Chapter 48: Top Ten

On the competition grounds.

Within the area designated for Ziyun High School.

Sweat beaded heavily on Le Mulan's brow.

By now, she had completed the fourth Mana Oscillation. The mana, repeatedly tempered, had transformed into a hazy, white mist, floating and sinking within her dantian, increasingly difficult to control.

"Three more times, just three more and I'll succeed."

…

Song Hailong's breathing grew heavier and heavier.

A vast ocean of mana, like layers upon layers of white clouds, rose from his dantian, gradually coalescing into a swirling vortex.

"The final Mana Oscillation."

"As expected, victory will ultimately be mine…"

*Boom!*

*Boom!*

A sudden series of explosions echoed from afar.

Song Hailong's expression drastically changed.

Someone had actually succeeded before him?

No… that wasn't right… He quickly realized something, astonishment filling his eyes: "Two people? There are actually two people faster than me?"

In the distance, Xiong Bufan clasped his palms together, wisps of white, cloud-like mana surging from his claws, solidifying into a ball. He appeared to be holding a lively cloud in his grasp, though it quickly began to dissipate, proving difficult to sustain.

He ignored this, however, turning his head to the source of the booming sounds.

"Only a step behind me? From White Dragon High School, or Ziyun High School?"

Xiong Bufan gazed at the rising pillar of white qi, as solid as a cloud column, his eyes widening in surprise: "What's with that? It's just a competition, about speed! Why is he refining his protective aura so meticulously?"

"Such a showoff!"

At the competition grounds for Songyang High School.

Zhang Yu spread his palms, streams of white energy gushing forth, soaring straight up towards the sky like rising white smoke, instantly attracting a growing number of gazes.

After haphazardly rushing through the Limitless Cloud Hand technique as fast as possible, and unsurprisingly failing to convert any actual protective qi…he felt as though he had completely mastered the art.

At his will, the qi flowed effortlessly. Successive blasts of mana completed seven oscillations, transforming into surging protective qi erupting from his palms, creating the spectacle before their eyes.

Watching this, Teacher Yan clenched her fist in excitement, then hastily pulled out her phone, snapping photos of Zhang Yu.

"Zhang Yu's talent for mana control is astonishing! It seems the previous mana exams didn't reflect this at all." Teacher Yan mused.

Recalling Zhang Yu's recent improvement in mana, she secretly sighed that it was likely his progress in this area that had greatly enhanced the efficiency of his breathing exercises.

Bai Zhenzhen, observing the scene, displayed a moving expression of gratification, as if feeling old but comforted, "The child has grown up."

A short while later, the scores for the third round of the Mana Competition materialized.

Xiong Bufan of Red Pagoda High School, ranked first.

Zhang Yu of Songyang High School, ranked second.

Song Hailong closely followed, taking third place.

Le Mulan of Ziyun High School was pushed down to fourth place.

As the third round drew to a close, the overall scores for the Mana Competition were finalized.

Numerous students looked at the final rankings, their expressions varied.

First Place, White Dragon High School, Song Hailong, Total Score 290.

Second Place, Ziyun High School, Le Mulan, Total Score 287.

Third Place, Red Pagoda High School, Xiong Bufan, Total Score 285.

The top three renowned schools continued to dominate the top three slots, establishing a significant lead over all other competitors.

However, at this moment, the gaze of most students present was not focused on the top three, but rather on the fourth-place winner.

Fourth Place, Songyang High School, Zhang Yu, Total Score 273.

Although Songyang High School was a key school, its presence within the top ten, amidst the names of the three renowned schools, felt particularly jarring.

It was as if a crack had been forcibly torn through the tightly woven dark clouds.

"Fourth place, what was the prize money again?"

Zhang Yu's lips couldn't help but curl up as he looked at the final ranking, already pondering how much the prize money for fourth place in the Mana Competition was.

He was extremely satisfied with this ranking.

After all, while he was confident he could surpass these opponents in the future, in terms of current true strength, he was indeed temporarily inferior to the academic powerhouses of the three renowned schools.

He still needed more time to develop.

To be able to squeeze into fourth place, he couldn't help but feel it was Ah Zhen's spiritual assistance, combined with Yu Shu's filial piety, and of course, most importantly, his own perseverance.

Qian Shen stared intently at Zhang Yu. He clearly remembered Zhang Yu's monthly exam score was 620, a full 6 points lower than his own.

Yet this 620 score was somehow on par with the top-tier elites, the high-caste, the ultimate monsters of the three renowned schools in the Mana Competition?!

"It's happening again… It was the same at the art exhibition. Zhang Yu always manages to perform beyond what his score should allow."

Clutching his head, his eyes were still filled with disbelief. "It's as if the six-subject, 700-point evaluation system is incapable of perfectly capturing the extent of his evolution."

"This man…" Qian Shen stared intently at Zhang Yu. Suddenly, a surprising thought crossed his mind.

"This man, who cannot be perfectly expressed by a score, may in the future trigger another reform of the high school scoring system, making this evaluation system more comprehensive."

At this moment, He Dayou glanced at Qian Shen, who was muttering to himself while clutching his head, secretly thinking, "What's this idiot rambling about now?"

He turned his head, the surging emotions in his eyes difficult to suppress as he looked at Zhang Yu.

Envy, jealousy… It was impossible not to feel these emotions, especially when everything happening before him was happening to a pauper he looked down upon.

Thinking of this, He Dayou even felt a trace of regret in his heart.

"He's ultimately just a poor wretch."

"It's a good thing… he's just a poor wretch."

…

Inside the Ziyun High School rest area.

Looking at Le Mulan, Lian Tianji, and the others before him, the competition coach suddenly spoke: "What do you think about getting that Zhang Yu to come to our school?"

Clearly, the coach wanted to recruit Zhang Yu after seeing his performance.

Lian Tianji said from the side, "Although Zhang Yu doesn't have our Ziyun High School bloodline, his performance is indeed excellent. I think it would be good to bring him over."

The so-called "no bloodline" was a hierarchy of contempt prevalent within Ziyun High School.

It generally referred to origins from the Ziyun Nursery, Ziyun Kindergarten, Ziyun Elementary School, and Ziyun Junior High School.

From left to right, each additional Ziyun education was considered to be a 'purer bloodline'.

Le Mulan asked, "Where did he go to primary school and junior high school?"

"I actually asked him about that," Lian Tianji said, mentioning Zhang Yu's former elementary and junior high schools.

Le Mulan's face immediately revealed a hint of barely suppressed disgust. Those two schools reeked too much of poverty.

Seeing the change in Le Mulan's expression, Lian Tianji knew it was hopeless, secretly thinking, "Then the next time I see Zhang Yu, it will probably be in the Martial Arts Competition."

Thinking of this, a trace of anticipation arose in his heart.

…

In front of the restroom.

As soon as Zhang Yu came out, a man stopped him. It was Han Xingye, the competition coach of White Dragon High School.

"Zhang Yu, come to White Dragon High School." Han Xingye extended his hand towards Zhang Yu: "It's a waste of your talent to stay in Songyang."

"Although you performed well in this competition, you will only fall further and further behind us in the future."

Han Xingye was speaking honestly.

Although most of Songyang City's best students were almost entirely divided by the three renowned schools, over time…there were always some who were left behind in other key high schools, or even ordinary high schools.

Han Xingye had also seen several high school students who performed exceptionally well in the Mana Competition in their first year… students from other high schools.

But he had never seen any high school students who performed well in the Mana Competition in their second or third year… students from other high schools.

"If you come to White Dragon High School, I will definitely help you apply for a contract with good enough conditions."

Zhang Yu suddenly asked, "If I go to White Dragon High School, will I be able to get into the Top Ten?"

Han Xingye was slightly stunned, seemingly not expecting Zhang Yu to ask such a question, and was immediately stumped.

The real answer was naturally no. Even if Zhang Yu went to White Dragon High School, he would just become an investment project for White Dragon High School.

Forget about the Top Ten. Digging Zhang Yu over was just to prevent him from participating in the remaining competitions in the first year, because these achievements related to college entrance exam scores and university interviews were all gold-plating projects for the wealthy, and the poor shouldn't take up their slots.

As for university, he would definitely be able to get into a good university in the future, but it would definitely not be in the Top Ten.

After all, White Dragon High School's conditions must be better than Songyang High School's, and Zhang Yu could get better development here.

But the Top Ten slots… were never prepared for the poor.

At this moment, Teacher Yan walked over and stood in front of Zhang Yu, looking at Han Xingye warily: "Teacher Han, what are you saying to my student?"

Regardless of whether Zhang Yu was rich or not, as long as he could win awards, he was her teaching achievement.

Han Xingye smiled helplessly. They were both people who brought students to participate in competitions every year, and he and this Teacher Yan could be considered acquaintances.

Being caught poaching the other party's student at this moment, Han Xingye was also a little embarrassed, and immediately said to Zhang Yu: "No matter what, it's better than you continuing to stay at Songyang High School… that, what, right?"

Teacher Yan was furious upon hearing this.

What "that, what?" Just because you didn't say it out loud doesn't mean I can't guess those insulting words you have for Songyang High School!

But thinking of the gap between her school and White Dragon High School, Teacher Yan was really afraid that the other party would continue to say something that she couldn't refute, and had to interrupt: "Okay, if this teacher has anything, you can communicate with me, please don't harass our students."

Watching the departing figures of Teacher Yan and Zhang Yu, Han Xingye shrugged and thought to himself, "If he's really awake, he should choose this side."

"Even if he still can't get into the Top Ten."

…

"Did you see it?"

"Fourth place! Zhang Yu actually took fourth place overall! Fourth place, do you know what that means?"

"Just tell me how much money you plan to invest."

Hearing the sound coming from Bai Zhenzhen's side, Mo Tianyi said helplessly: "Zhenzhen, you don't have to be so excited, I can see it…"

Bai Zhenzhen: "Then why aren't you transferring the money quickly?! Even your boss wasn't this powerful in his first year, right?"

Mo Tianyi: "The boss has also won awards in competitions…"

After some back-and-forth, Mo Tianyi concluded: "Zhang Yu's achievements are indeed very excellent."

"I admit that I gave you less money before."

"I will talk to the boss and the other senior brothers about the situation and try my best to win you more investment."

Bai Zhenzhen already knew this and urged: "Remember to approve the money quickly."

After disconnecting, Mo Tianyi looked at Zhang Yu's ranking in fourth place on the screen, and his chest, which should have already cooled down, seemed to warm up slightly.

"He really did a great job."

"To be able to break through the suppression of so many rich people and reach this ranking."

"Unfortunately, it's too late…"

A trace of helplessness and dimness flashed in Mo Tianyi's heart: "If it had been two years earlier, I would have definitely chosen you."

On the other side, Bai Zhenzhen thought to herself: "Won awards in martial arts competitions? I'll see who you are."