- Sometime Later, The Arena -

(Xuan Kai's Perspective)

After being informed by the butler to head to the Arena once more, we did. I left Mei Gui behind though, just to avoid any questions from being brought up at the sight of her.

On our path there, we went down the same hallway, and entered the same dark corridor with the 'invisible' door. However, when said door opened, what awaited us wasn't the familiar light brown ground of sand. In fact, no sign of sand remained - not even a speck of it. Instead, the ground was now a polished black, much like a mere extension of the dark corridor. While the crowds and basic structure were still there, it felt as if the entire Arena had gone through a renovation.

"What in the world...?" I mused in wonder.

"This is really something..." Yu An Yan agreed, stepping outside and tapping her feet on the floor a couple of times. Yu An Xue mimicked her actions, and I was once more reminded of how similar the two of them were - not in personality, though. Definitely not.

"Mm...this is so relaxing!!" Qing Yue exclaimed jumping around happily like a little fairy. She then closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the tranquil evening wind. "Whew...hey, hey, you guys should try it too! C'mon, close your eyes and take a deeeeeep breath!"

"Wow, you're right. This feels so much nicer," Feng Mian complied to Qing Yue's request and shut her eyes as she breathed in the relaxing evening air.

Indeed, it was already evening. Around 6 PM, to be exact. The sun had already set, but the excitement of the crowds didn't seem to diminish one bit. In fact, they were even more hyper now, cheering and roaring. To put it in a way that was easier to picture, think of a sports competition. This would be like the section where the winner received his or her medal. Thus, I expected the crowd's excitement, but what I didn't expect was for what some of the cheers said.

Although few, I could make out some cheers in the crowds that weren't for the girls...but for me. For the first time in my life, I received genuine praise, true appreciation for my achievements from someone other than my parents. That was not to say I became a huge star all of a sudden, though - very few voices were calling my name. Out of the entire crowd, there were maybe three, five at best.

However...those few five voices...to me, they outshone all the rest. I knew full well I was still hated by many people, but...it was a start, wasn't it?

I smiled at this realization, and like the others, took a deep breath. Indeed, it was relaxing. It was just like the air outside after raining.

Before long, all the various teams gathered in the Arena - not just the four teams that competed in the main tournament, but also everyone else. In other words, the entirety of the 2nd Year was gathered in the Arena grounds, waiting to be given the news of whether they passed the examination or not.

Despite the form of this year's Advancement Exams, it was still an exam - a test to see whether or not you had the skill and aptitude to advance to the next level. While we, the winners, were guaranteed to pass (as stated when the exams were first announced), other people would have to be thoroughly evaluated by the judges.

Speaking of...where were the judges?

I nudged Feng Mian, who was standing beside me. "Hey, have you seen any of the judges?"

"Judges....?" Feng Mian blinked in confusion. Then it finally clicked for her. "Oh! I remember now, they did say something like that when they first announced the exam, huh? The judges were apparently supposed to all be major powerhouses of Shenzhen."

"Uh...okay, nevermind," I muttered. If she had forgotten they even existed until I reminded her, there was no way she would be able to answer my question. After all, even if she did see a judge, she wouldn't be able to identify him or her as a judge...

That aside, the question remains. Where were the judges? I remember Song Qian Long saying something about Liu Jian being one of the judges, but there was definitely more than one. I didn't see anyone else in the speaker room though...if they were disguising in the audience, I'm sure they wouldn't be able to just blend in within the crowd, if they were truly powerhouses. That possibility is out.

Hmm...if they were sitting in an isolated area like where the patriarchs of the Four Great Families of Shenzhen were, then perhaps...oh, wait. The patriarchs...don't tell me...?

"Good evening, everyone," Song Qian Long began his speech before I could finish processing the thought. With his loud and clear voice (well, in reality he was talking into a mic which was connected to the speaker system, but whatever), he instantly grasped the attention of everyone present, both the contestants and the audience.

"Throughout our series of battles today, we had many exciting fights," Song Qian Long continued. "In the end, the champions of this fierce tournament was also decided. However, they could not have done it without all of your cheering and encouragement. Thus, before anything else, I would like to thank all of the audience here. Truly, you all deserve a round of an applause. Give yourself a pat on the back, all of you!"

"I'm pretty sure we could've won even without all the loud noise and distraction, thank you very much," Yu An Yan scoffed.

I laughed awkardly, and decided to never tell a single soul about Song Qian Long being my godfather. I was already hated enough; I didn't want any more trouble.

"Now then," Song Qian Long spoke again after waiting for the applause and cheering in the crowd to die down a bit. "With the formalities out of the way, let's begin by announcing the winners of this tournament! A huge round of applause to..."

Cue the drum roll BGM.

Cue the anticipating crowd.

"...The Chaotic Tranquility!!"

All of a sudden, holograms I didn't even know existed popped out of thin air above us. Out of the six panes coming together to form a hexagon (to match the Arena itself's shape), five of them showed a picture of one of my team members or myself, and the final one was just a display with our team name on it. As for our reactions to this...well, each one of us were different, to say to the least.

"W-What the hell?! Yu An Yan shrieked at the sudden appearance of herself on a large screen.

"U-Um, hi?" Feng Mian gave a cute little wave, unsure of what to do.

Qing Yue, on the other hand, beamed happily and jumped up and down. "Hey everyone! I'm Qing Yue, Big Brother Xuan Kai's little sister!!"

Yu An Xue merely closed her eyes and ignored everything, while I did the same. However, in the case of Yu An Xue, everyone took it as how she was and only screamed praises even louder. I wasn't so lucky...I could hear several loud voices of complaint directed at me from the crowd, but I pretended they didn't exist.

"Congratulations, the five of you," Song Qian Long said after a while. "Now then, as your reward for winning the tournament, each of you will be receiving a prize that will greatly help you in your cultivation, depending on your elemental affinities and fighting style. Please come to my office at 9 PM today to receive your rewards."

"9 PM? Isn't that curfew?" Yu An Yan asked.

"Well, he's the principal," I replied. "If he says it's fine, it's fine."

"In addition, according to the rules, Class 2-D, led by Mr. Wang, will become the new Class 2-A," Song Qian Long announced. I could hear multiple voices cheering from amongst the other students in the Arena, as well as some groans coming from others.

When the tournament was first announced, the rewards were all specified. Therefore, I wasn't really surprised at all to hear any of this. The girls also didn't seem to be fazed.

After that, Song Qian Long announced the names of the students that passed their examination. Turns out, there were six judges in total. Four of them were, in fact, like I predicted, the patriarchs of the Four Great Families of Shenzhen. The fifth judge was Liu Jian, and the last one was Song Qian Long himself. Mr. Wang wasn't exactly wrong when he said the judges of this tournament would all be huge powerhouses, but...I kind of expected more variety, I guess?

Anyway, most of the students had the ability to pass this exam. Those who didn't, like Li Mu Shen or his girlfriend Lan Gui Ying, still passed anyway since his own father was one of the judges. In the end, everyone in the 2nd Year of Shenzhen Magic High School was able to pass the exam without any difficulties.

"And with that, I would like to announce that this year's 2nd Year Advancement Exams are now complete!" Song Qian Long declared once he had finished naming everyone off his list of people who passed. "Classes will not be taught for the next two days in order to host the other Advancement Exams, for the 4th and 6th Years respectively. After that, there will be another two days off as a rest period. You all can take a break and enjoy yourselves as you wish."

Cheers erupted from the crowd of students below, which overshadowed that of the audience. It wasn't everyday we get to have a 4-day straight break, especially at this school where we had classes as usual even on weekends. The students, myself and the girls included, were all pretty happy about it.

"That's all," Song Qian Long concluded his speech once all the cheering had died down. "Dismissed!"

As the students scuttled around and prepared to go celebrate, I looked up at the night sky and leaned against the wall. This is another problem solved, but...what else is going to come my way? Although Liu Jian didn't make a move this time, who could guarantee he wouldn't the next? I closed my eyes.

Well...no point worrying about the future like this. For now...I suppose this is fine. Yes, this is fine.