The venue was bustling with activity as drones delivered box after box of lunch.
The first and second rounds of the competition had just concluded, and it was now lunchtime.
Despite the break, the competitors, while eating their boxed meals, couldn’t help but discuss the highlights of the previous matches.
Their eyes frequently darted to the scoreboard displayed on the large screen.
The name that had briefly appeared in fourth place was now gone.
The top ten spots were still dominated by students from the three elite schools: White Dragon High, Purple Cloud High, and Red Tower High.
Only the top ten in the final overall rankings would receive prizes, recognition, and a boost for their university applications.
The name that had momentarily broken into the top four now seemed like a fleeting illusion, as if a small bird trying to soar through the heavens had been swatted back down by the overwhelming might of the three elite schools.
Teacher Yan sighed inwardly.
"Zhang Yu’s score from the first round was just too low. It dragged down his total, keeping him out of the top ten."
But what could she do? Wealthy students had an absolute advantage when it came to flying swords.
She couldn’t blame Zhang Yu’s family for not being able to afford a high-quality flying sword.
"It’s just bad luck," she thought.
"He happened to run into a competition sponsored by a flying sword manufacturer."
Meanwhile, Zhang Yu was eating his boxed lunch, grumbling, "Eighty bucks for this? Red Tower High might as well just rob people."
As he complained, another box of food was placed in front of him.
He looked up to see Teacher Yan standing there with a kind smile.
"You must be starving after this morning’s events. Here, have another one."
Nearby, Bai Zhenzhen watched this exchange and couldn’t help but roll her eyes.
"As if he’s the only one who’s hungry. He finished the special mana dissipation in a minute and a half. I had to endure over eight minutes of that torture!" Teacher Yan, however, was pleased to see Zhang Yu devouring his second meal.
A big appetite was a sign of a good student, after all.
As for Bai Zhenzhen, Qian Shen, and He Dayou, who were also eating heartily? Well, they weren’t likely to win any prizes, so what was the point of eating so much? They were just wasting food.
Teacher Yan encouraged Zhang Yu, "You did great this morning. Just do your best this afternoon. Don’t stress too much."
Though she secretly wished Zhang Yu would give it his all, she knew that pushing too hard could backfire.
She didn’t want him to feel too much pressure after his strong performance in the second round.
In her mind, Teacher Yan was already calculating Zhang Yu’s scores.
"Eighty points in the first round, ninety-three in the second. That’s a total of one hundred and seventy-three."
She glanced at the scoreboard, scanning from the top score of one hundred and ninety-five down to the tenth place at one hundred and seventy-six.
"If Zhang Yu can close the gap by just four points in the next round, he’ll make it into the top ten."
Four points might not sound like much, but Teacher Yan knew how fiercely competitive this competition was.
Every point was harder to earn the higher you climbed, especially with thirty top students from the three elite schools all vying for those ten coveted spots.
The thought of that four-point gap made her nervous.
"It all depends on what the final round is about," she thought.
Lunchtime passed quickly, and the final round of the competition began.
The host stepped forward and announced, "Learn martial arts, learn Daoist techniques at Xianyun! Three hundred labs, one hundred masters, a century of dedication to immortal education. Thank you to Xianyun Education Group for sponsoring this competition…"
Zhang Yu remembered Xianyun Group.
It was a subsidiary of the Ten Thousand Laws Sect, the same company where he had worked and obtained the Zhou Tian Qi Absorption Technique.
He also recalled meeting the director of Xianyun’s Songyang branch at Li Xuelian’s art exhibition.
Soon, a complex mana circulation diagram was handed out to each competitor.
This was the final challenge: to transform their own mana into a special type of mana by following the diagram’s pathways.
Cameras monitored every student, ready to judge their progress and record the order in which they completed the task.
As the timer started, some students immediately began circulating their mana according to the diagram.
Zhang Yu, however, frowned as he studied the pathways.
"This… seems like a combat-oriented special mana."
Though his mastery of the Zhou Tian Qi Absorption Technique gave him excellent control over his mana, the pathways on this diagram were completely different.
The Zhou Tian technique focused on internal circulation and self-improvement, while this diagram seemed to focus on external application for combat.
He could tell that the complexity of this technique was lower than the Zhou Tian technique, but the pathways and techniques involved were entirely unfamiliar.
One particular vibration-refinement technique stood out—something he had never encountered before.
"This competition is really pushing the limits," he thought.
To make matters worse, when he glanced at the Yu Book floating beside him, he saw no changes.
"Is this not considered a technique?" he wondered.
"Guess I’ll just have to try it out."
Zhang Yu began carefully circulating his mana according to the diagram.
Meanwhile, at the Purple Cloud High section, Lian Tianji glanced at Le Mulang, who looked confident.
"The sacred top student will surely achieve great results. My job is just to not drag our school’s total score down…"
Le Mulang tilted her head as she studied the diagram.
"This looks familiar. I think I’ve practiced something like this before. Is this the martial art’s protective aura?" She began circulating her mana, effortlessly transforming it into the special mana described in the diagram.
The protective aura, derived from mana, was considered a martial art’s special mana within the immortal education system established by the Ten Great Sects.
She remembered that refining the aura required multiple vibrations of mana, with each vibration increasing its quality but also making it harder to control.
"According to the diagram, it should take seven vibrations, then follow the pathways…" Suddenly, she frowned.
The groans and cries of pain from nearby students distracted her.
These were students who had been injured in the previous round and were now struggling with their injuries as they tried to circulate their mana.
"Can’t these ordinary high school students afford decent medicine? Even if they can’t afford the best, can’t they at least get some good painkillers?"
Then it hit her—these students might genuinely be too poor to afford better medicine.
This was the sound of poverty.
"It’s affecting my focus," she thought.
But Le Mulang knew that money could silence the noise of poverty.
She reached for a pair of noise-canceling headphones worth tens of thousands and put them on.
With the world now quiet, she smiled and continued her mana transformation.
Over at White Dragon High, Song Hailong was already circulating his mana with ease, his movements natural and fluid.
Years of practicing with the Heavenly Spirit Root had made him exceptionally skilled at mana control.
He had practiced similar techniques many times before, so his movements were swift and precise.
"First mana vibration, complete!" he thought triumphantly.
"Easy! Easy! Easy! Too easy!" His parents had the best genes, carefully selected over generations.
He had stopped sleeping at the age of five.
Now sixteen, he had been the top performer in his family for eleven years, with the highest scores, the strongest physique, and no history of suicide, academic burnout, or depression.
He was the Song family’s ace.
"You losers in this competition, how dare you challenge me?"
At Red Tower High, Xiong Bufan was hunched over the diagram, his eyes closed and his fluffy tail twitching as he focused intensely.
His coach watched him with pride.
"Bufan was the best of his batch, even in the breeding center. His meridians were ten times stronger than an average student’s by the time he entered high school. He’s been practicing mana circulation speed since he enrolled. He’s done this protective aura exercise many times before. He’ll definitely be one of the first to complete this diagram."
The coach mused, "We really should have the principal recruit more demon descendants… I mean, more students with demon heritage. One isn’t enough. We could use four more in the competition team. The leaders who insist on pure human teams are too conservative. I heard the neighboring city already has a full demon… I mean, full demon-heritage team."
Zhang Yu had to admit that without proper training or preparation, it would be nearly impossible to secure a top spot in this round.
Competitions weren’t just about talent and ability—they were also about wealth, influence, and resources.
"Is this where my competition journey ends? Zhang Yu, are you going to be defeated by money?"
Nearby, Teacher Yan noticed Zhang Yu’s troubled expression and sighed.
She glanced at the other students from Songyang High, many of whom were sweating profusely, pale-faced, or looking like they were about to lose control.
She shook her head helplessly.
Songyang High’s students were no match for the elite schools.
After years of poor performance, the school had stopped investing in the competition, creating a vicious cycle.
Without proper resources and training, they were already at a disadvantage.
Just then, a student raised his hand.
"I need to use the restroom."
Teacher Yan cursed inwardly.
"So you really do need to go. Hurry up!"
As the student left, Teacher Yan heard the sound of bones cracking nearby.
She turned to see Bai Zhenzhen practicing a set of martial arts moves.
"Has she given up? This is a mana circulation competition. What’s she doing practicing martial arts?"
Zhang Yu also noticed Bai Zhenzhen’s movements and sighed.
"Poor Zhenzhen. She’s lost it."
But then something clicked.
The moves she was practicing seemed oddly familiar, as if they could be combined with something.
The set was simple, just six moves, but after watching her, Zhang Yu suddenly realized something.
These moves seemed to complement the mana circulation diagram! As the words "Wuji Cloud Hand, Level 0" appeared on the Yu Book, Zhang Yu felt like hugging Bai Zhenzhen and spinning her around.
"Zhenzhen! You’re a saint! The savior of Songyang High!"
The diagram showed the mana circulation, while Bai Zhenzhen’s moves were the external techniques.
Together, they formed a complete martial art—the Wuji Cloud Hand, an advanced-level martial technique.
The technique emphasized internal cultivation over external moves, focusing on how to transform mana into a protective aura.
The six external moves were more like examples of application than actual techniques.
For most people, the external moves weren’t necessary to learn the protective aura transformation.
But for Zhang Yu, whether a technique was complete and could be recorded in the Yu Book made all the difference.
He didn’t know how Bai Zhenzhen had figured out the external moves, but he didn’t have time to dwell on it.
He immediately switched the Yu Book’s focus to the Wuji Cloud Hand and began practicing.
Wuji Cloud Hand, Level 0 (0/1, 15.4/5 mana)
Just one practice session! Even if it was full of mistakes, even if it was a mess, he could master this technique!
(End of Chapter)