“……How can I make him change back?” Shen Ye asked.
“Unless he exhausts himself and can no longer maintain the transformation,” Zhang Xiaoyi replied.
Shen Ye turned to look at the wolf—no, the dog.
The dog was full of energy.
Though injured, its eyes radiated a sharp killing intent as it glared sideways at Shen Ye.
That presence…
“What kind of expression is that? It’s like I did something wrong,” Shen Ye couldn’t help but ask.
Zhang Xiaoyi covered his face, looking like he didn’t want to speak but had no choice.
His muffled voice came from behind his hands:
“He… after transforming, calls himself Mr. Weekday.”
“Today is Wednesday—his day as a police dog. He upholds justice and fights crime.”
“What about Thursday?” Shen Ye asked.
“Guide dog.”
“Friday?” Xiao Mengyu asked.
“Performance dog.”
“Saturday?” Shen Ye grew more interested.
“Therapy dog—there are too many roles, one per day, and they aren’t fixed,” Zhang Xiaoyi explained.
“Incredible,” Shen Ye and Xiao Mengyu marveled together.
“That’s what you call professionalism,” Shen Ye said, pointing at the dog.
“This is actually a talent—a rare awakened ability. Even if he didn’t pass the exam, plenty of top schools would still want him,” Xiao Mengyu explained seriously.
“But even with me and him together, we still couldn’t defeat that noble heir,” Zhang Xiaoyi said.
“Does he listen to commands?” Shen Ye asked.
“He’s a police dog today,” Zhang Xiaoyi said angrily. “Just now, he was ready to fight to the death—if he listened, I would’ve already run away with him. I’m a fast runner!”
He mimicked the motion of picking up the dog.
The dog immediately bared its teeth, looking ready to pounce and bite him.
Shen Ye paused and glanced at Zhang Xiaoyi’s arms, which were covered in bite marks.
He patted Zhang Xiaoyi on the shoulder, sighing, “Ayi, you’re really something.”
Yes.
If Zhang Xiaoyi had abandoned Guo Yunye, he could have escaped on his own.
But he risked being bitten just to take Guo Yunye with him—now that was real guts.
Then he looked at the dog again.
The dog was also covered in wounds.
Perhaps the noble heir had caused them.
“Something’s wrong.”
Xiao Mengyu suddenly spoke.
“You’re right,” Shen Ye admitted.
—By all rights, attacking each other shouldn’t have been allowed in this test.
Had the rules changed?
But this was an exam—how could the rules suddenly shift?
Shen Ye and Xiao Mengyu exchanged confused looks.
The dog suddenly turned its head and started barking in one direction.
“He’s coming back!”
Zhang Xiaoyi panicked.
Shen Ye’s figure vanished in an instant, merging into Xiao Mengyu’s shadow.
Xiao Mengyu adjusted her grip on her sword and stood silently in place.
Seven or eight breaths later.
A figure emerged from the mist.
A tall, burly male student with a square face, a beard, a scar on his forehead, black specialized gloves, and a chainmail shirt.
“Xiao Mengyu?”
The boy looked at her with some surprise.
Xiao Mengyu frowned. “He Xisi, you’re ranked third on the rookie leaderboard. Why would you attack two ordinary students who haven’t even learned any techniques?”
“Oh, I was actually hunting.”
The boy named He Xisi scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed. “My senses are keener than yours, so when the rules changed, I knew killing was allowed.”
“I’ll preserve their heads.”
“That way, in a few decades, when I look at them, I’ll remember my youth—this grand exam I participated in.”
“But your strength is far beyond theirs. Defeating them means nothing,” Xiao Mengyu said.
“That’s why just winning isn’t enough—I have to kill them,” He Xisi said with a grin.
He spread his hands and explained earnestly, “They could’ve just lived as ordinary people, peacefully finishing their lives.”
“But instead, they chose to enroll in the Three Great Schools, competing with us for resources, maybe even taking our positions, seizing our power—”
“Some of them might even marry noblewomen and have children with them.”
His face turned slightly red as he spoke seriously,
“Just thinking about that makes me utterly disgusted.”
“The exam would never allow students to kill each other,” Xiao Mengyu emphasized.
He Xisi grew more excited.
“That’s what makes this a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—it’s not my fault. The exam rules are at fault. So if I kill people, I can’t be blamed.”
“These two are my friends,” Xiao Mengyu said.
“Are you serious? You’re going against me? For these two pieces of trash?” He Xisi sneered.
“I won’t let you kill anyone,” Xiao Mengyu said.
He Xisi was momentarily stunned, then suddenly said, “You were originally just ranked fifth. If not for the divine sword acknowledging you, do you really think you’d be above me?”
“—Maybe I should kill you too.”
Fifth place.
Those three words shifted Xiao Mengyu’s aura.
“The rookie rankings only estimate strength based on our past battles.”
She spoke softly,
“But if we were to truly fight, I could kill you.”
He Xisi grinned.
His gaze fell on the Luoshui Sword at Xiao Mengyu’s waist, and he began stepping backward.
“You should be grateful for your luck, Xiao Mengyu.”
“Before entering the exam, you actually obtained the divine sword ‘Luoshui.’”
“But I’m guessing you still can’t use it—”
“Artifacts aren’t so easily wielded.”
With that, he turned and left, disappearing from everyone’s sight.
“So arrogant… Hmph, what a self-important guy,” Zhang Xiaoyi said indignantly.
Suddenly—
The massive sword floating behind Xiao Mengyu plummeted to the ground, embedding itself firmly in place.
The wood rolled into the corner.
Even Zhang Xiaoyi’s wooden bird flew out, landing on a tree branch.
Everyone’s cards trembled slightly.
Xiao Mengyu took out her card and saw lines of small text appearing on it:
“Temporary hunting rules have been added to this exam:”
“1. Hunting between examinees is permitted, but statues may not interfere.”
“2. Combat between examinees is now recognized as part of the exam. The victor will receive certain power enhancements from the test environment.”
“3. Any deaths will be considered a normal part of the exam. Once the test concludes, all traces will be immediately erased, making it impossible for anyone to investigate.”
Killing grants power boosts!
Xiao Mengyu stared at the card in shock, murmuring, “This can’t be… Something must be wrong.”
“Have past exams allowed killing?” Zhang Xiaoyi asked.
“Of course not! Murder is a serious crime—there’s no way a high school would openly recruit killers!” Xiao Mengyu replied.
“But what about the supervising examiners? The other staff? Not a single one of them is speaking up,” Zhang Xiaoyi said in despair.
Xiao Mengyu was at a loss for words.
“The ones who ranked low before… they might resort to killing,” she said hesitantly.
Zhang Xiaoyi suddenly sighed, his expression sorrowful.
Xiao Mengyu asked, “What’s wrong? Don’t tell me—”
“Yes, that guy… We saw him kill someone,” Zhang Xiaoyi said.
Xiao Mengyu’s face turned pale, her expression filled with anger.
“This isn’t over. I’m going to report this!”
She spoke firmly to Zhang Xiaoyi.
Suddenly—
Two hands appeared behind her.
Clad in black gloves, they moved silently, striking toward her at an astonishing speed.
He Xisi!
He hadn’t left—he was waiting for the chance to launch a sneak attack!
In a split second—
A pair of hands crackling with lightning shot out from Xiao Mengyu’s shadow, meeting the black-gloved hands in a direct clash.
With a thunderous boom, He Xisi staggered back several steps.
Clang!
Xiao Mengyu drew her sword and thrust forward.
This strike, fueled by rage, was so fast that even the air let out a wailing cry.
He Xisi spread his hands wide and clapped them together to catch the sword.
Barehanded blade-catching!
Xiao Mengyu didn’t dodge, allowing him to grab her blade—
Shing!
She suddenly withdrew her sword with force, drawing another blade from within the original and slashing forward with a frost-like arc of razor-sharp energy.
A sword hidden within a sword!
He Xisi froze in place, slowly looking down at the thin red line forming across his chest.
“Hahaha! What a move—Snowcloud Returning Shadow! I heard this was the Luo clan’s ultimate sword technique, but I didn’t expect you to have mastered it so soon!”
He Xisi let out a wild laugh, his entire body trembling.
Crash—
His chainmail shattered and fell to the ground.
A savage sword wound was indeed visible on his body, but his muscles, like hardened steel, had forcefully clamped down on the injury, preventing it from worsening.
“To kill you, the Remnant Snow Sword is enough.”
Xiao Mengyu spoke coldly.
She gave a slight twist of her short sword, and the detached blade on the ground flew back up, seamlessly rejoining the main sword.
Once more, the weapon was a single longsword.
But in He Xisi’s eyes, it was no longer that simple.
Next time—
Would Xiao Mengyu switch to the sub-blade mid-attack, or would she strike with the primary sword?
Unpredictable.
This made the battle even more complex.
“And your hidden friend—who is it? That so-called fearless fortune-knower?” He Xisi glanced at Xiao Mengyu’s shadow.
“You don’t need to worry about him,” Xiao Mengyu said.
“Hiding in the dark, too afraid to show himself?” He Xi Si sneered.
Xiao Mengyu let out a cold laugh.
“He said there’s no need for honour when dealing with someone like you—after all, you pretended to leave, only to sneak back and launch a cowardly ambush. Truly despicable!”
“He will remain hidden, waiting for the right moment to kill you.”
He Xisi’s expression darkened.
That other student was useless—besides running fast, he was nothing more than a stray dog.
Originally, facing Xiao Mengyu alone would have been a fair fight.
But he hadn’t expected her to have already mastered the Luo clan’s Snowcloud Returning Shadow technique at such a young age, and now she had the divine Luoshui Sword in her hands.
—Even though she hadn’t yet received its true inheritance, the sword was still a divine weapon.
And if there was another hidden opponent—
Killing her would be even harder.
Especially that palm strike just now.
It had been incredibly powerful, infused with the element of lightning—definitely not something to be underestimated.
