Free Web NovelChapter 120: Chapter 90: Too Many People
Ever since news of the trial spread, it had drawn the attention of countless people, both in the open and in secret.
Everyone wanted to know which three Wizard Apprentices would ultimately distinguish themselves and become the elites representing Chenxi City in the competition.
And after countless people had waited with bated breath, that day finally arrived.
The trial was to be held in a mountain range over fifty kilometers outside the city.
Early in the morning, the mountains were already packed with Wizard Apprentices who had come to spectate.
The four major Wizard Academies, the City Guard Army, the Silver Light Legion—even some Mercenary Corps had Wizard Apprentices who made a special trip to be here.
Wizard Apprentices, who were a rare sight in the Outer City, now covered the mountains and plains. A single glance revealed a dark sea of heads, numbering at least ten thousand people. It was truly a magnificent, once-in-a-lifetime spectacle.
And on the mountaintop, the Wizard Apprentices participating in the trial had gathered.
Pei Ze scanned his surroundings. The dense crowd consisted of at least five hundred people by his estimation.
One had to understand that even the weakest among those who dared to sign up for the trial were Third-level Wizard Apprentices. They were either academy elites who practiced an Advanced Meditation Technique or veteran apprentices who had spent years at the Third-level Wizard Apprentice stage.
Any one of the people here would be considered an elite anywhere else.
On a Plane Battlefield, these five hundred-plus individuals would be enough to fight a medium-intensity war.
It was worth noting that although the crowd seemed large and chaotic, it was actually clearly divided, subtly separated into four distinct factions.
A group of very young men and women were gathered together. All of them, regardless of gender, wore gray robes and bore badges on their chests, signifying their identities as students of the Wizard Academies.
These students were, in turn, subtly divided into four smaller groups, representing the four major Wizard Academies: Shadow, Violet, High Tower, and Moonstone.
Among them, the Wizard Apprentices from High Tower Academy had all gathered around Pei Ze, implicitly treating him as their leader. This was true even for the upperclassmen.
This scene attracted a great deal of attention.
Many scrutinizing gazes shifted back and forth between his face and the first-year badge on his chest, filled with either confusion or curiosity.
To the right of the academy faction was a group of Wizard Apprentices who wore gray robes over leather armor. Their movements and demeanor were exceptionally sharp and efficient.
They belonged to the City Guard Army.
To the left of the academy faction was another group of apprentices, similarly clad in gray robes over leather armor.
However, compared to the Wizard Apprentices from the City Guard Army, their auras were more formidable. Their entire beings seemed to faintly exude a sharp, bloodthirsty killing intent.
Without a doubt, these were the Wizard Apprentices from the Silver Light Legion.
Only Silver Light Soldiers, who fought year-round on the Plane Battlefield, could possess such a ferocious aura.
The last group was a motley crew, dressed in all sorts of attire. Their stances were sloppy and disorganized, giving off the impression of a disorderly mob.
They were Wizard Apprentices from various Mercenary Corps and adventuring parties.
Compared to the members of the other three factions, their overall spirit and bearing were clearly a notch below.
In truth, their strength really couldn’t compare to that of the other three factions.
They had only come to the trial to try their luck.
’What if we get incredibly lucky and pass the trial?’
’We’d strike it rich!’
They made no effort to hide their intentions, laughing and joking loudly about it, which drew looks of contempt and disdain from the other three factions.
Pei Ze listened and shook his head to himself.
’These people aren’t thinking things through. The Dawn Council organized this trial to select elites to represent Chenxi City in a duel against Red Lotus City.’
’This concerns the distribution of an entire plane’s revenue; the Dawn Council is bound to be extremely careful.’
’Even if someone with insufficient strength managed to secure a spot through sheer, explosive luck, would the Dawn Council really let them compete?’
’The answer is obvious.’
’Nine times out of ten, that lucky person would have to withdraw from the competition due to an "accident," or they might even disappear from the face of the earth entirely. Then, the Dawn Council would simply select a powerful Wizard Apprentice to take their place.’
’It’s practically a foregone conclusion.’
’If you want to talk about fairness, this trial does have it, to a degree.’
’But it’s a fairness reserved for a very small number of elites.’
’They get to compete fairly for the three slots on the stage the Dawn Council has prepared.’
’As for everyone else... they’re just the green leaves meant to make the flowers stand out.’
’If someone fails to understand their place and tries to be a flower, they’ll just end up being uprooted.’
Unfortunately, in the face of such a tempting prize, very few could see this point clearly.
While Pei Ze was lost in thought, another group was secretly sizing him up from afar.
"So that’s Pei Ze?"
The speaker was a tall, slender young man.
He had a pair of ice-blue eyes, and his features were as sharp and hard as an ice sculpture, tinged with a frosty chill. He exuded an equally cold aura.
He wore a pitch-black apprentice’s robe. The badge on his chest was engraved with a deep, winding river.
The River of the Netherworld!
The insignia of Shadow Academy.
More than a dozen Wizard Apprentices were gathered around the young man, surrounding him like stars orbiting the moon.
As soon as the young man finished speaking, another youth with short, reddish-brown hair and three horizontal black stripes on his left cheek immediately replied, "That must be Pei Ze. There’s no other first-year at High Tower Academy who could command such obedience from the upperclassmen." ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom
A black-haired youth with an earring standing nearby sneered, "The folks at High Tower Academy are getting more pathetic by the day. A bunch of third-years are actually following a first-year’s lead. After Yin Xue was promoted to Wizard, is there no one left in their third year?"
