Chapter 17: Violent Aesthetics, Domineering Spear Art!

Xu Jingming stood one meter eighty-six tall, and with him standing atop the bus roof, the moment he appeared, he drew the attention of the Armblade Tigers in the plaza below.

Apart from the Armblade Tiger King in the very center, who still lay lazily in place, the other nine resting Armblade Tigers all rose at the same time.

Their eyes gleaming with ferocity, they paced toward the bus.

Their speed was not fast, but the oppressive pressure brought by nine Armblade Tigers, each massive as a sedan, gathering together was utterly terrifying.

Precisely because of this, beast hordes had always been extremely difficult to deal with.

One could say that even a high-tier first-rank fierce beast would not dare provoke these nine Armblade Tigers lightly!

Yet, facing the nine Armblade Tigers walking toward him at once, Xu Jingming was not the least bit afraid.

He leaped down from the top of the bus, landing on the ground with a thud.

"Roar—"

Accompanying a low roar, the nine Armblade Tigers, which had been advancing slowly, actually spread out in an almost human-like manner.

Then, they charged at Xu Jingming from different directions!

"Worthy of a beast horde led by a beast commander—they've even learned simple formations."

With a reverse grip, the Black Glorious Spear was already in Xu Jingming's hand.

The bus was less than thirty meters from the plaza; for these low-tier first-rank Armblade Tigers, that distance was nothing at all.

Thus, in the blink of an eye, the nine Armblade Tigers had closed to within five meters of Xu Jingming.

But these Armblade Tigers did not swarm him all at once. Instead, five Armblade Tigers took the lead, charging in a leaping pounce!

Five massive Armblade Tigers crowded together, sealing off every direction ahead of Xu Jingming!

And behind him was the abandoned bus, so he could not retreat either!

In other words, at this moment, Xu Jingming had no way to escape!

Facing this situation, Xu Jingming's eyes remained resolute, and at the same time, the two-meter-one Black Glorious Spear was swung by him like a giant windmill.

The whirling Black Glorious Spear became a black phantom, like a high-speed rotating propeller!

At this moment,

The Armblade Tigers realized something was wrong, but it was already too late!

The five Armblade Tigers, completely unguarded, crashed into the high-speed spinning Black Glorious Spear.

Squelch~~

Squelch~~

The sharp spearhead of the Black Glorious Spear, like a meat grinder, directly sliced the heads of the five Armblade Tigers, leaving them battered and bleeding.

Then, under the tremendous impact, one of them tumbled head over heels to the ground!

Although their heads had suffered heavy wounds, these five Armblade Tigers did not die on the spot; lying on the ground, they were clearly still breathing.

"Pure physical strength is still a bit lacking."

Xu Jingming could not help but shake his head.

This windmill move relied purely on his physical strength to swing the spear; it was not a combat technique.

If this move had been a combat technique fusing bodily strength with abilities, these five fierce beasts would have been instantly killed in that split second.

"But it's fine, I just need to finish them off."

Xu Jingming charged forward again, and the remaining four Armblade Tigers tried to block his advance.

But they were all evaded by Xu Jingming's agile footwork.

Then, the Black Glorious Spear, like the Grim Reaper's scythe, reaped the lives of the five wounded Armblade Tigers one after another.

"Roar—"

At this moment, the mid-tier first-rank Armblade Tiger King, which had been lying in the very center, finally realized something was wrong, and rose to step in front of the remaining four Armblade Tigers.

"Perfect, I'll take care of you all together."

With a sharp sound, the Black Glorious Spear was pulled from the Armblade Tiger's corpse.

Xu Jingming gripped his spear, facing five Armblade Tigers all alone.

In those clear eyes of his, there was not the slightest trace of fear—only endless coldness and killing intent.

"Roar!!"

Whether because too many of its companions had been wounded and killed, or because Xu Jingming's unyielding gaze had enraged it,

the Armblade Tiger King let out an angry roar, then charged forward with the remaining four Armblade Tigers!

Xu Jingming raised his spear and charged head-on, clashing with the five Armblade Tigers.

Although Armblade Tigers were fierce beasts, they still possessed a certain intelligence.

Especially this group of Armblade Tigers, which had fought together many times and had no idea how many powerful fierce beasts they had jointly slain!

Five Armblade Tigers like these, if placed in a city, would be enough to wipe out an elite squad of over a hundred soldiers!

Yet Xu Jingming transformed into a black phantom, weaving through the gaps in the Armblade Tiger pack.

The Armblade Tigers could not deal Xu Jingming any actual harm!

Yet every thrust of Xu Jingming's spear went straight for a vital point; the Armblade Tigers were either instantly killed or gravely wounded.

Thus, in less than two minutes, all the Armblade Tigers had fallen beneath his spear.

"Mid-tier first-rank fierce beasts are nothing special either—not even enough to force me to use my abilities."

Looking at the Armblade Tiger King by his feet, which had already lost its breath of life, Xu Jingming could not help but shake his head.

Although his physique had been enhanced with the system's help, exactly how strong his combat power actually was, he himself was not entirely clear.

The reason he dared to launch an attack against the Armblade Tiger beast horde like this was also because he had Doushen Shenlei as his trump card.

Unfortunately, this beast horde didn't even have the strength to make him use his abilities.

Xu Jingming then glanced at the system panel.

Just this wave alone earned him a full 106 Ability Points!

"A bountiful harvest!"

Xu Jingming's face lit up with joy.

If this pace continues, by the time the Wu Ke Gaokao ends, he won't know how many Ability Points he'll have accumulated!

"Worrying too much now won't help—focus on harvesting Ability Points. Hurry to the next location."

Wiping the blood off his spear, Xu Jingming slung it back onto his back and hurried toward the next location...

On Gaokao day, all high schools in Jiangcheng organize first- and second-year students to watch the Wu Ke Gaokao livestream.

On one hand, it's to make these students understand the bloodshed and cruelty of the Wu Ke Gaokao.

On the other hand, it's to help students become familiar with the habits of ferocious beasts in advance.

At this moment, the playground of Jiangcheng No. 2 High School.

In midair, there was a virtual projection identical to the one in the military district.

Around the spectator seats, all first- and second-year students had already been watching the livestream for a while.

In past years, the top ten were always students from No. 1 High School.

Therefore, they discussed mostly candidates from other schools.

But this year was different—our school also had a candidate capable of breaking into the top ten!

Xu Jingming!

When Xu Jingming surged onto the big screen at ninth place, the entire faculty and student body of No. 2 High School erupted!

Especially the scene where he pierced the Shadow Cat with a single spear thrust, leaving the students wildly excited.

"Holy shit! That spear thrust was so cool!"

"I'd never heard of Senior Xu's name before, but from now on, he's my idol!"

"Senior Xu is tall and muscular—so incredibly hot!"

"......"

Unlike the directors and principals in the military district who sighed at Xu Jingming's performance, the students watching him break into the top ten genuinely rejoiced and thrilled for him.

Many even took him as their benchmark and role model.

However, for the next half-hour, Xu Jingming kept moving, rarely striking out.

This left the students deeply disappointed, especially after his rank dropped to tenth—some grew frantic.

They wished they could become Xu Jingming themselves and slaughter wildly to reclaim his rank.

"Sigh, looks like No. 2 High still can't cut it—finally we get a candidate in the top ten, and he's a coward."

"Though I hate to admit it, Senior Xu is really disappointing."

"Forget it, I'll just watch the livestream of the top-ranked Green Edge Sword, Zhou Mingyang."

"......"

The greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment.

No. 2 High had finally produced a candidate in the top ten—they naturally hoped he'd climb even higher.

But Xu Jingming's performance triggered scattered negative remarks from the spectator seats.

Many students began switching back to watching livestreams of other star candidates.

"Look! Senior Xu found a ferocious beast!"

Suddenly, a voice from somewhere redirected everyone's gaze back to Xu Jingming's livestream.

On screen, Xu Jingming stood atop a bus, while below him loomed a pack of massive Arm-Knife Tigers!

"Oh no! Senior Xu is surrounded by a ferocious beast pack!"

"Arm-Knife Tiger pack—done for, done for."

"Why isn't Senior Xu running?! If he doesn't go now, he's dead!"

"It's over—the Arm-Knife Tigers have surrounded him. He can't escape."

"Senior Xu, what are you doing?! Why haven't you activated your safety ball?!"

"......"

Though Xu Jingming's earlier performance had disappointed the students, he was still their own senior.

So when he encountered the ferocious beast pack, every student couldn't help but worry.

When five Arm-Knife Tigers leapt toward Xu Jingming—who had not activated his safety ball—some girls screamed and covered their eyes.

But the expected scene of him being devoured never came.

Instead, Xu Jingming swung his Black Radiance Spear with an invincible posture, smashing all five Arm-Knife Tigers away!

"Holy shit! So brutal!"

At that moment, every person in the spectator seats felt their hearts leap.

"Can a spear really be used like that?"

"That strength is insane! If an ordinary person swung a spear like that, they wouldn't injure the Arm-Knife Tigers—they'd be crushed under their massive bodies!"

"This Senior Xu must have awakened a physical enhancement ability—no one else could achieve this!"

In an instant, all prior resentment toward Xu Jingming vanished from the students' minds!

Then, Xu Jingming became a black phantom, spear in hand.

Like wind and lightning, he darted through the five Arm-Knife Tigers, relentlessly advancing and slaying.

His black spear, drenched in so much ferocious beast blood, turned a vivid crimson.

No one found this scene disturbing—instead, everyone cried out in exhilaration.

"Such a violent feeling—I love it!"

"Awesome! This feeling is far more exhilarating than watching the floaty Light Wind Sword!"

"Every spear strike hits flesh! What a brutal spear technique!"

"......"

The ferocious beasts are enemies of humanity; this is the universal consensus.

Therefore, when the Arm-Knife Tiger was slaughtered without resistance, no one felt pity—only immense satisfaction.

Especially the tall, slender figure moving through the fray—each spear thrust carried a unique sense of violence.

This violence did not seem bloody, but was instead filled with beauty.

It stirred the blood of these sixteen- and seventeen-year-old youths, each of them blushing furiously.