Chapter 514: The Challenge
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
“How about the two-against-two match? Do all of you have any opinion on that?”
Yuanen Yehui answered, “We’re going to strive to win over that match. I’ll join Yue Zhengyu versus you and Gu Yue.”
Tang Wulin agreed. “Alright. That’s considered a match. How about the group match? What did the seven people representing the group match think?”
Yuanen Yehui answered, “It’s certainly not a problem with us if Gu Yue and Ye Xinglan are on your side. We only object to these two people — Xu Xiaoyan and Xie Xie. I’ll be choosing two students from my class and have a two-against-two match with them as a trial of strength. Whoever wins will get to represent us and participate in this competition. How about that? Of course, the two people that are chosen from my class won’t be me and Yue Zhengyu.”
“Alright. That’s settled then.” Tang Wulin agreed without the slightest hesitation.
Yuanen Yehui could not help frowning upon seeing that he agreed so directly. “You’re so certain about this?”
“Of course. Frankly speaking, anybody else aside from you and Zhengyu from your class cannot necessarily triumph over Wu Siduo’s little group.”
“Could you be less conceited?” Yuanen Yehui replied in an unpleasant tone.
Tang Wulin retorted, “Would you like to try this instead? We won’t send the six from my group to fight. Instead, everyone will form a five-man group. You and Yue Zhengyu will stay out of the fight as well. Let’s see who wins.”
“I have no time for this nonsense.” Yuanen Yehui walked away from rage.
‘This is the despair of having abilities that are below expectation. It’s true, the average abilities of this batch’s class one is truly too strong.’
Tang Wulin squinted his eyes as he pondered. ‘It’s good that we organized such a trial. There’s more than just the second grade who’s doubting Xie Xie and Xu Xiaoyan’s abilities. Isn’t it the same in our class?’
Wu Siduo, Luo Guixing, Xu Yucheng were all people with impressive abilities. Yet, there were not even nominated to enter the group match. How could their hearts be convinced?
Only a challenge to prove one’s abilities through combat would clear the air along with the doubt everyone had.
The trial date was resolved easily. It would be held two days later in Shrek Academy’s sparring arena.
There were a total of two matches, and both were two-against-two matches. Xie Xie and Xu Xiaoyan would go against second grade class one’s Duan Hunxiao and Ye Xingmo in the first match.
Them, Tang Wulin and Gue Yue would go against Yuanen Yehui and Yue Zhengyu in the second match.
Even though there were only two matches, it was filled with excitement.
Ye Xingmo was pinned down in agony by Ye Xinglan in the previous dual between the first and second grades. However, this did not mean that he was weak. It was only because his martial soul was suppressed by Ye Xinglan in an overly cruel manner. Second grade class one even had Duan Hunxiao, a four-ringed master-control soul master. He was the first student to achieve four rings when even Yuanen only had three rings at that time.
On the first grade’s corner, Xie Xie and Xu Xiaoyan had always been regarded as the runt of the litter in Tang Wulin’s group. They were not particularly strong and at most, only Xie Xie seemed to have some potential and looked to be a little more capable in combat.
This competition would determine the two candidates who would be filling up the slots in the group match against the third grade.
As for the second match, it would undoubtedly be a clash of the titans. It was a match between the two, universally-acknowledged strongest duos from both grades. Both duos had their own strengths. Although Tang Wulin and Gu Yue’s cultivation base were slightly weaker, they possessed the incomparable ability of a martial soul fusion skill. It was difficult to tell if Yuanen Yehui and Yue Zhengyu were capable of countering this. When compared, more people would be supporting Tang Wulin and Gu Yue’s group.
This was just a mere trial, and yet the outer court’s Academy President, Elder Cai was personally acting as the judge. The fact that she would be executing the justice for them was out of everyone’s expectations.
Two days later.
It was two in the afternoon, and all the first and second grade students from the outer court were already present at the sparring arena. They were waiting for the internal audition trial to begin.
“Are you confident?” Tang Wulin looked at Xie Xie and Xu Xiaoyan standing in front of him.
“Yes.” Xie Xie spoke without the slightest hesitation.
Xu Xiaoyan smiled gently. “I’ll be fine as long as he doesn’t stand in the way.”
Xie Xie was exasperated. “I’m not the one standing in your way. This time, you’ll bear witness to how strong I am.”
Lui Guixing whispered into Wu Siduo’s ear on the stage, “Why aren’t we involved in the audition trial this time? Have you asked Tang Wulin?”
The corners of Wu Siduo’s lips twitched but still, he seemed like he was smiling. “You still don’t know the way he is? He looks calm and gentle but in reality, he’s a very cunning person. He told me that he’d send me out to say it’s unfair if Xie Xie and Xu Xiaoyan were defeated in the audition trial. Then, we’ll fight them once again…”
Then, a puzzled expression suffused Luo Guixing’s face. “Is that even possible? Wouldn’t that be cheating?”
Wu Siduo replied, “Tang Wulin told me in an extremely justified and confident manner at the time. He told me that we’re still young and the second grade students should yield to us. Moreover, we aren’t really cheating anyway.”
Luo Guixing patted his forehead. “So what if Xie Xie and Xu Xiaoyan win the match?”
Wu Siduo repeated, “So what if Xie Xie and Xu Xiaoyan wins?”
Wu Siduo explained, “If they win, he’ll send us out to balance out the two-against-two match. There’s no duo from our side capable of defeating them aside from me, you, and Xu Yucheng.”
Luo Guixing frowned hard. “What does he mean? Could it be that he thought Xu Xiaoyan and Xie Xie were stronger than Xu Yucheng and I?”
Wu Siduo said, “I don’t think so either. However, Tang Wulin isn’t a person who does things aimlessly.”
Luo Guixing frowned again. “Could it be that they’ve made a huge leap in their abilities? Don’t you find them to be especially strong in the challenge during the beginning of the academic year?”
Wu Siduo answered, “They didn’t even go all out during that match, how would I be able to know? Take a look for yourself. You’ll be able to see it in today’s competition.”
“Hmm.” Luo Guixing nodded gently.
There were no nitty-gritty procedures what-so-ever during the internal audition trial. Elder Cai ascended the competition stage and announced, “Two-against-two. Students from both parties, please enter the arena.”
Duan Hunxiao and Ye Xingmo ascended the stage from the second grade’s corner, appearing even steadier compared to their previous encounter. Ye Xingmo’s gaze was incisive, and his eyes were shimmering with an indistinct but sharp radiance.
Xie Xie and Xu Xiaoyan walked up to the competition stage together from the other corner.
Yuanen Yehui watched them as they walked up the stage side by side. For some unknown reason, she felt a tinge of unease in her heart. She had been feeling heartache ever since Xie Xie stormed off in rage the other day. However, it felt impossible for her to take the initiative to admit to Xie Xie that it was a mistake she made out of pride.
She initially thought that he would no longer appear before her after the day he hurt him. Who would have known that she would still see a clean doorstep when she woke up the fresh morning along with a basin full of fresh water in front of her door.
Absentminded, she stood there for almost half a minute before she managed to react. ‘This person is truly persistent!’
The initial rage she had in her heart toward Xie Xie had vanished from that day onward. At the very least, she would not burst into a frenzy of rage the moment she saw him.
‘Even though this person is a little unpredictable but it’s already very rare for me to see him these days. I guess he’s been working hard all along. Would he catch up with me? I’m destined to enter the inner court…’ Even Yuanen Yehui was feeling slightly frightened when this thought appeared in her mind. ‘Since when did I start thinking on his behalf?’
Xie Xie was very good looking as well. However, he looked ordinary because he spent most of his time shadowed by Tang Wulin charm. When he ascended the stage with Xu Xiaoyan at this moment, they gave off a feeling — like they were a perfect couple.
Both parties stepped onto the competition stage, standing on opposite sides.
Elder Cai spoke indifferently, “Do everything that you can. Begin!”
There were no competition rules. That was the reason why they were allowed to use everything in their arsenal to display their abilities.
Xie Xie immediately moved with Elder Cai’s call to begin the competition. He was just like a refreshing breeze; he flew up lightly as the Light Dragon Dagger appeared in his right hand. His speed was unusually fast. Even as the sound of Elder Cai’s voice was still echoing, he had already dashed past half the stage.
Such swiftness!
Duan Hunxiao and Ye Xingmo were both startled. So were the first and second grade students who were watching the competition.
Many of the agility system battle soul masters were subconsciously measuring their speed. How was their speed compared to Xie Xie? Soon, they found out that they were definitely not as fast as him.
Duan Hunxiao and Ye Xingmo were chosen to represent second grade in the competition for their extraordinary abilities. As soon as Ye Xingmo took a step forward, he had already put himself in front of Duan Hunxiao, and his Starsaint Sword leaped into his right hand at the flash of a radiance.
A stretch of starlight stretched out into the path where Xie Xie was dashing toward.
However, it was also at this exact moment that Xie Xie made a change in movement that no one had ever expected.
His exceedingly high-speed dash suddenly halted to a stop in a split second. The changes he made were truly too absurd — from moving at breakneck speed to a halting silence.
The Light Dragon Dagger was raised, and everyone instantly felt like his entire being had suddenly grown larger in a split second.
In reality, his body did not grow larger. Instead, it was the explosive force coming off of his body. Eventually, when the explosive force from Xie Xie dissipated, everyone could finally see two yellow and two purple soul rings around his body at the same time.
Wu Siduo, Luo Guixing, and Xu Yucheng’s froze upon witnessing these four soul rings as they sat in the audience. The usual upper hand they had in their soul skills were instantly destroyed. Fortunately for them, Xu Xiaoyan released her Star Staff beside him along with an expected three soul rings.