My name is Akio. Male, twenty years old, currently a sophomore at Northwind University. I have the honor of representing our school in this year's national championship tournament.
Right now, we're in the middle of the quarterfinals, and our captain, who's usually as unstoppable as a force of nature, just lost to his opponent.
It's my turn to compete.
What should I do now?
Although Victor had withdrawn from the match, the battle had to continue. While the remaining players from Northwind University were far inferior to Victor in terms of raw power, their abilities shouldn't be underestimated.
It would be extremely difficult for Azrael to accomplish the legendary feat of defeating all five opponents single-handedly without revealing his trump cards. Therefore, after successfully defeating Northwind University's third player, Azrael made the strategic decision to forfeit the fourth match. His reasoning was simple, there was no need to waste precious energy on what he perceived as a mere stepping stone.
In his mental perception, the two remaining opponents possessed relatively weak auras. His teammates should have no trouble handling them. Moreover, this was a team competition, and teammates were supposed to support each other during crucial moments like these.
Returning to the preparation area, Azrael slumped down beside Alice with a weary sigh. "Senior Sister, Master Tempest won't hold this against me, will he?"
Alice, now perched elegantly on the bench in the preparation area, exuded an aura of untouchable authority. Her voice carried absolute certainty when she replied, "Master Tempest won't take it to heart."
Hearing his senior sister's reassuring words, Azrael breathed a sigh of relief. Since Alice had spoken with such confidence, there must be no problem. As a Diamond-level Lore Cardian, she undoubtedly possessed more insight into these political matters than he did.
With this comforting thought, Azrael turned his attention to the ongoing battle, watching with genuine interest rather than anxiety.
Fortunately, the outcome unfolded exactly as he had predicted. The final two Northwind University players were decisively defeated by Jea-Min and Kevaugn in succession, each victory clean and efficient.
"Team Round of Eight, First Match: Pixar University versus Northwind University. Pixar University wins!"
Upon hearing the referee's authoritative announcement, Chisaki suddenly relaxed, his entire body practically vibrating with joy and relief. "We're in the semifinals! We actually made it!"
After so many years of disappointment and near-misses, could Pixar University finally reclaim the championship trophy?
The thought sent a surge of hope through him as he turned to look at Azrael with anticipation burning in his eyes. "Azrael, I—"
Azrael raised his hand, cutting off Chisaki's words before they could fully form. "Don't worry about it. I'll give everything I have."
Chisaki nodded with deep satisfaction. Simply hearing Azrael's assurance was enough to ease his mind. All they could do was their absolute best and leave the rest to fate.
After Azrael's match concluded, the spotlight shifted to the second quarterfinal: Mingke University versus Shandong University.
The Shandong University captain's primary card immediately caught Azrael's attention, a surprisingly muscular old man with an imposing presence that seemed to radiate scholarly authority mixed with unexpected physical power.
"Is that... Confucius?" Azrael stared at the buffed sage in complete bewilderment. He hadn't expected Shandong University to pull off such an audacious stunt.
[The Great Sage Confucius]
Fine, fine. What an absolutely ridiculous concept.
Since apparently reasoning and philosophical discourse weren't enough, the ancient sage had decided to settle matters with his fists instead.
While the novelty was certainly impressive, the actual combat effectiveness left much to be desired. Ultimately, even divine figures seemed reluctant to endure lengthy lectures about moral philosophy and social ethics.
The third match pitted Northern University of Science and Technology against Hunan University. The preliminary cards were nothing particularly noteworthy, but Captain Hu's primary card genuinely surprised Azrael.
The summoned figure was a lawyer, though Azrael couldn't identify the specific historical or mythological source. It might have originated from some obscure local legend, or perhaps the Hunan University students had created an entirely original character.
However, this particular match revealed something genuinely different and fascinating.
A middle-aged woman materialized on the battlefield, dressed in pristine white linen robes. Her face bore the expression of someone who had witnessed countless injustices, etched with determination and righteous fury. In one hand, she gripped a traditional writing brush with practiced ease, while her other hand held a formal white petition.
After several focused breaths, she completed her writing and tossed the petition dramatically into the air above the arena.
"Let Heaven bear witness to this injustice!"
The white petition immediately burst into brilliant flames, the paper dissolving into ethereal light that rose toward the sky.
Within moments, vast dark clouds began gathering ominously over the entire battlefield, their shadows casting an increasingly oppressive atmosphere over the arena.
Observing this display, Azrael nudged Oliver beside him with genuine interest. "That ability seems remarkably similar to yours."
Oliver frowned deeply, his expression troubled as he studied the unfolding scene. "It's different somehow, but I can't quite identify the exact distinction."
As he finished speaking, an invisible yet overwhelming pressure settled over everyone present in the arena. Even the spectators in the stands could feel the weight of whatever supernatural force had been invoked.
Tiny hairline cracks began appearing across the surfaces of the three silver-white robots currently engaged in battle on the field.
Azrael straightened in his seat, his eyes widening with genuine alarm. "Did she actually manage to summon Heaven itself?"
"Impossible."
Although Heaven had always been portrayed as the supreme deity throughout Chinese dynasties and Confucian philosophy, it wasn't truly a personal god in the conventional sense. Rather, Heaven represented a fundamental principle, the natural order of existence itself.
Simply put, Heaven was essentially the Heavenly Dao from fantasy cultivation novels, representing omniscience, omnipotence, and the ultimate source of cosmic law and order.
Well, perhaps the Heavenly Dao in most fantasy novels couldn't quite live up to such grandiose claims. After all, being a Heavenly Dao was widely considered an extremely high-risk profession in those stories, with every protagonist seemingly determined to attempt destroying or surpassing Heaven at some point.
Some scholars also believed that Heaven was actually Haotian God, assisted by the legendary Five Emperors in governing cosmic affairs.
Azrael had initially been confused by this theological complexity, but after conducting some research, he discovered that Haotian God was definitely not the same entity as the Jade Emperor.
The Jade Emperor represented the true sovereign of all deities in Taoist mythology, with only the Three Pure Ones ranking higher in the celestial hierarchy.
These two divine concepts belonged to entirely separate theological systems and shouldn't be conflated.
Although the Jade Emperor had been heavily criticized and diminished in popular culture before Azrael's transmigration, many modern novels portrayed him as a weakling or ineffective ruler.
However, in authentic Taoist mythology, he was described as overseeing all yin and yang forces, controlling fortune and misfortune throughout the Three Realms, the Ten Directions, the Four Births, and the Six Paths of existence. He was acknowledged as the Supreme Creator of Creation, the Master of the True Dao, the Golden Palace of the Clouds, the Nine Heavens, the Master of Ten Thousand Daos, the Great Dao of Inaction, the Bright Palace of the Haotian Golden Palace, the Supreme Jade Emperor, the Great Heavenly Lord, and the Mysterious Sky Supreme God.
It could only be said that "Journey to the West" had seriously misled popular understanding of these theological concepts.
Having considered all this, a deity like Heaven, representing truly omniscient and omnipotent power, was absolutely not something Captain Hu, a mere Silver-rank Lore Cardian, could possibly summon or control.
This could only mean the opposing side was employing some form of elaborate trickery or misdirection.
It was utterly impossible for the entity manifesting here to be the genuine Heaven.
"So those brushes and petitions are merely theatrical props?" Azrael mused aloud.
"Is Northern University of Science and Technology actually going to lose this match?"
Azrael glanced at Adrian, noting how the captain's expression remained remarkably calm despite the overwhelming supernatural pressure bearing down on the arena. This composure in the face of apparent defeat puzzled him greatly.
On the battlefield below, under the crushing weight of pseudo-divine authority, two of the silver-white robots gradually crumbled and collapsed, their forms disintegrating under the spiritual pressure. Only one machine remained, still struggling valiantly against the overwhelming force.
Seeing this apparent victory, Captain Hu breathed a sigh of relief and called out confidently, "Adrian, your journey ends here and now."
"As a Lore Cardian, you've already performed admirably enough."
Upon hearing this dismissive statement, Adrian's response was a gentle smile that carried unexpected depths. "Sorry, but I made a promise to take all of them with me."
"This is my..."
"Promise."
Behind him, his four teammates wiped their eyes, their faces flushed with emotion. "Captain!"
They desperately wanted to persuade Adrian not to use his ultimate trump card. Rather than carrying four of them along as dead weight, it would be far better for him to conserve his power and make a serious attempt at the individual competition.
With those hidden cards, even if his opponent turned out to be Azrael himself...
Meanwhile, Azrael in the spectator stands had noticed something extremely unusual about the current situation.
"Did you notice something strange? Adrian's cards haven't actually dissipated."
Oliver and the others were stunned by this observation. Only after Azrael's pointed reminder did they realize that the two shattered robots had merely scattered their external equipment across the ground rather than dissolving into ethereal particles like normal defeated cards.
Just as they puzzled over this anomaly, a cold, mechanical female voice echoed clearly throughout the entire stadium.
"Weapon Module [Celestial Phenomenon: Sun, Moon, and Stars] initiating load sequence."
"Defense Module [Force Field: Divine Interdiction] initiating load sequence."
As everyone stared in complete astonishment, the silver-white fragments that had been scattered across the battlefield suddenly launched themselves through the air, magnetically attaching to the sole remaining functional robot.
In the next instant, the silver-white robot that had been barely holding on against the crushing pressure was instantly revitalized and enhanced beyond recognition.
A massive silver-white vortex device materialized on its back, the mechanism pulsing with barely contained lightning energy.
"Loading sequence complete."
"Current combat mode: Standard Operation."
The mechanical female voice announced the completion of the transformation, and suddenly the silver-white robot's optical sensors flashed brilliant red.
A subtle but powerful humming sound resonated through the air, and miraculously, the oppressive spiritual pressure that had been weighing down on the entire audience suddenly lifted and dissipated.
"What's the underlying principle behind this mechanism?" Azrael carefully extended his mental senses, probing the invisible force field that now enveloped the entire arena. "[Divine Interdiction]? Some kind of anti-mythological countermeasure?"
Just as he puzzled over this development, the silver-white robot moved into action once again. The sophisticated device mounted on its back erupted with a concentrated dark blue energy beam that shot straight into the sky like a pillar of pure power.
A massive swirling vortex formed high above the arena, its edges crackling with contained energy.
"Sun."
The cold mechanical voice announced the activation, and suddenly a miniature sun materialized directly above the battlefield, its brilliant radiance instantly dispelling the ominous clouds and oppressive atmosphere.
Azrael's eyes narrowed as he immediately released his mental power to scan and analyze the artificial sun. "That startled me for a moment! I thought he had actually accomplished something impossible."
Fortunately, his perception confirmed it was merely an energy construct, an impressive imitation rather than an actual celestial body suspended in the sky, and certainly not a sun imbued with genuine mythological significance.
"But this level of raw power..." Azrael raised an eyebrow appreciatively. "It's definitely stronger than [Flash, Silver Arm], though still not quite as devastating as Caliburn."
"I wonder if it's a single-shot ability or capable of sustained fire."
He strongly suspected it was a one-time attack; if it could fire continuously, no other competitor would be able to withstand such overwhelming firepower.
Azrael found a particular poem especially appropriate for describing the spectacular scene that followed:
"Great mushroom clouds rise on smoking strings, Constant nuclear cores set like blazing suns."
The instantaneous burst of light and heat was so intense that ordinary spectators watching the battle found tears streaming from their eyes involuntarily.
If not for the protective barrier that absorbed and weakened the energy output, many people present would have been permanently blinded by the flash.
Sensing that the Lawyer's spiritual aura had completely vanished from the battlefield, Azrael couldn't help but express mild disappointment. "I suppose I won't get to see the Moon and Stars components now."
The opponent had only utilized the Sun aspect of the Sun, Moon, and Stars weapon system, leaving Azrael curious about what effects the other two celestial bodies might have produced.
The destructive power of the Sun alone wouldn't have been sufficient to break through Fubuki's defensive capabilities, which gave him confidence about future encounters.
"Adrian..." Azrael studied the captain surrounded by his celebrating teammates, a genuinely intrigued smile crossing his face. "How fascinating indeed."
Oliver and the other three team members appeared somewhat worried by this display of power. "This year's dark horse competitors are a bit too outrageous for comfort."
However, looking at Azrael's completely composed demeanor, they felt reassured. "At least we're not in bad shape ourselves."
After the competition concluded, the semifinal brackets were officially revealed to the audience.
Pixar University would face Mingke University, while Northern University of Science and Technology would compete against Chongqing University.
Upon seeing their next opponent, Chisaki's face immediately turned bitter with dismay. "How did we end up matched against the defending champions?"
"Our tournament luck has been absolutely terrible from start to finish."
He wasn't wrong to complain. Since the main draw began, Pixar University had consistently faced the most challenging opponents possible: Coral University, Northwind University...etc
Now Mingke University awaited them in the semifinals. Aside from Coral University, none of these schools had been easy opponents to defeat.
Azrael, however, didn't consider this circumstance particularly problematic. If their ultimate goal was winning the championship trophy, it fundamentally didn't matter which specific schools they faced along the way.
He didn't understand the concept of wanting an "easy" championship victory. Azrael had no desire to be dismissively called a "lucky winner" after the competition concluded.
BUZZ!
The sound of his phone vibrating in the silent room jolted Azrael from his peaceful slumber.
Freed from the lingering distractions of his performance, Azrael grabbed his mobile device from the nightstand beside his bed.
[Fredrika: Master, please notify me when you return to Pixar. I have developed a new strategic plan.]
Azrael instantly became wide awake. He understood exactly what she meant, this was simply a polite way of informing him about new arrangements involving the Crimson Oath Society.
"It seems your recent performances have been overly impressive."
Even Alice could clearly perceive that he was approaching Gold rank in power, so how could the Crimson Oath Society possibly fail to notice such obvious advancement?
Reaching Gold rank meant Azrael was already considered a mid-level figure within the Society's hierarchy. Even in a smaller city, he would be regarded as a significant power player worthy of respect and resources.
Naturally, the Crimson Oath Society couldn't continue their previous policy of allowing him to operate with complete independence and minimal oversight.
"Ah..."
"Whether it's a blessing or a curse, if it's inevitable, there's no point worrying about it."
Azrael frowned thoughtfully. The best-case scenario would involve him being transferred to a smaller city to gain practical administrative experience, with the Crimson Oath Society delegating meaningful authority to him in that location. That arrangement would provide him with much more operational flexibility, even when specific missions arose.
[Azrael: Understood.]
The screen flickered off, plunging the room back into comforting darkness.
Azrael, feeling somewhat distressed by these political complications, sought comfort by nestling into Unohana's embrace.
This action naturally woke the gentle captain from her peaceful sleep.
Sensing Azrael's inner restlessness and anxiety, a soft white hand began gently stroking his hair with maternal tenderness.
A gentle humming melody echoed softly in the quiet room, gradually easing his troubled thoughts.
....
"The semifinals have finally arrived! The moment we've all been waiting for!"
June 30th dawned bright and clear.
Today marked the highly anticipated national team semifinal matches.
To ensure they wouldn't miss any crucial moments, many spectators had arrived at the venue unusually early, their excitement palpable in the morning air.
"Today's lineup is absolutely incredible! Pixar University versus Mingke University, what a matchup!"
"Indeed, Mingke University is this year's defending champion. If they manage to win again, it'll mark their second consecutive championship, right? I don't think that's happened in previous tournament years."
"True, but Pixar University has also demonstrated impressive strength. I went back and watched Azrael's match against Victor several times, absolutely spectacular dueling."
"Azrael is undoubtedly powerful. I genuinely believe he'll claim the individual championship this year. However, the other Pixar University players aren't quite at the same level as Mingke University's roster, so the overall team outcome remains uncertain."
"It's remarkable that Northern University of Science and Technology has advanced this far. If they somehow win today, they'll reach the finals. Can you imagine..."
"What nonsense! They're celebrating victory before the match even begins. Let them get through the semifinals first!"
Soon, the spectator stands erupted in passionate debates about whether Northern University of Science and Technology could realistically make it to the championship finals.
On the sidelines, several Pixar University team members gathered to discuss their strategy for the opening match.
"Mingke University isn't as specialized as Northwind University was. I'll volunteer to go first and test their overall strength and capabilities," Kevaugn suggested tentatively.
Azrael considered this proposal for a moment before nodding his agreement.
As Kevaugn took his position at the competitor's platform, Mingke University soon sent out their first representative.
It was Mikeala, last year's individual champion.
"Mikeala's card configuration should be roughly the same as last year, correct?" Oliver asked quietly, reflecting carefully on available intelligence.
Based on her performance throughout the previous tournament rounds, Mikeala appeared to have made no significant improvements since the previous year, still relying on the same female giant card that had brought her victory.
Azrael had previously inquired about the specific card, learning it was named [Frost Mother: Nameless Giant], though no additional detailed information had been available.
However, just after Kevaugn summoned his own card to begin the match, the scene unfolding on the battlefield made Azrael sit up straight with genuine alarm.
Because Mikeala hadn't summoned just one card, she had summoned two.
Two massive giants, one distinctly male and one female, now stood imposingly upon the battlefield terrain.
The extremely similar spiritual auras radiating from both entities made Azrael instantly recognize that there was definitely some form of mystical bond connecting these two beings.
After Chisaki had mentioned that Mikeala's card originated from the "Edda" mythological cycle, several members of the Pixar University team had naturally researched the original manuscript sources.
They simply hadn't been able to identify the specific identity of Mikeala's female giant during their initial investigation.
But as cold winds began swirling across the battlefield, Azrael almost instantly determined the identity of the opposing entities.
The grandson of the primordial giant Ymir, the legendary creator and progenitor of all frost giants.
[Frost Giant Bergelmir].