31: Chapter 31 The Exclusion of Prodigies in the Elite Class

The clamor and fanaticism of the awards ceremony receded like the tide.

Jiang Xun stood at the entrance of the Key Class, known as the "Cradle of Prodigies." The aura from the competition and the reverence of the entire school's faculty and students still clung to him, but all of that was cut off by an invisible barrier the moment he pushed open the door.

The noise came to an abrupt halt.

Inside the door was a world completely different from the regular classes. In the spacious classroom, every desk was an independent Divine Kingdom access terminal emitting a faint light, spaced far apart like isolated islands. There was no youthful restlessness in the air, only a near-frigid silence born of saturated resources, and an invisible order constructed by talent and family background.

Dozens of gazes shot toward him in unison—not with curiosity or inquiry, but with scrutiny. It was the look one gives an alien creature, filled with haughty pickiness and barely concealed exclusion.

The homeroom teacher of the Key Class, a middle-aged man with a slicked-back side part and a face full of amiable smiles, hurried over to greet him.

"Oh, Student Jiang Xun, welcome, welcome! I am your homeroom teacher, Teacher Wu Jingguo."

He patted Jiang Xun's shoulder enthusiastically, his voice booming as if he were welcoming a triumphant hero.

However, Jiang Xun noticed that Teacher Wu Jingguo's eyes darted past him, quickly scanning the students from prominent families in the class; the warmth in his smile seemed more like a performance for them.

"We have all heard of your deeds. Defeating the Evil God's conspiracy single-handedly makes you the pride of our Jiangcheng No. 3 High School!" While Teacher Wu Jingguo was praising him, his hand was inconspicuously guiding Jiang Xun toward an empty seat in the very corner of the classroom. "Sit here for now. The learning resources here are the best in the school. You must work hard in the future and never let the school's expectations down."

The corner.

The most marginalized position.

Jiang Xun pushed up his glasses, his gaze behind the lenses calm and ripple-free, seeing Teacher Wu Jingguo's petty schemes clearly.

He didn't say a word and walked straight to that seat.

Behind him, stifled discussions spread like vines.

"Is that Jiang Xun? The one with the E-grade talent?"

"He's just a thief who climbed up by plundering Li Ang's Undead Civilization. How does such a person deserve to be in our Key Class?"

"I heard Monitor Zhou Yi was crippled by him, too. His methods are too dirty. This kind of person will do anything to win."

"Heh, just a hick who got lucky. He really thinks he's someone now. Let's see how many days he can last here."

These voices were not loud, but they were as clear as needles. They came from those favored children of heaven, leaning back in their chairs with chins slightly raised, eyeing him from the corners of their eyes. They were the direct descendants of the major families in Jiangcheng, darlings born with A-grade or even higher talent, the established upper class of this era of gods.

In their eyes, Jiang Xun's appearance itself was a form of pollution to this circle.

Jiang Xun acted as if he hadn't heard. He simply sat down quietly, his fingers tapping lightly on the cold terminal desktop. His mental power, like an invisible net, instantly spread out, bringing the aura and expression of everyone in the classroom, as well as the faint fluctuations of laws leaking from their Divine Kingdom terminals, into his perception.

He was evaluating.

Evaluating the strength of these future opponents, evaluating the value of this new hunting ground.

Sitting in the front row of the classroom, Xu Qingran gently bit her lip.

Her gaze was complex.

She had witnessed with her own eyes Jiang Xun summoning those human heroic spirits as brilliant as the great sun in the finals, and heard his declaration of "plundering for the sake of protection." At that moment, Jiang Xun's figure had been magnificent.

But now, the harsh labels of "thief" and "hick" ringing in her ears reminded her of his incomparably domineering plundering talent.

Which one was the real him?

Was he the guardian willing to establish a mutual aid society for the weak, or an ambitious villain who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals?

Just then, a figure stood up.

It was a tall young man with an arrogant face; his Divine Kingdom terminal clearly displayed the A-grade "Storm War Eagles" civilization emblem.

Brother Feng.

He was Li Ang's closest follower in the Key Class, possessed A-grade talent, and his family also had considerable influence in Jiangcheng.

He crossed his arms over his chest, walked step by step to Jiang Xun, looked down at him condescendingly, and spoke without any courtesy.

"Hey, new guy."

The voice was not loud, but it made the entire classroom go completely quiet.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked over with great interest, preparing to enjoy a good show.

Teacher Wu Jingguo had just wanted to speak up to smooth things over, but after seeing the cold gazes cast by several prodigies behind Brother Feng, he swallowed his words and chose to acquiesce.

Brother Feng was very satisfied with this feeling of being the center of attention; he raised his chin and said scornfully.

"An E-grade talent trash, who relied on stealing others' civilization achievements to luckily win the school tournament, really thinks he can be on equal footing with us?"

His voice was full of disdain and contempt.

"The Key Class is prepared for true prodigies, not a garbage dump. I don't care what despicable means you used to sneak in, but you are not welcome here."

"I advise you to be sensible and get out voluntarily, lest you end up being kicked out in a sorry state and making a fool of yourself."

The sharp provocation stabbed into everyone's ears like a knife. Xu Qingran's brows furrowed instantly, and just as she was about to speak, she saw Jiang Xun lift his head.

There was no anger, no humiliation.

Jiang Xun simply pushed up his glasses calmly, looking at the Brother Feng in front of him as if he were looking at a clown.

He spoke indifferently, his voice clearly reaching every corner of the classroom.

"Are you done?"

Brother Feng was stunned, clearly not expecting this reaction from the other party.

Jiang Xun stood up, his gaze sweeping over Brother Feng, and then slowly sweeping over every gloating face in the classroom.

"First, my qualifications were earned by fighting match after match with my own strength, not by talking."

"Second, I am entitled to this seat. Whoever is not convinced can come and try to take it."

"As for you..." Jiang Xun's gaze locked back onto Brother Feng's face, a faint curve appearing at the corner of his mouth. "You want me to get out? Fine. Defeat me in the assessment arena, and I will leave immediately."

"If you can't do that, then shut your mouth."

After saying this, he sat back down and didn't look at the other party again, as if Brother Feng were just a puff of air.

Extreme calmness, yet extreme contempt!

Brother Feng's face instantly turned the color of a pig's liver; he hadn't expected an E-grade trash to dare talk back to him like that in public! The divine power in his body began to surge, his fists clenched with a crackling sound, and it looked like he was about to explode on the spot.

"Alright, alright!"

Seeing that the situation was not right, homeroom teacher Teacher Wu Jingguo could no longer play deaf and dumb, so he quickly ran over and stood between the two.

"You are all classmates, and you will be fighting side by side soon. Do not damage the harmony, do not damage the harmony!"

While appeasing the furious Brother Feng, he also looked at Jiang Xun with a reproachful gaze, as if blaming him for not knowing what was good for him and not knowing how to endure.

"Student Brother Feng is also thinking about the honor of our Key Class. Jiang Xun, you just arrived, you should learn more from your senior classmates!"

These words seemed to be mediating, but in reality, his bias was already tilted to the extreme.

Seeing that the conflict was about to spiral out of control, Teacher Wu Jingguo cleared his throat, clapped his hands, and announced loudly:

"Alright, everyone quiet! Taking this opportunity, I would like to announce something!"

"According to the academy's regulations, in order to maintain the competitiveness of the Key Class, we will hold our first monthly assessment next week!"

His voice suddenly rose, carrying a hint of coldness.

"This assessment will adopt a Divine Kingdom combat duel mode. After the assessment, the person ranked last in total points will be eliminated from the Key Class!"

After the announcement, Teacher Wu Jingguo's gaze, filled with implication, landed fixedly on Jiang Xun.

The atmosphere of the entire classroom instantly became even more eerie and dangerous.

Everyone's gazes also followed the homeroom teacher, shooting in unison toward the freshman in the corner, filled with malicious anticipation.

Elimination for the last place.

This sword hanging over his head seemed to have already destined the final outcome for this uninvited guest.