Chapter 462: Chapter 462: Ye Xuan Takes Action
The first batch of the assessment finally came to a close with Xiao Ping emerging as the ultimate victor.
The results of every student in the first batch were clearly recorded.
Everyone sighed with emotion. It seemed there was no shortage of talented students in this year’s class.
Students who could last for two hours were a rare sight in previous assessments.
These individuals would all become the backbone of the academy in the future.
A quarter of an hour later, the assessment for the second batch, groups six through ten, was about to begin.
At last, it was time for Ye Xuan to show his strength!
"Young Master Ye, you’re up next. Let them see just how heaven-defying you are."
Luo Cheng, who had passed the first round, was in high spirits and said with a smile.
He was well aware of Ye Xuan’s strength. It was far beyond his own, simply unfathomable.
Luo Cheng eagerly awaited Ye Xuan’s performance in this round.
"Huh, isn’t that kid in group eight the one who was being hunted by the Profound Mystery Sect’s elder?"
"That’s him. Name’s Xuan Ye. He’s supposedly an eighteen-year-old Tier Five Second Layer Martial Sect."
"What? That kid reached the Tier Five Second Layer at eighteen? What kind of monster is he? I wonder how he’ll do in this first round of the assessment."
The assessment hadn’t even begun, yet everyone’s attention was already focused on Ye Xuan.
The earlier actions of Crazy Battle had shaken everyone. For a Supreme Elder of the Profound Mystery Sect to personally hunt someone down, that person had to be extraordinary.
And Ye Xuan’s age and cultivation level only served to maximize the sensation.
An eighteen-year-old Tier Five Second Layer Martial Sect was extremely rare in the history of Gale Light Academy.
"Cultivation is cultivation, but strength is strength. If some Alchemy Dao sect fed their disciples advancement Pills from a young age, it wouldn’t be impossible to reach Tier Five Second Layer at eighteen—or even younger. But while they’d have the speed, their future achievements would probably be mediocre."
Someone who clearly disliked Ye Xuan said mockingly, implying his cultivation was entirely propped up by Pills.
"If he really did break through by constantly taking advancement Pills, then his future accomplishments will indeed be average. At most, he’ll reach the Tier Six Peak. It’d be almost impossible for him to step into the Martial King Realm. But if this guy cultivated it all himself? That would be terrifying."
"Cultivated it himself? Heh, I doubt it."
"We’ll just have to wait and see."
Ye Xuan was causing too much of a stir. While some of the older Martial Artists might have watched in amazement, the students his own age were all resentful.
"Look, the kid’s entered the Array."
Many people’s gazes were locked onto Ye Xuan.
A white light flared, and one by one, the participants began to grimly endure within the Array.
With the first batch as a reference, many knew that lasting half an hour was the minimum requirement to pass this first round.
So, regardless of whether they could hold on, everyone desperately pushed themselves to their limits.
As a result, the elimination rate for the second batch of students was noticeably slower than the first.
In the first batch, it took nearly an hour to narrow the field down to fifteen hundred people. Many expected the second batch to surpass that number, but in the end, they didn’t.
In less than an hour, the number of people left in the Array had also dropped to just fifteen hundred.
It seemed the one-hour mark was a dividing line.
At the same time, their attention was also focused on Ye Xuan.
Soon, an hour had passed.
Some people frowned deeply and muttered, "I can’t believe it. The kid is tougher than he looks. He actually made it past the one-hour mark."
Someone nearby chuckled. "You’re underestimating this Xuan Ye. He’s only eighteen, so the pressure on him is undoubtedly the lowest. Lasting an hour should be a piece of cake for him, even if he leveled up using Pills."
Many people nodded in agreement.
It was indeed unlikely that Xuan Ye would be eliminated at the one-hour mark. However, the later stages of the assessment favored Martial Artists with solid foundations. They all wanted to see if Ye Xuan could last for an hour and a half.
What shocked them even more was that this second batch of Martial Artists seemed heaven-defying. The number of people who lasted past an hour actually exceeded three hundred.
It was true that the stronger contenders emerged in the later batches.
After all, at the beginning, no one knew the details or what constituted a good time. Seeing that they had passed the first round, they didn’t push themselves to their absolute limits.
But by the second batch, geniuses were constantly emerging, and a competitive fire was lit in many of them. They all wanted to achieve a good score, which was why the times they held on for grew longer and longer.
"An hour and a half! There are still sixty people left, and that Xuan Ye is among them. The results from this batch are truly insane."
Everyone exclaimed in amazement.
They wondered if a new record would be set this time.
Curiosity filled the hearts of many.
And at this very moment, Ye Xuan was inside the Array, his heart as calm as still water.
Waves of pressure continuously descended upon him, trying to crush him.
The pressure kept intensifying, like a great mountain pressing down on him.
’This assessment really isn’t just some random test. The longer someone can endure, the greater their talent truly is.’
Unlike the other disciples who were struggling bitterly, Ye Xuan was actually inside the Array, critiquing it.
This Array tested a Martial Artist’s ability to resist pressure. It assessed not just their cultivation, but also their Martial Dao will and the strength of their Profound Sense.
Those who could endure here often demonstrated a greater ability to resist adversity; the more pressure they faced, the more power they could unleash.
Many disciples from prominent families, despite having astonishing talent and high cultivation, had never been tempered by hardship or wavered on the brink of life and death. Thus, they were easily unable to withstand the pressure and were eliminated.
Meanwhile, those disciples who often walked the line between life and death frequently achieved good results.
This was why Yun Aoxue and Xia Qixi had lasted longer than Zhou Qingwei and Murong Yunxiao earlier.
It wasn’t that their talent was greater than the other two’s. Rather, Yun Aoxue and Xia Qixi had, after all, experienced much more. Compared to those two young ladies from powerful families, their ability to survive in the face of adversity was simply far superior.
’But... isn’t the pressure from this Array a little too weak? It’s almost been two hours, and I barely feel anything.’
Ye Xuan rubbed his nose, looking rather relaxed.
Fortunately, he was shrouded in a layer of white light, so the people outside the Array couldn’t see his actions at all. Otherwise, they would have been utterly astonished.
His leisurely demeanor didn’t look like he was taking an assessment in the slightest; it was more like he was on vacation.
As the Array continued to intensify.
As disciples were expelled one after another, the relaxed expression on Ye Xuan’s face finally faded a little.
’Hmm, two hours. I’m finally starting to feel something.’
Ye Xuan could finally feel the Array’s pressure beginning to have some effect on his body.
But the effect wasn’t significant.
At this moment, the outside world was already in an uproar.
Because in this batch, a shocking ten people had lasted for two hours.
This number, it had to be said, was absolutely heaven-defying.
But at the two-hour mark, the pressure was extraordinarily immense. Out of these ten, people were continuously being expelled.
But from beginning to end, Ye Xuan remained as unmoving as a mountain.
"That Xuan Ye still hasn’t come out. It seems anyone who could be hunted by a Supreme Elder of the Profound Mystery Sect is no ordinary person."
"And that one next to him, his name is Hou Fei, right? Are they trying to push for two and a half hours?"
Gasps of amazement rang out one after another.
Such a fierce competition was an incredible thrill for the crowd.
Even the proctor, Qingfeng, had a sharp glint flash across his eyes.
Time flowed on. Finally, two and a half hours had passed.
A collective gasp erupted from the onlookers. Even the senior students were all dumbfounded.
Two and a half hours! That was the standard for an inner court student!
Gale Light Academy was divided into an inner court and an outer court.
The outer court was for ordinary students, while the inner court was reserved for the academy’s absolute elite. For many senior students, joining the inner court was a matter of great honor.
In the history of Gale Light Academy, anyone who could normally last two and a half hours in the first round of assessment could basically join the inner court, as long as they had no other deficiencies in talent.
"Two and a half hours... those who reach this point have extremely firm wills. They usually have a good chance of breaking through to the Martial King Realm."
Qingfeng’s heart stirred slightly. He had developed a sliver of interest in Ye Xuan and Hou Fei.
He had saved Ye Xuan before merely to protect Gale Light Academy’s reputation, but now, he was genuinely curious about him.
’I just wonder how much longer these two can last, and who will quit first.’
Everyone was incredibly curious. By now, the scores of both Ye Xuan and Hou Fei had already surpassed the previous top performer, Xiao Ping. Whoever lasted the longest would set a new record.
Another quarter of an hour passed beyond the two-and-a-half-hour mark.
Hou Fei could finally hold on no longer and was blasted out of the Array.
’Barring any surprises, my score should be the highest this time.’
He was a dark-skinned, rather lean youth, his eyes gleaming with a sharp light.
He hadn’t been particularly eye-catching during the earlier registration, but after the first round of the assessment, he had clearly become a figure of renown.
But to his shock, after being forced out, he saw that someone was still inside the Array.
"It’s that Xuan Ye! How is that possible?"
Shock was written all over Hou Fei’s face.
He wasn’t the only one who was shocked; so were all the other Martial Artists present.
"That Xuan Ye actually lasted until the end."
"It’s been long past two and a half hours. Is this guy trying to break the three-hour mark?"
The crowd was astonished, especially the senior students, who were utterly stupefied.
In the academy’s history over the last century, the highest record was close to three hours. Reaching three hours would be an all-time high.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone present, the time marked on the Array finally reached three hours.
"He broke it! He really broke the three-hour record!"
"My heavens, what’s this Xuan Ye’s background? This is completely heaven-defying!"
Nearly everyone at the scene was completely and utterly stunned.
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