97: Chapter 97 A new semester is about to begin

"This is a gift I bought for Mu Xue. Please pass it to her for me later. I'll be going now."

Qin Ding stood up, ruffled the Spirit Fox's head, and left Bai Muxue's home.

The second the door closed, it opened again.

Bai Muxue walked out of her room, her actions and goal crystal clear: the Storage Ring being held by the Spirit Fox.

Just as Bai Muxue approached, a flash of craftiness crossed the Spirit Fox's eyes. It moved the Storage Ring away so she couldn't grab it, while simultaneously adopting a pitiful expression.

"Ying..."

[A-Xue, A-Xue, why are your reflexes so fast? That big black dog doesn't seem to know how to make a girl happy...]

Even the usually composed Bai Muxue couldn't help but twitch the corner of her mouth after hearing this.

"Da Hei is a dog; what more do you expect from him... Didn't you seem to be having fun? Also, stop using my computer and phone to go online."

"Read less of that toxic nonsense online. Gifts aren't necessary when meeting a girl. Don't learn bad habits."

The Spirit Fox blinked, looking embarrassed as if its secret had been exposed.

But the moment it heard Bai Muxue forbid it from touching the computer, its playful mood vanished instantly, replaced by genuine anxiety.

"Ying!"

[A-Xue, A-Xue, I'll give you the ring, I'll give it to you! I won't tease you anymore. Just don't ban me from the internet. You stay in the cultivation room all day; I'm so bored without a phone!]

Bai Muxue snorted as she took the Storage Ring. On a sudden whim, she crouched down with a playful smile and stared straight at the Spirit Fox.

"Yin Yue, oh Yin Yue, you've learned quite a lot recently. You haven't been acting alongside Da Hei the whole time, have you?"

"My teacher told me that foxes, especially those focused on Mental Energy, are master actors. The teacher said they might have been acting since the very first time we met."

Upon hearing this, the Spirit Fox's eyes betrayed a look of profound injustice. It frantically shook its head to defend itself, looking just like a helpless child being bullied by an adult, trying to prove its innocence.

"Wu!"

[A-Xue, you're wronging me! I didn't!]

Seeing this, Bai Muxue stood up. Ignoring the Spirit Fox, she examined the Storage Ring in her hand and probed it with her Mental Energy.

The surface of the grey-black ring turned white at a visible rate. Immediately after, a minimalist carving of a fox's profile appeared on the ring. After inspecting it for a moment...

She took out a disinfectant wipe, cleaned it, and put it on the ring finger of her right hand.

"I didn't expect the ring's pattern to look so good after binding to its master."

Watching Bai Muxue turn and walk back toward her room, a playful glint flashed in the Spirit Fox's eyes.

A-Xue, you're still too naive~

Foxes are the best at lying!

---

"Dad, tell me, what do you think the reward for first place in the school competition will be?"

"First place reward? It's hard to say. The rewards change every year, but they're usually similar—nothing more than some spiritual items or federal currency."

Chairman Cui Geng paused, his tone suddenly turning mysterious.

"However, the reward for first place in this year's Eastern District city re-examination is different from previous years. I heard it's a healing-type beast with excellent Aptitude, but things like this are basically pre-determined."

"For example, the son of the Eastern City Lord."

However, upon hearing this, Cui Yan instinctively wanted to nod, but Qin Ding's figure flashed through her mind involuntarily.

"Then what if someone else takes first place?"

"Someone else? Who has the ability to do that? Aren't they afraid of having the guts to take it but not the life to keep it... Hmm?"

Chairman Cui Geng, who had instinctively wanted to interrupt, suddenly realized what she meant. He frowned and began to calculate in his mind.

He certainly knew who this "someone else" his daughter was referring to—none other than Qin Ding, whom they had met last time. To be honest, Qin Ding, who had already achieved Tier 2 Mental Power before the second semester of senior year even began—such a terrifying speed of Cultivate.

Indeed, he had a chance to reach first place in a competition zone.

But after pondering for a long time, Chairman Cui Geng finally shook his head and denied it under Cui Yan's curious gaze.

"I have to admit that the boy's talent is among the best in the entire federation, but that's not enough. The city re-examination is not a single-person arena match for one or two people."

"It's a multi-person life-or-death arena that completely simulates the Spirit Realm. It allows killing people and beasts to accumulate points. Too many people die in there every year."

Chairman Cui Geng's words were undoubtedly a blow to Cui Yan, as he was, after all, correct.

Everyone is young; the gap in strength between individuals might be large, but what happens when the number of people increases?

This situation is not considered cheating; according to the rules, it's called charisma.

Whether using Face or money, being able to bribe candidates inside the Spirit Realm to act as your henchmen is your personal ability, and the federation will not intervene.

Cui Yan suddenly thought of a rule, and her eyes instantly lit up.

"Dad, I remember there's a rule: personal Mental Energy must be registered before the re-examination. Tier 1 Mental Power gets a 1x multiplier for points in the Spirit Realm exam, Tier 2 Mental Power gets 2x, and so on."

"And if a candidate wants to plunder another candidate's points, they can only do so by killing them. In that case, hiring henchmen might not be hard, but the hard part is getting candidates to give up points they could have easily taken for themselves."

Chairman Cui Geng was stunned, then widened his eyes in disbelief. He didn't speak, just quietly placed his hand on Cui Yan's forehead. Finding it wasn't hot, he muttered in disbelief.

"Huh... It's not hot. So how did you come up with the idea of Tier 3 Mental Power? You have to know that many students who have finished their freshman year haven't even reached Tier 3 Mental Power..."

Cui Yan didn't speak, but as she thought about this possibility, her eyes grew brighter and brighter.

Qin Ding went from zero to Tier 2 in one semester, so why couldn't he go from Tier 2 to Tier 3 in another semester?

Thinking of how ruthless and decisive Qin Ding was when fighting in the Spirit Realm, she suddenly felt that if Qin Ding could reach Tier 3 Mental Power by the time of the big exam, his points would be tripled.

Then the possibility of getting first place isn't zero!

Realizing her father still had his hand on her forehead, Cui Yan brushed it away impatiently.

"Oh, Dad, stop touching my head. I'm not delirious with fever. I just think that with so many things in the world, nothing is ever truly impossible."

She had hoped this would sway her father's opinion toward her, but all she got was a scoff.

"Nothing is ever truly impossible?"

"Do you think it's possible for the First Emperor to suddenly appear? I certainly don't believe it."

"And you, keep your head clear. If you can get into one of the top ten martial arts academies in the federation, I'll be burning incense in thanks!"

Hearing this teasing remark, Cui Yan wanted to retort but stopped herself, finally closing her mouth and sulking.