101: Chapter 101 Hunting the Lightning-Wielding Pterodactyl

"What happened?"

The crowd below was filled with doubt, unable to believe the scene they had just witnessed.

The crystal ball had not only emitted a dazzling, blinding orange light—the highest level of radiance—but it had also directly shattered and exploded.

Even the person in charge had never seen a crystal ball shatter during a test.

"That—that crystal ball is broken!"

Adele, standing below, thought of a possibility and immediately shouted.

Upon hearing this, the crowd couldn't help but share the same thought.

Indeed, if it wasn't broken, how could such an exaggerated scene occur?

Thus, this explanation gradually spread through the crowd, with many of those who had failed feeling it was the most reasonable explanation.

However, when the person in charge heard this, he immediately scoffed at the idea.

The crystal ball was a special piece of testing equipment; even against non-mental magic attacks of the third circle or higher, it was impossible for it to shatter across the ground.

Only pure Spiritual Power could affect it.

Anyone with a bit of common sense or basic magical knowledge would have a correct understanding.

To make the entire crystal ball explode required at least a Spiritual Power intensity at or above the Class level.

"What? Do you think so too?" Ronan asked the Green-Haired Smirking Man beside him.

At this moment, the Green-Haired Smirking Man's gaze was vacant. Hearing Ronan's words, his expression twisted slightly. "What kind of trick did you use? It's a Mentalist's trick, right? Don't think I can't tell—"

He was still making excuses for Ronan on his own. "Only special mental techniques could cause this result. It must be that—"

"After saying all that, you aren't planning to welch on our bet, are you?" Ronan raised an eyebrow.

"You used cheating methods to maliciously destroy the testing crystal, and you still dare to ask me for the stakes?!" the Green-Haired Smirking Man suddenly shrieked.

From his expression, it seemed he truly believed it.

When the people below heard this, they immediately became indignant and broke into an uproar. "Exactly, I knew there was something wrong!"

"He relied on cheating, no wonder—"

"How can this person be like this—"

Just then, a figure swiftly dove down diagonally from the sky.

Upon nearing the ground, he landed as light as a feather.

In the blink of an eye, he stood before Ronan.

The newcomer had short gray hair and a stiff expression. Though he wore only a simple magic robe, his descent from the air was more agile than a bird's.

The clamor of the entire field was suppressed by his sudden appearance.

He did nothing but give a single look; his dangerous aura alone made the failed candidates below fall silent like cicadas in winter.

Everyone seemed to receive the meaning of that look—he really would kill someone.

"What cheating methods?" he asked calmly, looking at the person in charge.

"Lord Niru, this is a misunderstanding—" The person in charge panicked slightly, trying to explain.

"Enough. If there's nothing else, hurry up and board the ship." Niru seemed to ask casually, not caring about the truth at all.

"As you command, Lord Escort Officer." The person in charge placed one hand over his chest and bowed to him.

"All students who have met the standards, please stand in the designated positions."

The person in charge gestured, leading the way for Ronan and the Green-Haired Smirking Man.

The Green-Haired Smirking Man followed immediately with a smile, walking ahead of Ronan.

He didn't say a word about the bet, clearly intending to use this moment to intentionally welch on it.

Ronan walked at the very back, his expression calm as if nothing had happened, though his gaze was exceptionally cold.

In his heart, however, he was already planning to find a suitable opportunity to take back his dragon heart shield.

Ronan followed them to the area where the successful candidates were standing.

Just as he was wondering where the ship was, the sky above was suddenly obscured by a massive flying airship.

The flying airship lowered its altitude, instantly covering the entire sky above. Some newcomers, seeing this scene for the first time, cried out in fright.

But most others stared at the flying airship with excitement.

Ronan noticed a white circle drawn where he was standing. It didn't look like some eerie magic array, but just a simple paint mark.

The white circle enclosed the group of successful candidates.

Before he could speculate on the circle's purpose, a soft, warm light fell from the sky, covering the area within the circle.

Suddenly, he felt his body become light as a force lifted him up, swiftly flying towards the open boarding port at the bottom of the airship.

The buildings below were constantly shrinking. This was the first time Ronan had looked down at this world from such a height.

He even saw a strange creature flying high in the sky, somewhat resembling the pterosaurs from movie and television works in his previous life, with faint thunderous light accompanying the flapping of its wings.

In the blink of an eye, the group of successful candidates had arrived on the airship's deck.

The airship started instantly. A layer of magic shield resisted the external astral winds, making everyone on the deck feel as stable as if they were indoors.

"The Starship Qihang will travel for one month, at which point we will reach the first academy—"

"Until then, no matter what happens, do not disturb me."

After Niru finished speaking to the crowd on the deck, before they could regain their senses, he turned and left without looking back.

Hearing this, Ronan's brow furrowed slightly, a bad feeling growing in his heart.

The Escort Officer was simply ignoring everything. Over such a long period, he hoped nothing bad would happen—

However, what one fears most often comes to pass.

Two days later.

Just as he was still worrying about what kind of man-made disasters the people on the ship might cause, the surrounding space became increasingly oppressive and gloomy, accompanied by the occasional sound of thunder.

Ronan became alert and immediately rushed to the deck.

At this time, the deck was empty, appearing even more spacious than when they had arrived. The magic shield effectively blocked the astral winds generated during high-altitude flight.

But outside the magic shield, the sky was covered with thunderclouds, with countless red lightning bolts zig-zagging freely within the layers of clouds.

With just one look, a sense of oppression and danger rushed over him simultaneously.

Ronan discovered that besides the lightning, there seemed to be a group of creatures in the thunderclouds, constantly moving through the heavy clouds and lightning.

Looking up, he realized these creatures were identical to the strange pterosaurs he had seen when he first boarded the ship.

They were in groups, and the heavy thunderclouds and deadly lightning intertwined, appearing to have become their hunting grounds.

Suddenly, a strange pterosaur took the initiative to charge into a newly formed cluster of lightning, actively attracting the lightning to strike its body.

Its long beak opened wide, and a powerful suction erupted from its mouth. In an instant, it swallowed the lightning bolt that had struck its body into its belly.

Seeing this scene, Ronan suddenly understood.

The target of these strange pterosaurs' hunt was this deadly red lightning.

Just as he was fascinated by this strange scene, a strange pterosaur seemed to discover the airship.

It quickly emitted a high-pitched cry, attracting the attention of the other strange pterosaurs.

Then, it was the first to change direction, leading its kin as they charged fiercely towards the airship.

Ronan was startled.

Oh no, the airship passing through was being treated as a competitor for food.

A group of strange pterosaurs swooped down, slamming hard into the magic shield.

The airship's magic shield possessed excellent physical protection performance.

The numerous strange pterosaurs could not budge it an inch; instead, they fell into a daze and dropped.

Ronan felt a secret joy, developing full confidence in the airship's defensive capabilities.

However, before long, the falling strange pterosaurs woke up. They adjusted their posture and charged at the airship again.

This time, these strange pterosaurs no longer used physical attacks; instead, they all opened their long beaks.

In an instant, streaks of red lightning burst from their long beaks, striking the surface of the magic shield with violent force and erupting in bursts of booming sounds.

A long, narrow crack immediately appeared on the magic shield.