When it came to Ye Xinglan, Tang Wulin believed his efforts toward her were just and acted confidently. To him, bringing up how much he ate was illogical.
Since she looked down on him, why did he have to pay for her? From the beginning, they existed in two different worlds, two parallel lines never meant to touch.
The event grounds were buzzing with activity. Since junior division competitors in the individual competition wielded three soul rings at most, the space provided wasnât much. Each arena spanned about thirty meters in diameter. Arranged next to each other, the rings of battle showcased dazzling duels between all sorts of martial souls and soul skills.
Tang Wulin watched the battles with the eyes of a hawk, understanding that every participant was a potential opponent. He possessed a single soul ring; heâd need to grasp every advantage possible to win.
Not long after, the third heat commenced.
Tang Wulin glanced at his number plate. According to the lots drawn yesterday, his first appearance would be in the third heat in arena 16.
A soul barrier encased the circular arena so that the audience wouldnât be harmed by any stray attacks.
Although it was his first time participating in this sort of competition, Tang Wulin carried not an ounce of anxiety on his being. After his adventures in the spirit ascension platform and his real life combat experiences, all he felt was excitement coursing through his veins. Just how far can I go?
His opponent soon arrived. It was a petite kid shorter than Tang Wulin. His opponentâs eyes failed to mask the confusion and anxiety running rampant beneath their outward posturing.
Every arena had a referee and theirs was a middle-aged man.
âThe rules are simple. You may use any means to attack without worry. I will interfere if the need arises to ensure your safety and the result will be decided when one side concedes. In the event that participants cannot or will not concede, I will judge when one side is no longer able to continue fighting. I will also judge if the gap between contenders is too great. You both have thirty seconds to prepare. I will countdown the last five seconds. You may begin preparing now.â \nThe moment the middle-aged man finished speaking, Tang Wulinâs opponent summoned two dazzling yellow soul rings. Â
Donât we still have thirty seconds? Tang Wulin was baffled by his opponentâs actions since unleashing oneâs martial soul consumed soul power. Is he trying to show off his martial soul?
His opponentâs martial soul was a long, silver staff. A black dragon coiled around its length. It was the Coiling Dragon Staffâan impressive martial soul.
It has dragon in its name, so maybeâŠ
Tang Wulinâs heart hammered at the thought, pushing away his last remnants of fear toward his two-ringed opponent.
His opponent seemed to have realized his mistake and quickly recalled his martial soul. He stared back at Tang Wulin.
âFive, four, three, two, one, begin!â
Following the end of the countdown, Tang Wulin stomped forward with his left foot, launching himself like an artillery shell. He wasnât an agility-type soul master, but in that hairbreadth of a second, he exploded with speed. It took a few swift steps to close the thirty-meter distance between him and his opponent.
Once again hIs opponent released his martial soul. The Coiling Dragon Staff appeared in his hands yet no soul rings lit up; this was a clear sign he had yet to use any soul skills.
This was because he was startled by Tang Wulinâs frightening speed, completely forgetting about his soul skills.
The youngster heard a cold snort before a dizzying wave swept through his brain, all while watching as Tang Wulinâs fist drew closer. The golden-scaled fist glittered beneath the sun. Â An indescribable feeling of terror gripped him.
The sudden draconic might coupled with his nervousness caused the boy to fall back onto his butt.
Tang Wulin slapped away the Coiling Dragon Staff then, placing his scaled hand on the boyâs head. Naturally, he neither grabbed the boyâs head nor revealed his Golden Dragon Claw. \nâStop!â The referee appeared in front of them in an instant, blocking Tang Wulinâs hand. Of course, the referee could feel the lack of strength circulating through his limb.
âYouâre too lacking in combat experience! How can you even think of participating in the competition like this?â The referee reprimanded the pale-faced boy on the ground.
âB-but my soul skills are really strong. I thought I couldâŠâ
The referee snorted. âGo back and gain some real combat experience first. Even if your soul skills are powerful, you still need to be able to use them. Tell me, did you even get a chance to use them?â
Essentially, Tang Wulinâs first match in the knockout round was a victory.
The referee nodded in approval before granting him a new number plate for his second match.
Tang Wulin won his first battle without using his martial soul.
After this match, he was brimming with confidence since his opponent had been so weak.
Because he had finished his morning matches earlier than expected and the team competition wasnât until the afternoon, Tang Wulin headed back to the hotel.
When he reached his destination, he found that Gu Yue and Xie Xie had arrived before him. Xu Xiaoyan didnât leave the hotel at all.
âHow did things go for you guys?â Tang Wulin asked.
âOf course I won without a hitch! Weâre strong after all!â Xie Xie stated proudly.
Gu Yue nodded in agreement.
A smile appeared on Tang Wulinâs lips. âThen weâve already passed the first round. Congratulations everyone.â
Gu Yue said, âIsnât our goal to become the champions? Then we need to win in the team competition too.â
Tang Wulin sighed. âExperience is extremely important here. My opponent was a two-ringed Soul Grandmaster, but he was somehow defeated before using his soul skill. Of course, he couldnât believe he lost, but if it had been a real battlefield, I would have already killed him.â \nGu Yue said, âThe process isnât important; only the outcome is. Strength has always been a combination of multiple things, with soul power and soul skills being just a part of it. Even a powerful soul master could be killed by a childâs dagger strike if they let their guard down. Therefore, actual combat experience is crucial as it hones oneâs reaction time and vigilance.â
Tang Wulin let out a chuckle. âI just hope that I donât get matched up with you next round.â
Gu Yue was taken back for a moment before she regained herself, smiling warmly. Indeed, she didnât want to meet Tang Wulin in battle either.
âIt seems we all did pretty well. So boss, whatâs the plan for this afternoon?â Xie Xie asked Tang Wulin.
Tang Wulin answered, âOur opponents shouldnât be that strong, so we can just fight as we always do. We donât have to worry about our strength in the first round; we should be able to win without a sweat.â
âMn.â The other three nodded in agreement.
Long Hengxu lead Tang Wulinâs group to the team competition grounds, since Wu Zhangkong was off somewhere else.
âAre you brats ready?â Long Hengxu smiled pleasantly at the children.
He did not want the children to participate in the individual competition originally, but after checking their results for today, he changed his mind. They had an excellent start to the tournament.
Needless to say, he still wasnât aware of Tang Wulinâs participation in the blacksmithâs competition.
âWeâre ready.â Tang Wulin answered for his entire team.
Long Hengxu nodded with approval. âIâll be watching you all then. I donât know if Teacher Wu told you this, but due to the high resources invested into such a small class, this tournament is being used to test your classâs success. So you should aim for the best result. If you can get a good ranking, then in the future, the academy might invest more resources into your class. Especially you, Tang Wulin. Iâm sure youâre aware that youâve eaten away all of the academyâs funds. So, good luck kids!â \nTang Wulin nodded. âWeâll definitely do our best.â
Wu Zhangkong hadnât spoken to them about these matters, but when Tang Wulin heard the directorâs words, his heart stirred. Teacher Wu has been bearing all this pressure for our sake! Whatâs the best way to repay him? Of course itâs victory!
The space provided for the team competition was much grander than the individual competitionâs. The arenas for the three versus three team battles were each fifty meters in diameter.
Their opponents this time came from a small town called Seafare City, which was a level below Skysea City. It was about the same level as Glorybound City, but the formerâs economy fared much better and it managed to retain an intermediate academy.
However, the three versus three team competition wasnât that popular. That was because powerful academies would all send seven-man teams to compete instead. Only academies lacking in people or already possessing a main seven-man team would have a three-man team.
This was another fact that Wu Zhangkong had neglected to tell them, which they learned from Long Hengxu.
âWin regardless of the opponent!â That was Wu Zhangkongâs philosophy.
After observing several matches, Tang Wulin and the others came to the conclusion that they had no serious competition within the junior divisionâs three-man team event. Nothing of note occurred while they watched.
âBoss, why are these matches making me so sleepy?â Xie Xie said helplessly.
Tang Wulin said, âThatâs because we havenât seen anyone strong yet. But donât get careless; weâre only observing one part of the stadium. Letâs plan our strategy nowâŠâ \n