322: Chapter 322 Do you really think he got there by sheer luck?

Zhao Zhenlei, the war machine of the Northern Border Military Academy, strode in with a dark face. He pulled out a chair and sat down with a thud, causing the solid wood chair to groan under the strain.

Yan Qinghuan, the blind genius of Shushan Dao-Wu, stepped in wearing cloth shoes, silently taking his seat while twirling two brand-new white jade chess pieces in his hand.

Captain Shen Xiuan of Imperial Capital Team 2 adjusted the black-rimmed glasses on his nose and shrank into a corner without a word, though the pair of faintly reddened eyes behind his lenses exuded a violent, murderous aura that seemed ready to tear someone apart alive.

Besides them, seven or eight captains from other top-tier universities were scattered around the private room.

Looking around, this room had gathered the most elite and vicious monsters of this year's Hundred Schools League!

This all-star lineup, if taken out, would be enough to sweep through any A-rank secret realm.

But now, this group of peerless prodigies, who usually refused to submit to anyone and looked down on everyone, all had faces as dark as water, and the air pressure in the room was terrifyingly low.

"Click." The door to the private room was pushed open a crack again.

Everyone looked up in unison.

A figure wearing a baggy black windbreaker, oversized toad sunglasses, and a thick medical mask covering the lower half of their face slipped in furtively, looking like a secret agent conducting an underground intelligence drop.

"..." The prodigies present were all speechless.

After entering, the "masked bandit" didn't greet anyone. Instead, she pressed her back against the wall and carefully scanned every corner of the room through her sunglasses.

She even bent down and flipped up the tablecloth of the long table to confirm that no weird people were hiding underneath.

After checking three times and confirming that there was absolutely no one wearing the black-and-gold uniform of Magic City Martial Arts University in the room.

"Phew—" The person let out a long sigh of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders.

She ripped off her baseball cap, removed her sunglasses and mask, revealing a stunningly beautiful but exhausted face.

Then, she slumped onto an empty chair like a pile of mud, completely devoid of any image.

The peerless Divine Phoenix, captain of the Imperial Capital Team 1, Qin Zhuo!

Watching this goddess, who was famous throughout the Great Xia and known for being noble and cold, now forced to act like a fugitive dodging a vendetta.

Chu Tiankuo's mouth twitched twice, and he gave a dry cough to break the awkward silence: "Captain Qin, your outfit... is quite unique. Are you hiding from the paparazzi?"

Qin Zhuo rolled her eyes in annoyance, grabbed the ice water on the table, took a huge gulp, and gritted her teeth: "Paparazzi? What are paparazzi? I'm guarding against those brain-dead lunatics from Magic City Martial Arts University!"

"Those guys don't play by the rules. Who knows if they'd hide in the hotel hallway trash cans or crawl on the ceiling to eavesdrop just to gather intelligence?"

Everyone's mouths twitched upon hearing this, but surprisingly, no one refuted her.

Because after witnessing the various abstract operations of Magic City Martial Arts University, they also felt... these lunatics really might do something like that!

The previously quiet private room instantly felt like a powder keg had been ignited, and a thick, shared resentment filled the air.

Zhao Zhenlei touched his lower back, which was still aching faintly, his eyes wide with rage.

Yan Qinghuan's hand, which had been twirling the chess pieces, suddenly tightened, his knuckles turning white.

Captain Shen Xiuan in the corner shuddered as the humiliating image of him shouting "Long live Alliance Leader Lu" uncontrollably replayed in his mind, making him so angry he almost drew his blade on the spot.

"Alright, since everyone is here, let's get straight to the point." Chu Tiankuo stood up, straightened his attire, and scanned the room with his deep eyes, his voice low: "Everyone, there is less than twelve hours left until the final battle."

"Tomorrow's match is our last chance to turn the tables."

Chu Tiankuo tapped his fingers lightly on the table and said, enunciating every word: "So, I called everyone here tonight for one purpose."

"In tomorrow's secret realm, we join forces to take down Magic City Martial Arts University!"

As his voice faded, the spacious, luxurious private room fell into a brief silence.

The captains of the first and second teams from various schools looked at each other, undercurrents surging in their eyes.

"Bang!" A dull thud broke the silence.

Zhao Zhenlei, the "human nuke" of the Northern Border Military Academy, slammed his hand onto the red mahogany round table, making the teacups on it shake.

He stood up abruptly, his rugged face full of disdain.

"Form an alliance, my ass!"

Zhao Zhenlei glared with eyes as big as brass bells and shouted gruffly: "Chu Tiankuo, you're supposed to be the chief of Nanhai Academy, how did you get so cowardly after being beaten once?"

He pointed his finger at everyone's noses: "You must have all received the official news. That Tier 5 Great Demon from Magic City Martial Arts University, the one named Bai Lan, has already been disqualified!"

"Their biggest trump card, that dimension-crushing dual Tier 5 combat power, is gone!"

Zhao Zhenlei pounded his chest heroically, emitting a dull thud: "Without Bai Lan, what else does Magic City Martial Arts University have to show for itself? Just that chuunibyou Lu Xingye, or that skinny guy who only knows how to run his mouth?"

"Let's just compete based on our own abilities for first place. What the hell are you afraid of?"

These words were spoken with great confidence.

The few captains of the second-tier schools present nodded slightly, feeling it made sense.

After all, Bai Lan's exit had indeed significantly reduced the paper strength of Magic City Martial Arts University.

Without that monster who could conjure nuclear bombs by hand, everyone seemed to be back on the same starting line.

"Brother Zhao, calm down." Chu Tiankuo was not angry because of Zhao Zhenlei's opposition.

He sighed, put away his folding fan, and his eyes became deeper and more serious than ever before.

"We must not underestimate the enemy!"

Chu Tiankuo braced his hands on the table, leaned forward, stared fixedly into Zhao Zhenlei's eyes, and asked in a haunting tone: "Yes, everyone knows Bai Lan has been disqualified. That is a fact."

"But, Brother Zhao, have you ever carefully considered a terrifying question..."

Chu Tiankuo paused, letting the attention of the whole room focus on him, before throwing out that spine-chilling deduction, word by word: "That Bai Lan, who possesses the strength of a Tier 5 Great Demon and can casually destroy a death-immunity jade tablet... who exactly is she?"

The private room fell silent instantly.

"No matter how terrifying Bai Lan's strength is, when it comes down to it, she is just a 'battle pet' that Jiang You brought into the arena!"

Helan Que, who was sitting nearby, immediately chimed in upon hearing this, his tone chilling: "Exactly! Zhao Zhenlei, use your brain!"

"A single battle pet could replicate Qin Zhuo's Divine Phoenix Fire, and even trigger the laws of heaven and earth to wipe the field clean! And what about Jiang You, the actual master?"

Helan Que's gaze swept across the room, like a lone wolf issuing a warning in the night: "In the first match, he didn't make a single move the entire time! He didn't even cast half a skill! And yet, he sat firmly on the throne of first place!"

"Do you really think he relied on dumb luck?"