The Grand Hall was bustling with activity.

The students were all chatting amongst themselves.

Zhao Chi was completely surrounded, with students all expressing their shock and admiration.

"Move!"

A cold voice called out.

The surrounding students turned, saw it was Cao Feng, and voluntarily parted to form a path.

Behind Cao Feng were four others: Zheng He, Kong Xiang, Shi Juan, and Li Ke.

They looked menacing.

Yang Xiong held out an arm to block them. "What do you think you’re doing? This is the academy. You dare cause trouble here?"

Cao Feng snorted. "Fucking hell, I know how to accept a loss. Yang Xiong, you’re not qualified to talk to me. I’m here for Zhao Chi."

Yang Xiong lowered his arm. "Oh? So you *do* know how to accept a loss, Cao Feng? Isn’t that just because you signed an agreement? Do you even dare *not* to accept it?"

"Get the hell out of my way." Cao Feng glared at him, then turned to Zhao Chi. "You’re something else. Fucking first place. Here, take my stuff. Don’t choke on it!"

Cao Feng held out his hand.

In it was a folded piece of paper.

It looked like a piece of scrap paper, but this was the Racial Improvement Book.

Zhao Chi smiled. "Not bad, Cao Feng. Going by your usual style, I expected you to drag this out and try to find a way to break the agreement. You’re doing well today."

Zhao Chi accepted it into his System Space.

Cao Feng snorted. "When have I ever broken a contract? Verbal agreements don’t count. What’s the fucking point of honoring a verbal agreement?"

Zhao Chi laughed. "I guess I really do need a signed contract to make a bet with you. Have you paid the tax on this Improvement Book?"

Cao Feng’s expression darkened.

"I just fucking finished the battle too, when would I have had time to pay the tax? You’ll just have to wait. I’ll go to the Exchange to pay it in a bit."

Yang Xiong added, "Once we become official Lords in a moment, you’ll be able to pay taxes remotely."

Cao Feng cursed, "I fucking know that. Did I ask you to butt in?"

At that moment, another group of people walked over.

"Make way, make way."

"Hurry up, get out of the way!"

"Don’t block the path!"

The few of them turned to look.

"Shit!" Cao Feng cursed under his breath and turned to leave.

His followers all beat a hasty retreat as well.

They left in a great hurry.

But before they could think much of it, a rather handsome student emerged from the crowd.

He was tall and dressed in luxurious clothes.

One look was all it took to tell he came from a wealthy family.

He naturally exuded an air of great confidence.

Everyone knew him.

Yuan Zhao from Class 10.

More than ten people followed behind Yuan Zhao, all of them looking unfriendly.

Yang Xiong whispered, "Be careful. Yuan Zhao is bad news."

Zhao Chi nodded.

Yuan Zhao laughed heartily. "Yang Xiong, I heard that. I’m not here to cause trouble, so don’t be so prejudiced against me."

Yang Xiong just smiled.

But several of the people behind Yuan Zhao glared at Yang Xiong.

Yuan Zhao continued, "Duan Yun, you got 39th this time. That’s quite impressive, much better than in the previous mock battles. It seems you’re the practical combat type."

Duan Yun said, "Thanks for the acknowledgment."

Yuan Zhao nodded and turned to Lu Yi.

He smiled gently. "Lu Yi, your practical combat skills aren’t as good as your theoretical knowledge, are they? But that’s fine. A strong theoretical foundation means great potential. You definitely have a chance to make it into the top 20."

Lu Yi smiled. "I wouldn’t dare hope for that, but you’re right. My practical combat skills really are lacking. I need to improve my judgment in battle."

Yuan Zhao smiled. "We can spar more when we have time. You can come to my territory. I have a dedicated training ground there that can increase training experience."

Lu Yi thanked him, "Mm, I’ll definitely go take a look when I have time later. Thank you."

"Don’t mention it."

Finally, Yuan Zhao looked at Zhao Chi.

"Zhao Chi, I heard you made a bet with Cao Feng? Did he try to go back on his word? I can help you collect from him."

Zhao Chi shook his head. "No need, Cao Feng has already honored the bet. Thanks, though."

Yuan Zhao laughed. "What’s with Cao Feng this time? He’s the poster child for being untrustworthy; I’ve had to teach him a lesson several times. But let’s not talk about him. You’re first this time. Congratulations."

Yuan Zhao extended his hand in a friendly gesture.

Zhao Chi shook it.

Soon, Yuan Zhao let go. "Zhao Chi, how did you manage it at the end? Those Slimes have an insane Recovery Ability. They’re basically unkillable. Toward the end, my Soldiers’ Physical Strength and Morale were both really low."

Zhao Chi spread his hands. "It was a tough fight for me, too. Look at my hair, it’s covered in their slime. I couldn’t kill the Slimes either. In the end, I just had to rely on sheer Will to push through."

Yuan Zhao smiled. "Of course, it all came down to Will. Your own losses weren’t too great, were they? I lost quite a few of my subordinates. It really stung."

Zhao Chi said, "It was okay. The losses were within an acceptable range."

Yuan Zhao nodded.

"That’s good. The upcoming monthly exams don’t really matter. But the year-end assessment will be brutal. I hope we can cooperate well when the time comes."

Zhao Chi said, "I understand. We’ll have to work together then."

"Right. Keep up the good work."

Yuan Zhao extended his hand again.

Zhao Chi shook it again.

Yuan Zhao suddenly smiled. "Oh, Hua Yuyin is coming over. Perfect, you two can chat. I’ll see you around."

"Okay, see you."

Yuan Zhao smiled and added, "Lu Yi, Duan Yun, Yang Xiong, let’s talk when we have time!"

The three of them also said their goodbyes to him.

After Yuan Zhao and his dozen-plus followers left, another female student did indeed approach.

She had a tall figure and was quite attractive.

She wasn’t the soft, delicate type like Lu Yi, but leaned more toward the athletic type.

The kind of person who frequents gyms and yoga studios, and regularly runs and swims to stay fit.

But definitely not overly muscular.

Hua Yuyin walked over alone, and before she even spoke, the surrounding students parted to make a path for her.

Dozens of gazes fell upon her.

But she was long used to it and walked straight up to Zhao Chi.

Hua Yuyin smiled slightly. "Zhao Chi, let’s team up."

Yang Xiong, Lu Yi, and Duan Yun all exclaimed in surprise, "Huh?"

Zhao Chi refused outright. "Not yet. I still need time to develop."

Hua Yuyin nodded. "Of course, I don’t mean right now. For the joint assessments later, and for participating in battles with the military, we’ll need to be in teams. How can one person fight high-difficulty Magical Beasts alone?"

Zhao Chi nodded. "Of course. We’ll definitely need a team for those High Level and top-tier Magical Beasts, but that’s still too far off for us right now."

Hua Yuyin said, "I know, but I’m extending the offer now. In the future, if you want to join a group, you’ll be welcome in ours."

"Yours?"

"That’s right. Me, Zhou Lue, and Lang Hu."

"Zhou Lue? Lang Hu?"

Zhao Chi couldn’t help but glance toward the students from Class 9 and Class 10.

Many people over there were looking in their direction.

Among them was a tall, thin student with narrow eyes; that was Zhou Lue.

Zhou Lue waved at Zhao Chi.

Next to Zhou Lue was a short male student. That was Lang Hu. He looked like the tough, quiet type.

Lang Hu also nodded at Zhao Chi.

Zhao Chi waved back in acknowledgment.

Yang Xiong asked in surprise, "Isn’t Lang Hu from Class 10? He’s not joining Yuan Zhao’s group?"

Hua Yuyin smiled. "Being in the same class doesn’t necessarily mean you get along. Zhao Chi should understand that better than anyone."

Zhao Chi nodded. "That’s true... but like I said, it’s still too early. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it."

Hua Yuyin nodded. "Mm, taking first place in practical combat this time has proven your worth. But this is just the first test. Keep it up for the next monthly exam. Work hard, bye~"

Hua Yuyin walked away with a cool, carefree air, not lingering for a moment.