Chapter 27: Unforeseen Powers and Demonic Possession

Arena.

“Xu Fang, I apologize, but I must win this time.”

Xi Lan gripped the sword in her hand, its icy touch seeming to pierce directly into her heart.

Among thousands of examinees, the probability of encountering an acquaintance was minuscule, let alone Xu Fang; it was truly an unfortunate coincidence.

Despite her modest talent, Xu Fang had never given up or become disheartened.

Her favorite saying was that it was enough if effort yielded results, a testament to her incredibly diligent and pragmatic nature.

She had spent the past few nights studying tirelessly to gain admission to Saint Spirit, yet her exam results had been far from ideal.

The third test would determine her fate, but Xi Lan, too, had compelling reasons not to lose; for her own objectives, she absolutely had to enter the Special Class.

In Xi Lan’s eyes, this situation was excessively cruel to Xu Fang.

Though she had uttered harsh words, her heart was deeply conflicted, unsure if she could truly bring herself to strike.

She wondered if Xu Fang would hate her should she emerge victorious.

“Heheheh…” Xu Fang let out a slightly deranged laugh.

“Do you truly believe you can still defeat me?”

“Xu… Xu Fang? What’s wrong with you?”

Xu Fang’s appearance utterly astonished Xi Lan; she was typically a shy and quiet girl, but this wild, frenzied demeanor made her seem like a completely different person.

“Me? Hahaha, this is my true self!”

Xu Fang’s voice was brimming with hatred as she glared at Xi Lan, her eyes wide and bloodshot.

“Do you know? I despise you with every fiber of my being! Why does everything come so easily to you while I constantly hit brick walls? Every time I failed, you’d rush over to comfort me—did you ever consider my feelings?! To me, you’re nothing but a hypocrite, deliberately flaunting your success in front of me! And you pretend to be a good person! Disgusting! Utterly sickening!”

Having finally voiced the words she had suppressed within her heart, Xu Fang felt an immense sense of exhilaration.

She pressed her hands to her forehead and threw her head back, laughing uproariously.

“I was the one who poisoned the spirit dew! I can’t believe even fate is on your side, damn it! Damn it! Just die already!!!”

Xu Fang stomped the ground maniacally, then drew the longsword from her waist and lunged forward like an arrow, charging directly at Xi Lan.

The figure before her abruptly vanished, causing Xi Lan’s beautiful eyes to widen in shock.

She had guided Xu Fang many times, and was well aware of her abilities, but this speed far exceeded anything Xi Lan had ever witnessed from her.

With the sword descending right before her, Xi Lan wasted no time in thought, swiftly channeling her energy and raising her own sword to parry.

A force akin to a rampaging bull surged downwards, followed by a thunderous crash!

Xi Lan, who had exerted every ounce of her strength to block, was driven to one knee by this sheer brute power.

The friction of sword against sword produced a grating screech, sending sparks flying.

This single blow sent a jolt of terror through the watching examinees, their hearts skipping a beat; they knew that if it had been them, they might have been cleaved in two.

“What immense power.”

Xi Lan’s delicate brows furrowed tightly; she was utterly astonished by Xu Fang’s strength, and simultaneously perplexed as to why her power had surged so dramatically.

At the same time, Xi Lan also found herself feeling rather peculiar.

Exerting force, she swung away Xu Fang’s sword, immediately following up with a sweeping horizontal strike aimed at her waist, compelling her to retreat.

Indeed, she realized her own strength had also been enhanced.

Why was this? She hadn’t been cultivating recently, so why had she suddenly grown stronger?

The chill emanating from her sword hilt drew Xi Lan’s gaze to it.

Could it be him?

Zhang Liang’s words echoed in her ears: “You’d better be careful!”

While his tone and expression had seemed like a threat, the truth was quite different.

Xi Lan was now a hundred percent certain that Zhang Liang had been helping her, first by discerning the poisoned spirit dew, and then by providing her with assistance.

Achieving this was no simple feat.

When receiving a poisoned gift, people would instinctively assume the giver wished them harm; yet, he had seen through the truth, never misunderstood her, and even kindly warned her.

He must have seen through Xu Fang’s intentions, and, fearing being misunderstood and accused of sowing discord if he exposed her directly, he had chosen this indirect method to help her.

Without his assistance, that last blow would have been utterly unblockable, likely cleaving her in two on the spot.

Indeed, the girl named Ying had been right; he was a genuinely good person, one who kept his true nature hidden.

She now truly owed him an enormous favor.

****

Meanwhile, Zhang Liang was seated in a VIP box, observing the spectacle; this time, it wasn’t the Chairman’s VIP box, but Ying’s.

“Zhang… Zhang Liang, that girl won’t get hurt, will she?”

Ying sat on the sofa beside Zhang Liang, her head bowed, hands clasped together, her voice tinged with shyness.

Being constantly called “benefactor” made Zhang Liang somewhat uncomfortable; after all, he was supposed to be a major villain, so acting like a great hero felt entirely out of character.

Consequently, Zhang Liang had told Ying to simply call him by his name.

Ying had very few friends, and absolutely no male friends; becoming friends with her benefactor, and her very first male friend at that, filled her with both excitement and shyness.

“No big deal,” Zhang Liang mumbled, simultaneously devouring his steak and watching the match.

‘I’d be thrilled if something happened to her!’ he thought to himself.

Zhang Liang was finding it a bit hard to fathom whether the other girl was incredibly skilled or if Xi Lan was simply too weak.

Despite wielding such a fine weapon and benefiting from his sword intent, she hadn’t instantly annihilated her opponent; instead, they were exchanging blows back and forth.

Fortunately, the other girl harbored intense hatred for Xi Lan.

While his plan had deviated, it hadn’t entirely gone off track, so Zhang Liang simply continued to watch the show.

In a flash, Xi Lan and Xu Fang had already exchanged hundreds of blows.

Xi Lan was gradually mastering her newfound power, and Xu Fang was beginning to fall behind.

‘I’ve gained power, so why can’t I defeat her?! Why?! Why is this happening?!’

“Do you desire even greater power?”

Suddenly, Xu Fang heard a voice resonate within her mind.

She had heard it last night as well, and at the time, terrified of failing the selection, she had dismissed it as a hallucination.

Yet, after tentatively responding, she had indeed grown stronger.

This time, Xu Fang did not hesitate, immediately screaming, “Give me power!”

No sooner had Xu Fang cried out than her arms dropped limp like those of a broken puppet, and she collapsed to the ground.

Moments later, her entire body began to convulse, an evil cackle escaping her lips, and her eyeballs spun erratically in a manner utterly impossible for a human.

This grotesque sight sent shivers down the spines of the watching examinees, filling them with unease.

Watching dark energy emanate from Xu Fang, Xi Lan’s delicate brows knitted together, and her beautiful lips parted slightly.

“Demonic possession,” she murmured.

The very next second, a torrent of violent dark energy swept across the arena.

“It’s a demon! A peak-tier demon!”

“Holy crap! Why is there a demon in the city?!”

“Run!”

Instantly, chaos erupted across the entire arena.

A peak-tier demon possessed the power of a Spirit Realm peak expert, and neither the students nor the teachers present had the ability to stop it.

The two powerful Ten Prodigies were not on site, leaving evacuation as the only option for the examinees’ safety.

The teachers reacted with remarkable swiftness, immediately guiding the examinees to evacuate.

Xi Lan, too, had discerned the demon’s rank.

She gripped her sword with both hands, pointing it at Xu Fang, as sweat trickled down her cheeks.

A peak-tier demon—Xi Lan knew she couldn’t defeat it, but she couldn’t bear to watch Xu Fang be devoured by the demon in such a manner.

‘There’s still a chance now, and I’ve been strengthened; I might not necessarily lose.’

“You, retreat quickly.

Leave this place to us.”

Three teachers, weapons in hand, positioned themselves in front of Xi Lan.

They, too, knew they couldn’t defeat a peak-tier demon, but they could at least buy time for the examinees to evacuate.

“I am a mid-tier Spirit Realm cultivator; I can help.”

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