The darkness of the night enveloped the wilderness.

A car tore through the grassland, its headlights like lightning, flashing wildly in the dark night. The silent man, the roaring Giant Beast, the frantic and anguished woman, and the scattered beasts, disturbed for no reason, composed an interesting symphony.

BOOM!

Wang Zhan looked solemn, seemingly oblivious to the screams beside him, focused only on slamming the accelerator, venting the ferocity accumulated from the Death Battlefield.

The woman in red, under the hazy moonlight, was quietly shrouded in a layer of light. At some unknown point, she had chosen to remain silent, her head lowered, as if she had lost all interest in the astonishing speed before them.

"Lift your head."

Wang Zhan didn't look at her, merely calling out softly.

The woman ignored him, lost in her own inescapable sorrow and memories. In a certain moment, perhaps recalling something, tears like pearls scattered from the heavens silently adorned her captivating face.

However, Wang Zhan was hardly the type to cherish women; if Yao Yao were beside him, it might have been different. He immediately slapped her face, the new print overlapping the old one, creating another blurred smudge in her makeup.

"I told you to lift your head!"

Even as the tiny beetle sped forward, Wang Zhan turned his head, his gaze, carrying an irresistible and somewhat murderous glint, fixed on this seemingly crazed woman.

She cried, sobbing 'WOO WOO WOO,' her difficult gasps and tears forming a torrent that threatened to overwhelm Wang Zhan's strong psychological defenses.

"Don't you want to die? Lift your head! This young master will take you to your death right now!"

At his sharp reprimand, the woman, as if by instinct, finally broke free from her world of sorrow and gloom. She numbly lifted her head and immediately saw an enormous beast standing before them.

Its four limbs were strong and powerful, its body covered in thick armor. On its head were two huge, sharp horns curved into an arc, proclaiming its strength to all.

But that wasn't what the woman was afraid of.

Instead, it was the tiny beetle beneath them, charging forward at an unprecedented, unceasing speed, rapidly closing the distance. It gave the woman a first-person view, like a game, of the beast's enormous body and its formidable armor.

The Red-Horn Pig, an intermediate Soldier-level beast that had already reached the Martial Master rank, was undoubtedly the overlord of this wilderness area, though it posed no threat to Jing State.

"AHHH!!!"

Another high-pitched scream rose, filled with the terror of facing death.

A massive ROARING SOUND erupted suddenly, like a missile striking its target or a meteorite crashing to earth.

BOOM! Flames erupted. The tiny beetle, once speeding along, was now a pile of fiercely burning scrap metal. Besides that, there was the Red-Horn Pig, which had inexplicably suffered this calamity. It was knocked staggering to the ground, one side of its body directly split open, flesh lacerated and bloodstained.

...

「Jing State Wilderness Area, near the Temporary Stadium.」

Beside the colossal stadium, a testament to the power of the Royal Martial Arts Academy, over a hundred five-story residential buildings were systematically arranged, forming a tight defensive formation, each supporting the other.

The mentors from the Military Department resided in Zone E, guarding the first ring of the defense line. The students lived in Zone A, enjoying the tight protection of mentors and garrison soldiers, comfortably quartered in the deepest area, closest to the Temporary Stadium.

Such a small protective belt effectively turned this Temporary Stadium into a small city, even safer than many state capitals. The strength of the Royal Martial Arts Academy was evident at a glance.

Logically, with such arrangements, all students should be sleeping soundly, free from worry.

However, inside the lodgings of the Chu State Military Martial Arts Academy Team, a pall of gloom hung heavy. Everyone wore somber expressions, the atmosphere so oppressive it felt like water could be wrung from the air.

They were obviously troubled by the Team Extra Time Competition mentioned by Qin Baihe, Vice Dean of the Royal Martial Arts Academy, during the opening ceremony—especially the 300,000 points that had been so casually thrown out.

300,000 points. A full 300,000.

Like a colossal tsunami, these points had utterly disrupted the ranks and order of the leaderboard. Not only did it render previous points almost worthless, but the foundation Wang Zhan had built for the Chu State Military Martial Arts Academy Team also vanished completely.

This was why Song Dongming and Sun Kelan, the two strategists who largely determined the Chu State Military Martial Arts Academy Team's future, were nursing splitting headaches.

Even Huang Pufeng, that blunt fellow, wore a grave expression. Hailing from a prominent Family, he had seen plenty of such ploys and understood the Federation's intentions.

A single Wang Zhan had not only disrupted the original hierarchy of the four major Martial Arts Academies but had also severely upset the balance of the Federal Martial Arts Competition, almost like a massive loophole. Not to mention a fact known to the high-level echelons of the Federation, though not to the team: Wang Zhan was a genuine Martial General expert. Even if it was only his physical body's defense, he was still like a wolf among sheep, leaving others utterly powerless to retaliate.

Of course, it was undeniable that the Royal Martial Arts Academy's efforts had, to a large extent, pulled this Martial Arts Academy competition far off its original track, and there was no telling where it was headed.

"What do we do now? If this goes on, our points will be surpassed sooner or later. Where is Wang Zhan? We need him!" Zhou Weiya asked gravely.

He had originally just planned to muddle through. Who would have thought that the dark horse Wang Zhan would emerge, leading the Chu State Military Martial Academy Team to its current heights? His original plan to take things as they came had transformed into a bid for first place. His personal record would gain a perfect entry, and now, bound by shared glory and disgrace, he could no longer get away.

Sun Kelan replied, "I asked our mentor. He said Wang Zhan will show up on time tomorrow, but…"

She trailed off, because their mentor had told her not to place too much hope in Wang Zhan. If securing first place in the Federal Martial Arts Competition depended solely on Wang Zhan's return, then it would be best for the Chu State Military Martial Academy to be content with lying low; otherwise, fortune and misfortune would be intertwined.

Song Dongming remained silent, still calculating the points the top ten in the finals could obtain. After some calculation, he realized that… If this trend continued, it would already be a remarkable achievement for the Chu State Military Martial Academy Team to maintain a position in the top ten.

Hearing Sun Kelan's words, Zhou Weiqing shot to his feet with a THUD, his expression dark. "He's the captain! Shouldn't he be here with us right now, discussing our next countermeasures? Don't forget, he's the one who said he'd lead us to win first place in the Federal Martial Arts Competition!"

"Little brother…" Zhou Weiya quickly tried to pull him down, urging him to sit.

Zhou Weiqing shrugged off his hand without the slightest hesitation. "Bro, you keep quiet! As captain, has he ever truly fulfilled his duties? Besides racking up points for the team and causing trouble, what else has he done? Don't forget, without us, he's nothing! Why isn't he participating in the Martial Arts Academy competition himself? Isn't he so amazing? Now that the pheasant has become a Phoenix, he's turned his back on us!"

Song Dongming's train of thought was abruptly cut off. Zhou Weiqing's words made his expression even darker, his gaze growing colder. Huang Pufeng reacted similarly, glaring fixedly at Zhou Weiqing, looking like he might strike if another disagreeable word was spoken.

Both of them were Wang Zhan's partners in the academy; they had gone through life-and-death situations and fought side-by-side. Now, to be repaid with such ingratitude by this insignificant Zhou Weiqing, who accused Wang Zhan of turning his back on them—how could they not be furious?

Even the usually timid Chen Mengshu quietly licked her lips, red as blood, her gaze fixed on Zhou Weiqing as if he were prey.

Sensing the shift in atmosphere, Zhou Weiya quickly stood up, pulling Zhou Weiqing behind him. He then turned to their four teammates and apologized sincerely, "I'm sorry, my younger brother is talking nonsense. We all come from the same academy, after all. The priority right now should be discussing what to do next…"

"Bro, what 'what to do'? Just forget about it!" Zhou Weiqing cut in. "That kid Wang Zhan is off having a grand time, leaving us here to scratch our heads. Why should we put up with it? He runs off whenever he pleases, without any consideration for us!"

One should know, their strength was decent. Under normal circumstances, they could at least enter the highest echelons of the Military Department, perhaps even snag a military position or two if they were lucky. But the crux of the matter was, Wang Zhan had shown them the vistas of the heavens; how could they be willing to return to the mortal realm now?

"You shut up!" Song Dongming stood up, his gaze somber. Huang Pufeng and Chen Mengshu followed suit. As the team's main offensive power, they immediately put immense pressure on the two brothers. Though Sun Kelan said nothing, it was clear she sided with Wang Zhan this time.

"What, you want to hit me?" Zhou Weiya shouted, venting all his pent-up resentment and dissatisfaction—at Wang Zhan, at his teammates, and even at their mentor. "We can't beat Wang Zhan, but do you think we're afraid of you guys?!"

Why did he always have to be the one keeping watch and launching sneak attacks? Why couldn't he be a main attacker? Why couldn't he use the resources painstakingly accumulated by the team to advance? Why did Wang Zhan get to act like he was number one in the world? He refused to accept it!

Thus, with Wang Zhan's renewed disappearance and the new situation in the Martial Arts Academy competition, the already unstable Chu State Military Martial Academy Team finally showed a massive rift.

"Enough! Let me tell you. His physical body has already reached the Martial General realm. And you two? What do you have to rely on?"

At this moment, a figure with white hair and an upright posture appeared before everyone, his eyes filled with sorrow, anger, and the pain of seeing potential wasted.

He was Liu Zhenfeng, the Dean of the Chu State Military Martial Academy.

…

While the members of the Chu State Military Martial Academy Team were facing a potential split,

「In the distant Jing State Wilderness Area.」

Just as the tiny beetle was about to collide with the Red-Horn Pig, Wang Zhan grabbed the crazed woman—who, like most women when facing a critical moment, could only scream hysterically—pulled her fiercely into his protective embrace, and quickly leaped from the vehicle, rolling clear.

So much so that in the last moment before losing consciousness, the woman only felt an immense warmth, as if she had returned home. That warm, comfortable home where her parents bustled about, trying to catch her as she playfully hid during a game of hide-and-seek…

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