In the game "High Martial Arts," players start with the blessing of the Martial God.

Auditorium

Hou Gang's expression remained unchanged upon hearing this. "Then let's see who has the best skills!"

"Haha, I just arrived and heard that Luo Zhao's potential assessment was lowered by that group of people. You think so highly of him?" Liu Zhiming said with a faint smile.

Hou Gang glanced at the representatives from those prestigious universities and said disdainfully, "A bunch of mediocre people, short-sighted!"

He didn't believe Ji Ming, but Luo Zhao. Since Luo Zhao was his student, he must have some extraordinary abilities. He might not be a prodigy or a genius, but he certainly wasn't ordinary. He was definitely not as useless as those people had assessed.

Seeing that he couldn't sway him, Liu Zhiming's smile faded. "Your presence is useless. Any true genius knows how to choose. There has never been a prodigy who abandoned the Star Palace for the Holy Land!"

"Heh, the Star Palace is also Tianyi, what does it have to do with your Yanhuang?" Hou Gang sneered.

Liu Zhiming, however, remained unperturbed and said calmly, "Now the Qian Tian School is down to just a handful of people, while the Benyuan School holds the reins. If Luo Zhao truly cares for his students, then he should know that my Yanhuang is the better choice."

Hou Gang fell silent, knowing that what the old ghost said was true, but he certainly wouldn't admit it.

His personal trip to Baichuan City this time wasn't really a school assignment, but rather because he was genuinely curious about Ji Ming. If he really was some kind of monstrous genius, he might as well kidnap Hu from Tianyi Star Palace.

But the moment he saw that Liu Laogui had also arrived, he knew that the chances were slim.

"Who can say for sure?"

Hou Gang muttered to himself, "Luo Zhao's students might not necessarily meet the requirements to enter the Star Palace. Besides, the fact that Ji Ming was stuck in the Mortal Realm for a month still makes me suspicious."

He believed that Liu Laogui shared the same thought; if they hastily hired an incompetent person, neither of them could afford to lose face.

This is also why only the two of them came this time. Although they did not know Ji Ming's specific information, they were willing to take the back door rather than participate in the Star Realm Grand Examination. Presumably, everyone would have to question his potential.

Their two families are very keen on poaching talent because their relationship with Tianyi Star Palace is so-so, but they still need to see Ji Ming's specific situation.

Moreover, this whole affair is shrouded in mystery. They were halfway through their journey through the back door when news suddenly came yesterday that they were no longer going through. Tianyi Star Palace's assessment of Ji Mingzhi's direct admission was also directly suspended. Otherwise, the two of them would never have come today.

They can't afford the resources that direct admission entails, unless Ji Ming is truly a genius!

Of course, the probability of that is probably zero; which genius would be willing to use connections?

the other side

Wearing a mask, Zhao Yinman said weakly, "Little Yue'er, what's so interesting about a match between middle school students?"

Shangguan Yue was also wearing a mask, from which came a charming voice, "Hehe, aren't you curious about that Ji Ming? Today, I'm going to see if he's a human or a ghost!"

Zhao Yinman still couldn't muster any interest; in her opinion, it was no different from children fighting!

As for Ji Ming, she had seen plenty of geniuses, some of whom had broken through to the Jade Purity Realm after only half a year of awakening. Ji Ming was born in a small city. Even if he was favored by Uncle Luo, could he compare to those people?

"Oh, just look at this, it'll help pass the time!" Shangguan Yue said coquettishly, hugging his arm.

"Okay, okay!"

Zhao Yinman nodded helplessly.

……

on the square

Ji Ming came over looking completely bewildered.

"Ah Ming, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" Xu Wei asked with concern.

Ji Ming shook his head, smiled, and his complexion gradually regained its rosy hue. "Don't worry, I'm fine!"

"That's good!"

Seeing this, Xu Wei said no more and waited anxiously.

Ji Ming rubbed his temples, lamenting inwardly that he had almost messed things up. No one had told him that viewing the Book of Willpower would consume so much of his mental energy. He should have known better than to use up all three of his chances!

However, thinking about the progress he made in the Void Escape Technique, Ji Ming felt much more relieved. Fortunately, it was all worth it.

He looked around and saw that it was quite a lively day, no less so than the day of the college entrance examination. Many prominent figures in the area were sitting in the audience.

Suddenly, he noticed a familiar gaze and looked over instinctively. Two old men were smiling at him; they were Ji Shanhai and Fu Bo.

Ji Ming slapped his forehead, realizing he had forgotten he was going to greet the two of them, and immediately gave an apologetic smile.

Ji Shanhai shook his head, indicating that he didn't take it to heart. Ji Ming also nodded in greeting, and glanced over to see a familiar figure next to him.

"Ji Lang? He's also participating in this secret realm battle?"

"Oh?"

Suddenly, he sensed an unusual aura emanating from Ji Lang. "He's broken through to the second-tier mage level?"

Ji Lang noticed his scrutiny and immediately showed an eager expression.

"Little bro, you think you're all good again, huh?"

Ji Ming chuckled inwardly, not taking it to heart. For him, beating the other party up that day had already quelled his resentment, so naturally he wouldn't hold a grudge.

Of course, if Ji Lang were to provoke them again, that would be a different story.

He glanced at the audience again and nodded politely when he saw Chen Zhengfang, but for some reason, the latter's expression was very complicated, and he seemed a little embarrassed.

How could Chen Zhengfang not feel embarrassed? He had just been discussing at home how Ji Ming's potential had been exhausted and how he had misjudged him, only to have someone else successfully break through right afterward.

Of course, this is a good thing, proving that his judgment is still good!

He knew about the Holy Land teacher's lowered assessment of Ji Ming's potential, but he didn't care. As long as Ji Ming could eventually enter any Holy Land, his thirty drops of Yuan Liquid wouldn't have been a waste.

Time passed quickly, and people from the three cities arrived one after another. After Principal Gu Tiannian said a few words, he announced the start of the competition for the secret realm slots.

"There are 150 students participating in this competition. The rules are very simple: they are paired up, the winners advance to the next round, and the losers are eliminated. Principal Gu specially used earth magic to create thirty aerial arenas. These arenas will be used simultaneously, and the final results will be revealed soon."

Ji Ming looked up and saw that, sure enough, thirty shadowy figures, covering the sky and blocking out the sun, were gradually taking shape ten meters above the ground. The earth element power was manipulated at will in his hands, and the strength of the arena formed was comparable to that of a high-grade alloy!

Liu Shuo explained the competition rules to them, "You can now open your virtual bracelets to draw lots. Don't be discouraged if you draw a strong opponent and get eliminated. See those people in the audience?"

"Perform well, show your strength to the fullest. Even if you're eliminated, you'll still be seen. This opportunity might be much better than taking the college entrance exam!"

The students nodded, their eyes serious, their gazes towards the audience filled with longing. Most of them had only ever aimed for university anyway, and this opportunity to perform was indeed better than the cold, hard numbers presented at the end of the college entrance exam.

"Awei, are you alright?"

Ji Ming patted Xu Wei on the shoulder.

The latter nodded solemnly, "Yes, I definitely have no chance in the secret realm, but with so many university admissions officers in the audience, any one of the top 100 will take a liking to me!"

Xu Wei showed an unprecedentedly serious expression. Ji Ming nodded. Xu Wei had finally broken through to the tenth level of the mortal realm, and his martial arts skills had improved considerably. Although the probability was small, there was still a chance that he would be noticed.

After all, Xu Wei's innate talent is quite good, which can weaken his bottleneck. If he can receive enough training, he will have a bright future.

"come on!"

Ji Ming encouraged him, then operated the bracelet to draw lots.