3: I Wonder...
On the rostrum, King Zhou Yan sat upright, while the principals and deans of each school frowned and fixed their gaze on the screen.
"Why does this kid still have mana?"
"He has already used Phantom three times in a row!"
"Why is he still able to cast?"
"..."
Originally, they believed that unleashing such a powerful Phantom skill would consume a significant amount of mana. They thought that Ling Zhan could only use it three or four times at most before depleting his mana.
But to their surprise, Ling Zhan's blue bar still hadn't emptied!
What exactly was happening?
Just as everyone was in shock, in the light curtain, facing the three Poisonous Scorpion Kings, Ling Zhan cast his fifth Phantom.
Ding!
The knight's sword struck the hard shell of the Poisonous Scorpion King, causing brilliant sparks to bloom.
However, it still couldn't break through the defense of the Poisonous Scorpion King.
The sixth Phantom was unleashed!
Ding!
Still unable to break through!
"Although assassins have flexible professional skills, their attack power is mediocre. Even if you release the Phantom ten times, it won't be enough to break the defense of the Poisonous Scorpion King," King Zhou Yan spoke indifferently from the rostrum at this moment.
The other principals and directors nodded in agreement upon hearing his words.
The Poisonous Scorpion King was different from ordinary scorpion monsters. Not only were they larger, but they also possessed higher defense and HP!
The Phantom skill alone couldn't penetrate the defense of the Poisonous Scorpion King.
"Even though he has unlimited mana, he is still an unemployed casual person. It's estimated that he'll reach his limit here," King Zhou Yan concluded.
The other principals and directors had no differing opinions. In their eyes, this candidate named Ling Zhan dared to enter the secret realm for the college entrance examination alone, as an individual!
If he didn't fail, who would?
"Haha, it seems that unleashing the Phantom a few more times won't be enough to defeat the Poisonous Scorpion King."
"This Ling Zhan is probably going to die here!"
"No one can save him; this is a secret realm! It's not child's play!"
"Hehe, trying to make a splash, daring to enter the secret realm as an individual, does he really think he won't die?"
"..."
The students observing the battle were also engaged in a lot of discussion, with most of them wearing sneers and contemptuous smiles.
Almost no one held any optimism for Ling Zhan at this moment.
In the secret realm, Ling Zhan pondered as he had just released the sixth Phantom.
And at that moment, the three Poisonous Scorpion Kings had already seized the opportunity while Ling Zhan was casting his skills and charged towards him!
Their tail needles, drenched in purple venom, lashed out at Ling Zhan like lightning!
The students outside watching the battle were filled with tension.
However, facing such a perilous situation, Ling Zhan remained calm in his heart. He quickly took out his staff and activated a skill.
"Flash of Thunder!"
Blue electric arcs crackled across his body.
In an instant, his speed greatly increased!
"Whoosh!"
Ling Zhan stepped forward, his figure disappearing from the spot like lightning, narrowly evading the deadly attack of the Poisonous Scorpion King.
The next second, his figure reappeared not far away, his expression still incredibly calm.
[Mage Elementary Skill: Flash of Thunder]
[Skill positioning: Support class.]
[Skill description: Blesses teammates or oneself with a blue arc, significantly increasing their speed.]
"Isn't this a mage's basic skill, Flash of Thunder!?"
"Something's not right. Why does his Flash of Thunder increase his speed so much?"
"My heart nearly stopped when I saw that. The poisonous needle was only three centimeters away from Ling Zhan!"
"Why does he still have the mana to cast Flash of Thunder?"
"..."
Outside, countless students stared at the screen in disbelief.
This unemployed individual had already used the Phantom six times, plus Flash of Thunder. How did he have so much mana?
And more importantly, why did his Flash of Thunder grant such a significant speed increase?
He was still an ordinary casual person!
The students present who had chosen the mage profession knew that the speed increase from their own Flash of Thunder was nowhere near as substantial as Ling Zhan's!
However, what happened next shocked them even more.
In the secret realm, Ling Zhan, who had perfectly dodged the Poisonous Scorpion King's attack, didn't stop there. He continued to chant an incantation.
"Dungeon Technique!"
Click, click, click...
The ground beneath the feet of the three Poisonous Scorpion Kings turned into mud, quickly adhering to their limbs and solidifying rapidly.
"Hiss..."
The three Poisonous Scorpion Kings hissed and struggled, but the Dungeon Technique had completely immobilized their legs, rendering them temporarily unable to move freely.
"Fireball!"
Ling Zhan continued his incantation.
A hot, bright red fireball with a one-meter radius condensed above his head.
As the fireball appeared, the surrounding air distorted from the intense heat.
The fireball didn't last long...
Boom!
The bright red fireball, brimming with immense heat energy, landed precisely on the positions of the three Poisonous Scorpion Kings without any deviation.
In an instant, the fireball exploded, and the terrifying heat and shockwave swept across, relentlessly bombarding the shells of the three Poisonous Scorpion Kings.
Their shells turned red, resembling molten magma!
"Squeak..."
However, the three Poisonous Scorpion Kings remained alive, their shell defenses unbroken!
"This Ling Zhan has so much combat experience!"
"Yes, his use of Dungeon Technique and Fireball surpasses even a mage like me!"
"Is the Scorpion King's defense that high?"
"After all, it's considered an elite monster in this secret realm. If breaking its defense were that easy, it wouldn't be considered elite, right?"
"What's the maximum amount of mana that Ling Zhan has!? Does anyone know?"
"Why is he able to use so many skills?"
"..."
Outside, countless students expressed astonishment, doubt, and curiosity one after another.
The astonishment stemmed from admiration for Ling Zhan's smooth and skilled combat maneuvers.
The doubt arose from questioning how Ling Zhan had so much mana.
And the curiosity came from their desire to understand Ling Zhan better.
Why had they never heard of such a remarkable individual at No. 1 Middle School?
On the rostrum, there was a moment of silence.
"This..."
The principals and directors also froze upon witnessing that the three Poisonous Scorpion Kings remained unharmed.
Clearly, they were beginning to feel that the college entrance examination's secret realm this time was exceptionally challenging.
The appearance of these Poisonous Scorpion Kings, with such high defense, implied that if they continued further into the secret realm, the monsters they would encounter would have even higher defenses.
However, although they complained inwardly about the difficulty of the college entrance examination's secret realm, they didn't dare to voice their concerns in front of King Zhou Yan.
King Zhou Yan's expression had turned indifferent.
"The purpose of establishing this secret realm is to test the cooperation of each student team! The high defense of the Scorpion King precisely demonstrates that this dungeon cannot be cleared alone!"
"This student is self-righteous and arrogant. It's fine to enter as an individual, but he didn't even find a teammate!"
"This is simply a display of extreme negligence toward the college entrance examination!"
Upon hearing King Zhou Yan's stern words, all the principals and directors shrank back.
The principal and dean of No. 1 Middle School were already on the verge of tears.
After all, Ling Zhan was their school's student.