Silence lingered in the air.
Apollo's smile turned awkward. With a sigh, the ten clones shimmered strangely before dissolving into puddles of water that splashed onto the ground.
"Did I pass?" Apollo asked the Instructor, who was staring at him with wide eyes.
"Do you want to join my martial school?" Master Popo asked, his voice serious and tinged with urgency. He glanced at the platform and noticed that Axton and Elmo were also eyeing the young man. "You will immediately become an Outer Circle Student with your own private yard."
Hearing this, Apollo was surprised by the exclamations from the Martial Students in the background. I only made the clones dance, why are they so amazed? Apollo thought, glancing at the students before staring at the Instructor, who was looking at him with burning eyes.
"Sorry, I can't," Apollo replied, shaking his head. Although he didn't know what the Outer Circle in their School was, he wasn't interested.
"Join me, and I will personally teach you the Expose Fire Technique," Master Popo insisted, still determined. As his words fell, a gust of wind blew, causing his clothes to billow. Because he wasn't wearing anything underneath his Hanfu, something peeked out—or more accurately, it seemed like it was tired of being in the shadows and wanted some sunlight for a bit of vitamins.
"It's the greatest technique passed down through generations to each Headmaster of the Fire Shrine Martial School, but I will make an exception for you."
Apollo, already looking up at the sky, shook his head vigorously. Expose Fire Technique?! If the requirement is always showing one's bird, then hell no!
"Thanks, but I'm good," Apollo said. "Did I pass?"
"Yes, you did," Master Popo replied, letting out a defeated sigh. "But I stand by my offer."
The Beggar didn't respond. He just turned around and walked down the platform as fast as he could. The Martial Students looked at him differently this time—with great curiosity and amazement, particularly those from the Great Serpent Cultivation School.
He returned to his previous spot where Bel was still staring at him, displaying the same expression.
"What's wrong?" Apollo couldn't help but ask.
"You… you can conjure ten Hydra Mirage Clones?" Bel asked, her voice trembling.
"Yeah," Apollo answered, and seeing her expression, he understood what was happening. "It's amazing, isn't it?"
"Definitely!" Bel nodded her head. "I can think of only one person who can do that."
"Let me guess," Apollo glanced at the platform, where the two Headmasters seated beside each other were looking in his direction. Although he didn't know which one was which, he knew one of them was the Headmaster of the Great Serpent. "Your Headmaster?"
"Yes!" Bel said, her eyes lighting up with excitement. "From what I know, he's the only person who can use the Hydra Mirage with at least ten clones!"
"Oh," Apollo nodded half-heartedly. With his appearance completely changed from before, he was no longer worried about attracting too much attention. And although the effects would only last for an hour, who would bother looking at him again after they already knew his identity?
"Uncle Popo even personally recruited you and wanted to teach you his… technique, which I highly advise against. The side effects—" Bel's face turned slightly red.
"The side effects are disgusting, I figured," Apollo said, glancing back at the Instructor, who was still putting on his own 'show' on the stage. It took a while before the wind disappeared, which was quite strange, as it only dispersed when the Instructor cleared his throat and continued the examination.
Around this time, Filly and Gail walked over in their direction, with the restaurant owner looking at him with great curiosity.
"I didn't know you were so talented, Mr. Can Deez," Filly said, her tone filled with admiration.
Apollo almost couldn't hold back his laughter, which resulted in a series of coughs before he managed to clear his throat. Dmn, I almost forgot about that name.*
"I didn't do anything particularly amazing," Apollo said, trying to remain cool.
"Don't be humble," Gail smiled. "What you just showed takes years of training, experience, and talent. But you did it in just three days."
Three hours, in fact, Apollo thought, though he didn't say it aloud. They probably wouldn't even believe it anyway.
"I think it would be a good idea to join the Great Serpent," Filly suggested.
"I'm still thinking about it," Apollo sighed. He couldn't understand how he was suddenly surrounded by three beautiful ladies—not that he minded.
As the exam continued, they conversed while watching the participants display their abilities.
Apollo could feel eyes darting in his direction from time to time. The Headmasters didn't focus solely on him, as they also observed the other students. However, the Beggar could feel a particular person watching him intensely. Turning towards the source, he saw Arke staring at him. When their eyes met, Arke raised a hand and made a killing gesture across his neck.
That's so cringe-worthy, Apollo thought, fighting the urge to slap that smug face.
"I really hate him," Gail muttered, noticing Arke's gaze in their direction. Although she wasn't sure who he was really looking at, just seeing him made her angry.
Bel also turned to see who they were staring at, and upon seeing the arrogant man, she sighed. "Arke… He's a strong candidate to take first place in this Advancement."
"Do you think you can beat him?" Filly asked, frowning at the man in the distance. She didn't know him well, but his behavior reminded her of other arrogant noble kids, which annoyed her.
"We've sparred in previous Advancements, and in all our fights, I always won," Bel said confidently. "But I'm not so sure at the moment. I don't know how much stronger he's gotten since then—he could have caught up to me or maybe even surpassed me."
"I think you can do it," Filly smiled. "Your father is a Core Creation Cultivator; strong genes run in your family, so defeating him again should be a piece of cake. But make sure you teach him a lesson! He disrespected Mr. Beggar!"
Apollo, who had been quietly listening, shivered when he heard that name. Slowly, he started to step away from their group.
Hearing about her father, Bel glanced at the floating platform. Her father was still not there; he had promised to watch her, but it seemed he would only do so for the final test. She couldn't remember a time when her father ever broke a promise.
Filly's last words also caught her attention, prompting her to ask the restaurant owner, "Mr. Beggar?"