Chapter 272

Chapter 272: Grand Competition of the Academy (Part One)

On the first day of the Winter Festival Gala, the grand competition of the academy took place.

At the lakeside city of Fortress Academy, by the tranquil Moon Lake, the usually quiet forests and lakes were bustling today. Colorful banners and decorations hung everywhere, adding to the festive atmosphere.

The afternoon sunlight slanted through the trees, casting light upon the lake that shimmered like blue water. Seven tall and majestic stone pillars stood upright in the lake. Each pillar was about as high as a dozen floors. Standing beneath them, one would have to tilt their head back straight to see the top.

Centered around the middle pillar, the other six were evenly distributed around it. The central pillar was slightly smaller, approximately the size of two football fields in Loran Hill’s memory. The surrounding six were twice the size of the central one, with their tops forming steps for spectators. Each of these spectator stone pillars could accommodate around 1,600 people.

Although it was only past noon, the six magnificent stone pillars of the audience seats were already filled with people. The four major academies and freshmen were seated on five of the stone pillars, while the upperclassmen from the central school building sat together with mentors and visiting guests on another pillar.

The headmaster of Temple Academy held a golden-winged staff high. As she chanted the incantation, six pale-golden spherical membranes enveloped each audience seat, shielding them from the winter wind and also preventing stray arrows during the competition. This golden-haired and graceful headmaster, despite appearing to be only in her twenties or thirties, was at the pinnacle of Sequence 8. Her exact age was unknown, but it was known that many of the teachers in the academy had been her students when they were younger.

Boom—

Golden fireworks rose from below and burst open in the sky, even visible during the day due to their dazzling brilliance.

“The 1054th Grand Competition of Emanas Academy officially begins!” announced the headmaster of the central school building from the podium, her voice echoing loudly across every corner.

“Yay~”

“Howl~”

“Haha~”

Various cheers erupted from the audience seats. Some students waved support flags, and their faces were painted with colorful words, their expressions filled with excitement. Everyone was here to witness the birth of this year’s strongest academy student.

Among them, the most eye-catching were the supporters of the High Tower Academy. In the center of the audience seats, two huge black-and-white banners unfolded. One was a black background with a white dragon, and the other was a white background with a black dragon. The banners rolled like waves as the students waved them, even those from the farthest Bridge Academy could see clearly.

Written in black and white were two names, ‘Parin’ and ‘Xingliu’.

Another slightly smaller banner was displayed in the audience seats of Fortress Academy, featuring a deep green background with a red sword slanted diagonally, its blade adorned with rose patterns. Nearby students shouted out the name ‘Verin’.

In the academy competition, each academy would send ten participants, including one second-year student, two third-year students, three fourth-year students, and four fifth-year students. They were selected through internal competitions beforehand. Generally, the higher the grade, the stronger the participants, but it wasn’t always the case. For instance, last year, the Black and White Dragons were both fourth-year students but achieved the second and third places in the grand competition.

It also had to be said that the Dragon Sequence was indeed powerful in single combat, with few weaknesses. Although the Demon Sequence was strong in attack, it was also easily countered by certain enemies.

“First up, from Fortress Academy, the second-year student Aihua, facing off against the second-year student Feili from Temple Academy.”

As the announcer spoke, two students slowly rose from the lower platform and stepped onto the wide gray rock arena. Since there was no protective barrier in the central competition area, the cold wind still howled, causing frost to form on the ground.

Aihua wielded a bright hunting bow. The bow was mainly made of emerald metal, etched with vine-like patterns. Notably, the outer side of the bow was extremely sharp, like a blade. It seemed close combat was also a strength of this young lady.

Her opponent, Feili, was dressed much more simply. He wore a neatly white shirt with a layer of black-embossed armor over it, holding a heavy brass staff with intricate patterns. As he walked onto the field, white light began to flow through the patterns on the staff.

“Begin!”

There was no need for further explanation; the rules were known to both sides before the competition. The fight began immediately.

Aihua, wearing a deep green leather skirt and a hunter’s outfit that allowed easy movement, sprinted quickly across the arena. Her red cape flapped rapidly in the air, revealing her quiver at her waist, which contained 18 long-feathered arrows. Nine of them had yellow-green patterns, and nine had red-green patterns, each with its own purpose.

As she ran, she drew two arrows and placed them on the bowstring—one red and one yellow. Magic light rapidly spread from the arrow tails toward the tips, finally bursting into brilliance. Then, the bowstring vibrated, emitting a dull sound as the two arrows shot out like streaks of light.

Unlike Aihua, Feili did not move much after entering the arena. He stood at the edge of the field, which was his intentional choice. He was not an agile Extraordinary Being; standing in the open was disadvantageous. When Aihua moved around, he began to chant spells at high speed. Three seconds later, he raised his staff and struck the ground, causing a transparent barrier with white light to rise.

Before he could reinforce it, the two arrows shot towards him. The yellow one hit the barrier, vibrating slightly before losing most of its momentum and falling to the ground with a soft metallic sound.

The red arrow, however, pierced through the white light barrier and struck Feili’s chest. His armor shattered and exploded, absorbing part of the arrow’s impact force, allowing only the tip to enter his body.

Feili furrowed his brows, enduring the pain and ignoring the blood soaking his armor as he continued to chant. Complex golden patterns began to appear on the white barrier. At this moment, Aihua’s second wave of arrows arrived—three red ones hit the barrier, distorting their flight path before passing through Feili’s side.

Students in the audience seats cheered and applauded at this sight.

“This Feili is quite something,” commented a senior student watching the match with his classmates.

“Yeah, Aihua’s arrows, the red ones probably have a magic-breaking effect, and I guess the yellow ones have a piercing effect. Her bow is also a recent trend in Cangcui, with blades on the sides for close combat. What’s it called?”

“It’s called a Cut Bow, but it’s difficult to use, so it hasn’t been widely promoted. Only some rangers use it.”

“How impressive,” Aihua said with a smile, looking at the barrier in front of her. She leaped and swung her sharp Cut Bow at Feili’s barrier.

Sizzle—

Though the Cut Bow was deflected by the powerful magic flowing inside the barrier, Aihua managed to tear a long gash in the white and gold barrier. Just as she was about to break through, Feili picked up his brass staff for a final attempt.

[Flowing Light!]

[End of Chapter]