Chapter 172: Chapter 171: The Two-Academy Competition
On the training grounds of Qig Mountain Academy, the contingents from both Celestial Academy and Qig Mountain Academy had taken their places. A crowd of several thousand had gathered around them, most of whom were students from Qig Mountain Academy’s Outer Courtyard.
"I’m so excited! I wonder how the experts from our Qig Mountain Academy will stack up against Celestial Academy’s?"
"Yeah, I’m excited too. I wonder who’s stronger and who’s weaker in this competition."
"If you ask me, Celestial Academy is probably a bit stronger."
"Mmm, I think so too, but I feel like our Qig Mountain Academy students aren’t weak either."
.....
"The first match begins!"
The moment Nie Qinglan finished speaking, a person from both Qig Mountain Academy and Celestial Academy stepped forward.
"Chengg Yun, Qig Mountain Academy," the student from Qig Mountain Academy said, cupping his fist.
Chengg Yun’s strength was considered quite formidable within Qig Mountain Academy. His cultivation was at the peak of the Refining Spirit First Layer Heaven; aside from a select few, his cultivation was the highest.
At that moment, a young man walked out from the Celestial Academy group. It was Zhao Hao.
Zhao Hao slowly walked up and cupped his fist. "Zhao Hao, Celestial Academy!"
Chengg Yun’s brow furrowed. "So young, and still a Refining Essence Martial Artist?"
"Peak of the Ninth Heaven of Refining Essence," Zhao Hao said with a nod.
Chengg Yun looked at the still-immature Zhao Hao and couldn’t help but burst into laughter. "HAHAHA, has your Celestial Academy run out of people? Sending a mere Refining Essence Martial Artist to fight me?"
A stir went through the surrounding crowd from Qig Mountain Academy. Zhao Hao was clearly very young, around eighteen or nineteen, and his features made him look even more boyish.
"Those people are definitely underestimating Little Hao," a beautiful young woman from Celestial Academy couldn’t help but giggle.
A young man beside her, his eyes holding a trace of calmness and wisdom, slowly said, "That student from Qig Mountain Academy is no match for Zhao Hao."
This man was none other than Celestial Academy’s number one expert, Nie Shuang. In all of Celestial Academy’s past struggles and competitions, he had never once been defeated. Shu Jiuyi had called him a once-in-a-century genius of Celestial Academy.
However, he did have one defeat in the Celestial Martial Country. In the tripartite academy freshman competition a year and a half ago, he had lost to Wen Tongyu. Aside from that one time, he had never lost again.
"Whether we have anyone else or not doesn’t matter. All that matters is that I beat you," Zhao Hao snorted coldly.
"Beat me? You? How arrogant!" Chengg Yun shouted, rushing forward.
Zhao Hao’s Swordsmanship had indeed improved a great deal, but Chengg Yun held a slight advantage in cultivation. The two of them fought fiercely on the stage, trading blow for blow.
Sword Qi flew and Primordial Qi surged across the arena. In the blink of an eye, the time it takes for an incense stick to burn had passed.
"This Celestial Academy student is incredible! A Ninth Heaven of Refining Essence fighting a Refining Spirit to a standstill!"
"Yeah, he’s amazing. And he doesn’t look that old, either."
"He reminds me of someone."
"Me too."
...
The fierce wind whipped at the corners of their robes. Chengg Yun cast aside his earlier contempt, his heart shaking. ’This young man before me is an absolute genius.’
"Blood Sacrifice of the Eight Desolations!"
Chengg Yun suddenly erupted. His body slowly rose into the air as a blood-red curtain abruptly appeared before him. He thrust his palm forward, and a massive hand materialized in the sky, pressing down to crush its target.
"Torrential Rain Sword Technique!"
Seeing Chengg Yun’s attack, Zhao Hao was completely unafraid. He took a step, and the sword in his hand thrust forward violently, like a torrential downpour, leaving no gaps.
BANG!
The two collided and then separated.
"WAH!"
Chengg Yun spat out a mouthful of blood. Only then did some color return to his face, and he seemed to feel much more comfortable.
Chengg Yun was defeated!
Although Chengg Yun was unwilling to accept it, he knew he had lost this battle. "I... am defeated..."
WHOOSH!
The hearts of everyone from Qig Mountain Academy sank. In the very first match, Qig Mountain Academy had lost.
Zhao Hao’s face was pale. He used his sword to prop himself up. "I was only a little better than you. I won’t be able to fight in the second match."
Zhao Hao had also suffered heavy injuries and was in no condition to continue fighting.
Watching Zhao Hao’s departing figure, Wang Tianming couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration, "This boy’s talent is remarkable. With time, he is sure to achieve great things."
"HAHAHA, I believe so as well," Shu Jiuyi laughed heartily, nodding his head.
The first match was over. It looked like a victory for Celestial Academy, but with Zhao Hao out of combat strength, it could barely be called a draw.
Both academies began to secretly rally their spirits.
At this point, Nie Qinglan slowly walked onto the arena stage.
"The second match begins!"
The moment Nie Qinglan finished speaking, someone from Qig Mountain Academy had already walked out.
"Wang Chong of Qig Mountain Academy! Who dares to face me?"
The one who stepped forward from Qig Mountain Academy was, surprisingly, Wang Chong.
"Zhu Shaoyou of Celestial Academy."
The man who walked out from Celestial Academy had a cold expression and a gloomy look in his eyes.
"Enough talk. Let’s begin!" Wang Chong’s eyes held a hint of arrogance. The man before him also had the cultivation of the Refining Spirit First Layer Heaven; Wang Chong had no fear of him.
Seeing how arrogant Wang Chong was, Zhu Shaoyou from Celestial Academy couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow.
"Divine Power Heavenly Thunder Palm, Second Form!"
Wang Chong bellowed, his palm striking forward violently. It carried the rumbling sound of thunder, its momentum overwhelming.
"Hmph, get lost!"
A sharp glint flashed in Zhu Shaoyou’s eyes. He transformed into a gust of wind, his palm channeling a fierce, raging hurricane to meet Wang Chong’s attack.
BOOM!
After the deafening crash, the Outer Courtyard students from Qig Mountain Academy all felt as if their eardrums were about to burst, and they stumbled back several steps.
THUD!
Wang Chong’s entire body was sent flying. The crowd hastily moved out of the way as he was slammed heavily onto the ground.
’So strong!’
Everyone gasped in shock!
One move!
Wang Chong was defeated in a single move!
"My... my arm..." Wang Chong lay on the ground, the corner of his mouth a bloody mess, as sweat streamed down his back.
"Little Chong!" Wang Jie ran over at top speed. A closer look revealed that Wang Chong’s entire right arm was twisted, with stark white bone protruding from the skin—a horrifying sight.
"Get him down for treatment, quickly!"
Several instructors immediately carried Wang Chong away. Wang Jie’s eyes were bloodshot as he stared at Zhu Shaoyou. "You hid your strength well. You’re actually at the Refining Spirit Second Layer Heaven."
"Next!" Zhu Shaoyou said coldly, ignoring Wang Jie’s comment.
"Fine, I’ll go!" Wang Jie stopped Shen Yanxing, who was supposed to be third, and slowly walked onto the Purple Stone Arena.
Seeing Wang Jie take his place, Shen Yanxing was more than happy to relax and stand aside.
Wang Tianming watched Zhu Shaoyou and frowned. "Is he from the Zhu Family, one of the Eight Great Families?"
The Zhu Family, one of the Celestial Martial Country’s Eight Great Families, possessed an extremely high-grade Stealth Skill. Since the person before him was surnamed Zhu, Wang Tianming immediately figured out Zhu Shaoyou’s identity.
Shu Jiuyi gave a dry laugh. "Yes. He has a rather peculiar temper. He’s already crippled several people in Celestial Academy’s competitions."
....
Zhu Shaoyou looked at Wang Jie with a cold smile. "You’d better be prepared. I don’t usually show mercy."
"Neither do I!" Wang Jie’s eyes were like ice, his tone even fiercer.
"Then come on!"
As soon as they spoke, they clashed.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
There was nothing fancy about their fight. It was a direct, head-on collision. Every move was an impact, every punch landed with solid force. The Outer Courtyard students with lower cultivation immediately retreated several dozen feet, terrified of being caught in the explosive bursts of Primordial Qi.
Even the Inner Courtyard students present had rarely seen such a fierce battle. Both fighters seemed to be running on sheer willpower, neither willing to retreat even a single step.
