Chi Zhuo didn’t answer Lan Mu. He quietly sorted through the information his spiritual power had just gathered and said in a calm, steady voice, “Eight people. Three S-rank, three A-rank, and…”
“Two B-rank.” Lan Mu cut in, his smile slow and loaded with meaning. “S-rank actually choosing to tag along with B-rank? They really are just kids. Guess we should give the little ones a small lesson first.”
And the “lesson” Lan Mu meant was clearly no small thing. Even as he spoke, Chi Zhuo could already feel the silent blue spiders starting to move. The whole swarm stirred at once, and the mother spider crawled up onto the back of Lan Mu’s hand, as if waiting for an order.
Chi Zhuo’s gaze darkened, but in the end, he didn’t step in.
If Ji Chenxi had come alone, even if it meant risking Lan Mu noticing something unusual, he would never have allowed Lan Mu to make a move. When it came to Ji Chenxi, no matter what it was, he wanted to handle it himself. But this time, Ji Chenxi hadn’t come alone—he’d brought a whole group with him.
A strange feeling pressed at Chi Zhuo’s chest. On one hand, he thought it was good that Ji Chenxi came with friends. At least the trip wouldn’t be dull. On the other hand, a faint, unexplainable irritation kept creeping up on him.
*
The moment Ji Chenxi stepped into the underground maze, he understood just how dangerous this modified labyrinth really was.
The first thing he saw was blood. And not just a little—there was so much of it that the ground not far ahead had been completely soaked red.
In this kind of school entrance trial, killing each other to the point of death wasn’t allowed. Once a student’s injuries reached a serious level, or if they chose to give up, a medical team would rush in and take them away. It was obvious—if this weren’t a trial, what would be lying in front of them wouldn’t be blood-stained dirt, but a pile of corpses.
No one in Ji Chenxi’s group openly said they wanted to leave. Still, judging from the shocked gasps when they first saw the blood and the pale looks on their faces now, it wasn’t hard to tell that some of them were already thinking about backing out.
Lu Jianhan frowned and was just about to step forward and take the lead when Ji Chenxi grabbed him with one hand.
“Hold on. Want to guess why there’s more blood here than anywhere else? Didn’t you tell me this underground maze has been taken over by a venomous snake and blue spider?”
Lu Jianhan’s expression tightened slightly. “You mean spider silk? But how could silk possibly do something like this?”
Everyone immediately stared ahead so hard it was like they wanted to burn a hole through the air. Yet no matter how they looked, they couldn’t spot even a single strand of web. Not just them—even Lu Jianhan and Bai Anran, both S-rank, couldn’t see anything unusual.
Ji Chenxi didn’t explain. He bent down, picked up a small stone from the ground, and tossed it forward casually. It was such an offhand throw that he didn’t even expect it to hit anything.
But the moment the stone flew out, it was sliced cleanly into four pieces midair.
“So sharp?” one of the alphas blurted out, unable to hold back his shock.
If the spider silk was really that sharp, then the people who had walked straight in earlier—wouldn’t they have been cut in half on the spot?
Ji Chenxi lowered his gaze, clearly tempted to reach out and touch it. Just as his hand was about to move, Bai Anran hurriedly called out, “Your Highness!”
Only after Ji Chenxi pulled his hand back did Bai Anran finally let out a breath. Reaching out blindly to touch spider silk they couldn’t even see? He was honestly afraid the Third Prince’s fingers would be sliced clean off.
Ji Chenxi had only wanted to test it—maybe check if it carried poison too. But since he’d been stopped, he didn’t push his luck. Instead, he pulled out his dagger. He spun it twice in his hand, then threw it out like a boomerang.
The blade, sharp enough to cut through iron like mud, only slowed a little as it met resistance. Soon enough, it curved back and landed neatly in Ji Chenxi’s hand.
He calculated the angles and threw it forward two more times. After that, he boldly led the group two steps ahead.
The cave was so quiet it felt heavy. Even the sound of breathing and footsteps seemed loud. After just two steps, Ji Chenxi stopped again. He took his water bottle and splashed some water forward. The droplets slid along invisible threads, and at last, the people who hadn’t seen anything before finally caught sight of what had blocked nearly ninety percent of the others.
Ji Chenxi was sure he hadn’t missed any leftover threads—or those tiny movements.
The spiders were still spinning silk.
The moment they stepped in here, they had already walked straight into a spider’s trap.
Ji Chenxi spread his spiritual power even more carefully. When he caught over a dozen tiny presences—so small they were almost impossible to notice—he didn’t hesitate. He launched a spiritual attack and pierced straight through them.
On the other side, Lan Mu, who had been waiting to see how his little spiders performed, straightened slightly. The lazy air around him faded a bit. “Not bad. They got through the first round pretty fast.”
“The first round isn’t that hard. Anyone careful enough could pass it,” Chi Zhuo said flatly.
“That’s not quite fair,” Lan Mu replied with a chuckle. “My silk isn’t just tough—it’s almost impossible to see. It’s perfect for killing without anyone noticing. It’s just that this is a freshman trial, and killing isn’t allowed. Otherwise, if I made it a little more hidden, I could’ve taken quite a few lives. Passing the first round is one thing. But finding my little ones and killing them that quickly? Even out there, that’s rare.”
Chi Zhuo didn’t respond.
Lan Mu was the kind of person who could handle being ignored—that was probably why he could stand staying around Chi Zhuo in the first place. Since Chi Zhuo wouldn’t talk, he just kept chatting to himself. “Looks like it was that pretty snow leopard. Ha, now I’m kind of looking forward to this.”
“Him. I want him.” Chi Zhuo’s voice turned cold.
Lan Mu, who had just been talking to himself, shot him a surprised look. That glance carried way too much meaning. But in the end, all he said was, “Fine. Then the other two S-rank can be mine to play with.”
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
