The Hidden Dragon Tournament required students from both the junior and intermediate classes to participate. In reality, the junior classes merely served as foils for the intermediate classes. After all, given the vast gap between the Foundation Establishment Realm and the Void Pill Realm, for a junior class student to place on the leaderboard—to put it in three words: impossible!
Yet, there were exceptions to every rule. A monstrous talent ranked at the top of the first junior class could also defeat opponents from the Void Pill Realm across realms and thus contend for the Hidden Dragon Rankings.
The academy's intent was quite simple: to give the junior class students ample opportunity for practical tempering.
There were twenty-two junior classes in total, and Su Chen had been assigned to the twenty-second class. Across all the junior classes combined, there were roughly four to five thousand students.
Behind the valley lay a dense forest. The apex fierce beasts had all been driven away, leaving behind only beasts that the students were capable of handling.
The forest was divided into two sections, with the Hidden Dragon Tournament and the Hundred Battles Tournament taking place simultaneously.
Regardless of their class, students had the freedom of choice; the academy did not compel anyone to join the competitions.
The male instructor had merely asked whether Su Chen wished to participate, ultimately leaving the decision to him.
The tournaments would span ten days, and today was already the third day. Furthermore, the competitions were not solely about fighting for rankings; ranked students earned merit points, and mere participants would also be rewarded with points.
Merit points were of paramount importance to the students. Whether one wished to enter a specific cultivation ground or exchange for treasures, points were required.
Put simply: no matter how many gold coins one possessed, they were entirely useless within the academy. Only points mattered.
Without points, every step was a struggle.
"Teacher, I wish to participate in the Hidden Dragon Tournament. How do I get there?"
"The Hidden Dragon Tournament has already begun. I'll have one of the academy's flying fierce beasts take you."
"Thank you, Teacher."
The Golden-Beaked Vulture was one of the flying fierce beasts of East Desolate Academy.
Barely half an hour later, Su Chen arrived at the entrance of the forest. Dozens of instructors stood guard; should any emergency arise, they could rush inside at a moment's notice.
"Level 8 Foundation Establishment Realm. Not bad, you may enter."
After checking his identity token, Su Chen met with no obstruction whatsoever and walked straight into the forest.
"Instructor Wang, a Level 8 Foundation Establishment Realm student—why was he assigned to the twenty-second class?"
Instructor Wang shook his head, saying with a helpless sigh, "I don't know. I'm baffled myself. Logically speaking, a Level 8 Foundation Establishment Realm student should be able to enter the top five classes. But this was a personal instruction from the Dean."
Hearing that the Dean had given personal instructions, all the instructors were astonished, for under normal circumstances, the Dean never intervened in matters concerning student classes.
"Looks like another one who pulled strings to get in."
"Right. The Dean despises students who pull strings more than anyone. No matter how high their talent, they are always assigned to the lowest-tier classes unless they advance purely through their own potential and talent."
"Alright, let's keep our eyes on the tournament."
***
The dense forest.
Towering ancient trees blocked out the sky, and the gloomy clouds weighed heavily upon the spirit.
The East Desolate Forest was a forbidden zone of East Desolate Academy. Aside from students, no outsiders were permitted to step foot inside, not by even half a step, regardless of who they were.
According to the instructors, the apex fierce beasts of this forest had all been driven out, and the remaining beasts were within the students' capacity to handle. Still, accidents were bound to happen.
The identity token held by each individual possessed a special power. As long as one's soul merged with this power, they would receive the instructors' assistance and thereby leave the forest.
Whether it was poor luck or not, mere moments after stepping into the forest—less than half an hour in—he was locked onto by a fierce beast.
A Foundation Establishment Realm beast posed no challenge to Su Chen whatsoever.
With a flick of his hand, he obliterated and devoured it.
"Looks like I've been targeted."
In the Hidden Dragon Tournament, every student's identity token carried a special point value, used exclusively for the Hidden Dragon Rankings.
To vie for these special points: the more points one had, the higher their rank.
Here, there were no classmates—only the contention for points.
Even the junior class students were unwilling to give up. Even if they could only secure a spot on the Hidden Dragon Rankings for a single minute, it would grant them generous point rewards.
Being targeted by someone was entirely natural.
Clapping his hands, Su Chen looked ahead and said, "Since you've locked onto me, why cower in the shadows? Come out."
"Impressive. To actually be able to detect my trace—not bad."
A young man stepped out from behind a large tree. He stood only one meter sixty tall, with a chubby face and a pair of small eyes. He chuckled and said, "You look unfamiliar. Which class are you from?"
"Class Twenty-Two."
"Oh? So you're trash from Class Twenty-Two."
Trash?
Seeing the trace of surprise flicker across the other's face, Yan Kai seemed to understand something and smiled. "Looks like you're a student who just entered the academy and hasn't even reported yet. How utterly tragic. Do you even know what Class Twenty-Two represents in East Desolate Academy?"
Before the other could speak, Yan Kai let out a sneering laugh. "There are twenty-two junior classes in total. Among them, the twenty-second junior class is hailed by the academy as the worst junior class. There are nine students in that class, making a grand total of ten including you."
So that was how it was.
Su Chen could perceive a deep contempt in the eyes of the student before him.
It seemed his class certainly wasn't any sort of good class, but it didn't really matter. His purpose in coming to East Desolate Academy in the first place was to buy himself time and use the academy as a deterrent against the Su Clan.
"Hand over the points in your token, and I won't harm a hair on your head."
The rules of the Hidden Dragon Tournament explicitly forbade any fatalities. Whoever violated this rule would be expelled from the academy at the very least, or executed on the spot at worst.
However, injuries were inevitable when fighting for points, and in such cases, the academy chose to turn a blind eye.
Without wasting any more words, Su Chen's figure vanished from the spot in an instant.
"You—!"
Before the word "you" had even finished, Su Chen materialized directly in front of him. Looking at the youth standing so close, Yan Kai shivered involuntarily, his face plastered with shock.
"Level 8 Foundation Establishment Realm!"
He himself was only at Level 6 Foundation Establishment Realm, yet he never imagined that a piece of trash from Class Twenty-Two would possess the strength of the Level 8 Foundation Establishment Realm.
The more he thought about it, the less it made sense. According to the academy's rules, a Level 8 Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator was fully qualified to enter the top five classes; why on earth would he end up in the dead-last junior class?
Before Yan Kai could react, he was sent flying by a kick from Su Chen, crashing heavily to the ground.
There was no need to even release his Blood Wheel; with a gap of two minor realms, Su Chen was fully capable of defeating the opponent in seconds.
"Points."
Yan Kai's complexion was exceptionally ugly. He retrieved his identity token from his bosom, and the moment the two tokens touched, a point was instantly transferred into Su Chen's identity token.
Watching the retreating figure vanish, Yan Kai muttered to himself, "Must have pulled strings to get into Class Twenty-Two with a Level 8 Foundation Establishment Realm."
With two points now in his identity token, Su Chen decided to take the initiative and hunt. The instructor had made it crystal clear: points represented everything within the academy.
Whether he wished to enter a certain cultivation ground or trade for items, points were indispensable; gold coins were useless here.
If he wanted to climb the Hidden Dragon Rankings and earn points, the only method was to actively hunt for them.
Each student's token held one special point. As for how many points were needed to make it onto the Hidden Dragon Rankings, he had no idea yet.
***
Ye Fei, Chu Yang, and Bai Li formed a team, searching for their own prey. All three were at Level 2 Void Pill Realm, hailing from the eighteenth intermediate class.
Like the junior classes, there were twenty-two intermediate classes. The higher the number, the higher the class tier, granting access to greater cultivation resources.
During the Hidden Dragon Tournament, some students would temporarily form teams, which greatly increased their chances of contending for points.
"Senior Ye, Senior Chu, three days of the Hidden Dragon Tournament have already passed, and we haven't secured even a single point. If this continues, making it onto the Hidden Dragon Rankings seems rather unlikely."
None of the students chose to give up easily; everyone wanted a spot on the Hidden Dragon Rankings. It was not merely a symbol of status, but also came with numerous substantive rewards, of which points were the most direct.
Ye Fei let out a deep sigh and said helplessly, "The competition in the Hidden Dragon Tournament is too fierce. Being able to hold onto our own points is already quite an achievement. All the other students are out pillaging points from the junior class students, while the three of us are acting like fools."
"Forget it. We used to be junior class students ourselves, and our points were snatched away by people from the intermediate classes back then. I trust you haven't forgotten how helpless and frustrated we felt."
Bai Li nodded and said, "Senior Chu is right. Even if I have to give up on the Hidden Dragon Rankings, I won't make a move against junior class students."
At that very moment.
Seeing the youth appear before them, all three were somewhat startled.
"The three of you, I am Su Chen, from the junior class. I happen to be quite interested in the points within your identity tokens. If you three don't mind, why not gift your points to me?"
Ah?
The three of them were somewhat dumbfounded. If students from the intermediate classes had stepped up to snatch their points, it would have been understandable. But this opponent merely came from a junior class—meaning he had to be in the Foundation Establishment Realm—and yet he actually dared to covet the points in their hands.
Are you kidding me?
It was utterly laughable. In nearly every Hidden Dragon Tournament, junior class students almost never went around robbing intermediate class students of their points, given the sheer gap between the Foundation Establishment Realm and the Void Pill Realm. Though monstrous existences who could suppress Void Pill Realm opponents while still in the Foundation Establishment Realm of the junior class did occasionally appear...
No matter how good one's temper was, there were times when they would be provoked. They had already gone out of their way to avoid junior class students, trying not to bully the weak with their strength, yet they never expected this person to be so utterly arrogant.
***
Extremely furious.
Ice-cold gazes locked onto the youth before them. To be targeted and robbed of points by a junior class student—it would be strange if they weren't angry.
Chu Yang laughed.
"Your Excellency is being rather audacious. Do you truly believe you can take on three by yourself?"
Utterly arrogant!
Yet Chu Yang and Ye Fei knew very well that a junior class student would never dare act rashly without absolute confidence. After all, trying to rob intermediate class students of their points could easily backfire, resulting in a loss rather than a gain if one wasn't careful.
Choosing to hand over their points was out of the question.
Points were the foundation of the Hidden Dragon Tournament. If they couldn't even protect their own points, how could they dare speak of contending for others?
Beyond that, the most crucial issue was face. If the three of them were to have their points plundered by a junior class student and word got back to the academy, they would undoubtedly become the laughingstock of the entire institution.
Su Chen smiled and said, "The three of you, I'd rather not resort to force. I hope you'll hand over your points obediently."
Bai Li snapped completely, raging, "Enough of this arrogance! I want to see just how a single person of yours intends to defeat the three of us combined."
This battle could not be lost under any circumstances.
They couldn't afford to lose!
Simultaneously, the three released their respective Blood Wheels, all radiating powerful auras. Their expressions turned extremely grim.
They struck first.
Like a trio of hunting leopards, they surged directly toward their target. Their goal was simple: defeat this person, snatch the points from his hands, and teach him what consequences awaited such arrogance.
Before they even arrived, the terrifying pressure of their Blood Wheels rolled outward in successive waves, resembling a heavenly raptor plunging toward a helpless hare below, shrouding the area in boundless, churning fury.
Neither carelessness nor contempt was shown, for they could sense the unwavering confidence radiating from the youth's face.
Without absolute confidence, he would never dare provoke them.
The Blood Wheel condensed, and a sword phantom imbued with slaughter silently drifted within it. The sword hummed and roared, accompanied by rampantly sweeping, domineering sword qi.
Su Chen's figure suddenly vanished from the spot, leaving behind nothing more than lingering afterimages. The fierce onslaught of the three struck empty air, yet they reacted with swift reflexes.
Seeing his sudden disappearance, they instantly locked onto the direction where the afterimage flickered and unleashed another vicious barrage toward Su Chen.
*Such blinding speed!*
*End this swiftly!*
Shock washed over the three of them. They hadn't expected Su Chen to possess such astonishing speed, capable of leaving behind physical afterimages.
Like a phantom, Su Chen's figure materialized instantly behind Bai Li.
"Junior Sister Bai, watch out!"
"Too late."
Su Chen's voice was bone-chilling. Using his finger in place of a sword, a frigid bolt of sword qi thrust outward. He held back from dealing a fatal blow; after all, this was East Desolate Academy, where the rules explicitly forbade any fatalities in the Hidden Dragon Tournament.
He had no desire to test the academy's bottom line.
The tip of the sword qi halted right at the back of Bai Li's head, mere fractions of an inch away. If Su Chen so desired, he could take Bai Li's life at any moment.
"Please show mercy!"
"We're willing to hand over our points!"
They couldn't simply stand by and watch Bai Li get injured. Should an accident occur and something happen to her, no number of points could ever make up for it.
Bai Li broke out in a cold sweat, slowly turning around. Feeling the residual sword qi still lingering inches from her face, terror gripped her heart to the extreme. As a dignified Level 2 Void Pill Realm cultivator—and fighting alongside two others—she hadn't even been able to withstand a single move from him. It felt utterly unbelievable.
"We three deeply admire Junior Brother Su's strength. We have no doubt that once the Hidden Dragon Tournament concludes, the Hidden Dragon Rankings will certainly feature a spot for Junior Brother Su."
Ye Fei's words were entirely sincere, not meant as empty flattery. Through the brief exchange just moments ago, they could clearly feel that Su Chen's strength was genuinely formidable.
To take on three opponents and suppress Bai Li in a single move—regardless of whether they wanted to believe it or not, the facts were right before their eyes. If they continued fighting, defeat was certain.
Watching the three retrieve their identity tokens, Su Chen did not stand on ceremony. He pressed his token against theirs, and three transfers later, three points smoothly flowed into his own token.
Cupping his fists toward the three, Su Chen asked, "Senior brothers, senior sister, allow me to ask—where in the East Desolate Forest might one find spiritual herbs capable of healing the soul?"
Unable to purchase medicinal pills for the time being, Su Chen had noticed that the purple fox's condition was growing increasingly grave; its soul could dissipate at any moment. Since he had chosen to take the creature in, he had to find a way to stabilize its injuries.
"Is Junior Brother Su's soul injured?"
Su Chen made no attempt to hide it. "I've taken in a fierce beast whose soul suffered severe trauma. It's in urgent need of spiritual herbs or pills for treatment."
Even if he could exchange for pills upon entering the academy, it required points, and he feared the purple fox wouldn't last that long.
This was East Desolate Academy's territory. In such a boundless forest, Su Chen refused to believe there were no soul-healing spiritual herbs to be found.
After a moment of thought, Chu Yang retrieved a medicinal pill from his spatial ring and said, "The grade of this pill isn't very high, but take it for now."
"I also have a Purple Soul Pill here of rather high grade."
Accepting the two pills without standing on ceremony, Su Chen produced his identity token. Before the three could react, he transferred their points right back into their respective tokens.
"Junior Brother Su, what is the meaning of this? We gave you those pills, not to ransom back our points."
Su Chen shook his head. "I wish to make friends with the three of you."
These three were genuinely decent people. Back in Panyou City, Su Chen had suffered immensely, even being ruthlessly trampled upon by his own cousin and eldest uncle.
Yet even after he had robbed them of their points, these three were still willing to offer him medicinal pills. Furthermore, he could see in their eyes that they weren't doing it merely to trade pills for points.
Chu Yang nodded with a smile. "Since that's how it is, we won't stand on ceremony. Let me introduce us properly: we're all from the eighteenth intermediate class. I'm Chu Yang, and these are Ye Fei and Bai Li."
"As for spiritual herbs, I do know of a place. However, a fierce beast guards the location, and there's a high chance you might run into powerful senior students."
"Where?" Su Chen asked instantly, unable to conceal his urgency.
Seeing the youth's reaction, Ye Fei ultimately revealed the location. As for whether Su Chen chose to go or not, that would be up to him.
"Many thanks to the three seniors. I have matters to attend to, so I shall take my leave."
"Take care."
Watching the retreating figure turn away, Ye Fei let out a sigh of mixed emotion and approval. "His talent and potential are both formidable. To be able to defeat the three of us combined across realms... I believe it won't be long before Junior Brother Su makes a brilliant splash in the academy."
"This person is well worth befriending."
"Looks like the three of us are destined to miss out on the Hidden Dragon Rankings this time. Let's just treat it as a practical trial, strive for an early breakthrough, and advance to a higher class."
"Agreed."
***
The pitch-black night was sprinkled with a blanket of stars, enveloping the entire East Desolate Forest.
A solitary crescent moon hung desolately in the void.
Beneath the gloomy night shroud of the forest, the roars of fierce beasts echoed from time to time. The night was far more perilous than the day.
Before a campfire.
Su Chen stroked the purple fox's fur, gazing down at it in silence. Having consumed the two medicinal pills, the purple fox's breathing had visibly stabilized quite a bit.
Yet its injuries were still far from fully stable, liable to flare up at any moment.
He had to head to the location mentioned by Ye Fei, find a suitable spiritual herb, and have the purple fox ingest it.
"Nine people."
Thinking back to the daytime and what Chu Yang and the others had said about the worst junior class, Su Chen felt a flicker of helplessness.
Out of twenty-two junior classes, only his class—the twenty-second—was hailed as the worst. Including himself, there were merely ten students in total.
Tucking the purple fox gently into his bosom, Su Chen crossed his legs and sat down, circulating the Ancestral Phoenix Nirvana Scripture and the Primordial Gods and Demons Scripture within his body, concentrating his mind and guarding his core essence.
As the energy of gods and demons began to gather within him, Su Chen followed the circulation trajectory of the Primordial Gods and Demons Scripture, his hands continuously forming seals.
The vast, boundless aura of gods and demons rapidly condensed a seal before Su Chen, radiating an incomparable dominance.
An oppressive, bone-chilling pressure of gods and demons shrouded his entire frame. Suddenly opening his eyes, he thrust his palms fiercely toward the empty space before him.
The air vibrated, and the overbearing shockwaves rippled outward in all directions, carrying an aura of death that sent chills down the spine.
God and Demon Death Seal?