123: Chapter 123, the quarterly competition, has it been cancelled?

On the Martial Arts Field of Qinglan University, the competition platform that should have been erected was empty, with only a few unremoved wooden stakes left swaying lonely in the wind.

Zhang Wen clutched the notice he had just received; the words "Quarterly Competition cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances" on the paper were particularly glaring.

He couldn't help but sigh, leaning against a nearby tree trunk, his brows furrowed into a knot.

"What is this all about..." he muttered under his breath.

The "First Place in the Quarterly Competition" task issued by the System was still hanging on the panel. He had intended to show off his Penetration Realm cultivation, but the competition was gone just like that.

He poked at the System interface in his mind, looking at the "Task Progress: 0%" prompt.

His mouth twisted into a wry smile—he couldn't exactly force the school to hold the competition, could he?

Ding Siyi leaned in and patted his shoulder: "Don't be so depressed. I heard from the teacher that it's because Dongmo University is making a huge fuss."

"They said you've reached the Penetration Realm in your freshman year and have even fought against the Soul Devouring Hall. If you participated, no one else would stand a chance, so they insisted on banning you."

Zhang Wen raised an eyebrow: "They certainly think highly of me."

"Isn't that right!" Ding Siyi laughed, "But it's no wonder. Think about it, in previous years, freshman New Students at most had just reached the Subtle Realm."

"You jumped straight to the Penetration Realm; they must be afraid you'd turn the competition into a one-man show."

"Besides, Dragon country is cracking down hard on the Soul Devouring Hall right now, and the military needs all schools to cooperate with the investigations, so the cancellation of the competition is reasonable."

Zhang Wen nodded, but he still felt stifled inside.

He pulled out the System's prompt regarding "Task Failure Penalty: Confiscation of all Spiritual Artifacts" and rubbed his temples.

"I just got them warm, if they take them back, wouldn't that be the death of me?"

Just then, Lin Mo's figure approached from afar, holding a cyan Jade Slip which he handed to Zhang Wen.

"Principal Gongsun asked me to give this to you. He said the Old Marshal wants to see you. Tomorrow morning, accompany him to the military headquarters."

Zhang Wen took the Jade Slip. Before he could reply, a crisp "ding" suddenly rang in his mind, and the System's notification sound exploded:

[Detected that the host indirectly thwarted the Soul Devouring Hall's conspiracy, affecting the Dragon country's military and political deployment; triggering special task judgment...]

[Judgment 1: host exposed Ye Chen's identity as a member of the Soul Devouring Hall, assisted Gongsun Hongyi in gathering information, and provided key evidence for the military's thorough investigation.]

[Judgment 2: host killed a member of the Soul Devouring Hall at the Black Wind Stockade, preventing them from obtaining the Nether Crystal Core.]

[Judgment 3: host stalled Ye Chen, an undercover agent planted by the Soul Devouring Hall in the Dragon country, preventing the Soul Devouring Hall from penetrating deeper into the Dragon country.]

[Comprehensive Judgment: Task "First Place in the Quarterly Competition" converted to "Soul Devouring Hall Related Contribution Met", Task Completed!]

[Rewards Issued: Ordinary Draw Chance x10, 20,000 Points, SSS-Grade Physique Thunder Battle Body Awakened.]

Zhang Wen stared at the System prompt in his mind, frozen in place, and the cyan Jade Slip in his hand "clattered" onto the ground.

SSS-Grade Physique? Thunder Battle Body? This reward came even more unexpectedly than Teacher Lin Mo's healing spiritual power!

He hurriedly picked up the Jade Slip. As soon as his fingertips touched the icy jade surface, he felt a subtle tingling sensation surge from his fingertips, drilling along his Meridians toward his Dantian.

He subconsciously clenched his fists, and the spiritual power in his Dantian began to churn along with it.

The Meridians that had been aching faintly were like being soaked in warm water; amidst the numbness was an indescribable comfort.

"Why are you spacing out? Your soul is almost flying away."

Lin Mo waved his hand in front of his eyes, his eyes filled with a bit of confusion.

"The Old Marshal's summons is no child's play. Gather at the school gate at seven tomorrow morning. If you are one second late, your Spiritual Artifacts will have to be temporarily handed over to the public."

"Ah? Oh! It's absolutely impossible for me to be late!"

Zhang Wen snapped back to reality, stuffing the Jade Slip tightly into his bosom. The depression on his face was swept away, leaving only an irrepressible silly grin.

"Thank you, Teacher Lin Mo, I will definitely set three alarm clocks tonight!"

Ding Siyi leaned over and poked his arm.

"You're grinning like you've snuck a drink of bootleg alcohol. Did you break through secretly again? Why do I feel like your aura has gotten stronger?"

Zhang Wen's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly restrained his focus—the System's affairs must not be exposed.

He scratched his head, feigning helplessness: "Maybe the healing Medicinal Pill Teacher Lin Mo gave me was too good. My Meridians cleared up, so my aura naturally smoothed out a bit."

Ding Siyi raised an eyebrow, half-doubting: "Really? Why does it look like when you stand there, even the wind goes around you?"

"Illusion, it's definitely an illusion."

Zhang Wen laughed it off to change the subject, but inwardly he felt secretly relieved—thankfully, he hadn't controlled his spiritual power well when he first Awakened, but he hadn't let the Lightning Radiance show.

Seeing him like this, Lin Mo assumed his depression over the competition's cancellation had dissipated, so he didn't ask further and just urged:

"When you see the Old Marshal tomorrow, clearly explain the details of your fight with the Soul Devouring Hall, especially Ye Chen's state after the Fusion with the soul fiend, don't leave out a single bit."

"Don't worry! I remember everything, I can even tell you the number of patches on his clothes!"

After seeing the two off, Zhang Wen couldn't wait to return to his residence.

Once inside, he locked the door and impatiently summoned the System panel.

Looking at the "Ordinary Draw Chance x10" prompt, he took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and clicked "Draw All"—only praying not to pull a bunch of trash!

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: D-Grade Spirit Stone x50 (Enough to buy half a catty of Yao Beast meat)]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Expired Healing Medicinal Pill x2 (Half efficacy, better than nothing)]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Damaged Lightning Avoidance Talisman x1 (Can only defend against mosquito-sized lightning spirits)]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Rusted Dagger x1 (Not a Spiritual Artifact, too dull even to peel fruit)]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Points x200 (Even a mosquito is meat no matter how small)]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: D-Grade Spiritual Artifact "Wind-Breaking Boots" (Speed increase 1%, the soles are almost worn flat)]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Dampened Body Refining Medicinal Pill x1 (Must be dried for three days before consumption)]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Blank Talisman x5 (Missing ink, must find Materials to draw yourself)]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Special Item "Soul Devouring Mirror Fragment" x1 (Collect three pieces to synthesize the Soul Devouring Mirror, can detect Soul Devouring Hall members)]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Points x300 (Finally gathered five hundred)]