"Instructor Lu," Zhou Hong called out with a chuckle.
"Zhou Hong, you're too lewd! You'd actually do something so perverted!" Lu Qianqian glared at Zhou Hong, her face blushing. She had seen the thousand beauties Zhou Hong had summoned earlier and was stunned. She hadn't known who was responsible until she found out it was Zhou Hong.
"Haha, Instructor Lu, I only blinded a few people's eyes. I didn't cause any actual harm. Why are you blaming me?"
"Alright, I'm not blaming you. But don't forget, you are now a prince of our Supreme Empire. Your every word and deed represents the prestige of our Supreme Empire. Do fewer things like this in the future."
"Alright, alright, whatever you say." Zhou Hong couldn't be bothered to argue with Lu Qianqian.
"You've broken through to the late stage of the Heartbeat realm, haven't you?" Lu Qianqian asked. Su Dan Novel Network.
"Of course," Zhou Hong chuckled.
"Congratulations. A month ago, you were only in the early stage of the Heartbeat realm when you took the assessment. Now, in just one month, you've reached the late stage. At this rate, you'll be able to graduate in ten years."
"Haha," Zhou Hong laughed heartily. Thinking about it, it was indeed a rapid breakthrough this month.
"Okay, let's head back to the main camp for class. The freshman competition is in two days," Lu Qianqian told Zhou Hong.
"Okay!" Zhou Hong nodded and immediately returned to Class 30's main camp.
The other students also seemed to have received Lu Qianqian's notification and had already returned to the main camp.
"Zhou Hong, you're amazing." When Zhou Hong returned to the main camp, many male classmates from Class 30 flattered him, giving him thumbs-ups and expressing their utmost admiration.
Some female classmates, however, had faces full of shy blushes.
"Everyone, Zhou Hong indeed performed exceptionally well just now, snatching all the fire lotuses by himself. However, the method he used was a bit lewd. But in the cultivation world, it's a dog-eat-dog world. Killing is common for cultivation resources. Compared to that, Zhou Hong's lewd methods are insignificant. You should all learn from Zhou Hong. When your ability isn't enough, you can achieve your goals through other means. This is also a kind of strength." Lu Qianqian said to all the students in Class 30.
"Clap clap clap!" Everyone applauded.
"Alright, let's continue with class. The freshman competition is in two days. This month, our class's overall strength has improved a lot. I hope Class 30 can rank higher this time."
After that, Lu Qianqian explained some of her cultivation experiences and insights, mainly focusing on the integration stage. Therefore, these insights were of no use to Zhou Hong.
Time passed slowly.
Soon, the third day arrived, the day of the freshman competition.
Early in the morning, Zhou Hong and the others arrived at the training grounds of the Primordial Academy.
The training grounds of the Primordial Academy were enormous, like a sports field ten times larger, with many open-air stands around it capable of holding two hundred thousand people.
When the students of Class 30 arrived, many teachers and students were already present.
"Everyone, find our Class 30's location," Lu Qianqian called out. Each class had fixed stands.
"Instructor Lu, our Class 30's spot is over there." A student quickly found it. A sign was placed on the stand, bearing the words "Year One Class 30."
"Let's head up, and everyone find your seats."
"Instructor Lu, is the freshman competition only for the freshmen of our year?" a female student asked.
"Of course, it is. However, many students from other years will also come to watch the fun."
Around nine o'clock in the morning, all fifty classes of the first year had arrived.
A woman slowly descended from the sky above the training grounds.
This woman's strength was approximately at the Out-of-Body realm.
"Students, I am the chief judge of the freshman competition, and I will be presiding over this year's freshman competition. The freshman competition is divided into two parts. The first part is the class ranking competition. I believe you all know that your class number is your class ranking when you enrolled. The second part is the individual strength ranking battle. We will begin with the first part."
"The rules for the first part of the competition are voluntary challenges. Whichever class wants to challenge a higher-ranked class can apply voluntarily."
After the judge finished speaking, the venue fell silent.
It was clear that the fifty freshman classes present did not believe they had the strength to challenge the class with the preceding number.
"What? Don't you have any confidence? Which class will take the lead and bravely challenge your previous class?"
At this moment, Lu Qianqian stood up and shouted, "Hello, Judge. Our Year One Class 30 wishes to challenge a stronger class."
"Very good. Finally, a class dares to bravely apply. Which class do you, Class 30, want to challenge?"
"Our Class 30 wants to try fighting against Class 29."
"Then, please, Class 29, come to the center of the field!" the judge shouted.
However, all the students of Class 29 started to grumble, expressing their unwillingness to come to the center of the field.
"What's going on? Why are you, Class 29, still dawdling? Class 30 wants to challenge you."
A male student from Class 29 said with a dejected expression, "What challenge? They clearly want to bully us."
"Hahaha!" Hearing the Class 29 student's words, many people in the venue burst into laughter. A higher-ranked class actually felt that Class 30 was bullying them.
The judge also frowned, not understanding.
"What do you mean? In the enrollment assessment, every student in Class 29 ranked higher than those in Class 30. How is it bullying you?" the judge asked, bewildered. She seemed unaware of Class 30's background.
"Hello, Judge. Earlier, in the Thunder Casino, their Class 30 had a gambling match with Year One Class 10. As a result, Year One Class 10 was brutally defeated by them. Now they want to challenge us, Class 29. Isn't this just wanting to bully us? So, we refuse."
"Yes, we refuse."
All the students of Class 29 seemed terrified.
"Has the world turned upside down? Year One Class 30 actually defeated Class 10 in the Thunder Casino?" the chief judge found it hard to believe, as Class 30 and Class 10 were not close in rank.
Lu Qianqian also smiled wryly at this moment, thinking that the gambling match between Class 30 and Class 10 at the Thunder Casino a month ago wasn't widely known. She hadn't expected it to have spread throughout all the classes of the first year. No wonder Class 29 was trembling with fear upon hearing it.
"How could Year One Class 30 possibly win against Class 10 in the Thunder Casino? Can someone tell me why?" the chief judge asked, utterly confused.
At this moment, the instructor of Class 42 quickly said, "Judge, it's because Class 30 has a special genius named Zhou Hong. During the assessment, he lowered his ranking to help a friend, and finally entered Class 30. This Zhou Hong almost snatched all the fire lotuses by himself the day before yesterday."
"What? It's this person." The judge seemed greatly surprised upon hearing the answer from the instructor of Class 42. She also seemed to have heard of Zhou Hong.
Regarding Zhou Hong, he had indeed become quite famous in the Primordial Academy over the past two days.