Translator: CinderTL
"Sanlu? What's Sanlu?" Lin Xuan frowned at the mention of the name.
"Nothing," Jiang Ye said with a slight shake of his head. "Just some obscure milk powder brand."
Lin Xuan gave him a puzzled look.
Li Zhichao, standing nearby, scoffed coldly. "I could get into the Elite Class anytime I wanted. I just prefer staying in the regular class."
"Well, you certainly know how to enjoy life," Lin Xuan said with a chuckle. "I heard there's a chance to obtain an Advanced Art Technique during this trial, but there are only three spots."
"Chaozi, you'd better step up your game. You're almost a senior—don't let us juniors beat you."
With that, Lin Xuan turned and left without another word.
As a wealthy second-generation heir from Tianlong Community and a top student at Ancheng No. 1 High School, he had always looked down on mingling with students from the regular classes.
Even a moment spent in their presence felt like a grave insult to his status and talent.
Chaozi is such an embarrassment to Tianlong Community, Lin Xuan thought disdainfully. He's almost a senior and still hanging around with these regular class riffraff.
In Lin Xuan's eyes, students from the Elite Class and the regular classes were practically different species.
"True enough. Chaozi has low-grade aptitude, no different from the students in the regular classes."
"From now on, I need to keep my distance. We're destined to walk different paths."
Lin Xuan shook his head and walked away.
Left behind, Li Zhichao snorted coldly. "That guy..."
The other student had clearly come to flaunt his superiority, yet Li Zhichao found himself powerless to retort!
After all, he was merely the top student in the regular classes at Ancheng Third High School.
Lin Xuan, on the other hand, ranked among the top ten in the Elite Class at Ancheng No. 1 High School!
Such a gap was insurmountable, even though Li Zhichao was a year ahead.
"When I get back, I'm going to challenge myself to five acupuncture needles a week!" Li Zhichao clenched his fist, his determination burning.
Jiang Ye, standing nearby, had fewer such thoughts. As Lin Xuan walked away, he opened his panel to check the other student's stats.
[Physique: Mortal Body (Mid-A)]
[Innate Talent: Nascent]
"Mid-A Physique... Is this what the top students at Ancheng No. 1 High School are like? They're practically crushing our school with their sheer power."
Jiang Ye sighed inwardly.
Most students in the hall possessed B-Grade Mortal Physiques, with only a few reaching Low-A.
Compared to them, Lin Xuan stood out like a crane among chickens.
The hall was gradually filling with more students, but the trial had yet to officially begin.
"Is this trial also taking place in the Virtual Cosmos?" Jiang Ye asked, looking ahead with a hint of confusion. "I wonder what the specific trial will be? It can't just be hunting Shadow Clan again, can it?"
He had asked Chen Zilu about this, but the trial's contents were strictly confidential. No one would know until it officially began.
"For the school, the trial is even more important than the final exams because it filters out the truly outstanding students."
"Therefore, the rewards for passing the trial are exceptionally generous."
Jiang Ye thought to himself, "Besides the substantial cash prize, the most crucial reward this time is the Advanced Art Technique."
Art Technique.
A combat technique that could dramatically enhance one's combat power!
While the Star Martial Cultivation Method could also improve strength, it was a foundational cultivation method primarily focused on physical conditioning, offering only a modest boost to combat prowess.
Art Techniques, on the other hand, possessed immense destructive potential.
Students like Zhao Qingli and Lin Miaomiao, who consistently ranked among the top in their grade, owed their high scores largely to their mastery of Art Techniques.
"There are only three spots available this time."
"That means I have to secure a top-three finish to obtain the Advanced Art Technique."
Jiang Ye surveyed his surroundings.
Besides Lin Xuan, who required special attention, a few students from the Elite Class of the second-year cohort had also joined the trial.
These students were likely the bottom-ranked members of the Elite Class, their cultivation methods not yet at Perfection.
Still, they were close to achieving it.
These individuals posed formidable competition.
Just then, Jiang Ye suddenly froze.
"Wang Zi'ang? What's he doing here?" He glanced at the figure in the distance, his eye twitching.
The third-ranked student in the grade was participating in this trial? Had he lost his mind?
Wang Zi'ang was currently standing on a platform.
Contrary to Jiang Ye's assumption, he wasn't participating in the trial.
Instead, he was maintaining order at the event.
"This is so annoying! The director must be bored out of his mind, making me come here to keep order on such a hot day," Wang Zi'ang grumbled, his face sour. "I'm the third-ranked student in the grade! Don't I have any dignity?"
As he spoke, he suddenly sensed an unfriendly gaze.
Following the glare, Wang Zi'ang immediately clamped his mouth shut.
On a higher platform, a figure had materialized unnoticed.
It was none other than Grade Director Zhang Jianwu!
Zhang Jianwu stood with his arms crossed, coldly looking down at him.
Wang Zi'ang pretended not to notice, thinking to himself, "The director's hard of hearing. He probably didn't catch what I said. Yes, that must be it."
He casually scanned the hall, dutifully playing the role of security guard.
Suddenly, his expression froze.
"Are those the two from Class Nine?"
Wang Zi'ang glanced toward Li Zhichao and Jiang Ye, his expression shifting slightly. "Interesting. They both came to participate in the trials?"
"Perfect. Let's see how they perform."
Wang Zi'ang stroked his chin.
Though he firmly believed that Zhang Jianwu's "Hidden Dragon" referred to him, he still wanted to see if these two from Class Nine truly possessed any special qualities.
On the higher platform, Zhang Jianwu stood with several other teachers.
Zhang Jianwu glanced at Wang Zi'ang and snorted inwardly. "That brat's getting bolder by the day. He even dares to curse at me! His scholarship for this semester will be postponed until next year!"
The top ten students in the grade all received generous scholarships.
But Zhang Jianwu had decided to teach Wang Zi'ang a lesson about respecting his teachers.
"Director Zhang."
A crisp, clear voice rang out.
A stunningly beautiful girl in a white dress, her chest full and prominent, approached.
"Miss Chen," Zhang Jianwu greeted her, a rare smile finally breaking through his usually stern expression.
Hearing the formal address, Chen Zilu replied with a hint of exasperation, "Director, you can just call me Xiao Chen."
"Then I'll take the liberty of calling you Xiao Chen," Zhang Jianwu chuckled.
He knew Chen Zilu's background far surpassed anything a small place like Ancheng could imagine. Even though she was barely twenty, he wouldn't dare show her the slightest disrespect.
The other teachers present, though unaware of the full story, also regarded Chen Zilu with deference. If the director treated her with such caution, they certainly couldn't afford to offend her.
Chen Zilu, long accustomed to such treatment, remained silent. She turned to Zhang Jianwu and asked, "Director Zhang, who do you think will secure the Advanced Art Technique in this trial?"
Zhang Jianwu's gaze swept across the hall. "Several students from the Elite Classes are participating," he said slowly. "Though they might rank lower within their classes, they're still among the top contenders here."
"Zeng Xueqing and Xu Lei, for example, are strong candidates for the top three spots."
If another teacher had asked this question, he would have stopped there.
At that moment, Zhang Jianwu turned his gaze toward Jiang Ye's direction.
He knew that Jiang Ye was a student Chen Zilu had been paying particular attention to.
"As for the two students from Class Nine..." Zhang Jianwu hesitated before continuing, "I believe their chances of making it into the top three are only about twenty percent. Well, Jiang Ye might have a slightly higher chance, perhaps thirty percent."
(End of the Chapter)
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