Myriad Realms Gatekeeper

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The young man in white screamed loudly.

His panic-stricken, fearful voice echoed throughout the entire banquet hall.

Lady An's expression shifted subtly as she instinctively raised her hand but then paused mid-air.

If he died, what then?

The Three Major Colleges would surely join forces to severely punish such malicious killing of an examinee.

Even the World Government would issue a condemnation statement.

—Because this was the most watched joint entrance examination in the world, the oldest and greatest talent selection mechanism in human civilization.

No one was allowed to violate it!

Lady An's hand moved slightly, making a discreet gesture before lowering again.

...Go ahead and kill him.

As long as you kill someone here in public, whatever happened before will no longer matter to anyone.

People will only care about one thing—

You are the murderer.

The young man who stepped forward seeking credit for his actions, since you lost to him, the only place you can be of maximum use now is at this moment.

Hurry.

Hurry and die.

Once you die at his hands—

Whether it's Song Qingyun's reputation, the Clan Young Masters who hired assassins, or the lives of those tens of thousands, even tonight's farce will be gone.

As long as you are killed by him—

All these matters will go up in smoke!

The banquet hall fell silent.

This moment was like a paused frame in a movie.

Everyone stood still, like clay statues, their expressions frozen on their faces, waiting for that one event to happen.

All the gambits and calculations were in place.

The impetuous young man, eager for advancement, was about to offer his final value.

All could be smoothed over with this.

The orchestra's performance had already stopped.

As ordinary people, they could only watch the scene unfold with faces filled with fear, also unable to utter a single word.

Some musicians even covered their mouths tightly, held down their instruments, and bowed their heads.

—If they made an inappropriate move and affected a situation they knew nothing about, then tonight would be their last night alive.

Tick-tock.

Tick-tock.

Tick-tock.

The clock's second hand jumped once, jumped again, and then jumped once more.

Shen Ye held the young man in white with one hand, studying the changes in his facial expressions.

In the first second, he was afraid.

In the second second, he was hopeful.

By the third second—

The young man in white seemed to realize something, his face turned ashen, the previously unrestrained vitality in his eyes dried up.

Indeed.

Having been immersed in the life of a noble family from a young age, seeing all manner of things, he understood the situation at this moment with just a thought.

The fourth second.

"Do you see now?" Shen Ye still did not move, his eyes filled with scorn, "This is how the world ends, not with a bang but with a whimper."

"And the reason for all this, is nothing more than you losing your value."

"This is the life you lead."

"Despicable."

The young man in white did not react at all, hanging his head as if he was nothing but an empty shell.

Shen Ye held him, and then suddenly burst into laughter:

"Look, we were just sparring, yet all your people wish you dead, hahaha!"

The crowd stirred restlessly.

Indeed.

This detestable brat always laid things bare.

It was difficult for people to get used to it.

Suddenly, Shen Ye swung his fist to hit the young man in white—

Thud.

A tremendous force arrived.

Shen Ye was sent flying.

A man dressed in a black uniform, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, stood in the center, his hand wearing a silver Cracked Armor Glove, gently catching the young man in white.

"Alright, sparring is fine, but it's really not good to hurt the mood," the man with the glasses said smilingly.

"Who are you? To show up and save the day at this moment," Shen Ye asked with a smile.

"I am a proctor from Azure Academy—today's fight was truly splendid, and I believe the Divine Artifact will give you a good evaluation."

"So, I wish you good luck with your exam."

Amidst these words, the venomous snake that no one else impeded swiftly flew back to the young man in white.

Having gained back his life, Lady An immediately wrapped her arms around him.

"Though you lost, you fought well, come to our house after the exam ends, I have something for you," Lady An murmured softly.

The young man in white suddenly lifted his head, like a fish returning to the water.

He didn't even give Shen Ye another look, but immediately turned his eyes to the leaderboard.

—The rankings hadn't changed!

Because the fight was interrupted by the proctor, he wasn't considered to have lost!

But how frustrating!

He had made such a spectacle of himself in front of everyone.

The young man in white looked bitterly resentful, pointing at Shen Ye from a distance, and shouted:

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"Do you think you've won?"

"No, you've been in a different class from me from the moment you were born. Our lives are completely different, and the resources and strength we can muster are as different as heaven and earth."

"We were born on the peaks of mountains, with the right to look down upon everything, while you are but an ant at the foot of the mountain. What do you count for?"

"One day, you will completely collapse because you are unable to resist us;"

"You will end up taking your own life in extreme desolation;"

"You will quietly leave this world;"

"Not one of those close to you will meet a good fate."

He roared, "I swear it! This will surely come soon!"

Everyone turned their eyes to Shen Ye.

Even the proctor showed an interested expression, wanting to see how he would respond.

But Shen Ye showed not the slightest anger.

He listened attentively to the other's oath, a sad expression gradually appearing on his face.

However, no one knew why he was sad.

Some even thought he was already scared.

Only Xiao Mengyu felt some pity in her heart and silently stepped forward to tug at him.

"Don't take it to heart."

She whispered, "Song Qingyun is a grade above us; those truly powerful senior Clan Young Masters are not here, so—"

"Don't bother with such trash."

Shen Ye gave a grunt and couldn't even be bothered to look at the boy in white again.

Suddenly, a loud bell tolled in the sky.

"Here it comes! The Divine Artifact's final evaluation for us."

Xiao Mengyu said softly.

The banquet hall shimmered with various colorful auspicious phantoms.

It looked as if a meteor shower had descended in the pitch-black night sky, with countless points of light shooting down from the far reaches of the heavens, spinning incessantly in the hall and entering the cards of the candidates.

At this moment, everything else stopped.

The boy in white was receiving emergency treatment, while someone handed him a medicine box.

"Eat up quickly! After the card evaluation, you'll be transported. Try to heal as soon as possible to face the next exam," urged the person next to him.

The boy in white grabbed a handful of medicine and fed it to himself.

At the same time.

The examinees all held up their cards.

Xiao Mengyu also looked at her own card.

A bundle of light flew into her card, turning into rows of glowing text:

"As a Five-Star newcomer, you have received the final evaluation:"

"Pose of the Sword Saint."

"Before receiving the Divine Sword, you were the fifth-ranked seed among newcomers; after obtaining the Divine Sword, your combat power has greatly improved, almost fearless in one-on-one fights; hence you are granted the 'Team Leader' power, hoping you can gain benefits in cooperation and teamwork."

"Team Leader."

"Explanation:"

"Effect 1: When you call out to someone and they agree to join your team, they will be instantly transported to your side, allowing you to double your strength as a team;"

"Effect 2: When you are not in a team, your strength will be reduced by seventy percent;"

"Effect 3: In the team, if you hand over the leadership position to someone else, you will maintain normal strength, while the other person will gain Effect 1."

"Triple effects have been activated and will last until the end of the exam."

"Additionally."

"As an examinee, you have acquired the essential survival item for the exam:"

"Candlelight Flame."

"Description: It is inextinguishable; with it, you can see clearly around you at the start of the exam."

"—Congratulations, you have been granted permission to participate in this year's joint exam of the Three Major Colleges."

"Rest for three minutes before transport begins."

Shen Ye looked down at his own card.

Rows of text had already appeared:

"As a Five-Star newcomer, you have received the final evaluation:"

"The Unyielding."

"In every sense, you are both the prey and the meat on the chopping board; those diners at the feast will have no pity for you. Poor you, falling into such a predicament, you have not submitted to your opponents—even won a fight. This is greatly admirable; therefore, you are granted 'Meat.'"

"Explanation:"

"No matter who or what, you must be hit at least three times before you completely lose the ability to fight and then die, or become qualified meat to be consumed by others."

"As an examinee, you have acquired the essential survival item for the exam:"

"Candlelight Flame."

"Description: It is inextinguishable; with it, you can see clearly around you in the exam room."

"—Congratulations, you have been granted permission to participate in this year's joint exam of the Three Major Colleges."

"Rest for three minutes before transport begins."

Shen Ye glanced at his card and was about to put it away when suddenly,

The card quivered slightly and emitted a bright light.

Shen Ye looked down and saw new text emerge on the card:

"Your 'Candlelight Flame' has been stolen."

"The thief is also a candidate, possessing the evaluation of 'Exploitation,' with which they have taken away your light."

"You will not be able to see anything in the exam room."

Shen Ye looked up around him.

Those Scions of the Noble Families, even Lady An, the bigshots sitting at a distance, and even the main proctor, all watched him with a tacit understanding in their gaze.

Oh.

So they knew.

They knew what he was about to face.

Just as the evaluation stated, he was now the meat on the cutting board.