Chapter 398: The Final Exam Begins! Astonishing Rewards!

Chapter 398: The Final Exam Begins! Astonishing Rewards!

The sky was a vast expanse of blue, stretching as far as the eye could see. The sun shone brightly, its heat scorching, yet it couldn't dampen the fiery excitement of a large portion of the crowd.

This day was undoubtedly the most anticipated event, as the final test of the professional assessment was about to reach its climax.

All young beastmasters from the Dragon Nation under the age of twenty-four, ranked below the Sovereign level, had gathered here for the ultimate ranking.

Who would be the true number one among the younger generation?

There was no doubt that this title, along with the rewards that were sure to be impressive, would excite everyone even more.

Even after the provincial exams had ended, and a full seven days had passed, the two hundred participants from various provinces, who had emerged from the top ranks of their respective provinces and academies, gathered once again for the final exam.

They quickly became the center of attention, dominating the headlines.

For several days, discussions about the final exam had been non-stop.

The focus of these conversations was primarily on who was the strongest and who had a chance to claim the top spot.

The loudest discussions weren't about Ye Zhou, the first-ranked student from the Capital Academy, who kept a low profile and didn't show off his strength, nor were they about Chen Zhan, the seemingly humble first-ranked student from the Imperial Capital Academy!

Instead, they were about Su Ping.

That's right, Su Ping.

Among the two hundred participants, Su Ping was the youngest, but the discussions about his potential to win the championship were intense.

The reason was simple: the Hundred Sword Strike during the provincial exam had been incredibly shocking and terrifying.

Additionally, his insights and research on the Origami Man, as well as his advanced skill, the Heavenly Cycle Five Elements Body, had sparked extensive debates.

Of course, some people believed that Su Ping's skill had a long 'wind-up' time, which might be a disadvantage in the Great Secret Realm's survival battle during the provincial exam.

However, once on the arena, opponents would surely find ways to counter it.

At that point, whether he could fully utilize the skill was uncertain.

More importantly, the livestream that abruptly ended without any conclusion had been on everyone's minds.

The public was extremely concerned about Su Ping's well-being.

Although many had already shared videos of Su Ping, proving that the genius breeder seemed fine, some still questioned whether he would be able to participate in the upcoming final exam.

As expected, the online speculation never ceased, with keyboard warriors discussing without pause, undeterred by indirect hints.

And today, on the first day of the final exam, the truth would be revealed!

This was an enormous venue, covering an area several times larger than the Heart of Ten Thousand Spirits.

Beneath the main hall were dozens of equally spacious arenas, each with a unique, vast space.

Yet, the divisions between these arenas were not solid; instead, they seemed to shimmer with a faint, surreal feeling, indicating the use of highly specialized technology.

At the same time, a familiar host from the Dragon Nation appeared on the large screen:

"Hello, viewers watching the livestream, and welcome to those of you here in person! Welcome to the final test of the young beastmasters' professional assessment!

I'm your host, Liu Xun, and I'm honored to be hosting this final stage of the young beastmasters' assessment, witnessing the prowess of our Dragon Nation's younger generation of beastmasters!

Let's wish them good luck, but before that, I'll introduce the rules."

The host's charming smile didn't elicit any dislike, as she was one of the top national hosts.

After a brief pause, Liu Xun continued:

"There are a total of two hundred and sixty participants in this final exam. Among them are one hundred and eighty contestants from the top ten of each province, as well as eight participants selected by the advanced beastmaster academies.

Therefore, the competition will be divided into two rounds.

The first round is the preliminary round. The two hundred and sixty contestants will randomly battle ten opponents in beastmaster duels! This will be a continuous series of ten beastmaster battles!

During these ten battles, there will be a five-minute break, and no official medical recovery methods will be provided.

Only those who achieve eight or more victories in these ten battles will qualify for the second round of elimination matches.

To ensure fairness, the opponent allocation will be pseudo-random, and it is guaranteed that the top-seeded contestants from each province will not face each other in the first round..."

Upon hearing this, everyone in the venue and all the viewers watching on-screen gasped in surprise.

Although the exam format had been announced earlier, the rules had never been disclosed.

Based on speculations, it was known that this would be an arena-based battle, a true test of the beastmasters' individual combat prowess.

However, no one expected the first round's rules to be so brutal.

Ten consecutive battles against completely different random opponents?

Direct elimination if the number of victories falls below eight?

In other words, there was a margin of error for only three losses!

If they lost more than three times, they wouldn't even qualify for the second round?

"This is too difficult, isn't it? Only a five-minute break? And it seems like those with recovery-type beasts will have a significant advantage."

Some expressed dissatisfaction with the arrangement, while others agreed:

"There are almost three hundred people. If it were a single-elimination tournament, how long would it take?"

"That's right. The young beastmasters' professional assessment is about finding the very best among the younger generation. Recovery beasts are generally less favored in combat, so it's good to see them have a chance to shine here."

"But if you lose once, isn't it difficult to make a comeback? Or what if the injuries are relatively severe?"

Some considered the recovery restrictions. If they exhausted their energy and stamina too much in these intense battles, even if they won the current match, it would be challenging to persist through the continuous ten battles.

"So, if you encounter a challenging opponent, you can choose to concede to preserve your strength. This young beastmasters' assessment isn't just about the beasts' combat abilities; it's also about the beastmasters' judgment and wisdom!"

Not only were all the viewers surprised, but even the contestants who had arrived in the waiting room, ready to enter the arena, furrowed their brows.

No wonder the officials hadn't announced the competition rules yet; they had been preparing this all along?

Su Ping's expression remained calm. In fact, if he wanted to, he could have found out early on, but there was no need.

"Interesting, looking forward to it." Just then, a familiar voice sounded in Su Ping's ear.

Su Ping turned his head curiously, "How are you here? Are we in the same rest room?"

Ye Zhou smiled, "I came here specifically to find you. How's your preparation going?"

"Not bad. Taking the first place casually shouldn't be a problem."

Ye Zhou carefully examined Su Ping from head to toe, "Wow, so arrogant? You really seem confident. Since that's the case, don't blame me for being blunt. I might just use my move on you!"

"Hmm?" Su Ping looked at him doubtfully, "What move?"

"Hehe, you'll find out later."

This fellow was being mysterious.

Su Ping glanced at him and didn't bother to pay attention. His calm gaze remained on the floating TV in the rest room, where the host continued to speak, "As for the second round of elimination battles, the opponents will be determined by drawing lots, and the opponents will be based on the first round's battle situation and provincial exam rankings!"

"As long as you enter the top twenty, you will receive a reward of one self-selected Imperial-rank resource item, as well as the honorary councilor position of the local Beastmaster Association..."

As expected, along with the beautiful host, Liu Xun, speaking again and revealing the final reward, all the contestants who were previously tense about the competition rules became excited and started discussing.

The value of Imperial-rank resources goes without saying.

Moreover, there was also the position of an honorary councilor in the Beastmaster Association.

Even if it was just a local position, it was still provincial-level, and such an honorary councilor could only be held by a Sovereign-rank Beastmaster, and even then, only the stronger ones.

The privileges and social status that come with it are unimaginable.

For future development, there are tangible benefits.

However, that's not all! "If you can further improve your rankings from this basis and enter the top ten, you will receive an additional official reward, which is a dragon companion's offspring within the specified category..."

This sentence once again caused all the contestants in the rest rooms to look at each other in disbelief, and then they burst into unimaginable enthusiasm and discussion.

A dragon companion's offspring?

No Beastmaster could refuse such a thing!

A dragon companion of this level is no longer a treasure measured by value.

Moreover, those who can reach this level are mostly Overlord-level experts, just one step away from advancing to the Sovereign rank.

Many people don't even have a suitable companion beasts suitable for their fourth companion beast yet.

A dragon companion's offspring?

However, before everyone could calm down, Liu Xun spoke again, "If you, Heaven's Pride, can enter the top five, you will be rewarded with a dragon companion. Moreover, these five dragon companions are all extraordinary."

Dragon!

In the Eastern country named after the dragon, the power of the dragon is unquestionable.

It is the most representative symbol of oneself, without exception.

In the Dragon Nation, no Beastmaster can resist the temptation of the dragon!

Even Su Ping, who initially didn't think of contracting a dragon as a companion beast, later, after continuous contact, was tempted and made an agreement with the Candle Dragon to see that mutated dragon companion.

Moreover, Su Ping never forgot his initial unrealistic ambition.

Why can't there be a Dragon Heart in the Heart of Ten Thousand Spirits?

Furthermore, the experience gained from interacting with dragons in the Omnipotent Beast Codex is many times greater than that of ordinary companion beasts.

The experience gained from dragons is equivalent to universal experience, which is invaluable for Su Ping's research on other companion beasts.

However, compared to the shock and joy of the others who were determined to get into the top five, Su Ping wasn't as excited.

There was no way; others didn't know, but he had found out early on.

On the official website, there had been speculations about the competition rewards.

There had also been some rumors spreading online.

But aside from that, Qin Xiaoxue had already mentioned yesterday when chatting with him that the top five rewards included a dragon.

Obviously, Sang Sheng's information channel was reliable.

Even the five dragon companions that were rewards were mentioned by Qin Xiaoxue.

In addition to the Crystal Dragon of the Spatial Dragon family mentioned by Zhu Hong, there were four others:

The Frost Dragon, a dual-attribute Wind and Ice Dragon from the Four Seas Dragon Palace,

The Iron Dragon, a special Golden Dragon from Earth Valley,

The Undead Spirit Dragon from the Land of the Dead,

And the last one, relatively ordinary but still extraordinary, a Fire and Earth dual-attribute Magma Dragon from the Five-Color Dragon City.

The other elemental and crystal dragons need no explanation, but the Iron Dragon is quite interesting.

The Golden Dragon family is the rarest among the conventional elemental dragons.

This Iron Dragon is one of them, relatively thin in energy manipulation but with an extremely powerful physical body!

Maybe I should find a way to get one later?

Even Ye Zhou beside him raised his eyebrows and then sighed, "It's a pity there's no time-attribute dragon family. If there was, it would be perfect."

Su Ping glanced at him and smiled slightly, "There actually is."

"Hmm?" This time, Ye Zhou was surprised, "What do you mean?"

Su Ping smiled, imitating the fellow's previous posture, "You'll find out later."

Ye Zhou glared at him.

Su Ping didn't pay attention to him anymore. The beautiful host on the screen continued, "Among the top five, the higher the ranking, the earlier you can choose your dragon companion. Once you enter the top three, you will receive a special resource, the Spiritual Flame Seed!

The Spiritual Flame Seed can help Beastmasters awaken their second natural talent! It is an extremely rare treasure!

As for the first place, in addition to all these rewards, there will be a most special reward, which is a Dragon Companion within the specified category..."

The host, Liu Xun, paused, winked, and then continued, "Next, let me introduce the commentator for this professional assessment final exam!"

The scene shifted, and the camera focused on the three people sitting on the high platform.

Three people, but compared to the provincial exams in Jianghai Province, it is evident that these three are much more capable.

"The first one is Lu Guangming, the first vice-dean of the Imperial Capital Advanced Beastmaster Academy."

The screen showed a middle-aged man with a scholarly air.

The man waved at the camera and smiled.

Su Ping glanced at the screen, and the voice in his ear sounded again:

"This Vice-Dean Lu is no ordinary person. He's young and has a bright future ahead of him. It's said that he's very likely to replace Yuan Sheng as the new dean of the Imperial Capital Advanced Academy. Hey, Su Ping, you're so well-connected, do you know him?"

Su Ping nodded and then shook his head.

"What do you mean?" Ye Zhou was curious.

"He knows me, but I don't know him," Su Ping said calmly.

"???"

Ye Zhou pursed his lips, feeling a bit puzzled by Su Ping's response.

He continued to ask, embodying the spirit of breaking the pot to get to the bottom of things: "He knows you? How does he know you?"

"When I first arrived in the Imperial Capital, he actively sought me out and wanted me to help him with something." Su Ping looked at the elegant figure in the screen without averting his gaze.

"He wanted you to help him? What was it about? Did you agree? Of course, you don't have to say if it's inconvenient." Ye Zhou glanced at some of the people in the nearby rest area who were looking their way.

Su Ping shook his head:

"It's not a big deal. He came to visit me and wanted me to give a speech at the Imperial Capital Academy after the final exam. But I didn't have the time, and I'm not good at giving speeches, so I declined."

Ye Zhou gave him a strange look:

"You're not good at it? Isn't giving a speech just showing off? I think you're quite skilled at it."

Su Ping gave him a sideways glance:

"You asked. I'm just telling you what I know."

The camera then focused on the next figure.

This person was even younger than Vice-Dean Lu.

Liu Xun's voice sounded:

"The second one is Zhang Lan, the vice-president of the Mechanic Beast Association. The entire arena's simulated reality and mechanical platforms are arranged by the Mechanic Beast Association..."

"Tsk tsk, they're all big shots. In recent years, the Mechanic Beast Association has become one of the most prestigious and important associations under the Beastmaster Association. That famous Master Wu Kuang is hailed as one of the strongest Holy Spirit Beastmasters of the new generation in the Dragon Nation. And this Zhang Lan is said to be the most trusted..."

Ye Zhou continued to marvel.

Then, he looked at Su Ping, who remained unperturbed, and asked curiously:

"What about this one? Do you know him?"

Su Ping looked at him and nodded:

"Yeah, I know him a bit better."

"How do you know him?" Ye Zhou asked curiously again.

Was this guy always so gossipy? But Su Ping didn't hide anything:

"Before, I went to the Mechanic Beast Association to help them with a mechanical experiment.

Yesterday, he called me and said that my idea for the experiment has already increased the success rate, and there's still room for improvement.

He said that Master Wu Kuang invited me to become a council member of their Mechanic Beast Association. However, I don't know much about mechanical beasts other than that experiment, so I politely declined."

If someone else had said this, Ye Zhou would have definitely slapped them on the back of their head and asked, "What are you bragging about?"

But it had to be said that Su Ping's tone made him a bit suspicious.

Experiment?

What kind of experiment could it be that after improving it, Master Wu Kuang personally invited him to become a council member? He didn't understand, but he also knew that since it involved an experiment, he couldn't ask further.

At the same time, the live broadcast screen finally locked onto the last commentator.

"The third one is Wang Sheng Tian, the chairman of Origin Corporation. This time, the professional assessment's sponsorship, advertising, and some rewards are provided by Origin Corporation..."

"Origin Corporation? The giant enterprise that mainly sells Origin Potions and is involved in multiple beast training industries?"

It was rumored that Origin Corporation's assets were richer than any provincial Beastmaster Association! This old man was the biggest money god in the Imperial Capital!

"He wanted to do business with Harmony Cloud Corporation. Of course, he said that for this reason, he wanted to introduce me to his granddaughter. That old man is quite traditional.

But Origin Corporation is rich! And it's said that he has connections everywhere, not inferior to most Holy Spirit Beastmaster families!

Moreover, the gene optimization of such big families, unless in special circumstances, the family's women wouldn't be too picky. Actually, you wouldn't lose out. But, Qin Xiaoxue isn't bad either..."

Su Ping gave him another sideways glance:

"Being an in-law? That's not it. The old man's intention, according to some traditional culture in the Dragon Nation, if I agree, his granddaughter wouldn't mind being a concubine. Yeah, and he can also give me a few maids as a dowry."

"Huh?"

Ye Zhou blinked, feeling like his worldview was collapsing in just a moment, and he was a bit dazed for a while.

By the time he hazily digested Su Ping's words, Su Ping was already walking towards the rest area door, looking at the still-dazed Ye Zhou, and said:

"Why are you still standing there? The contestants are entering the arena."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end