Chapter 56: Asymmetry

Chapter 56: Chapter 56: Asymmetry

Jeremy stretched, his bones and joints letting out soft popping sounds. He suddenly remembered something, reached into the air, and turned on the optical screen.

Unread messages flashed incessantly, almost overflowing the entire interface.

Lucius (Crybaby) ↓

[My dear Captain, are you undergoing a tribulation in your dorm...]

[It hurts so much!!!]

[Are you cleansing your marrow?]

(...skipping twelve screaming messages...)

The final sentence concluded: [If you’re still alive, remember to reply.]

Jeremy’s gaze moved downwards.

Evelyn: [...What happened?]

Leon: [Captain is? (speechless icon)]

[Are you okay?]

Even Phoenix, who rarely spoke, sent a message: [Captain... do you need me to call a healer for you?]

Struggling all night, Jeremy had only managed to throw out a sentence reminding them to take painkillers yesterday before sinking into a coma. Looking at the barrage of messages, he clicked his tongue lightly, his fingers flying across the virtual panel to reply to each person, briefly summarizing the situation.

Simultaneously, he once again sent a request to cancel the sense-sharing connection with Griffin in the group chat.

Unsurprisingly, the request sank into silence. Griffin seemed to have no intention whatsoever of assigning tasks or managing the team. Ever since the team battles began, that man was like an invisible ghost who never showed his face, nor had he ever sent a single message in the group.

Jeremy decisively tossed Griffin’s name out of his head, turning to his four teammates: [Are you guys free right now?]

Very quickly, four notification responses popped up.

[Yes.]

[Mhm.]

Confirming everyone was paying attention, Jeremy compiled the marrow-cleansing formula and sent it straight to the group. He added another message, signaling that they could go test it whenever they had free time.

The competitions during their time at the Academy were mostly team battles; individual strength, while important, could not constantly carry the team’s average level. He had provided the solution, but whether they accepted it or not was their own choice.

Reality proved that his teammates still had a very high spirit of cooperation. From that night until the afternoon of the next day, Jeremy’s muscles twitched continuously, sweat beading on his forehead, helping him once again deeply understand what "sharing the sensation of pain" meant...

Time flew by quickly to the match day of the second round. Passing through the brutal elimination of the first round, only forty teams remained in the entire sector.

The random draw format remained unchanged.

Their Eclipse Team was not very lucky as their draw landed right on the opening match. Being the first match, the preparation time was extremely rushed; the team was hurried into the arena before they even had time to discuss a combat plan.

The host, using Wind magic to float gently in mid-air, had his voice amplified through a magic tool, echoing across the grandstand:

"The first match of the second round will feature the Eclipse Team of the Anima Department facing off against the Genius Team of the Omnia Department! Next, allow me to briefly introduce the current Covenant levels of the members on both sides!"

Along with the enthusiastic introduction, the profiles of the ten contestants were instantly magnified on the magic crystal screen floating mid-field. The Academy had not only nobles but also commoners, advocating for honoring ability over background, so when displaying the roster, the system usually automatically hid the students’ surnames.

[Anima Department / Eclipse Team]

① Captain - Jeremy.

Spirit Covenant: 305: Five-Color Sacred Weapon.

Realm: Tier One Six-Star.

② Phoenix - Spirit Covenant 301: Necromancer Scepter. Realm: Tier One Six-Star.

③ Leon - Spirit Covenant 303: Crescent Blades. Realm: Tier One Seven-Star.

④ Lucius - Spirit Covenant 304: Fang of Abyss. Realm: Tier One Seven-Star.

⑤ Evelyn - Spirit Covenant 302: Azure Spirit Bow. Realm: Tier One Eight-Star.

Through high-intensity training, apart from Phoenix, the realms of the other four had all seen breakthroughs. But... the opponents they had to face this time exuded an oppressive aura that far exceeded the average level. It could even be affirmed that this was the absolute strongest freshman formation in this entire tournament.

[Omnia Department / Genius Team]

① Captain - Asaro.

Sacred Covenant 16: Death Scythe. Realm: Tier One Nine-Star.

② Xiumis - Sacred Covenant 39: Demonic Strike Sword. Realm: Tier One Eight-Star.

③ Percy - Sacred Covenant 51: Holy Light Shield. Realm: Tier One Seven-Star.

④ Gavis - Sacred Covenant 78: Nine Nether Lotus. Realm: Tier One Seven-Star.

⑤ Kidael - Sacred Covenant 101: Nether Dream Bell. Realm: Tier One Seven-Star.

As soon as the Genius Team’s profiles appeared, the vast grandstand instantly exploded in noisy clamor.

"Damn it, it’s a Tier One Nine-Star again!"

"What’s so surprising, Asaro is the one who ranked first in the solo tournament."

"I didn’t expect her teammates to all be monsters too, tsk, I’m starting to get jealous..."

When the Academy’s system divided the freshman formations, it scanned through individual Spirit/Sacred Covenants and elemental affinities for unified allocation. Therefore, extreme polarization occurred very frequently. It was either a team full of sky-high Sacred Covenants, or a team entirely composed of bottom-tier Spirit Covenant bearers. The probability of random allocation mixing these two extremes was a mere 40%.

As for the situation on the field right now, it was the most vivid illustrative example of that extreme allocation. The Eclipse Team bearing entirely low Spirit Covenants, facing off against the Genius Team overflowing with peak Sacred Covenants.

"There’s no need to watch this match, the outcome is already laid out."

"What else, regardless of realm or Covenant ranking, the Eclipse Team is completely crushed."

Ignoring the grandstand continuously chanting despairing comments, Jeremy stood on the arena, his breathing steady, his flat gaze sweeping over the opponents.

He knew clearly that there was almost no chance of winning this match.

Before the host’s countdown rang out, Jeremy moved his lips slightly, transmitting his voice to his four teammates behind him.

"The advantage belongs entirely to them, there is no need to risk our lives. Winning or losing is not important, go all out to see where your limits are, just treat it as a training entertainment match."

Four gazes immediately turned toward him, nodding slightly in response.

Right at that moment, the zero on the crystal screen flashed.

"The match begins!"

Finishing his sentence, the host immediately used magic to retreat far back to the referee’s safe zone. The Sacred Weapons of both sides erupted, and the magic particles on the arena were instantly stretched to their absolute limits.

In the very first second, the Genius Team’s captain Asaro vanished into thin air.

What made everyone in the grandstand widen their eyes in shock was that Asaro’s first target was not the backline damage mage position - Phoenix, but Jeremy, who was standing at the outer edge of the formation.

The space behind Jeremy’s back twisted slightly. When Asaro appeared, the blood-red scythe in her hand carried a thick murderous intent, slashing straight down at his nape.

Sensing the piercingly cold wind slicing across his nape, Jeremy did not panic in the slightest. The Sacred Weapon in his hand condensed in a blink, shaping into a similar scythe. He pivoted on his heel, using the momentum to twist his waist, and swung his weapon hard to parry the strike from the right.

Clang!

The sound of metal clashing tore through eardrums, and the erupting magic particles created a shockwave that swept across the arena floor.

Asaro’s purple eyes flashed with surprise. She did not expect someone three stars lower than her to have such sharp neural reflexes; not only did he pinpoint the direction of the attack, but he also directly blocked this heavy blow.

Interesting...

The corners of Asaro’s lips curled up slightly, and the murderous intent in her eyes grew even thicker. Her wrist flexibly spun in a circle, and the scythe’s shaft bounced back with the momentum, tracing a blazing red crescent moon aimed straight at Jeremy’s throat.

Jeremy immediately took a step back, retracting his weapon to defend. But Asaro stuck to him like a shadow, absolutely not leaving him even half a beat to catch his breath. She continuously closed in; the giant scythe in her hand was as light as a ribbon, casually spun and swung by her, forming a deadly net.

The sharp tip grazed past Jeremy’s abdomen, tearing a patch of his uniform, while simultaneously cutting off a few strands of hair falling over his forehead, scattering them in the wind.

Feeling the fierce magic power and flawless combat skills radiating from Asaro, in this moment, Jeremy truly understood what a gap meant.