeared on every screen.
[Ten!]
[Nine!]
The talking voices in the crowd all vanished, and the examinees gripped their weapons one after another.
Ye Qinghe strapped on her medicine chest and held Lin Chuan's hand so that the two of them could be dropped into the same location.
" Lin Chuan, are you nervous? "
" I am only excited, okay? "
Lin Chuan: " First give you points, then take first place. "
[Three!]
[Two!]
[One!]
The grey light barrier opened from the middle.
" Dongzhou provincial exam, officially begins! "
Chapter 83: Carry the Girl First, Then Take the Top Scholar
Three minutes into the exam.
The Dongzhou overall ranking refreshed for the first time.
Lu Lingxiao's name surged directly to first place.
He didn't stop in the outer layer at all. After landing, he had Shen Ye lead the way and went all the way into the middle layer region.
A Peak Tier 2 Iron-backed Bear rushed out from the woods, but Lu Lingxiao didn't even stop his footsteps.
The Tiangang Battle Physique was activated, and the poyue spear thrust forward.
Pfft!
The spear tip drilled in from the Iron-backed Bear's chest and pierced out from its back.
The Iron-backed Bear ran two steps and crashed headfirst onto the ground.
[Lu Lingxiao killed a Peak Tier 2 Demonic Beast and gained 800 points!]
Shen Ye jumped down from the side slope.
"There is another group ahead, seven of them. The leader is Tier 3, and the rest are at Tier 2."
"Lead the way."
The two continued to hurry forward.
When they met low-tier Demonic Beasts along the way, Lu Lingxiao didn't even look at them, casually injuring them and throwing them to Shen Ye.
There were many middle-layer Demonic Beasts, and the scores rose quickly. Lu Lingxiao steadily occupied first place, and Shen Ye, relying on the Demonic Beasts left behind by him, also squeezed into the top ten.
A team of examinees happened to pass nearby.
Shen Ye pulled out the short knife stuck in the Demonic Beast's head and shook off the blood on it.
"Don't follow too closely. Young Master Lu has already taken a fancy to the monsters ahead."
Someone glanced at the leaderboard and couldn't help asking, "Does Lu Lingxiao really take down one with a single spear?"
"This is nothing."
Shen Ye chuckled.
"Young Master Lu didn't need anyone's help to kill PeakTier 3 in Longdu. These monsters in Dongzhou are hardly enough for a warmup."
Those few examinees didn't dare to follow and changed direction.
Shen Ye didn't care whether they believed it or not.
No matter how high the provincial exam ranking was, it was nothing more than entering a good university.
If he could use this exam to get connected with the Lu family, his future path would truly be smooth.
Second place on the overall list was Lin He.
He didn't have the high-score route prepared by Shen Yeand could only search by following the footprints and roars left by the Demonic Beasts.
However, he had just completed the Thunder Pool quenching, and with the Six Thunder Rings opened, his traveling and monster-killing were frighteningly fast.
Once he found a Demonic Beast, the Thunder Light Sword basically only needs to be unsheathed once.
Tang Hanyi ranked third.
The path she chose was more dangerous than most examinees'. As soon as she entered the middle layer, she encountered two groups of Demonic Beasts, and her score kept biting closely behind Lin He.
As for Lin Chuan.
Ten minutes into the exam, his score was still zero.
"Left, three hundred meters."
Lin Chuan led Ye Qinghe through a patch of collapsed buildings.
Ye Qinghe didn't discover anything.
After running another hundred meters or so, she heard a low roar coming from behind the ruins.
Seven Black-scaled Mastiffs gathered under an unfinished building.
Six Peak Tier 2, one Early Stage Tier 3.
"So many?"
Ye Qinghe drew a short blade from the side of her medicine box.
This medicinal blade had also been registered in advance. The blade body was very narrow, perfectly suited for stabbing into the gaps of the Demonic Beast's scales.
"The more the better, saving us the trouble of searching one by one."
Lin Chuan took a step forward.
The seven Black-scaled Mastiffs raised their heads simultaneously.
The leading Tier 3 Black-scaled Mastiff was about to pounce, but all six demon blades had already been unsheathed.
Swoosh!
Two demon blades knocked away its front paws, and the other four flew close to the ground, drilling in from the gaps of the scales.
The blade edges avoided blood vessels, only severing the tendons on all four legs.
The Tier 3 Black-scaled Mastiff smashed onto the ground and opened its mouth to bite.
Lin Chuan raised his hand and pressed it downward.
A burst of psychokinesis pinned down its head, and its fangs were only half a meter away from Ye Qinghe's calf.
Ye Qinghe took a step back.
"Oh my god, you scared the life out of me!"
"Don't rush, I'll strip him clean first!"
Lin Chuan pinned down the Black-scaled Mastiff and began to tear apart its fur. There was no helping it; that fur was too tough, making it hard for Ye Qinghe to break its defense.
However, that scene was somewhat bizarrely thrilling. The large mastiff howled miserably and rolled all over the floor as if it had encountered a pervert.
"Woof woof woof!!"
"Woof! Woof woof woof! Awooo!!!"
It kept barking woof woof woof, as if shouting no, no, no.
But Lin Chuan was going to, going to, going to do it anyway.
In a flash, he tore the opponent's fur completely bare.
The entire large mastiff had its fur shed all over the floor, looking completely bare-bottomed.
Lin Chuan pointed to the heart area on the Black-scaled Mastiff's chest.
That patch had already been stripped clean, exposing the tender flesh underneath.
"Right here, stab it inside!"
Ye Qinghe seized the opportunity, and the medicinal blade stabbed in along the opening.
Pfft!
The blade tip penetrated the heart.
The Black-scaled Mastiff's body stiffened instantly, which could be considered a release.
The exam rings of both lit up simultaneously.
[Ye Qinghe inflicted irreversible fatal damage to a Tier 3 Demonic Beast and gained 2000 points!]
Lin Chuan didn't get a single point.
The remaining six Black-scaled Mastiffs had already pounced over.
The six demon blades divided into three groups, cutting into the beast pack from different directions.
One severed tendons, one disassembled armor.
Lin Chuan's psychokinesis pinned down their heads and delivered a small amount of toxin into the wounds. The toxin dose was only enough to paralyze the muscles, far from being fatal.
In less than a minute, all six Black-scaled Mastiffs collapsed to the ground.
The black scales and fur on their bodies were peeled off here and there, exposing red flesh all over their chests, and they kept howling in their mouths.
Ye Qinghe stood in the middle holding the medicinal blade, not knowing which one to stab first for a moment.
This scene was also transmitted into the live broadcast room via the portable camera.
The bullet screen exploded on the spot.
"Holy shit, why is he stripping them?"
"His animal instincts are acting up! I hope someone can care about Lin Chuan's mental health."
"When other people kill Demonic Beasts, why the fuck does he strip the Demonic Beasts' clothes? Is this examinee decent?"
"Don't talk nonsense up there, that's called disassembling armor... Forget it, it really looks quite perverted."
"Lin Chuan doesn't want a single point himself, stuffing all of it to Ye Qinghe? Isn't this a simping dog, and simping to this extent?"
"Is it reasonable to let Ye Qinghe take all these points?"
In the spectator area, Ning Zhaoyue watched for a long time and finally couldn't help saying:
"What's wrong with this kid? When killing a Demonic Beast, he insists on stripping it clean first."
Fan Biao stared at Lin Chuan's combat footage.
"Perverted as he may be, his hands are truly steady. All six blades bypassed vital points, stubbornly leaving these Demonic Beasts with a breath left."
Pei Wubing held a teacup and chimed in:
"Taking a girl to the exam, shouldn't the service be done in full package?"
Ning Zhaoyue turned to look at him.
"Did you teach him?"
"Don't pin it on me."
Pei Wubing didn't hesitate at all.
"His skills in this area are purely self-taught."
The official commentator quickly switched Lin Chuan's footage to the main live broadcast room.
"Attention viewers, Lin Chuan only severed the Demonic Beasts' tendons and broke open the outer scales, without causing irreversible fatal damage."
"The dose of the paralyzing toxin is also not fatal. The one who ultimately pierced the Demonic Beasts' hearts was Ye Qinghe, so the points belong to Ye Qinghe, and the judgment completely complies with the rules."
Ordinary viewers only felt that Lin Chuan was feeding points.
The admissions heads of the three top universities saw something different.
The head of Jiuli University spoke first:
"The demon blades precisely cut the tendons while the Black-scaled Mastiff was jumping. This level of control is peerless!"
The head of Longdu Martial Arts University stared at the mental data.
"Seven Demonic Beasts struggling together, yet his psychokinesis can still suppress every single one of them. Just how many units of psychokinesis must he have!"
The head of First War Academy chimed in:
"Killing directly is easy, but disassembling them like this while still controlling them not to die—this kid has true capability."
Ye Qinghe delivered finishing blows one after another.
Every time she killed one, her exam ring increased by 800 points.
After the fifth Peak Tier 2 Black-scaled Mastiff fell, her total score had reached six thousand.
This score had already exceeded the special admission line for the Support Department in previous years.
Ye Qinghe shook her aching hand and looked at the last struggling Black-scaled Mastiff.
Lin Chuan was pressing it down with psychokinesis.
"Lin Chuan, I've had enough. Weren't you going to take the top scholar?"
"No rush, let's give you a bit more."
"After finishing this one, it will be 6,800."
"Since you're already here, take a few more. When you can pick a higher university, why just stay stuck at the cut-off line?"
Ye Qinghe didn't act coy anymore, walking over with the medicinal blade in hand.
"Then press its head lower, I can't reach."
"Alright, Doctor Ye, strike quickly."
Half an hour later, the overall ranking refreshed again.
[First Place: Lu Lingxiao, 11,860 points!]
[Second Place: Lin He, 9,780 points!]
[Third Place: Tang Hanyi, 9,220 points!]
[Eighth Place: Ye Qinghe, 6,800 points!]
A Support Department pharmacist rushed directly into the top ten of the entire province.
Lin Chuan was still at zero points and didn't even enter the top hundred of the overall list.
Inside the Gray Zone, one couldn't see other people's live broadcasts and could only check the score leaderboard through the exam ring.
Lu Lingxiao flicked open a blocking Demonic Beast corpse with his spear and glanced at Lin Chuan's name.
"It's been half an hour, and Lin Chuan is still not on the leaderboard?"
Shen Ye was wiping the blood off his short knife and immediately chimed in upon hearing this.
"He was never as godly as they hyped him up to be."
Lu Lingxiao closed the leaderboard.
"This Lin Chuan can't even enter the top ten, no need to worry about him for now."
On the other side.
Lin He also saw the latest ranking.
Lu Lingxiao was still pressing down on his head, lagging behind by more than two thousand points.
He looked up ahead.
Behind the gray fog stood a broken red warning stele.
[Inner Layer Region!]
There were still quite a few Demonic Beasts in the middle layer.
Yet Lin He didn't look at a single one.
Six Thunder Rings lit up simultaneously, raising his speed to the limit, and his entire body transformed into a six-colored thunder light, rushing past the warning stele.
The official monitoring instantly popped up a prompt.
[Examinee Lin He takes the lead in entering the inner layer of the Seventh Gray Zone!]
Chapter 84: Emergency Situation
Just as Lin He rushed into the inner layer, a large swath of the woods ahead collapsed.
Thirty-one armored savage bulls snapped trees in half and charged down from the hillside.
The two running at the very front were nearly five meters tall, with fragments of examinee battle uniforms still hanging from their horns.
Tier 3 Demonic Beasts.
This group of savage bulls had just driven away a team of examinees and were now all charging straight at Lin He.
More than thirty Demonic Beasts were crammed onto a single mountain path, with the ones in the back pushing against the ones in the front, leaving almost no room to dodge.
If it were any other examinee, they would have taken a detour long ago upon seeing this scene.
Lin He glanced at the scoreboard.
He was still over two thousand points behind Lu Lingxiao.
"Just in time."
Six thunder rings lit up on his arms, and sixfold power instantly poured into his entire body.
Lin He pushed his hands outward, and six colors of thunder light—red, orange, gold, cyan, blue, and purple—coursed along the ground into the beast herd, transforming into a thunder cage covering a hundred meters.
"Six Extremes Thunder Prison!"
Boom!
Streaks of thunder light rose from the Formation patterns, turning into dozens of light spears over two meters long.
The first row of armored savage bulls was still charging when their abdomens were pierced by the light spears.
The thunder spears continued to push upward, lifting the thousands-of-catty bull bodies off the ground.
The herd in the rear was packed tightly together, unable to stop even if they wanted to.
The second round of light spears stabbed out from beneath their feet.
Puff, puff, puff!
Bull blood trickled down along the thunder light, and twenty-nine Tier 2 savage bulls were all nailed dead to the ground.
The two Tier 3 savage bulls charged out, resisting the thunder prison, their armor mostly blown apart.
The one on the left lowered its horns and charged straight at Lin He's chest.
Thunder light flashed beneath Lin He's feet, and he rushed to its side, brushing past its horns.
The Thunder Light Sword was unsheathed.
A blue-and-white blade of light swept across the savage bull's neck, and a bull head smashed into the mud.
The other Tier 3 savage bull had already crashed up from behind.
Utilizing the power of the thunder rings, Lin He turned around and slashed upward with his sword, splitting the horns as the light blade smoothly cut into its head.
Bang!
The massive bull body brushed past Lin He as it crashed forward, rolling twice on the ground before coming to a stop.
The entire process took less than two minutes.
Lin He's examination ring began to continuously report points.
[Killed a Tier 2 Demonic Beast, obtained 300 points!]
[Killed a Tier 2 Middle Stage Demonic Beast, obtained 400 points!]
[Killed a Tier 3 Demonic Beast, obtained 2000 points!]
Dense point notifications stacked together, and the Dongzhou general leaderboard also shifted along with them.
[First Place: Lin He, 23,180 points!]
[Second Place: Lu Lingxiao, 18,460 points!]
[Third Place: Shen Ye, 11,200 points!]
[Fourth Place: Tang Hanyi, 10,860 points!]
Lin Chuan was still ranked outside the top twenty.
Lin He had climbed to the top of the Dongzhou general leaderboard for the first time!
The live broadcast room instantly erupted in commotion.
"Holy shit, over thirty of them, all pierced in a single move?"
"This is the true S-rank Six-Color Ancient Thunder, its area-of-effect attacks are too fierce!"
"Lu Lingxiao brought Shen Ye to hunt monsters, and Lin Hecaught up all by itself?"
In the official spectator area, Thunder King Thunder King Yue Jinglei glanced at Lin He's physical data.
After the Six Extremes Thunder Prison wiped out the entire beast herd, he still had plenty of True Qi left, and the six thunder rings were also very stable.
"He can do it."
Fan Biao turned his head to look at him.
"What can he do?"
"Lin He was looking for monsters on his own the whole way, wasting quite a bit of time in vain.
Now that he ran into a beast herd, he took down over ten thousand points in two minutes, and he still has over eighty percent of his True Qi left."
Thunder King Yue Jinglei pointed at Lu Lingxiao's screen.
"Speaking solely of sustained hunting, he is indeed stronger than Lu Lingxiao right now."
Haicheng Lin Family.
Lin Nan stared at the live broadcast screen in the living room.
Seeing Lin He's name jump to first place, he stood up from the sofa altogether.
"Good!"
"Did you see that? This is the true Genius of our Haicheng Lin Family!"
Mother Lin was also somewhat excited, but seeing that Lin Chuan could not be found on the leaderboard, she still asked a question.
"Why does Xiaochuan still have no points?
He kept helping Qinghe just now, is he unable to catch up now?"
"Why care about him?"
Lin Nan was in high spirits.
Hearing Lin Chuan's name, his expression instantly darkened.
"Wasting a full half-hour for a woman, failing to get the top scholar is entirely his own doing.
Xiaohe is the best.
My judgment was right; he had no route and no one to help, yet he still took first place!"
As for the lightning pool, the Thunder King, and that set of high-tier equipment, Lin Nan didn't mention a single word.
Speaking to this point, he glanced again at Lin He in the live broadcast footage.
"Once Xiaohe wins the provincial top scholar, those people in the Main Family will naturally know who to hand the resources over to."
Inside the Seventh Gray Zone.
Lu Lingxiao also saw the changes on the leaderboard.
He stopped in his tracks, looking at Lin He's extra ten-thousand-plus points, and put away the disdain on his face.
"I've certainly underestimated this fellow!"
Lu Lingxiao picked up the poyue spear and turned to walk toward the area on the map that was marked only in red with no route records.
Shen Ye glanced at it, and his pace slowed down.
"Young Master Lu, I haven't explored over there.
The map marks it as high risk."
"Even if it's high risk, we still have to go, otherwise how can we seize first place."
Lu Lingxiao had already walked far away.
Shen Ye gritted his teeth and had no choice but to follow.
Outside the inner canyon, Tang Hanyi had just killed a Tier 2 Peak Demonic Beast.
Watching herself drop to fourth place, she crossed out the second hunting spot she had originally circled and turned to walk into the main canyon road.
Tier 3 Demonic Beasts were active on that road, and very few examinees in past years dared to enter.
Tang Hanyi put away her map, the Hanyue Sword held close to her side.
"Top three, I'm definitely going to secure one."
Outer layer of the gray zone.
Ye Qinghe wiped the blood clean off her medical blade and put it back into her medical box.
"Six thousand eight, enough for me to pick a school.
Don't stuff any more to me; if you stuff any more, I'll be too embarrassed."
"You still know how to feel embarrassed?"
Ye Qinghe raised her foot and kicked.
"Cut the crap, go quick and win that top scholar title."
Ye Qinghe shouldered her medical box and leaned two steps closer to him.
"Alright, buddy is going to get serious."
Just as Lin Chuan was preparing to catch up on points, his spiritual perception suddenly plunged into chaos.
Hundreds and thousands of Demonic Beasts were fleeing toward the outer layer.
Wind wolves, armored beasts, and red-tailed snakes were all crammed together.
Several Demonic Beasts passed by Lin Chuan, and clearly having already caught the scent of living humans, they simply skirted around the two of them and continued running.
Ye Qinghe looked into the distance, then turned to look at Lin Chuan.
"You should go take a look.
With this kind of commotion, following you won't help.
I'll go find a place to hide first; if you get injured later, I'll come over to heal you."
She was very clear about her own strength.
If a support-type apothecary ran into a high-tier Demonic Beast, rushing up would just be delivering an extra meal.
"Alright, be careful yourself."
"Got it, and don't be too reckless either."
Carrying her medical box on her back, Ye Qinghe ran toward the nearby ruins.
Lin Chuan remained in place, pressing his spiritual perception downward into the ground.
Over three hundred meters away, an injured Tier 3 Demonic Beast suddenly collapsed.
Blood-colored Formation patterns drilled out from the soil, crawling all over its body along its wounds.
A dozen seconds later, nothing was left of the Demonic Beast except for a shriveled hide.
Identical Formation patterns were appearing everywhere across the gray zone.
The Demonic Beast blood shed after the provincial examinations began was all absorbed by the Formation, surging underground toward the center of the gray zone.
Thud!
A muffled sound came from deep underground.
It sounded like something had rolled over inside the pool of blood.
At the other end of the gray zone.
A Cyan-Silver Envoy of the Tianyi Cult inserted a black token into the emergency teleportation Formation.
The entire gray zone vibrated slightly, the safety Formationbegan to reverse, and all exits sealed shut simultaneously.
The alarm in the official spectator area instantly sounded.
[Tier 4 Magical Energy reaction!]
Thunder light burst out from Thunder King Yue Jinglei's body.
Pei Wubing also stood up.
The moment his Martial King aura appeared, the grass and trees around the viewing platform rapidly blackened.
Fan Biao glanced at the trajectory of the Formationpatterns, and his expression changed on the spot.
"Don't move, everyone!"
He first stopped Thunder King Yue Jinglei, then blocked in front of Pei Wubing.
"This is a Blood Sacrifice Boundary-Sealing Formation, tied together with the perimeter.
Old Pei, if you throw this punch, whether the Formationopens or not is up in the air, but the people inside will definitely be goners first.
Thunder King Yue Jinglei, go to the east; you guard the west, and I'll lead people to find the Formation core!"
Pei Wubing stared at him for two seconds and reined in his power.
"Hurry up."
Fan Biao had already grabbed the communicator and started mobilizing the personnel of the Zhenyuan Division.
The live broadcast inside the gray zone was still functioning normally.
A Tianyi Cult member looked at the screen and asked in a low voice:
"Are we still keeping the live broadcast on?"
The Cyan-Silver Envoy smiled.
"Keep it on.
If we don't let the people of Dongzhou see it, wouldn't today's play be performed in vain?"
They wanted the entire Dongzhou to watch with their own eyes as this batch of examinees was torn to shreds by demons.
As for Lin Chuan's fifty-million assassination order, it was just a convenient task along the way.
Center of the gray zone.
The bloody water had already converged into a pool of blood.
On the scoreboard at this moment.
Lin He was still ranked first.
Chapter 85: The Examinees All Thought It Was a Hidden Stage
Just as Lin He left the savage cattle herd, his exam ring suddenly vibrated.
The Dongzhou overall leaderboard flashed a few times and stopped at the moment he climbed to first place.
Immediately afterward, two notifications popped up.
[Current area is experiencing energy interference!]
[Battle results transferred to local records. They will be uploaded uniformly once the signal is restored!]
Lin He tried refreshing twice, but the leaderboard showed no reaction at all.
He didn't think there was any problem.
Signal disconnections were frequent inside the Gray Zone. Before entering, the chief examiner had also said that communication interruptions would not affect the exam, and the exam ring would save hunting records locally.
It was just a bit of a pity.
He had managed to suppress Lu Lingxiao with great difficulty, and he didn't know if the other party had seen it.
Lin He closed the leaderboard and continued walking toward the inner layer.
There were still more than seven hours left in the provincial exam.
Getting first place now was nothing; whether he could hold it until the very end was what mattered.
Other examinees also received the same notification.
Some complained a couple of times about the bad signal, and some worried about losing their scores, but upon seeing the four words "unified upload", they didn't think much more about it.
However, outside the Gray Zone, chaos had already erupted.
The Examination Institute issued four consecutive notices to suspend the exam, all of which were blocked by the bloody Seal.
The staff members responsible for the exam rings were sweating profusely with anxiety.
"Director Fan, the message simply cannot be sent inside. The exam rings inside are still recording normally; they will probably only think the signal has disconnected."
Fan Biao had already brought the personnel from the Zhenyuan Division to the border of the Gray Zone.
"The Tianyi Cult is far too well-prepared on this end. If we can't dismantle the eye of the formation here, we won't be able to send anything in. Figure out a way to find the eye of the formation."
He glanced at the blood-red patterns spreading to both sides.
"Everyone trace the bloodlines back to search. Mark the eye of the formation first if you find it, and no one is to touch it without my word.
Thunder King Yue Jinglei and Pei Wubing, the two Martial Kings, suppress the eastern and western sides, but don't rush."
Everyone immediately dispersed.
The live broadcast feed, however, was unaffected.
The Sky Mirror array set up outside the Gray Zone was only responsible for transmitting images outward. The people inside could not see the bullet comments, nor could they hear any warnings.
Right under everyone's gaze, the blood-red patterns inside the Gray Zone lit up simultaneously.
Boom!
Eight spatial rifts appeared across various locations in the inner layer.
Out of each rift stepped three Heavenly Demons.
These Heavenly Demons stood three to four meters tall, their bodies covered in black armor plates, with bone spurs protruding from their shoulders and backs. A few also grew wings; the moment they squeezed out of the rifts, their Demonic Qi corroded the surrounding vegetation into black liquid.
A startled Tier 3 Shadow Leopard rushed out from the forest.
The nearest Heavenly Demon raised its hand.
Black flames gathered in its palm into a dozen-meter-long demonic spear, which instantly flew out.
Puff!
The demonic spear pierced through the Shadow Leopard and embedded itself into the mountain wall behind it.
The black fire exploded right after.
Half of the mountain wall was burned glowing red, and before the Shadow Leopard could even let out a single cry, its body was burned to charcoal in the fire.
Several nearby examinees felt their scalps tingle at the sight.
Their exam rings also popped up with a notification at this time.
[Tier 3 Peak Heavenly Demon!]
[Base Points: 50,000!]
The few people stared at that string of numbers and were completely dumbfounded.
"Fifty thousand? Everything we've been busy with until now doesn't even add up to that much combined."
"Has the Examination Institute gone crazy? They even dare to stuff a Tier 3 Peak Heavenly Demon inside?"
A boy, however, quickly figured it out.
"This thing is definitely not prepared for us. Those people in the top ten are more perverted than the last; if they don't add some difficulty for them, ordinary Demonic Beasts won't be enough to kill."
The person beside him looked at the Heavenly Demon, then looked at his own weapon.
"Then should we follow along and pick up some scraps?"
"Pick up my ass. Fifty thousand points are meant for Lin Heand the others to see; if we go over, we'll at best be delivering takeout to the Heavenly Demon."
Several people decisively retreated backward.
The rules of the exam ring were rigid.
It only recognized race, Realm, and the person who delivered the final fatal attack; it simply couldn't tell whether these Heavenly Demons were let in by the Examination Institute or broke in from the outside.
But the examinees didn't know that.
Since the exam ring dared to calculate 50,000 points, they naturally regarded the Heavenly Demon as a hidden target.
Lin He also received the notification.
The Heavenly Demon closest to him was only a little over six hundred meters away.
Six examinees happened to be attracted over by the commotion, and two of them were even in the top fifty of the overall leaderboard.
Someone recognized Lin He and hurriedly gave a reminder.
"Lin He, that thing killed a Tier 3 Shadow Leopard with a single move just now. You wouldn't really want to go over there, would you?"
"Fifty thousand per head. If I don't move against them, how can I take top scholar? Lin Chuan and the others will definitely take action against the Heavenly Demons."
Lin He drew his thunder light sword.
"How about this, the six of you charge up with me, and the final blow belongs to me. As for the medicines you use and the weapons that get damaged, I'll compensate you double after we go out."
After hearing this, a tall examinee still felt it was a loss.
"All the points go to you, and we just get some potions? That's a Tier 3 Heavenly Demon; if things go wrong, people might really die."
Lin He glanced at him.
"In addition to double compensation, I'll also owe you a favor."
The tall examinee turned back to look at the Heavenly Demon.
That thing was grabbing the Shadow Leopard's corpse and shoving it into its mouth.
However, they knew Lin He's potential: an S-Rank Talentand a disciple of the Thunder King. Although he wasn't as strong as Lin Chuan, his future achievements would still be immeasurable.
"Fine, let's make it clear first: if we really can't hold on, we're running."
"Fair and reasonable. Once I become the provincial top scholar, I'll cover for you guys in the future."
"You said this yourself, oh. If you become the provincial top scholar, we'll follow you around from now on."
The few people stopped dawdling and quickly gathered around Lin He.
Lin He had already started calculating in his heart.
Fifty thousand per head.
Killing two of them would be 100,000 points.
Past provincial top scholars of Dongzhou Province had never dreamed of getting such a high score.
On the other side, Shen Ye also locked onto a Heavenly Demon.
"Young Master Lu, this thing is much harder to deal with than the Demonic Beasts on the map. There are a few other high-scoring examinees nearby; I'll call them over. The final blow will definitely be left for you, but after going out, your Lu Family will have to bleed a little."
Lu Lingxiao lifted his poyue spear without turning his head.
"As long as I can take the top scholar, what does bleeding a little matter? Go call people, pick a few who actually dare to fight, and don't bring a bunch of trash. Once I, Lu Lingxiao, capture the provincial top scholar of Dongzhou Province, there will be heavy rewards when we return."
Tang Hanyi's side was even more straightforward.
As soon as a few examinees approached, she stated her conditions upfront.
"I want to get into the top three. Help me, and after we go out, whatever you want, you can go to the Tang Family in Dongzhou Province and ask my father for it."
One of them asked, "This... what if we join forces and still fail to kill it?"
Tang Hanyi glanced ahead.
"Then we run together, but I will still give you sufficient compensation. How about that? It's just a provincial exam; it's not important enough that you have to die here."
Several teams were quickly formed.
The audience in the livestream room, however, was about to go crazy with anxiety.
"These young masters and misses have all gone mad!"
"You're still forming teams? Run quickly!"
"The officials have already announced the suspension of the exam, but they can't receive the news at all!"
"The exam ring directly marked 50,000 points; anyone would think it's a hidden quest. This wave is completely screwed!"
Fan Biao likewise saw this scene.
"With 50,000 points hung right there, it'd be a wonder if these kids didn't charge up. How many formation eyes are still left?"
The personnel from the Zhenyuan Division quickly replied.
"Two more are left. The bloodline in the north has burrowed underground, and we are digging down."
"Then keep digging. Within ten minutes, I must see all the formation eyes!"
Outer layer of the Gray Zone.
Lin Chuan also received the point notification for the Heavenly Demons.
He glanced at it and closed the exam ring, his spiritual perception continuing to press down toward the underground.
Where the blood-red patterns intersected, a black mark was hidden.
An upside-down hanging eye.
Tianyi Cult.
"Damn it, something's wrong with the exam!"
Lin Chuan raised his head again.
Three Tier 3 Peak Heavenly Demons were rushing over from different directions.
150,000 points.
That little bit of time he just spent feeding Ye Qinghe could be earned right back in one go.
Lin Chuan turned around and returned to the nearby ruins.
Ye Qinghe had already found more than a dozen examinees, several of whom had injuries on them. She was squatting on the ground bandaging them, while an examinee was still fixated on those 50,000 points.
"There are over a dozen of us here. If we go together, maybe we can really give it a try. 50,000 points! Whoever gets it enters the top ten."
Ye Qinghe tightened the bandage.
Causing the examinee to gasp a breath of cold air on the spot from the pain.
"Even if you gather a hundred people to go up, you're still just an appetizer. Which of you can take a slap from a Tier 3 Heavenly Demon? If you have this ability, I won't stop you; hurry up and go."
No one spoke anymore.
Lin Chuan walked in from outside the ruins and pulled Ye Qinghe aside.
"We can't stay here anymore. Take them to the western highlands; there's an old shelter underneath, hide inside first."
Ye Qinghe heard that something wasn't right.
"Even you are telling me to hide—is it really that dangerous? Aren't those Heavenly Demons arranged by the Examination Institute?"
Lin Chuan scraped open the soil on the ground with his foot, revealing the black mark underneath.
"It's the Tianyi Cult playing tricks!"
Ye Qinghe stared at that mark and hurriedly stuffed the medicines back into the box.
"What! That's dangerous then. Are you coming with us?"
She shouldered her medicine box.