68: Hibiscus

Returning to the Arena, Jing Xing was stunned for a moment. After recovering, he let out a wry smile, cupped his hands toward Xu Yan, said, "I lost," and then stepped off the stage, leaving the Training Ground directly.

This battle, where he was completely overwhelmed from start to finish and didn't even see his opponent's face by the end, was truly a significant blow to Jing Xing, who had been a genius since childhood and was constantly praised by his peers. He needed some time to recover his composure.

Looking at Jing Xing, whose composure had clearly shattered, Xu Yan started to wonder if he had gone too far with his previous move. He hoped that Jing Xing, who obviously came from wealth and was a potential major future client, wouldn't be scared away by just one battle right after they met. Jing Xing didn't seem like the type of person whose mentality would easily explode, did he?

However, the moment this thought arose, Xu Yan immediately dismissed it.

If he was shadowed by a single battle and became afraid to face him, then his future achievements probably wouldn't be very high. If that were the case, no matter how rich the person was, they would only buy low-to-mid-range items from him in the future and wouldn't be considered a major client.

Having successfully rationalized his actions, Xu Yan looked at the empty opposing side, stepped down from the Arena as well, ignored the varied gazes of the surrounding crowd, and returned directly to the Experimental Building to continue his research.

And indeed, Jing Xing did not develop any psychological issues because of one battle. After Xu Yan returned to the Laboratory, he received a video call from Jing Xing. It seemed that Jing Xing had already composed himself during that time and regained his original gentle and refined demeanor.

In the video, Jing Xing first apologized to Xu Yan, stated that he would attend the subsequent battles to cheer for Xu Yan, and arranged to visit Xu Yan after the Entrance Exam concluded.

Over the next five days, Xu Yan participated in five more battles, and Jing Xing fulfilled his promise, attending every match to cheer for Xu Yan.

The five opponents Xu Yan encountered next were much weaker compared to Jing Xing, whom he had faced initially.

Although Xu Yan had exposed the existence and abilities of Wuxiang during the battle with Jing Xing, giving his subsequent opponents some preparation time and allowing them to implement certain countermeasures.

Things like specialized anti-blast armor, electromagnetic and pulse-type skills, and Anti-Detection Devices were all brought out, provided they complied with the rules, in an attempt to defeat Xu Yan using these counter-measures.

However, these people seemed to have overlooked one point.

Xu Yan did not instruct Wuxiang to use that fighting style simply because he was facing an opponent; rather, he spent time having Wuxiang employ tactics because his opponent, Jing Xing, possessed a certain level of strength.

The Spirit Beasts of these later opponents did not possess the powerful defenses and self-preservation methods of the Earth-Shaking Bear and the Rock Spine Scaled Snake.

After spending a little extra time cracking the opponent's Anti-Detection Device and pinpointing their location, Xu Yan unleashed a direct combination of Satellite Ray + Artillery Barrage Strike. The lasers and artillery raining down from the sky gave the opponent no chance to resist, instantly blasting them into fragments.

These five consecutive, simple, and brutal battles also helped restore Jing Xing's reputation, which had suffered mockery and doubt after being crushed by Xu Yan. The value of his previous battle against Xu Yan continuously increased as more matches took place.

After five consecutive victories, Xu Yan successfully advanced to the Top Eight, making him the only non-Combat Department student among the Top Eight.

There was no helping it. Just a few days into the semester, before everyone had started studying their majors and before their professional advantages could manifest, in terms of combat power alone, students from other majors really couldn't beat those from the Combat Department who had entered the Third Academy based on their own fighting prowess.

At this stage, all the contestants who reached the Top Eight were those who had achieved ten consecutive victories in the first round of battles.

Xu Yan's opponent in the Top Eight was a young girl named Mu Jin.

Mu Jin hails from a renowned Wood Element Family. However, this young girl appears to be somewhat rebellious; the main Spirit Beast she currently displays is actually a Flame Spirit Queen Bee.

Hmm, Insect + Fire—both attributes that counter the Wood Element.

Although the Flame Spirit Queen Bee's Bloodline Level is only Commander Rank Low-grade, placing it in the middle-to-lower tier among the Spirit Beasts of students in the Eight Great Academies' Combat Department, it possesses a clear Monarch Rank evolution form and is a highly unique and rare Legion-type Spirit Beast.

Mu Jin's Flame Spirit Queen Bee, however, possesses General Rank Upper Grade strength and can command Bee Swarms in combat.

Standing once again in the Arena, Mu Jin, as his opponent, also extended goodwill to Xu Yan, suggesting that the two of them could exchange notes after the battle.

Xu Yan naturally wouldn't refuse such an obviously wealthy major client.

After a brief exchange, the familiar Mechanical Voice sounded again.

"Beep, identities confirmed. Cultivation Department, Xu Yan, versus Combat Department, Mu Jin.

Random Map: Jungle."

As the Mechanical Voice faded, Xu Yan, already accustomed to the changing environment, skillfully summoned Zhu Yan and Wuxiang.

Zhu Yan submerged into the shadows as a precaution, while Wuxiang, following standard procedure, launched a Satellite to search for the opponent's traces.

However, compared to previous times, Xu Yan's old routine failed this time.

No matter how the Satellite launched by Wuxiang into the sky searched, Mu Jin could not be found. All that appeared were swarms of Crimson Bee Swarms flying everywhere.

On Mu Jin's side, due to Xu Yan's performance in his previous battles and the title of "the only non-Combat Department student among the Top Eight," she adopted an extremely cautious attitude toward him.

Therefore, as soon as the battle began, Mu Jin used the Innate Talent she had kept hidden: I Am the Swarm.

This talent merges her with the swarm, greatly enhancing its attributes, Devouring Capabilities, and Reproductive Abilities. Furthermore, as long as a single insect in the swarm survives, she can use it to restore her original body and transform it into a new Insect Queen.

It was precisely because she awakened this catastrophic-level Innate Talent that Mu Jin abandoned the Wood Element Spirit Beasts her family had originally prepared for her. After the family paid a huge price, she obtained this Flame Spirit Queen Bee, which possesses powerful Reproductive Ability and Evolutionary Potential, thereby embarking on the "rebellious" path that outsiders perceived as going against her own family.

Of course, this behavior also yielded some unexpected benefits.

There were indeed fools who believed that Mu Jin, the only girl in the Main Lineage of the Mu Family in this generation, had an irreconcilable conflict with her family, causing her to abandon her family's heritage. They then approached her with malicious intent, attempting to use her to take action against the Mu Family.

Consequently, the Mu Family turned the tables, gaining many benefits from them, and happily initiated a 'Fishing Mode'.