Chapter 22: Xu Jingming, Really a Lightning-Type!

"This is trouble now."

Zhou Mingyang couldn't help but smile bitterly.

If it were any other ordinary second-rank ferocious beast.

The four of us together might have held out for a while.

But with the Bloodthirsty Bear's strength, that massive paw the size of a giant wok would crush us all to death!

We couldn't even hold it for a moment.

"There's another possibility—that we were wiped out the moment we entered the compound.

Before the Bloodthirsty Bear even moved, those dozens of first-rank high-tier ferocious beasts would've overwhelmed us."

The bald youth snorted.

The four of us together can barely handle three or four first-rank high-tier ferocious beasts.

But down in the compound's open area, there are over thirty first-rank high-tier ferocious beasts!

That means, whether it's that second-rank Bloodthirsty Bear,

or the remaining first-rank high-tier beasts, we dare not provoke any of them.

"The gap in ferocious beast deployment between the innermost zone and the core zone is too huge.

In the core zone, the strongest are barely first-rank mid-tier—but in the innermost zone, the strongest become second-rank,

and even the ordinary beasts are all first-rank high-tier. How are we supposed to play this?"

The petite girl Meng Di pouted unhappily.

"Before the exam, I heard our Wu Ke Gaokao examiner was Old Liu—I didn't believe it.

But now, this insane ferocious beast setup? It's definitely him!"

The long-haired boy gritted his teeth.

Jiangnan Province rotates its Wu Ke Gaokao examiners every year.

Old Liu is one of the most ruthless among them.

His Wu Ke Gaokao has a death rate more than double that of other years!

"First-rank high-tier and second-rank ferocious beasts in the innermost zone are a fixed pairing nationwide.

Old Liu just swapped them for the more dangerous Bloodthirsty Bear.

We can't blame anyone—it's just that we're not strong enough."

Zhou Mingyang sighed.

Wu Ke Gaokao is meant to select the elite—the innermost zone is like the final big question on a math exam.

Only those who solve that final question are true sons of heaven.

He was the genius of Jiangcheng, watched by all.

But across all of Jiangnan Province, he didn't even have the qualification to touch that final question...

"Speaking of it, Xu Jingming worked his ass off all this time, scraped together over three thousand points—

and it's still slower than killing this one second-rank beast and thirty-plus first-rank high-tier beasts."

The long-haired youth smirked slightly, his expression mocking.

The point values for innermost zone ferocious beasts are far higher than those in the core zone.

Killing one first-rank high-tier beast grants 100 points.

If you kill the final second-rank beast, you gain a massive 4,000 points!

"Humanity needs powerful warriors with combat prowess—what's the point of killing endless trash?"

The long-haired boy spat contemptuously on the ground, clearly harboring resentment toward Xu Jingming.

Zhou Mingyang frowned at this, but ultimately said nothing.

After all, it was true.

Wu Ke Gaokao demands ferociously strong warriors!

Not mere killing machines that only slaughter low-rank beasts.

Just like today's Blue Star—though ferocious beasts rampage,

if you kill all nine-rank Beast Emperors, the rest will collapse on their own.

But if you don't kill the Beast Emperors, no matter how many ordinary beasts you slaughter, it's useless.

That's precisely why Wu Ke Gaokao sets the innermost zone's point values so high.

Kill the second-rank beast, and you instantly gain enough points to dominate the entire field.

And the second-rank beast is the mandatory target for any candidate aiming for provincial top scorer.

Still, though he said all that, Zhou Mingyang silently added in his heart:

'What use is Xu Jingming? Then what about us, whose scores are lower than his? Are we useless too?'

He thought that, but since they'd soon fight side by side, he didn't argue back.

"Enough talking."

"Let's go down and try to lure out a few first-rank high-tier beasts."

The open area under the Bloodthirsty Bear's watch is definitely not safe to enter directly.

So Zhou Mingyang's strategy is to lure them out one by one—kill as many as we can.

Of course,

we might not lure out a single one.

If that happens, we'll have no choice but to retreat to the central zone.

"Let's get to work."

"Tsk, going to where second-tier ferocious beasts are stationed to provoke them— isn't that just asking for death?"

"Heh, even if it is asking for death, isn't it still worth trying?"

"......"

The group teased each other as they prepared to head downstairs.

But at that moment, a black figure rapidly sprinted toward them from afar.

The figure moved with blazing speed, like a cheetah, arriving at the entrance of Jinse Garden complex in just a few seconds.

"Xu Jingming!"

Zhou Mingyang's gaze sharpened.

Though he stood on the eighth-floor rooftop, his enhanced vision as an adept allowed him to...

... spot at once that the figure below was Xu Jingming, the man he'd met once before.

"Xu Jingming came too? Where? Where?"

"Xu Jingming? Hmph, I'd like to see just who this guy really is!"

Unlike Zhou Mingyang, Meng Di and the others had never encountered Xu Jingming.

So upon hearing Zhou Mingyang's voice, the group, already at the stairwell, quickly turned back and looked down.

When a cultivator transforms into an adept, not only does their ability strengthen, but their physical attributes also rise accordingly.

Thus, the height of the eighth floor meant nothing to them—they could clearly see the figures below.

There, before the open ground of the complex, stood a young man.

He was tall and broad, his face resolute, his eyes as sharp as an eagle's.

After countless battles, the black combat suit he wore was half-drenched in dark red.

Behind his back, the black long spear he carried had its once-sharp blade now pitted and uneven, like a cleaver hacked too many bones.

Precisely because of this spear, the young man's steady, powerful aura gained an additional edge of ferocity.

"So cool, that guy!"

Women, at any time, remain emotional creatures.

Thus, the instant she saw Xu Jingming, Meng Di's eyes brightened.

"An F-rank spear worn down to this state—hard to imagine how many ferocious beasts he's slain."

The bald boy marveled at the ruin of Xu Jingming's weapon.

要知道,

F-rank alloy is incredibly hard; to reduce it to this condition proves the frequency and brutality of his battles.

"Daring to appear before a horde of ferocious beasts like this— isn't that suicide?"

The long-haired boy snorted coldly, relishing the spectacle.

"Roar—"

"Howl—"

Indeed, Xu Jingming's appearance triggered immediate chaos among the ferocious beasts below.

In an instant, over a dozen high-tier first-rank ferocious beasts roared and charged toward him!

"Damn! He's stirred up the whole horde!"

Meng Di gasped in alarm.

"Why is Xu Jingming so reckless?"

Zhou Mingyang frowned.

At this distance, even if they wanted to help, they'd be too late.

By the time they reached him, Xu Jingming would already be dead beyond recovery.

"What else? His confidence from being number one— he doesn't know his own limits."

The long-haired boy sneered, eyes locked below. "He uses a spear? But that broken thing won't save him."

As he said, Xu Jingming initially managed to handle the first few charging beasts.

But the ones that followed swiftly overwhelmed him—his figure was soon swallowed by the dozen ferocious beasts...

"Xu Jingming... won't he just die like this?"

Watching the figure vanish into the horde, Zhou Mingyang found it hard to believe.

The man had risen like a comet within mere hours.

And now, would he fall like a meteor?

Most importantly—what was Xu Jingming thinking?

He knew the core zone was filled with high-tier first-rank and second-rank ferocious beasts—so why dare stroll out so boldly before them?

"Come to think of it, he lied to me—he never once used his lightning ability."

"Whatever. Dead is dead. I won't pursue it further."

Zhou Mingyang and Xu Jingming had only met once; he felt little concern for the man's safety.

At most, he was puzzled by this foolish act.

Then, suddenly, Zhou Mingyang and the others felt a jolt in their hearts.

A low, commanding voice echoed beside them:

"Thunder—come!"

The next instant.

Amidst chaotic, piercing thunderclaps, a violet shockwave erupted violently from the very center of the ferocious beast horde below!

Boom!!

The fierce beasts that came into contact with this shockwave all turned pitch-black as if struck heavily, and were sent flying four or five meters away!

And the once-dense horde of fierce beasts, as if a doodle lightly wiped away with an eraser, instantly cleared out a patch of empty ground!

In the center of the empty ground, Xu Jingming's tall and slender figure stood towering there like a war god.

Around his body, strands of purple lightning coiled, as if welcoming the arrival of their sovereign, continuously cheering and leaping in joy.

And at this moment, Zhou Mingyang and the others only then realized in shock.

What just now was not some shockwave at all, but a high-voltage electric net condensed from purple lightning!!

"This??!!"

Staring at the figure in the center of the empty ground that resembled Lei Shen, Zhou Mingyang was dumbstruck, and only after quite a while did he come back to his senses, muttering:

"Xu Jingming... it really is a lightning-type ability......"