In the Ruined Town, Central Area.
As a sharp dagger slit its throat, blood gushed out, and this first-order lower-tier Shadow Cat collapsed.
Behind it, Tang Qi's graceful figure, holding a dagger, slowly emerged.
She was draped in a layer of purplish-black cat-shaped energy, and a pair of cat ears on her head, though not deliberately controlled, appeared very agile.
Reinforcement-type B-Class Ability, Phantom Cat!
During its activation, it could significantly increase her sprint speed, reaction speed, and attack power.
It was precisely by relying on this B-Class Ability that, despite being merely an Awakener, she was able to kill a first-order ferocious beast.
Of course, she herself was also someone who practiced the Ability Cultivation Method.
Although there was still some gap before she could transform into an Ability User, her basic physical qualities were there, so she wouldn't be too bad.
However, killing a first-order lower-tier ferocious beast was already the limit of her strength.
It was precisely because of this that she only dared to wander in the Central Area and did not dare to go to the core area where first-order middle-tier ferocious beasts were entrenched.
To conserve ability points, Tang Qi exited her Phantom Cat form immediately after killing the ferocious beast.
The cat-shaped energy shroud around her body disappeared, and her cat-like vertical pupils also reverted to their original state.
'12th place, Tang Qi, 567 points (Jiangcheng First High School).'
Opening her smart watch and seeing her ranking, Tang Qi frowned slightly: "My ranking dropped one spot."
She subconsciously looked up, wanting to see who had pushed her ranking down.
However, she didn't expect to see a familiar name in the ninth position.
"Astret of Second High School, 607 points, ninth place?!"
Tang Qi was slightly stunned, and it took her a while to come back to her senses, the tall figure carrying a long spear appearing in her mind.
"Sure enough, it was you who caused that attack yesterday, Jingming..."
It wasn't that she hadn't doubted whether the name on the ranking list was just a coincidence with her cousin's.
But they were both in Second High School, and it was the same name; how could there be such a coincidence in the world?
Coupled with the suspicion that arose yesterday at Thunder Dojo.
It made her even more certain that the Astret on the ranking list was her cousin.
"But how did you manage all this with just an E-Class Ability?"
A hint of curiosity flashed across Tang Qi's pretty face, "It seems my cousin isn't as honest as he appears on the surface..."
..."Holy cow, is A-Ming that fierce?!"
"I should have called him 'Dad' earlier and just clung to his leg!"
In the outer area of the Ruined Town, Liu Jie, who had doubled in size, looked at Astret's ranking on the virtual projection, filled with regret.
Compared to the Martial Arts college entrance exam results, what did calling him 'Dad' even count for?
..."Astret is in the top ten!"
"So fierce!"
"He's the highest ranked person from our Second High School now!"
"..."
Lin Qingyuan's team had been following Astret's ranking ever since they discovered his 46th position.
Now seeing Astret enter the top ten, they were all filled with emotion.
How did this guy do it, exactly?
"Astret is in the top ten, we also need to work hard and strive to enter the top 300!"
Looking at the ranking list, Lin Qingyuan's pretty face was also full of emotion.
Although they didn't know how Astret did it, they were different from Astret.
Being able to enter the top 300 would already be very satisfying... When Astret's ranking hadn't entered the top ten, his position wasn't particularly conspicuous.
But once he entered the top ten, almost everyone in the examination hall noticed him.
Those who knew Astret reacted differently.
However, he was unaware of all this; at this moment, he was rushing towards the core area with all his might.
After his physique was strengthened, Astret's sprint speed was much faster than before.
Coupled with the fact that his position in the Central Area was not too far from the core area.
Thus, in just over thirty minutes, Astret stepped into the range of the core area on the map.
The core area of the Ruined Town was originally the most prosperous city center of the former Weiyuan Town.
Compared to the Central Area, the buildings here were taller, and the dilapidated decorations on their surfaces could vaguely reveal their former exquisite nature.
More importantly, the ferocious beast levels in the core area ranged from first-order lower-tier to first-order middle-tier; there were no unranked ferocious beasts anymore!
Candidates confident enough to enter the core area were at least among the top five in Jiangcheng!
Of course, he was an exception.
During his journey, he didn't specifically look for ferocious beasts, which led to him only killing four or five ferocious beasts in those thirty-plus minutes.
His ranking fell instead of rising, dropping to 10th place.
"As long as I can find a large group of ferocious beasts, my ranking will quickly rise again.
This time, I want to take first place in one go!"
Astret's gaze sharpened, and consistent with his previous strategy, he went wherever the roars of ferocious beasts were densest!
"Roar—"
"Howl—"
In the dilapidated city, the roars of ferocious beasts rose and fell, this was a paradise for ferocious beasts.
Astret listened carefully and finally chose to rush towards the southeast, where the roars of ferocious beasts were the most powerful and densest.
Most candidates in the examination area moved cautiously, fearing that too much noise would attract the attention of ferocious beasts and lead to being surrounded.
However, Astret sprinted through the city like an agile leopard.
The Black Obsidian Spear, weighing 50 kilograms, strapped to his back, did not hinder his movements in the slightest.
Astret sprinted on the dilapidated road, the wind whistling in his ears, and the scenery on both sides rapidly flashed by, vaguely revealing one or two ferocious beasts active among the ruins.
For such scattered ferocious beasts, he didn't even have the desire to attack.
Soon, the source of the dense roars grew closer and closer, and a rusty, broken bus lay across the end of the road.
However, Astret's speed didn't slow down at all; only when he was about to collide with the bus did he use his legs to exert force, leaping five or six meters high.
"Bang!"
Astret's combat boots landed on the roof of the bus, and he looked down, the scene below fully visible.
This was a fitness square, and besides various broken fitness equipment, there were also numerous ferocious beasts inhabiting it.
The large number of ferocious beasts meant that besides the smell of blood, there was also a unique animal odor mixed in the air, causing Astret to frown slightly.
"One, two, three... There are a full ten ferocious beasts here, and they are all Arm Blade Tigers. It seems I've encountered a pack of Arm Blade Tigers."
Ferocious beasts are divided into gregarious and solitary types, and Arm Blade Tigers belong to the gregarious type of ferocious beast.
Ordinary candidates would typically avoid such packs of ferocious beasts.
However, in Astret's clear black and white eyes, there was a burning fighting spirit.
This was exactly what he wanted!
"For Arm Blade Tigers to achieve a gregarious effect, there must be a king whose strength suppresses all others."
Astret looked towards the center of the fitness square; there, lay the bloody corpse of a Unicorn Rhino, half-eaten.
And beside that corpse, was an Arm Blade Tiger King, noticeably larger than the other Arm Blade Tigers!
Its limbs were incredibly thick, and the bone blades on its forelimbs were even larger and sharper.
"A first-order middle-tier Arm Blade Tiger; it seems to be the king of this pack of ferocious beasts."
Astret's lips curved slightly.
Killing all these ferocious beasts would earn him quite a few ability points.