Chapter 177: Chapter 177: Fighting for Number One
’If I beat King’s Dao, I’d take his spot as number one on the Prodigy Rankings. Then Zhao Wei would end up challenging me instead.’
But then, Zhao Wei approached King’s Dao with a cold gaze. "I, Zhao Wei, hereby publicly challenge you for the number one spot on the Prodigy Rankings."
King’s Dao’s pupils constricted. He knew he had no choice but to accept. "Fine," he said coldly. "Let everyone witness who the real number one is. And rest assured, to show my respect, I won’t go easy on you just because you’re a Prince."
The news that Zhao Wei was challenging King’s Dao for the top spot on the Prodigy Rankings spread through the academy like wildfire.
Moments later, the challenge arena was already surrounded by a massive, impenetrable crowd.
Every student who got the news rushed over to witness this historic moment.
On the challenge stage, Zhao Wei and King’s Dao stood, coldly facing each other.
"Eighth Prince, you’re no match for me. There’s no need to oppose the Crown Prince over a nobody like him," King’s Dao said indifferently, looking at Zhao Wei.
"Is that so?!" Zhao Wei scoffed. ’This guy actually thinks I’m only doing this to protect Ye Xuan.’
"You should be glad I stopped him. Otherwise, your loss would have been far more humiliating." Zhao Wei knew exactly how terrifying Ye Xuan’s power was. The reason he had intercepted Ye Xuan to challenge King’s Dao wasn’t to protect him, but for his own sake.
Just as he’d told Ye Xuan, if Ye Xuan defeated King’s Dao, the title of number one on the Prodigy Rankings would naturally transfer to him, and Zhao Wei had no confidence whatsoever that he could defeat Ye Xuan.
"Him?" King’s Dao sneered, assuming Zhao Wei was just posturing.
"Make your move. Starting today, you will no longer be number one on the Prodigy Rankings."
Zhao Wei had no desire to waste any more words.
King’s Dao shook his head. He couldn’t understand where Zhao Wei was getting this confidence. According to the Prodigy Rankings, Zhao Wei was merely fifth, while he was first. There were at least three people ranked between them. If Zhao Wei really wanted to make a challenge, he should have started with the fourth-ranked student, not jumped straight to him.
He could think of no other possibility except that Zhao Wei wanted to oppose the Crown Prince by standing up for Ye Xuan.
’Wait a minute...’ A sudden realization hit King’s Dao. ’Maybe the reason Ye Xuan challenged Tong Hong and damaged the reputation of the Crown Prince Alliance was because he was acting on Zhao Wei’s orders. If that’s true, then I have all the more reason to defeat Zhao Wei and cripple Ye Xuan.’
’By doing so, my standing in the eyes of the Crown Prince will become even more important.’
With that thought, King’s Dao suddenly moved.
A piercingly cold current formed in the air, transforming into a biting frost that blasted toward Zhao Wei.
King’s Dao held nothing back, unleashing one of his strongest attacks from the very start. He intended to defeat Zhao Wei as quickly as possible to prove to everyone that his number-one rank was unshakeable. Moreover, it was a clear signal to the Crown Prince: he, King’s Dao, was willing to strike down even other princes for his sake.
Zhao Wei’s expression remained cold as arcs of lightning suddenly crackled over his right fist. He threw a punch.
BOOM!
The bone-chilling cold and the spreading lightning collided in mid-air. After the exchange, they each took a single step back.
"Hmm?" King’s Dao’s brow twitched. He had thought that one punch would be enough to gain the upper hand, but he never expected Zhao Wei to meet him on equal footing.
’How did the Eighth Prince’s power increase so much, so suddenly?’
King’s Dao had no time to ponder this, for Zhao Wei was already attacking again.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Waves of Profound Qi attacks radiated across the challenge stage. Astonishing roars echoed continuously as Zhao Wei and King’s Dao quickly became a blur of motion, locked in a fierce struggle.
At first, everyone in the crowd assumed the fight would be over quickly.
Even though Zhao Wei was a Prince, his strength was considered far inferior to King’s Dao’s; victory was thought to be impossible.
And many who knew of the prior conflict shared King’s Dao’s opinion: Zhao Wei was only interfering on Ye Xuan’s behalf.
They even began to wonder: could this Ye Xuan, who had appeared out of nowhere, have been deliberately planted in Profound Spirit Academy by Prince Zhao Wei to humiliate the Crown Prince Alliance?
However, as time went on, the crowd was astonished to find that Zhao Wei and King’s Dao were evenly matched, with neither gaining the upper hand.
A deep sense of shock rippled through every spectator.
The Prodigy Rankings weren’t assigned arbitrarily. Adjacent ranks were always determined through brutal combat.
In other words, the current fourth-place ranker, Zuo Liu, must have previously defeated the fifth-place Zhao Wei to earn that spot.
And by that same logic, the number-one ranked King’s Dao had definitely defeated the second-ranked Qing Ling.
This meant there were at least three tiers of fighters separating Zhao Wei from King’s Dao.
No one had favored Zhao Wei.
Yet from the moment the battle began, everyone was astonished. The fight was unfolding in a way that completely defied their expectations.
’Could it be that Zhao Wei is genuinely challenging King’s Dao for the number one spot on the Prodigy Rankings?’
At this thought, the minds of many present began to race.
As the premier academy in the Liuyun Kingdom, Profound Spirit Academy’s student body consisted not only of the most exceptional geniuses from across the land, but also, in large part, of the children of officials and nobles from the Royal City.
They knew full well that if the Eighth Prince, Zhao Wei, truly defeated King’s Dao, it would be a monumental event for the royal family of the Liuyun Kingdom, even if it seemed like a minor affair on the surface.
Many knew that the Monarch placed great importance on the Martial Dao. Any Prince who graduated from Profound Spirit Academy as number one on the Prodigy Rankings would receive his full support and patronage.
The two most powerful princes in the Liuyun Kingdom today, the Crown Prince and the Fourth Prince, had both held the number-one spot on the Prodigy Rankings. Consequently, upon graduation, they had immediately earned the Monarch’s favor, receiving tremendous rewards and resources from him.
That was how they had become the two most influential princes of their generation.
Some even asserted that the future Monarch of the Liuyun Kingdom would undoubtedly be chosen from one of these two princes.
If Zhao Wei could truly defeat King’s Dao now, he would become the third prince in the history of the Liuyun Kingdom to graduate as number one on the Prodigy Rankings. A third, ascendant prince would emerge in the kingdom.
At this realization, many began to have complicated thoughts.
Back on the challenge stage, the battle had reached its most intense point.
After trading another blow, the two staggered back, panting heavily. Both were a mess, covered in bloody wounds.
"Eighth Prince, I truly didn’t expect your power to have grown so much in such a short time."
King’s Dao’s expression turned grave, and his eyes grew cold.
"Hahaha! How exhilarating! Absolutely exhilarating!" Zhao Wei, however, roared with laughter. For the first time, he felt a pure, unadulterated thrill. "I told you. Starting today, the number one spot on the Prodigy Rankings is mine."
"Don’t get ahead of yourself. The strength you’ve shown so far isn’t nearly enough to defeat me."
King’s Dao gave a cold smirk. Above his head, the spectral image of a white worm suddenly materialized. The moment it appeared, the ambient temperature plummeted by more than ten degrees, and breaths turned to frost.
Two rings of light pulsed around the white worm, emitting a dense, cold aura.
This was King’s Dao’s martial soul, the Frost Silkworm Martial Soul, and it had broken through to the Two-Star Realm!
"A Two-Star Frost Silkworm Martial Soul!"
Gasps of shock rippled through the crowd below.
This was the very foundation of his unshakeable position as number one on the Prodigy Rankings.
For the past year, relying on his Two-Star Frost Silkworm Martial Soul, he had defeated countless experts who challenged his position. Not a single one had been an exception.
"Fall!" King’s Dao roared, fully unleashing the power of his martial soul. A bone-chilling cold materialized in the air, forming a torrential river of white frost that surged toward Zhao Wei.
After activating his Two-Star martial soul, King’s Dao’s power doubled in an instant. The terrifying force immediately enveloped Zhao Wei.
"Do you think you’re the only one with a martial soul?"
Zhao Wei smirked. Above his head, a black Thunderlight Mink materialized, surrounded by two pulsing, exceptionally distinct silver halos.
Terrifying arcs of lightning spread across his body, making him flicker and spark as if he had transformed into the Thunder God himself.
"Silver star-rings!"
Everyone present stared wide-eyed, crying out in astonishment.
"Devouring Thunder!"
With a furious roar, Zhao Wei threw a punch, unleashing a surge of lightning.
BOOM... CRACK!
Black lightning mixed with Profound Qi streaked across the sky, violently shredding the river of white frost from King’s Dao. The lightning then surged forward and slammed brutally into his body, sending him flying off the stage.
The entire arena fell silent. Complete and utter silence.
On the challenge stage, Zhao Wei stood with an impassive gaze. Not far from him lay King’s Dao, his robes in tatters, revealing a charred and foul-smelling chest. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, a picture of utter defeat.
That single blow had broken an unknown number of his ribs, leaving him with no strength left to fight.
"Number one on the Prodigy Rankings." Clenching his fists, an excited glint finally appeared in Zhao Wei’s eyes.
He had finally achieved the dream he had held for over two years.
Under the watchful eyes of the entire crowd, Zhao Wei laughed heartily, descended from the stage, and walked straight over to Ye Xuan.
"Brother Zhao, congratulations," Ye Xuan said with a smile.
"Hahaha, Brother Ye Xuan, thank you! If it weren’t for you, I never would have become number one on the Prodigy Rankings."
Having finally become number one, Zhao Wei was ecstatic and laughed without restraint.
His words, however, left the entire crowd stunned.
His Highness the Eighth Prince had become number one, and he was thanking Ye Xuan? What in the world was going on?
Everyone was dumbfounded, their minds reeling. They stared at Ye Xuan, their eyes filled with utter bewilderment.
Only Qing Ling and Zuo Liu shared a knowing smile; they understood why Zhao Wei had said that.
Nearby, Chen Xing’s jaw dropped. He shot a thumbs-up. "Young Master Xuan, you’re a freaking legend! Just what I’d expect from a brother of mine, the Third Young Master Chen! Absolutely badass!"
He laughed triumphantly, looking for all the world as if he were the one who had just defeated King’s Dao.
