Chapter 324: Yang Dongqing's Strength

The Heart-Questioning Test began shortly after. Su Mu watched Yang Dongqing with deep interest. He remembered how the previous Heart-Questioning Test had rooted out several Revolutionary Army spies. However, since Specter had dared to send Yang Dongqing this time, he must have already understood the test and prepared a countermeasure.

It was exactly as he expected. Yang Dongqing walked up to the examiner with a blank expression and took the Heart-Questioning Test.

"Name."

"Yang Mo."

"Where are you from?"

"Star City."

"Are you a spy sent by another empire?"

"No."

"Have you ever joined any domestic reactionary organizations, such as the Seven Deadly Sins or the Revolutionary Army?"

"No."

Yang Dongqing passed without a hitch. In truth, the Heart-Questioning Test wasn't particularly difficult. Any major faction that made prior preparations could easily clear it; this stage was merely a rough preliminary screening.

The true measure against spies was the final contract. Even if an infiltrator slipped through, they would be utterly unable to leak any relevant information after signing it. Anyone who violated the contract would die, even a Gold powerhouse.

Sending Yang Dongqing to gather intelligence was a futile effort for Specter. He was destined to never receive a single scrap of information from him.

Following the Heart-Questioning Test and group assignments came the combat phase, a stage designed for the Nightmare Apostles to demonstrate their abilities and strength.

However, there was a minor interlude this time.

Assigned to the third zone, Yang Dongqing felt a hint of confusion. From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Su Mu standing just outside the arena, and a sense of bewilderment welled up within him.

'Why wasn't he assigned to a group? Was he eliminated?'

Right as his confusion mounted, an examiner on the high platform suddenly stood up, jogged over to Su Mu, and said respectfully, "Lord Count, please step onto the stage."

'Count?!'

Yang Dongqing stared blankly. Looking at that incredibly familiar face, he felt an unprecedented sense of alienation.

'Su Mu... a Count? He actually became a noble!'

An icy glint flashed across Yang Dongqing's eyes. Nobles all deserved to die! He had always loathed them, but because of Jasmine, his disgust had escalated into pure, unadulterated hatred. He hated the Empire's nobles and he hated the Royal Family. If not for them, Jasmine would never have died!

Under the crowd's watchful gaze, Su Mu slowly ascended the platform. His calm, elegant demeanor left absolutely no room to doubt his identity as a noble.

"Everyone! Lord Su Mu is a newly titled Count of the Empire. He is also the captain who took first place in all the trials during the previous assessment, formed the First Squad, and successfully returned from exploring the Nightmare World!"

Hearing this, the icy hostility in Yang Dongqing's eyes receded slightly. So that was it. Su Mu had actually become a captain, and by taking first place, no less. It made sense that he had been granted a noble title. No wonder he didn't have to participate in the trials.

'To think he's actually caught up to me after all this time. I underestimated him. He truly lives up to being my former friend. However, I absolutely will not lose to you this time. Jasmine is still waiting for me. If I can't even defeat someone at the same Silver tier, how can I ever hope to advance to Gold, overthrow the Chiyan Empire, and seize Supreme Heaven?'

At that thought, Yang Dongqing clenched his fists, a blazing fighting spirit igniting within his cold eyes.

He recalled the inhuman training he had endured in the Revolutionary Army recently, along with the bone-deep agony of the mithril activation experiments. He had suffered through far too much hardship and pain along the way, but for Jasmine's sake, he had persevered. In turn, it was precisely those agonizing experiences that had forged his current strength!

"Because Lord Count has made significant contributions to the Empire, and because his squad suffered casualties during their previous expedition, the Royal Family has granted him the special privilege of selecting members from among you first.

"This is an incredible opportunity for all of you. Should anyone be chosen by Lord Count, they will be exempt from the remaining trials and may directly join his squad!"

Hearing the examiner's words, many people lit up with pleasant surprise, their gazes turning fiery as they looked at Su Mu. The captain of the First Squad who had just been promoted to a Count was bound to be incredibly powerful and highly experienced. Being directly selected by him would be like ascending to the heavens in a single bound. If they followed him, they might even secure a noble title for themselves someday.

Of course, there were also a few untamed individuals who believed themselves to be immensely powerful and remained completely unmoved, such as Yang Dongqing.

They believed that they were the absolute elite of the Silver tier, not inferior to anyone else. Why would they need to latch onto someone else's squad?

"Alright, let the combat begin." Following the examiner's order, the battles between the Nightmare Apostles kicked off.

Two Silver Grade Nightmare Apostles were the first to take the stage, immediately erupting into a fierce battle. Su Mu watched them with keen interest.

He had exchanged blows with two Gold Kings. Watching a battle between Silver Transcendents now felt like watching kindergarteners brawl. He couldn't see the intensity in it; rather, it just looked comical, making it quite amusing to watch.

Amidst the crowd, Yang Dongqing stood with his arms crossed, watching the spectacle coldly. "To think the quality of this batch of Nightmare Apostles is actually this poor."

He even found it unbearable to watch. As the disciple of Specter, the commander of the Revolutionary Army, his usual sparring partners were experts at the Silver Peak and Half-Step Gold stages, and sometimes even Gold powerhouses. With his experience fighting against those at the Gold tier, he naturally found the current matches to be riddled with flaws.

After a long wait, Yang Dongqing's name was finally called. His opponent was a Nightmare Apostle at Silver 2.

It was a tall woman wielding twin short swords. Leaping into the air, she landed lightly onto the dueling ring. Her skirt fluttered gracefully in the wind, but she paid it no mind, instead shooting a seductive smile at Yang Dongqing down below.

"Come on up, little brother."

Yang Dongqing remained expressionless. He walked up to the ring and stopped opposite the woman, his icy gaze regarding her as if she were already a corpse.

"My, what a scary look you have, little brother. Don't be nervous. Big sister won't hurt you too badly. Even though you're only at Silver 1, I'll draw out the match a little longer. After all, I still need to put on a good show for Lord Count."

Saying that, the woman shot a wink toward Su Mu on the platform, completely disregarding Yang Dongqing.

"You talk too much." Yang Dongqing began to advance, striding toward the woman completely barehanded.

The woman narrowed her eyes, a trace of cold malice rising in her heart. Where did this reckless brat come from to act so arrogantly?

She wasn't about to indulge him. Striking out like a flash of lightning, she thrust the twin short swords forward like a viper darting its tongue, moving so fast they left behind afterimages.

But Yang Dongqing completely ignored her, simply letting the short swords strike his chest.

Clang! Clang!

Accompanied by the ear-piercing shriek of clashing metal, two tiny sparks burst across Yang Dongqing's chest.

The woman froze in shock. 'What a tough body.' Her eyes flashed with ruthless intent as she immediately unleashed her full strength. For a moment, she seemed to transform into a thousand-armed deity, raining a frenzy of attacks down upon Yang Dongqing.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Dense clusters of sparks burst out continuously. Yang Dongqing maintained his icy expression, advancing step by step, while the woman was forced into a desperate retreat, cold sweat pouring down her face.