Huang Xiu executed this series of movements without the slightest concealment, openly displaying them for all to see.
‘That thing is an ability-derived creature?’ Zhuang Bu mused inwardly, a hint of admiration in his thoughts. ‘What quick reactions!’
For senior students, ten academic credits were merely a bit of easy extra cash. However, for freshmen, they represented a commendable first pot of gold.
Yet, quick reactions were useless if one’s strength fell short.
Each year during enrollment, only a handful of freshmen managed to defeat a “Soldier” and earn these credits.
Those who did succeed often became the most outstanding students of their cohort.
Zhuang Bu wondered how far this young woman would go.
A flicker of curiosity sparked within Zhuang Bu.
“Don’t just stand there! Act!”
Huang Xiu stepped forward, patted Chi Xue’s shoulder, and called out to her, Bu Chenghua, and Ying Zhiyu.
“If we don’t act now, it’ll be too late!”
To get ahead of everyone else, they needed to start building momentum from the very beginning.
There were nearly two hundred freshmen present, but only a few monsters—a severe imbalance of supply and demand.
A single collective spit could drown the monsters.
Huang Xiu did not deactivate the mutation of her eyes; the silvery-white flames in her pupils continued to blaze.
The expenditure from this brief period of mutation was negligible compared to her vast reserves of Void Energy.
During her short fifteen-day summer break, she had also experimented with Void Energy perception, as taught in Project One.
She had mastered this technique with remarkable ease.
However, after actively using both techniques, she discovered that Void Energy perception paled in comparison to her mutated eyes.
They were simply not on the same level!
Thus, in such a critical moment, she chose to mutate her eyes as a precaution.
With her mutated eyes, Huang Xiu pierced through the darkness, discerning six more scaled monsters lurking within.
Meanwhile, Huang Xiaoxian proactively engaged one of them.
Though short, a head and a half shorter than its adversary, it intently observed Huang Xiu’s eyes.
‘Indeed, it’s still evolving,’ Huang Xiu thought.
A ripple of emotion flickered in Huang Xiu’s eyes.
Huang Xiaoxian—the plant Huang Xiu had mutated—seemed to be on a continuous path of evolution.
Throughout the fifteen-day summer break, it often hibernated, slept, or simply idled away its time playing on a phone.
Even so, Huang Xiu could still perceive its gradual strengthening through her ability, [Senluo].
This process felt as inevitable as a plant growing larger.
Otherwise, Huang Xiu would never have dared to let it charge alone into the dark to fight.
But…
“It’s still lacking a little something!” Huang Xiu murmured softly.
The scaled monsters excelled in defense and stealth. While their stealth was utterly exposed to Huang Xiu’s eyes, their boasted defensive capabilities were precisely countered by Huang Xiaoxian.
However, this alone was not enough.
Although Huang Xiaoxian possessed “true damage” inherent to its counter-armor.
Its attack power remained insufficient, lacking a powerful finishing move to seal the victory.
“Then let’s spill some blood!”
In battle, Huang Xiu never hesitated.
With the nail of her left hand, she lightly cut the tip of her right index finger.
Enduring the sharp, pricking pain from her fingertip, she sprinkled the pomegranate-red blood onto the surrounding green belt.
Immediately, a crimson glow erupted in the darkness. A mutated plant burst from the ground, casually shook off the mud clinging to it, and plunged into the shadows.
Among the freshmen, only Chi Xue, Bu Chenghua, Liu Lu, and Li Xiushen had witnessed Huang Xiu’s ability before.
Li Xiushen, however, had not chosen Tiandu University, opting instead to join the Awakened Higher Vocational College.
Consequently, Huang Xiu’s ability had not spread.
To this day, apart from the freshmen from Yunshang Province, most other freshmen remained unaware.
The renowned Yunshang Province candidate, already vaguely crowned the strongest freshman in the freshman group, was none other than the striking young woman who had taken the lead before them.
A vast, surging army of plants unleashed a chorus of battle cries in the darkness.
Huang Xiu alone managed to intercept three scaled monsters.
Even with their preparations, Liu Lu and her two companions failed to secure even one of the remaining three monsters.
This was due to the emergence of other top-ranked freshmen, including those from Yunshang Province’s leaderboard.
Even those high-tier freshmen whose abilities had been secretly captured on film were now making their moves.
In the darkness, a male student with dyed yellow hair charged in with his hands behind his back, precisely locating a monster.
He was even faster than Chi Xue, becoming the second freshman, after Huang Xiu, to pinpoint the monster’s location.
Freshmen couldn’t pierce the darkness, only perceiving glowing white masses colliding within.
Yet, Huang Xiu could see everything, clearly observing the yellow-haired student’s battle.
Fire seemed to be a major category of abilities, and this student’s power was also flame-related.
However, he was different from the “little fireball” candidate Huang Xiu had encountered in the same batch.
He couldn’t conjure fireballs from thin air, but he could transform parts of his body into flames.
It was somewhat reminiscent of the Mera Mera no Mi from *One Piece*.
The scaled monster’s attacks were completely ineffective against him, yet his punches and kicks could easily sear its body.
‘Indeed, the exceptional freshmen from Qi Province are not to be underestimated!’ Huang Xiu mused silently.
Without the counter of seawater or Armament Haki.
This special ability, akin to the Mera Mera no Mi, inherently made its wielder far stronger than many other Awakened individuals.
Lost in thought, she turned her gaze towards the last scaled monster.
This monster’s opponent was a tall girl.
She wore round-framed glasses, had a scattering of freckles on her face, and clutched a thick, leather-bound book in her hands.
The book appeared to be connected to her ability.
Whenever she flipped a page of the leather book, the monster opposite her would inexplicably fall into a temporary disadvantage.
Sometimes its attacks would suddenly slow, while other times it would flail wildly as if blind.
All in all, her ability was remarkably peculiar; its precise effects were impossible to discern merely by observation.
However, her destructive power was still far inferior to that of the yellow-haired candidate, and she struggled to defeat the monster before her.
Ultimately, another slightly chubby male student had to step in to assist, finally pushing the monster into a clear disadvantage.
“Damn it!” Liu Lu grumbled, kicking at the pebbles on the ground in frustration, having failed to secure a monster.
Her ability was by no means weak compared to others, but it lacked versatility. Unfortunately, her Void Energy reserves were insufficient, and she was still in the Awakening Period. Otherwise, she could have easily taken down a monster by herself.
The senior male students did not intervene, instead watching the battle in the darkness with keen interest, discussing it in hushed tones.
The focus of their discussion was, without a doubt, Huang Xiu.
At this point, not only them but also the other candidates had realized.
Such formidable strength, combined with being a freshman from Yunshang Province.
There was no doubt. She was the sole S-rank in the national re-examination. The strongest freshman with the highest score of 910, capable of fighting two foes at once—the legendary woman!
“Senior male student, how are these academic credits calculated?” Huang Xiu asked Zhuang Bu, turning her head. Her mutated plants had already subdued three scaled monsters.
The other two battles were also nearing their conclusion.
“The AI system will record your scores; you don’t need to worry about it. As for the bodies, someone will take care of them.”
Zhuang Bu clapped his hands, drawing everyone’s attention.
“Alright, tonight’s little interlude concludes here. Everyone performed exceptionally well, showing no excessive nervousness or panic. Truly worthy of Tiandu University!”
“The freshman ceremony will be held the day after tomorrow in Yanghai Hall. You all have free time tomorrow, so you can familiarize yourselves with the campus layout, lest you get lost.”
As he spoke, the muscular man even cracked a joke.
After all, every year, freshmen got lost, and some even missed the orientation ceremony entirely.
“While missing the freshman ceremony won’t deduct points, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for all freshmen. Miss it, and it’s gone.”
As he spoke, the last scaled monster also fell.
Immediately, the streetlights stopped flickering, and the refreshing sensation brought by the abundant Void Energy vanished completely.
A sense of disappointment couldn’t help but settle over them.
“Oh, and finally, I have an advertisement to make.” Zhuang Bu smiled. “I am the president of the Extreme Fist Society. We are the top-ranked organization at Tiandu University, even surpassing the Student Union.”
“We welcome all of you to choose us during the upcoming Hundred Societies Battle!”