Chapter 1300: The Elite Class

Hum!

With a flash of light, the final rankings and scores all appeared above, a dense array of names, exactly five hundred, no more, no less.

Seeing the updated scores, everyone was full of surprise, and then an uproar ensued.

“This score must have broken the record!”

“It hasn’t broken the record, but it’s definitely the highest level in the last thirty years!”

“Feng Ziyi in first place, over seventy thousand points… Even that little princess of the Luo family didn’t achieve that!”

“The Luo family’s little princess didn’t go all out. If she had, not to mention seventy thousand, I think seven hundred thousand would be possible!”

“That’s true. When refining the Stillness Orb, if one’s mastery of space reaches a certain level and they truly go all out, no one can match them. The entire folded space probably couldn’t withstand it.”

“Yes, unless that legendary genius of the Zhang family appears, the Luo family’s little princess is unmatched in talent—no lie!”

…

Many renowned teachers couldn’t help but sigh with emotion.

They were all reception envoys, receiving countless students every year. This batch of students was definitely among the best in decades!

Feng Ziyi in first place with over seventy thousand points…

This score was terrifying.

“Zhang Xu is not far behind either, with sixty-nine thousand points, just over a thousand short of first place!”

“I didn’t expect that in the last update, Yuan Haiqing rose one place to become third!”

“Bai Qingxuan is also not weak, ranking fourth…”

Looking at the many names at the top, everyone was full of admiration.

These were all the strong ones entering the elite class, the most talented youths at the pinnacle of the continent. In the coming centuries, their names might be heard everywhere.

“Bing Lingqing and Chen Leyao of the Ice Plain Palace both entered the elite class. The former is fine, her score hovering around the teens; Chen Leyao was lucky, previously hovering around seventieth or eightieth!”

“She must have completed some formidable trial at the end, causing her score to suddenly explode! I must say, her luck is indeed excellent!”

“Yes, Zhang Qian is a pity. He was in the top fifty originally, but unfortunately fell off at the last moment, missing the elite class!”

…

Over these three days, they had been watching the rankings and were familiar with where each person stood. The last update brought changes, and with such significant scores, it was definitely a matter of luck.

“Hey, everyone look, the one ranked fiftieth is Zhang Xuan… Where did he come from? I’ve never seen that name before!”

Suddenly, someone shouted.

Everyone looked in unison and indeed saw an unfamiliar name in the fiftieth position… Zhang Xuan!

“This… this name wasn’t even in the top five hundred before. How did it jump to fiftieth?”

“Fiftieth place requires twelve thousand seven hundred points… I saw the top five hundred in the last update; the lowest was two thousand four hundred points. That means in the time between updates, he must have earned at least ten thousand points… How is that possible?”

“Ten thousand points in two minutes… Even Feng Ziyi couldn’t do that!”

“Could he have cheated?”

Soon, doubts arose.

The score jade tablet refreshed roughly every two minutes. In the last update, this name wasn’t seen, and the lowest in the top five hundred was two thousand four hundred points… Not having his name meant he hadn’t even reached that score!

Two minutes later, with another refresh, he directly reached over ten thousand points… Isn’t that too exaggerated?

Others couldn’t earn that much in three days and nights, but he got it in two minutes. What earth-shattering thing did he do?

Unlike the crowd’s confusion, seeing Zhang Xuan’s name, Zhao Xingmo breathed a sigh of relief.

He had been worried for three days. This guy really didn’t let people rest easy.

He hadn’t been found on the first day, and watching all the way through, he thought there was no hope. But this guy, at the last moment, wildly earned over ten thousand points, successfully advancing… and even became the last place in the elite class. Just thinking about it was thrilling and tense.

Having a genius he received enter the elite class was also a great honor for him.

“Zhang Jiuxiao, Ma Minghai, Sun Qian… This time, seven of the ones I received passed. Not bad!”

He nodded to himself.

Out of thirty-three, seven passed. Although it didn’t meet expectations, having one elite class student was decent. With this result, he would surely be sent to better places next time to recruit geniuses and attract more strong individuals.

“This score is strange!”

Similar to the crowd’s reaction, Elder Haoyu also frowned.

Having been an elder for so many years, he had seen countless geniuses, but earning over ten thousand points in two minutes—he had never seen or heard of it.

“Elder Hanzhu, go investigate!”

After a moment’s hesitation, he instructed.

“Yes!”

The old man behind him nodded.

Elder Hanzhu withdrew and returned after a short time, his face very strange.

“What’s wrong?”

Seeing his expression, Elder Haoyu asked.

“I just checked everyone’s scores and the time changes… This Zhang Xuan had no score at all before the last update. That means in the last two minutes… he earned twelve thousand seven hundred points!”

Elder Hanzhu said.

Although the assessment jade tablet only showed the top five hundred names, everyone’s points were calculated; otherwise, it would be impossible to determine who passed.

He had just gone to check the previous scores and was surprised to find that this Zhang Xuan had zero points two minutes before the end. Just as it was about to end, he suddenly jumped into the top fifty… extremely bizarre.

“Earning over twelve thousand points directly? What kind of assessment in the formation could yield so many points?” Elder Haoyu said.

“As you know, the mountain gate assessment was left by Saint Kui. Much of its content, even we elders have no right to investigate, let alone know. The highest scoring assessment, exactly how many points, is unclear. However, according to records from the past hundred years, the highest score should be from breaking the eight-star mid-grade Illusory Killing Formation, with a score of… five thousand points!”

After a pause, Elder Hanzhu said: “That record was set twenty-five years ago by Zhang Chen of the Zhang family, causing a huge sensation at the time.”

“I know about that. Five thousand points was already astonishing, but this Zhang Xuan earned over twelve thousand points in an instant. What did he experience to be so heaven-defying?”

Elder Haoyu still couldn’t believe it.

In the assessment, there were ways to quickly earn points, but the corresponding trials were also extremely difficult.

Even so, five thousand points was already incredible. The other guy got over ten thousand… Even he was baffled.

“Let’s do this: announce the results first, then arrange a challenge match afterward, and send a few people to test whether he really earned that many points through the assessment.”

After a pause, Elder Haoyu said.

“Alright!” Elder Hanzhu responded.

After three consecutive days of assessment, everyone was usually very tired, so normally the results were announced and then everyone rested.

But there were exceptions.

For example, if someone’s scores seemed very strange, challenges would be arranged, allowing those who didn’t pass to challenge those who did, and ordinary class students to challenge elite class students.

First, to observe the students’ abilities firsthand and teach them according to their aptitude. Second, to make others feel that the previous assessment was fair and impartial, without any favoritism.

This Zhang Xuan suddenly jumped into the top fifty. Once the news spread, it would inevitably cause suspicion. Such a challenge was necessary to convince everyone and to test whether he truly had the goods.

“Let’s go!”

Having finished the discussion, Elder Haoyu said no more and, with a signal, flew out first.

The others followed closely and soon arrived at the square.

At this time, all the students had come out of the mountain gate, looking up at the sky with expectant eyes.

“Congratulations to all of you for successfully completing the three-day assessment. Now I will announce the results. The students entering the elite class…”

With a resonant voice, Elder Haoyu grabbed the air, and the sky seemed to turn into sparkling jade, shining with light. Names slowly emerged from it.

Feng Ziyi, Zhang Xu, Yuan Haiqing, Bai Qingxuan…

Each name that appeared sparked a burst of cheers.

“I’ve heard of Feng Ziyi; he’s a personal disciple of a Supreme Elder of the Master Teacher Guild!”

“A personal disciple of a nine-star master teacher? No wonder he’s so strong. Such people have received the most correct guidance since childhood, with pure true qi and profound strength, flawless in every aspect. Becoming first is only natural…”

“Yes, but I thought Zhang Xu would be first!”

“The Zhang family is too large, with too many geniuses. Although Zhang Xu’s talent is not weak, he can’t rank first, and the resources he can use are limited!”

Many names were already familiar to the crowd, shining like stars.

“Chen Leyao? She also entered the elite class?”

Looking at the name that flashed out, Zhang Xuan nodded.

This Chen Leyao was only at the peak of the Out-of-Body realm, yet she managed to break into the top fifty. It seemed she had some special methods.

“So many with the surname Zhang. Are they all from the Zhang family?”

As more and more names appeared, Zhang Xuan found it strange.

Over forty names had already appeared, and a full ten of them had the surname Zhang. Could they all be from the Zhang family?

The elite class had fifty members, and ten appeared… The number of strong individuals was terrifying!

Whoosh!

Just as he was wondering and about to ask if these people were from the Zhang family, the light flickered one last time, and his own name appeared at the end of the list.

“Zhang Xuan? Is he also from the Zhang family?”

“No, I’ve seen the list of the Sage Zhang family this year; this name isn’t on it…”

“He seems to be a nobody from the Qingyuan Empire. As soon as he arrived, he offended Chen Leyao of the Ice Plain Palace and beat up Zhang Qian of the Zhang family…”

“Beat up Zhang Qian? Pretty arrogant!”

“To enter the elite class, one must have some pride; it’s only natural!”

…

Seeing Zhang Xuan’s name appear, the surroundings immediately erupted.

For the previous forty-nine, almost everyone could name their family background or their impressive strength. Only this Zhang Xuan appeared too abruptly.

Peak of the Soul-Transformation realm, a nobody from the Qingyuan Empire, unassuming, yet suddenly entering the top fifty…

It was hard to believe.