At the Glacial Arcana Academy, in the arena zone, Ryan was bound up with restraining ropes like a mummy.

  "Hey! What are you doing!"

  Dozens of magic scrolls engraved with binding runes were plastered all over his body, blocking the flow of mana. All he could do was shout in panic.

  "We have been waiting for you for a long time. Accept our judgment!" A crowd of female apprentices surrounded him, their tone like street thugs.

  With a wave of their hands, they hurled Ryan viciously onto the arena platform.

  The instant he hit the ground, the magic scrolls on his body turned into streaks of faint light and automatically flew back into the hands of their respective owners.

  This was a recovery feature of scrolls, designed to prevent waste.

  "What did I ever do to offend you?" Ryan struggled to his feet, standing in the center of the arena with a baffled expression as he looked around at the furious female apprentices.

  "Are you trying to play dumb?"

  Countless voices shouted in unison, the sound waves shaking even the magical barrier at the edge of the arena.

  Ryan glanced around. The arena was a fully enclosed circular platform, and all exits had already been sealed.

  "Enough nonsense. Beat him up!" Several female apprentices with sweet looking faces but fierce tempers raised their hands, about to activate the attack scrolls they held.

  "Since you are pushing me this far, do not blame me for being rude." A cold smile curled at the corner of Ryan's mouth."Fine, I will stop pretending. I am laying my cards on the table."

  With a thunderous boom, a surge of mana erupted from Ryan's body, releasing the aura of a Ninth tier Journeyman Mage. Violent magical power swept across the entire arena.

  He deliberately suppressed his true rank, revealing only the strength of a Journeyman Mage.

  If he were to release the aura of a Senior Mage directly, it might attract the attention of other instructors in the academy, and that would be real trouble.

  This mana was unleashed without restraint. The powerful air currents sent the hair of the female apprentices flying in disarray, even pressing their faces slightly out of shape.

  Immediately after, an even sharper wave of mana burst forth from his body. Invisible sword like intent crisscrossed the air, shocking the group of female apprentices into pale faced terror as they instinctively took half a step back.

  Most of the female apprentices present were at the Journeyman Mage level, with a few advanced apprentices who had reached Senior Mage.

  Yet even the advanced apprentices could not hide the shock in their eyes.

  In just three months, he had advanced so many levels. Even in the history of the Glacial Arcana Academy, this could be called a miracle.

  "It has only been a few days, and he has already reached Ninth tier Journeyman Mage!" Some apprentices with weaker nerves were so frightened that their legs nearly gave out.

  In an instant, the once eager apprentices all backed down. Not a single person dared to step forward and challenge Ryan.

  Anyone who could enter the Glacial Arcana Academy was no fool. At the very least, they possessed basic judgment.

  They could clearly sense that Ryan's mana aura showed signs of imminent advancement, meaning this bastard was already on the verge of becoming a Senior Mage.

  "Come on! Who dares to challenge me!" Ryan's words were arrogantly provocative.

  Standing in the center of the arena, he swept his contemptuous gaze across the crowd, openly taunting everyone present.

  This was blatant provocation.

  "I cannot take this anymore. I am going!"

  A sharp cry rang out as a female apprentice at the Ninth tier Journeyman Mage level drove her mana and leapt down from the spectator stands.

  She gripped an enchanted longsword in her hands and thrust it straight toward the unbearably arrogant Ryan on the platform.

  Ryan's gaze sharpened. Mana surged instantly within his body, wrapping completely around both fists. His fingertips were covered by a layer of hardened magical glow, as if coated with refined iron.

  He twisted his waist, shifted his hips, and threw a punch charged with violent mana.

  A piercing sonic boom erupted. Where Ryan's fist swung, a ring of visible mana shockwave burst outward, distorting the surrounding air.

  Fist and sword tip collided head on. The female apprentice felt an overwhelming torrent of mana surge along the blade and into her body.

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  Her arm went numb in an instant, and she was blasted backward, slamming hard into the arena's magical barrier before slowly sliding down.

  This Arcane Enchantment combined with mana bursts is really effective. Ryan felt secretly pleased. He had just finished admiring the wonders of Arcane Enchantment when the next challenger had already stepped forward.

  The newcomer was a female apprentice on the verge of advancing to Senior Mage, wielding a longspear flickering with lightning mana.

  With a flash of movement, she leapt into the air and slashed viciously toward Ryan's back. The spear tip crackled with lightning, its momentum fierce and imposing.

  Ryan caught it out of the corner of his eye. Mana stirred beneath his feet as he swiftly shifted aside.

  He sprang upward, dodging the lightning spear, then immediately drove his waist and unleashed a wide sweeping kick empowered by mana. With a thunderous crash, his kick slammed heavily into the spear shaft.

  Caught off guard, the female apprentice hastily raised her spear to block. The tremendous force threw her off balance, her feet carving a long groove across the arena platform as sparks flew from the friction between her boots and the stone.

  "Again!" Ryan shouted. He stomped hard against the ground, mana flooding into his legs, and charged straight toward the female apprentice at the edge of the arena.

  She hurriedly steadied herself, enduring the numbness in her arms as she raised her spear to meet Ryan's assault.

  But Ryan was far too fast, giving her no chance to catch her breath. A flying kick infused with armor piercing mana shot forward, sending her and her spear flying off the arena platform on the spot.

  She was caught by her companions below. The moment she stabilized herself, she spat out a mouthful of blood, clearly having suffered serious internal injuries.

  Good grief, he showed no mercy at all. Seeing this, the female apprentices below revealed looks of fear, their gazes toward Ryan filled with greater wariness.

  In truth, Ryan had already held back. With his true strength, if that kick had fully erupted, it would have been enough to shatter her mana core and leave her completely crippled.

  "I will go!" Another woman leapt onto the arena. Her aura was steady, also at the Ninth tier Journeyman Mage level, with mana fluctuations that faintly hinted at an imminent advance to Senior Mage.

  "You are far too arrogant," she shouted coldly. Before her words even fell, she drew the pair of short blades from her waist.

  In an instant, she rushed in front of Ryan. The twin blades crossed as they stabbed viciously toward his lower body, the blade tips carrying a tearing edge of mana.

  "You are serious?" Ryan was startled inwardly, yet his movements showed no panic. Mana surged violently within him as he leapt straight upward.

  Seeing this, the woman immediately changed her attack. The twin blades reversed direction, carrying sharp mana as they stabbed toward Ryan's lower body in midair.

  Ryan adjusted his posture in the air and kicked out fiercely with both feet, smashing directly into the twin blades.

  Those seemingly indestructible short blades were kicked flying by a single strike, embedding themselves into the cracks of the arena stone and humming violently.

  The female apprentice had clearly not expected Ryan's mana eruption to be so overwhelming. The confidence on her face vanished in an instant, replaced by pure shock.

  Ryan twisted his body nimbly in midair, mana swirling around his palm as it descended slowly toward the apprentice's head.

  Her pupils shrank sharply. She was about to drive her mana to dodge, but the moment she met Ryan's icy gaze, it was as if she had been bound by invisible magic. Her entire body froze, unable to move.

  Just as his palm was about to touch the top of her head, Ryan suddenly released the mana in his hand and withdrew it at once.

  Ryan let out a quiet breath of relief. Fortunately, he had pulled back in time.

  The female apprentice also knew that defeat was inevitable. She landed together with Ryan, silently picked up the short blades from afar, and walked off the arena without saying a word.

  She had not even lasted three moves before being defeated, appearing even weaker than the second female apprentice.

  Yet only Ryan knew that if he had fought seriously, none of them would have been able to withstand even a single strike.

  "Even the one ranked ninetieth lost?" The crowd below stared at her retreating figure, faces filled with disbelief.

  This meant that Ryan's current ranking among the lower grade students had already risen to ninetieth.

  Do not be fooled by the fact that it was only ninetieth. This was the top one hundred of the entire lower grade at the Glacial Arcana Academy.

  Anyone who made the list was exceptionally talented, and all had the potential to advance to Elder Mage in the future.

  The academy's hierarchy was extremely clear. Apprentices at Senior Mage level and below studied in the lower grade academy.

  Only by advancing to Master Mage could one enter the upper grade academy. Once Mystic Mage was reached, one could apply to serve as an academy instructor.

  As for the monthly rewards such as magic crystals allotted to different ranks, the higher the magic level, the more generous the treatment.

  "Anyone else?" Ryan stood in the center of the arena, raised his arm, and shouted.

  This time, no one dared to step onto the platform rashly.

  "Since no one is coming, I will be leaving." Ryan's tone carried a hint of disdain."Do not challenge me again in the future, because you truly cannot beat me."

  As he spoke, he even shook his head. That unconcerned expression made it clear that he looked down on these kids from the bottom of his heart.

  The advanced apprentices who had reached Senior Mage and above gritted their teeth, fury blazing in their eyes.

  If not for Evelyn's prior decree forbidding Senior Mage level apprentices and above from challenging Ryan, they would have already rushed onto the stage to teach this arrogant fellow a lesson.

  "Bastard! You have completely disgraced us. Even if we have to surround you, we are beating you up today!"

  The Journeyman Mage level female apprentices trembled with rage. No longer caring about any dueling rules, they drew their magical weapons one after another and surged toward Ryan like a dark tide.

  "No honor at all!" Ryan's eyes widened. Seeing the swarm of apprentices charging at him, he did not dare linger. He leapt off the arena and turned to flee.

  This human wave tactic was far too troublesome. He could not kill them, and he could not finish fighting them. Sooner or later, they would exhaust him, and that would be disastrous.

  "You crazy women! You cannot win one on one, so you resort to a mob fight. Have you no shame?"

  Ryan sprinted wildly, still finding time to shout mockingly over his shoulder.

  His words only poured fuel on the fire. The pursuing apprentices grew even angrier, their pace quickening.

  "For the sake of beating up this bastard today, we do not need our pride!" the female apprentices shouted one after another as they chased him.

  Ryan ran at full speed, with a dense mass of apprentices behind him. The scene was truly absurd.

  "You are openly violating the academy's challenge rules. I am going to tell Evelyn!" In desperation, Ryan shouted Evelyn's name at the top of his lungs.

  This line proved effective. The pursuing apprentices gradually slowed and finally came to a halt.

  Though their anger remained hard to quell, they truly feared Evelyn's punishment and did not dare to let things escalate further.

  At that moment, a graceful figure flew in from the sky, wearing a veil and possessing a slender, elegant form.

  Ryan caught sight of the figure, and his expression lit up with joy, as if he had seen a savior.