Nuwa, the goddess of immortality, said that cultivating immortality does not require spiritual energ

When Qin Le arrived at the destination indicated by the bracelet artifact, he was speechless again; he had been robbed of his monster again.

Six corpses of Chaos Beasts lay on the ground, and a girl dressed in the uniform of the Heavenly Court Academy stood beside them.

The girl had short, black hair that reached her ears. She was tall and slender, with slightly upturned phoenix eyes that always gave her a distant and aloof look, as if everything in front of her was trash.

Qin Le, and Wang Zhiheng, who was still floating in mid-air, were both stunned the moment they saw her.

The person in front of him was the very reason why Wang Zhiheng hated Qin Le.

Luo Qiuyue.

Upon seeing the two, Luo Qiuyue's lips curled into a half-smile:

"Should I say Qin Le is amazing... or should I say you, Wang Zhiheng, are utterly useless?"

"You bitch! You're asking for it—!"

Wang Zhiheng, who was already furious because he couldn't get close to Qin Le, was instantly enraged upon hearing this and drew his sword to swoop down from mid-air!

His speed was so fast that Qin Le couldn't even see it, but Luo Qiuyue remained calm and composed. She made hand seals, and a golden light shield materialized out of thin air, steadily blocking Wang Zhiheng's slash.

Just as Wang Zhiheng unleashed his power to shatter the light shield, Luo Qiuyue quietly pressed a Qi-restoring pill under her tongue, her movement stealthy and as fast as a ghost.

Both were at the mid-stage of Refining Spirit and Returning to Emptiness, and their affinity for spiritual energy was also similar, with Wang Zhiheng at 98% and Luo Qiuyue at 97%, so their strengths were essentially on par.

Victory often hinges on details—for example, whose battery life is longer.

"What? Did I hit a nerve when I called you a loser? You're already breaking down?"

Luo Qiuyue retreated while rapidly forming hand seals.

Wild grass grew wildly on the ground, coiling around Wang Zhiheng's legs like living snakes; almost at the same time, the soil turned into sharp thorns, attacking his vitals from below!

Wang Zhiheng had to distract himself by wielding his sword to cut through the grass, while his left hand formed a hand seal to conjure an earthen wall, barely managing to block the ground spikes.

But Luo Qiuyue's killing move had already arrived—

A colossal fiery bird with a wingspan exceeding ten meters materialized behind her, its intense heat distorting the air. With a long cry, the firebird swooped down!

Wang Zhiheng's eyes flashed, and he swung his longsword swiftly. Countless sword energies, like a chaotic storm, shredded the entangled grass vines and the giant firebird together!

The duel between the two top geniuses captivated the onlookers in the secret arena.

"This kid is quite good at the Chaotic Wind Sword Technique, but his temperament is a bit lacking."

"That girl is quite composed; she has kept the battle under control the entire time."

"Exceptional intellect, knowing how to win hearts and minds."

"..."

For these high-ranking officials watching the game, talent is certainly important, but mentality, combat awareness, and adaptability are equally crucial.

Clearly, aside from his talent, Wang Zhiheng did not receive much recognition in other aspects; on the contrary, Luo Qiuyue's performance won a lot of praise.

Qin Le, who was watching from the sidelines, felt somewhat helpless. The two of them were moving too fast, and he couldn't really see the specific moves. He could only see the various dazzling spell effects.

But one thing caught his attention: Luo Qiuyue's voice was sometimes muffled when she spoke, as if she had something in her mouth.

Qin Le quickly realized what was happening and couldn't help but mutter to himself, "That Wang Zhiheng... could he not have noticed?"

He had already guessed that Luo Qiuyue must have a Qi-restoring pill in her mouth.

Although Qin Le himself had never done this, he often saw people sharing their experiences while browsing videos online: pressing a Qi-restoring pill under the tongue is a basic operation to maintain spiritual power when fighting a Chaos Beast or opponent for a long time.

If Wang Zhiheng didn't even realize this... he'll most likely lose this battle.

as predicted.

Half an hour later, Wang Zhiheng was dressed in rags, his exposed skin covered with charred burn marks, and his face was also covered with black and red patches, looking extremely disheveled.

Luo Qiuyue wasn't in much better shape either, bearing more than ten wounds, but at least she could still stand. She quickly swallowed a healing pill, and her breathing stabilized slightly.

She walked up to Wang Zhiheng, looked down at him, and spoke calmly:

"I admit that what I said when I rejected you was hurtful. But I won't apologize, because that was my honest opinion, and it hasn't changed."

"puff!!"

Wang Zhiheng wanted to say something, but first vomited a mouthful of blood.

At this moment, Luo Qiuyue's gaze returned to its usual cold indifference, as if she were looking at trash.

"One last thing: if you can't even beat me, you're really bad."

As she spoke, she took out a long sword from her storage ring, preparing to eliminate Wang Zhiheng.

"Isn't that because you have a Qi-restoring pill in your mouth?"

Qin Le's voice suddenly rang out.

Luo Qiuyue paused, then burst into laughter, a laugh filled with undisguised smugness:

"This is basic common sense in combat. He doesn't even know this, so how can he blame me?"

"What you're saying... isn't wrong." Qin Le thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.

In battle, or rather, in a life-or-death struggle, the only standard is survival. This is a principle that the Nine Heavens Mystic Maiden repeatedly instilled into his very bones during those five days of special training.

Survival of the fittest.

As for the methods?

Only those who survive have the right to judge.

Wang Zhiheng, who was lying on the ground, was strangely calmed down a little after hearing the conversation between the two.

yes……

Lacking even the most basic common sense of combat, isn't it only natural that they lost?

Even if we don't lose today, we will still lose in the future due to the same carelessness.

Seeing the anger in Wang Zhiheng's eyes gradually subside and replaced by a bitter realization, Luo Qiuyue paused, sheathed her longsword, and flicked a healing pill to his lips.

The medicine melted instantly upon entering the mouth, and the injury healed rapidly.

Wang Zhiheng propped himself up, frowning as he stared at her: "What do you mean? Pity me?"

"No, that's not it." Luo Qiuyue said frankly, "It's just that what I said back then hurt you too deeply, and I feel somewhat guilty. Also... I want to tell you that you've liked the wrong person. You shouldn't have liked me."

She spoke frankly, her eyes clear, without a trace of hypocrisy or pity.

But if Wang Zhiheng shows no improvement, she will still eliminate him without hesitation—those who lack character, no matter how talented, will find it difficult to be noticed by the university department.

Letting him go now is giving him a chance to prove himself in subsequent tests.

More importantly, she didn't want to leave the big shots watching from the outside with a bad impression of being narrow-minded and ruthless.

Wang Zhiheng stood up, gave Luo Qiuyue a deep look, then glanced at Qin Le, who remained calm beside him. In the end, he said nothing and turned to leave.

After he had walked away, Luo Qiuyue turned to Qin Le and gave him a relaxed smile:

"Want to team up?"

Qin Le thought for a moment and nodded: "That works too."

He doesn't mind teaming up; after all, playing a support role and racking up points is much easier than going it alone.

As for whether he can make it into the top 300?

He didn't actually care.

Even if he ends up with a score of zero and is at the bottom of the class, the Heavenly Court Academy's undergraduate program will definitely admit him through a special admission process.

The only reason he was still willing to hunt Chaos Beasts was that he didn't want to embarrass his parents or make the academy look bad.

that is it.