Chapter 117: The Grand Ceremony

Outside, the entire audience was fixated on Xu Han.

“This time, Xu Han is in trouble. These ghost shadows are elusive and unpredictable—no ordinary person can handle them.”

“Exactly. As long as they aren’t attacked, they remain in stealth mode, making it impossible to lock onto them.”

“I’m really curious how Xu Han will deal with these ghost shadows.”

Xu Han stood silently in place, watching the ghost shadows draw closer.

The few ghost shadows at the forefront swiftly approached within five meters of Xu Han.

Yet Xu Han seemed oblivious, remaining rooted to the spot.

One of the ghost shadows couldn’t contain itself any longer.

It suddenly lunged at Xu Han.

A sharp dagger gleamed coldly, aiming straight for Xu Han’s neck.

Xu Han crouched down.

Effortlessly dodging the strike.

Then, lightning crackled in his palm, and he unleashed a thunderous blast at the ghost shadow.

Boom!

The lightning leapt and instantly blasted the ghost shadow away.

It lay twitching on the ground, smoke rising from its charred body.

Its flesh was blackened from the electric shock.

Arcs of electricity danced around.

Two other ghost shadows behind it were also flung away by the shock.

However, those two suffered less damage and were not killed.

The surrounding ghost shadows seemed to understand the weakness of the lightning chain.

They quickly dispersed, keeping a five-meter distance.

Xu Han raised an eyebrow.

These creatures are clever.

The lightning chain only arcs up to three meters.

Beyond that distance, it cannot transfer.

By keeping five meters apart, the lightning chain becomes a single-target skill.

It can no longer deliver wide-area damage.

Yet Xu Han remained completely unfazed.

He raised his palm.

Summoning ten blades of swift wind, he sent them hurtling toward the ghost shadows.

Each wind blade, under his precise control, targeted the vital points of the ghost shadows.

Though the ghost shadows were fast, they paled in comparison to the wind blades.

Almost instantly,

ten heads flew off.

Ten ghost shadows were effortlessly slain.

The crowd of spectators widened their eyes in disbelief.

“Aren’t these ghost shadows supposed to be in stealth mode? How can Xu Han’s wind blades be so precise? Does he actually see the ghost shadows’ positions?”

“Although stealth reveals approximate locations, to lock on this accurately, Xu Han must know exactly where the ghost shadows are!”

“Is this guy some kind of prodigy? He can even see through stealth? What can’t he do?”

Amid their murmurs,

Xu Han easily dispatched all the ghost shadows.

It took less than half a minute.

By contrast, Qiao Chao’s team took a full three minutes to defeat the ghost shadows.

The difference was staggering!

Before the ghost shadows’ bodies dissipated,

Xu Han stepped forward and used Devour All Things again,

consuming one of the ghost shadows’ corpses.

A system prompt sounded.

“Host has devoured a level-two ghost shadow for the first time, gaining 15 Strength and 15 Agility.”

“Host has acquired the ghost shadow’s skill: Stealth.”

Xu Han’s heart leapt with joy.

He opened his skill panel.

Stealth Lv.1: Enter stealth state lasting one minute. Attacking or being attacked will break stealth. Cooldown: five minutes.

Compared to the ghost shadows,

though it wasn’t permanent stealth, it was more than sufficient.

...

In an office at Dragon Nation University,

Lei Hongguang sat behind his desk, staring at a virtual screen.

The screen displayed the situation inside the Beast Tower.

When he saw Xu Han effortlessly slaughter a group of ghost shadows, a cold glint flashed in his eyes.

“This guy is interesting—not only skilled in magic, but he can easily see through stealth.”

“But today, you won’t leave the Beast Tower alive.”

He drew a scroll from his pocket.

Black, sinister energy swirled around the scroll.

It emanated a chilling, eerie aura.

He tore open the scroll.

The cold aura immediately spread throughout the room.

The temperature plummeted, as if stepping into an ice cellar.

Yet as the void aura spread around the room,

runes suddenly lit up everywhere,

encasing the spreading aura entirely within the room.

Not a trace escaped.

Lei Hongguang’s body was immersed in the void aura, a look of enjoyment on his face.

He gazed at the virtual screen before him and casually pointed.

The void aura extended rapidly toward the screen,

merging completely into it.

All returned to calm.

Lei Hongguang stared at the virtual screen, a sinister smile curling his lips: “Xu Han, enjoy the grand gift I’ve prepared for you.”

...

Time ticked by.

Soon, an hour and a half had passed.

Many students had already teleported out of the Beast Tower.

Less than fifty remained on the first floor, stubbornly holding on.

They gritted their teeth, enduring.

They had fought through more than a dozen waves.

All the beasts had turned into elite monsters.

Though their levels were not high, elite monsters were several times stronger than ordinary beasts.

Beasts that were once easy to handle had become unbeatable elite foes.

Some beasts boasted such strong defenses that ordinary students couldn’t even break through.

Helpless, they were forced to retreat.

As time passed,

all freshmen on the first floor had succumbed to the powerful beasts and retreated.

Now, only Xu Han and Qiao Chao’s team remained.

Almost no one had left.

They stood in the plaza, watching the virtual big screen.

All were eager to see who would endure till the end.

The progress of both sides was similar.

Qiao Chao’s team held a slight advantage.

They had already cleared the sixteenth wave of beasts.

The fifteenth wave was a group of elite Gale Archers.

The moment the archers appeared, they raised their bows and drew arrows.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

The feathered arrows sliced through the air, swiftly flying toward Qiao Chao’s group.

Qiao Chao’s expression changed.

Just by the sound, he could sense the terrifying force concealed in those arrows.

If struck by so many arrows at once,

even his peak physique would be instantly killed.

He growled, “Dong Yan, summon the Earth Elemental Spirit for defense!”

Dong Yan nodded quickly.

He chanted a spell.

A soil-colored magic circle appeared on the ground.

Then, a towering Earth Elemental giant materialized before them.

Thud, thud, thud—

The sharp arrows struck the Earth Elemental, sounding dull thuds.

The giant slowly retreated.

Its body was pierced with many large holes.

Grains of sand and earth continuously fell away.

Qiao Chao continued to command, “Huang Xinyu, join Wang Mo with the Agility Melody to boost our speed.”

“This time, we take the offensive.”

Huang Xinyu nodded.

She gently plucked the strings of her guqin.

The melody was light and swift, enveloping them all.

Immediately, Qiao Chao and Wang Mo felt their bodies grow lighter, their speed markedly increased.

They stomped their feet and charged toward the Gale Archers.

The archers quickly shifted targets,

locking onto the two of them.

Then they loosed another volley of sharp arrows.