With Xiyue Frost gone, Feng Hao felt much more relaxed. He asked, "How's the search for teammates for the assessment going?"
"Do you even need to ask?" Xi Yueyao pouted proudly. "So many people want to team up with me, I'm having a hard time choosing."
"Are they all students from Class One?" Feng Hao asked with a frown.
Xi Yueyao nodded and replied, "Of course. We're all elites in Class One. Why would we need to team up with other classes?"
Feng Hao relaxed. It made sense; the quality of students in Class One was indeed high. Especially after this period of growth, most of them had already become First-tier Mages. Adding their already decent aptitudes on top of that, their combat strength was by no means weak.
It was just that he had rarely attended Class One's lectures recently, so he wasn't too familiar with the specifics.
"So who did you pick?" Feng Hao continued to ask.
Xi Yueyao grinned, her eyes crinkling. "Li Mufeng and Tu Xiaoshan. Oh, and that damn fatty Zhang Meng."
"That little fatty dares to team up with us?" Feng Hao teased in surprise.
"I forced him to join," Xi Yueyao said with a cunning smile.
"..." Feng Hao shook his head helplessly. He knew this girl was a handful.
Still, that kid Zhang Meng was worth recruiting. He did have the best Demon Pattern results in the entire class, after all. While others were still studying Basic Secret Techniques, that guy had already learned a ton of Secret Techniques from the Secret Technique Pavilion. His strength was genuinely impressive.
As for Li Mufeng and Tu Xiaoshan, Feng Hao had some impression of them from before.
Li Mufeng was a shy, handsome young man who reportedly came from a family of master archers, giving him unique insights into ranged combat. It was a shame he hadn't chosen a bow, instead opting for the rather novel Magic Energy Firearms. Overall, he was a decent source of ranged firepower.
Tu Xiaoshan was more unique. He was short but incredibly sturdy. He came from an ordinary family and possessed aptitudes for Physique, Tenacity, and Sinew—the very definition of a Defensive Mage in their class!
With that, the combat squad was more or less formed. With Miao Feng's second-year squad coordinating with them, the trial assessment shouldn't be too difficult. Not to mention, they also had Xiyue Frost watching their backs.
"By the way, Class President, do you have any hunting targets in mind for this assessment?" Feng Hao asked, slightly curious.
"I don't know," Xi Yueyao said, her small face troubled. "My sister said it would be better for me to specialize in Force, but I prefer Dark Force."
"Oh." Feng Hao nodded thoughtfully.
This girl was just like her older sister, possessing aptitudes in the four systems of Strength, Physique, Sinew, and Agility. The difference was that Xiyue Frost was stronger in Strength and Physique, while she was stronger in Strength and Agility.
Furthermore, Xi Yueyao had a mutated strength gene. This so-called mutation occurred when a sub-attribute overshadowed the main one, making her strength aptitude quite peculiar: Strength (Force +6, Dark Force +10).
At first glance, it might seem incredibly powerful, as she could develop both Force and Dark Force simultaneously. However, a closer look revealed a problem!
Because of the special nature of Dark Force, high-level Secret Techniques could only be used after evolving the meridian root system. Yet, Xi Yueyao could only allocate her primary points to Strength.
In other words, if she specialized in Dark Force, she would be at an absolute disadvantage when it came to Secret Techniques. But if she specialized in Force, her growth potential wasn't particularly outstanding.
Throughout history, quite a few people had appeared with her condition. They all agonized endlessly over which specialization to choose.
"Actually, you could walk both paths at the same time." Feng Hao's brows furrowed in thought. Analyzing it from a gaming perspective, a hybrid damage build was also a good choice, with immense late-game potential.
Xi Yueyao froze, blinking her eyes as she asked, "How can I walk both?"
Feng Hao chuckled and explained, "It's simple. In the early game, you can allocate extra Gene Yuan to your meridian root system. Once your Dark Force reaches the Qi Condensation or Form Condensation stage, you can shift the allocation back to your Strength root system. For this Dual Cultivation path, I personally think you don't need three hundred base points for Form Condensation. One hundred for Qi Condensation should be enough."
Xi Yueyao's eyes sparkled, as if the gates to a new world had been opened. The more she thought about it, the more feasible it seemed. She pressed him urgently, "You damn Feng Hao, give me the details!"
"It's actually very simple. In the early stages, you can get by with Force-type Secret Techniques. After your Dark Force reaches Qi Condensation, you can try to integrate Dark Force Demon Patterns into your Secret Techniques. In the end, your Force and Dark Force might not be that strong individually, but together, it's a different story," Feng Hao said with a smile.
"That does sound pretty powerful!" Xi Yueyao's face was flushed. "But Dual Core Secret Techniques sound really difficult."
"If you're afraid of difficulty, then don't choose this path," Feng Hao said with a teasing smirk. 'This girl is lazy and hates to study. I have to provoke her a little.' "Or do you want to live in your sister's shadow for the rest of your life?"
Xi Yueyao immediately fell silent. She had never thought about this before. Feng Hao's words had stirred up all the subconscious stubbornness and resentment within her.
'Who would want to live their whole life overshadowed by someone else's light?'
'Who wouldn't want to shine with a light all their own?!'
"This is it! I'm so smart, I can definitely do it!" Xi Yueyao gritted her teeth, making her decision. Her delicate little face shone with an unusual light. "If I have any problems in the future, you have to take responsibility."
"Ahem..." Feng Hao coughed, then said wickedly, "Don't worry, girl. I'll take full responsibility for you."
"Mhm!" Xi Yueyao nodded vigorously, her eyes shining with an unprecedented excitement and anticipation.
It was the first time Feng Hao had ever seen such a look in her eyes, and he felt a surprising sense of gratification. "That's the spirit. You need to be clear about your goals and have confidence in yourself."
"Hmph! Of course the class president has confidence!" Xi Yueyao lifted her head, looking smug.
Feng Hao was instantly speechless. 'Great. She was serious for all of two seconds, and now she's back to her usual self.'
***
In the blink of an eye, the day of the trial assessment arrived.
As Rongcheng Academy's most important annual assessment, all students, teachers, and even the entire senior leadership of the academy had gathered at the mountain behind the school.
The mountain behind the academy was located in the South Suburb of Rongcheng. It served as the daily training ground for second and third-year students and was also the main entrance to the Breeze Forest. Every year, the trial assessment was held in the outskirts of the forest.
Several thousand students stood outside the entrance to the back mountain, arranged by grade level and class. Dean Zhao Hao, along with the other senior leaders and Elders, stood on the expedition platform, looking down with satisfaction at the Mage students below.
After a moment of silence, Zhao Hao finally began to speak. "For thousands of years, our Rongcheng Academy has cultivated countless exceptional individuals for the city of Rongcheng. Today marks our annual trial assessment, a day to test the fruits of your training from the past six months."
"This is also a chance to select the candidates for the Inter-Academy Tournament in six months' time. Therefore, I ask all of you to give it your all and display your abilities without reservation."
"The Elder Council and I will be closely watching each and every one of you. Your teachers will also be monitoring your progress. Should you face any overwhelming danger, they will intervene to help you at a moment's notice!" Zhao Hao said, his eyes crinkling with a smile as his gaze occasionally swept over a few of the more outstanding students, his face filled with pride.
"Enough idle talk. The homeroom teachers will now explain the assessment rules. Prepare to enter the mountain."
As soon as he finished speaking, the entire area burst into a commotion.
The second and third-years naturally didn't need the rules explained. After a few simple words of advice from their teachers, they headed into the mountain first. The only ones who really needed to learn the assessment rules were this batch of first-year students.
Yue Linglong stood before the group, her beautiful face exceptionally striking in the sunlight. She smiled gently. "There's no need to be nervous, students. I will now briefly explain the assessment rules."
"The hunting trial is just the beginning. Its main purpose is to allow you to acquire the materials you need for your equipment. The real combat assessment begins only after your equipment is crafted." Yue Linglong paused, then continued, "Equipment has a huge impact on your strength, so the hunting trial is actually very important. You could say it's the foundation for the entire assessment."
"The better your foundation, the greater your advantage will be during the assessment! Class One is this year's priority class. I hope none of you will disappoint me."
Yue Linglong mused, "The assessment area for first-years is just the back mountain, so the materials you can obtain are limited. If possible… I hope you all will venture a little deeper into the Breeze Forest, especially the higher-level students among you."
"Teacher, won't that be too dangerous?" someone immediately asked.
"Danger is everywhere!" Yue Linglong pursed her lips. "I'm saying that students who are capable enough can go a little deeper. If you don't have confidence in yourselves, you can just stick to the rules and stay on the back mountain."
"Also, I have some good news for everyone. Student Feng Hao has specially sponsored a large number of Blood Recovery Pills and Qi Recovery Pills, all of them produced by the Miao Medicine Tower." As she spoke, her beautiful eyes landed on Feng Hao, who looked thoroughly displeased. "Student Feng Hao, why don't you share your kind gesture with everyone!"
Feng Hao grimaced, completely speechless. 'Kind gesture my ass,' he thought. 'If Yue Linglong hadn't threatened to bar me from participating, I'd never have done something so thankless.'
'Fortunately, they were just some first and second-tier pills. They were nothing to him!'
RATTLE RATTLE...
Feng Hao walked forward and casually took out the prepared pills. They were all high-grade pills, and their rich medicinal fragrance instantly drew everyone's attention.
The students of Class One were fine; they were all rubbing their hands together, buzzing with excitement!
But it was a different story for the other classes. They were all green with envy. The homeroom teacher of the neighboring Class Two, Hu Mingshan, was especially livid, glaring at Yue Linglong through gritted teeth. "Teacher Yue, don't you think you've gone a bit too far?"
"Alas~ a student's kind gesture is a hard thing to refuse," Yue Linglong sighed pretentiously.
"Hmph!" Hu Mingshan's face was ashen as he turned away.
'Fortunately, because of Beixing Ran, Zhou Chen will be fighting on behalf of Class Two,' he thought. 'With Zhou Chen's help, no matter what tricks Class One pulls, it'll all be for nothing.'