65: Chapter 65 The war drums sound, all eyes are on them.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The deep and passionate sound of battle drums pierced through the clouds at dawn, rumbling across the sky over Jiangnan City.

The province-wide college entrance examination practical ranking tournament had officially begun.

As the host city, the area outside the "Giant Holographic Simulation Arena" in the center of Jiangnan City was already packed with people. This miracle architecture, built by the Great Xia's supreme Martial Arts Alliance at a huge cost, was large enough to accommodate 100,000 spectators simultaneously. Inside the Arena, there were no flat fighting rings; instead, it was filled with densely packed high-dimensional holographic projection generators capable of perfectly replicating various extreme wilderness and ruin terrains one-to-one.

At this moment, the 100,000 circular spectator seats were packed. Hovering cameras from major media outlets swarmed like bees in mid-air, their lenses aimed at the entrance to the examination hall.

This was not just a battlefield where high school students determined their fates; it was a Shura field for major financial conglomerates to flex their muscles and for the military to select the sharpest blades.

On the main viewing platform at the highest point, the big shots were gathered.

Sitting in the center was a military Major General who guarded the front lines of the Star Gate. On both sides were the admissions directors of the nation's top ten martial arts universities. Further to the sides, the heads of the major families in Jiangnan City were all seated.

"Patriarch Zhao, I heard your son achieved a Breakthrough to the Martial Artist Realm a few days ago? Truly, a tiger father has no dog sons." An admissions director said with a smile to the middle-aged man beside him.

This middle-aged man was Zhao Kuang's father, the helmsman of the Zhao financial conglomerate, Patriarch Zhao Batian.

Patriarch Zhao Batian was beaming and waved his hand, laughing, "Not at all, not at all, the boy just has a good foundation. For this major exam, I specifically spent tens of millions to have military craftsmen custom-make a set of S-grade Gold-Radiance Battle Armor for him. Today, our Zhao Family will shamelessly take the title of number one in the province."

"Patriarch Zhao, you have a big mouth."

Patriarch Lin Zhen, the head of the Lin Family sitting on the other side, snorted coldly. "The practical exam tests the instinct for life-and-death combat, not just stacking equipment to take first place."

Patriarch Zhao Batian glanced at Patriarch Lin Zhen. The strength of the Kyoto Lin Family was not something his Zhao Family could compare with, but Jiangnan City was his turf. In terms of Aura, he couldn't let an outsider look down on him. Besides, he had heard that the Young Miss of the Lin Family had been seriously injured and hadn't fully recovered. He figured she was just here for some experience and wouldn't deliberately compete. Thinking of this, he felt confident and smiled insincerely at the head of the Kyoto Lin Family, "Brother Lin, I heard that niece Lin Qinghan was seriously injured in the wilderness a few days ago? It's understandable for young people to be arrogant, but if her old injuries flare up on the exam field today, the gains won't make up for the losses."

"That is not something you need to worry about." Patriarch Lin Zhen's face darkened slightly. Lin Qinghan refused to return to the capital after her injury healed. He didn't know what kind of whim she had, insisting on participating in the Jiangnan City college entrance ranking tournament. Even he, as her father, couldn't figure out what his daughter was thinking.

"Enough." The military Major General sitting in the center interrupted their bickering. "Whether it's a mule or a horse, we'll know once they're put in the ruins. Let's begin."

As the Major General spoke, the giant electronic screen above the Arena lit up with a boom.

Thousands of Genius candidates from all over the province lined up in a long queue in the waiting area, according to their classes and schools.

"Silence!"

The examination committee's broadcast echoed throughout the venue: "The first round of assessment is a 100-person battle royale! All candidates will be randomly assigned to ten areas of the holographic simulated ruins. Each area will have one hundred people, with no rules, and any weapon can be used. The last ten people standing will advance to the next round!"

"Now, start the rolling draw!"

The names on the giant holographic screen began to flash and scroll crazily.

In the front row of the waiting area.

Zhao Kuang was wearing that extremely flashy dark gold S-grade Psionic Battle Armor, which shone brilliantly in the sunlight. He crossed his arms and stared up at the big screen, a sinister sneer curling the corner of his mouth.

"Young Master Zhao, is everything arranged?" A lackey beside him asked in a low voice.

"Nonsense, my dad spent five million on the internal staff of the examination committee." Zhao Kuang sneered, "The System backend has long been tampered with. That trash Su Chen will definitely be assigned to the same area as my people today."

As soon as he finished speaking, the screen stopped scrolling.

"Area C, No. 1 Abandoned Factory."

He scanned the list quickly and soon found the name that made him gnash his teeth at the very bottom—Su Chen.

"Sure enough, he's in Area C."

The smile on Zhao Kuang's face gradually became cruel. He turned his head abruptly, his gaze cutting through the long queue, locking directly onto the area at the very end of the formation, where the Cannon Fodder Class was located.

There, Su Chen was wearing a very ordinary black combat suit, his hands in his pockets, standing quietly.

Zhao Kuang raised his hand and made an extremely arrogant throat-slitting gesture with his thumb against his own neck.

He prayed silently in his heart: "Su Chen, you piece of trash, don't you dare get eliminated by someone else right at the start. Once my people find you, I want you to be tortured to death under the eyes of 100,000 people! I want you to kneel on the ground and beg me!"

At the back of the formation.

Jiang Feng followed Zhao Kuang's gaze, his face sinking instantly, and cursed in a low voice: "Damn! That bastard definitely tampered with the lottery System! I just saw a lot of his lackeys assigned to Area C just like us. With thousands of people in the province, how could it be such a coincidence!"

Su Chen ignored Zhao Kuang's provocation and just said faintly: "Let him be."

"That bastard is so insidious. If he's got the guts, he should come himself. I really want to rush over now and rip his battle armor off!" Jiang Feng clenched his fists, his knuckles cracking.

"No need." Su Chen looked at the metal gate slowly opening in front of him, "He'll deliver himself to me in the knockout round, saving me from having to search the whole map for him."

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The sound of the battle drums became increasingly urgent and passionate.

"Gates opening! All candidates, enter the Arena!"

Accompanied by the broadcast, the ten huge passageways leading to the simulated ruins field slowly opened.

"Charge!"

"The provincial number one is mine!"

The various Geniuses were like they had been injected with adrenaline, one after another erupting with the Qi and blood in their bodies. For a moment, colorful psionic lights flickered at the entrance of the passages, with Wind Blade, firelight, and lightning reflecting off each other. They walked into the passage like a group of proud peacocks, enjoying the overwhelming cheers and screams of the 100,000 spectators on the stands.

Set against these radiant Geniuses.

Su Chen, walking at the very end of the queue in the "Cannon Fodder Class" formation, seemed extremely insignificant and devoid of presence.

No one cared about an F-grade student with no psionic fluctuations.

The commentator's camera didn't linger on him for even half a second.

Su Chen walked into the dim passage leading to Area C with his hands in his pockets and a steady gait.

The passage was long, and the dazzling sunlight of the simulated ruins was already shining in from the exit ahead.

Just one second before Su Chen was about to step out of the passage and enter that Arena where all eyes were on him.

He stopped.

The noisy cheers and footsteps around him were completely blocked out by him in that instant.

Su Chen slowly closed his eyes.

"Hum—"

Deep in his mind, [Observation Haki] spread out instantly like an invisible, dense, and inescapable giant radar network, radiating from him as the center to all directions, and even deep into the underground of the Arena!

The breathing, heartbeats, and flow of Qi and blood of 100,000 people surged into his perception like a tsunami.

Su Chen was not interested in these.

His Observation Haki penetrated the thick reinforced concrete and reached 100 meters deep underground in the Arena.

"Found you."

Su Chen whispered in his heart.

Deep underground, he clearly perceived an extremely cold, fanatical, and pungent energy fluctuation filled with the smell of blood.

That was a blood-colored altar in operation.

The orcs of the Abyss Cult had indeed snuck in, and were secretly absorbing the Qi and blood on the exam field, preparing to forcibly tear open the Star Gate crack.

The prey had all entered the trap.

Whether it was those high-and-mighty financial conglomerates on the stage.

Or that clown-like Zhao Kuang in the exam field.

Or that group of Abyss rats deep underground who thought they controlled everything.

"Five thousand origin points."

Su Chen slowly opened his eyes.

Deep within his originally pitch-black and deep pupils, a hint of bloodthirsty and cold scarlet undertone flowed quietly. Two black tomoe, like the scythe of the Shinigami reaping lives, slowly took shape in his pupils.

A feeling of oppression that made the surrounding air slightly heavy quietly awakened within his body.

Su Chen took a step, walked out of the dim passage, and exposed his whole body to the dazzling sunlight.

The death match that belonged solely to Su Chen.

This invincible crushing game that was about to overturn the entire cognition of the high-martial world.

Accompanied by the passionate battle drums above the exam field, it officially kicked off!