The sixth-tier blacksmith badge landed like a boulder dropped into a still lake, and in an instant the classroom exploded into an uproar.
"Hiss, sixth-tier! Am I seeing this right?"
"How is this even possible! There aren't even that many sixth-tier blacksmiths among the academy's senior mentors!"
"What kind of monster is this guy? Second on the Genius Ranking was one thing, but a sixth-tier blacksmith too?!"
The freshmen's exclamations rose one after another, and the way they looked at Arthur shifted completely, from initial awe into full-blown fanatical worship.
Even Lin Hao, who had still felt a bit unconvinced up to this point, now stood there with his mouth hanging open, unable to say a word. The weight a sixth-tier blacksmith badge carried was simply too much.
With that one statement from Arthur, the class would never again have to worry about materials for battle armor.
That was battle armor they were talking about. Now there was absolutely no one left who could contest him for the position of class president.
With interests this enormous at stake, from here on, anyone who tried to go against Arthur would be inviting the wrath of everyone else and getting swarmed for it.
Shen Yi's pupils constricted sharply as well. She naturally knew how to tell a real badge from a fake one, and for a moment the look she gave Arthur was full of complicated feelings.
A sixth-tier blacksmith before the age of thirteen. There had never been anyone like this before, and there was unlikely to ever be anyone like this again.
Of course, where some rejoiced, others grieved.
Not everyone in the class was happy about it.
A handful of students who had gotten in specifically on their blacksmithing talent felt their whole world collapse.
They stared blankly at the sixth-tier badge on Arthur's chest, feeling in that moment like mayflies gazing up at the vast blue sky.
However proud they had once been of their talent in blacksmithing, that was exactly how shattered they felt now. Their sense of self, of purpose, had genuinely cracked apart.
Arthur was quite satisfied with everyone's reaction. His tone stayed flat, but carried a weight that brooked no argument.
"Besides material forging, going forward I can also help everyone with the distribution of cultivation resources within the class, the purchase of soul spirits, and even mediating conflicts between soul masters."
"Remember this: once you're in this class, you're all one whole. With me here, no one gets to bully any of you."
The young master had spoken.
After first showing off power that even Shen Yi deferred to, this follow-up statement worked like a reassuring pill, letting the freshmen let go of every last worry they had.
The reason they'd come to Shrek Academy in the first place was to grow stronger, and the strength and background Arthur had just put on display could genuinely bring them real benefits.
"I nominate Arthur for class president!"
"Me too!"
"Unanimous!"
A unified shout rang out through the classroom, without a single objection.
Seeing no one raise any objection, Arthur went on, "As for the competition for the other positions, the selection of the four deputy committee heads will be decided by all of you, through a skill competition."
"As for the two vice-president spots, we'll do it Shrek's traditional way: a melee!"
"In a moment I'll take you all to the Grand Martial Arena. The last two people still standing in the arena will serve as vice-presidents."
Off to the side, Shen Yi was already staring, dumbstruck. Everything Arthur had just said was supposed to be her line!
She raised a hand, about to say something, only to see that every single student had already surged out of the classroom after Arthur.
Feeling, for the first time, like something of a failure as a teacher, Shen Yi couldn't help but tug at Wu Changkong. "Stop playing dead, senior brother!"
"Aren't you going to do something about this!"
"Do what about it?" The corner of Wu Changkong's mouth curled up. "Isn't this working out just fine?"
That got her to roll her eyes at him.
With Arthur leading the way, the first-year freshmen marched in a great procession toward the Grand Martial Arena.
The academy building was enormous, but the range covered by Arthur's Spiritual Power was even greater.
He led them with ease into a large circular hall.
By the time Wu Changkong and Shen Yi caught up, they found Arthur already standing at the very front, chatting away with the students.
"Why haven't you started? What are you waiting for?" Shen Yi stepped forward to ask.
"What do you mean, what am I waiting for. I'm waiting for you."
Arthur spread his hands. "I don't know how to run this, and besides, you're the teacher here."
Oh, now you remember I'm the teacher?
Shen Yi took a deep breath, steadying herself.
She paused, then began, "Everyone, for the melee that's about to begin, the moment all four limbs or your torso touch the ground, you'll be removed from the field immediately and disqualified from the running."
"Of course, if any of you have no interest in contesting for these positions to begin with, that's entirely your choice.
Class officer positions do come with a bonus toward qualifying for the Inner Academy, and carry more say within the academy, but they also come with no small number of obligations."
"We'll begin now. You have fifteen minutes to prepare. During that time you're free to form alliances however you like. Everything comes down to the final result."
The students all rose to their feet, and a burning fire lit up in every one of their eyes.
Young and reckless, every single one of them a genius.
Melee or no melee, none of them were afraid of a thing.
A fight. Now that was exciting!
During the fifteen minutes of alliance-forming, everyone went off looking for teammates.
This melee wasn't just a test of individual strength. The class had a hundred and one students in total, every one of them a genius from somewhere in the Federation, none of them lacking in ability.
How well a group worked together mattered a great deal.
But compared to the other students hurrying to find teammates, Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and the rest made no move at all.
They yawned, leaned against the wall, and stared off into space, without a shred of fighting spirit.
Want to know why?
Because at a glance, they could already see the fighting spirit in Na'er and Gu Yue's eyes practically overflowing.
Me, fight Na'er and Gu Yue with their fighting spirit maxed out?
Sorry, I surrender.
Now that Arthur had become class president, Na'er was naturally determined to claim the vice-president spot.
Carrying the name of the Golden Dragon King, there was no way she would allow herself to lose!
Gu Yue, meanwhile, had already planned to build her future here at Shrek. The position of class president had been directly tied up by Arthur through sheer self-interest, leaving her no room to compete for it.
Which meant the remaining vice-president spot was one she absolutely could not let slip by.
"Tsk, tsk, the sheer pressure coming off those two is basically about to drill a hole straight through the arena."
Xie Xie clicked his tongue and shrank in closer to Tang Wulin's side. "Wulin, should we just forfeit the moment we get in there? Either way, I really don't want to run into those two terrifying ladies."
Tang Wulin nodded along, his gaze sweeping across the two people in the room with the fiercest fighting spirit.
Na'er's violet eyes had already turned gold, and faint dragon roars seemed to echo softly around her. She was adjusting her own state, readying herself to suppress everything in her path.
Gu Yue stood on the other side, the elemental power around her growing steadily more active, though held carefully in check.
The other students around them were all burning with excitement, but not one of them dared approach too close to the space around those two, tacitly steering clear of that invisible "forbidden zone."
Gu Yue, ranked first on the Genius Ranking, was of course someone they all recognized, and Na'er's name was on the list too.
Quite a few students clustered together in small groups, murmuring strategy in low voices.
Time was up.
Shen Yi spoke. "In a moment, you'll all enter an illusory space, similar to entering the Spirit Ascension Platform. Right now, everyone please step back outside the white circle on the ground."
The students of Freshman Class One did as told and stepped back. Right after, the ground slowly split open, and one device after another rose up out of it. Once their outer shells cracked open, they revealed cockpits inside fitted to the human body.
"Each of you pick a cockpit and take a seat. In a moment you'll all be teleported into a forest with a set boundary. Anyone who wants to team up should pick a neighboring simulation pod. You have three minutes to get ready. Once you're inside, make sure you buckle your safety harness."
Arthur walked forward, ready to get into one of the devices. Wu Changkong grabbed hold of him and asked, "What are you doing?"
"Huh? Joining the melee."
Wu Changkong's eyelid twitched. "You're already class president. What are you going in there for?"