Chapter 668: Each With Their Own Thoughts (3k)
As the Tokyo Mayor, wearing an administrative jacket, slowly walked onto the stage, the students and teachers in the stands put down their respective work and looked at him in unison.
“All of you here are scholars researching the fields of oceanography and materials. It is a great honor for our city to have you participate in this city’s relic event. The upcoming friendly match will also proceed according to tradition…”
After a few pleasantries, the Mayor waved his hand, took out an alchemical pen, pressed the button on the back, and shot it towards the sky. In the next moment, a projection appeared, showing the order of this round.
[Match 1]
South Asia University vs. Seoul University
[Match 2]
Imperial Capital University vs. Sun God Academy
[Match 3]
Xisha Teaching Institute vs. Tokyo University
…
It could be seen that these universities were all renowned universities in the Cherry Blossom Country, with their strengths generally ranking among the top in their respective countries. Even though most of them were research students, their own abilities were solid.
“Below is the order of the participants. Students will compete in three matches, and teachers will compete in one. The top three universities will be decided, and then the champion will be determined. The top three will receive free accommodation provided by the local government, and food for people and beast pets, where they can enjoy high-ranking war general level monster meat.”
Just as everyone’s attention was focused on the sequence numbers, the Mayor let out a hearty laugh, fumbled in his pocket, and pulled out three magic crystals shaped like aquatic creatures. He casually tossed them, and they transformed into three bubbles that floated a few inches from the ceiling.
“I will also add three water-element high-grade magic crystals as prizes for the champion, as requested by our esteemed guests…”
“Boom!”
As soon as these words were uttered, the students who had been researching due to last night’s volcanic eruption raised their heads like sharks smelling blood. Even the leading teachers showed indescribable shock and began to discuss by looking around.
Wasn’t this competition supposed to be a friendly match?
The lowest of these high-grade magic crystals could only be obtained from high-rank battle king level monsters. In terms of value alone, they were items that could only be exchanged for five to a dozen intermediate magic crystals.
Rewarding such a grand prize… were they trying to turn a friendly match into a fight to the death?
The reporters, who were not of high rank, exclaimed that it was worth the trip upon seeing such prizes. Some even changed their headlines to [The Final Showdown]!
Just as they were about to ask the Mayor for his opinion, a female voice from who knows where broke the lively atmosphere, speaking in internationally common English:
“If we win the top three, do we really get to eat monster meat for free and without limit?”
The arena immediately fell silent, and the students looked at each other in bewilderment. These were all students coming for research; would they still care about food? It was just some fringe benefit…
Immediately, someone who understood the situation stepped forward to analyze:
“This is most likely a deliberate taunt to the Cherry Blossom official. But since they can afford high-grade magic crystals, why would they care about such a small amount of food?”
Lin Chujiu, sitting in the front row, couldn’t help but look back. She could sense the familiar voice and wondered why the person asked that.
It wouldn’t be good to offend the Tokyo Mayor.
The Mayor of Tokyo was slightly taken aback, and his eyebrows rose. He felt that someone was deliberately provoking the Great Cherry Blossom Country, but he was not a rash child. The next moment, a carefree smile appeared on his face, and he chuckled:
“Of course, it’s free, and we’ll provide enough for you and your beast pets until you’re full. If it’s not enough, I’m willing to pay out of my own pocket until you’re satisfied…”
He paused, a teasing expression on his face, and continued, “I’m just afraid that the friend who just spoke might not be able to eat so much meat and strain their stomach, unable to explore the relics.”
“Haha, Mayor Kozawa, that’s very amusing. Instead of thinking about what to eat, that friend should focus on winning the match first!”
Hearing this, the arena erupted in laughter. Clearly, the Mayor’s approach was approved by most of the attendees. Amidst the laughter, no one noticed a sigh of relief from a corner.
It seemed to say, “Good thing there’s enough to eat.”
“Let’s all be quiet. Now, the teachers from South Asia University and Seoul University will compete first. Please exert yourselves just enough, and do not intentionally injure each other.”
With a hand to quiet the crowd, the Mayor did not say much more. After explaining the competition rules, he slowly retreated to his seat. At this moment, with a snap of his fingers, the lights in the stadium were suddenly extinguished.
Immediately, spotlights shone on the seats of South Asia University and Seoul University on the stage. Everyone’s gaze followed the lights, and they saw two people, who looked not very old, stand up from the front of the seats. The arena buzzed with discussion.
“The strength difference between the two is quite large, isn’t it? I can’t even see through the strength of the Seoul University teacher, while the teacher from South Asia seems to be just an ordinary intermediate battle king level.”
“Brother, I saw this teacher from Seoul University on the news last month…”
“Was it academic news?”
“Uh, no, it was about celebrating the breakthrough of our country’s talented individual—Ran Huacheng—to the demigod level.”
The representative from Seoul University was a blonde young man wearing Western-style armor, with a curious-looking flower carving rat on his shoulder, exuding an air of arrogance.
The representative from South Asia was a spectacled middle-aged man with a full beard, wearing a white linen robe that looked like that of an ancient scholar, walking towards the stage with a nervous expression.
Clearly, he felt immense pressure from the voices in the audience.
“You attack first, otherwise, you won’t have another chance.”
Ran Huacheng flickered and appeared on the stage. He casually glanced at the South Asian teacher not far away, smiled faintly, and idly stroked the small rat on his shoulder, clearly not taking this opponent seriously at all.
At this moment, the Tokyo Mayor formed a hand seal and cast an energy shield over the entire stage to protect the students from any collateral damage from the battle.
“You big Korean guy, aren’t you being too arrogant?”
The South Asian teacher summoned a long spear weapon, held it backward, and slowly circled at a distance of ten meters from his opponent, scraping the butt of the spear against the ground with a “crunching” sound.
A sharp, chilling aura emanated from the spear. In the next moment, a faint blue domain enveloped him, like an eggshell, clearly in a defensive posture.
“I’ll give you one minute. If you don’t attack, I’ll have to bully the weak.”
Ran Huacheng glanced at him casually, tapped the flower branch rat on his shoulder, and with a flash of white light, a dark dagger appeared in his hand.
The audience below did not blame the South Asian teacher for this. Many of them realized that Ran Huacheng’s power was not even on the same dimension as theirs, the researchers.
Nearly half a minute passed.
Taking a deep breath, the South Asian teacher seemed afraid of losing the courage to attack under the reporters’ gaze, which would truly be humiliating.
“Bang!”
He stomped on the ground, and his body shot towards Ran Huacheng. The Xuan iron long spear, amplified by the frost domain, pierced through the air with a chilling aura.
Facing the penetrating strike, Ran Huacheng didn’t move. However, just as the attack was about to reach his body, he slightly raised his hand, shook his arm, and said faintly, “Too weak.”
In the next moment, a metallic clang sounded, sparks flew, and it seemed as if a figure was knocked away.
“Bang!”
As the short dagger collided with the long spear, the force from the dagger knocked the long spear out of the South Asian teacher’s hand. The latter was thrown like a sandbag by the force and hit the energy shield, causing ripples to spread.
In just one round, this South Asian teacher, who was at the intermediate battle king level, was defeated. This plunged almost everyone into silence. They looked up at the young man standing with his hands behind his back in the center, and couldn’t help but feel a sense of awe.
“It’s truly annoying that a demigod would come to this place of scholar exchange to cause trouble…”
At the Cherry Blossom seating area, a rather mature-looking male teacher sighed and then cautiously glanced at the braided woman beside him, tentatively asking:
“Miss Jixiang, do you have confidence in defeating him?”
Upon hearing this, Yuan Jixiang turned to look at him. Her face showed no joy or sorrow, and she simply said indifferently:
“There are ranks among cattle and horses. Demigods also have ranks. Such a barely-middle-tier demigod is not worth mentioning.”
After receiving Yuan Jixiang’s words, the old teacher let out a sigh of relief, looked past her at the two “students” behind them who were not dressed in academic gowns, and thought to himself: With these people from large families participating, the championship should go to the Cherry Blossom Country this time.
However, the superficial appearance has been maintained.
On the Dragon Country seating side, the atmosphere was much more somber. Seeing such a powerful opponent right from the start was truly discouraging for those who wanted to showcase their skills. Su Ze waved his hand, playing the role of a good old boy:
“Everyone, please don’t be nervous. We are here to explore the relics. The exchange competition is mainly about participation.”
In the front row, Lin Chujiu looked at Ran Huacheng on the stage with a frown, and said in a low voice, “I know who this Ran Huacheng is. He is not a research teacher at all. It is too ridiculous to participate rashly like this.”
Although the exchange competition was not important, it was just a matter of superficial appearance. As the granddaughter of the Imperial Capital University Principal, the reputation she represented was not only that of the country but also that of the Imperial Capital University, the number one institution of higher learning in the Dragon Country.
It was truly unbearable that the opponent was using a combatant to fight them, the logistical scholars.
Turning her head, Su Ze gave a wry smile, trying to calm the girl who had been acting steadily before: “What can be done about it? It’s not a serious exchange competition anyway. If we propose something, it will make everyone unhappy.”
There were referees on the field. The referee glanced at the slightly injured teacher from South Asia, communicated briefly, then raised his flag and announced the result: “Teacher group, Seoul University wins, gaining two points. The subsequent student group will proceed in a wheel battle format, with one point awarded per win.”
Hearing the referee’s voice, Lin Chujiu glanced at Su Jiu, who was playing on his phone in the corner. A thoughtful expression flashed in her eyes. If the record of the thirteen cities was true, then Su Jiu’s strength would definitely be above her own.
If he participated in the student group, it would be considered unfair.
She had to think of a way to get him to register for the student group and legitimately wreak havoc on students from other countries…
As if making up her mind, Lin Chujiu suddenly took a deep breath, stood up abruptly, and shouted towards the seats of the three middle-aged men:
“Can combat personnel who are not from this major directly participate in the exchange competition? This is unfair!”
As soon as these words were spoken, almost all eyes turned to her. Even Su Jiu in the back row put down his phone and looked at the front seats with a bewildered expression. What was going on!
Can’t it just fast-forward to the part where those South Asian students brag with those alchemical items, defeat the Koreans, and then I’ll drive up the prices and sell alchemical items?
