In the stands, Seraphina and Theodore occupied the best seats.
Watching John being targeted, their brows furrowed in concern.
Theodore sighed, "This news was spread by House Carter, aimed at both promoting and undermining John. Despite House Fairfax's efforts to control the narrative, it's challenging to completely contain it over time."
Seraphina pursed her lips, worry evident in her gaze towards John.
She whispered, "Can't we do something to help him?"
They were well aware of John's talent and strength, and so were the people from House Carter.
They wouldn't allow John to grow unobstructed, especially since he was not one to hide his capabilities.
Seraphina feared that escalating conflicts might lead House Carter to resort to unscrupulous measures against John.
Hearing this, Theodore paused momentarily, then turned to look at his daughter, only to find her gaze still fixed on John.
He sighed internally.
After a moment of contemplation, he said, "To resolve this issue, the only option would be to seek your grandfather's intervention."
Seraphina's grandfather, the head of House Harris, held significant influence.
Seraphina remained silent for a long while, not responding.
Her grandfather was very kind to her, but asking him to help John seemed almost impossible.
On the other side of the sports field, Silver Tear and Dark Fox had also arrived at the scene.
They had arrived early, only to receive news upon reaching the Imperial Capital that John had assisted Hidden Stars in taking down a branch of the Immortality Organization.
However, because he had forcibly used the Godslayer Blade, he nearly lost his own life.
This made Silver Tear feel somewhat guilty, thinking that if it hadn't been for her stomach issues delaying them, this situation might have been avoided.
Now, seeing John being targeted and even verbally attacked by some, Silver Tear was fuming, her face flushed with anger.
If not for Dark Fox holding her back, she might have already charged forward to set the record straight.
Wiping away her tears, Silver Tear said, "These people are just too despicable. Do they even know how many people John has saved? And yet, they slander him like this..."
Dark Fox remained silent, her heart seething with anger as well.
But she knew that the real issue lay with House Carter, and that arguing with these people would be futile.
The crowd buzzed with discussion and anger, hurling insults.
With John's strong mind power, he heard every word clearly.
He glanced at the most vociferous detractors, committing their faces to memory.
Once the assessment began, he planned to teach them a lesson on how to behave properly.
By this time, John and his companions had approached the instructor responsible for the assessment.
The instructor, a stern-faced middle-aged man, gave John a brief look and said without emotion, "Assessment card."
John nodded, handing over the black card to the middle-aged instructor.
After receiving it, the instructor tapped the card lightly.
Instantly, John's information appeared on it.
Upon seeing the information on the card, the middle-aged instructor's face revealed a hint of surprise.
Besides the name, the card was blank, not even a realm was listed.
He scrutinized John from top to bottom, frowning, "So, you're the one who blew up eight test Crystal Balls?"
This remark instantly changed the way others looked at John, their eyes filled with bewilderment.
What kind of anomaly was this, destroying eight test Crystal Balls during an examination?
John's expression stiffened a bit.
He wanted to deny it, but it was the truth.
All he could say was, "Yes, that was me, but it was just an accident. I really don't know what caused it."
John felt a pang of injustice.
After all, he was a victim too.
Who could tell why those Crystal Balls exploded?
The crowd burst into an uproar once again.
Someone sneered, "What kind of accident happens eight times in a row? Not even a kindergarten child would believe such an excuse."
Another voice joined in, mocking, "He doesn't think that just passing the preliminary test will earn him a spot, does he?"
Someone else scoffed, "The assessments at Star Cluster Academy are notoriously stringent. Without sufficient strength, it's impossible to secure a spot. Opportunists like him get eliminated first thing."
John remained silent, simply taking mental note of a few more people.
The assessing instructor handed the card back to John, giving him a deep look, and said, "Whether it was an accident or not doesn't matter. Assessments are about results. If you can achieve a good score in the assessment, everyone else will naturally fall silent."
John was somewhat surprised; he hadn't expected the instructor to say something like that.
Noticing John's puzzled look, the assessing instructor's expressionless face cracked into a slight smile as he transmitted a message, "Victor mentioned you to me. He told me you're the most talented individual he's ever encountered. I've known him for over a decade, and it's the first time I've heard him praise someone so highly."
John was momentarily taken aback, then remembered that Victor indeed had connections with someone from Star Cluster Academy, ostensibly to register him for the assessment.
He hadn't realized, however, that Victor's contact was the assessing instructor himself.
John responded earnestly, "Thank you for the reminder, teacher. I understand."
The instructor nodded and transmitted back, "Go ahead then. My name is Benedict. Should you encounter any issues within the academy, feel free to seek me out, provided you pass the assessment, of course."
With that, Benedict turned his attention away from John to verify the identities of other candidates.
John nodded and stepped into the crowd.
In John's presence, the people around him restrained themselves, not voicing any further comments.
John, expressionless, swept the crowd with his mind power, identifying those few individuals.
He also noticed that those who had passed the preliminary tests were no weaklings.
The majority were silver-tier awakeners, with not a few being of the gold-tier.
Some presences were incredibly formidable and conspicuous.
For instance, there was Isabella, whose aura was as fiery as flames.
Under the detection of mind power, she seemed like a blazing fire, her entire being enveloped in bright red energy.
Then, there was a handsome young man whose presence was surrounded by what seemed like a halo of sacred light.
Through the lens of mind power, this young man shone as brightly as the sun in the night sky.
Another notable figure was a black-haired girl carrying a long, slender package, her presence as sharp as a sword.
When John's mind power brushed over her, she seemed to detect it immediately, her gaze meeting his.
Their eyes locked, and within her brown irises, John glimpsed the flicker of sword light.
In that moment, he even saw a reflection of Victor in her.
The girl showed a hint of surprise in her gaze.
She had heard the discussions and judgments about John, initially thinking he must have cheated to pass the preliminary test.
To her astonishment, she found him to be a true expert.
The vastness of his mind power, the likes of which she had never seen in someone their age, took her by surprise.
John, realizing he had been noticed, didn't feel embarrassed.
Instead, he smiled and nodded, offering a greeting.
The black-haired girl responded with a shy smile in return.
Besides these three, John sensed several other strong presences, only slightly less formidable than the trio, including one who had mocked him.
John committed their auras to memory, anticipating they might cross paths during the assessment.
Time swiftly passed, and soon it was noon.
The preliminary test at Star Cluster Academy officially came to an end.
By then, the number of individuals who had passed exceeded ten thousand.
The surrounding stands were densely packed with spectators, their noise soaring to the skies, creating a fervent atmosphere.
Apart from a few, most of those who had participated in the preliminary test felt the pressure.
Beads of sweat formed on their foreheads, their eyes filled with nervousness, aware that the moment to determine their fate was imminent.
"Dong! Dong! Dong!"
At twelve o'clock, the grand and majestic bells echoed throughout the entire Star Cluster Academy.
Benedict stepped forward, addressing the over ten thousand young men and women with a grave tone, "The assessment is about to begin. I will introduce the rules now. Listen carefully, as I will not repeat them."
Benedict's voice, though not loud, overpowered the din of the sports field, reaching every listener's ears.
Many powerful individuals in the audience showed surprise.
The technique Benedict used was not a skill or mystical technique, but an advanced technique of power usage.
Even many transcendent-tier powerhouses could not achieve this, as it required a level of control over one's power akin to moving one's own limbs, a difficulty comparable to mastering a mystical technique.
Many were inwardly impressed.
It seemed that even a random instructor at Star Cluster Academy possessed such formidable strength; the reputation of the Federal's top educational institution was indeed well-deserved.
Seeing that all the students were prepared, Benedict nodded and began, "This year's assessment format remains unchanged, still taking place within Headmistress Sophia's domain. Headmistress Sophia will create a dungeon within her domain. You will earn points by killing the monsters inside, and your assessment card will record your score.
Moreover, you cannot use any items within the dungeon, but you are allowed to seize points from others. And within the domain, you will not truly die."
Casting his gaze over the attendees, Benedict's tone was calm as he added, "In other words, you can fight to your heart's content."