He Xisi’s eyes flickered as he suddenly lunged toward Zhang Xiaoyi.
“Killing one is better than none!”
He sneered.
As expected, Xiao Mengyu stepped forward, blocking Zhang Xiaoyi’s way. She raised her sword and shouted,
“Stop!”
Suddenly, He Xisi abandoned Zhang Xiaoyi, his body soaring like a great eagle. In just a few leaps, he had already retreated far away.
“Hahaha!”
He burst into laughter. “Xiao Mengyu! Next time, face me one-on-one if you dare!”
With those words, he disappeared even further into the distance.
—He had fled.
Xiao Mengyu bit her lip before suddenly calling out, “Shen Ye!”
“We can’t just let this go.”
“We have to find him. We absolutely can’t let him kill again!”
“What do you think?”
No response.
Xiao Mengyu’s expression stiffened, and her face changed.
Elsewhere—
He Xisi crossed a stream and hid behind a secluded rock.
He tapped the bracelet on his wrist, took out a spray bottle, and applied it to the gruesome wound on his chest.
“Hiss— That sword was vicious. Damn woman, I’ll kill you sooner or later!”
He Xisi spat with venom.
It seemed he needed to find some like-minded allies to hunt those people down together.
But who should he recruit?
He Xisi fell into deep thought.
Silence surrounded him.
Apart from the trickling of the stream, only the faint rustling of leaves in the wind could be heard.
His wound throbbed again.
He Xisi looked down at it, his gaze turning even more ruthless.
Although the injury was healing at an astonishing rate, regaining full combat ability would require high-grade potions from the Immortal Technology Union.
After a moment’s thought, he pulled out another vial and opened it.
“Two pills… should be enough.”
Just as he poured them into his hand—
A pair of hands suddenly emerged from his shadow and struck his back.
With a thunderous impact, He Xisi was sent flying, crashing through several trees before rolling across the ground for meters.
“Ptui.”
He spat out a mouthful of bloody foam, sprang to his feet, and roared, “Who?!”
The wind rustled through the treetops.
The stream continued to flow.
No other sound followed.
“I get it. It’s you—Shen Ye! You were hiding in Xiao Mengyu’s shadow just now. Come out and fight me fair and square!”
He Xisi assumed a combat stance, his voice booming.
No one responded.
The rocky shore by the stream, the woods, the boulders—nothing but empty silence.
He was the only one here.
Suddenly, like a madman, he smashed his fists together and slammed them onto his own shadow.
Boom!
The ground caved in from the impact.
He Xisi knelt on one knee, hands pressed against the earth, panting heavily.
But his shadow remained empty.
Then—
A flicker of movement shot out from the nearby tree shadows, striking him like lightning.
This kick landed with full force, hitting him just as his strength was spent, before he could react—slamming directly into his face.
Crack!
Trees shattered in succession, sand and gravel scattered into the air, instantly covered in frost.
—Kicking technique, Frostbite!
He Xisi was swept off his feet, tumbling several times before managing to stand again.
He looked down.
His body was covered in frost, half of him numb with cold.
“Elemental attacks? What level of technique is this?!”
His expression twisted in shock.
No one answered.
No one appeared.
The forest remained eerily still, as if he were the only person in it.
“Bro… I was wrong. I shouldn’t have killed those ordinary students,” He Xisi said.
Silence.
“How about this—I’ll return their heads. I won’t keep them anymore.”
He wiped his wrist, retrieving several severed heads and placing them on the ground.
“Farewell.”
Before his words even fully fell—someone moved.
From the shadow right beside He Xisi—
This time, Shen Ye was truly there.
Nightfall Dagger slid from its sheath.
It was an assassin’s blade from the Nightmare Realm, classified as Blue (Exceptional).
Infused with three permanent high-level traits—sharpness, penetration, and bloodletting—it was an unparalleled weapon for assassination.
He hadn’t been able to use it properly before.
But now—Shen Ye hesitated for just a moment before vanishing alongside the dagger.
Pfft.
He Xisi’s body trembled violently.
The short sword had pierced straight through him.
“Ah…”
He clutched the blade impaling his chest, slowly sinking to his knees.
—He seemed unwilling to accept the reality before him.
But his life force was slipping away at an alarming rate.
Shen Ye stood behind him, gripping the dagger in silence.
Until—
“Don’t… I have such a bright future ahead… I’m ranked third on the Rookie Leaderboard! If you spare me… I’ll give you everything!”
He Xisi finally begged.
As soon as he spoke, his head drooped, breath faltering.
—If Shen Ye let go now…
He still had those precious medicines.
He still had top-tier life-support equipment!
“Alright.”
Shen Ye spoke.
He Xisi was overjoyed beyond expectation. With a flick of his wrist, he immediately produced a large life-support device, three meters long and two meters wide.
Panting, coughing up blood, his face twisted in extreme pain from the sharpness of the sword, yet he had no choice but to lower himself and whisper,
“Help me, put me inside.”
“Just put you in?” Shen Ye asked.
“Yes.”
“I refuse.”
He Xisi struggled to lift his head and looked at Shen Ye.
“I was just messing with you.”
Shen Ye smiled and, in a casual tone, said, “In ordinary families, it’s incredibly rare for even one or two children to have exceptional talent. The parents and elders at home wouldn’t know how to contain their joy.”
“Back in my hometown, we would set off firecrackers and offer incense to our ancestors.”
“I remember a senior who got into Qingbei. The whole village was genuinely happy for him. His family hosted eight banquet tables that night, and everyone had a lively feast.”
“I can still recall the joy on his parents’ faces.”
“Are these children any different? Not really. I believe their parents are just as happy for them.”
“—But you killed them.”
He paused, then said the final sentence in a gentle voice.
Swish—
A flash of sword light vanished in an instant. A severed head flew into the air.
The wind blew past.
The head plunged into the stream, a dark red colour spreading in the rushing water before swiftly dissipating, drifting further and further away, destination unknown.
All that remained was a headless corpse, sitting motionless in place.
Shen Ye sheathed his sword, casually collecting the healing spray and medicine bottles. He even took the life-support device before carefully inspecting the wound on the corpse’s chest.
The medicine was indeed potent.
Even the corpse’s wound had healed.
Now, no one would be able to tell that he had been struck by Xiao Mengyu’s sword.
Feeling relieved, Shen Ye turned to leave.
“Hey, hey, he has a storage wristband, and you’re not taking it?” the big skeleton asked.
“I’m not taking it—aristocratic families run deep. When we kill, we have to be cautious,” Shen Ye said.
“But you still took those medicines and sprays.”
“Because he brought them out himself. I stored them in my ring—no one will know.”
“Can I use them?” the big skeleton asked.
“Will they make your bones grow back?” Shen Ye asked.
“Let’s try!”
The big skeleton swallowed a pill.
“…Ugh, never mind. This medicine only works on living beings,” the skeleton said sulkily.
“Well, tough luck. You’ll just have to stay a wounded patient,” Shen Ye shrugged.
“It’s fine—like I said, I still have my strength. You just don’t believe me,” the skeleton said.
Shen Ye had a sudden feeling. He pulled out his card and took a look.
A line of small text appeared on its surface:
“You have killed a candidate.”
“The enhancement power the opponent gained from killing has been absorbed by you.”
“Your current ‘Flesh’ has received further enhancement and has evolved into ‘Meat Shield.'”
“No matter who or what attacks you, it will now take at least four hits to render you completely incapacitated, leading to either death—or becoming qualified meat to be consumed by others.”
Three hits had become four.
So this was the reward for killing other candidates?
Shen Ye’s eyes were filled with surprise before turning deeply serious.
One extra hit meant another chance at survival.
In battle, even enduring one more attack could completely change the outcome.
—This level of enhancement was already significant.
Many people would be tempted!
After all, most ordinary candidates hadn’t learned any real techniques.
What to do?
In the distance.
Several figures were approaching swiftly.
Xiao Mengyu was in the lead, followed by Zhang Xiaoyi and Gouzi.
“You killed him.”
Xiao Mengyu spoke.
“No, he was already dead when I arrived. No idea who did it,” Shen Ye said.
He shot Xiao Mengyu a look.
—The two of them had fought alongside each other through life and death. Some things could be spoken aloud between them.
But Zhang Xiaoyi and Gouzi were merely acquaintances.
Even though he had stood up for them—
Human nature was unpredictable.
Better to be cautious.
Xiao Mengyu gave him a nod of approval, then looked at the headless corpse and said, “This was a sword wound, with traces of ice-based attacks. You can’t use these techniques, so it really wasn’t you.”
“I wanted to kill him, but I arrived too late,” Shen Ye sighed.
“Good riddance,” Zhang Xiaoyi said angrily. “He killed several of our classmates—he deserved to die!”
“Woof!” Gouzi barked.
Ding!
The cards on all four of them vibrated.
Shen Ye took out his card and saw lines of text appearing on its surface:
“You have intimidated the monsters of the Wailing Tide and gained one hour of break.”
“The Wailing Tide is beginning to recede from certain areas.”
“You must escape the Wailing Tide’s coverage within one hour to face the next trial.”
“Failure will result in elimination!”
The wind began to stir.
The entire floating island seemed to be shifting toward an unpredictable fate.
