The young girl wore silver armor that covered her upper body.
Though her delicate frame was encased in the hard armor, her perfect curves remained unmistakable.
Her feet were clad in long combat boots, protecting her exquisite jade-like feet and slender, graceful calves.
Her delicate face was hidden beneath a helmet, revealing only a pair of bright, clear blue eyes.
At this moment, those eyes seemed lost in thought.
“Your Highness, it’s about to start.”
The owner of those eyes—the Princess Qin Yu of the Chengji Empire—was suddenly startled, her gaze refocusing as she looked to her side.
An elderly man was watching her, a mixture of concern and helplessness in his eyes.
“Your Highness, today is the day of the assessment. You must focus—no more daydreaming.”
Qin Yu gave an embarrassed smile, explaining (or rather, making an excuse), “Grand Tutor Yin, I’m just conserving my energy, preparing for the assessment later!”
The old man was Yin An, Grand Tutor to the Crown Princess and a seventh-rank Quasi-God level Magus.
Advanced in years, he had been appointed by the Emperor to teach the Crown Princess full-time.
Yin An sighed silently.
He knew the young princess’s temperament all too well.
Resigned, he replied, “The princess is right. But please take it seriously. You know, the current ranking system for Magi has ten levels. First-rank Magi, second to third-rank Magisters, fourth to sixth-rank Archmagisters, seventh to eighth-rank Quasi-Gods, ninth-rank Pseudo-Gods, and tenth-rank True Gods. You are a third-rank Magus, but you can use some A-Rank Combat Skills that only those above fourth rank can wield—that’s truly exceptional talent. So, I’ve raised the difficulty a bit.”
“Ah?”
“But as a reward, if you pass the assessment, I can give you a little break,” Yin An smiled.
As a member of the imperial family, Qin Yu rarely had any days off—only the New Year’s Festival granted her a fixed holiday.
Of course, she could skip classes on her own, but that always drew the Grand Tutor’s reprimands.
Hearing the word “break,” Qin Yu perked up, her earlier nervousness fading.
With a confident wave of her hand, she declared, “This princess will definitely succeed and crush her opponents beneath her feet!”
Moments later, Qin Yu followed the attendant leading her to the enormous Wuyan Arena, took her place, and looked around.
The Energy Barrier emitted a blue glow, forming a dome over the arena to protect the spectators from any magic that might fly out during the duel.
Surrounding the arena were rows of seats filled with onlookers.
Squinting, Qin Yu carefully observed the audience: several marquises from vassal states sat in attendance, along with many teachers and students from the Chengji Empire’s Ji Xia Academy.
“Damn, it’s a public assessment! This is my first time casting magic in front of strangers,” Qin Yu took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm her nerves, and lowered her gaze toward the arena.
Opposite her lay a complex Summoning Magic Circle, prepared to summon her opponent for the upcoming test.
“The Advanced Assessment begins!” At Yin An’s command, the summoning circle suddenly lit up.
A dazzling purple light traced the magical pathways of the circle, illuminating every node and radiating the essence of spatial elements.
A silver glow flashed as a Slime leapt out from the center of the circle, charging toward Qin Yu.
Qin Yu focused and recognized it as a fire-element Slime, its magical fluctuations modest—probably around third-rank strength.
“Water Control, rise!” Qin Yu called out sharply, and water elements within the arena gathered around the Slime, attempting to block its advance.
But there wasn’t enough water in the arena; the Slime easily broke through the watery barrier and continued rushing at Qin Yu.
Flames gathered beside the Slime, closing in on Qin Yu, who felt as if she were inside a furnace.
She had entered the Slime’s attack range.
At that moment, the girl raised her right hand.
Water elements surged within her loosely clenched palm, gradually forming a water orb that hovered before her.
The Slime sensed danger and shrank its body, leaping high into the air while condensing its fiery elements—preparing to unleash a deadly focused strike on Qin Yu.
Seeing this, Qin Yu gave a wicked smile, planting her left foot firmly and stepping back with her right foot.
Rising onto her toes, she lifted her right hand, manipulating the water orb to ascend into midair.
“Release!”
The water pillar shot out like a sharp blade, stabbing straight at the airborne Slime.
The Slime was impaled instantly, its flames extinguished as it fell with a “splat,” melting into a gelatinous puddle, no longer retaining its original spherical form.
“You pass!”
“Hehe! That was a breeze!” (^^)
Qin Yu looked up toward the stands as whispers buzzed around.
“Is that water elemental magic?”
“Look at her eyes—clear and pure. She’s so much cuter than the junior students!”
“She’s able to release so much water; her mana reserves must be at least fourth-rank level!”
Hearing the compliments, Qin Yu’s grin was harder to suppress than an AK-47’s recoil.
They’re witnessing this princess’s power now!
Hmph! (≧▽≦)
“Second round!” Yin An’s words snapped Qin Yu back to reality.
A blinding light burst forth, and a Goblin emerged.
An Elite Goblin Warrior, its mana fluctuations hovered around third rank.
For a Goblin, such a level was rare indeed.
“Where did the Empire get such monsters? These kinds are hardly common, but their strength is only third-rank,” Qin Yu said, rising onto her right toes as her body darted forward, giving the Goblin no time to react.
“Wind, arise!” Qin Yu extended her right index finger; pure wind elements spilled from her fingertip, forming a wind blade that slashed out.
The Goblin’s right hand was severed without defense.
In the stands:
“Is that atmospheric elemental magic?” A middle-aged man asked the person beside him.
That man was the Emperor’s younger brother, Qin Yi—the Duke of Changning.
He was tall and lean, with short black hair that looked sharp and neat.
“Your Majesty, from what I see, the Crown Princess is likely a multi-element Magus. This wind element appears to be a further transformation of atmospheric elements. As you know, atmospheric elements can control wind and air, and also alter air temperature, turning water into ice. The Crown Prince’s strength is not weak,” a strategist respectfully replied.
“Hmm, that’s a problem. But she often skips classes and is somewhat immature. She probably won’t be able to shoulder great responsibility. Even if she inherits the throne, she won’t be able to control it. No matter how strong one person is, they can’t contend with my Military Corps. My plan can succeed entirely. The current Emperor is decadent and in poor health, and with the Crown Princess still young, this is the perfect opportunity for me to seize wealth and power!” The Duke of Changning and his companions’ voices were shrouded by a special magic barrier, preventing outsiders from noticing their plotting.
Back in the arena, after Qin Yu’s first strike, the Goblin learned to defend itself.
With the slash of the wind blade, the Goblin formed a shield using Basic Magic to block Qin Yu’s attacks.
(Basic Magic refers to the foundation of all elemental magics. It can transform from any elemental attribute and also into any other, often serving as a bridge in conversions between different elemental magics.)
Now the two exchanged blows, locked in a battle of attrition.
‘If this keeps up, I’ll run out of mana eventually. Need to go all out,’ Qin Yu thought, increasing her mana output.
Her wind blades grew fiercer than before, forcing the Goblin to retreat over ten meters and widening the distance between them.
Qin Yu manipulated the atmosphere to propel herself backward, creating nearly a 50-meter gap between them.
This was the first time the two had separated since the fight began.
Only about twenty seconds had passed—Qin Yu had been on the offensive while the Goblin focused on defense, making for an exhilarating fight.
At this moment, Qin Yu’s right hand formed a loose grip, and her Magic Staff appeared out of thin air.
“A rare-quality Magic Staff!” a student in the stands exclaimed.
Indeed, Qin Yu’s staff was rare quality—a luxury for a third-rank Magus.
But its most notable feature was its ability to appear from the void.
Qin Yu raised the staff high.
First, bolts of lightning wove a net of electricity around her, providing protection.
Then she lifted the staff and began chanting: “Great spirit of light, heed the call of your follower! Descend your holy radiance! Purify the filthy souls of sinners and restore them to sanctity!”
Light elements instantly filled the arena.
Holy light burst forth from the clouds, aiming straight at the Goblin.
“Saintly Light Baptism!” someone in the stands recognized the move.
In the blink of an eye, the Goblin was engulfed in the holy light and was struck down in a single blow.
Goblin, down.
“You pass!”
“Phew—” Qin Yu exhaled deeply, sitting cross-legged on the spot to replenish her exhausted mana.
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