After Li Bao'er finished speaking, the other new students in her squad all looked surprised.
"Bao'er, you said... you can't beat Fang Xin?" Bai Yulin turned to look at Li Bao'er.
Li Bao'er nodded.
"Are you sure?"
Li Bao'er crunched on her potato chips, her voice still soft and sweet, "Absolutely sure!"
"Holy moly, so that means Xin Ge is also a Level 3 fighter?" Shi Tailang exclaimed, "There are two Level 3 fighters among us?"
"Yes!"
"Xin Ge has SSS-grade Strength Talent, so thinking about it, it's not that surprising!" Shi Tailang mused.
"But that's not right. Didn't they say that for the previous beheading operation, they picked the top-performing student from each squad? If Bao'er can't beat Xin Ge, why did our squad send Bao'er instead of Xin Ge?" Zhang Yaozu asked, puzzled.
Li Bao'er looked up, her big eyes blinking, looking adorably clueless.
Bai Yulin asked, "Is this information accurate?"
"I heard it!"
Bai Yulin rolled his eyes, "Heard information isn't reliable! It's possible both Bao'er and Xin Ge from our squad went."
"Then why didn't Xin Ge say anything when we asked him in the group chat about the beheading operation last time?"
Li Bao'er rested her chin on the table, her small mouth moving as she ate potato chips, "Because he was busy cutting people down, he didn't have time to bother with you guys!"
Zhang Yaozu suddenly understood, "So that's it! Do you think Xin Ge could be the Red Underpants War God?"
Shi Tailang immediately retorted, "Coal Ball, have you lost your mind? Ku Cha'r Ge has already been confirmed to be Zhang Qiang, hasn't he? Our Xin Ge looks like the type of person who's full of integrity; how could he have such a flamboyant outfit!"
"Fatty, you're the Coal Ball! Anyway, Xin Ge should get a good score in this afternoon's placement test too!"
"Not necessarily. The Ninth Division's placement test is very difficult, but no matter what, he's definitely stronger than me!" Shi Tailang said.
Over a dozen large trucks filled with various equipment were parked on the road.
Fang Xin stood rooted to the spot, staring blankly.
He looked at Bai Yulin, who was slurping noodles next to him.
"Is this what you meant by 'moving a few things'?"
Zhuge Heng slurped some noodles, his elbow resting on Fang Xin's shoulder, "What's wrong? Not enough?"
Fang Xin's face darkened, "I have an entrance placement test this afternoon, big brother!"
Zhuge Heng gestured with his chin, "All the equipment on these trucks is for training in the various halls. I've spoken to the teacher in charge here. If you move all this equipment as instructed, I'll give you an administrator's identity. Others have to pay and beg the person in charge to train outside of scheduled hours, but you won't have to if you're an administrator. How about it?"
Fang Xin was stunned, then a smile spread across his face, "Thank you, big brother!"
"Go, Pikachu!" Zhuge Heng pushed Fang Xin, then slurped his noodles and vanished.
Fang Xin wondered, "What's a Pikachu?"
He opened the truck door and started moving the equipment down according to the person in charge's instructions.
Fortunately, he had Strength Talent, so these things weren't tiring for Fang Xin.
He was busy until almost 2:30 PM.
Shi Tailang and the others sent messages asking where Fang Xin was, as they were gathering to prepare for the test.
Fang Xin had just finished moving all the equipment from over a dozen trucks when a few more arrived.
Xiao Lu sent a message in the group chat, "Fang Xin, Mr. Zhuge told the examiner that it's fine if you come a little late!"
Fang Xin replied with a wry 'understood'.
By the time everything was finished, it was past 3 PM. The person in charge gave Fang Xin an ID card, with 'Fang Xin' written on the front and 'Administrator' on the back.
After thanking him, Fang Xin rushed to the test location.
By the time Fang Xin arrived, the test had already begun.
The test grounds consisted of nine huge arenas.
A massive screen also floated in the sky.
It displayed the scores of the new students for this placement test.
The scores were comprehensively evaluated based on combat power, time taken to clear the stages, or the duration they managed to hold on.
To 'clear' a stage, one first had to face a puppet with peak Level 1 combat power, then two, then three. After clearing Level 1, it was on to Level 2, fighting from one puppet to three, and finally, Level 3 peak puppets, also from one to three.
If one couldn't win, then it was about who could delay the longest. The longer one delayed, the higher the score would be, though each level had a cap: Level 1 could end after ten minutes, Level 2 after twenty minutes, and Level 3 after thirty minutes.
After this placement test, the first place would receive three hundred points, second place two hundred points, and third place one hundred points.
When Fang Xin arrived at the location, he glanced at the large screen above.
So far in the test, the top overall score belonged to someone named Cheng Yue, who cleared it in seventeen minutes and fifty-eight seconds.
The top twenty on the big screen were basically monopolized by the Ninth Division, and as more new students from the Ninth Division entered the arena, they gradually expanded into the top thirty, leaving students from other divisions far behind.
In the distant stands, a row of leaders was seated, including the particularly striking Bai Yulin. Compared to the other leaders, who sat upright, Bai Yulin looked a bit lazy. Also, most of the other leaders were middle-aged or elderly, making him, a young man, seem out of place.
Zhang Yaozu waved to Fang Xin, "Xin Ge, over here!"
Fang Xin quickly walked over. Zhang Yaozu handed him a deluxe hand-held pancake and a cup of porridge, "Here you go!"
He had just taken a sip of porridge when an exclamation rang out from the crowd.
Someone had refreshed the first-place score.
"Holy crap! It's Ku Cha'r Ge!" Zhang Yaozu stared at the screen.
All the new students were buzzing with discussion.
They hadn't expected Ku Cha'r Ge's outfit to be flashy and his combat power to be just as flashy. He had refreshed the first-place score, completing it in seventeen minutes and forty-two seconds.
Immediately after, Ku Cha'r Ge was seen walking out of the testing grounds, his face bruised and swollen.
Fang Xin noticed that most of those who finished the test seemed to be bruised and swollen. Not far away, there were even a few ambulances and staff with healing talents ready at all times.
Zhang Yaozu, also bruised and swollen, looked at the big screen.
Fang Xin glanced at it; Zhang Yaozu was in twenty-ninth place.
He had just taken a bite of food when an announcement came, "Please, the following students, enter the arena for your test!"
Another large screen displayed the names of several students, and Fang Xin's name was prominently among them.
Fang Xin quickly slurped a mouthful of porridge and took two big bites of his pancake.
Zhang Yaozu took the unfinished pancake from Fang Xin, "Good luck, Xin Ge! I'll go reheat your pancake for you later!"
As Fang Xin walked towards the testing arena, the large screen above flashed again.
The rankings had changed.
Everyone gasped in surprise.
Fang Xin couldn't help but look over.
He saw a name appear in first place.
"Ji Xuance, twelve minutes and six seconds!"
He had directly beaten Ku Cha'r Ge by over five minutes.
But before the exclamations died down, an even louder gasp of surprise erupted.
First place changed again.
"Li Bao'er, seven minutes and one second."
The gasps of surprise swept in all directions like a raging tide.
"Holy cow!"
"Is this really a monster room?"
"Seven minutes and one second? I was crying after just holding on for seven minutes, and she cleared it in seven minutes?"
"Can they separate the Ninth Division's scores from ours? It's too discouraging! We're practically people from two different worlds!"
"Seven minutes and one second, that's rare even in Sky Shield Academy's history!"
"She's definitely first place now! Three hundred points secured!"
In the stands, an old man sitting in the very center intertwined his fingers and leaned back slowly, "This Li Bao'er is indeed extraordinary. Seven minutes and one second, that could rank in the top five in Sky Shield Academy's history!"
"Dean, this year's students are all very outstanding!" an excited middle-aged man next to him said.
The old man looked into the distance, where a pretty, somewhat naive girl walked out of the arena, two broadswords tucked under her arm.
"Is that Li Bao'er?"
"Yes!"
The old man's face was full of satisfaction, "The younger generation is truly formidable! This little girl seems to be around the same age as my granddaughter, but with this talent and combat power, my granddaughter can't compare at all!"
An old man wearing glasses immediately said, "Dean, your granddaughter is also excellent!"
The old man waved his hand, "Don't flatter me, be realistic! This girl is in a league of her own for first place. This should undoubtedly be the top student in this year's Sky Shield Academy entrance exam, right?"
"Definitely! Seven minutes and one second! It would be incredibly difficult for anyone to surpass her!" several people next to him chimed in.
Zhuge Heng intertwined his fingers behind his head, leaning back slowly and rocking his chair.
He watched Fang Xin walk towards the arena, a smile playing on his lips.