Crude and Brutal — Thunderbolt!

"Dean Xiao, we're already at one hundred and fifty — are we really going to hand over every department's resources if it reaches two hundred?" Earth Element department head Zhou Zhenghua said, visibly uneasy.

When Mo Fan had first made that declaration, everyone had written him off as a lunatic.

But as the count crept closer and closer to that mark, real anxiety had begun to set in.

What if this year's intake truly had only Luo Song and Zhuang Lifeng as Intermediate-Level Mages, with everyone else Basic-Level? The remaining fifty challengers would be dispatched just as easily, wouldn't they?

And that Gloom Wolf Beast's fighting spirit was something else entirely. Even for an Ascension Phase creature, there was no reason it should show not a trace of fatigue at this point.

Going by its injuries, the beast probably couldn't hold out much longer — yet its bearing said it could take on another hundred.

"Brother, just go up already. If we keep letting these idiots take turns, we really will lose everything." A handsome young man said.

"My thoughts exactly. I'd honestly rather not have to bother." The tall, well-built man beside him rose slowly from his seat, a quiet, self-assured calm settled in those dark eyes of his.

"It's been rather entertaining, honestly — some nobody rolling into our Magic City and making a scene. I assumed the students with the most to prove would be the sons of the Four Great Families. Instead, the spotlight got stolen first by a guy from the Imperial Capital, then by this Summoning student… Bai Cangfeng, you were the first among us to master the Star Chart. The glory's yours to take." A young man who carried himself with unmistakable aristocratic bearing spoke up, idly turning a ring over in his fingers — one that looked exceedingly expensive.

"Naturally. And I'd advise the rest of you to take your cultivation a little more seriously. The next time something like this comes up, I'd hate to find you all huddled here in the stands offering commentary while you do nothing — embarrassing the Four Great Families of Magic City." The handsome young man called Bai Cangfeng laughed.

"Hmph. Some people just get lucky and break into Intermediate level early. So what? China has a massive population — prodigies, freaks of talent, extraordinary geniuses beyond counting. Who comes out stronger in the long run? That's anyone's guess." Shen Shanhe said.

"Mind your Star Chart. I'm going down to end that kid — and while I'm at it, I'll make sure all the talented students Pearl Academy has gathered from every corner of the country understand that Magic City belongs to the Bai Clan. Pearl Academy included." Bai Cangfeng laughed again as he walked toward the arena floor.

Bai Cangfeng was in no hurry. There were still twenty or thirty people queued ahead of him.

As long as the count didn't exceed fifty more, the kid's Gloom Wolf Beast would fall to him soon enough.

"Friend, which element are you? We were thinking—"

Bai Cangfeng glanced at the student who appeared to be the group's leader and waved him off. "I'm not planning to join your group. One person is enough to deal with an exhausted Gloom Wolf Beast and a half-baked Intermediate-Level Mage."

He paid them no further attention and walked straight toward the Beast Cage barrier entrance.

"Holy hell, a real powerhouse finally stepped up."

"We're twenty short of two hundred — thank god… Actually, this guy looks familiar. I feel like I've seen him somewhere before." The lead student said.

"Isn't that Bai Cangfeng of the Bai Clan?!"

"Holy crap, we're saved! It's the Bai Clan's big shot!"

Dean Xiao and the department heads all fixed their eyes on Bai Cangfeng. Among them, the Light Element department head — a woman — smiled gently. "I thought my nephew would hold out a little longer before he moved."

"With the Bai Clan stepping in, this whole spectacle can finally end." Zhou Zhenghua let out a quiet breath of relief.

"The resources the school offers don't exactly excite someone from a clan like the Bai — but losing face at Pearl Academy? That's something no member of a great family can sit still for." The woman said.

Inside the Beast Cage, Bai Cangfeng stood alone.

His posture was strikingly similar to Luo Song's when he had taken down three Summoning Mages by himself — entering solo, facing a fearsome Summoned Beast with perfect composure.

"Mo Fan, is it?" A calm smile spread across Bai Cangfeng's face. His dark eyes fixed on Mo Fan, looking him over with open curiosity. "I have to say, your strength is genuinely impressive for a Pearl Academy freshman. But you and I both know that once a Mage reaches the Intermediate level, Basic-Level opponents simply stop mattering. Your so-called two hundred challengers… that's nothing more than trampling through teams of five useless opponents. There's nothing remarkable about it."

Mo Fan studied the newcomer who had stepped up to fight him one-on-one. From this man's aura alone, he could tell his strength exceeded Zhuang Lifeng's.

"You're smart enough, I'll give you that — leveraging the edge of reaching Intermediate level early to secure more resources. Offending students without any real backing might not cost you anything. But don't forget that a considerable share of the freshman class comes from great families… great fami—"

Bai Cangfeng's expression snapped. The man who had been every inch the composed, well-bred aristocrat suddenly swore out loud, and every shred of his polished image shattered in an instant.

Of course he didn't dare say another word. While he'd been talking, Mo Fan had quietly assembled a violet Star Chart — and had Bai Cangfeng not sensed through his Mental Intent that an enormous concentration of Lightning Element energy was converging on him, he might never have noticed the Star Chart at all. The shameless bastard had used the Gloom Wolf Beast's body to block his line of sight.

"You talk too damn much," Mo Fan said.

The Star Chart was already fully drawn beneath his feet. Star Trail after Star Trail crisscrossed, passing violet energy between them — each resonating pulse swelling the Lightning Element Star Chart's power a fraction more.

When the radiance reached its peak, Mo Fan pointed at the sky.

No flashy moves. No imposing buildup. The Intermediate Lightning Element spell — Thunderbolt — seemed purpose-built to destroy you without wasting a single word. The instant Mo Fan's finger pointed skyward, a storm cloud materialized above Bai Cangfeng's head, appearing from nowhere.

The cloud barely had a moment to form. A gesture — and the thunder fell.

**BOOM——!!!!**

The deafening crack rolled across the entire stadium. Several girls in the stands clapped their hands over their ears in fright.

Ahead, an enormous bolt of violet lightning erupted from the cloud and hammered downward — aimed squarely at Bai Cangfeng.

The bolt was catastrophic. It fell like a descending dragon, its aura of obliteration crashing down from above. Even before it fully struck, the ground beneath had already fractured into a sprawling web of cracks.

Teacher Gu Han, stationed nearby and responsible for protecting the students, furrowed his brow. Alarm flickered visibly across his face.

To be honest, even he — a teacher — hadn't fully registered what was happening in time. He wasn't even sure whether any Light Element magic he could deploy would be fast enough to shield Bai Cangfeng from the strike.