Their presence was like a magnet, attracting the battlefield’s energy and compelling the other candidates to wisely give them a wide berth.

To any practitioner who had yet to reach Major Achievement, a top-tier Major Achievement master was an insurmountable obstacle.

But Li Wen didn’t go around.

His gaze was like lightning, seeming to pierce through the chaotic battlefield and lock onto the three cyan figures.

"What... what is he doing?" someone on the grand plaza exclaimed.

The three cyan virtual figures, all at top-tier Major Achievement in blade techniques, simultaneously sensed Li Wen’s battle intent and provocation.

Three long blades were instantly unsheathed, weaving into an impenetrable cyan net of blades humming with a brutal, murderous aura. It closed in to shred him from three vicious angles at once.

The power of this single attack was enough to instantly crush someone like Xue Jun, who was well past the halfway mark of top-tier Minor Achievement.

In that critical moment!

HUM! An invisible domain of power instantly unfolded with Li Wen at its center!

Lv. 6 Absolute Focus!

His immense Spiritual Power elevated his thought speed, Insight, and computational abilities to an inconceivable level.

Boosted by a sixty percent increase in comprehension, the trajectory of the lightning-fast blade net, its weak points, the fluctuations of its energy flow... were all instantly and completely analyzed.

At the same time, he felt his vastly improved Body Control Power.

Li Wen advanced instead of retreating!

The seemingly ordinary, standard-issue longblade in his hand seemed to come alive at that moment.

The gleam of his blade no longer sought pure speed, but instead traced an exquisitely profound and subtle arc.

SHINK! SHINK! SHINK!

Three faint ringing sounds, almost drowned out by the blade net, echoed.

Li Wen’s blade tip, with absolute precision, tapped the three most critical nodes of the cyan blade net—a net that appeared perfect to others but was riddled with cracks in his eyes.

It was like popping three giant bubbles. The menacing joint-attack blade net instantly disintegrated and scattered, its power completely routed.

With their attack broken, the cyan virtual figures froze for an instant.

Li Wen’s blade moved! 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Fast!

Faster than ever before!

The blade’s gleam blurred into a single afterimage!

THWACK! THWACK! THWACK!

Three heads flew into the air!

The cyan figures exploded into motes of shattered light.

His points suddenly skyrocketed—[+64! +64! +64! = +192!]

And only... three seconds... had passed!

"HOLY SHIT!!!!!" A deafening roar of shock erupted from the grand plaza!

"An insta-kill?! He insta-killed three top-tier Major Achievement cyan-clothed figures?!"

"How is that possible?! What was with that blade technique?!"

"Top-tier Major Achievement! Li Wen is also at top-tier Major Achievement in blade techniques?!"

"One month... he really... did it? It took Jiang Lingyun two or three months!!"

Deng Yuefei, who had been eliminated long ago, stood frozen in place as if struck by lightning, staring dumbfounded at the figure on the screen calmly sheathing his blade.

His cheeks burned, as if he’d been brutally slapped by an invisible hand. His lips trembled, unable to form words.

Top-tier Major Achievement... In one month, Li Wen had crossed the chasm they’d called absolutely impossible!

Their sarcastic words from before still echoed in their ears, now transformed into the most piercing mockery.

The absurdity and immense shock left their minds completely blank.

On the screen, Li Wen didn’t pause after killing the three. He became a sharp whirlwind, sweeping toward the remaining virtual figures in the area.

Empowered by both top-tier Major Achievement in blade techniques and Lv. 6 Absolute Focus.

Dealing with the high-level Entry, Minor Achievement, and Major Achievement black, white, and red virtual figures, as well as the next tier up—the top-tier Entry and Minor Achievement yellow and green virtual figures—was like a tiger let loose among sheep.

The gleam of his blade was like the Grim Reaper’s scythe, each flash precisely reaping a life.

He avoided high-level targets at top-tier Perfection and above, instead weaving efficiently through the battlefield.

He sought out top-tier Major Achievement masters, groups of top-tier Minor Achievement practitioners, and high-level zone elites as his main prey, maximizing his point-gathering efficiency while ensuring his safety.

For the entire second half of the exam, the gazes of everyone in the grand plaza were practically glued to Li Wen’s performance.

He had transformed into the most precise war machine. Guided by the super-computational ability of Absolute Focus, he always found the optimal hunting path, minimizing any wasted time.

On the scoreboard, his name shot up like a rocket, swiftly surpassing one highly-ranked contestant after another, closing in on the top five, the top three...

Finally, he tore his way into the area at the top of the leaderboard, a zone that had been firmly occupied by Huang Hao and Zhao Feng.

The 90-minute countdown ended. With a flash of light, all participants were ejected from the virtual battlefield.

A massive final scoreboard exploded onto the center of the large screen:

[Sharpened Edge Battlefield Selection Final Rankings]:

1. Grade 12, Class (1) — Huang Hao: 2352 points.

2. Grade 12, Class (21) — Li Wen: 2288 points.

3. Grade 12, Class (3) — Zhao Feng: 1246 points.

...

21. Grade 12, Class (21) — Xue Jun, 652 points.

...

Xue Jun’s rank had fallen out of the top twenty.

Dead silence! The plaza was deathly quiet!

Thousands of pairs of eyes were locked on the towering leaderboard, locked on the name that had shot up to second place like a bolt of lightning, second only to Huang Hao—Li Wen!

Then, an uproar like a tidal wave swept across the entire plaza.

"S... Second place?!"

"Li Wen?! A 7.1 physique, and he’s second on the overall rankings for the Flying Star Class selection?!"

"My god! He really is at top-tier Major Achievement! In one month! Top-tier Major Achievement in blade techniques!"

"Didn’t he get first in academics yesterday?! First in academics, second in skill?!"

"This... this is history in the making! Third Middle School has just produced its Flying Star Class seed with the lowest physique level ever! No... not a seed! He’s in the top two!"

「In the teachers’ viewing area.」

CRACK! The teacup in Wang Hu’s hand was crushed until a fissure appeared. He didn’t even notice the warm tea trickling through his fingers.

His eyes were locked on the shining name and the terrifying score for second place on the leaderboard, the muscles on his face twitching slightly.

A mix of shock and ecstasy. He became even more certain of his inner belief. ’Li Wen is definitely an Awakened!’

’I’m going to strike it rich!’

「At the center of the main platform.」

Principal Huang, who had been sitting as steady as a mountain with an impassive face, suddenly found his profound gaze turning as sharp as a falcon’s!

His brow furrowed almost imperceptibly as he stared at the name "Li Wen" and the glaring number "2288 points," as if trying to burn them into his memory.

A flicker of extreme surprise, like a pebble dropped into a deep pool, rippled across his calm expression for an instant before quickly vanishing.

However, the index finger of his left hand, which rested lightly on the armrest in a seemingly relaxed posture, twitched slightly, betraying his inner turmoil.

The virtual pod door slid open silently.

Li Wen slowly sat up, his expression still as calm and undisturbed as ever.

Neither the surging sense of power from the virtual world nor the overwhelming stares and clamor from the plaza could stir any ripples in his heart.

Reaching top-tier Major Achievement in blade techniques was just one solid step on the path to his goal.

The limits of his future lay far beyond the stars.

He returned to the grand plaza, basking in the countless gazes of amazement, awe, scrutiny, and fervor, and calmly walked toward his designated spot.

The gates to the Flying Star Class had been thrown wide open for him.

And this earth-shattering second-place finish was merely a signal he was sending to the world before ascending to his true peak.