Chapter 95: Top Scholar

In a dim secret chamber.

"Clatter——"

A shirtless man suddenly sat up from a bathtub filled with dark green liquid.

"Puff!"

He opened his mouth and spat out a large mouthful of black blood mixed with bits of flesh, his entire aura instantly withering away.

In the corner of the room, a woman wearing a professional skirt suit and possessing a cold aura looked at him expressionlessly.

"What's the situation?"

The man's voice was hoarse; it was none other than Zuo Daolin.

He let out a long breath, leaning against the edge of the bathtub, lingering terror remaining in his eyes.

"The mission failed."

"I was played by a brat."

Zuo Daolin licked his dry, cracked lips.

"This is the first time… I've ever encountered someone without a Soul."

The woman pushed the gold-rimmed glasses on the bridge of her nose, her tone devoid of any ripples.

"I don't care what reason you have."

"Failure is failure."

The woman stood up, straightened her skirt hem, and walked toward the door.

"This mission was personally planned by Mr. Duan."

"You can explain it to him yourself later."

She walked to the door, stopped, and added without looking back,

"Also, Zuo Daolin."

"Break yourself of that old habit of yours of being arrogant."

"Bang."

The door was shut, leaving only Zuo Daolin inside the room.

He sat silently in the bathtub, his fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white from the force.

"Next time… I will definitely not let you off easily…"

Meanwhile.

Triple Island.

"Hum——!"

A huge silver portal slowly opened in mid-air.

Zhang Donglai took the lead, his entire body exuding a murderous aura as he rushed out from inside.

Behind him were dozens of high-ranking military officials and elite soldiers.

"Split up and act!"

"Find out if there are any surviving students!"

Zhang Donglai immediately gave the order.

The crowd quickly dispersed, starting to search this cluttered area.

Soon, someone reported a discovery.

"General! Here! Over here!"

Zhang Donglai's figure flashed, and he immediately rushed over.

He saw dozens of examinees from various provinces lying horizontally and vertically on the ground.

Their faces were pale one by one, expressions painful, and they all seemed to have fallen into a coma.

An accompanying military doctor immediately stepped forward to check them one by one.

"General, they have merely consumed excessive Mental Energy, and their bodies are somewhat weak."

"Their vital signs are very stable, and there is no major issue."

Zhang Donglai glanced over; Chen Feng and Liu Jie from the Imperial Capital, Guo De from Demon City, and Zhao Chi from Sichuan Capital, the four S-rank examinees, were all here.

The people from the Dawnbreaker Guild… actually didn't take a single one away?

His heart skipped a beat.

Could it be…

Was the opponent's target from the very beginning not these S-rankers, but that student named Gandalf?

Thinking of this, Zhang Donglai's mood became heavy to the extreme.

Great Xia Country had managed to produce another SS-rank with such difficulty!

Was he just taken away like this by the people of the Dawnbreaker Guild?

He couldn't shirk the blame!

Just as his heart was wrenching like a knife and he was filled with extreme regret,

not far away, a figure slowly walked out from the shadows of the valley.

Zhang Donglai couldn't help but be stunned.

That person was draped in a star moon robe, holding the Core of Pyroclasm, with steady steps and a stable aura.

Who else could it be if not Gandalf?

He actually wasn't taken away either?

Zhang Donglai instantly became excited, appearing by Gandalf's side almost in an instant.

He looked the other person up and down, unsuppressible concern in his tone.

"Gandalf! Are you alright?"

"Are you injured anywhere?"

Zhou Huai, controlling Gandalf, quickly realized that the other party was the military's reinforcement.

He calmly shook his head.

Seeing that Gandalf's condition was intact, Zhang Donglai couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

Afterwards, he became even more perplexed.

That Zuo Daolin neither captured Gandalf nor took away those S-rank students.

What on earth did he do?

Or rather, before they came in, what actually happened here?

To untie the doubts in his heart, Zhang Donglai continued to question.

"Gandalf, did you… not encounter an attack from a person wearing a ghost-face mask?"

Gandalf nodded.

"I encountered one."

"I also know that he is a person from the Dawnbreaker Guild."

"Then, I had a fight with him."

"What did you say?"

Zhang Donglai's breathing hitched.

With a face full of disbelief,

"You… you had a fight with him?"

That was the notoriously fierce Zuo Daolin on the wanted list!

Although possessing a student's body, his strength was greatly discounted.

But that was still not something a Level 20 Professional like you could contend with, right?

Gandalf nodded.

"The opponent's strength was very strong, and it took me a lot of effort to deal with him."

"You… you even dealt with him?"

After listening, Zhang Donglai was completely dumbfounded.

But looking at Gandalf's current appearance, it seemed he really didn't suffer a loss?

Could this guy be even stronger than he had anticipated?

How could Zhang Donglai know that Gandalf himself had no Soul, coupled with the Soul-Devouring Nether Flame's restraint against the Soul, it was simply a natural nemesis to Zuo Daolin, the Soul controller.

Plus, Zuo Daolin wanted to capture Gandalf alive, so he was tied hand and foot and never used his full strength.

That was what gave Gandalf an opportunity.

Zhang Donglai quickly snapped back to his senses and asked eagerly,

"Then… where is that masked person now?"

Zhou Huai raised his hand and pointed to the depths of the valley.

"His mask was smashed to pieces by me."

"And the person has also fallen into a coma."

"I suggest you capture him and investigate thoroughly."

What Zhou Huai spoke of was naturally that unconscious Lu Qi.

Of course he knew clearly that Lu Qi couldn't possibly be Zuo Daolin himself, at best considered a pathetic Puppet.

However, how could he let go of a matter that could pit against the Zhou Family and Liu Yuru?

Zhang Donglai resolutely gave an order to the soldiers behind him,

"Go! Bring the person back!"

Several soldiers took the order and quickly sprinted toward the depths of the valley.

Soon, they brought back the unconscious Lu Qi and the fragments of the ghost-face mask scattered on the ground one by one.

Watching Lu Qi being supported by the soldiers, Zhang Donglai let out a long breath of relief.

The hanging heart finally dropped back into his stomach.

Today's huge ups and downs were simply more exciting than him personally going to the battlefield.

The other several high-ranking military officials who rushed over upon hearing the news opened their mouths wide after getting the news, their faces full of disbelief.

The S-rank Soul controller Zuo Daolin from the Dawnbreaker Guild actually failed to take away even a single examinee.

Instead, his own mask was smashed?

All of this was done by this young mage in front of them?

This fellow simply created a miracle!

The gazes of several high-ranking military officials looking at Gandalf instantly became extremely fervent and gratified.

That one-eyed Old General even stepped forward and heavily patted Gandalf's shoulder.

"You must be Gandalf, right?"

"Not bad! Not bad!"

"My Great Xia Country has successors indeed!"

Afterwards, those unconscious examinees were successively awakened and left first through the portal.

Zhou Huai, manipulating Gandalf, looked at all this and suddenly spoke,

"Um… is the National Examination still continuing?"

As soon as these words came out, it directly dumbfounded Zhang Donglai and several high-ranking military officials.

Such a big thing happened, and this fellow was still considering the issue of the National Examination?

Seeing that they weren't speaking, Zhou Huai added another sentence,

"I'm still waiting to win the top scholar."

"Could it be… this year's National Examination is just canceled like this?"

If it were like this, then he would lose out way too much.

Working so hard to do all these things, wasn't it just for the National Examination top scholar, and to complete the System's challenge mission?

Hearing this, Zhang Donglai was stunned at first, and then burst into a hearty laughter,

"Hahahaha!"

"You brat are still thinking about the top scholar!"

He waved his hand grandly and said heroically,

"Rest assured!"

"I can tell you right now!"

"Your Dongning Province is the champion of this National Examination!"

"And you, Gandalf, are this year's National Examination top scholar!"

The one-eyed Old General and several other high-ranking officials also nodded successively, their faces carrying appreciative smiles,

"That's right! With your performance this time, this top scholar title is well-deserved!"

"We unanimously agree!"

"Tomorrow, we will issue an announcement nationwide!"

Zhou Huai then set his mind at ease.

It looked like his challenge mission was considered secure.