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Even after Wang Jianming left, the entire class remained deathly still; the classroom was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
The oppressive atmosphere emanating from Wu Liang and Ling Qingxue was overwhelming.
Liu Yang fidgeted nervously, terrified that Wu Liang might devour him in a fit of rage.
After nearly an hour passed, Ling Qingxue, feeling it was about time, left the classroom alone.
Only then did the atmosphere in the class return to normal.
"My god, there's actually such an amazing genius in our Class Ten! Who else but School Beauty Ling could be first this time?!"
"Although Chu Yuansheng is a First Rank peak martial artist, his vitality value is definitely not as high as our School Beauty Ling's magical beast's. First place is a sure thing!"
Zhang Yuan glared angrily at everyone, her fists clenched.
"Only idiots like you believe Ling Qingxue's rank is real. No one could improve that fast. Once she meets Li Lianshan or Chu Yuansheng, who are among the top five in our school, she'll immediately be exposed!"
Liu Yang sneered. "Zhang Yuan, everyone knows your vital and spiritual energy stats are from drugs—drugs that you got by selling your body. How dare you slander School Beauty Ling?"
"You're talking nonsense!" Zhang Yuan trembled with anger, but couldn't say anything else.
Seeing this, the others also began to mock her.
"You're just jealous of our School Beauty Ling's beauty and talent. You think you're worthy of comparing yourself to her!"
"Your front is stuffed, your butt is padded, your rank is from drugs. What else do you have other than this? Who do you think you are anyway?"
"I heard she's top-notch in bed, she had Young Master Sun completely bewitched..."
Zhang Yuan was furious and could only run away, her face flushed.
Not only did she fail to expose Ling Qingxue's fraud, but she also dragged herself into the mess, making a fool of herself.
...
Wang Jianming walked confidently towards the other teachers, hands behind his back, strolling leisurely.
The others, seeing this, were filled with inexplicable questions.
Wang Jianming always deliberately stayed away from them during tests, so why was he putting on such a show this time?
"Old Wang, did you produce a genius in your class?"
The speaker was Zhou Wenpeng, the head teacher of Class One, who had been previously promoted to senior teacher because of Zhao Xin and Chu Yuansheng.
Wang Jianming smiled faintly. "It's not bad. Barely reached the First Rank late-stage. At least I can compete with your class."
Zhou Wenpeng immediately laughed.
"Old Wang, are you getting cocky, or do you think I'm too old for this? My class has Chu Yuansheng and Zhao Xin. Those two consistently rank in the top three of the school. And I have some news for you too, Zhao Xin has also broken through to the First Rank peak."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone looked at him.
Two First Rank peak students in one class—that's practically a landslide victory.
Even if a class could produce a First Rank late-stage martial artist, they would only have a chance to compete for a spot in the top ten of the entire school.
No wonder Zhou Wenpeng was so smug.
Once this class graduated, he would definitely be the 'Top Teacher' at Linjiang Middle School.
Wang Jianming, however, was uncharacteristically silent, simply sitting down, opening his thermos, and taking a sip of tea.
"Gulp gulp, ah~"
"Two First Rank peak students, that's not bad. Old Zhou, you've got some skill. But who will win the 'Top Teacher' title this year is still unknown."
Wang Jianming's composure left the other teachers completely bewildered.
A bottom-ranked class teacher dared to say that?
Was he crazy?!
Liu Qingshan stepped forward, his gaze sweeping over the crowd.
"Let's begin. Open the entrance to the secret place and let all students in."
At the principal's order, the dean of students, Li Hui, immediately stepped onto the platform to preside over the mock exam.
"Attention, all students!"
The surrounding loudspeakers amplified the sound to everyone's ears.
"The 2025 mock exam for Linjiang Middle School begins immediately. All students will enter the secret place in batches according to their class order!"
"Remember, you only have ten days. If you are injured, you can leave early, but you cannot re-enter the secret place!"
"Now, Class One, enter first!"
As the dean of students Li Hui's voice fell, an invisible spatial ripple appeared in the center of the playground.
All students began to enter in an orderly fashion.
On the platform, Liu Qingshan's gaze swept over Ling Qingxue, a smile involuntarily appearing on his face.
He was a Fifth Rank martial artist, possessing powerful spiritual strength and astonishing perception.
Ling Qingxue and Wu Liang's auras couldn't be concealed from him.
Even if Chu Yuansheng hadn't intervened two days ago, he would have still driven the Thunder Mercenary Group away.
To be honest, he was quite curious about Ling Qingxue, and he had even checked her past academic records.
But what he found was even more astonishing—she had three breakthroughs in just one month!
That's right, she really broke through three times in a single month!
Even a fantastic novel wouldn't dare write something like this!
Martial arts cultivation emphasized gradual accumulation and steady progress, advancing step by step towards higher levels.
Ling Qingxue's vital energy was stable, and her spiritual power was terrifyingly profound.
It seemed like she had boosted herself with a high-level cultivation technique.
But Liu Qingshan didn't care about such things. Obtaining a high-level cultivation technique was a personal blessing; after all, luck was also a part of strength.
Zhou Wenpeng and several other teachers quietly approached Liu Qingshan.
"Principal, Old Wang's all high and mighty today. Has his Class Ten produced some incredible genius?"
Liu Qingshan smiled faintly.
"Students are the rising sun of the times. Everyone is a genius. Don't you have one in your class?"
Zhou Wenpeng sighed slightly. Their principal loved to fool them like this, always keeping things under wraps.
Gao Yanhua, the head teacher of Class Two, also looked on with curiosity.
"Principal, it seems you already knew. A genius even you acknowledge—could it be that they've already broken through to the Second Rank?"
"Ask Old Wang. Old Li, keep an eye on the mock exam." Liu Qingshan made an excuse and left.
Wang Jianming, holding his thermos, looked radiant.
"Don't worry, old buddies, we'll see in ten days. I'll gladly accept this year's 'Top Lead Teacher' title."
"Damn it, you're always talking big. Don't slink away later!" Zhou Wenpeng scolded him with a laugh.
"Old Wang, you're teasing us again! If you don't pull it off this time, we'll laugh at you!"
Wang Jianming stroked his chin.
"How about you treat me to a meal, and I'll tell you. There's that fancy restaurant…"
"Get lost! Treating you to the cafeteria is already a favor!"
"Hey, hey, hey, fine, fine, the cafeteria's fine too!"
...
The light shifted, and in the blink of an eye, Ling Qingxue and Wu Liang found themselves in an unfamiliar place, surrounded by small groups of other students.
To ensure fairness, everyone appeared randomly anywhere after entering the secret place.
But some unlucky ones encountered beasts as soon as they entered.
"So this is the secret place? It's not much different from the real world, except the energy in the air is a bit more concentrated," Wu Liang said.
"A secret place is actually a folded space, independent of the main world. Its forming conditions are extremely demanding. Even an Imperial Rank martial artist cannot create a stable secret place."
"All secret places in this world are naturally formed. Only certain factors can increase the probability of a secret place forming, but even that requires a very long time."