The 'Id' deep within the human heart has been amplified several times...

In the surveillance room.

Chen Yuan's voice was hoarse with urgency.

"Hurry! Check if examinee Liu Yuan is in our designated area!"

His fingers flew across the control panel, beads of sweat forming at his temples.

Multiple screens flickered rapidly, zooming in and scanning before finally settling on a relatively intact edge of the jungle.

On the screen, Liu Yuan frowned as she observed the strange phenomenon in the distant sky, along with the flames and thick smoke rising in the distance.

Standing before her was the unforgettable Black Knight card—a towering figure wielding a menacing greatsword, its metallic body radiating an eerie, cold sheen, utterly motionless.

Chen Yuan's gaze remained fixed on the screen, sharp as an eagle's.

"Zoom in on the Black Knight's movements!"

The image adjusted again, revealing every minute detail of the Black Knight.

Unlike the frenzied and uncontrollable behavior of the previously rogue cards, it appeared unnervingly calm.

Just then, from the shadows at the jungle's edge, a lurking Claw-Tiger Beast suddenly lunged, its target the seemingly distracted Liu Yuan.

Though not massive in size, the beast moved with terrifying speed, its fangs glinting ominously in the dappled light—clearly a peak sixth-tier threat.

Liu Yuan seemed to sense something, barely starting to react—

When the Black Knight moved.

No unnecessary buildup, no flashy techniques.

With an almost instinctive fluidity, it simply swung its greatsword like a battering ram.

"Boom!"

The Claw-Tiger Beast was instantly crushed, its bones screaming as fractures spiderwebbed through its body in a single moment.

Patches of crimson bloomed across its hide.

Then, it felt confusion.

Why was its vision suddenly clouded in blood?

Only afterward did agony sear through its entire being, a furious roar rising in its throat—

But before the sound could escape,

Its right eye registered a damp sensation as blood sprayed from the socket.

No—more accurately, its entire body was rupturing.

Its bones shattered under unimaginable force,

And the section directly struck by the greatsword exploded into a mist of gore.

The remaining mass of flesh was sent flying, slamming into the ground as a pulpy mess.

The entire sequence was over in a flash—so fast that Liu Yuan had only just turned her head slightly.

The Black Knight slowly sheathed its sword, returning to its silent vigil beside Liu Yuan.

The greatsword plunged back into the earth.

A single drop of beast blood slid down the blade, vanishing into the soil.

The surveillance room was dead silent.

"...It didn’t go rogue?" someone muttered under their breath.

"Not only that, it’s... fiercely protective of its master."

"And that reaction speed and attack power—it was holding back during the arena matches, wasn’t it?"

A sharp-eyed proctor analyzed quietly, "That strike just now—instantly killing a peak sixth-tier beast with zero hesitation—it’s at least peak seventh-tier, maybe higher."

"How did Jiangxia have someone like this flying under the radar all this time?"

Chen Yuan didn’t respond, his frown deepening instead.

Liu Yuan’s card hadn’t turned rogue—that was good news.

Was it because her card was special?

Or was there something unique about her?

Or maybe this "rogue" effect only worked on cards below the seventh tier?

At least this was the only silver lining right now.

For now, no creatures or cards exceeding the seventh tier had appeared in this area.

The examinees’ lives were still within manageable limits.

"Where’s Su Muxue now?" Chen Yuan asked gravely.

"Report—Su Muxue and her squad have entered the southeastern perimeter and are advancing rapidly toward Liu Yuan’s coordinates. Should we... continue with the interception order?" a communications officer inquired.

Intercepting a non-rogue, highly powerful allied card sounded absurd.

Chen Yuan drummed his fingers absently on the desk, thoughts racing.

"Notify Su Muxue’s squad to switch to evacuation support. If there’s any unusual activity, she has discretion—her authority surpasses mine!"

"Understood!"

"Then assign two people to monitor the Black Knight. Alert me immediately if anything seems off."

For now, the Black Knight was behaving normally—even exceptionally. But that didn’t eliminate the risk of it going rogue the next second.

Especially after displaying strength potentially beyond the seventh tier—if it turned, the devastation would be catastrophic.

"Old Wang, what’s the situation in your sector?" Chen Yuan shifted his gaze from Liu Yuan’s screen to the other zone supervisor.

"My sector hasn’t seen large-scale rogue card incidents, but the frequency of Source Realm creature activity is abnormally high! Multiple examinees are being actively ambushed by groups of them!"

Chen Yuan’s heart sank.

This wasn’t just his problem.

Though higher-ups had warned that the Descendants might disrupt this year’s martial exam and bolstered security accordingly,

Humans, being humans, always clung to hope.

We’ve prepared so thoroughly—would they really dare to throw their lives away?

Yet the worst-case scenario had unfolded anyway.

Those lunatics from the Descendants operated without logic—of course they’d dare.

Old Wang hesitated before adding, "Chen, why not just terminate the exam? A rebellion of this scale should be handled by the First Unit."

Why hold the exam knowing the Descendants might attack?

Wasn’t that foolish?

Simple—you didn’t stop eating for fear of choking.

In summer, did you swelter in thick clothes just to avoid mosquito bites?

No, you found ways to kill the mosquitoes.

If you canceled the exam over a few veiled threats this time, what about next time?

Would future exams all be scrapped too?

And if other events were threatened?

Would all of Jiangxia’s operations grind to a halt because of the Descendants’ provocations?

"Deploying our combatants now would leave us exposed.

The enemy’s hidden; we’re in plain sight—they’ve already seen our setup."

Chen Yuan shot back, "Are you suggesting I use these kids as bait?"

"What else? You’ve spent your whole life holding back—what’s a little longer?"

Chen Yuan’s brows knitted. "If I recall, your child’s taking the exam next year. Would you be fine with them being bait?"

"Show some empathy. These are the futures countless families have pinned their hopes on."

Old Wang stood firm. "And our fighters’ lives don’t matter? They’re the breadwinners for their families too.

This year’s exam already has a 5% mortality quota."

"You’re heartless! Treating people as expendable."

"You’re spineless! Running at the first sign of trouble."

Su Qi watched the argument unfold in silence.

Logically,

As regional supervisors, how could they afford to bicker like this at such a critical moment?

If so, the Empire’s personnel selection standards must be abysmal.

See? He was perfectly composed.

Except for the sudden urge to spar with his sister...

Wait—

Why was he thinking that?

Well, breakfast had been... complicated.

He should’ve been utterly calm.

Unless, of course, he’d been "provoked."

Like when a pet wrecked the house unnoticed.

The little fox turned its back to him and leaped onto the coffee table, sweeping the tissue box onto the floor with its tail.

No, no!

Even though he wasn’t the most reliable person…

He shouldn’t be having thoughts like this right now.

Su Qi then glanced around.

Not a single one of the thirty-plus surveillance staff spoke up to stop it.

Instead, their faces were all plastered with expressions that screamed, "I live for the drama!"

So…

It wasn’t just the cards that had "rebelled"?

It seemed like the "id" deep in their hearts had been amplified several times over…

Wait a minute—

That couldn’t be right.

How could his "id" possibly be… that kind of thing?