On the deck of the Floating Battleship.

Watching the scene of all the beasts falling silent in the Water Mirror, the eyes of the three Wizards glinted.

"I didn’t expect Pei Ze to be hiding his strength so well."

Gu Yi had an inscrutable expression as he looked at Pei Ze in another Water Mirror.

"From the looks of it, he’s probably not far from advancing to a Third-level Wizard Apprentice."

Yu Sen sneered. "People from the Bloodline Clans really are idiots. To marginalize, and even expel, a Wizard Apprentice of his caliber just because he’s ’bloodless’... How foolish!"

Gu Yi chuckled. "After all, the Bloodline Clans value bloodlines above all else. Their Meditation Techniques, modified Magic, and all their resources are prepared for those who have awakened their bloodlines. The ’bloodless’ lack support, so their cultivation progresses slowly, and naturally, they aren’t valued."

Gu Yi’s words seemed to be making excuses for the Bloodline Clans, but his tone held a hint of mockery. It was clear he also looked down on the so-called Bloodline Clans.

Ai Yuan, who stood at the very front, seemed oblivious to their conversation, his gaze fixed on the Water Mirror in the air.

On the mirror’s surface, Gu Lin, Yin Guang, and Pei Shaoqi were all rushing along.

Judging by their direction, they would most likely run into Pei Ze in a few days.

"This year’s trial is much more lively than usual," Ai Yuan said, his gaze profound.

Gu Yi smiled. "Isn’t that perfect? The Wizard Apprentices selected from a trial like this will be far more worthy of nurturing."

Yu Sen squinted at the mirror, a glint flashing in his eyes.

This was the kind of fiercely competitive trial he loved to see.

’It’s a pity, though. It would be even better if the apprentices were allowed to kill each other,’ he thought.

’True powerhouses are born only when watered by death!’

As the three fell silent, the deck quickly returned to a quiet state.

From beginning to end, none of the three mentioned the deaths of the three apprentices, as if the incident had never happened.

...

The apprentices on the island noticed the change in the rankings almost immediately.

Everyone was stunned when they saw Pei Ze’s glittering gold name at the top of the list, especially when they saw his score of over six thousand points.

"What did Pei Ze do? How did his score suddenly jump so high?"

Guan Ling stared at the rankings, dumbfounded.

Beside her, Shao Hong and the others exchanged glances, their hearts filled with shock.

On their second day on the island, Shao Hong, Guan Ling, and a few others had a lucky encounter and decided to form a team.

Over the past few days, they had been gathering points while also keeping an eye on the other members of the Star Spirit Society.

Especially Pei Ze.

Throughout these past few days, Pei Ze had been hovering around twentieth place.

Given his strength, this ranking was considered fairly standard.

But after looking away for just a moment, his rank and score had fluctuated so drastically it was truly shocking.

What on earth had happened?

After a few seconds of thought, Shao Hong said hesitantly, "For a score to change by that much, Pei Ze must have taken someone else’s points."

Guan Ling was flabbergasted. "Pei Ze had over two thousand points before, and now he has over six thousand. Doesn’t that mean he took more than four thousand points from someone?"

Only a Second-level Wizard Apprentice would have that many points.

The two of them immediately started searching the rankings, and sure enough, they soon found three Second-level Wizard Apprentices with zero points at the bottom of the list.

Among them was Qi Meng.

Shao Hong and Guan Ling looked at each other and instantly understood.

If they weren’t mistaken, Pei Ze’s sudden surge in points must have come from Qi Meng and his two companions.

They didn’t even need to think about it to guess what had happened.

Most likely, Qi Meng’s group of three had found Pei Ze and tried to steal his Ten Thousand Flowers Fairy, only to be defeated and have all their points taken instead!

But if that was true, just how strong was Pei Ze?

That was three Second-level Wizard Apprentices!

Across the entire first year, probably only Gu Lin, Pei Shaoqi, and Yin Guang were capable of defeating three Second-level Wizard Apprentices.

In other words, Pei Ze’s true strength was already on the same level as those three?

At this thought, Shao Hong felt a little dazed.

He thought he had already estimated Pei Ze’s strength as generously as possible, but he had still underestimated him.

...

"Over six thousand points!"

Wei Ming drew in a sharp breath, his expression one of utter shock.

Cheng Li was also unable to hide his shock, staring blankly at the rankings.

With over six thousand points, he was now leading the pack by a huge margin, leaving everyone else far behind.

’How did Pei Ze do it?’

"It was Qi Meng and his group," Weng Zhang said in a low voice. "I checked the rankings. The scores for Qi Meng, Li Heng, and Lauren have all dropped to zero."

Cheng Li and Wei Ming paused, stunned. As realization dawned, a monstrous wave of shock crashed through them, even greater than before.

The implication was self-evident!

Pei Ze had actually managed to defeat Qi Meng’s group of three working together?

He was actually that powerful?

Pei Shaoqi stopped in his tracks, his gaze flickering.

"...He has some skill. I see I underestimated him."

Pei Shaoqi narrowed his eyes but didn’t pay it too much mind.

He could have easily defeated Qi Meng’s group himself.

Pei Ze’s performance was certainly unexpected, but it still wasn’t enough to warrant his attention.

His target from the very beginning had been Gu Lin. He didn’t give a second thought to anyone else, not even Yin Guang.

Let alone Pei Ze.

"This works out well. When I find Pei Ze, not only will I get the Ten Thousand Flowers Fairy, but I’ll also gain over six thousand points."

"With that, first place in the trial is as good as mine!"

The corners of Pei Shaoqi’s mouth turned up slightly.

The others also realized what this meant, and looks of joy appeared on their faces.

If Pei Shaoqi got the meat, they could at least have some soup. They might even make it into the top fifty.

Cheng Li’s heart settled. ’Pei Ze was unexpectedly strong, but there was no way he could be a match for Pei Shaoqi. The outcome wouldn’t change.’

...

After leaving the camp, Pei Ze headed straight for the mountain range in the center of the island.

The mountainous terrain was complex, making it more suitable for hiding.

He planned to find a place to lay low and advance to a Third-level Wizard Apprentice as quickly as possible within the next two days.

CAW!

He hadn’t gone far when a sharp cry came from behind him.

A Fog Crow swooped in, crashing into Wuyu and dissolving into a wisp of dark mist among its feathers.

Wuyu chirped softly, transmitting a thought to him.

’It’s taken care of? The juice from the Madness-Inducing Flower really is effective.’

Pei Ze smiled faintly, then put the matter out of his mind and continued on his way.

After dealing with a few waves of barbarians along the way, he found a cave on a mountain at dusk.

After using Energy Particles to clean the cave, Pei Ze had a simple meal of dried rations and fed the Ten Thousand Flowers Fairy and Wuyu.

After resting for half an hour, he had the Ten Thousand Flowers Fairy begin producing Ten Thousand Flowers Honey.

The little creature had already grown used to it—or rather, resigned to its fate. This time, it only grumbled a few times before obediently doing as it was told.

The actions of Qi Meng’s group served as a wake-up call for Pei Ze.

Wizard Apprentices had numerous ways of finding people. Even if he hid in the mountains, it wouldn’t be long before others found him.

He wasn’t worried about just three or four apprentices, but if ten or twenty Second-level Wizard Apprentices teamed up, even he would have a headache.

Especially Gu Lin, Pei Shaoqi, and Yin Guang.

Pei Ze never thought that having the Eye of Omniscience made him the best in the world.

The world of Wizards was mysterious and bizarre; there were countless ways to improve a person’s aptitude and strength.

Pei Ze might have a golden finger like the Eye of Omniscience, but weren’t the likes of Gu Lin and Pei Shaoqi basically playing with a cheat code enabled by their family background?

These scions of Wizard Clans with long, storied histories definitely had plenty of trump cards up their sleeves.

If he underestimated them, he could suffer a major loss at any time.

Therefore, he had to increase his strength as quickly as possible.

As long as he successfully advanced to a Third-level Wizard Apprentice, he wouldn’t fear Gu Lin’s group of three, even if they all came at him together.