The noise echoed in his ears, relentless and unyielding.

The person on the bed was jolted awake, painfully covering his ears and burrowing under his pillow, trying to ignore the raucous sounds outside and continue sleeping.

But things didn’t go as he wished; the noise not only grew louder but also carried a faint sense of vibration.

The protective barrier of the courtyard was violently struck, producing a dull thud.

No matter how noisy it was outside or how much commotion there was, Jiang Baiyu resolutely refused to budge, vowing to love his bed to the end. Not sleeping in during the holidays was simply a waste! But someone just had to disturb him, not letting him continue his lazy ways.

Suddenly, the dull crashing sound was mixed with the sound of shattering, and a powerful force surged into the second floor. A giant sword made of spiritual energy pierced through the room, its fierce sword aura shredding nearby objects, instantly turning the beautifully decorated dormitory into half a ruin, a complete mess.

“Hmph! The first place in the entrance exam is nothing special!”

“Little turtle, thinking you can hide in there and we can’t do anything about it!”

“Stop playing dead and get up to fight me!”

The shouts were filled with battle intent, accompanied by a condescending disdain, full of vigor, as if no one could rival them. Unhappy with their exam rankings, the first day they came to challenge the top scorer of the entrance exam, the youthful spirit of competition and desire for victory was at its peak, unwilling to bow down to anyone.

Jiang Baiyu lay on the bed, feeling like a corpse; the bed he had painstakingly repaired was now ruined. He had just moved in, and it hadn’t even warmed up yet before it was wrecked right in front of him.

The anger from being disturbed in his sweet dreams surged up to his head, igniting a flame of hatred.

Damn it! Where’s the courtesy?

His domain skill suddenly activated, enveloping the courtyard and pulling the shouting challengers into its range. The star chains wrapped around them, tightening fiercely, and then he flung them to the ground.

Gravity pinned them firmly in a deep pit, unable to move. Under the suppression of the domain, their strength was directly halved, and the challenger who had just been shouting found himself at a disadvantage in the blink of an eye.

The other party was incredulous, desperately trying to struggle free from the binding of the star chains. However, the dual shackles of the star formations and star chains couldn’t be broken simply by brute force.

The crowd outside the courtyard was taken aback, and one person shouted, “Don’t be afraid! He’s just one person, let’s go! I don’t believe we can’t take him down!”

Classic cannon fodder lines.

Sure enough, the others were stirred up, charging forward with immense confidence, trying to achieve victory through sheer numbers.

As soon as they stepped into the range of the star formations, they immediately felt something was off, and the next second, they were ensnared by the star chains, collapsing to their knees.

Jiang Baiyu stepped out from the shaky, dilapidated building, standing on the balcony still dressed in his sleepwear, looking down at the clueless fish below with a sinister smile, “You little brats, do you want to die? I’ll help you!”

The star chains tightened, dragging the first one to fall right in front of Jiang Baiyu.

The other party was both shocked and furious, shouting, “Let go! You nameless brat, dare to fight me head-on?”

Jiang Baiyu’s gaze turned even more ferocious and irritable, filled with killing intent. He reached out and grabbed the other’s neck with one hand while yanking their hair with the other, looking as if he was about to twist their head off with his bare hands.

He yanked out a large clump of hair, blood oozing from the other’s scalp, causing them to scream in agony.

“Stop!”

A voice rang out, and spiritual light spread, revealing a person floating in mid-air, holding a spiritual spear. “I heard you are the first in this entrance exam?”

Jiang Baiyu looked up to meet his gaze, “What do you want?”

“I am the second place, Poison God Si, here to seek guidance!”

As soon as he finished speaking, he swung his spiritual spear with lightning speed, attacking without giving Jiang Baiyu a chance to refuse. His aura was imposing, his battle armor shimmering with spiritual light, and his eyes sparkled with excitement and combativeness, just like his spear, which seemed capable of tearing through space, instantly breaking through the star formations to attack Jiang Baiyu.

Without hesitation, Jiang Baiyu shot a Starburst Spike at him, interrupting his spellcasting and causing a brief silence effect.

In the moment he lost his power, the star chains immediately wrapped around him, forming a large character in the air.

It turned out that the second place was indeed different from cannon fodder; the other party reacted quickly, breaking the silence and seizing his initial advantage. But he quickly adjusted; once the effect of the Starburst Spike wore off, a strong spiritual light enveloped him, rapidly extending along the star chains, using both hands and feet in an attempt to shatter the bindings.

Realizing the effect wasn’t as he had hoped, he decisively unleashed an even stronger force, a terrifying heat radiating from him, exploding outward and engulfing everything around him.

Jiang Baiyu casually tossed aside the person in his hand to block this attack, and the shaky building finally couldn’t withstand the destruction, collapsing with a loud crash, completely turning into ruins. Not only that, but the explosion also had other effects; everything touched by the aura became toxic.

The flowers, plants, and trees in the courtyard instantly withered, turning into a desiccated state, and the once clear pond now floated with dead fish, lifeless.

Just like that, the beautiful courtyard dormitory was gone.

Jiang Baiyu’s forehead throbbed with veins, regretting not having directly interrupted the other’s spellcasting with a Starburst Spike earlier. He couldn’t use it continuously; there was a cooldown.

He quickly changed his outfit, equipping his sect’s weapon. When the Roasted Wing Ring appeared, the suddenly silent Poison God Si looked momentarily lost, as if he had found a worthy opponent to fight, only to realize that the other was just a cook squatting in the kitchen.

???

He swung his spiritual spear again, launching a fierce attack that could directly pierce through someone.

The Roasted Wing Ring met him head-on, the spiritual spear piercing into the center of the empty ring, which then lunged at Poison God Si along the spear.

The other party reacted quickly, trying to shake off the Roasted Wing Ring, but the center of the empty ring had an inexplicable force that tightly gripped the spiritual spear, advancing with an irresistible posture, as if it were swallowing the spear whole.

Forced to let go, Poison God Si dodged the incoming Roasted Wing Ring.

The next second, he found himself trapped in the center of the Roasted Wing Ring.

Attempting to use the same trick to break free, he unleashed his power, but was immediately pushed back, the invisible binding force far exceeding the star chains, the pressure making his bones creak.

Poison God Si tried several times with no effect and finally gave up.

“First in the exam, you truly deserve it; I’m convinced.” Poison God Si’s gaze was strange, his tone complex, “I didn’t expect a food cultivator to be this formidable; today has truly opened my eyes.”

Jiang Baiyu’s gaze shifted slightly, glancing at his dormitory, his face darkening, “What do you all want? One by one, coming to trouble me!”

Poison God Si showed no remorse, looking as if it was only natural, “The rankings of the entrance exam are visible to everyone; who wouldn’t want to challenge the first place? If you win, the best cultivation spot belongs to you. The first-year dormitories are all on this mountain, and the strongest spiritual vein belongs to the first place.”

Jiang Baiyu’s expression was flat, “So this bunch of rabble wants to try and snatch first place?”

Poison God Si glanced at the people sprawled on the ground, “There will always be those who don’t see their own worth, barely passing the exam yet thinking highly of themselves.”

As he finished speaking, he noticed Jiang Baiyu staring at him.

Poison God Si fell silent for a moment before boldly stating, “Who wouldn’t want to challenge the first place and become the top of the grade?”

The battle between the two had scared off a group of onlookers, and the elite who had been secretly observing began to reveal themselves. Just as Poison God Si said, there were many new students intending to challenge the first place; who wouldn’t want to occupy the best cultivation spot on the mountain with the strongest spiritual vein?

With the second place defeated, the third, fourth, and fifth places rushed out, showing no regard for martial ethics, directly charging in.

They all wanted to challenge the first place but didn’t care about the order of arrival, so they simply fought amongst themselves, starting a chaotic brawl against Jiang Baiyu and each other.

Jiang Baiyu had no choice but to retract the Roasted Wing Ring, and the now free Poison God Si, invigorated, didn’t hesitate to join the fray.

Young people are easily swept up in passion; the brawl among the top five attracted others with similar intentions. The entrance exam simply couldn’t satisfy their desire for victory and competitiveness. Those who could rank high were all outstanding young talents, each with their own way of judging people, deeply dissatisfied with the academy’s entrance rankings and allocations.

The chaos was intense; as the first in the grade, Jiang Baiyu became the target of everyone’s pursuit. Even though they fought among themselves, their unified goal was to defeat Jiang Baiyu. Even if each person just landed a hit on him, it would be a troublesome situation, especially unfavorable for him.

The advantage of the shifting stars revealed itself in the chaos.

Even so, he couldn’t avoid some minor setbacks, and Jiang Baiyu’s anger finally skyrocketed.

Wanting to sleep in but being disturbed, his bed collapsed, his house was gone, and the dormitory had completely turned into ruins, only to be ground into dust afterward.

What kind of annoying pests are these?

Not just one, but a whole bunch!

Impulsive, combative, disregarding martial ethics, and all wanting to snatch his dormitory!

Jiang Baiyu gritted his teeth, the power of the star formations surged, his domain erupted, distorting the scenery within the skill’s range, as if overlapping with the starry sky.

Gravity suddenly made it difficult for the challengers to stand; each felt as heavy as a thousand pounds. More terrifying was the intense sense of crisis they felt, their souls trembling as if they would disintegrate into cosmic dust at any moment.

Jiang Baiyu laughed maniacally, “Look at me, you little brats!”

The stars intertwined, sketching out complex patterns, beautiful and dreamy, yet filled with deadly intent.

Just as he was about to unleash his power, a commanding voice rang out from the air, “Stop!”

Jiang Baiyu felt a force descending upon him, trying to dispel his star formations.

“If you unleash that, they won’t be able to handle it. Killing is prohibited within the academy, and so is deadly combat.”

The Roasted Wing Ring spun rapidly, rising into the air to confront the other party.

The other continued, “The victor can claim the best spiritual vein, but if you lose, the punishment will be set by you, as long as it complies with the academy’s regulations, anything goes.”

That was exactly what he was waiting for!

Jiang Baiyu looked at these elegantly dressed young masters, each with a distinct style, but undoubtedly all good-looking, their attire exuding high-end aesthetics and taste. They probably all came from good backgrounds, with solid family conditions; the rich in culture and the rich in martial prowess, cultivation required resources.

He retracted the star formations, maliciously saying, “As the defeated challengers, from now on, you’ll all be members of the Zang Ai family!”

So eager to show off, so full of energy, they must be treated to some flashy style.

Let the Zang Ai family illuminate your academy life.

Ah, youth!