I'll even show you crossdressing men.

Bai Yu is just like that. She regards Ji Xiuyu as the most important person, and considers him and her other sisters as everything. If anyone else wants to enter their lives, they should be prepared to be rejected by her.

But once she accepts them, she won't refuse them again. These girls will gradually become a part of her circle. Even if she doesn't treat them like her childhood sisters, they are still more than strangers.

Lost in thought, Claire returned shortly after going out for a walk. She looked perfectly fine, as if she wasn't the one who had just gone out to silence someone.

Compared to Zhao Kongxue, who excels in assassination and tracking, Claire, with her superior reconnaissance skills and ability to eliminate enemy scouts, possesses formidable direct combat capabilities. Dealing with those guys wouldn't be an easy task, but it wouldn't require much effort either.

"Who is it?" Bai Yu asked curiously. An enemy that even Claire had to waste more than ten seconds on was either numerous or had some strength.

“Wolf riders, orcs.” Raising her hand, Claire casually mentioned her enemy, her fingers twirling a few strands of her blue hair.

Her answer caused everyone's expressions to change, but Zi Qing remained calm and composed.

"Don't worry about it, it's normal to have orcs. I think, if nothing unexpected happens, we'll have not only orcs, but also elves, goblins, and even half-dragons. As for them, just kill them... Hmm, keep some promising girls alive, and kill the rest. Sometimes we're not strong enough on our own, so it's good to take this opportunity to build a legion."

Zi Qing stretched and said something that made everyone's expression change. What did she mean by that?

"That space is meant for everyone to enter when they encounter danger. Isn't it a waste to use it to store them?" Claire and Zhao Kongxue brought not only funds but also a lot of treasures with them when they arrived here.

One of them is an object that looks like a crystal ball, with an interior space the size of the city of Arest, which is a floating island city suspended in the air.

Inside were not only some weapons, but also a Valkyrie unit, which was one of the more valuable items in the Chu family's inherited treasure trove. It was brought in in case of an enemy attack to protect those who were weaker.

Once someone is taken into that world, no matter how strong they are, they must obey their orders.

It can protect people, hide enemies, and even troops inside; its strategic significance is self-evident.

"It's not a waste. Wouldn't it be better to take them on as our own than to kill them? Do you want us to deploy the Valkyrie forces?"

Zi Qing stood up. She wasn't as tall as Claire, but her aura completely overwhelmed her, leaving her speechless.

"Valkyrie?" Hearing this name, Ji Xiuyu felt a sense of familiarity. Then she thought of her rarely used "Valkyrie Mode"—could the two be related?

"Yes, Valkyries, that's actually the name of a special unit of our Chu family. They are alchemical creations, true artificial humans. There are thousands of them, and each one is incredibly powerful. The weakest Valkyrie is at the early Legendary level, and the strongest can reach the God level. However..."

Since everyone here could be considered one of their own, Zi Qing didn't hide anything and slowly revealed the secret.

Akari is Alicia's teacher, Alicia's confidante, and Alicia's maid (whom no one else knows), as well as her other sister who doesn't have much status.

Lolona's identity was even more special. After discussing it for a long time with Feigong Qianse and reviewing some information, they understood who this girl was.

Needless to say, the others are either Ji Xiuyu's subordinates, maids, or people who have a great fondness for him; none of them can escape him in the future.

Revealing this secret will let them know that we consider them as one of our own.

"Hiss~" Even though they were somewhat prepared, they were still startled by her words, and the girls couldn't help but tremble.

"Don't worry, Valkyrie is impossible to use unless it's in that world. Otherwise, if we used it, we wouldn't need anyone else to intervene; some guys would jump out eagerly. The Chu family was too prominent before, so some enemies are inevitable."

“I understand.” Claire, Zhao Kongxue, Bai Yu, and Tina all nodded, knowing what to do if they encountered enemies on their journey ahead.

"Valkyrie?" Even after hearing Zi Qing's explanation, Ji Xiuyu was still somewhat confused about Valkyrie. He felt that it wasn't that simple...

Chapter 277: Is this all the skill you have to run a hunting party?

"The target is approaching. Is the magic circle ready?" On a hilltop, a campfire was burning, and a group of half-dragons sat around it. Not far away, several magical beasts with dragon blood lay on the ground, watching them lazily, or simply closed their eyes and slept.

"Ready? Hero-level spells, they should cause these students a lot of trouble. Hmph, a bunch of overconfident fools, do they really think they can get to the competition venue without any problems? I wonder how many people don't want them to rise to power." A half-dragon who seemed to be the leader said disdainfully.

His mission was to ambush the students from the Heavenly Academy. If he could kill them, that would be best; if not, he had to force them to go home.

If they can force them to retreat, their group will receive a reward of 10,000 amethyst crystals. If they kill them, the reward will triple.

Whether they kill the enemy or force them to retreat, the reward will be enough for them to live a carefree and happy life for the rest of their days. For this mission, what does it matter how dangerous this place is?

Fortune favors the bold; that's no joke.

As for the Tenshoin's retaliation, they wouldn't say they weren't afraid, but at least as a hunting party, they were far more skilled than most people at concealing their whereabouts.

At worst, they'd just take the bounty and go live a carefree life in a city far from the Heavenly Courtyard; he simply didn't believe anyone would be able to find them.

With that money, what can't they do?

"Boss, we need to hurry. There's only half an hour left before the next wave of monsters arrives. Dragging this out won't do us any good."

One of the men ran over from a distance and stood next to the leader, saying something.

"Half an hour? Hmph, how long until those guys get here?" The leader frowned. This wasn't a very long time. Although it was said to be half an hour, they needed to prepare and leave ten minutes in advance. Otherwise, they could easily be spotted by powerful monsters, and that would be troublesome.

“Five more minutes.” Another half-dragon in robes stood up, looking down at the canyon below, and said coldly.

"Finish them off within five minutes, fifteen minutes. Focus on killing them, but if you can't kill them, force them to leave." The half-dragon leader stood up and gave the order. I, with my long-handled axe, stood in front of all the half-dragons, staring intently at the faint light in the distance—the approaching Heavenly Court's troops.

To conceal their identities, half-dragons always transform into their half-dragon form before embarking on missions. This way, once they revert to their human form, the chances of being discovered are greatly reduced.

This allows them to blend in and commit crimes without being detected, and also helps them avoid trouble they can't afford to provoke.

For example, they must treat the people from the Tenshoin Academy with utmost caution and absolutely cannot allow them to discover their identities and escape.

"There are people outside, young master." The girl, who was resting with her eyes closed in the carriage, opened her eyes and looked outside, a cold glint flashing in her eyes.

"Take care of them. It would be best to find out who's behind this. If you can't find out, then decide for yourself how to resolve it." Upon hearing his words, Ji Xiuyu bit her lower lip and made a decision.

“Yes…” His decisiveness surprised Zhao Kongxue and Claire. If this continues, the young master will become even more outstanding.

"I'll go this time. I'm better at assassinations than you." Standing up, Zhao Kongxue stretched and left these words before stepping out of the carriage and disappearing into the darkness.

Everyone agreed that she should handle it. Because apart from her, the other girls were either not strong enough or lacked the necessary skills, so they naturally couldn't compete for it.

"There's a trigger-type magic circle ahead, I'll go take care of it." After a while, Zi Qing also stood up, saying this as she lifted the curtain of the carriage, stood there, and gently pinched a certain spot in the distance.

"Clang~" It sounded like glass breaking. The space where she was holding it rippled, and then a magic circle shattered.

The girl turned around as if she had never done anything, remaining as nonchalant as ever.

"Sister Ziqing's magic is still the most powerful. If we want to solve this, we need to get closer." Claire's magical skills are not low either, but it is impossible for her to reach the level of Ziqing.

Moreover, compared to before she came out, in just over a month or two, Sister Ziqing's strength has increased so much, which is truly astonishing.

"You can do it too as you grow up." Zi Qing didn't take it seriously; such a thing wasn't worth bragging about at all.

Besides, it was just a team that could only use hero-level spells; it didn't even count as a battle record for her.

As she casually dealt with the magic array, Zhao Kongxue also made her way to the half-dragon's position and began her "assassination."

The so-called assassination was actually a merciless killing of everyone she saw, whether they had noticed her or not.

The blood of half-dragons has a special aura that ordinary people cannot detect, but half-dragons are extremely sensitive to it.

So after the girl killed ten people, the mage and leader, realizing something was wrong, turned back to deal with the uninvited guest.

"Is that all the strength they have?" Slightly disappointed, their strength didn't even interest her; it was just a warm-up at best.

"Who are you?" The half-dragon leader looked at the corpses behind her, then at the other girls dressed up, a hint of fear flashing in his eyes.

This is definitely a powerful enemy, so why would she come to kill me?

When going out on missions, Zhao Kongxue always wears three layers of black veils to cover her face. The veils have a special effect that greatly enhances her movement and breath-holding abilities, and also allows her to use several powerful skills. Most importantly, wearing the veils ensures that no one weaker than her can recognize her.

It's no wonder he didn't recognize Zhao Kongxue as one of the people from the Heavenly Courtyard; otherwise, he wouldn't have said such a thing.

"Me? I'm just someone who came to kill you. Don't worry too much." The girl didn't want to say anything more to him. As she finished speaking, she appeared beside him.

"Ah!" Raising his battle axe, the terrified half-dragon leader instinctively swung it forward, "Whoosh!"

The sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh rang out. The leader, feeling a surge of joy at having struck someone, was startled awake the next moment. The person before him was not the girl at all, but his second-in-command, the half-dragon mage.

The look of terror and hatred in the other person's eyes as they died remained in his mind, becoming eternal in an instant.

"That's... my body?" His last sight was of his own headless body, gushing blood...

Chapter 278: What is a Monster Tide? Can you eat them?

"They are a notorious hunting group in this area, constantly attacking adventuring teams and merchants. They are an extremely troublesome force. Both of their leaders are at the hero level, not weak, but not particularly strong either."

"This time, we've been commissioned by a mysterious person to ambush us on this road leading to the competition city. Whether they kill us or repel us, they'll receive a reward."

"This looks like a conspiracy by other colleges to stop us, but I don't think it's that simple."

Zhao Kongxue didn't even need to ask any questions. She directly grasped the other party's soul and easily obtained the information she wanted using the Soul Searching Technique.

So after she dealt with them, she ran back and told everyone the news.

"It's not too bad, but it's not good news either. It's within expectations." Zi Qing got up, walked to the small table in the middle of the carriage, poured a cup of tea, and handed it to the girl so she could rest.

"Hmph, needless to say, it must be that some people are worried that we will take away their resources, so they attacked us." In fact, those around Ji Xiuyu knew that the most likely instigators of this attack were the group from the mage tower.

However, many of the girls here are unaware of this, especially the few who are waiting to enter the academy; they absolutely cannot be allowed to come into contact with such things.

This crisis can only be handled by themselves; they cannot talk about it.

After all, the opponent's target is Ji Xiuyu, their backbone, and the true core of the Tensho Academy in this academy competition.

It really has to be said, their timing was impeccable. Perhaps they were the ones who originally released the qualifications for training in the Mage Tower?

Regardless of the reason, under the current circumstances, if we didn't already know that the other party was behind it, we might really suspect other academies.

No one would be surprised if they did these things for the limited number of opportunities to study in the Mage Tower.

Because it is the dream of countless people, something that no amount of money or status can buy, and it can be called the best opportunity in hundreds of years.

Even if it wasn't the academy that did it, the powerful families behind the students who studied in various academies and were confident of entering the Mage Tower would secretly intervene.

For them, having a descendant who can enter the Mage Tower is equivalent to having a super strong person.

There aren't that many strong people in this world. Most of the strong people are concentrated in different batches, and a small portion belong to other families or forces.

This creates a situation where the strong are extremely strong, and the weak find it very difficult to catch up. Examples include the Chu family, the Mage Tower, and some hidden sects.

Historically, every student who entered the Mage Tower emerged with at least a peak Legendary level of cultivation. Many even reached the level of Epic or Demigod, making it a sacred place for forging powerful individuals.

If these geniuses, whose natural talent already surpasses that of countless peers, were given this opportunity, it would be an extra ability to protect themselves before the world is in turmoil. Why would they give it up?

Therefore, the enemy's choice to strike at this time couldn't be more opportune. The desolate wilderness was not only teeming with insectoids and monsters, but also frequently saw hunting parties.

It's not unusual for people to die or run into trouble in these places, is it? Even if they don't die, and it's discovered that someone was behind it, the most likely explanation they can guess is that it's another academy or another family. The chances of them thinking about the "Mage Tower" that maintains world order are extremely small.

Therefore, if something really happens, they can easily distance themselves from it without much effort.

Of course, that's for those who don't know. For Ji Xiuyu and her group, who already know that the mastermind behind it all is the Mage Tower, such an attack seems rather uninteresting.

Even if they were indeed sent by other families or academies, they didn't care; it was perfectly normal for competitors to act this way. What was abnormal was the interference of the Mage Tower; that was what truly infuriated them.

"There will be a monster tide later. Should we avoid it?" Zi Qing turned her head and looked at the night sky outside the window. The stars were lonely and the moonlight was dim. It was the eve of an ominous sign.