Meanwhile, in the spectator hall.
On the enormous circular light screen, live footage from the Ruined City arena played in split-screen. The central display was fixed on the plaza where Qin Wu and the others were taking a break.
A group of people sat watching the screen from wide leather sofas.
“Heh. Huaqing is as dominant as ever this year.”
The blond, blue-eyed man seated at the far left was the first to break the silence. He was the chairman—and principal—of Academy Zero.
“Charles was too impulsive.”
Beside him, a representative from Shengu Academy—an elderly man dressed in traditional attire—merely shook his head. Yet his gaze remained fixed on Chen Guan, the boy carrying a scythe on the screen.
“That boy won through a sneak attack and disrupted Koichi’s plan.”
“In a competition, strength speaks for itself. He was overconfident. How can you call it a sneak attack?”
A cool female voice rang out abruptly.
Su Yuehe’s mother, Council Chair Su Jin, lifted her teacup and gently skimmed away the foam with its lid, not even raising her eyes.
“Council Chair Su, I didn’t mean anything by it.” The elder from Shengu Academy gave an awkward laugh, trying to explain himself. He clearly had not expected Su Jin to speak up for Chen Guan. This council chair had always been impartial and rarely favored either side.
“Using stimulants is a tactic. So is a sneak attack.”
Su Jin set down her teacup, the porcelain making a crisp sound. “If you lose, then none of it matters.”
The chairman of Academy Zero immediately looked grim. Her words had taken a jab at him as well, yet he could not utter a single word in rebuttal.
“All right. It’s just a contest between children; no need for us old folks to get worked up over it.”
An Changsong, seated at the head of the room, spoke up to smooth things over. As president of the Superpower Association, his eyes fell upon his own son’s steady figure on the screen, and a pleased smile unconsciously touched his lips.
He had at least a third of his father’s bearing back in the day.
“Still, Yuehe has truly given us quite a surprise.”
At last, a trace of undisguised pride appeared on Su Jin’s face, though her words remained as reserved as ever. “She merely did what she was supposed to do.”
“And that first-year student named Shan Heng has a sharp mind.”
An Changsong smiled and nodded. “Indeed, he’s a promising youngster. Huaqing’s current generation is brimming with talent.”
Their conversation made the representatives from the defeated side look even more displeased. Meanwhile, Huaqing’s principal, Ren Ping, kept forcing a smile that rose and fell at the corners of his mouth. He had mentally gone through every sad memory of his life just to keep it from showing.
“All right, the match isn’t over yet.”
An Changsong lightly tapped the table, drawing everyone’s attention back. “I imagine what concerns you all more right now is that thing.”
His finger pointed toward the charred, eerie patch of open ground at the center of the screen.
Sure enough, everyone’s gaze focused on it.
“What exactly is that?” The chairman of Academy Zero frowned. Even he had not known about this part of the event schedule beforehand.
It had most likely been decided by An Changsong and Su Jin. When those two joined forces, they could alter the program without consulting anyone else.
“President An, shouldn’t the Superpower Association give us an explanation?”
Ren Ping also turned to An Changsong, equally at a loss.
“There is, of course, an explanation.” An Changsong leaned back in his chair, his fingers interlaced before him. “It is a door leading into the past. Beyond that door lies the lingering echo of a certain will.”
“A lingering echo of a will?”
The representatives from the various academies exchanged looks.
“A sealed spiritual imprint,” Su Jin continued. “It causes no physical harm, but it draws every living being that approaches into an illusion constructed from that imprint. It is an additional test of their mental resilience.”
“What kind of spiritual imprint requires such an elaborate setup?”
The elderly man from Shengu pressed the question.
“Astaroth.”
The instant that name fell, undisguised shock appeared on the faces of the powerful figures present.
“The demon god Astaroth?” the chairman of Academy Zero blurted out.
“Only a fragment of its spirit that was stripped away,” An Changsong corrected, his expression turning grave as well.
“We sealed it beneath this competition venue because we wanted to see just how far this generation’s most outstanding children could go when faced with the purest form of malice.”
“This is absurd!”
The old man from Shengu slammed his hand onto the table and rose to his feet.
“That is the will of a demon god, even if it is only a fragment!”
“That is precisely why it is a true test.”
Su Jin’s voice remained as cold and firm as ever. “On future battlefields, the enemies they will face are beings like Astaroth.”
“If they cannot even pass a test like this, then they do not deserve to be called the best.”
Her words were cruel, but they were also the truth.
The hall fell silent once more. Everyone watched the students on the screens, still unaware of what awaited them, their expressions becoming complicated.
From the very beginning, this competition had never been merely a contest between academies.
Some of them had been assigned questions far beyond the syllabus from the outset, yet no one could object—because these children truly were beyond the norm.
Besides, even Su Jin’s own daughter was among them. Who could possibly say anything?
“Rest assured, we have set a safety threshold.”
An Changsong eased the tension. “The moment any student can no longer endure it, they will be forcibly teleported out of the area. There will be no danger to their lives.”
That was what he said, but his gaze swept across several children on the screens.
This time, the idea had not been his. It had still been Su Jin’s.
Su Jin had said that since Su Yuehe wanted to involve herself in matters Su Jin had never wanted her involved in, she needed to prove herself.
An Changsong had not objected. His wife had said Su Jin’s decision was the right one, and he had always trusted his wife’s judgment.
…
Meanwhile, in the plaza.
“How about I just throw a punch at it and see what happens?” Long Ao finally stopped and turned to face the others, his expression eager. “Whatever the hell that thing is, let’s smash it first and talk later.”
“Save your strength.” Qin Wu looked helpless. He had just finished checking on every team member, and fortunately, no one was missing. “What if that punch of yours triggers another unexpected change? Who’s going to deal with it then?”
Long Ao curled his lips and muttered, “I’m just getting anxious watching everyone stand around and wait.”
“Enough. Stop fooling around.”
An Changqing rose to his feet, drawing everyone’s attention back to him. His gaze turned once more toward that eerie area.
“The competition timer hasn’t stopped. The organizers clearly expect us to deal with this thing.”
“That being the case, I’ll go in and scout ahead. If anything goes wrong, I can try to jump back.”
An Changqing’s voice was not loud, yet the entire square fell abruptly silent.
“No.”
Long Ao said it without a moment’s hesitation. He stepped in front of An Changqing. “If anyone’s going, it’ll be me.”
“Move.”
An Changqing’s brow furrowed. He had completely run out of patience with his thickheaded best friend, who always insisted on facing danger first.
“My ability lets me jump back. Even if I run into danger, I have a better chance of getting away than you do.”
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
for mindless slaughter, this isn't for you.] My name is Ye Shu, and I'm a transmigrator. It seems I'm supposed to be the protagonist, but that feels pretty unlikely. This world has been invaded by a system. The antagonists on the other side have suddenly become pure, flawless saints. The female leads have been force-fed the so-called "original plot," making them think they've been reborn. Now, everyone thinks I'm scum. Including the old lady in my ring. And here I am, in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, braising pork. To put my situation in perspective— It's as if, the moment Xiao Yan stepped into the Monster Beast Mountain Range, the Soul Emperor already knew he would become the Flame Emperor, and Yao Lao had been turned to the enemy's side. I have nothing right now. Oh wait, that's not true. I do have a white-haired loli child-bride who's the Heavenly Dao, and her only skill is acting cute. So, tell me guys... what are my chances of making it to the end?
agon king storylines. At the start, I obtained the "Ultimate Lackey System" - the more I act as a lackey, the stronger I become. What else could I do? I chose to become the personal henchman of the ultimate villain, Su Muwan. I provoke all sorts of chosen ones, snatch away their opportunities, and commit every evil deed imaginable. You ask who's behind me? Hmph! You're not worthy of knowing my lady's name! ...... ....... I am Su Muwan, the eldest daughter of the Su family. Since childhood, I've possessed extraordinary talent in martial arts, which led to my arrogant and domineering personality in my past life. I was even foolish enough to repeatedly challenge those favored by heaven, ultimately resulting in a tragic death. In this life, I must behave and absolutely cannot walk the same path again!! However... SLAP!! "So you're the Dragon King, huh?!" When I saw my little lackey swagger over and viciously slap the Dragon King who was hiding his identity, I felt my heart sink. Su Muwan's suspended heart finally died as she watched Qin Luo, her utterly loyal lackey, standing before her. She fainted on the spot from shock. Heaven is determined to destroy me!! (Pure love 1v1, light-hearted, no angst, single female lead, villain, reincarnation, lackey)
