The Wizard's Pursuit of Truth

Freshman Square was utterly silent. When Dante Qiuji and Jim Novy appeared with bitter expressions, all the Wizards present regarded them with sympathetic gazes.

They had lost—that was an indisputable fact. But their performance had also been outstanding and worthy of recognition.

Ultimately, their opponent was simply too fearsome.

They had all seen the scenes on the projection: four opponents ganging up on Wang Ya Harak. His Witchcraft had been incisive, his grasp on the details of the fight masterful, and his on-the-fly reactions had been pushed to their very limit.

Of course, it was Wang Ya’s performance that shocked them most. He had played on his opponents’ psychology, even using himself as bait to lay a trap.

The final, decisive blow was an absolutely stunning scene: tens of thousands of Extraordinary Creatures flooding in to overwhelm them. The sheer scale of it was inconceivable!

The average Wizard Freshman would likely be scared to death just from witnessing such a sight.

Extraordinary Creatures of the same level were generally no match for a Wizard, but that depended on the circumstances. A Beast Tide like this could probably only be stopped by an Extreme Wizard Apprentice.

In Freshman Square were not only the Teaching Wizards but also the Wizard Freshmen undergoing medical check-ups. The seriously injured had already been sent for centralized treatment; those who weren’t seriously hurt were waiting for the Erosion Forest Secret Realm to conclude.

Mona and Matthew had long been eliminated. They too were in the crowd, staring blankly at the projection, at the figure standing on a flying creature against a backdrop of a vast sea of Extraordinary Creatures.

That familiar figure and unmistakable face... it was Wang Ya. He had actually come this far.

He had defeated so many powerful enemies and become the sole victor in the Erosion Forest Secret Realm.

The two of them could hardly believe it. The Wang Ya on the projection seemed like a stranger. ’Is this really the same Wang Ya who used to hang out with us?’

Lando Wizard, Gusai Wizard, and the others were also stunned by this final reversal.

They never would have imagined that Wang Ya would win the final victory in the Erosion Forest Secret Realm in such a way.

"A one-on-five... He actually pulled it off. He won!" Lando Wizard couldn’t help but exclaim. "Young Wizards these days really don’t leave any breathing room for us old-timers."

"When did he take control of the Extraordinary Creatures? And so many of them... What method did he use?" the Wind Wizard wondered, unable to wrap his head around it.

Gusai Wizard’s eyes narrowed slightly as he replayed the events in his mind. Then, his gaze locked onto Harak on the screen.

"Could it be that bird!"

"You mean Wang Ya’s cultivated creature!" the Wind Wizard said with some surprise. When they entered the Secret Realm, they had seen the black bird. It disappeared afterward, and they just assumed it had hidden itself to act as a scout.

Afterward, Wang Ya’s performance captured all their attention, so they hadn’t paid much mind to the black bird.

It wasn’t impossible. Wang Ya had been under their watch almost the entire time, and he hadn’t made any strange moves. The possibility that it was the black bird was very high.

Lando Wizard clicked his tongue in awe. "That tiny little crow, controlling tens of thousands of Extraordinary Creatures... That’s insane."

Then, his tone shifted. "As the last freshman standing in the Erosion Forest, how many Dark Badges will he have collected...? Rod, the top performer in the Heaven-Filling Fire Secret Realm, currently has just over three thousand."

The three of them exchanged glances. This wasn’t just about a top-three finish anymore—he could actually take first place.

The rewards for first place, in addition to a slot as a Child of the Dark, included one chance to freely enter and exit a secret realm, one selection opportunity in the Land of Inheritance, and a monthly consultation with an Official Wizard of his own choice.

"I can already imagine the scene after the Secret Realm competition ends, with those big shots recruiting these outstanding freshmen." Lando Wizard picked his nose and flicked away the booger. "This little guy will probably be fought over by every faction."

Gusai Wizard shook his head. "He’s likely the designated Heritage Wizard for the Rhine Lineage."

Lando Wizard and Wind Wizard raised their eyebrows. It seemed that was true.

Within the Erosion Forest Secret Realm, a faint, dark glow emanated from Wang Ya’s palm, drawing the Dark Badges left on the fiery battlefield into his Dark Wizard Mark.

Then, he had Harak fly him swiftly to the location of the two Mechanical Wizards.

Amidst the ruins of the shattered battle platform, he found the Dark Badges that had belonged to the two of them.

[Current Dark Badge Count: 6673]

It was an absolutely terrifying number, enough to secure Wang Ya a very high rank. A top-three finish, at least, was practically guaranteed.

A considerable number of Dark Badges had been permanently removed from the Secret Realm by other Wizard Freshmen upon their elimination.

Instead of immediately leaving the Erosion Forest Secret Realm, Wang Ya sent a command through his Consciousness Brand to the mind of every phage-infected entity, compelling them to do one thing.

That was to conduct a carpet search for any remaining Dark Badges.

’There have to be some Dark Badges that were missed.’ With such a vast number of phage-infected entities, their search efficiency would be incomparable to that of a single Wizard Freshman, even one who possessed the sensing ability of the Dark Wizard Mark.

Since he was doing this, he might as well do it perfectly.

Kaze Antuun’s consciousness had already returned to Freshman Square. He watched with a placid expression as a figure emerged from the Teleportation Light Gate.

Zack Antuun met his father’s gaze with defiance in his eyes. His heart was filled with resentment—resentment toward Wang Ya Harak, but even more toward his own father.

’You failed. You failed to live up to the family’s expectations!’

Kaze Antuun’s voice appeared directly in Zack’s mind.