Chapter 110: Each Shows Their Unique Skills

East of Casares City

Time ticked by. The cruise ship on the horizon, once only vaguely visible, was now becoming increasingly clear in the field of view.

The body artists who remained at the coastline continued to wait patiently. Many of them were even chatting and laughing quietly with their companions, seemingly unbothered by Marian’s “test.”

Those body artists qualified to accept Hassan’s employment and arrive at this coastal dock were nearly all powerful individuals who had once dominated their own territories. Naturally, none of them wanted to lose face in front of others. No matter how anxious they felt inside, they had to maintain a composed and calm exterior.

However, this calm and unhurried scene was soon broken.

“Hey! Look quickly!” Suddenly, a slight commotion stirred the crowd. Several body artists jumped up, frantically pointing at the distant cruise ship and shouting to their companions.

At their cries, more body artists turned their gazes toward the ship. “Ah!” Soon, they too cried out anxiously.

The cruise ship, the subject of the test, had been sailing from east to west along the northeast direction of the coastline. In other words, as the ship approached the exact northern point of the coast, its distance from the shore would gradually decrease.

Most of the body artists present had actually been secretly calculating in their minds the exact moment the ship would reach the closest point to the shore.

But to their shock, the ship suddenly changed its course, making a wide turn northward! Now, instead of approaching the coast from east to west, the ship was rapidly moving away, heading northwest at more than double its previous speed!

“Quick! Hurry up and go! Damn it! There’s still a chance if we leave now!” Several body artists, who had seemed as steady as mountains moments ago, suddenly jumped up like their butts were on fire.

This sudden shift in the body artists’ mindset was not without reason. The more composed and confident they had been earlier, the more assured they had felt about successfully boarding the ship. However, the cruise ship’s sudden course change completely disrupted everyone’s plans. Naturally, those who had believed they would easily pass the first stage were now far more anxious than those who had never been confident in the first place.

Of course, compared to when the first group of body artists set off, the cruise ship was now somewhat closer to the shore. Therefore, most of the body artists, clinging to a sliver of hope, joined the rush to chase after the ship.

The sight of dozens of tenth-tier experts flying in groups toward the sea was nothing short of spectacular. However, Zhang Wen, Xuluo, and Agate showed no signs of urgency.

“Hey! Aren’t you guys planning to leave yet? That ship… it’s getting further away!” The three’s nonchalant behavior made Ryan impatient.

“No need to rush,” Zhang Wen said, unfazed by Ryan’s urging. He smiled at Ryan and casually pointed.

Xuluo and Agate exchanged glances before sitting down beside Zhang Wen.

“I mean…” Ryan’s eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the three, who remained completely relaxed. “You’re not even going to try to pass the test? Even if you all have Saint-tier strength…”

“Hmm?” A strange look flickered in Xuluo’s eyes as Ryan accidentally let slip a sentence.

Since arriving at the coastline, Zhang Wen and Xuluo had neither displayed their strength nor fully activated their battle energy. If it were purely based on sensing, Ryan shouldn’t have been able to determine their true power. Especially in the case of Zhang Wen.

Although Zhang Wen’s full potential did indeed reach the Saint-tier level, more than half of that came from the Spring Water Technique. On the surface, Zhang Wen’s strength appeared to be barely at the tenth-tier level.

Except for a few close friends who knew Zhang Wen well, even his three apprentices were unaware of his true abilities. How could Ryan be so certain that Zhang Wen possessed Saint-tier strength?

“Forget it! If none of you are in a hurry, why should I be?” Ryan didn’t realize his slip of the tongue. After a brief pause, he simply found a relatively clean spot not far away and sat down as well.

“Perverted teacher, what exactly are you thinking?” As soon as Ryan sat down, Agate whispered to Zhang Wen in a low voice. “I’m fine with it, but what about you and Xuluo? You don’t seem like the kind of people who would rely on others for help. Do you really believe you can pass this test?”

Although Agate had joined Zhang Wen in appearing indifferent in front of Ryan, he was actually quite anxious inside! Zhang Wen might not care about the bounty offered by Hassan, but Agate was still burdened with a massive debt to the Almises Academy. The saying “a penny can stump a hero” perfectly described his situation—he was counting on Hassan’s money to pay off his debts.

“Zhang Wen, I’m also curious about what kind of competition Hassan wants us to participate in. That woman earlier was nearly at the peak of the Saint-tier level. The teammates chosen for her should also have equal or even greater strength. I don’t understand what kind of competition would make Hassan uneasy about such a team,” Agate continued, and then Xuluo, who rarely spoke, also chimed in.

“I feel the same way,” Xuluo said.

“Me too,” Zhang Wen smiled. He knew exactly what Xuluo was worried about. “Don’t worry. I haven’t planned to get eliminated on the first day.”

“Good,” Xuluo nodded. He knew Zhang Wen was a man of his word. If he said he wouldn’t be eliminated in the first round, he definitely had enough confidence.

“Hey! You’re just going to accept that?” Seeing how easily Xuluo let Zhang Wen off the hook, Agate turned back to Zhang Wen suspiciously and whispered, “Don’t just brag! If the ship goes any further, do you really still think you can catch up?”

“I can’t catch up,” Zhang Wen replied calmly.

“If you can’t catch up, why are you sitting here so calmly?” Agate finally couldn’t help but jump up.

“Of course I can’t catch up if the ship keeps going further,” Zhang Wen casually glanced at Agate before smiling and continuing, “But that ship will come back soon.”

“Eh?” Agate’s mouth dropped open in disbelief.

“Ugh! Seriously. Look!” Zhang Wen sighed, pointing his hand toward the direction of the coastline.

Agate looked in the direction Zhang Wen pointed for a while, then turned back with an innocent look. Zhang Wen was almost speechless.

“What are you looking at? Look at the examiner! The examiner!”

“The examiner? Why look at her?” Agate turned his gaze toward Marian again.

“Didn’t you hear Marian say earlier? She’s our examiner today,” Zhang Wen explained helplessly to Agate. “You didn’t think our test was only about boarding that ship, did you?”

“Oh!” Agate finally understood. “So you mean she’ll be with us the whole time today and will board the ship with us. Right! Her Saint-tier peak level mainly comes from her exceptional control of battle energy. In terms of raw battle energy levels, she’s only just broken through to the Saint-tier. Flying still depends on total battle energy; no matter how refined her control is, it doesn’t reduce the consumption much.”

“Exactly. So why should we be in a hurry? If the ship goes any further, she won’t be able to board it either.”

“I see,” Agate nodded.

“There’s more than just me who figured this out,” Zhang Wen said with a smile, glancing around.

Indeed, besides Zhang Wen’s group, quite a few others remained calmly seated on the beach, unaffected by the hurried body artists who had already set off.

Moreover, as Zhang Wen’s group started to observe the other waiting body artists, the others were doing the same. Those who had seen through Marian’s trap and remained calm enough to wait were obviously intelligent enough to realize that these “companions” still on the beach were the real strong contenders in this selection.

“…Indeed, the remaining ones are mostly those guys,” Xuluo suddenly said, scanning the area and furrowing his brow.

“Oh?” Zhang Wen’s expression shifted, looking at Xuluo curiously.

“You’re a trainer from the Almises Academy, so it’s normal you don’t recognize them. We bounty fighters who live off the arenas occasionally deal with these people.”

“Oh? Who exactly are these ‘guys’ you’re talking about?” Agate also joined the conversation with interest.

“Professional explorers,” Xuluo said calmly.

“Oh, I see,” Agate replied knowingly, drawing out the words.

As one of the Executors of the Syndicate, Agate naturally understood the true meaning behind “professional explorers.” He had dealt with many such people while carrying out missions on other planets.

Professional explorers were essentially interstellar wanderers who roamed undeveloped regions, driven solely by the pursuit of wealth. Their motto was to chase after wherever money could be found, like a swarm of flies.

However, no matter how questionable their character, anyone who had survived and made a name for themselves in undeveloped areas was definitely no ordinary person!

As Zhang Wen’s group and the surrounding professional explorers exchanged glances, the second group of body artists reached the critical moment of success or failure.

Most of the body artists flying in flocks like seagulls had now reached their limits. The glowing battle energy flames that had surrounded them at the start were now barely visible. Yet the cruise ship showed no sign of stopping, continuing its relentless journey into the distance.

“Hehe!” Seeing their exhausted opponents fall into the sea one by one like dumplings being dropped into boiling water, many of the body artists still on the beach couldn’t help but laugh in schadenfreude.

“It looks about right. The remaining ones can be considered qualified for the next stage of evaluation,” Marian suddenly stood up while Zhang Wen and the professional explorers on the beach were still “eyeing each other.”

“Oh?” The blue-clad man beside Marian looked at her expressionlessly.

“Is there something wrong with my decision?” Marian frowned in displeasure. “The competition we’re about to join isn’t just about brute strength.”

“No, I have no objection to your decision. However, if everyone remaining on the beach passes the first stage, aren’t you worried about some unworthy individuals slipping through?”

“Oh? Weren’t you the one who told me not to be too harsh earlier? Why are you suddenly concerned about this now?” Marian lazily clapped her hands. “I’m not a deity, you know. How could I possibly eliminate all the undesirables in just the first stage? Haven’t you noticed that even those brainless fools are allowed to pass as long as their strength is sufficient? My test is only responsible for getting rid of those who lack both strength and brains. As for the rest, how could I possibly manage everything?”

“That’s true,” the blue-clad man nodded and stepped back silently.

Seeing that the blue-clad man had no more objections, Marian took out the button she had used earlier and pressed it once more.

A few seconds later, the distant cruise ship finally began to change direction. This time, the ship headed straight toward the temporary dock.

Whether it was the body artists who had failed to endure and fell into the sea or those who had barely managed to board the ship after exhausting themselves, all were stunned at this sight.

Meanwhile, the body artists on the beach who had been mocking the misfortunes of those who fell into the water were almost all left in stunned silence before bursting into loud cheers.

“Hmph! Some of these fools really get on my nerves,” Marian couldn’t help but sneer as she watched the ecstatic body artists hugging each other in celebration.

“As the saying goes, luck is also a part of strength,” the blue-clad man suddenly remarked.

“You’re such a strange person!” Marian looked at the blue-clad man in surprise. “Earlier, when I wanted to eliminate these people, you told me not to be too harsh. Then, when I let them pass, you worried about too many weaklings getting through. Now you say luck is part of strength. Which side are you really on?”

“I’m just stating the facts,” the blue-clad man shrugged.

“You’re just a stubborn bastard,” Marian smirked, then turned her gaze back to the cruise ship rapidly approaching the dock.

From the horizon to this temporary dock, the distance seemed vast, but it was actually only about five to six kilometers. For a luxury cruise ship, with the psychokineticists onboard operating at full capacity, this distance was nothing more than a ten-minute journey.

From the very beginning, Marian had never intended to fly onto the cruise ship herself. In fact, if Marian had truly planned to fly aboard, why would Hassan even bother building this temporary dock? He could have simply had Marian take the candidates directly to the beach and fly them onto the ship.

Ten minutes later, the massive cruise liner slowly docked at the temporary pier. A gangway immediately descended from the side of the ship and gently settled at the top of the floating bridge where Marian stood.

The martial artists who had remained on the shoreline finally stood up and followed Marian and the man in blue onto the cruise ship.

Seeing that their rivals who had stayed on the coast had boarded the ship effortlessly, those martial artists who had flown five or six kilometers with great difficulty and were exhausted like beaten dogs couldn’t accept it.

“Damn it! If this ship could dock, why didn’t you tell us earlier? What exactly are you playing at?” Several martial artists who had boarded first turned red with anger, surrounding Marian and shouting furiously.

“Did I ever say this ship wouldn’t dock? If it couldn’t dock, do you think this temporary pier was built just for fun?” Marian cast a disdainful glance at the martial artists. “If you can’t even figure out such a simple thing, blame your own stupidity!”

The few martial artists who were already feeling upset were further provoked by Marian’s sarcastic remarks and could no longer contain their fury.

“You… you damn woman!” Two of the martial artists immediately lost control. Roaring with anger, they lunged at Marian together.

“Hmph!” Marian snorted coldly, slightly sidestepping to evade the two attackers. Before the two martial artists could stabilize themselves, Marian had already vanished from sight again.

“Ahh!” Less than half a second later, the two martial artists who had charged at Marian screamed in pain as they were sent flying. Their bodies soared over the ship’s railing and out of the cruise liner.

Splash! Splash! Soon after, the martial artists on the ship heard two heavy splashes as the two men hit the water.

Marian withdrew her fists and scanned the area. The remaining few martial artists, who had been agitated moments ago, immediately quieted down. As the two martial artists were thrown off the ship by Marian, the others instantly recalled that even at their peak, they couldn’t match the female examiner. Let alone now, after flying several kilometers and exhausting most of their energy. Challenging this female examiner now was like an old lady drinking arsenic—simply tired of living?

“I’m leaving the rest to you,” Marian said coldly to the man in blue without even glancing back, then turned and walked into the cabin.

“Understood,” the man in blue replied impassively. He stood in front of the martial artists and gestured for them to follow. “Please come with me.” After saying this, he pushed open a small door on the deck.

The uneasy martial artists followed the man in blue through a moderately long corridor. At the end of the corridor, they were met with an enormous hall, beyond anything they could have imagined.

When the cruise ship first docked, the martial artists had already sensed its immense size. However, when they entered the ship’s grand hall, they couldn’t help but gasp in astonishment.

This hall was not merely the size of a football field and taller than five stories combined—it was lavishly decorated to an unimaginable degree.

On the ceiling of the hall, nearly every few meters, there was a mind-lamp with an amethyst base. Those familiar with the Empire knew that only one planet in the entire Empire could produce mind-lamps with amethyst bases, and that planet produced enough amethyst annually for only five hundred such lamps.

Looking down at the floor, those martial artists who recognized quality could identify that the red carpet beneath their feet was actually phoenix feather fabric. It was well known in the Empire that phoenix feather fabric was extremely rare. In the homes of ordinary wealthy families, even a piece the size of a door panel was considered a treasure to be proudly displayed in the living room for show. Yet here, on Hassan’s cruise ship, an entire carpet made of phoenix feather fabric covered the floor of a hall the size of a football field!

Such extravagance far surpassed the usual definition of luxury. However, there were even more astonishing sights to come.

On the walls surrounding the hall were displayed various rare beast trophies and countless artworks clearly crafted by master hands. If the amethyst mind-lamps above and the phoenix feather carpet below were considered luxuries that could be purchased with money, then the items casually hung on the walls by Hassan were beyond monetary value.

Many of the trophies and paintings on display were unique pieces found nowhere else in the world or the final masterpieces of renowned artists—priceless treasures that could not be bought at any price.

“Woah!” After walking around the extravagantly decorated hall, Agate, who was beside Zhang Wen, couldn’t help but exclaim in shock.

Ryan looked at Agate with disdain.

“You… I’m not…,” Agate immediately flushed red.

“Actually, Ryan,” Zhang Wen smiled as he stepped forward, “Agate’s exclamation wasn’t out of envy for Mr. Hassan’s wealth. He was scared. Agate is still in debt from a fight at the Almishius Academy inn. The items here are far more valuable than the jars and pots at the Almishius Academy inn! If Agate gets into another fight here and accidentally breaks anything, he’ll have no choice but to flee the Empire.”

“Zhang Wen!” Agate, his pain struck, immediately jumped up like he’d been pricked by a needle.

“What? Did I say anything wrong?” Zhang Wen teased with a grin.

“You…” Agate, his face red and neck swollen, was about to retort when he was interrupted by the man in blue.

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard the Star Moon. For the next ten days, you will all be traveling together on this ship,” the man in blue said, standing before the group. Each word he spoke was clearly transmitted throughout the hall via loudspeakers installed around the room.

His words snapped the martial artists out of their awe at the luxurious surroundings. Someone in the crowd immediately shouted, “Ten days? Everyone will be here for ten days?”

“That’s correct,” the man in blue nodded. “Although not everyone may receive the full prize money, even those unfortunate enough to be eliminated are welcome to stay and enjoy the ten-day journey. Our boss has prepared abundant food and entertainment programs for our esteemed guests, and we believe they will surely be satisfied.”

“What if we don’t want to stay? If we’re eliminated, I still need to go elsewhere to earn a living. Who has time to waste on this rotten ship?” A martial artist’s crude shout triggered laughter from the crowd.

“For guests who do not wish to stay, we have also prepared a small aircraft. Upon request, we can transport any guest wishing to leave to the nearest airport at any time,” the man in blue explained calmly, maintaining his robotic expression, giving no hint of his emotions.

“Any other questions from our esteemed guests?” After answering, the man in blue scanned the room.

The martial artists, now silent again, exchanged glances but no one responded to the man in blue. Although the man’s expressionless face still made the martial artists present somewhat uncomfortable, considering Marian’s earlier harsh attitude, they felt this gentleman was being quite polite.

“Since no one has further questions, let’s move on to the main event,” the man in blue said, satisfied with the hall’s silence. He nodded and continued, “Next, the stewards on this ship will come down to distribute your competition numbers. Please remember the number on your tag. To protect your privacy, we will not address you by name during this competition but will refer to you by your assigned numbers. Additionally, please keep your number tags safe, as they will also serve as the keys to your rooms aboard the Star Moon.”

At this point, the man in blue raised his hand and gave a slight wave. Immediately, the well-prepared female stewards emerged from a corridor on the other side of the hall.