Aurelia

“Do I really have to wear these things on my head?”

Looking at the hair accessories and props Lott had handed him, Bai Xiaodu fell into a brief moment of silent contemplation.

In his left hand was a toy clapping board with several large, golden characters printed on it:

“The Combat Club is invincible under the heavens!”

In his right hand was a laurel victory crown.

It would have looked quite nice, but each leaf was attached by a tiny spring to a stylized character that stood straight up. Put together, they read:

“I am Lady Aurelia's dog!”

Meanwhile, Lott had already eagerly put his on.

“Brother Bai, don't be so formal! These accessories are just for fun; nobody takes them seriously.

“Besides, the front row is reserved for supporters of the Combat Club. If we don't wear them, we'll get kicked out.”

Well, fine.

Bai Xiaodu reluctantly put them on.

He checked his reflection in his phone. To be fair, if you ignored the words on his head, he actually looked pretty handsome.

Lott wriggled beside him like an excited caterpillar, clicking his tongue in admiration.

“Brother Bai, with looks like yours, you must have tons of pretty girls chasing after you. How do you usually handle them?

“If you interact with too many, do people call you a player?”

Bai Xiaodu shrugged.

“I'm not fickle. It's just that my heart is like a mirror shattered into many pieces, and every single piece reflects my true feelings.”

Lott stared blankly for several seconds.

Once he finally processed the words, he nodded with a face full of reverence.

“As expected of someone who became a transcendent at such a young age! Your perspective is truly extraordinary, Brother Bai!”

A brilliant firework interrupted their conversation. Lott quickly pulled him to stand properly in their spot.

The ceiling of the venue was a giant, retractable dome. As it slid open, countless fireworks erupted, pouring down.

Massive waves of gold and silver confetti fell like rain, fluttering through the air.

The crowd bustled with excitement, the noise deafening.

Then, a clear and resonant male voice echoed from all directions of the venue.

“Welcome, everyone, to Tiannan Star Military University!”

As the voice faded, a massive cloud of colorful smoke and fireworks rose from the center of the venue, with invisible currents of air swirling the falling confetti.

Lott cheered wildly alongside the crowd, excitedly waving his board.

But Bai Xiaodu, possessing high Perception, narrowed his wine-red eyes.

There were fluctuations of mana in the smoke.

The colorful smoke and gold-silver confetti suddenly ignited, exploding instantly as a wave of air surged outward!

The wild cheering in the front row quickly turned into startled screams.

Did something go wrong with the very first act of the opening ceremony?!

Some quick-handed students immediately whipped out their phones and started snapping photos furiously, terrified of missing out on such a massive blunder.

Lott instinctively wanted to take a step back, but Bai Xiaodu grabbed him with one hand.

“It's just a performance.”

Sure enough, amid the screams of the front row, the smoke rapidly dissipated within seconds, leaving behind several figures striking highly dramatic poses.

The male voice rang out again.

“Let us welcome the Prop and Craft Club!”

A tall Elf with a smoking-hot figure and revealing clothes stood in the center, cheerfully waving to the crowd.

Notably, her skin was a dark purple-black, and her hair was silver-white.

A drow elf. Bai Xiaodu recognized her race.

“Hello, everyone, my lovely little freshmen babies!”

She continuously blew kisses to the still-startled audience around her.

They were literal flying kisses—though in a projected, illusionary state, likely controlled by threads of mana.

Her seductive demeanor immediately caused a bunch of guys to let their lower halves do the thinking, and they began clapping enthusiastically.

However, a few sharp-eared Elves standing at the edge of the venue clearly looked displeased, their faces full of disdain.

The drow elf, of course, couldn't care less about this minor interlude.

She ignored her annoying “kin,” continuing to wave and blow kisses. Wherever her kisses flew, cheers erupted.

But when she faced Bai Xiaodu, her expression froze. Her gaze lingered on his face for several seconds, and she instinctively licked her lips.

Lott was jumping for joy along with the crowd. Seeing her look in their direction, he started jumping even harder.

Bai Xiaodu remained completely unmoved.

Lott excitedly patted Bai Xiaodu's shoulder.

“Brother Bai! She keeps looking over here! Do you think she likes me?”

Bai Xiaodu tilted his head to dodge a flying kiss.

He twisted his waist to dodge a few more.

Between Xin Hai'an and Director-General Shen, both were far more beautiful than her.

Besides, he had seen this kind of cheap trick countless times. It was utterly boring.

“I don't know if she likes you, but I know her race. Drow elves have a terrible reputation.

“Don't get close to her. She'll play with you until you're half-dead, and I'm not joking.

“Making you happy would hurt her more than killing her. Do you know what the sole of a high heel feels like?”

Lott's joyful expression instantly froze, and he shuddered.

“How terrifying, meow... Brother Bai, how do you know so much?”

“Occupational hazard.”

Seeing that Bai Xiaodu was ignoring her the entire time, the drow elf could only sigh helplessly.

Putting back on a cheerful face, she announced:

“Welcome to our club, lovely freshmen babies!

“We love collecting and crafting all kinds of whimsical gadgets here. Junior brothers and sisters with strong hands-on skills, you definitely mustn't miss out!

“If there's anything you don't understand, feel free to ask me.

“This senior sister can give you some one-on-one private tutoring. Hehe, love you all~”

Then, another burst of colorful smoke exploded. Under the reluctant gazes of the crowd, their figures vanished.

A gentle breeze quickly swept through the venue, and all the smoke and gold-silver confetti disappeared without a trace.

Four hooded figures emerged from the shadows, taking up positions in the north, south, east, and west, standing in silence.

The male voice in the venue rang out once more.

“Let us welcome the Magic Application and Research Club!

“They will be bringing us a spectacular performance called: Volcanic Eruption!”

The black-robed figures glided forward in unison. After they landed, the figure on the east waved his hands.

A massive amount of earth-colored energy gathered on the ground, rapidly piling up and rising. In the blink of an eye, it formed a small, brown-rock hill.

“Rise!” the figures shouted in unison.

Spell runes materialized, and several streams of crimson, lava-like substance erupted, thrown high into the sky.

They then crashed heavily back down, painting crimson streams along the slopes of the hill, instantly freezing into the likeness of an active volcano in mid-eruption.

Staring at the flames that kept soaring and falling, Lott clapped furiously.

“So amazing!”

It was indeed impressive.

Compared to the previous act that relied entirely on prop tricks, Bai Xiaodu gave a rare nod of approval.

They had used earth shaping to form the small hill, then detonated consecutive Fireballs inside it.

This melted pre-placed flammable materials to create the effect of erupting lava.

It sounded simple, but in reality, the person using the earth shaping technique had to bear immense pressure.

After all, they were using a mere cantrip, yet it had to withstand the power of multiple Circle-level spells.

This magic club definitely had some real talent; their control was incredible.

The figure standing in the west spoke up.

“A simple combination of magic can rival the power of nature. We welcome students with similar interests to join us.”

After performing for a bit longer, they controlled the volcano to move slowly toward the exit of the venue.

Lott remained in the front row, but he slowly walked along with the volcano.

Even though his own strength wasn't much to write home about, as a Mage Apprentice, he could see the skill involved and wanted to study it.

Just as the volcano was about to leave, the young male voice rang out once more.

“Let us welcome the Combat Club!”

“Whooooaa!!!”

The audience around Bai Xiaodu leaped to their feet as if they had exploded, cheering, screaming, and waving their clapping boards.

“Lady Aurelia!!!”

“Long live the golden fox sister! Invincible and ever-victorious!”

“Combat! Combat! Combat!”

...

Uh.

Bai Xiaodu quickly adjusted the laurel crown on his head and held his clapper properly.

He joined in, shouting half-heartedly along with the crowd.

Their entrance was even faster than Bai Xiaodu had imagined.

Two large golden banners embroidered with a fox-tail emblem emerged first on the left and right.

They fluttered and snapped sharply in the wind!

Two flag-bearers clad in light armor led the way, their expressions solemn and their steps steady.

Dozens of figures radiating thick murderous intent followed closely behind, carrying an assortment of sabers, spears, swords, halberds, and spears.

Varying in height, skin tone, and race—Elves, Dwarves, dragon-kin, humans, and mermen all filed out in succession.

Simply by standing there, they seemed to make the air in the entire venue grow several degrees heavier.

Observing their aura closely, Bai Xiaodu was secretly astonished.

Every single one of them was a transcendent, and each carried a dense, murderous aura. None of them were to be trifled with.

The merman walked the slowest, and once he completely emerged from the shadows, these proud transcendents actually formed a semi-circle like bodyguards.

They stood silent and expressionless.

A golden-patterned snowflake sword was thrust forward first, its cold light gleaming, its edge terrifyingly sharp.

Its owner followed immediately, a fair hand holding the hilt.

This single sight instantly set the entire crowd ablaze with cheers!

Bai Xiaodu couldn't help but widen his eyes, staring at the exquisitely beautiful figure in the center.

“Holy crap, she really is that beautiful?!”