GAMMT - Chapter 83
Chapter 83: First Place
Whether it belonged to Li Cang or not, Fu Chuan didn't expect anyone outside to respond. She was just asking to let them know, so they wouldn't think she was a pervert when she came out to return it.
She had been forced to cultivate the persona of a little rogue, but despite her diligent efforts, the final result seemed to have gone a bit overboard…
She wasn't happy about being seen as some "Grand Paramour" or a pervert.
Was it easy for her?
Sighing in frustration, Fu Chuan quickly gathered the items. The drops here were divided into two categories: those from the candidates and those from the criminals.
A quick scan was all she needed to get a clear picture before she collected everything. The items from the other candidates were just padding to increase her points, though some of the point items would have to be returned…
What Fu Chuan cared about more were the items dropped by Wei Ran.
When she had used the lightning to finish him off, she had noticed he dropped only two things.
Now that she had them in hand, she saw a blood-orange crystal stone and a blood bead.
Both items struck Fu Chuan with great force.
Blood-Orange Stone: Gravity Space Composite Arcane Truth Stone (Orange-tier composite Arcane Truth, one of the energy field Arcane Truths, an ultra-rare and powerful Arcane Truth. Arcanists below the 50th level generally do not meet the conditions to comprehend it, lest their mental power be shattered by the impact. Please be cautious.)
Blood Bead: Life Bead of the criminal Wei Ran (Orange-tier special gem). As he was a special Arcanist who cultivated Blood Arcane, his resentment upon death was too profound. Under the punishment of lightning, his body and soul essence unexpectedly transformed into a Life Bead. It can be used to permanently summon Wei Ran to serve you, or it can be fed to a pet, allowing it to digest and obtain his life force. (Note: If summoning Wei Ran, due to his status as a heinous criminal, he possesses a certain malevolence. You must guard against being bewitched into darkness and will need to feed him flesh and blood to sustain him. If feeding it to a pet, you must consider the pet's digestive capabilities to avoid it exploding.)
Good heavens. The items were good, but they all came with restrictions.
Fu Chuan suddenly thought about the candidates. It was hard to say who was truly the strongest, because everyone had a weakness.
You could say Li Cang was the strongest, but his perception was terrible. If Fu Chuan, Xie Yiyuan, and Wei Mingtang truly wanted to run or hide, he wouldn't be able to catch them at all, especially outside a confined space like the prison. Out there, it would be a 50-50 fight at best, because he couldn't catch them or hit them!
You could say Yun Baobao and her partner were the strongest… but let's not.
You could say Fu Chuan was the strongest? Even with her turtle shell, her defense was still the worst… If not for the fact that many people didn't know about her powerful endurance and her ability to cut off others' stamina, and weren't on guard against Little Yellow and her tentacles, if you took away the element of surprise and fought head-on, her actual combat power was only on par with Hong Yan. She couldn't beat Wei Mingtang's group.
In truth… the strongest were the two pairs: Wei Mingtang and Yue Mingze, and Xie Yiyuan and Que Baimo.
They were truly perfect complements to each other.
What a pity.
Everyone had their strengths and weaknesses, their imperfections, and their exploitable flaws. Fu Chuan had targeted these flaws and broken them one by one.
But she hadn't expected the rewards to be like this—good, but with strings attached.
So annoying.
However, Fu Chuan was naturally skilled at making quick judgments about pros and cons and was decisive. After a moment's thought, she summoned Little Yellow. "Take a look at this and make a judgment. Can you eat it?"
Little Yellow was shocked. "Sister, this is such a good thing. You're giving it to me?"
Fu Chuan said, "You don't want it? Then I'll give it to Big Red."
Little Yellow exclaimed, "Ah, no, no, no! I want it, I want it! I can eat it. My innate talent is digesting any kind of energy substance. I just need to control the pace. It's my specialty."
Fu Chuan had made a similar judgment. As a game resource strategist, her eye was sharp. Although Little Yellow's base stats were low, she had been delighted when she first saw its digestion ability.
A single army ant could be crushed with a finger, but they could devour an elephant and were immune to toxins, because digestion was their innate talent.
Everything in the world has its own bright spot, just like Xie Keli's body. For all its flaws, it had a tiny sliver of ancestral bloodline that could be cultivated, a place where resources could be invested.
Though Fu Chuan usually seemed stingy and calculated her wealth carefully, she was actually very open-handed with treasures. If it needed to be used, she used it without regret.
So now, she stuffed Wei Ran's Life Bead into Little Yellow's mouth.
Little Yellow was on the verge of tears.
"Sister, don't worry! I'll digest it properly and strive to emerge as a super-awesome pet! I'll make you proud!"
It was actually quite envious of how cool those people looked when they summoned a bunch of top-tier pets.
Hmph, my sister is a big shot. She deserves an even better entourage.
"What are you talking about? I'm the boss's entourage," Big Red, who was on the surface, grumbled unhappily upon hearing Little Yellow's words.
Little Yellow shot it a sidelong glance. "Although you, this little braised bird, are pretty awesome, you're so loud and boisterous. Not noble or elegant at all."
Big Red: "? What did you say? I'll blow you up!"
Little Yellow quickly ate the bead and entered the pet space to digest it. Simultaneously, Fu Chuan received a notification.
The intimacy level of both her pets had increased by 200%.
Higher intimacy provided a boost during fusion and skill activation, but apart from families like the Yun Family, it was difficult for others to cultivate. It required long-term companionship and a genuine connection.
But Fu Chuan had only had them for a short time, and their intimacy had already skyrocketed.
She herself was a little surprised.
But on second thought, she understood. Pets were like people. Empty words were meaningless. When you generously provided real benefits, offered protection, and secured a stable future, who wouldn't be happy?
If someone were willing to treat her that way, she would offer her intimacy as well.
Unfortunately, no one had.
Besides Wei Ran's two treasures, the drops from the other criminals were also quite valuable.
Point items were one part of it. Fu Chuan also saw treasures dropped by the important criminals from the fifth and sixth floors. Some belonged to her, some did not.
Other than that, the dungeon was over.
No, she felt that if the Big Four Academies were still under the control of the Education Ministry and the rules followed the empire's educational reform path, then it should be similar to the period before the high school entrance exam. There would be a final, overall reward.
Fu Chuan ran over to the toilet, hesitated for a moment, and then lifted the lid of the toilet tank.
As she lifted it, a notification appeared: The dungeon has ended. You have become the final winner of this dungeon. The seal has been lifted. Please collect the reward issued to you by the Education Ministry and continue to work hard in the future, talent of the empire.
Talent of the empire. This was an official public acknowledgment.
After all, this was a bonus question.
Fu Chuan looked down and saw a triangular, star-like object in the clear water beneath the lid. It had a subdued orange glow, and inside, a wondrous orange liquid was sealed, looking somewhat like a high-tech mechanical equation treasure.
After picking it up, she received a notification: Intermediate Gene Triangle Equation (A treasure developed by the Imperial Research Institute, capable of upgrading entire modules. It can affect gene talents, gene blood, Gene Tree sequences, and all other gene-related abilities. It is an Orange-tier top-grade treasure with a 100% success rate, but the degree of improvement depends on one's own aptitude. The only restriction is that it cannot be used by those of Purple-tier or above, and the higher the level, the more suppressed the degree of improvement will be.)
Was this a slap followed by a sweet reward?
The previous treasures had restrictions, but this one's was acceptable. After all, it was unlikely for anyone in Beluke Province to have Purple Blood or a Purple-tier gene talent.
But if someone was Orange-tier and could use it, the improvement would be terrifying.
"Mine are all Blue-tier and Green Blood, so I'm far from the limit. The improvement should be significant, unless my luck is absolutely abysmal."
Fu Chuan put away the Triangle Equation. After checking to make sure she hadn't missed anything, she was about to leave, but then she tried something… she dismantled the chains.
She couldn't help it; it was a professional habit.
"It actually works?"
It was just a sudden whim, a spur-of-the-moment idea, but she hadn't expected it to actually work. As soon as she removed the chains, she got another notification.
"Clever as you are, you have obtained the biggest surprise of this exam: 30KG of Forbidden Arcane Stone (Purple-tier special material). Good luck to you. This dungeon is now over. We hope to see you in the empire's hall of the strong in the future, Candidate No. 4562, Xie Keli."
The dungeon ended, closed, and was about to exit.
As the screen disappeared, everyone, in silent unison, turned their gazes to Que Baimo.
Que Baige tried hard not to laugh. He knew very well that for his personal interests, he absolutely did not want Que Baimo to succeed. But for the family, the failure of either of them was a loss to the family's interests.
He could be enemies with Que Baimo, but he couldn't be an enemy of the family.
So he held it in.
But Que Baimo had excellent composure. Even at this moment, he didn't lose his cool, merely frowning tightly. After Fu Chuan appeared, he took a step forward, about to ask something, but Hong Yan was faster. He grabbed Que Baimo's sleeve, pulled him aside, and stepped forward himself to ask, "Xie Keli, you actually…"
His tone was a bit fierce, with a strong sense of accusation.
Fu Chuan glanced at him and, before he could finish his question, took out a backpack and handed it to him.
"As we agreed, here are your things. Thank you for your cooperation earlier."
Hong Yan: "?"
Everyone else: "!!!"
What the hell.
Hong Yan was also in on it with him? No wonder he was hiding on him the whole time… It was quite possible they orchestrated the release of the criminals together from the start.
The candidates present looked back and forth between the two of them.
Hong Yan had a flamboyant personality and was actually quite smart, just not as cunning as the others and not skilled in scheming. But that didn't stop him from realizing the sinister intentions of the person before him.
Damn it, was this scum Xie afraid of offending the four great Orange Blood families too much, so he was pulling him, someone with enough weight, into the mess first?
This scum was so venomous. Did he think he would fall for it?!!
Hong Yan was about to refuse, but then he saw Fu Chuan casually return Li Cang's things + that pair of underwear, and then glanced at the leaderboard.
If his calculations were correct, Wei Mingtang would surely get her points back, and maybe even more.
Didn't that mean…
Hong Yan took a deep breath and, with a smile that didn't reach his eyes, extended his hand and took the items.
"You're too kind. It's just an exam. Just don't turn into a louse next time. It's pretty disgusting."
This was a tacit admission. As for how others saw him and how they would retaliate in the future… forget it. On second thought, even without Xie Keli dragging him into this, he would have had to fight these people in the exam anyway. It wasn't the first or second time he had offended the four great Orange Blood families.
Fu Chuan: "Okay, I'll turn into a flea next time."
Are you nuts?
Hong Yan's macho aura turned gloomy, but remembering the person's insidious nature, he held back.
A true macho man knows when to bend and when to stand tall. He would endure. Once he got into one of the Big Four Academies, there would be plenty of opportunities to fight this person!
Hong Yan's heart was full of frustration, but after receiving the point items, his score increased, and he jumped to second place… Only then did he feel a sense of relief, and then…
Right in front of everyone, Fu Chuan returned all of Wei Mingtang's things. She didn't say anything; it wasn't like she could do it in private. The exam settlement had only fifteen minutes left, and the countdown was on.
Wei Mingtang glanced at her, picked out her own items from the pile, and returned the extra ones.
Fu Chuan raised an eyebrow. "What, afraid I'll implicate you?"
Wei Mingtang: "No. At first, it was a cooperation based on assessing the situation. Now, it's not."
Fu Chuan: "?"
The corner of Wei Mingtang's mouth curled up slightly. Her beauty was enough to topple nations even without a smile, though it was usually tinged with a gloomy, unapproachable air. But when she smiled, it was a radiant beauty, like the sea at dawn or a city of ten thousand lanterns.
Many people were momentarily dazed.
Yun Baobao and the others, who had been about to approach Fu Chuan to cause trouble, now found their agitated emotions soothed.
Beauty was indeed the world's eternal ultimate weapon.
One could only wonder what she would look like in a few years.
And the beauty said, "Consider it a preemptive pledge of allegiance for self-preservation, just like Li Cang. I'll bear the gains and losses myself. But thank you."
The final "thank you" was likely understood only by the two of them.
She had seen that Xie Keli giving up that portion of points to Hong Yan wasn't just to drag him into the mess and share the hostility and pressure from the Orange Blood families. It was also because she herself had already been exposed as a suspected collaborator, and there was no guarantee someone wouldn't come looking for trouble later—the Xie Clan's reaction was uncertain.
Her situation was even worse than Xie Keli's. The latter at least had Xie Siyi and the Fu Clan providing some backing, while she had no support whatsoever.
She was the easiest to manipulate.
Pulling in Hong Yan could significantly reduce the pressure on her.
To be honest, Wei Mingtang was very surprised. She had instinctively thought that this young master with an unsavory reputation had taken some sort of interest in her and had smiled deliberately just now. But she instantly saw the difference in this person's reaction to her compared to others.
This person had no physical interest in her whatsoever.
His eyes were exceptionally calm.
Then it was purely goodwill… which was even stranger.
Was it out of compassion, having learned of her background?
She had met many good people like that, such as those from the Yun Family, but she had rejected them all.
This person was different.
Both wicked and merciful, yet a master of calculation and disguise, willing to sacrifice benefits to make the most decent and stable arrangements for others, without wanting to show it. This was more difficult than simple mercy.
What a strange person.
With this bit of doubt, she still stuck to her usual style, took her things, and turned to leave.
Don't cross the line of rules, don't be greedy for extra things, don't get too close to dazzling people. Live one more day, see one more night's moonlight.
That was all.
Behind her, a melancholic Yue Mingze looked at Fu Chuan, then followed, not forgetting to nag Wei Mingtang.
"I say, it's one thing for you to cooperate with him, but why did you leave me out? When did you two hook up…"
Before he could finish, a sharp, dark blade was pressed against his throat.
He froze and awkwardly apologized.
His choice of words was inappropriate, so of course, he had to apologize.
Wei Mingtang retracted the dagger, seemingly not angry, and said calmly, "I showed you the note. You didn't understand it then, which means you weren't suitable to join."
The note?
"He didn't write your name wrong by accident; he deliberately crossed out your name. Crossing you out naturally meant finding a replacement. He was already telling me to switch teammates back then."
Yue Mingze was stunned. Thinking back, that was indeed the case. "So you were willing to cooperate with him right then? Did you know his background?"
"I didn't. I knew nothing. But after I got his severed arm, I originally wanted to curse him. But as soon as I tried, I found the curse was ineffective. I knew then that either his abilities far surpassed mine, or his genes had already changed. To change one's genes in such a short exam could only mean he had made great progress on a genetic level. He was already incredibly resilient, and with that kind of progress, if I didn't cooperate with him, I would have likely been the one to die."
"He probably also bet that I would choose him. After all, he knew I was a dark Arcanist. Using someone's flesh and blood for a curse is a common method. He deduced that I would curse him, and then deduced that my curse would fail… It's not that strange."
"Exams, sometimes, are a test of people's hearts."
A 17-year-old orphan from a welfare home had seen too much of the human heart. She had still made the most correct judgment.
Yue Mingze didn't follow. He now understood the gap between himself and her. He stood there, scratching his head, and finally sighed. Although he knew from the beginning that his partnership with this great beauty couldn't last long, he hadn't expected it to end so quickly.
However, the fact that she never dissolved their team relationship was a testament to her integrity.
"Hey, Wei Mingtang! If we can't be teammates, we can be classmates in the future. If any annoying bees or butterflies bother you, I'll take care of them for you."
These words were sincere, with no expectation of reward. He knew he wasn't chasing the sun, but the moon that never falls in the darkness.
And the moon should not be pestered by common folk.
Of course, he wasn't seeking any response from Wei Mingtang, but politely informing her, lest she find out later and think he was pestering her.
Wei Mingtang didn't look back, but she raised her hand and waved it behind her.
Chic and cool.
The cooperation was over. They each had their own futures and wouldn't disturb each other. As for what he wanted to do, that was his freedom.
And Yue Mingze would never know that after Wei Mingtang reached the restroom, she entered a private stall, opened her mouth, and spat out a large mouthful of black blood. It stained the white sink, a shocking sight. She turned on the faucet to wash away the black blood, then pulled down her collar, revealing black threads growing inch by inch on her pale, sickly skin. Her expression was calm. She wiped away the blood, took out a potion, and drank it, then endured the pain, drenched in sweat…
There were ten minutes left for the exam settlement. She only had ten minutes.
Many people wondered why someone so beautiful would be abandoned at a welfare home. In this day and age, what family couldn't afford to feed one more mouth?
Why?
Because her life was not destined to be long.
It was probably a good thing that not a single one of the 4,000 candidates below was foolish enough to die inside by not exiting in time. No matter how thrilling or tragic it was, once they were out, they understood it was just an exam.
Like a dream.
Fu Qiang watched this scene from a distance and couldn't help but look at his drowsy sister beside him.
"How are you? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Is it almost over?" Fu Ye seemed to have little interest in her all-conquering fiancé, not even noticing the envious looks from others, as if they had invested in a unicorn startup. At least her family members' eyes were practically bleeding with jealousy.
"Yeah. If you're okay, you should keep an eye on that beautiful Miss Wei. I have a feeling she's a big threat to you. Hey, we can't let this new, hot-off-the-press brother-in-law of ours get snatched away."
"What 'hot-off-the-press'? She's not a duck." Fu Ye was truly speechless.
Fu Qiang: "But he is the Grand Paramour."
Fu Ye's drowsiness was almost completely dispelled by her brother. She propped up her forehead, her eyes lazy and charming, and said unhurriedly, "The way you're acting, it's as if you're the one getting married, not me."
Fu Qiang's face flushed, and he lowered his voice. "If I could marry such a capable wife, I'd gladly marry into her family."
Fu Ye: "…"
I see it now. You're a spineless coward. As the eldest son of the main line, you've been thinking about making money while lying down since you were a child, much to the anger of the family elders.
Fu Chuan didn't think much about Wei Mingtang. She just found the young girl's temperament quite unique. Helping her was partly because of her background from the welfare home.
From a young age, her parents had taken her to sponsor such children, and she had learned about the many hardships in the world. Later, when she grew up and her financial situation improved, she sponsored many more. Sometimes, it was just a habit, perhaps not even pity.
It was just a matter of lending a hand, nothing compared to those who, while in hell themselves, did not forget to save angels…
An old man picking through trash found a baby in a garbage heap. Being uneducated and from a poor area with no welfare homes, he didn't know where to send the child, and no one cared. So, bit by bit, he raised the child, who was as weak as a kitten, by selling scraps. Five or six years later, the little girl was lively and lovely. A bowl of rice could fuel her for an eight-hundred-meter run in three minutes. She would sit on the old man's garbage cart, blowing a toy pinwheel, as they went through the streets and alleys…
Later, the old man felt unwell. A trip to the hospital revealed he had cancer. He carefully hid his worries and spent some time with the child, always making her delicious food, buying her a new cotton-padded jacket and new shoes. Every day felt like the New Year. Finally, late one night, while the girl was asleep, he placed her on his tricycle, wrapped her well in a quilt, and, enduring his illness, pedaled for three hours in the cold wind to take her to the city's welfare home… As he secretly left, the child ran out from behind.
She chased him for a long time on her bare feet, but the old man didn't look back.
At that time, Fu Chuan was in her parents' car, passing the tricycle from the opposite direction… Her window happened to be open, and she saw the skinny old man, who didn't look like a good person, pedaling his cart with tears streaming down his face.
But his speed grew slower and slower, because the little girl behind him kept crying and calling for her grandpa, and behind her, people from the welfare home were chasing.
Much later, Fu Chuan realized it wasn't a person chasing a person, but love, chasing love.
Her mother decisively slammed on the gas, turned the car around, and stopped in front of the tricycle, getting out to block the way.
And Fu Chuan ran back to hug the girl whose feet were bleeding.
Later, they found out the old man's cancer was treatable, but not easily. It would cost several hundred thousand.
In those days, several hundred thousand was no small sum. Even their family couldn't help much. Later, her father used his connections to contact some charitable organizations and companies, highlighting the old man's good deeds… There were still good people in the world. Even if it was for corporate publicity, it was a practical act of kindness. The result was a million in life-saving donations. The old man successfully underwent surgery in time, halting the cancer's progression, but he only lived for another ten years.
Ten years, the old man said, was more than he could have asked for.
She went to see him off as well.
Ten years after that, her grandmother fell gravely ill. The whole family was at a loss. They tried all sorts of connections and went to various major hospitals to no avail. A genius doctor from overseas returned to the country, bringing her teacher to personally lead the rescue.
That little girl had grown up.
After the surgery was complete, her teacher told Fu Chuan that she had given up a very important interview and opportunity just to return to the country.
And she wasn't leaving again.
Later, this girl, a few years younger than her, became Fu Chuan's best friend.
Perhaps Fu Chuan's immunity to beautiful women came from this best friend.
She didn't know what would happen to her parents after she died. Probably… she would help take care of them, right? Would she help delete the chat logs between them on her phone?
A sudden wave of guilt washed over her.
The suppressed emotions stirred, and Fu Chuan felt very uncomfortable. When she was giving the point items and the underwear to Li Cang, he sensed the low pressure emanating from her and couldn't help but say, "If you don't want to give them, you don't have to be so scary. And although we were enemies before, and you deliberately used this to humiliate me…"
Li Cang had grown up among the strong, but he wasn't brainless like Chen Sihai and the others. He could judge who was not to be trifled with and actually held a degree of admiration for Fu Chuan.
Fu Chuan snapped back to reality, reined in her emotions, and said flatly, "No, I was just thinking that your underwear has an anti-Arcane spell on it. Such perverse ingenuity, a work of genius. No wonder it dropped like a piece of equipment."
What?
This is just ordinary underwear!!!
You're slandering me!
Li Cang was stunned, gritting his teeth. "I, Li Cang, am not so petty as to seek trouble with you over this exam. Why must you…"
Why must you slander me like this!
What perverse ingenuity? You're the perverse one!
But he couldn't clear his name. Really, the way others were looking at him could fill a three-thousand-word essay.
It wasn't me, I didn't, don't talk nonsense!
Li Cang was sick to his stomach but couldn't argue with Fu Chuan without losing his composure. He could only watch with an icy expression as she turned to distribute the other point items.
That damn pervert!
Fu Chuan hadn't intentionally slandered Li Cang. It was just that when she came to her senses, she found this young master blaming her for exposing his underwear. She thought she was being kind, so why was he blaming her?
Already in a bad mood, Fu Chuan opened her mouth and slandered him.
Later, someone else dropped height-increasing insoles and a set of dentures… and everyone collectively deemed them works of perverse ingenuity, all of them equipment!
"Insidious, truly insidious."
"Doesn't this mean they have several more pieces of equipment than us? Underwear, height-increasing insoles, and what not. So shameless!"
"Pah!"
Many people's hearts were bleeding: Damn you, Xie Keli! Damn you, prison lightning! You're so down-to-earth you can even strike out height-increasing insoles?!
In any case, Yun Baobao secretly felt relieved: Thank goodness she got out early.
After slandering others, when Fu Chuan gave the points to the people from the three cities, whether it was the sharp-tongued Pang Ci or the cold and arrogant Luohe Sanqian, they all remained quiet and low-key, not daring to speak.
Shen Qixi's situation was special. Everyone knew she was hiding a secret and felt it was inappropriate to ask. After all, they weren't close, and it involved a great noble family, so they weren't qualified to get involved.
When Shen Qixi received her points, she noticed an extra portion. After a moment's thought, she took it.
She knew she was different now. In the future, she could help people. If she worked hard enough to meet the big sister's team standards, they could go to the same school in the future…
Big Brother was too fierce. Can't afford to provoke him.
Pang Ci silently scuffed his shoe on the ground…
Perhaps because Fu Chuan was being so generous in distributing the point items, others got the wrong impression that she was quite generous. They didn't expect her to return the items for free, but would she sell them?
Yun Baobao was the first to approach Fu Chuan. "Are you selling point items? Name your price. I'll buy as many as you have. You're already in first place, so the points are useless to you anyway."
Her posture reminded Fu Chuan of those small ads on telephone poles where rich women offered huge sums for a child.
Fu Chuan initially wanted to refuse, but then she felt that the Yun Family seemed easier to deal with and might not resort to underhanded tactics. They might be worth winning over. So, she softened her stance and asked, "These points can be used to exchange for resources in the academies, right? Are you sure I would sell them?"
Yun Baobao's expression stiffened for a moment, but she directly grabbed Fu Chuan's sleeve and pulled her aside, preventing Xie Yiyuan and the others from getting close. Then she said, "That's true, but a person's aptitude is limited. You might not be able to use all those points. And after entering the academy, there are all sorts of things to learn. High school has many subjects that cost money. Are you sure you have enough cash on hand? For the twenty thousand points from me and Doudou, I'll offer two hundred thousand blue coins. The other points will be at the same price. Will you sell?"
The price made Fu Chuan's pupils constrict.
She had just been asking casually and didn't intend to sell, but the offer was simply too generous.
Fu Chuan thought for a moment and lowered her voice. "If I help you, what about the others?"
Yun Baobao thought she had been rejected and was disappointed.
"So you need to try hard to persuade me, until time is almost up… and only then succeed. Understand?"
Oh?
I get it, I get it!
Yun Baobao and Zhang Doudou indeed pestered Fu Chuan, making Xie Yiyuan and the others think she had failed. Meanwhile, Fu Chuan's points had already reached seven hundred thousand.
The second place, Li Cang, had seventy thousand.
It was a cliff, an enormous gap.
Just when everyone thought the rankings were fixed, at the last moment… with a whoosh, Yun Baobao shot up to second place.
Holy crap!
Li Cang's face turned green, and the others didn't look too happy either. They all turned their heads in unison, only to see the two shameless ones from the Yun Family shouting, "Good thing you gave them to us! Otherwise, I'd hang myself on your front door during the holidays."
"Doudou will hang at the Jingyang Xie residence, and I'll hang at the Beluke Xie residence!"
"Really, it's a good thing you gave them."
"You saved your family's doorframe."
The people from the other families stared intently at the group of short people from the Yun Family.
Dammit, shameless!
Fuck!
The ranking was over.
The results were locked in.
The final rankings were as follows.
1. Xie Keli, 700,000 points.
2. Yun Baobao, 80,000 points.
3. Li Cang, 72,000 points.
4. Wei Mingtang, 63,000 points.
5. Zhang Doudou, 62,000 points.
6. Que Baimo, 54,000 points.
7. Xie Yiyuan, 48,000 points.
8. Hong Yan, 27,000 points.
9. Yue Mingze, 20,000 points.
10. Shen Qixi, 18,000 points.
The remaining spots were occupied by the other first-tier candidates. There were no dark horses.
During the settlement, a halo of light descended upon the candidates. The dungeon experience was substantial, at least for Fu Chuan, and there were notifications.
"Settlement: Comprehensive dungeon performance is as follows: First in both output and strategy. Comprehensive coefficient of 10.15. As the coefficient exceeds ten, the Divine Temple's Arcane Palace will bestow an additional reward. You may go and claim it yourself."
"The Re-selection exam for the Big Four Academies has concluded. The top 50 ranked individuals may enroll in the academies."
"First place enters Class A, 2nd-10th enter Class B, 11th-30th enter Class C, 31st-50th enter Class D. The unselected candidates ranked 51st to 300th can undergo a one-month observation period with other prospects selected through wilderness dungeon competitions and local recommendations. Those who pass the observation and rank in the top 30 can enter Class E."
"The Re-selection is over. School starts in three days. This school has no distinction by grade. Students of all classes enroll at various ages. You must advance through competition and study, promoting to higher classes through the semesterly final exam rankings. Treatment, resources, and faculty quality will all see significant improvements. Time is short. The 50 candidates are to report to the school on time."
As the experience descended, Fu Chuan heard the guild's announcement. When she saw her experience jump to the 30th level, she was certain that her proactive efforts in this dungeon, even if it meant offending the scions of so many Orange Blood families, were worth it.
A high contribution ratio in the dungeon meant more experience, which was much more stable and time-efficient than grinding dungeons outside.
It was like the candidates in the wilderness competitions. Although they still had a chance to enter Class D, the one-month time gap was enormous.
And it also said that the treatment in different classes varied greatly.
This was the meaning of the exam: to distinguish the strong from the weak, to differentiate treatment.
However, as Fu Chuan checked the rankings, she didn't focus on the top ten or top thirty. She scrolled down… and after a while, she saw a name in the 50th spot.
Her brow furrowed instantly. Qin Minfeng, this guy actually made it into the top 50 with enough points? He had been eliminated by her early on. Could he have killed a lot of criminals before that?
That was unlikely, unless that bastard got a high-value point item.
But that wasn't right. After he was killed, the point items should have dropped…
At this moment, only Donglong Zhao was in the top fifty, but Chen Sihai and Lian Sujin had both been eliminated. They were also wondering how Qin Minfeng got in.
Qin Minfeng knew he couldn't afford to offend them right now, so he said frankly, "I was a bit lucky. I got two point item boxes earlier. The items inside were special; they could be used directly to add points and wouldn't be dropped upon death."
Holy crap!
That's possible?!!!
At this time, the guild also mentioned that there were some surprises among the items, including this type of special point item.
Many people looked at Qin Minfeng, thinking his luck was just too good…
However, something seemed off. Why was that Xie Keli staring at Qin Minfeng, and why did his expression and gaze seem so particularly… invested?
This was too strange.
A person like Xie Keli never wasted any emotion. To pay so much attention meant there was a reason to do so.
Xie Yiyuan turned and sent a reminder to his family.
"Investigate Qin Minfeng. There's something wrong with this person. And they both come from X5."
"For a tiny garbage star to produce such elites simultaneously, even if Qin Minfeng is far inferior, it's not normal."
It wasn't just the Xie Clan; the Li, Que, and Yun families had similar thoughts.
They were experienced and worldly, and they keenly sensed that there must be some secret involved.
Could there be some special substance on X5 that benefited both of them, with Xie Keli simply getting more, leading to his massive transformation… but because of a struggle over the treasure, they became enemies and wary of each other?
While they were in such turmoil, Fu Chuan lowered her eyes, a thought forming in her mind.
Qin Minfeng would definitely run.
But given her performance, the four great families would surely do one thing.
"Lock down customs. Don't let this Qin Minfeng escape."
In that case, the time left for Qin Minfeng was short.
Fu Chuan turned her head and reached out to take the watermelon that Zhang Doudou was carefully offering. He had even thoughtfully prepared a spoon.
It was now mealtime. Parents and teachers from various families were claiming their children and students, planning to reward or console them. The atmosphere was lively.
Only the first-place winner went against the flow. She walked out alone, holding a watermelon, went to the steps outside, sat down, and began to eat the watermelon with a spoon.
It was somewhat desolate outside, a plain. She sat on the steps of the city wall, looking into the distance, eating her watermelon one slow spoonful at a time.
Someone turned to look at her and was suddenly struck by a thought.
"This person, it seems he got first place, but it looks like he has no one to share his glory and joy with."
"It turns out he's very lonely."
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