Don't mess with that necromancer; his summoned creatures level up on their own!

Song Xiaohe did not hesitate any longer.

She took a deep breath, and a thought struck her.

"I'm sorry."

The black patterns on the shield lit up again, forming a solid, dark beam of light that shot straight toward the trainees.

The senior student's smile was still on his face as he looked at the black light and chuckled.

"How ridiculous! I don't even need to use magic to deal with you, yet you use a levitation shield on me—wait, what?!"

He didn't finish his sentence.

The entire top slipped off the left shoulder, as if it had been peeled off the body.

Then came the pants. Then the belt.

His clothes were instantly torn to shreds and sucked into the black vortex on the shield.

In the blink of an eye, he was standing naked in front of Song Xiaohe.

He stared at his naked body, his mind going blank for a full second.

He, a master player over level 20, was stripped naked by a little girl who was only level 13?

In front of everyone?

"You...you...how is this possible??"

He let out a roar, his face turning bright red, veins bulging.

He instinctively wanted to rush up and teach Bai Lingyun a lesson, but as soon as he took a step, a cool breeze blew past his crotch, and he suddenly realized a serious problem.

He's naked right now.

Chase after him? Chase him naked?

The senior student froze on the spot.

The expression on his face changed from anger to shame, and from shame to despair.

Finally, with lightning speed, he squatted down, covered his groin tightly with both hands, and curled up into a ball.

Song Xiaohe took a few steps back, and before he could react, she turned and ran up the mountain.

A roar came from behind.

"Don't go! Stop right there!"

Bai Lingyun ran even faster.

"I'll remember you!!!"

The senior's voice echoed at the foot of the mountain, filled with despair and anger.

Bai Lingyun pretended not to hear.

Anyway, I've heard so many people cursing her all day, I'm sick of it.

What harm can insults do to me?

She had only one thought in her mind right now—to crawl!

Climb up!

.......

Mountainside.

When Bai Lingyun climbed up the mountainside, panting, the second person was already waiting there.

From a distance, I could see a person standing there, with his hands in his pockets and his body leaning slightly against the rock.

He turned around when he heard footsteps and looked Song Xiaohe up and down.

"Huh? You're number one?"

"A mere level 13 student not only got first place, but also managed to climb all the way up from the foot of the mountain?"

He spat in the direction of the foot of the mountain, his expression full of disgust.

"That guy is a complete waste. He got taken down by a level 13 girl. And he even had the nerve to brag about how the mountain's defenses were impregnable?"

Without saying a word, Song Xiaohe summoned a black light that shone again from the pattern in the center of the shield.

The man didn't even move; he just stood there, smiling and shaking his head.

"Haha, a Floating Light Shield? It's obviously fake. Where did you find this counterfeit? It can only fool those ignorant fools. But here it is—"

"Holy crap! Have you no shame?! What the hell is that thing?! The Floating Light Shield is supposed to absorb mana, right? Why is it absorbing my clothes?!"

"Why are you running?! Come back here!"

"Don't fucking pretend you can't hear me! You better wait until I put my clothes on!"

Everyone in the square was stunned.

Everyone was dumbfounded.

Thousands of eyes were fixed on the projection.

"What kind of equipment is that? It's terrifying!"

"That's too ruthless, that's too ruthless, it makes me want one myself..."

"You want it? What do you want that thing for? You want to strip someone's clothes off too?"

"No, I just think...this equipment is quite creative."

"Creative my foot! This is just unethical!"

"It may be immoral, but let's see if it works."

"I have a friend who asked me where I got mine made, because he wants one too."

The faces of the principals were as black as shoe soles.

They sat in the VIP seats, their eyes fixed on the screen. What could they do but frown?

All he could do was watch as Song Xiaohe's figure grew smaller and smaller in the frame, getting closer and closer to the mountaintop, and there was nothing he could do about it.

A school principal spoke in a low voice.

"What if we lose even to Fang Zheng in the final round... what will we do then... what about the Su family...?"

He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone knew what was coming next.

If the task entrusted to us by the Su family is not completed, the consequences could be severe or minor.

The principal of No. 1 Middle School sat in the middle, staring intently at the white figure on the monitor screen, without saying a word.

When the Su family asked him for help in strategizing to eliminate Song Xiaohe, he confidently guaranteed it.

"A mere level 13 girl, let alone reaching the top, she won't even make it into the top 50."

"Don't worry, I personally arranged for three examiners to oversee the process. Not even a mosquito could get past them, let alone a person."

He spoke with such certainty when he said those words, but now, looking back, every single one feels like a slap in the face.

A dark glint flashed in his eyes.

"No matter what, we can't let her get past this final hurdle."

He grabbed the communicator on the table, each word seeming to be squeezed out from between his teeth.

"Fang Zheng, you must eliminate her in this round, no matter what it takes. It doesn't matter what methods you use."

"Whether it's taking action ahead of time or changing the rules, I won't allow her to go any further."

He paused, took a deep breath, and his tone became even more serious.

"Don't embarrass yourself."

The mountaintop sits on a huge blue stone.

A person is half-lying or half-sitting on the stone, with one hand behind their head and the other holding a small white porcelain wine cup, the rim of the cup slightly tilted.

A mountain breeze swept across the ridge, fluttering his clothes and sleeves.

But he remained motionless, his posture relaxed.

He heard the voice from the communicator coming through his earpiece, a slight, nonchalant smile appeared on his lips, and then he slowly shook his head.

"Don't worry, Principal, I definitely won't embarrass myself."

He put down his wine cup and sat up from the bluestone.

Their gaze fell upon the white figure ascending the steps.

Song Xiaohe stopped at the end of the mountain road.

She knew there was one last hurdle, but she didn't expect the examiner to be like this.

The final examiner didn't seem as prepared as the previous two examiners, nor did they appear to have any powerful weapons at their disposal.

She asked the question.

"Senior, are you the one who will be conducting the final assessment?"

Fang Zheng nodded, his hands still resting on his knees, in a casual posture.

"That's right, I watched your fight with my two other brothers from the mountaintop."

"I must say, your Floating Light Shield is quite interesting. It's the first time I've ever seen equipment that can take away someone's clothes."

Song Xiaohe frowned slightly, feeling somewhat uncertain.

He saw his own Floating Light Shield, and saw that she had eliminated the previous two people and was still so calm, which meant that he must be confident and had already thought of a way to deal with it.

She felt a little heavy-hearted. She had already reached the final hurdle; was she going to lose here?

Just one last step, and the summit is just a few meters away.

She asked cautiously.

"Your previous rule was that I would make the first three moves. This rule... won't be changed at the last minute, will it?"

Fang Zheng laughed when he heard this.

"Of course not, the rules are there, how could we go back on our word?"

"I may have many other flaws, but I always keep my word. Don't worry, three moves means three moves, not a single one less."

Song Xiaohe took a deep breath.

"Alright then."

She gripped the Floating Light Shield tightly once more.

Fang Zheng watched as the dark light behind her began to coalesce anew.

Black light rose from the pattern in the center of the shield and was slowly spreading outwards.

He quickly went through the story of the two brothers in his mind.

He has many life principles, but at this moment, the most important one he thinks of is...

It's okay to lose, but it's okay to lose face.

In particular, streaking is not allowed.

Absolutely, absolutely not. I cannot squat naked on a mountaintop in front of tens of thousands of people and be broadcast live throughout the city.

He would rather admit defeat a hundred times than be exposed once.

"Wait a moment!"

Song Xiaohe paused for a moment.

Her shield was already raised to her chest, and the black light had begun to spread to three-quarters of the shield's surface; it was just a moment away from being fully activated.

Fang Zheng stepped forward and stood at the very edge of the bluestone on the mountaintop.

The wind whipped his dark gray coat into the air, and his hair was also blown back by the wind.

But amidst everyone's shock and astonishment, he suddenly spoke loudly.

"I concede, you win."

The entire room fell silent.

Not a single person in the audience in front of the screen made a sound.

The entire square was silent for at least three seconds.

The principal, who was in the VIP viewing area, suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.

His fingers were still trembling.

That bastard just admitted defeat!

He arranged for three trainees to be tested, forming a triple defense, each of whom was a carefully selected expert in real combat. And what was the result?

Leaving aside the first two, the third one actually surrendered before even making a move!

Song Xiaohe was stunned on the spot.

She stood motionless, holding her shield, prepared to fight with all her might, even if she couldn't win, to hold on for just one more second.

Did the other side just admit defeat?

Is that all?

Fang Zheng waved to Song Xiaohe.

"You've got some great skills, junior. It hasn't been easy for you all this way. I wish you all the best for the rest of your journey."

Then he turned and left.

The principal is right, "Don't embarrass yourself"—so he had no choice but to embarrass the principal.

With Song Xiaohe reaching the teleportation array at the mountaintop, the assessment officially ended.

After the light from the teleportation array faded, Song Xiaohe stood in the center of the square, feeling gazes coming from all directions.

Envy, jealousy, hatred, murderous intent, dissatisfaction, resentment, and fear.

---

An hour ago, at the alchemy competition.

One hundred alchemy alchemy platforms are neatly arranged in a semi-circular open-air plaza.

The audience was packed with people, including school leaders, teachers, and family members of some of the students who had been eliminated early.

In the VIP viewing area on the second floor, several well-dressed middle-aged people were talking in hushed tones, their eyes scanning the venue.

Lu Zhixing stood in front of his alchemy table, casually flipping through the tools on it. He looked more like a visitor than someone taking an exam.

Su Youran stood not far behind him, her gaze fixed on him, a faint smile playing on her lips.

"Lu Zhixing, I'm determined to get first place this time, so you should try your best to get second place."

Lu Zhixing didn't turn his head, as if he hadn't heard, and continued to turn the grinder on the table.

Su Youran waited for a moment, and when she saw that he did not react, the smile on her face froze slightly.

She clenched her fists.

"Hmph! What's with the arrogance? Just wait until I leave you behind, then let's see if you're still so cocky."

The examiner walked onto the stage.

He scanned the entire room and cleared his throat.

"Quiet."

The noise in the square quickly subsided.

The rules for this alchemy competition are as follows:

He paused.

"All candidates, please proceed to the materials area to collect your materials. You have three minutes to choose."

"When the time is up, we must stop. The test questions for this potion-making exercise will then be announced."

"The refining time is one hour. After that, everyone's potion will be sent to the instrument to test its purity, and then ranked accordingly."

The moment he finished speaking, the entire room erupted in chaos.

In the audience, many people looked at each other in disbelief.

"In previous years, the exam questions were always announced first, and then the candidates would collect the materials to refine them. Why is it the other way around this year?"

"Give us the materials first, then the exam questions? Doesn't that exponentially increase the difficulty?"

"What if the materials we get aren't suitable for making the potion? Wouldn't that be disastrous? All our previous selection would have been for nothing!"

"Isn't this adding an element of luck to an exam that was originally meant to test ability? Is that reasonable?"

"Yes, the most important thing in alchemy is the matching of materials. Different potions require different materials. If the materials and the potion don't match, no matter how skilled you are, you won't be able to make anything good."

"This is tantamount to letting candidates choose blindly, gambling on their luck."

A spectator wearing glasses chimed in.

"In my opinion, students selected in this way are not necessarily the best alchemists; they are just the luckiest."

The murmurs grew louder and louder, almost drowning out the examiner's voice.