- A few minutes earlier -

(Xuan Kai's Perspective)

"Level One Ice Magic - Blizzard!" Feng Mian chanted, a raging snowstorm forming around her, enclosing both Zhang Zhe Rui and Ai Yao.

I smirked. Did she know I was here, or was it purely by chance that she laid down such a good assist? Well, no matter. Either way, it showed we had good teamwork and affinity with each other.

I stayed within the shadows and entered the blizzard. Immediately, I made out two figures, one tall, one short. Both of them weren't Feng Mian's height, so I immediately judged they were my two targets. Once I was in range, I swiftly cut through between the two of them, snatching their school crests in the process. As soon as I grabbed them, I crushed them, along with their hearts.

"Attention: Ai Yao - Eliminated."

The mechanical speakers announced my success.

"Attention: Zhang Zhe Rui - Eliminated."

Right now is when I should be celebrating, but what just happened...almost seemed TOO successful. It was as if the two of them didn't have their guard up at all, even while inside an enemy's domain. It felt...too easy, like they were LETTING me eliminated them. I observed as the floor below them opened up to let them fell through, before closing again. The two didn't hold any expressions of anger, unhappiness, or even shock. If anyone were taken by surprise like that from behind, it was only natural to be surprised, but the two didn't seem to give off that feel at all.

I couldn't quite place my finger on it, but something was definitely off. But first thing first, I decided to check up on Feng Mian.

After some wandering, I found her with her guard up. I didn't want her shooting something at me, so I lowered my hood.

She sighed in relief seeing it was me, and muttered exasperatedly. "So it was you..."

"Er...Are you okay?" I asked.

She stiffened for some reason, and blushed deeply. "E-Eh?! A-Ah, yes, I-I'm fine."

I nodded. "I see. Good to hear."

We then stared at each other for a couple of seconds in silence. However, that tranquility was soon broken by the footsteps of a person. The sound wasn't heavy, so I immediately discerned who it was.

"So you finally decide to show yourself," I said eyeing behind me but without turning my head completely.

"Hahah...you noticed me?" the figure replied, laughing hysterically. "Well, I suppose it doesn't matter. You'll be dying here today."

...I see. Turns out, HE - Li Yi Fei - was the cause of the uneasy feeling I've been having. Li Yi Fei and his team...they weren't aiming to beat us fairly in the first place. From the moment this Advancement Exam was announced, they had began secretly plotting against me. And now, Feng Mian had unknowingly set the perfect stage for them to execute their forbidden plan.

"What are you talking about?!" Feng Mian cried out, bewildered at his words.

"Ho...you still don't understand?" Li Yi Fei laughed darkly. "Very well. I will explain - the plan is already 99% complete. And the final phase, begins here."

*****

- Meanwhile, outside Feng Mian's Blizzard -

"He's down!" Qing Yue announced, wiping sweat from her forehead.

"Roger that!" Yu An Xue replied, and sent one last blast of magic at the solid rock wall in front of her.

"Level Two Fire Magic - Abomination Flare!"

A loud explosion resounded across the arena, and so did the shattered fragments of Bao Yan Shi's Earth Surge shield. Smoke enveloped their surroundings.

"Whew! That took longer than expected..." Yu An Yan muttered after gently falling back to the ground.

Qing Yue and Yu An Xue quickly ran over to her. "Mm...are you okay, big sis?"

"Yeah. No big deal," Yu An Yan replied. "Still...that certainly was tough," she said while looking at where the earth wall used to be, now shrouded in smoke.

"I agree...it took me a very long time to make him give in using my Psychic Magic. If I didn't do so, it probably would've been even harder to break through," Qing Yue added.

"It's okay, you specialize in Blessing Magic, after all. No need to be so hard on yourself," Yu An Yan comforted.

The smoke dispersed soon enough and the three girls went up closer to investigate. However, what awaited them was a fat boy, namely Pang Zi. It was strange - there should've been three people waiting for them here, instead of just one. The girls assumed Bao Yan Shi had already been cleared off the arena, but that still left one person...

"Where's your master, loyal dog?" Yu An Yan taunted angrily. Pang Zi had participated in attempting to hurt Feng Mian, and gravely injured Xuan Kai in the process. That was something she would never forgive, even if the victims themselves had already forgotten all about it, and let bygones be bygones.

"Heh, you think I'm going to tell you that?" Pang Zi replied triumphantly, showing no sign of anger from being called a dog. "I'm not stupid. There's absolutely no way I'm going to tell you my master's in the process of killing that bastard Xuan Kai in the blizzard right now. Haha!"

Had it not been time was urgent, the three girls would've facepalmed on the spot at this boy's stupidity. However, they weren't complaining, since it was exactly that nonexistent intelligence that helped them out.

"The blizzard, huh..." Yu An Yan muttered.

"Is it that one over there?" Qing Yue said, pointing to the corner of the platform, where nothing could be seen from the outside, since the entire area had been enveloped in a raging snowstorm.

"That seems to be Feng Mian's snowstorm..." Yu An Yan guessed. "Something must've went wrong. Let's go."

"Huh? Where do you think you're going?" Pang Zi asked. "Fight me!"

"I don't have time to play with you right now," Yu An Yan said coldly, tone dripping with venom.

"Hmph! You don't have a choice!" Pang Zi declared, and stood firmly between the girls and their destination.

Yu An Yan gritted her teeth, and prepared to straight up blast him out of the way, but Yu An Xue then spoke up.

"Big sis...let me handle this."

Yu An Yan, seeing her little sister's determined eyes, sighed and steeled her own resolve. "Okay. I'll leave it to you."

Saying this, she and Qing Yue dashed around Pang Zi. He tried to stop them, but Yu An Xue quickly shot an ice projectile at him. For how fat he was, he sure had some fast reflexes. Dodging out of the way, he cursed.

"Your opponent, is me," Yu An Xue said firmly.

"Keh...I'll finish you quickly then," he spat.

*****

- Inside the Blizzard -

(Xuan Kai's Perspective)

"Feng Mian, be on your guard," I said cautiously. I didn't know what kind of plan Li Yi Fei had, but knowing Zhang Zhe Rui's intelligence, I have no doubt it will be a dangerous one - for us.

"Mm," Feng Mian nodded at my words, and stayed behind me.

"Man...still, I have to say," Li Yi Fei began, walking closer towards us. "Lady Feng Mian, you did me a great favor by placing down this blizzard. Originally, I had wanted to use the smoke from your allies outside breaking down Bao Yan Shi's shield as cover, but...this will do just fine."

"Huh?! What do you mean, I did you a favor...?" Feng Mian asked, still confused.

I tried to calm her down, and asked her a question in a composed manner. "Feng Mian...how long do we have until this blizzard wears off?"

"Um...around five minutes more?" she replied uncertainly, meaning there was a chance it would be longer...shit. Five minutes is already more than enough for him to kill me, depending on what method he used.

I turned to face Li Yi Fei, now clear within my view. "Li Yi Fei...over the years, haven't you done enough to me? What more do you want?"

He snickered. "Yeah, you're right...I have done a lot of things to you. But there's still just one more thing want."

I narrowed my eyes. "And? That 'thing' is...?"

"I want you...to be ERASED!"

Li Yi Fei took out a gun from behind his back, and my eyes widened. The amount of mana flowing from this gun was something I have never witnessed before. There was no way it was just an ordinary pistol. Li Yi Fei spun it around in his hand a couple of times, and aimed it at me.

"DIE, XUAN KAI!"

"Shit-! Feng Mian, dodge!" I yelled behind me.

"R-Right!" she quickly moved out of the way, but by now the gun had finished charging up. This wasn't just any gun. This was a Magic Artifact, and quite a powerful one at that. The projectile size was far larger than I imagined, and I quickly realized that dodging was out of the question. At this rate, both Feng Mian and I would be hit.

Li Yi Fei pulled the trigger-

"Damn it!" I held my stone pendant up as a desperate, last minute move. Previously, it had absorbed the power of the Abomination Flare...but everything has a limit. I didn't know whether or not it could withstand this powerful Magic Artifact, but it was my last resort.

Feng Mian and I shut our eyes tight, and hoped for the best.