CSMCDB - Chapter 81

Chapter 81

Lin Jinyu's second-round match also went off without a hitch, and she passed with ease. Wen Yuncheng felt that these first few rounds were just to eliminate the majority of cultivators who were only here to broaden their horizons.

As she was leaving the Dueling Arena, she happened to see Di Yuanhao. It then occurred to Wen Yuncheng that the children of the Protectors, if they were within the age range, would probably have to participate in this tournament as well.

On Lin Jinyu's birthday, Wen Yuncheng gave her the crystal figurine she had made, much to Lin Jinyu's surprise.

She had originally wanted to buy fireworks and create a grand spectacle, but Lin Jinyu had to return to the Flowing Cloud Sect in the afternoon, and fireworks wouldn't make much of a scene so early in the morning. Utterly helpless, Wen Yuncheng could only control the little figurine to perform a clumsy dance as a celebration.

Host: Wen Yuncheng

Race: Human

Age: 18

Class: Mechanical Master

Level: 38

Experience: 89552/5000

Points: 2147

Once January thirteenth passed, Wen Yuncheng continued to immerse herself in the Dueling Arena. During this time, Yan Ling came to see her and offered some brief guidance on her fighting methods. She then comforted Wen Yuncheng, telling her not to push herself too hard and that even if she fought all day, she still needed to rest.

Wen Yuncheng appreciated her teacher's good intentions, but she was already Level 38, which was equivalent to the 3rd Layer of a Star Master. She wasn't far from the Level 40 milestone. If she could level up before the finals, it would be no exaggeration to say her combat power would double. Therefore, although she accepted the sentiment, she threw herself into the Dueling Arena with even more desperation.

The second round ended, followed by the third, fourth, and fifth. The rest time between battles grew shorter the further the tournament progressed, and the number of contestants remaining in the Youth Tournament dwindled. Among them, some knew their strength had reached its limit and directly forfeited, while others were unlucky enough to run into top contenders and were so severely injured they couldn't even continue in the tournament.

After the first five rounds, the tournament officially reached its middle stage. Only now was the Youth Tournament starting to get interesting. After all, only a little over three thousand contestants remained.

The twenty rings used for the matches were reduced to ten, and the area of each was doubled. This allowed the audience to better choose their preferred contestants to watch.

Wen Yuncheng thought to herself that the Empire was certainly brazen in how it ran its tournament. It started right after the Beast Tide ended, and by the time a champion was chosen... it would probably be time for the academy to start a new term.

Wen Yuncheng drew her number and got the auspicious "66," which she found quite amusing. She estimated that with this number, she would either fight near the end of the first day or shortly after the start of the second.

The matches on the first day ended quite quickly. Wen Yuncheng was called up as number 66 at around eight in the evening. Her opponent had apparently not arrived yet. The Dueling Arena staff were clearly contacting him using the identification information they had provided at the start. Wen Yuncheng didn't have to wait long; the man rushed over in two or three minutes.

He was a Star Master 2nd Layer, an unfamiliar face she had never seen before.

The two stood on the stage. This Youth Tournament wasn't some academy competition, so there was no need for empty pleasantries. The moment the referee announced the start, the two immediately entered a combat stance!

"My master and the others have long said you're a strange one. Today, I'll get to experience it for myself." This person was clearly aware of Wen Yuncheng. He chuckled, clapped his hands together, and a simple, ancient bronze sword floated out from his body.

A Profound-rank Spirit Treasure!

"Then come and experience it." Wen Yuncheng wasn't flustered. She first summoned Number One, then casually released a Pursuer. One good thing about the equipment template was that she could use her gear with a single thought. Unlike others who, even with a blood contract with their Spirit Treasure, still needed to channel Star Power to activate it. As such, Wen Yuncheng was in no hurry to use her own Spirit Treasures.

Number One charged forward while Wen Yuncheng's hands moved rapidly, materializing a G-2 Rolling Thunder in front of her.

"Break!"

The man let out a sharp cry. The body of the bronze sword trembled as explosive Star Power gathered at its tip. He gripped the hilt, and his figure flashed, charging straight for Wen Yuncheng!

Unflustered, Wen Yuncheng ordered Number One to fire its ice bullets at her. A volley of ice bullets swept down like a blanket, even as the tip of the ancient sword was just a few feet away from her-

Bang!

In that instant, Wen Yuncheng's and Number One's positions swapped abruptly. The bronze sword plunged directly into Number One's body. Fortunately, thanks to the hardness of the Abyssal Crystal and the ice bullets fired before the swap, the man couldn't advance any further. In a flash, his skin was frozen purple by the burst of ice bullets. He raised a hand to pull out the ancient sword, and as Star Power circulated rapidly through his body, he stomped his foot hard. The surrounding ice shards instantly melted, leaving only a puddle of water on the ground. Just as he broke free from the freezing effect, Number One charged again!

As long as the man's attack didn't shatter Number One's energy core, the damage to the Abyssal Crystal would slowly recover.

Number One rammed toward the man. He hurriedly swung the ancient sword, deflecting Number One's trajectory, while doing his best to dodge! However, just as he evaded Number One's attack, the Rolling Thunder in front of Wen Yuncheng suddenly fired a laser beam. The blue laser struck the man squarely. The moment it hit, he began to tremble uncontrollably, his body flickering with blue light-it was the electrified effect.

Wen Yuncheng's moves were always a combo. After the Rolling Thunder hit, a stun grenade, a flame exploder, and another grenade followed in quick succession. The fierce explosions completely engulfed the man's figure. The referee below the stage instantly grew tense, closely monitoring the contestant's vital signs.

Launching Slide! As the explosions went off, Wen Yuncheng closed in on him. The moment the grenade blasts ended, she used Launching Slide, launching her tattered and battered opponent into the air. As he floated upward, an topspin kick followed by a piercing kick made the man question his existence. Wen Yuncheng raised her hand slightly, and a Self-Destructor began its countdown in front of her. She then threw her two remaining grenades and ordered Number One to fire a wave of ice bullets before charging-

"Stop!-"

"Contestant Zhang Xian forfeits! Wen Yuncheng wins!" The referee jumped onto the stage directly. He raised his hand and threw out a white jade disk. The disk spun rapidly and expanded, blocking all the ice bullets. The referee stood on the stage, physically stopped the charging Number One, and declared the match over.

Wen Yuncheng immediately recalled Number One, bowed to the referee, and walked off the stage.

'1947, that referee blocked my attacks so easily?'

[You're barely Level 40. He's a Level 70-something NPC. Isn't blocking your attacks a piece of cake for him?] 1947 felt its cub was getting a little arrogant. Could it be the 'Heart of a Victor' at work?

'A Star Venerate?! The imperial family is really going all out, using a Star Venerate as a referee for the Youth Tournament!' Wen Yuncheng was shocked. She thought having a Star King as a referee would have been impressive enough, but she never expected...

[The contestants in this tournament are the future of the Empire. If they didn't go all out, and an organization like Fu launched a few attacks, what fresh blood would the Empire have left?]

That was true...

[Wait until the finals before you start marveling at how grand it is,] 1947 said earnestly, feeling its cub still hadn't seen the world. [During the finals, the three Protectors will all be there, the private boxes will be filled with nobles and imperial family members, and even the audience seats will be occupied by the elders of various sects and the headmasters and teachers of the academies. Now that's impressive.]

But speaking of Fu, 1947 was reminded of the research those scholars were doing. The deciphering was about seventy or eighty percent complete, but the Empire seemed to still be verifying the information's authenticity. It scanned briefly and found that the group of scholars had been placed under secret protection, clearly to prevent any leaks.

With the Youth Tournament currently underway, it wasn't a good time for the Empire to mobilize its forces and go after Fu. 1947 guessed that the Empire would definitely make a major move, perhaps during the Beast Tide period, or perhaps after the Youth Tournament ended.

While the old father was here contemplating the general situation, it turned around to find Wen Yuncheng had already scampered off to the Dueling Arena again. This drive to level up pleased 1947 greatly. It thought that when Wen Yuncheng reached the finals and discovered the series of follow-up missions, she would be very happy.

The Youth Tournament proceeded steadily. As Wen Yuncheng was competing in the third and final round of the middle stage, a remote little village north of the Empire's Yaohen River was suddenly massacred.

Wiping out a village was no small matter. Because the location was remote, the news reached the Empire a day late. Even so, the Empire was furious and immediately dispatched a team of elite Dragon Tiger Guards to investigate.

By the time Wen Yuncheng heard this news, the Dragon Tiger Guard had already been back from the village for two days. She only found out after overhearing others talking and asking around a bit-there were no survivors in the village; everyone had been turned into bone fragments. Yes, into bones. A lot of blood remained on the ground, but most of the flesh and blood was gone, likely collected by the culprit. Many suspected some evil cult was performing a blood sacrifice, but it was said that when the Dragon Tiger Guard went there, they found no traces whatsoever.

The massacred village had been discovered by a passing merchant. This kind of wandering merchant traveled everywhere, trading novel little trinkets with people. Onlookers remarked that the merchant who discovered it was both unlucky and lucky-unlucky to have encountered such a thing, but lucky to have arrived at the village a day late.

Upon hearing this, Wen Yuncheng had only one thought. She poked 1947. "Was it Fu?"

[Possibly, or it could be another organization. The Empire rules the continent, and while the area around the Imperial Capital is relatively clean, remote places always harbor a lot of... trash,] 1947 said hesitantly. It couldn't detect events so far away; it only learned of the news when Wen Yuncheng did.

In any case, it wasn't a good thing.

The Youth Tournament finals were imminent, and the remaining contestants were all elites. The eyes of the imperial family, the sects, and the academies would all be focused here. The Imperial Capital would also enter its most heavily guarded period. And this... was clearly the perfect time for those rats to come out and cause trouble.

As long as they didn't come to the Imperial Capital or cause trouble nearby, the Empire wouldn't dispatch the three Protectors to deal with them. Although the Dragon Tiger Guard were elites, they still lacked a certain something, a certain deterrent power.

Wen Yuncheng sighed and muttered, "How difficult," but said no more. At her current strength, the "dungeon" she needed to face was the Youth Tournament. Everything else was still a bit too far off for her.

The news of the massacred village ultimately stirred a wave of panic in the Imperial Capital. The next day at the Youth Tournament, Protector Chu Han went up to give the young people of the Empire a pep talk.

The gist of it was: You are the future of the Empire, the hope of the Empire. We will do everything in our power to protect you. Right now, you only need to keep growing, keep getting stronger. No matter what happens... your seniors will be here to hold up the sky for you.

VerseVoyage