Chapter 394: The Last Final Exam

There are two days left until the final exam.

Yet Chen Shu and Brother Meng came to a Martial Cultivation Hall in the Nancheng District of Yujing City to watch Brother Jiang's match.

This Martial Cultivation Hall is also primarily for combat and is of a high standard; the sunken Arena floor below is even larger than the Sports Field at Yujing Academy. The ground is cast entirely from a special material and engraved with full Defense Runes, and a Defense Barrier is set up around it, making it difficult for even a Sixth-stage Martial Artist to cause damage to it. The tiered spectator seating that circles the area can accommodate tens of thousands of people watching at once, so it is often chosen as an arena for large-scale martial tournaments.

At this moment, the spectator seating is almost full, and every collision in the arena draws a roar from the crowd.

Meng Chunqiu is now considered a practitioner of ancient cultivation, no longer the weak, stubborn scholar he was back then, so he can naturally see the nuances of the fight and cannot help but exclaim, "Brother Jiang is fighting with ease. Brother Chen, did you place a bet on the web?"

"I didn't."

"Why? Although the odds for Brother Jiang are very low, you could still earn a little. You and I both know his strength, and there is no risk to speak of."

"Too lazy to look for a website."

"..."

Meng Chunqiu cannot help but shake his head: "Brother Chen, you are too lazy..."

Chen Shu yawns and continues to aim his gaze toward the arena.

Today, Brother Jiang's opponent is a Barbarian Martial Artist from the Northern Continent who also has not opened a Spirit Sea, so he is counted as a Martial Artist, currently ranked eighteenth globally. This Barbarian Martial Artist is exceptionally tall, like a small giant, with arms as thick as a waist, yet his movements are like the wind, exerting immense pressure.

At this moment, it is still the opponent attacking and Brother Jiang defending.

It looks as if Brother Jiang is being beaten back step by step and is covered in cuts and bruises, but in reality, he is just using this opportunity to let the opponent help him temper his body. However, his defensive power clearly exceeds that of a Sixth-stage Martial Artist; even though the opponent is skilled at attacking and possesses great strength, he only leaves superficial wounds on him.

It is even becoming somewhat difficult for him to even temper his body.

"With Brother Jiang's current strength, ordinary Barbarian Martial Cultivators probably can't beat him, right?" Meng Chunqiu leans in close to Chen Shu.

"No need to doubt it; it might be possible if those two Northern Continent geniuses came," Chen Shu confirms his guess, pauses, and adds slyly, "Brother Meng, don't lean so close to me; there are many people here, and we might be misunderstood later."

"That would be perfect, let Miss Ning break up with you."

"Hahahaha..."

While the two are talking and laughing, Brother Jiang on the field has already turned from defense to offense.

The spectator seating suddenly erupts into a roar like a mountain collapse and a tsunami.

The shouts of tens of thousands of people merge into one, as if to blow the roof off, representing the martial spirit of this country's people.

However, even when counterattacking, Brother Jiang fights with great restraint.

It is not that he is timid or soft, but rather that he is not using his full strength, yet he still creates the feeling of going all out—one can see him nimbly dodging the swinging punches and sweeping kicks that are as thick as tree branches, weaving through the fists and feet at the limit, and seizing opportunities to counterattack. Every punch lands solidly, heavy and powerful, as if a mortal body were fighting a giant mecha, which instead enhances the spectacle of the match.

Meng Chunqiu rubs his ears and cannot help but sigh: "Brother Jiang is popular now."

"Isn't that so."

"I've even scrolled past him several times on short videos."

"Oh, you scroll through short videos too?"

"I was led into it by you."

"Blame me?"

"That goes without saying."

Meng Chunqiu says with a smile, his smile bright, looking for all the world like a gentle and lively woman.

Looking back at Brother Jiang, he still feels moved in his heart.

Over the past half year, Brother Jiang has been competing in the Martial King Tournament, with a perfect record, and is currently ranked exactly twentieth globally.

He even made the trending topics at the time.

Don't look at the Martial King Tournament as being hosted by the people of Yiguo; the people of Yiguo are also very martial, and it is a great nation, but among the top twenty in the Martial King Tournament, there were previously only two Yiguo people in total, and now it has become three—because Martial Artists have not opened a Spirit Sea and rely entirely on their own bloodline and physique, and in pure physical confrontation, the entire Sapient Species does not have the advantage; Barbarians and Night People are the kings in this regard.

Moreover, Brother Jiang is the youngest among the top twenty in the Martial King Tournament, the matches are exciting, and they have lasted a long time; everyone has witnessed him walking step by step, and many people have unknowingly become his fans in the process.

"Looks like it's about to end."

Meng Chunqiu tilts his head and says to Chen Shu.

As soon as the words fall, the giant in the arena suddenly exerts force, using his elbow as a horn, his massive body erupting with extreme speed and power, crashing toward Jiang Lai.

This move had been used before and was "narrowly" dodged by Brother Jiang, crashing into the Defense Barrier in front of Chen Shu and Meng Chunqiu. At that time, the Defense Barrier trembled violently, and the audience in the first row was so frightened they jumped up, leaving a deep shadow. But this time, the giant cleverly used his offensive to block Brother Jiang's escape route first to complete a desperate counterattack.

Some knowledgeable audience members have already held their breath.

Yet they only see Brother Jiang narrow his eyes, not dodging at all, but instead turning his body to the side, using his shoulder as a shield, suddenly unleashing inch-power, and the Sun and Moon Rune on his body erupts with a terrifying shockwave in the opposite direction, pushing his body forward and crashing toward the giant as well.

"Boom!"

The two sides collide.

It is like two tanks traveling over a hundred kilometers per hour crashing together; even steel would be crushed into mud, but the one who ends up retreating and falling is that giant.

The whole arena is silent, then erupts into a roar like a mountain collapse and a tsunami.

Chen Shu rubs his ears, turns his head, and says to Meng Chunqiu: "I think I've already thought of the title for the trending topic later."

"I thought of it too."

Meng Chunqiu pauses as he speaks and says to him: "Brother Chen, don't lean so close to me; there are many people here, and we might be misunderstood later, ruining the reputation of my Imperial Family."

"Hahaha..."

The audience in the arena stands up spontaneously, clapping vigorously.

The two of them also stand up and clap.

The delicate Martial Artist in the arena, who has a baby face but is covered in wounds, bows to the four sides of the spectator seating to express his thanks, then goes to console his opponent. The referee also hurriedly goes on stage to announce the winner, both sides' coaches and medical teams go on stage, and the outcome is decided.

One hour later.

Brother Jiang has changed into ordinary clothes and is walking slowly along an unnamed street in Yujing City with his two roommates. Each of the three is holding a cup of milk tea. Just now, his full-body injuries had recovered at a speed visible to the naked eye, and now no traces of injury can be seen at all.

"Brother Jiang is going to change his strategy after this, right?" Meng Chunqiu takes his mouth off the straw, his pace elegant.

"How did you know?"

"Guessed."

"Mm." Jiang Lai nods and says, "Now that I've entered the top twenty and gained enough fans, I feel that everyone's tempering is of no help to me anymore. The subsequent matches will be played more aggressively, bringing out suppressive strength so that everyone can watch happily."

"If other contestants heard you say that, they would be angered to death," Meng Chunqiu laughed.

"A perfectly good Martial King Tournament, and you've gone and turned it into an exhibition match," Chen Shu also chuckled, then asked, "When do you plan to break through to the Seventh Stage?"

"End of the year, I suppose. No need to 'break through'."

"Hm? What do you mean by 'no need to break through'?"

"Because I have no Spirit Sea, I have no Spirit Sea Lock. The process of advancing to the Seventh Stage has no barriers and no restrictions," Jiang Lai finished, then thought for a moment, "I am actually the same as a beast now. Normally, when a beast wants to advance, it falls into two categories: one is that their innate bloodline tier is very high, such as an Imperial Beast; after reaching adulthood, they naturally reach the High-Tier, and later, they can naturally reach the Ninth Stage. The other is that their innate bloodline tier is not high enough; if they want to advance, they must either rely on long periods of time to accumulate changes, or consume a Beast Pill two tiers higher than their own."

Jiang Lai paused and added, "In the second half of the year, the Imperial Family decided to grant me and Student Yan an Honorary Title. From then on, we will be considered people of the Imperial Family, and the Imperial Family will provide us with the Beast Pills needed for advancement."

"I see..."

Chen Shu understood, and found it amazing.

A Beast Pill is inherently meant for beasts; it is a form of inheritance. If an Eighth-tier Beast Pill is used on a Sixth-tier beast, as long as the Sixth-tier beast can endure it, the probability of advancing to the Seventh Stage is one hundred percent. The effect is only diminished when used on humans. However, for beasts, Beast Pills are also extremely scarce. Generally, only beasts with very high bloodline tiers can obtain a Beast Pill condensed by a beast two tiers higher than themselves, or it is an inheritance from an elder of their own clan.

Moreover, the Founding Spiritual Power that Brother Jiang possesses is already at the level of a Ninth Stage beast; without a Beast Pill, advancing to the High-Tier would only be a matter of time. If the Imperial Family is willing to provide him with Beast Pills, it will undoubtedly greatly accelerate his advancement speed.

The Imperial Family is truly worthy of being the Imperial Family; they are wealthy and powerful.

With a group leader, and a Brother Meng, to support these two—they can actually afford to support two more.

"Tsk tsk..."

Chen Shu sighed twice, finished the milk tea in his cup, tore off the plastic seal on top, used the straw to sweep all the remaining milk tofu at the bottom into his mouth, and then casually tossed it, just happening to hit the trash can.

He stretched lazily, feeling completely at ease.

Returning to school, two days later, the final exams began.

Chen Shu took only a pen, said a word to his two roommates, and went out the door.

The exam started at nine o'clock; when he arrived, it was eight-fifty-eight, and there were only seats left in the first row of the exam hall.

That is how composed a top student is.

Chen Shu sat down casually and waited silently.

After receiving the test paper, he scanned it; they were all very basic questions, and multiple-choice and true-or-false questions made up more than half, with only a few long-form questions at the end. In the professional course exams of previous semesters, there would have been many fill-in-the-blank and design questions.

By comparison, at least for multiple-choice questions, there are only four answers to choose from, and for true-or-false questions, you only need to judge right or wrong; even if you guess, there is a high probability of being correct.

Clearly, since it is the final semester, the teachers do not want to let everyone fail or have to take make-up exams.

Can this be considered a kind of kindness?

Chen Shu wrote as if guided by a god.

Nine-twenty, Ling'an Academy.

Outside an old Teaching Building.

The young girl had her hands tucked into her trouser pockets, her head lowered, pacing in circles around a flower bed again.

She had an exam today too, but the start time was nine-thirty; she did not want to enter the exam hall, as it was too noisy and would delay her from thinking about important matters.

Not until the alarm clock rang did she step inside.

She happened to catch the teacher handing out the papers.

The young girl looked down at the test paper, which had a total of only ten questions; as a genius in her major, she also felt they were all very simple.

Only the very last long-form question made her frown slightly.