35: Chapter 35: The Kill – The Excited Teachers!

"Go!" Zhang Wen shouted sharply. Dozens of lightning arrows, condensed with purple electricity, shot out in response, plunging toward the Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger like a gathering Startling Thunder Arises.

In an instant, the Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger's retreat was locked tight—ahead was the dense net woven by Zhang Wen's lightning arrows, and behind was Ding Siyi's continuous interference with fireballs, clinging like maggots on a bone.

The Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger was furious. A tiger roar that shook the mountains and forests pierced the sky. Its body suddenly split into dozens of afterimages. Each Clone was wrapped in pitch-black Evil Qi, not only blocking all the lightning arrows but also rushing toward Zhang Wen like a tide.

"It's the Evil Shadow Thousand Assault!" Ding Siyi warned urgently. "Every Clone has corrosive Evil Qi, be careful not to let it touch you!"

Zhang Wen's eyes narrowed. His right arm muscles bulged, and purple electricity surged wildly in his palm: "Thunder Net Locking Truth!"

An invisible electric net spread out suddenly. The rushing Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger Clones were instantly frozen in mid-air, turning into black smoke and dissipating. Zhang Wen seized the opportunity to leap into the air, his gaze locked on the only main body that wasn't restrained. His fist pointed directly at its face: "Stupid cat, taste my Rushing Thunder Delusion Breaking Fist!"

"Startling Thunder Arises!"

The fist wind, carrying the power to destroy heaven and earth, slammed out. Trees along the way exploded in response, and broken stones and branches scattered like cannonballs.

This earth-shattering blow hit the Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger squarely, causing its massive body to fly backward like a kite with a broken string, slamming fiercely into the mountain wall with a shrill howl.

"Siyi, finish it!" As soon as Zhang Wen landed, his throat was still hoarse from the exertion, but he shouted loudly.

On the other side, Ding Siyi had long been focused and storing power. The air around her twisted and steamed under the pressure of her spiritual power, and even the surrounding plants scorched. Hearing Zhang Wen's command, she suddenly opened her eyes. Two dancing flames seemed to be burning in her pupils. Her lips parted slightly, and her cold tone exploded, carrying a scorching air current: "Heart Burning Tribulation, Crimson Face Solitude!"

Before the words faded, a stream of fire, condensed like red silk, shot out from her palm. It was not an ordinary flame, but a torrent of spiritual power condensed with extreme heat energy. Wherever it passed, the air crackled, and even the mountain rocks were scorched. With the terrifying power to burn everything, it rushed straight toward the Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger, which was embedded in the mountain wall by Zhang Wen and had not yet recovered.

Zhang Wen, standing to the side, felt his pupils shrink, and a strong palpitation rose in his heart—as a cultivator in the Forming Realm, facing this technique of Ding Siyi's that carried the power to burn heaven and destroy the earth, he clearly felt a hair-raising pressure. Even if he responded with all his strength, he had no confidence that he could escape unscathed.

The red light pierced the sky and reached the Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger in an instant. The already severely injured Shadow Fiend Demonic Tiger let out a terrified roar, trying to mobilize the remaining Evil Qi to resist, but saw the fire ignite upon contact. Even the Evil Qi around its body was ignited, turning into a raging inferno.

In an instant, the entire mountain forest was swallowed by the soaring flames. Crimson fire waves surged like a tide, reflecting even the sky with a scorching heat. The hot air wave lasted for a full incense stick's time before it slowly faded away along with the curling blue smoke, revealing the charred, coal-like ground and the mountain wall that had been completely burned to ashes.

Zhang Wen looked at the barren mess in front of him, and his Adam's apple rolled involuntarily. After a long while, he managed to squeeze out an exclamation: "My god... isn't the power of your ultimate move a bit too absurd?" He raised his hand to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead, his fingertips still retaining the scorching heat from the intersection of his fist energy and the flames. "That heat wave brushed past me just now, and my back was almost roasted."

Ding Siyi stood up slowly, leaning on her staff. Her face was pale from the exhaustion of spiritual power, and the hair on her forehead was wet with sweat. Her voice was obviously weak: "It's all thanks to you holding it back in the front, otherwise, I wouldn't have had the chance to fully charge this move... In normal times, I'm afraid I would have been torn to pieces just as I started."

She took a breath, suddenly looked up at Zhang Wen, a flash of cunning in her eyes. She raised her hand to shake her still slightly trembling fist, but her tone was full of competitive spirit: "But after this battle, I feel that my Bottleneck has loosened—it won't be long before I can make a Breakthrough to the Forming Realm. By then..." She deliberately dragged out her tone, "Don't cry when you get beaten down by me."

Zhang Wen was stunned by her sudden provocation. He subconsciously took half a step back, then coughed twice to change the subject: "Cough, it's too early to say that. Let's see how many points we've earned this trip." As he said this, he raised his hand and pressed the scorer on his wrist. The moment the screen lit up, his eyes widened sharply.

The eye-catching "10215" points jumped to the top of the list like a brand, the bright red numbers glowing coldly in the dark night. He swiped his fingertip down, and Ding Siyi's name followed closely behind, with a score of 7025 firmly occupying second place.

"Damn!" Zhang Wen let out a low curse, his tone full of disbelief. "We've directly become the top by a huge margin!" He turned to look at Ding Siyi, the excitement in his eyes almost overflowing. "Forget about the provincial top scholar now, the national top scholar is also secure!"

Just as Zhang Wen and Ding Siyi were ecstatic about the points, outside the exam hall, in the monitoring command center, the atmosphere had already solidified into a wave of scorching heat.

On the huge electronic screen, the number "10215" was like a cluster of burning flames, fiercely burning everyone's eyes.

Director Chen jumped up from his chair, his beer belly trembling with the movement. His finger poked hard at Zhang Wen's name on the screen, and his Adam's apple rolled up and down for a long time before he squeezed out a trembling sentence: "Old Li! Old Li, pinch me—am I dreaming?"

Principal Li Tianji, who was beside him, was still maintaining a leaning posture, and didn't even notice his glasses sliding to the tip of his nose. Hearing this, he turned his head blankly, the stagnation that hadn't faded yet embedded in the wrinkles on his face: "No need to pinch," he raised his hand to rub his own blue-purple thigh, his voice hoarse from the pain, "I pinched myself three times just now, it hurts to the bone, it's real."

Director Chen seemed to have been pressed with a start button. He slapped his thigh suddenly and laughed roughly, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes piling up into folds: "Good kid! This kid Zhang Wen is going to be Heaven-Defying!"

He paced twice in the command room, then suddenly stopped, hands on his hips, staring at the score ranking on the screen—in the local candidate column that had been at the bottom for years, Zhang Wen's name was like a nail, firmly nailed to the top, and Ding Siyi, who followed behind, also threw off the third place by nearly two thousand points.

"How many years has it been..." Director Chen's voice was a little choked. He wiped his face and put on that excited energy again. "Our city has been at the bottom of the province every year, and I couldn't lift my head in meetings! It's good now! With this score, let's see who dares to give me a cold face!" He patted Li Tianji's shoulder heavily, with such force that the other party staggered. "Old Li, prepare the celebration wine! When this batch of children comes out, I will pour wine for them myself!"

The others in the command room finally reacted, and the long-suppressed cheers exploded instantly. The sound of keyboard typing and chair moving, mixed with the praises one after another, stirred up the night outside the window.