Chapter 197: The Individual Competition Begins

Chapter 197: Chapter 197: The Individual Competition Begins

Jiangtao and the others also sat down to rest, taking Healing Potions to recover from their exhaustion.

"Haha, I can’t believe we actually managed to take first place in the end."

Jiangtao, who had recovered a bit of his strength, suddenly burst out laughing.

"Yeah, I really didn’t expect everyone to be this incredible. We closed a fifty-thousand-point gap in nine hours," Guo Heng added with a sigh of wonder.

"It just goes to show we’re not weak at all," Zhou Xiyin said with a smile.

Guan Mountain looked at Lin Qi. "To be honest, it was all thanks to Brother Qi in the end. In the last nine hours, he went on a killing spree and racked up over ten thousand points by himself."

"He earned a full fifth of our points."

"All I can say is, Brother Qi is a beast!"

His eyes filled with growing admiration. Lin Qi was just too strong. In the end, even a genius from North River Province like himself couldn’t keep up, yet Lin Qi was able to continue the fight.

"Brother Qi is a beast!" Jiangtao shouted.

"Brother Qi is a beast!" the others shouted in unison after exchanging a look.

Lin Qi shook his head and waved his hands. "Stop shouting. You guys are exaggerating!"

"The only reason we took first place is because of everyone’s hard work."

"It proves that we’re a force to be reckoned with."

Lin Qi glanced at the final rankings on the overall scoreboard.

He inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. ’We got lucky.’ Even after his insane rampage, the institute’s total score had only surpassed the Azure Sky First Institute by 600 points.

In terms of overall strength, they were third place at best.

If Ao Feng and Huo Wanyang hadn’t withdrawn—if they had fought desperately until the very last minute just like his team had...

...the Sixth Institute really wouldn’t have been their match.

Still, he had to admit, the feeling of a successful scheme was pretty damn good.

"Students!!"

Just then, a massive 3D projection materialized before the more than nine thousand students.

Vice-Chancellor Xu Wenji surveyed the crowd and began to speak slowly.

"After 41 hours, the Disaster Beast Hunting Competition has officially come to a close!"

"There have been upsets and there have been surprises. This is the path of Martial Arts—nothing is impossible."

"With that said, let us congratulate the students of the Azure Sky Sixth Institute for taking first place!"

"According to the competition rules, for ninth place, the Azure Sky Seventh Institute: your time in the Refining God Tower, Gravity Room, and Trial Tower will be increased by one hour, and the Source Energy Concentration in your dormitories will be increased by 10%."

"For eighth place, the Azure Sky Fifth Institute: your cultivation time will be increased by two hours, and your dormitory Source Energy Concentration will be increased by 20%."

...

"And for first place, the Azure Sky Sixth Institute: your time in the three major public cultivation facilities will be increased by nine hours, and your dormitory Source Energy Concentration will be increased by 90%!"

"These rewards will remain in effect until the next competition."

The crowd reacted with a wide range of expressions.

Everyone from the Azure Sky Sixth Institute was beaming.

With an extra nine hours of cultivation time, it was hard to imagine how much stronger they would become.

Lin Qi smiled as well. ’If we’d ended up in third place, losing two hours of cultivation time and 20% of the Source Energy Concentration would have definitely affected my training.’

As for the previously smug students from the Azure Sky Ninth and First Institutes, they couldn’t muster a smile now.

Frustration, resentment, and other emotions clouded their hearts.

"Now, all of you, go back and get some rest. Prepare for tomorrow’s individual competition."

"You will be paid for the Calamity Beasts you’ve hunted after the individual competition concludes."

Xu Wenji concluded.

His projection dissipated. The blood-red setting sun cast its light upon everyone as night began to fall.

Everyone began the journey back. Trams and sightseeing cars carried the more than nine thousand students toward the academy dormitories.

...

「Half an hour later.」

THUD!

Lin Qi carried his belongings off the tram and into his private villa, number 01.

He took off his Combat Suit, handing it to a robot for cleaning before heading into the bathroom himself.

SHHHHH!

White steam filled the air as hot water cascaded over Lin Qi, washing away the sweat and grime from his body.

Lin Qi’s gaze fell upon his system panel.

[Through life-and-death struggles with Calamity Beasts, your mastery of Spear Technique has significantly increased. Spear Technique +3%]

[Spear Technique: Tier Two 79% → Tier Two 82%]

...

Lin Qi exhaled. He had lost count of how many Calamity Beasts he’d slain over the past three days.

The improvement to his Spear Technique and Body Technique Realm had been enormous.

The Blood-Scaled Iron Pigs were considered powerful even among Third-Level Calamity Beasts.

He had to push himself to his absolute limit to kill all of them.

’My body’s been pushed to its limit. My Qi and Blood Value will probably see another increase.’

Lin Qi thought to himself. The team competition was over; next up was the individual event of the freshman tournament.

This time, he wouldn’t be hunting Calamity Beasts, but competing against the top experts from the other institutes.

...

A few minutes later, after washing up, Lin Qi changed into a Martial Arts Uniform and began his daily Cultivation.

WHOOSH...

He effortlessly cleared his mind of stray thoughts. His consciousness began the visualization of the Level 8 top-tier Calamity Beast, the Vajra Tiger. Amid a heaven-shaking roar, he began using the Gale Technique to absorb the Source Energy Particles from the surrounding air.

"This is..."

Lin Qi was delighted. Countless Source Energy Particles streamed into his body through his pores like a flood.

The sensation was incredibly comfortable. The cells in his body felt more starved than ever.

They were like a beggar who hadn’t eaten in three days and three nights, greedily absorbing the Source Energy Particles that entered his body.

WHOOSH...

Lin Qi’s chest rose and fell like a stone boulder. His muscles, blood, fascia, bones, and every cell in his body absorbed the Source Energy Particles, beginning to divide and spurring his body’s metamorphosis.

He, in turn, controlled the Source Energy, continuously using it to strengthen and temper his fascia.

As his Qi and Blood Value rose to 38, the Refinement of his body’s Great Tendons was also nearing completion.

「Two hours later.」

[Your body has undergone immense exertion and absorbed additional Source Energy. Qi and Blood Value breakthrough! Qi and Blood Value +0.5]

[Qi and Blood Value: 38.1 → 38.6]

...

WHOOSH...

Lin Qi opened his eyes, and a powerful gust of wind erupted from his body.

A brilliant golden light shone from within his eyes.

He slowly rose to his feet and clenched his fists. He was brimming with energy, his fatigue almost completely gone.

’My Qi and Blood Value actually went up by 0.5.’

Lin Qi surmised that because he had spent the last three days frantically hunting Calamity Beasts, the toll on his body had been enormous, leaving his cells starved for Energy.

That was why the effects of his Cultivation had been so exceptional.

"Master, Counselor Luu Wei has scheduled a brief online meeting for 10 o’clock,"

the projected Little Blue-robed Xiaochan suddenly reminded him.

Lin Qi glanced at the time on the wall. The meeting was still half an hour away.

...

「Half an hour later.」

After dinner, Lin Qi logged into the video conference. A green screen materialized, and Luu Wei’s face appeared on it.

"Sorry for calling a meeting so late, everyone."

"But I need to go over the specific rules for the individual competition that starts tomorrow."

As Luu Wei spoke, her own video feed shrank to a corner, and the main screen projected a document she had prepared.

"The individual event of the freshman tournament will include all new students from this year—exactly nine thousand participants in total."

"The Dean of each institute will be a seeded contestant and automatically advance to the second round."

Lin Qi nodded. ’It makes sense. An expert like me doesn’t need to participate in the early rounds. It’d be a complete waste of time.’

"The first round will be a massive free-for-all!"

"The 8,991 non-seeded contestants will enter a single, unified arena and fight each other."

"The fighting will continue until only 900 contestants remain. Those 900 will advance to the next round."

At Luu Wei’s words, the thousand students watching the video feed felt their hearts clench.

The brutality of the individual competition was staggering. A single round would eliminate nine-tenths of the participants, leaving only 900.

That meant, on average, only the top one hundred students from each institute would make it to the second round.

Luu Wei continued.

"Starting from the second round, every contestant will receive a prize. It won’t be much, but it’s still money."

"In the second round, the 900 contestants will be divided into nine arenas. The fighting in each will end only when ten people are left, once again eliminating nine-tenths of the competitors."

"In the third round, the nine seeded contestants will join. The remaining 99 will be matched against each other until a final champion is decided."

"In the first round, when facing a brawl with nearly 9,000 people, there are many little tricks that can help you survive..."

Luu Wei then began to explain these strategies.

But they were of little use to Lin Qi.

In the first round, it was possible to advance by relying on luck, but from the second round onward, only real strength would matter.

Lin Qi didn’t listen any further. He already had his targets in mind—just two or three people.

...

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was August 13th—the first day of the individual competition.

WHOOSH...

In the Martial Arts Room,

Lin Qi, drenched in sweat and wearing a black Martial Arts Uniform, assumed a fist stance.

BAM! BAM!

He began with the Tiger Form Fist. His hands curved into Tiger Claws and struck out, power channeling to his fingertips as the muscles throughout his body engaged, circulating his strength under precise control.

The force released from his fingertips created a series of sharp cracks, each one clearer than the last, like miniature sonic booms.

Tiger Form Fist, Crane Form Fist, Snake Form Fist, Dragon Form Fist, Ape Form Fist.

Performing the techniques without a weapon, relying on pure muscular strength, allowed him to feel the flow of his body’s power more clearly.

He could engage almost every muscle in his body, from the major groups down to the smallest ones.

Lin Qi performed the moves one by one. Even though he had already mastered Black Iron and Bronze level Spear Technique Secret Manuals...

...he found that this foundational Five Elements Fist Technique continued to yield new insights, as if its depths were endless.

「An hour later.」

WHOOSH...

[By practicing the Five Elements Fist, you have gained new insight into Fist Techniques. Fist Technique +1%]

[Fist Technique: Tier Two 92% → Tier Two 93%]

...

’Without even realizing it, my Fist Technique is about to break through to Tier Three.’

’The person who created the Five Elements Fist was a true genius. The higher my Realm, the more I can sense the profundity within it.’

Lin Qi thought, clenching his fist.

He then quickly washed up before opening the Virtual Cabin in the Martial Arts Room and climbing inside.

In his personal space, he logged into the official website for the Azure Sky Martial Arts Academy. The link for the freshman tournament’s individual competition was right on the homepage.

RUMBLE!

The moment he clicked the link, the space around him began to twist and distort.

He felt himself being pulled away, instantly transported into another dimension.

The next instant, his vision cleared, and he found himself sitting in a spacious spectator stand.

Lin Qi looked around. Before him now was a colossal arena.

In the center was a massive fighting pit constructed from silver-colored stone blocks, surrounded by tiered rows of luxurious red and white seats.

Thousands of talented students, each with a powerful aura, were already seated in the stands, looking around with curiosity.

"Brother Qi!" a familiar voice called out beside him.

...