Chapter 46: Challenge at the Exchange Gathering
The week long exchange and fellowship event of the Five Elements Academies had already reached its sixth day.
Over these six days, Yu Tianlin had met Shui Bing'er, the genius girl from Tianshui Academy.
While the academy grounds were bustling with duels and exchange activities, Yu Tianlin and Shui Bing'er had stayed far from the crowds, quietly focusing on their own cultivation like two outsiders.
For the first two days, Yu Tianlin trained water treading while Shui Bing'er worked on fully containing the chill within her Spirit power.
During the next two days, Yu Tianlin focused on developing Thousand Birds, while Shui Bing'er successfully completed her water walking training.
For the final two days, Yu Tianlin repeatedly practiced Thousand Birds, barely adapting to fighting at high speed, while Shui Bing'er devoted herself to finishing her tree climbing training.
Tomorrow would be the last day of the Five Elements Academy exchange. When that time came, their peaceful outsider status would inevitably be broken.
At dinner, Shui Bing'er only ate a little, then quietly looked up at Yu Tianlin.
"Sorry, Yu Tianlin," she said softly, "I probably will not be able to train with you tomorrow."
Yu Tianlin had spent the entire day thrusting with Thousand Birds. His stamina was greatly depleted, so he was focused on clearing the food from his tray as quickly as possible.
Hearing Shui Bing'er's words, his chopsticks paused mid air.
He wiped his mouth with a napkin, raised his head and asked,
"It is fine. Training to improve Spirit power control was only supposed to include tree climbing and water walking in the first place. You have just finished both. Even if you wanted to keep training with me tomorrow, I do not have any more methods for you."
However, Shui Bing'er interrupted him directly.
"That is not what I meant."
"Oh?" Yu Tianlin frowned slightly. "Then what is it?"
"It is not a problem with the academy itself," Shui Bing'er said, her tone carrying a hint of helplessness. "I came with SkyWa5er Academy to participate in this Five Elements Academy Exchange and Friendship Meeting, but six days have already passed and I have not sparred with anyone from the other academies even once. That is not appropriate."
Yu Tianlin understood immediately.
"You mean you are going to the arenas on the playground tomorrow to fight students from the other academies?"
He coughed lightly and looked to the side, feeling a little guilty. He had indeed misunderstood her at first.
"That is right." Shui Bing'er nodded, a slight smile appearing on her face. "If the teachers had not requested it, I would not really want to fight others either."
"It will be good to see the abilities of other Spirit Masters," Yu Tianlin replied. "I just finished developing my own Spirit Skill and was thinking of testing it in actual combat. I will go to the arena with you tomorrow."
"That would be great if we could go together."
Shui Bing'er's eyes lit up with surprise and joy.
Yu Tianlin had been completely focused on Thousand Birds and had not paid much attention to the actual format of the exchange. He only knew that Thunder Academy had set up five arenas on the playground, but he did not know the specific rules.
"Are there any rules for the student exchanges?" he asked. "We cannot just fight however we want, right?"
Shui Bing'er had clearly done her homework. She explained patiently,
"Of course it is not just random fighting."
"All the students of the Five Elements Academies are divided into four tiers. The first tier is from level 21 to level 25. The second tier is from level 26 to level 30. The third tier is for those above level 30. The fourth tier is made up of students chosen by each academy to participate in the Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Elite Competition next year."
"Your Thunder Academy has prepared five arenas on the playground. The first three arenas are dedicated to the first, second, and third tiers. The remaining two arenas are reserved for the competition team students."
After listening, Yu Tianlin laughed.
"You are level 25 now, which is exactly the upper limit of the first tier. So we are in the same tier."
"That is right, that is exactly it." Shui Bing'er nodded. "The rules for the sparring arenas are simple. Only one on one battles are allowed on stage. The loser naturally leaves the arena. The winner can choose to stay and defend and continue fighting, or they can choose to leave the arena on their own."
"There will be no safety problems. Even for our first and second tier battles, Spirit King level teachers will act as referees. If they see an attack we cannot withstand, they will intervene immediately."
A Spirit King was more than enough to control a battle between Spirit Masters below level 30.
Yu Tianlin suddenly thought of something. His eyes lit up.
"Has there been any student strong enough to stay on the arena and win several times in a row?"
"Of course." Shui Bing'er nodded. "But fighting like that drains your Spirit power quickly. Once your Spirit power is exhausted, you can only step down."
"The current record is four consecutive victories, held by Huo Wushuang of Blazing Fire Academy."
"The highest record is Huo Wushuang's four wins in a row?" Yu Tianlin asked in confusion. "What about Feng Xiaotian, Huo Wu, Hu Yanli, and Yu Tianxin? Are they really not as good as Huo Wushuang?"
"You know them too?" Shui Bing'er was a little surprised, then quickly understood. Those names were indeed well known among the Five Elements Academies. It was not strange that a member of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan would know them.
She explained,
"Feng Xiaotian is currently level 31. He has only just stepped into the third tier. All of his opponents are higher tier targets, so his battles are much tougher."
"Huo Wu is level 29, which puts her at the top of the second tier. I have heard from my classmates that her control is indeed very troublesome to deal with. However, she is a ranged Spirit Master and her close combat ability is average. After several battles wore her down, an Elephant Armor student forced his way through her flames, closed the distance and drove her off the arena."
"Hu Yanli is level 28. His defense and strength are both very high, but his weaknesses are also obvious. After a series of battles, he was defeated by a Divine Wind student who took advantage of flight to kite him."
"You should already know Yu Tianxin. He is from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan like you. He is currently level 28 and cannot transform into a dragon. His lightning attribute Spirit power is consumed very quickly, so he only managed to defeat three people before he reached his limit and was forced to step down."
Yu Tianlin immediately understood.
Once a student stepped onto the arena, the other four academies would naturally send people up one after another to challenge them. After an entire round, there would always be someone whose attributes and fighting style could restrain the defender.
Add to that the heavy Spirit power consumption from multiple battles, and defeat was only a matter of time.
Even so, Yu Tianlin was still curious.
Why was it Huo Wushuang who managed four consecutive victories? That meant he had already withstood a full round of challenges.
Huo Wushuang did not seem that overwhelmingly powerful in Yu Tianlin's impression.
Sensing his confusion, Shui Bing'er continued,
"Huo Wushuang is also level 29, like his younger sister Huo Wu. He stands at the peak of the second tier, so he has a certain level advantage in the arena."
"His martial soul is the One Horned Fire Tyrannosaurus. Once he enters Spirit possession, his overall physical qualities receive a large boost. His first Spirit Skill is Dragon Claw, which is very strong in close combat. His second Spirit Skill is Fire Breath, which gives him a good ranged attack as well. In short, he has no obvious weaknesses right now. That is how he managed to defeat four people in succession, surviving an entire round of challenges, before finally being forced to leave the arena because his Spirit power was almost empty."
So that is the reason.
In a pure one on one fight under normal conditions, Huo Wushuang might not necessarily be stronger than Yu Tianxin and the others.
However, in the specific format of defending the arena, his current abilities were the most balanced, with no clear points for opponents to exploit.
That was why his record in consecutive victories was the best so far.
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