18: Chapter 18: Wielding an ancient and powerful beast, invincible among those of the same level!

"Ding! Target confirmed: Tang Tianchen (Tier 6 Deity)."

He really was a Tier 6 big shot.

As the head of the Xinghai City Chamber of Commerce, it was no surprise that the wealthiest family had such a powerhouse guarding their home.

"Everyone! The 10th Ten-School Joint Exam officially begins now!"

A host in a formal suit shouted into the microphone, "We will proceed with the individual elimination tournament first!"

The first match officially began.

To prevent internal conflict too early, the first round of drawing lots automatically avoided students from the same school.

A lottery machine was pushed to the very center of the square.

The ten participants lined up to draw their tokens.

Gu Ze had good luck and drew a contestant from the No. 6 High School.

Tang You drew one from the No. 4 High School.

When it was Lin Feng's turn, he casually reached into the box and pulled out an electronic token.

"City No. 3 High School's Lin Feng, versus City No.1 High School's Lu Yu!"

Good grief.

Lin Feng exclaimed internally, 'Good grief.'

In the very first match, he had run straight into the tough nut that was City No.1 High School.

"Brother, may fortune favor you." Gu Ze patted Lin Feng on the shoulder, his face full of sympathy.

The results of the drawing were immediately synchronized onto the four large screens suspended in mid-air.

On the VIP platform, the bearded principal of City No.1 High School was overjoyed: "Old Qin, it seems your No. 3 High School's luck in the draw is truly a bit lacking this year."

Principal Qin had initially been a bit nervous, but when he saw Lin Feng's name on the screen, his expression instantly relaxed.

"Haha, why don't I take charge today and save the eighth or ninth spot for your No. 3 High School to fall back on?"

The principal of City No.1 High School continued to mock him.

The two schools were old rivals, and they would never pass up an opportunity to ridicule each other.

"That's right, Old Qin. City No.1 High School's strength is plain for all to see, so stop putting on a brave front."

The principal of No. 6 High School also chimed in to stir the pot, "Everyone knows what kind of results No. 3 High School has had over the years."

Facing the harassment from his colleagues, Principal Qin picked up his teacup, took a sip, and kept his expression unchanged.

"Today, it won't be that simple."

...

With the matchup list finalized, the competition began immediately.

Dozens of simulation pods in the square all started up and went into standby mode.

The order of battle was completely random; anyone could be called up first.

Lin Feng sat steadily in his chair, intending to observe others' tactics first.

"Now announcing the first round of match-ups!"

"First match: City No. 3 High School's Lin Feng, facing City No.1 High School's Lu Yu!"

Damn it.

Lin Feng had black lines all over his forehead.

He must not have checked the almanac before going out today; his luck was simply unparalleled.

Even Gu Ze and Chu Yun cast helpless glances his way.

"Good luck!"

Tang You clenched her small fists, "You are our entire school's hope now."

Lin Feng nodded and stood up, walking over to the simulation pod in the center of the venue.

From the City No.1 High School formation, a handsome boy with a crew cut also walked out.

"Lu Yu! Crush them!"

"City No.1 High School is invincible! City No.1 High School is glory!"

The opposing formation instantly erupted, cheers rising wave after wave, and a few logistics girls even unfurled cheering banners.

"What's there to be so smug about!" Gu Ze was furious, "Do they really think they're the best in the world?"

"Brothers of No. 3 High School, shout it out for me!" Gu Ze turned his head and roared.

The students from No. 3 High School who had come to watch immediately erupted with even more deafening cheers.

"Lin Feng! Sure victory!"

"Lin Feng! Number one in the city!"

Listening to the frantic slogans behind him, Lin Feng stopped overthinking, cleanly and swiftly climbed into the simulation pod, and connected the neural link.

Holding an ancient great menace in his hand, within the same tier, he was synonymous with invincibility!

The simulation equipment operated at full power.

The species data from Lin Feng's plane was projected one-to-one holographically onto the virtual battlefield.

He still adopted the strategy of keeping his trump cards hidden, leaving the Taotie Mother Beast and Baize at home to guard the nest, and only teleported one thousand Tier 2 offspring beasts into the field to scout.

Anyway, he could replenish troops at any time during the battle, so there was no rush.

Opposite him, Lu Yu also quickly completed his troop projection.

"System, report the opponent's data."

"Ding! Analysis complete!"

"Target: Lu Yu (Tier 2 Deity)"

"Troops: 1,432 Half-Dragons (Tier 2)"

It was actually another troop type with dragon lineage.

Since the opponent didn't have a Tier 3 leader, Lin Feng couldn't be bothered to ask Baize to come out and work overtime.

With strength like this, Lu Yu was probably only ranked around tenth in City No.1 High School.

But even so, this force was enough to crush No. 3 High School's fifth-ranked Chu Yun.

"Old Qin, let me give you the bottom line: Lu Yu barely squeezed into the top ten at our school." On the high platform, the principal of City No.1 High School coughed twice on purpose and boasted loudly.

The smile on Principal Qin's face immediately faded a bit.

City No.1 High School's tenth place, if placed in No. 3 High School, would solidly rank in the top three.

Fortunately, this year No. 3 High School unearthed Lin Feng, this freak.

He was enough to beat the crap out of all the flashy nonsense.

...

The countdown ended, and killing intent filled the virtual battlefield.

Lu Yu quickly issued a divine decree.

Over a thousand Half-Dragons roared out.

These monsters had torsos similar to humans, their bodies covered in hard scales, and a pair of sharp claws that could cut through iron like mud.

Like the Taotie, they were also pure melee combat units.

Lin Feng did not show any weakness and commanded the offspring beast swarm to charge head-on.

It had to be said that creatures with a bit of dragon lineage were indeed fierce.

Whether in attack, defense, or agility, the Half-Dragons were only slightly inferior to the Taotie.

But the Taotie possessed an unsolvable cheat.

As long as the vertical pupil under the armpit wasn't blinded, they wouldn't die no matter how severe the injury.

Relying on this cheat-like constitution, the Half-Dragons fell and were eliminated in droves, while the injured Taotie only needed to retreat to the rear to catch their breath for a moment before they could immediately rejoin the battlefield, lively and vigorous.

With one side growing and the other waning, Lu Yu's defensive line was on the verge of collapse.

"What kind of bizarre species is this? How come I've never seen it in the illustrated handbook?"

Watching the retreating Half-Dragons, the principal of City No.1 High School couldn't help but exclaim.

"Just a mutated species, don't make a fuss over nothing." Principal Qin leaned back in his leather chair, looking smug.

"General Yan, what do you think?" The mayor turned to look at the man in military uniform beside him.

"Not bad at all." General Yan Xiao nodded slightly, "Whether it's the thickness of the armor or the biting force, they are a grade stronger than the Half-Dragons."

"What if they clashed with a real Divine Dragon?" the mayor continued to ask.

"As for that... a purebred Divine Dragon would definitely be fiercer."

...

The slaughter on the battlefield quickly drew to a close.

Lu Yu, suppressed in every aspect, could no longer hold on.

The Half-Dragons used all their might just to swat away one offspring beast, yet the beast would squat in a corner to rest for a few minutes and then revive with full health.

But the Taotie opened its blood-stained maw, and one bite could pierce through the Half-Dragons' proud scales.

Without a Tier 3 leader, and even less a Divine Privilege, what could Lu Yu use to turn the tables?

As the last Half-Dragon was chewed up and swallowed, the host's impassioned voice rang out across the square.

"First match, No. 3 High School, Lin Feng wins!"

Outside the arena, a wave of cheers instantly erupted.

Gu Ze and Chu Yun were so excited they almost jumped to the sky.

"Awesome, brother!"

"A great start! You eliminated a main force of City No.1 High School in the first battle!"

The students of No. 3 High School were completely boiling over.

In previous years, they had always been suppressed by City No.1 High School and couldn't lift their heads, but today, the first battle had severely dampened the opponent's spirit; it was absolutely heartening.

In contrast, the City No.1 High School camp was silent.

The logistics staff who had been frantically shouting slogans just a moment ago were now dumbfounded, and they sheepishly stuffed their cheering banners back into their backpacks.

Lu Yu climbed out of the hatch with a livid face, hung his head, and dived back into his team's group without saying a word.

It was simply too embarrassing.

Lin Feng also unplugged the connection cable and walked out.

He had originally wanted to greet his opponent, but finding that the person had already slipped away, he had no choice but to shrug and walk back to his seat.

...

At the same time, the live footage of the Ten-School Joint Exam was being broadcast simultaneously on large screens all over the city.

At a breakfast stall on a street corner in Xinghai City.

The young man selling pancakes was nimbly clearing away the tableware left by customers.

He inadvertently looked up and happened to see the close-up shot of the winner on the floating screen.

"Holy crap!" The rag in the young man's hand dropped straight to the ground, his eyes almost popping out, "Isn't this the young brother who bought a pancake from me this morning!"