News of Wang Zhan participating in the Sophomore-year Ranking Battle soon surfaced on the school forums. There was no way around it; the rankings had been publicized, and Wang Zhan was at the very bottom of the sophomore leaderboard.
Not just the freshmen, but also the second- and third-year students were very interested in Wang Zhan; after all, he had made a splash at the very start of the year. Some even compared Wang Zhan to the most outstanding talent at the Martial Arts Academy in recent years, drawing parallels between him and King Xing, who was now a Martial King.
These statements naturally incited discussions, with both criticism and praise, making the forums extremely lively.
However, no one could deny that Wang Zhan indeed possessed strength comparable to the top contenders in the sophomore-year ranking competition. There was even speculation that Wang Zhan could potentially secure the number one spot in the sophomore rankings.
In his dormitory, Wang Zhan transferred 3,000,000 to his mother, Yang Cui. He then informed his mother about the source of the money and advised her not to overwork herself.
After dealing with these trivial matters, Wang Zhan browsed the council forum and began to contemplate the ranking competition starting the next day.
The rules of the ranking competition were very simple: challenges were free. Both winnings and losses were tied to academic credits, and participants could only challenge someone two ranks higher each time.
Wang Zhan's rank was 987th on the Sophomore-year Ranking List, dead last, at the tenth level.
Considering his abilities, his ranking should not have been this low. However, there had been precedents of students participating from lower levels in the ranking battles before; any cross-level participant had to start from the last place and work their way up.
This was done, firstly, to allow cross-level students to gradually face stronger opponents, with an increase of two ranks each time, ensuring a progressive process.
Secondly, it allowed higher-level students to witness the abilities of cross-level participants, demonstrating the school's fairness.
In addition, the rules regarding academic credits in the ranking battle were not complicated. Academic credits were calculated based on the highest level involved in the challenge, with each level worth 100 academic credits.
This meant that if Wang Zhan, ranked at the tenth level, challenged a student at the eighth level, the calculation would be based on the eighth level. Both the winner and loser would receive 300 credits.
The ranking battle essentially aimed to encourage students to fight. It also allowed these martial artists to vent their pent-up frustrations.
Therefore, unless the challenged student had just finished a battle, they could not refuse a challenger's request. After all, only lower-ranking students could challenge higher-ranking ones. It was just a school competition—how could avoiding battle be permissible?
In that case, if I start challenging from rank 100 and challenge each one, wouldn't that mean I'd earn 1,000 academic credits for every win? Damn!
Wang Zhan was shocked. He seemed to have discovered a loophole in the rules!
Sophomore students generally ranged from level 2 to level 3 Martial Artists. However, Wang Zhan, with his attributes exceeding 500, had already surpassed the limit of a level 3 Martial Artist.
In terms of combat ability, Wang Zhan greatly surpassed these ordinary students.
This is my chance to make a fortune. Wang Zhan looked forward to the next day's ranking battle with even greater anticipation.
Just as the entire Martial Arts Academy was enveloped in the atmosphere of the ranking battle, a meeting was underway in an office on the top floor of the Martial Arts Academy's main administration building. Vice Principal Liu Zhenfeng was presiding, accompanied by seven or eight high-ranking members of the Academy.
"Sun Jian just brought back some news," Liu Zhenfeng said, his expression stern. "An unusual number of dangerous beasts have been appearing in the periphery of the wilderness recently. Many students have been injured or even killed as a result."
"In the area 100 kilometers outside the walls, the strongest beasts were supposed to be only level 5. However, in the past two months, seven or eight beasts over level 7 have appeared. There have even been soldier-level beasts, equivalent to Warriors."
After speaking, Liu Zhenfeng's gaze swept over the high-ranking Academy members present.
"You all should understand what this means."
"It's the Original Organization, right?" Lv Zhenglong, seated next to Liu Zhenfeng, spoke first.
Lv Zhenglong, like Liu Zhenfeng, was a Vice Principal of the Martial Arts Academy. The difference was that Liu Zhenfeng oversaw internal affairs, while Lv Zhenglong was responsible for student affairs outside the school. Sun Jian, who had been stationed at the Military Camp near the wall for years, was Lv Zhenglong's subordinate.
"Sun Jian told me about this. He has even encountered two martial artists suspected to be from the Original Organization."
"He has? Did he find out anything?" Liu Zhenfeng asked.
"No. One of them died at Wang Zhan's hands, and the other was captured by Sun Jian himself. Both were peripheral members, so we couldn't extract any useful information from them," Lv Zhenglong replied, shaking his head slightly.
"Wang Zhan? Which Wang Zhan?" The high-ranking members looked bewildered.
It wasn't that they didn't know there was a genius named Wang Zhan in the school. However, the matter involving the Original Organization was of great importance, and they didn't believe a freshman was qualified to be involved in such an event.
Lv Zhenglong clarified, "The very same Wang Zhan who placed second in the Federation's College Entrance Examination and first in Chu State."
"How is that possible?"
"He could take down someone from the Original Organization?"
"Sun Jian witnessed it himself; how could it be false? The one who died at his hands was a level 5 Martial Artist. Although, for various reasons, that martial artist was effectively only as strong as a level 4 Martial Artist, Wang Zhan managed to eliminate the opponent almost single-handedly."
Lv Zhenglong smiled faintly. "Speaking of which, I owe that kid a huge favor. My daughter was there at the time. If he hadn't intervened, I dread to think what might have happened to her."
The high-ranking members exchanged glances. If someone else had said this, they wouldn't have believed it. But coming from Lv Zhenglong, they had no choice but to accept it.
"The younger generation is truly formidable," Liu Zhenfeng sighed lightly, then continued, "Let's put aside Wang Zhan's matter for now. How should we deal with the Original Organization's activities in Chu State?"
"Report it. The Martial Arts Academy doesn't need to get involved in these matters," Lv Zhenglong said casually. "The Original Organization can't be dismantled overnight. I'll send people to clear out the 100-kilometer area in the periphery of the wilderness. They should know to retreat then."
"Then I'll count on you," Liu Zhenfeng nodded slightly and looked at the others. "Any other opinions?"
Since the two Vice Principals had already made the decision, the others naturally had no objections.
In the morning, when Wang Zhan left his dormitory, he found that the usually spacious campus seemed somewhat crowded. Almost all the students were walking while operating something on their personal terminals.
It wasn't until Wang Zhan met Cheng Shu that he got an answer from the chubby guy.
"They're probably issuing challenges for the ranking competition," Cheng Shu explained. "I'm not entirely sure, but I heard from some older students that many people use the ranking competition as an opportunity to issue direct challenges and resolve standing conflicts."
"Why do they all choose this time? The school doesn't prohibit private fights," Wang Zhan said, confused.
"Upper-year students often go to the wilderness, so they don't necessarily encounter each other on usual days. However, during the ranking competition, everyone rushes back to participate. Any conflicts can then be resolved at the same time."
"I see." Wang Zhan nodded, then looked at Cheng Shu, puzzled. "Why are you looking for me? Don't you need to challenge someone? What's your ranking?"
"Oh, I'm not in a hurry. I'm just cruising along," Cheng Shu replied, seemingly unconcerned. "I'm sticking with Brother Zhan, of course, to see how you deal with those sophomore students."
Wang Zhan smiled without saying anything and began to search for opponents on the ranking list via his personal terminal.
Zhang Zhi, ranked 701st, first in the seventh level. Wang Zhan quickly found his target and sent a message challenging him.
The reply came almost instantly.
"Training Ground No. 3, Platform 5."
On my way.
After sending a brief reply, Wang Zhan headed towards Training Ground No. 3. He soon met Zhang Zhi, the student he had challenged.
"You're Wang Zhan, right? Did I do something to offend you, for you to challenge me right away?" Zhang Zhi wasn't angry, but his tone carried a hint of complaint.
Not a single sophomore student dared to underestimate Wang Zhan, the person who had dealt with Xu Junyuan within a month of the school year starting.
"Uh, aren't you first in the eighth level? I'm in the tenth level, so the highest I can challenge is you," Wang Zhan explained with a smile.
Actually, he could have chosen a weaker opponent from the eighth level. But Wang Zhan's reputation preceded him, and he felt burdened by it. If he truly made his way up by only picking on weaklings, he would inevitably be the subject of gossip. Since all these opponents were roughly comparable in his eyes, Wang Zhan decided to challenge the toughest available.
The fight was over in less than a minute.
Zhang Zhi lay on the ground, Wang Zhan's fist stopped just short of his face.
"Good fight," Wang Zhan said, helping Zhang Zhi to his feet.
The referee nearby had already declared the winner. Wang Zhan received a message: Academic Credits +300.
Still owe 3,700 academic credits. Wang Zhan secretly clenched his fists.
He had now taken Zhang Zhi's place at rank 701, and Zhang Zhi was moved down one spot.
Next target, 501st rank, sixth level. Leaving the platform, Wang Zhan quickly went to find his next opponent.
Meanwhile, at another platform in Training Ground No. 3, a pair of eyes remained fixed on Wang Zhan.
"Xu Junyuan, your turn!" the referee reminded.
Xu Junyuan snapped back to reality, his gaze sweeping over the young man on the platform.
"Song Dongming, long time no see," Xu Junyuan greeted as he stepped onto the platform. "I heard you just got back from the wilderness? How was the trip?"
"Not bad," Song Dongming replied with a smile. "You seem to have improved a lot too, already at the sixth rank. Impressive."
"Not as good as you," Xu Junyuan said, shaking his head.
Song Dongming waved his hand dismissively, then asked, "That person you were watching just now, that was Wang Zhan, right? Did he really defeat you head-on?"
"Yes. At first, I even wanted to recruit him. Who would have thought he'd break through to a level 2 Martial Artist within a month? He really taught me a lesson," Xu Junyuan sighed. "Compared to him, I still have a long way to go."
"If you put it that way, he truly seems formidable," Song Dongming smiled. "But it doesn't matter. Sooner or later, I'll have to face him. I'll personally test his strength then."
"Before that, let me see how much progress you've made," Song Dongming said, looking at Xu Junyuan.
The smile on Xu Junyuan's face gradually faded.
"I'm looking forward to it as well," Xu Junyuan said. "After all, I also want to know just how big the gap is between me and the top rank."
"Heh, I won't disappoint you."