After what I did, Ms. Cai used Time Magic to reverse the damage on the obelisk so that the exam could continue. I returned to the line, the gazes of all the other students and teachers following me.

"Um… I'm guessing you didn't mean to do that?" Lan Xiao Su asked hesitantly.

"Is that even a question?" Feng Mian said with a sigh. "Judging from the awkward look on his face…"

"Ahem… Mei Gui," I interjected, clearing my throat and putting up a small sound barrier around us. "Any idea on why that happened? I used the exact same spell as you."

"Hm… it may be because of the ichor you obtained from Lin Luo, Master."

"What…?" I turned to Lin Luo, who closed her eyes with arms folded.

"Why are you surprised?" She scoffed coldly. "You stole a lot of my blood, essentially becoming an Ascendant Seraphim yourself without even being a Celesticus. That will greatly enhance your magic prowess, on top of that Chaos thing which already boosts your power level by a lot."

"… I see…" I fell silent, realizing she had a point.

That said, I wonder if me being a half-vampire has anything to do with this as well… or does vampire blood only give physical enhancements?

I pondered this as Yu An Xue and Yu An Yan went up for their test one after another. Both scored the highest rank with ease, which also meant I would have to… ahem, with them.

After that, everyone had finished. All in all, there were only a few people who managed to score above green, and the vast majority of them came from Class D. As for expulsions, no one fell under the threshold, which I wasn't too surprised about.

This was, after all, a prestige university. Everyone who came here should be powerful enough to pass a simple exam like this.

Once the test was over, all the students were told to return to their dorms and pack up their things if they are planning on leaving campus for the break. Staying was an option as well, but I wanted to go meet the Golden Monarch Long Lu knew so that I could possibly awaken a Battle Soul.

I told the girls about this as well, and naturally they wanted to follow me. While I was far stronger than them in terms of strength, we were technically all Ancestral Mages at the moment, capable of using Legendary-Tier Magic. The only thing stopping us from becoming a Golden Monarch was the awakening of a Battle Soul.

And so, it was decided that when tomorrow morning came around, we would meet Long Lu at the main gates, where he would then take us to his house.

*****

Later that night, after we all took baths and prepared for bed, we all received a notification at the same time on our phones. There was no doubt about it; the results of the exams were announced.

Everyone passed the Magic Test, of course, but the other subjects seemed to be okay as well. Personally, I managed to score above 90 on all the subjects, and the girls did the same. As for Lan Xiao Su… she aced every single one.

"Heheh~ Big Brother Xuan Kai, when are you giving out the rewards, I wonder?" Qing Yue asked suggestively, climbing onto my shoulders and dangling her feet over them.

"Over the break… I'm sure everyone is tired today, so let's just rest," I said with a deep sigh.

"Fufu~ mkay~"

"What time are we meeting Long Lu again?" Feng Mian asked, just to confirm.

"8 AM," I replied. "So don't stay up too late."

"Got it~" The girls replied before all heading off to their respective beds. I did the same, but then felt a tug on my sleeve.

"Master… will we finally be able to… do it?" Mei Gui asked softly, looking up at me with sparkling eyes filled with anticipation.

I smiled awkwardly. "Uh… yeah. Soon."

I don't know why you look so curious and excited, but sure…

*****

- The Next Morning, 8 AM -

The girls and I gathered at the front gates of the school, where Long Lu already was waiting. Other students flooded out of the entrance and left campus one by one; very few chose to stay in the school for this break.

"Yo," Long Lu waved, to which I waved back.

"You guys got everything ready?" He asked. "Once we head out, there's no coming back until the break's over."

The girls and I all nodded.

"We already sorted everything out last night, don't worry about it."

"I see. Let's go, then. I'll show you the hospitality of the Long family, heh!"

"Waiiiit!" A boy suddenly shouted from behind us, panting heavily.

"… Ming Hao?" I muttered, raising an eyebrow.

"Hah… hah… hah… can I… come along… hah?"

"Uh…" Long Lu glanced at me for an answer. Ming Hao looked to me as well, a pleading look in his eyes.

"H-Hey, Xuan Kai, you'll let me come along, right? Y'know, since we're such good buddies and al-"

"No."

"Not even an ounce of hesitation?!"

"Why are you coming along, anyway?" I shot back. "Do you want to know about Battle Souls too?"

"No, I just want to follo- I mean, yes, I do! A lot!"

"…" The girls and I exchanged dubious glances, then shook our heads.

"Yeah, no, you're not coming."

Turning our backs on him, we prepared to set off, but-

"Waiiiit! I promise, if you let me come along, you'll be rewarded handsomely!" He begged, kneeling down and clutching to my pants without caring that all the other students were watching right now.

"… You sound a lot like a desperate young master," I noted.

"That's probably because he is one," Long Lu interjected as we all turned our gazes to him. "The Ming family is the most powerful out of the Eight Great Families of Fragment. If he says we'll be rewarded handsomely, we definitely will."

"…" I looked back at Ming Hao, who had a hopeful smile on his face.

"… Fine."

"Yes! I knew you would come through for me, Xuan Kai!" He cheered, getting up from the floor and patting me harshly on the back.

"I only let you come for the rewards," I replied truthfully. "They better be worth it if I have to deal with you on my holiday."

"Heheh, don't worry, you won't regret this decision," he chuckled, throwing his arm across my shoulder like we were best friends or something.

"So… we're going now, right?" Long Lu asked, just to be sure.

I sighed. "Yes… there shouldn't be any more disturban-"

"Hold it right there!" A girl's voice suddenly rang out.

We collectively spun around to see Si Ye pointing at us, along with her 'bodyguard' of sorts, Lei Pao.

"Si Si?" Ming Hao's eyes widened a bit. "What are you doing here?"

"You have the audacity to ask me that… you are coming with me!"

Saying this, she forcefully stepped in between Ming Hao and I and tried pulling him away, but he pulled on my shirt as well.

"H-Hey! Let go!"

"I-It's not my fault!" Ming Hao cried. "Si Si, let go of me-!"

"You're either coming with me… or I'm coming with you!"

"Tch…" I gritted my teeth. "I knew accepting to take you along was not a good idea…"

"Young Lady Si," Long Lu suddenly said, stepping in to resolve the conflict. "Please, calm down. You can come with us, so stop tearing his poor shirt apart."

Si Ye shot him a glare, but reluctantly let go. "Hmph!"

I pushed Ming Hao's hand off my cloak and readjusted it. "Ming Hao… you're nothing but trouble."

"L-Listen, it's not my fault. Si Si, I thought we agreed last time that if you failed to attack my class's base — which you did — you would stop bothering me."

"Too bad!" She yelled and immediately began strangling Ming Hao once more.

"E-Eek! Help me, Xuan Kai!!!"

I sighed and walked away. I knew when to interfere and when to not. Whatever happened between those two in the past… I don't want to get dragged into it.

So, while those two fought in the back, I walked up front with Long Lu, the girls surrounding me.

"Oh right," Long Lu suddenly said. "I nearly forgot… I should probably tell you this now."

"Hm?" I raised an eyebrow.

"The Golden Monarch I'm taking you to meet… he's the butler of my family. But he's somewhat… unique. He's really polite and friendly most of the time, until you say hi to him."

"W-What?" Feng Mian blinked in surprise, wondering if what she just heard was right.

"I'm not sure why either, just roll with it," Long Lu replied with a sigh. "Don't say the words hi, hello, or any kind of greeting to him when you see him."

"Er… okay then…"

"What happens if we do?" Qing Yue asked, the troublemaker as always.

"Uh…" Long Lu scratched his cheek. "Let's just say you won't like it."