CHAPTER 247: Graduation

With his current strength, Han Shuo wouldn't even be afraid of the Dean of the Dark Major, Deo, let alone the likes of Phillide. Han Shuo looked relaxed and unrestrained as he stepped onto the test field. An easy smile was on his face. However, he still exuded an awe-inspiring temperament.

"Bryan, you've finally returned?" Lisa's voice was filled with joy and surprise. She couldn't help but jump with excitement as she let out a "Yes!

Fanny sat demurely on the high platform. After seeing Han Shuo, the traces of sadness that had lingered on her forehead for the past few months were completely wiped away by an invisible hand. She shone brightly in a way that blinded the eyes. Her lips curled in a strange way that seemed both happy and angry.

Han Shuo had been through a series of life and death battles in this half year. His power had skyrocketed, and now he radiated a natural aura. No one dared to look down on him now, even when he wasn't consciously displaying his strength.

"Athena, concentrate on the test! I know you can definitely pass!" Upon arrival, Han Shuo spoke to Athena, who seemed nervous due to the jeers and sarcastic remarks from Phillide's group.

"Thank you, Bryan!" Han Shuo's arrival seemed to reassure Athena, and her restless heart slowly returned to its original calm state.

Phillide, on the other hand, had been set off by Han Shuo's earlier words. His expression was quite ugly as he gave Han Shuo a sinister look, "You disappeared for half a year after I recovered. What was it for if not to hide from me?"

To be honest, the likes of Phillide bored Han Shuo. After fighting so many powerful beings, Phillide was no longer qualified to shout and scream in front of him. The power disparity was too great, and Han Shuo didn't even want to deal with him.

"Ahahaha!" Han Shuo let out a strange laugh, squinting his eyes at Phillide. He shook his head sympathetically before shrugging and sighing softly, "You think too highly of yourself, but what can I say to this kind of fool who has a few screws loose in his head?"

As he finished saying this, Han Shuo stopped paying attention to Phillide, who happened to be shaking with anger. He turned towards Fanny on the platform and flashed a bright smile. Taking a deep breath, he looked at Fanny and said, "I'm back!"

Fanny's pretty face flushed for some reason. She seemed to be trying to hide her true feelings as she glared at Han Shuo fiercely and snarled, "You unruly brat! Do you still remember to come back to the academy?"

Han Shuo flashed an awkward smile and started to explain something when the dark Dean showed an unpleasant expression. "Wait until after the exams. You'll have plenty of time then. Now, I think we need to take care of your major's business quickly, we're very busy people after all!"

The other Dark Major teachers also rushed up to Fanny and Gene after their Dean had spoken, and expressing that they had a lot to do and couldn't wait any longer.

Han Shuo was about to explain, but he looked apologetically at Fanny on the platform and threw up his hands. He shrugged and without another word took a few steps back to where Lisa, Amy and several other necromancy students were standing.

"Bryan, where have you been for the last six months? Didn't you say you were going to return to Ossen City soon? Why have you delayed until now?" Lisa chattered nonstop after Han Shuo had arrived. Han Shuo waited for her to finish her questioning before smiling and telling her that he had spent somce time cultivating in the Dark Forest.

"What the hell? He really thinks he's something, huh?" The dark major students who'd been trampled by Han Shuo felt indignant and snorted when they saw his dashing manner.

"Huh, I'd like to see how he plans to graduate early. I remember he was only a novice mage half a year ago!" Phillide, who'd been repeatedly humiliated by Han Shuo, said coldly when he saw Han Shuo in his element.

Athena was calm this time, not as nervous as she'd been before. She skilfully cast several necromancy spells, smoothly answered some questions and easily passed the novice mage test.

After that, the necromancy students began their tests one by one. Most of the students hadn't improved much. Only Lisa unexpectedly became a journeyman mage, the magical impulses from her body were obviously stronger than those of the other students.

Lisa had become much more reasonable after her harrowing experience, and had also come to understand the importance of strength. She was much more diligent when it came to practicing magic, unlike when she'd mostly played around and rarely meditated.

Waiting until all the necromancy students had finished their tests, Han Shuo leisurely stepped forward and said, "I intended to graduate directly upon my return. May I take the test now?"

At the Babylon Academy of Magic and Strength, one could graduate as long as they reached the rank of Adept Mage. Since Han Shuo had received the memories from the soul of Archmage Clarendon, he'd mastered all high-level necromancy magic after a short amount of practice, not to mention some lost necromancy spells.

The magic test was divided into three stages. The first was an oral examination of magical knowledge, the second was the casting of a spell of the appropriate rank, and the third was the assignment of a mission. The test was over when all three stages were completed.

At the Babylonian Academy of Magic and Strength, however, the Adept Mage test didn't include the mission part. Students could progress as long as they passed the first two levels.

With his current necromancy knowledge and power, the Adept Mage test was as easy as child's play for Han Shuo. He arrogantly skipped the Journeyman's test and set his sights on the Adept's test, with the intention of escaping the shackles of the Babylonian Academy of Magic and Strength as soon as possible.

"Are you sure you want to skip the Journeyman Mage test?" Standing on the platform, Deo glared at Han Shuo and asked for confirmation.

Nodding his head impatiently, Han Shuo confirmed, "Master Deo, didn't I just say it clearly? I want to skip the Journeyman Mage test and go straight to Adept Mage."

"Fine, then let's start!" Deo snorted coldly, obviously a bit annoyed by Han Shuo's rudeness. He then turned to nod at Fanny and Gene, indicating his agreement.

To the surprise of the other necromancy students, Han Shuo stepped onto the circular platform. He took his time answering Fanny's and Gene's questions, then answered some questions about the relationship between various magical theories. Some of the dark masters on Deo's side deliberately tried to embarrass Han Shuo by asking him about obscure, difficult magic knowledge.

However, Han Shuo possessed Clarendon's memories of magic. Forget his mental strength, with his own strength alone, he could already be considered a thoroughly tempered archmage. The seemingly complex problems didn't baffle him, as he answered them all fluently with a merry twinkle in his eye.

At this point, the necromancy students below began to feel proud, especially Lisa. She chattered and laughed at Phillide, taunting him. She used Han Shuo's performance to mock Phillide and the group of students who'd been taunting her earlier.

Even though Deo didn't want to admit it, Han Shuo's answers were flawless. Han Shuo smoothly and accurately answered all the difficult questions they asked him. There was nothing for them to even find fault with. In the end, they had to announce with a straight face that Han Shuo had passed the first round.

The second round of necromancy was even easier. Han Shuo cast about a dozen spells and used them skilfully along with sufficient mental strength. With Clarendon's decades of experience combined with his own, Han Shuo didn't have any difficulty unleashing high-level necromancy magic.

As Han Shuo unleashed high-level necromancy spell after high-level necromancy spell, the necromancy students below began to cheer incessantly, while the dark masters and students had ugly expressions on their faces. Obviously, they hadn't expected Han Shuo to be able to skip a rank and advance directly to the rank of Adept Mage in the short span of six months.

"Bryan, my assessment wasn't wrong! You really are a magical genius!" Fanny watched from the platform as Han Shuo passed the test with ease from start to finish. The power he displayed was in no way inferior to Fanny's own. For some difficult spells, he was even more accurate and skilful than she, the teacher. This made Fanny wonder.

"What is wrong with the order of the world? He's gained so much power so quickly!" Gene muttered with a look of disbelief, But then his thinking changed. Although Han Shuo had never attended his classes, he could still be considered one of Gene's students. With such a wonderful student, Gene could still more or less take some credit, enough for him to brag about from now on. Gene was pleased when his thoughts reached this point.

"Pass!" Deo gave a cold snort. His expression was getting uglier and uglier.

"Hehe, thank you Master Deo!" Han Shuo smiled from beginning to end. Whether it was the oral knowledge or the practical use of magic, he passed it all with ease and without a single effort.

Deo and some of the dark major teachers gathered for a discussion with glowing faces. Deo then gave a cold, devious laugh as he looked at Han Shuo. "You managed to pass the first two rounds. Your performance has impressed everyone, so I'll just tell you about the third test. You must hunt down a rank three harpy by yourself and deliver its core to us within a month. Only then will your test be considered passed!"

"Oh my god, how is that possible?" The necromancy students immediately began to complain.

On his last trip to the Dark Forest, Odysseus and his team of six had been very careful when dealing with a Harpy. The team of six had included mages and swordsmen, plus a journeyman swordsman and the archer Nia, but they'd still had to be careful. This showed how fearsome a harpy was.

Deo had actually demanded that Han Shuo hunt a Harpy as a stepping stone to becoming an Adept Mage. He was obviously trying to make Han Shuo's life difficult.

Phillide's cadres were all silent when they saw Han Shuo's performance in the second round. Even Phillide, who had been full of confidence, was disturbed and didn't dare to say anything after seeing Han Shuo easily unleash all sorts of advanced level magic. Just when the dark major students felt their spirits had been dampened, they heard Deo suddenly announce that Han Shuo had to hunt a third level creature - a harpy. They were once again excited and laughed loudly as they cast malicious glances at Han Shuo's group.

"Master Deo, aren't you going too far? I've never heard of a dark major student having to hunt a harpy for the Mage Progression Exam. This is simply a mission to the death, I definitely won't agree to it!" Fanny's delicate cheeks flushed with anger and she glared at Deo as she shouted.

Snorting coldly, Deo said with a darkened face, "Master Fanny, I'm the head of the Dark Major, not you. Your Necromancy Major is part of our Dark Major and I have the right to do so. You can give up if Bryan doesn't want to accept this task, but then the first two rounds will be wasted!"

By now, Deo had made it abundantly clear that he wanted to make things difficult for Han Shuo. This conversation made Fanny tremble with anger. She pointed at Deo and shouted, "You... you really are such a despicable person! I will find the Dean of the Academy to judge this, I will not allow you to obliterate the sky with one hand like this!"

"Wait!" Han Shuo still had a smile on his face. He did not react quickly or slowly. When he had everyone's eyes on him, he looked at Deo and chuckled happily, "Master Deo, are you sure you want me to kill a harpy?"

"Hehehe, I am sure! As long as you can prove that you have this power, I will definitely let you pass without another word!" Finally feeling the thrill of victory, Deo smiled as he looked at Han Shuo.

Nodding, Han Shuo shrugged his shoulders and said smilingly, "In that case, it looks like I won't have to go back to the Dark Forest again. Please determine my rank now!" Han Shuo's space ring flashed as he finished saying these words and two Harpy Cores appeared in his hand. In his right hand, he also held a pair of black iron claws, which obviously also belonged to the harpies.

"I hunted these two harpies in the Dark Forest before I returned to the Academy. These claws still contain traces of my magic. I think Master Deo won't deny these things?" Han Shuo laughed and said, casting a mocking glance at the shocked Deo.

Suddenly, the space in front of Han Shuo shook. A light flashed by and the Dean of the Babylon Academy of Magic and Strength, Emma, appeared out of nowhere. A pulse of magic shot out and circled the pair of iron claws in Han Shuo's hand. Emma then smiled benevolently, "Indeed, I have confirmed that these two harpies were definitely killed by Bryan."

Pausing, Emma gave Han Shuo a strange look, then turned to Deo with a smile. She said warmly, "There shouldn't be any problems. I think he can really graduate now!"