011 The Grand Assessment Begins

I never expected that two playing cards could so easily annihilate all the Ruthless Ones; even Carbonhead stared in shock at the cards lying on the floor. However, at that moment, Lin Wan darted forward and picked up the two cards.

"Lin Wan, thanks." I was about to step forward to reclaim the cards, but Lin Wan dodged, leaving me grasping at thin air.

"What are you doing, Lin Wan?" Carbonhead immediately straightened up, towel in hand, pointing at Lin Wan. "What are you trying to do?"

Lin Wan held our playing cards and smiled, saying, "It seems you two don't know—these cards must never be taken by anyone else."

"If someone takes them, it's as good as taking your lives."

"Our lives? Don't joke around." I stepped closer to Lin Wan.

Still smiling, Lin Wan replied, "If you don't believe me, watch." With that, he bent the Ace of Diamonds card.

"Ah!" Carbonhead cried out in agony, his body compressed as if caught in a vice.

"Stop!" I pleaded with Lin Wan, who finally released his grip.

He handed the two cards back to us.

"What is this about?" I asked, unable to fathom his intentions after yet another change of heart.

"Stick the cards to your own mark, and you'll see," Lin Wan said.

If Lin Wan wanted to harm us, he would have done so already; there was no need for all these pointless actions. Carbonhead and I followed his instructions, pressing the cards to our shoulder and lower back, respectively. Something miraculous occurred—the cards sank into our bodies, and for the first time, I felt a surge of power unlike anything I'd ever known.

The tattoo-like mark on my right shoulder glowed, and the method for using the playing cards appeared in my mind. Carbonhead beside me seemed to receive even more information—his brow was furrowed, his expression troubled and contemplative.

"Now, you two are fully members of the Life-and-Death Trial," Lin Wan declared, picking up a towel and heading to the shower with his basin. Only then did I recall that neither Carbonhead nor I had finished our showers, and we were still wet. I hurried after him, hoping to extract some useful information.

"Lin Wan, who are you really?" I pressed him, for if he were merely an ordinary student, how could he know so much?

"I told you, I'm a student of the Institute of Technology," Lin Wan replied absentmindedly. "I won't tell you much—tomorrow you'll understand everything."

"What? Do you mean something will happen tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow, the trial will truly begin. Those who are eliminated will have only one path—death."

"But—" I wanted to ask further, but Lin Wan signaled me to drop the subject. The atmosphere grew heavy; anxiety gnawed at me about what tomorrow might bring. After the shower, Carbonhead and I said goodbye to Lin Wan and exchanged phone numbers, just in case we met again.

The next day arrived as expected. I was already prepared for whatever might come. Now, I too possessed special abilities and felt confident I could protect myself. At nine o'clock sharp, all four of us in our dormitory received a message.

The first half was essentially the same, welcoming us to D University, and announcing that the D University admission qualification exam would officially begin from today. Those who passed all the trials would advance to the next academic year. The first round was simple: fight anyone nearby one-on-one. The winner advances; the loser is eliminated.

The latter part of my message included an additional line: if an ability user lost, they would forfeit their playing cards. Ability users referred to us, and losing the cards was tantamount to death. Lin Wan had already demonstrated this with Carbonhead yesterday—the cards were our lifeblood. The only way to survive was to merge them with ourselves and pretend to be ordinary students during the trial.

"What kind of nonsense is this?" The eldest didn’t believe a word of the message. "And beware of ability users—they can easily kill ordinary people with their powers."

"It’s so dramatic," the third laughed, setting his phone aside. "Probably someone bored mass-texting."

"I don’t think so," said the second, our class monitor, holding up his phone. "Scroll to the bottom—there’s a link. If you click it, there’s a countdown."

I glanced at his phone screen. "Twenty-three hours left to complete the task."

So we had twenty-four hours to finish the first task. Whether it was real or not, I decided to find someone I disliked to try it out—consider it a test of the martial arts Chen Hao had taught me.

I quickly left the dormitory and bumped into someone head-on. This brash kid cursed at me, and though I apologized, he wouldn’t let it go, insisting on a one-on-one fight. Apparently, he thought I was an easy target because I looked thin.

If I hadn’t practiced with Chen Hao before, I wouldn’t have dared fight such a guy. But now, I wasn’t looking for trouble, but I wasn’t afraid of it either.

"If you want to fight, I’m game," I said, raising an eyebrow.

Surprisingly, the guy hesitated, clearly not expecting me to accept. If he backed down, his pride would suffer.

He tried to catch me off guard with a flying kick aimed at my groin—a dirty move. But compared to Chen Hao’s speed, it was child’s play. I leapt back and countered with a kick to his face.

He refused to yield, rubbed his head, and charged again. I ducked, swept his legs, and knocked him flat.

Then something strange happened. Several Ruthless Ones suddenly appeared and grabbed him, tearing him apart right before my eyes.

I’d never seen anything like it—blood sprayed everywhere, covering my face. The warmth confirmed it was real—someone had died.

I wasn’t alone; screams echoed from the hallway, others must have tried the fights and lost, meeting the same fate. I checked my phone—a new message had arrived.

"First round passed. Please wait for settlement."

I tried to calm myself—it was only one death. I couldn’t let it break me; this was just the first round, and I had to survive. I kept reminding myself, repeating it for several minutes until my heart finally steadied.

I returned to the dormitory building—the hallways were soaked with blood, impossible to tell whose. The bodies of the defeated had been taken by the Ruthless Ones; those left behind were terrified, some collapsed in the pools of blood, mind lost.

I hurried past the first and second floors to my own room, fearing for my roommates, but the dorm was empty. I didn’t dare dwell on it—just hoped the remaining twenty hours would pass quickly.

I made my way to Carbonhead and Chen Hao’s dorms; both had completed their fights. Chen Hao was still shaken, but as president of the Taekwondo club, he rarely lost. Carbonhead, with his special abilities, had no trouble winning. Compared to Chen Hao, Carbonhead and I, seasoned by past incidents, were far more composed.

Chen Hao, in contrast, was hiding in a corner, muttering to himself. Carbonhead and I continued to seek out familiar survivors—Long Legs Li Feng, the top student Wu Mingran, Skinny Monkey Sun Cheng—we found them all. Everyone survived, but the mental trauma was severe.

Others looked at us with fear. I understood—after such bizarre deaths, seeing a stranger approach, anyone would instinctively avoid them. Who knew if the person was coming to kill you?

Carbonhead and I weren’t saints, nor did we know everyone. We gathered our friends in my dorm, patiently awaiting the end of the countdown.

Finally, the timer ran out, and my phone worked normally again. I quickly messaged friends in other faculties to confirm their safety. After a few minutes, Han Xue and Lin Wan replied. Those who didn’t respond, I feared, would never have the chance again.

The first round ended, and half of the students at D University died. The second round notification arrived: "Please proceed to the teaching building for the Death Battle Royale."