Chapter 13: A Blow to the Head!

Ever since An Xia’s match ended, it had given the freshmen plenty of inspiration.

Thus, in the following matches, whenever two contestants stood on the arena, they would first probe each other’s approach.

If the opponent imitated An Xia, they would immediately turn and run.

If not, both sides would continue standing still, casting spells and engaging in a turn-based bombardment.

Under such influence, the matches became filled with schemes and mind games.

In An Xia’s words, his actions had greatly improved the freshmen’s combat awareness.

As for this, Melva and Anders chose not to comment.

After the first round ended, the instructors dismissed the freshmen for lunch and allowed them a few hours of rest.

The second round would begin at three in the afternoon.

Time passed quickly.

In the blink of an eye, it was already three in the afternoon.

The freshmen arrived one after another.

Those who had been eliminated in the first round turned into spectators, eagerly discussing who would ultimately emerge victorious.

Around An Xia, there was a clear empty space.

Not a single person wanted to stand near him.

Every freshman who had advanced to the second round regarded him with great wariness.

An Xia, however, could not care less.

Sezer reassigned numbers to the freshmen advancing to the second round.

This time, An Xia would be the last to step onto the arena.

The others all sighed in relief, while the student ranked just before him turned pale.

Melva was the first among the three to take the stage.

Her opponent was a petite girl who specialized in natural magic.

During the first round, one of her wooden spikes had nearly pierced through her opponent.

Fortunately, someone from the instructors’ side had intervened and blocked the spell.

But in An Xia’s view, that wooden spike was somewhat underwhelming.

He recalled the cultists under him who specialized in wood-element magic—their spells could be both soft and hard at will.

Compared to them, this girl could only make wood rigid, which was far too lacking.

If it came to torturing an enemy, her magic would be completely useless.

As soon as she stepped onto the arena, the girl looked at Melva with a pitiful expression. “Big sister, can you go a little easy on me later?”

Melva’s violet eyes glanced at the girl’s right hand hidden behind her back, and her lips twitched slightly.

Such an obvious attempt to construct a rune structure—did she think Melva could not see it?

Sighing, Melva also began constructing her rune structure.

Not only did she split her attention into two tasks, but she was also faster than the girl.

At the twentieth second, Melva’s rune was complete.

Seeing the glow in Melva’s hand, the girl’s expression changed drastically.

Her own rune still needed five more seconds to finish—and that was with her starting in advance.

Without hesitation, Melva launched a Waterball Spell.

The girl hurriedly dodged, narrowly avoiding it.

Just as she was about to sigh in relief, she was suddenly struck hard in the lower back.

That waterball had somehow appeared behind her!

The girl instinctively looked toward Melva, only to see that Melva’s second spell had already been activated.

The instructors could see everything clearly.

Melva had prepared two spells—one was the Waterball Spell, and the other was a basic spatial displacement.

After the waterball was dodged, Melva used spatial displacement to reposition it.

Clearly, she had mastered both spells with great proficiency.

The outcome was decided in an instant.

Melva walked gracefully off the arena, while a water-element healing spell from the instructors carried the girl away.

While Melva’s battle was effortless, Anders’ fight was far more difficult.

This time, his opponent was a prodigy who had already reached Level Two Mage at the age of sixteen.

Moreover, his control over magic was highly refined.

Even after exhausting all his mental power, Anders could not make his opponent feel even the slightest pressure.

Before long, he was defeated.

Anders surrendered dejectedly.

An Xia stepped forward and patted his shoulder in consolation, while also committing that Level Two Mage to memory as a formidable rival.

Two hours passed, and the second round of matches neared its end.

When An Xia slowly stepped onto the arena, his opponent trembled all over.

Before Sezer could even announce the start, the opponent raised his hand. “I surrender!”

With that, he jumped off the arena without hesitation, as if relieved of a great burden.

“...” An Xia could not help but reflect. Am I really that terrifying?

By the third round, only a little over twenty contestants remained.

An Xia advanced easily, while Melva struggled somewhat.

In the fourth round, with just over a dozen participants left, An Xia still won effortlessly. Melva, however, lost—because her opponent was An Xia.

So when it was her turn, Melva surrendered immediately without hesitation.

As she stepped down from the arena, she shot An Xia a fierce glare.

An Xia could only shrug helplessly.

By the fifth round, only five or six contestants remained.

The strongest among them—the Level Two Mage—was An Xia’s opponent.

In other words, the champion would be decided between the two of them.

The rest were merely competing for second place.

Because of this, the instructors specially raised three more arenas so that the fifth round could proceed simultaneously.

However, the attention of the entire audience was focused on An Xia’s arena.

Stepping onto the arena once again, the Level Two Mage across from him displayed proper courtesy and introduced himself first.

“My name is Lang Ning, a Level Two ice-element mage. I am very much looking forward to our match.”

Since the other party had been so polite, An Xia naturally responded in kind.

“My name is An Xia. Well… I am not yet a Level One Mage. I only know the Fireball Spell and Spiritual Impact.”

An Xia honestly revealed his abilities.

The freshmen below fell silent.

So you do know magic after all.

If you had not said it, we would have thought you were sent by a fighter academy to cause trouble.

“Fighting in close combat like a fighter does not align with the elegance of a mage. How about we compete purely with magic?” Lang Ning proposed. “Besides, you must have consumed a lot of stamina, right?”

A lot? An Xia estimated his remaining stamina—he could probably still run ten kilometers without panting.

However, since Lang Ning had suggested it, An Xia also wanted to see the gap between himself and a Level Two Mage.

“I agree.”

Seeing that they had finished discussing, Sezer hurriedly announced, “The match begins!” In his heart, he silently hoped that Lang Ning could eliminate An Xia.

“I am beginning to construct my rune structure,” Lang Ning reminded.

“I am starting as well. Um… my magic is a bit strange, so you should be careful,” An Xia said, scratching his head.

Strange? Lang Ning did not take it seriously. Whether it was the Fireball Spell or Spiritual Impact, both were basic spells. How strange could they possibly be?

The construction time for Spiritual Impact was only twenty seconds, so An Xia completed it first. The moment he activated the rune, he shouted, “Classmate Lang Ning, please be careful!”

Lang Ning was momentarily stunned.

He watched An Xia, ready to defend at any moment—but after waiting for a while, neither a Spiritual Impact nor a Fireball came.

Suddenly, he noticed the fear on the faces of the freshmen below the arena.

Every one of them was staring behind him.

What is behind me?

Lang Ning spun around quickly—and saw a translucent giant with a blurred face floating in the air, raising a massive club.

The moment Lang Ning turned, the giant brought the club down with a clang, striking him squarely on the forehead.

Lang Ning’s face mirrored the terror of the other freshmen.

An overwhelming dizziness followed.

As the giant’s club descended, Lang Ning seemed to hear it roar—

“A blow to the head!”