Soon, Wang Feng arrived at the top floor of the teaching building.
He immediately saw Mu Ningxue's silver-white, snow-like hair shimmering in the sunlight, as if a thin layer of frost covered her shoulders.
"Ning Xue, I'm here," Wang Feng said softly, looking at the graceful figure before him.
"Why did you come to the Imperial Capital?" Mu Ningxue didn't turn around, her voice clear and calm.
"Because of you," Wang Feng walked over to Mu Ningxue's side.
"Me? Have you already found out?" Mu Ningxue pursed her lips, a complex light flickering in her eyes.
In the past few days, she had deeply experienced what it meant to be abandoned by everyone and to feel the coldness of human nature.
"Mm," Wang Feng responded, his gaze falling on her exquisite profile as he softly asked, "Do you want to participate in the National Mansion Competition?"
Mu Ningxue fell silent.
Did she want to?
Of course!
The National Mansion Competition was her only way out now.
She wanted to use it to prove that she and Mu He were not the same, and that their Mu family was innocent!
But she didn't even have the qualifications to participate in the National Government selection competition now.
Wang Feng saw the longing in her eyes, smiled slightly, and took out an exquisite box from his spatial ring.
He took Mu Ningxue's soft, boneless hand and placed the box into it.
"What is this?" Mu Ningxue asked curiously.
"Open it and see for yourself," Wang Feng said with a slight smile.
Mu Ningxue's delicate brows furrowed as she gently opened the box. What met her eyes was a pigeon-egg-sized diamond, as brilliant as a star, emitting a captivating glow.
"star river vein!" Mu Ningxue suddenly looked up, her eyes filled with shock.
"Mm, you're already stuck at the peak of the Intermediate Level, aren't you? Refine it, break through to the High Level, and you'll regain the qualification to re-enter the National Government Team," Wang Feng nodded.
Mu Ningxue bit her lower lip, her exquisite little face filled with conflicted emotions.
A moment later, she whispered, "It's too valuable, I can't..."
Before she could finish, Wang Feng interrupted, "Do we still distinguish between us? Don't forget, when you were twelve, you 'married' me."
Hearing Wang Feng's teasing words, a hint of shyness appeared on Mu Ningxue's face.
She rebutted softly, "That was when I was young and didn't know any better..."
"But I took it seriously," Wang Feng's tone suddenly became serious.
Upon hearing this, Mu Ningxue's expression gradually calmed down, and she softly said, "You should put more thought into Xin Xia."
"That won't do."
Wang Feng smiled slightly, reached out and wrapped an arm around Mu Ningxue's slender waist, pulling her closer.
He gazed into her clear, water-like eyes:
"You are my first love, and my designated main wife. Most importantly, we 'bowed to heaven and earth.' Want to go back on it now? Too late!"
Before he finished speaking, Wang Feng lowered his head, gently pressing the back of her head, and kissed her lips.
Mu Ningxue froze slightly, struggled symbolically for a moment, and then stopped resisting.
Her hands slowly wrapped around Wang Feng's waist, she closed her eyes, and let herself sink into this long-lost warmth.
After a long while, Wang Feng reluctantly left her lips.
Seeing the faint blush on her cheeks, he couldn't help but chuckle softly:
"Go and refine it with peace of mind. Gather at the Fighting Arena tomorrow morning; I'll get you a spot in the selection competition."
Mu Ningxue lowered her head, a hint of hesitation and sadness flashing in her eyes: "But with my current status... is it really worth it for you to do this?"
"Don't worry, if there's one person in this world who can clear your name, it's definitely me."
After Wang Feng finished speaking, he turned and left.
Mu Ningxue stood rooted to the spot, watching his receding figure, his resounding promise echoing in her ears, her heart feeling as if it had been gently touched by something.
...
In a flash, it was the next morning.
When Wang Feng arrived at the Fighting Arena, it was already filled with contestants and their friends and family who had come to watch.
Not all the National Government mentors were present, only three—Feng Li, the short, stout mentor, and Dean Xiao.
Upon seeing the mentors, the students immediately became fully alert, not daring to show any slack.
"Wang Feng, you're here," Dean Xiao greeted with a smile.
"Come, you haven't met the other National Government mentors yet, have you? This is Grand Mentor Feng Li, and this is Dean Shan He from the Demon Capital Institute."
"Greetings, mentors," Wang Feng said.
"You are Wang Feng? Not bad," Feng Li glanced at Wang Feng and nodded.
He had naturally heard of Wang Feng's achievements, and his status as a Dual Parliament Member was even higher than his own.
Therefore, Wang Feng's position as the National Government Team captain was unshakeable.
"How is the selection competition process arranged?" Wang Feng asked directly.
The process for the final selection competition varied slightly each year, and as the National Government captain, he naturally had the right to know in advance.
"It's pretty much the same as the last one."
Dean Shan He of the Demon Capital Institute handed a competition format sheet to Wang Feng.
Wang Feng took the sheet, quickly scanned it, and understood.
The competition format was roughly divided into several tracks:
One-vote contestants: Assigned to the National Arena Team, commonly known as "Arena Guardians," responsible for accepting challenges from National Government Teams of various countries.
Among them, strong students had the opportunity to stand out from the one-vote track and advance to the two-vote track, but the number of spots was limited to only ten.
Two-vote and three-vote contestants: Grouped into the same track, but three-vote contestants had a higher priority.
Four-vote contestants: Like Wang Feng, they became pre-designated National Government reserve official members.
However, this did not mean they were guaranteed to become official members.
If they were not strong enough and were defeated by two-vote or three-vote contestants, they would have to surrender their position, either becoming a substitute or entering the National Arena.
Above four votes: Pre-designated captain position.
The captain had certain rights and could choose the team members they wanted.
In a sense, the National Government Team captain was on equal footing with the National Government mentors.
After all, mentors were mainly responsible for deciding the direction of training, but how to lead the team still depended on the captain!
After reading the competition format, Wang Feng quickly browsed through the information of all the selected students. The final assessment was also about to begin.
Naturally, the competition for the one-vote contestants started first, and Mu Ningxue was among them. Her three votes had been stripped, leaving only the one vote she had earned in the Imperial Capital Institute's nomination competition.
"Please determine your match according to the order on the screen. Students whose numbers are called, please come to the stage to compete!" The referee's voice, amplified by a sound-type magic tool, clearly echoed throughout the entire Fighting Arena.
"Wait a moment!"
As soon as the referee finished speaking, another voice immediately followed.
Upon hearing this, everyone looked up at the mentor's seats, only to find that it was a young man standing there!
Just as everyone was curious about the young man's identity, Mentor Shan He spoke up, "Wang Feng, do you have any questions?"
"This list is wrong, someone is missing!"