78: Chapter 78

78

His figure suddenly accelerated, taking a step forward almost brushing against the incoming sword tip.

Tan Wenya's pupils constricted as she hurriedly pulled her sword back to defend, but she was ultimately a split second too late.

A knife-hand strike slammed sharply against her wrist; a sharp pain shot through her, and the longsword slipped from her hand, clattering to the ground.

Jiang Haojie seized the opportunity to advance further, his shoulder and back slamming into her chest like an iron mountain, sending Tan Wenya staggering backward.

Before she could steady herself, Jiang Haojie had already closed in on her.

The situation on the arena changed abruptly, and a low murmur immediately rippled through the audience.

No one expected that Jiang Haojie, who seemed to be in a desperate situation just moments ago, would reverse the battle in an instant.

"Look! Jiang Haojie's counterattack is practically seamless. Tan Wenya has completely lost her rhythm."

"Why isn't Tan Wenya counteracting? She's a Physical Enhancer; she should be closing the distance!"

"Laymen watch for the excitement—it's not that she doesn't want to, it's that Jiang Haojie has sealed off all her angles of attack."

Discussions in the livestream chat rolled like a tide.

Zou Wenlin suddenly stood up from his seat, trembling with excitement.

What he originally thought was a certain defeat had actually met a turning point at this moment.

Shen Tianming's face was gloomy, looking even worse than Feng Yuanji's beside him.

A scheme that was supposed to be a sure thing had crumbled right before his eyes.

Only Sun Wanyu smiled leisurely, tapping his finger lightly on his knee—another A-grade weapon was about to be his.

On the stage, Jiang Haojie's offensive gave his opponent no room to breathe.

Tan Wenya barely recovered from the continuous strikes only to find she had been forced to the edge of the arena.

A sense of crisis surged; she gritted her teeth, wanting to fight back, but Jiang Haojie left no openings.

A punch came straight at her.

It looked plain and unadorned, yet it exploded with terrifying force the moment it connected.

Tan Wenya's expression changed drastically, but it was already too late to react.

She was sent flying backward by the punch, crashing heavily onto the ground.

"Cough—"

A mouthful of blood splattered onto the stage, and her face instantly turned deathly pale.

"The winner of this match: Jiang Haojie from Longcheng University!"

The entire venue erupted in an uproar.

"Jiang Haojie actually won? How... how is that possible!"

"He actually won. What method did Jiang Haojie use?"

"Good Lord, I'm only just realizing it now. Jiang Haojie might be the most well-hidden dark horse of this year's academies."

Among the crowd, several cold gazes were fixed on Jiang Haojie, with Xu Qing's gaze being particularly sharp.

She had been certain that Jiang Haojie had no chance of winning and had even mocked him to his face last night. Who knew that in the blink of an eye, reality would slap her hard across the face.

Why? Why could this trash who only knows ancient martial arts stand above her? Xu Qing screamed silently in her heart.

"Old Brother Shen, look at how this turned out,"

Sun Wanyu shook the two weapons in his hand, his face full of smiles. "I was thinking of returning them to their original owner, but who would have thought... sigh, I've made you spend more again."

The corners of Shen Tianming's mouth twitched twice as he forced himself not to curse out loud.

A petty man enjoying his success! With a dark face, he tossed an A-grade weapon shimmering with flowing light into Sun Wanyu's arms, then turned his head away, unwilling to look at him for another second.

He gritted his teeth and swore in his heart: if he ever made another bet with Sun Wanyu, he'd be a dog.

Suppressed chuckles could be heard faintly from the surroundings. Seeing Shen Tianming's stifled appearance, everyone pursed their lips tightly.

Jiang Haojie returned to his seat and leaned back, stretching his body.

This win was relatively easy, but he knew that the upcoming matches would likely require him to get serious.

Participants with insufficient strength would probably be cleared out by the end of today.

The tournament continued, and as Jiang Haojie expected, the subsequent matches became a one-sided elimination.

Except for him, every contestant whose cultivation had not reached the Third-Order was eliminated without exception.

Even among the Third-Order Awakened, only a handful remained.

Although these few were not high in level, each was exceptionally talented and had barely managed to survive this round by relying on unique abilities.

As for whether they could continue to hold on tomorrow, it was an unknown.

The last match of the night featured Qin Qinglan. Her opponent was a senior student with Fourth-Order cultivation but only a C-grade talent.

Qin Qinglan won comfortably without even revealing her true trump cards.

With her victory, today's schedule came to a close.

Jiang Haojie returned to his residence with Su Qingxue.

Just as Su Qingxue leaned in to do something, President Liu's communication call came through.

"President Liu, is something the matter?"

"X, where have you been lately? Why haven't you shown your face?"

President Liu's voice came from the other end.

"I've had some things to handle and have been busy."

Jiang Haojie made a gesture for Su Qingxue to be quiet and walked slowly to sit on the sofa. "You contacted me specifically; I assume it's not just to ask that?"

President Liu laughed: "I wanted to ask if you're available recently. There's something I might need your help with."

"Oh? What is it?"

Jiang Haojie was slightly surprised.

For President Liu to use the word 'please',

it was likely no ordinary matter.

Su Qingxue picked up a slice of cut fruit and gently fed it to Jiang Haojie's lips, then sat sideways on his lap, softly curling into his embrace.

"In a month, it's the triennial internal competition of the Bounty Guild,"

President Liu explained. "I hope you can represent our Longcheng Branch in the battle."

"The Bounty Guild has this kind of competition too?"

Jiang Haojie was stunned; he had never heard any news regarding this.

Hearing the confusion in his voice, President Liu patiently began to explain.

"The Bounty Guild's competition concerns national rankings. The higher the ranking, the more official support we receive, and cultivation resources will increase accordingly."

President Liu paused, his voice lowering slightly. "But more importantly, if you can break into the top five, you'll be qualified to represent the Dragon Kingdom on the world stage."

"Of course, the road ahead is not easy.

Our Longcheng Bounty Guild's current national ranking still needs to be raised a bit."

Jiang Haojie pondered for a moment and asked, "What are the entry requirements?"

"The minimum requirement is to be a Fourth-Order Awakened.

Although you haven't reached the Fourth-Order, your combat ability is not inferior to one. Participating should be no problem."

Jiang Haojie nodded. "I roughly understand the situation.

How about we meet in two days to discuss the details?"

"Good, I'll wait for your news then."

Morning light filtered through the gaps in the curtains as Jiang Haojie stood up from the bedside, supporting his waist.

He finally understood—in the future, when looking for a partner, he absolutely couldn't choose someone from the Support System. Even though he had just subdued her, who knew that as soon as a recovery skill landed, she would instantly become radiant and full of vitality again.

If not for his solid foundation and deep endurance, it really would have been difficult to satisfy Su Qingxue.

Su Qingxue poked half her face out from under the covers. Seeing him like this, a sweet smile curled at the corners of her lips.

Since the two of them had become intimate, she slept exceptionally soundly every night.

Inside the gymnasium, raindrops once again tapped against the dome. The transparent energy shield had already been raised, keeping the rain out.

Today's matches were crucial; the top ten strongest would be decided here.

Everyone knew that at this stage, no one would hold back their strength anymore; to win, one had to give their all.

The stands gradually filled up as Ma Chenyu and his group also walked over at this moment.

"A new day of competition is about to begin. Let's skip the small talk and go straight to the draw to determine the match order."

The large screen flickered, displaying the information for the first match:

"First battle: Chang Minghao from Beichen Academy versus Lu Baichuan from Zhanwu Academy."

The two leaped onto the stage one after the other.

Lu Baichuan's longsword shimmered with cold light, while Chang Minghao held a nearly two-meter-long spiked heavy mace.

Both were Physical System Awakened, but Chang Minghao was a solid Fourth-Order, while Lu Baichuan had already stepped into the Fifth-Order realm.

Jiang Haojie watched quietly, speculating in his heart: In this battle, Lu Baichuan probably won't hide his true cultivation anymore.

Although Chang Minghao hadn't reached the Fifth-Order, his strength was a notch higher than ordinary Fourth-Order Awakened and was not to be underestimated.

At the referee's command, two figures suddenly collided.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Heavy striking sounds exploded one after another on the stage, muffled and dense.

Perhaps because they were both from the Physical System, their attacks were without frills; every collision was direct, brutal, and full of power.

Initially, Chang Minghao used the advantage of his long weapon to suppress Lu Baichuan, preventing him from easily getting close.

Lu Baichuan, however, showed no impatience—he still had trump cards unrevealed.

Facing Chang Minghao's storm-like mace shadows, his steps were steady and his gaze calm.

"Who do you think,"

someone nearby discussed in a low voice, "will win between Lu Baichuan and Chang Minghao?"

Bursts of whispers rose from the surrounding crowd.

"Is there even a need to guess? Which of Chang Minghao's matches wasn't an overwhelming victory?"

"I don't think so. Lu Baichuan's sword qi is no joke. No matter how strong Chang Minghao is, can he take sword qi head-on?"

"Everyone, say less. The noise is making my head spin."

The clash on the stage drew all eyes. Some leaned toward Lu Baichuan, while others firmly believed Chang Minghao would win.

Shen Tianming turned his head and asked the person beside him, "Old Sun, what do you think?"

"What, want to make another bet with me?"

A hint of a teasing curve appeared at the corner of Sun Wanyu's mouth.

"Get lost!"

Shen Tianming snapped irritably.

Bet again? If he bet again, he'd just be asking for trouble.

Sun Wanyu shook his head slightly. "Chang Minghao's foundation isn't bad, but since he hasn't broken through his realm, he is ultimately a step below Lu Baichuan.

There's no real suspense here."

In his eyes, the depths of most people were as clear as a mirror.

Only Jiang Haojie was the variable he could never see through.

Chen Minan from Nanyu Academy heard this and laughed. "From your tone, it sounds like you don't care about the outcome?"

"How could I not care about the outcome?"

Sun Wanyu glanced at him. "It's just that Chang Minghao isn't the strongest student of our Beichen Academy.

Don't forget, Song Gaoling hasn't taken the stage yet."

Shen Tianming spat inwardly.

This old guy found another chance to show off.

Amidst the discussions, the battle on the stage had reached a fever pitch.

Lu Baichuan finally tore through Chang Minghao's defense and forced his way into close range.

The advantage of short weapons was fully displayed at this moment. Although Chang Minghao tried his best to parry, he was still pushed back step by step by the fierce offensive.

"Back off!"

Chang Minghao suddenly roared, and his body actually shriveled like withered wood in an instant.

Though his appearance seemed decayed, his power actually increased by thirty percent, forcefully shaking Lu Baichuan back several steps.

He seized the chance to advance rapidly, the spiked mace in his hand carrying the wind as it smashed down.

Weapons also had their hierarchy.

Chang Minghao's mace was only D-grade, while the longsword in Lu Baichuan's hand was a C-grade sharp tool.

Seeing the mace shadow strike, Lu Baichuan flipped his wrist, and sword qi slashed out horizontally. Where the cold light passed, the spiked mace broke with a snap.

Chang Minghao stared at the half-broken mace in his hand, his expression darkening. He simply discarded it on the ground and lunged forward again empty-handed.

Seeing this, Lu Baichuan also backhandedly stabbed his longsword into the stage floorboards and met the challenge bare-handed.

The muffled sounds of fist-to-palm impact replaced the clashing of metal, drawing bursts of cheers from all around.

The primal intensity of flesh-and-blood combat was far more blood-pumping than ordinary duels.

Bang!

Lu Baichuan spotted an opening and threw a punch straight into the center, slamming heavily into Chang Minghao's chest.

Chang Minghao retreated three steps before barely steadying his footing.

Lu Baichuan's ability was unique. While ordinary Physical System Awakened often underwent full-body mutations, he could at will transform parts of his body into hard crystal.

Chang Minghao took a deep breath and lunged forward again, his speed suddenly exploding like a bolt of lightning tearing through the air—he had poured all his strength into this strike, leaving no room for retreat.

Sensing the opponent's resolute intent, Lu Baichuan no longer hid his power.

The aura around his body surged violently, and the pressure belonging to a Fifth-Order Awakened spread out like a tide.

"Fifth-Order!"

Sensing that powerful aura, a wave of suppressed exclamations rose from the audience.

For most students still lingering at the Second or Third-Order, the Fifth-Order was an unreachable realm, yet Lu Baichuan had already quietly stepped into it.

However, there was no surprise in Chang Minghao's eyes.

He had long known that several Fifth-Order students were hidden in this tournament, they just hadn't revealed themselves yet.

He gritted his teeth, and instead of retreating, his charging momentum became even faster—perhaps this duel was exactly the opportunity he needed to break through his bottleneck.

Lu Baichuan stood still on the spot, his gaze indifferent.

As that figure pressed before his eyes, his right arm suddenly swung out, his fist crashing down like a falling star.

"Pfft—"

Chang Minghao spat out a mouthful of blood, his body flying backward like a kite with a broken string.

***

"Winner, Lu Baichuan from Zhanwu Academy!"

The referee's announcement brought this match to a close.

When the contestants who had not yet taken the stage looked at Lu Baichuan, their eyes were filled with deep wariness.

"Next match: Wang Xiaodong from Yongye Academy versus Ning Wenming from Beihai University."

...

"Next match: Xiong Guangsen from Turin University versus Mei Yuling from Qingshan Academy."

The schedule continued to progress, and in the first match of the afternoon, it was finally Qin Qinglan's turn.