Child Of Light Volume 5

Volume 05

Chapter 1 – Negotiating Suitable Conditions

After Mu Zi and I left the classroom, I told her about Teacher Zhen’s solution. She laughed brightly, and I blankly  asked, “Why are you laughing? Is participating in the competition with me really making you that happy?”

Mu Zi smiled and said, “You’re usually very  quick  witted. Why are you so slow this time? Teacher Zhen has obviously tricked you. Since we are the top students in the  Royal Advanced Academy, we hold special privileges in the entire Kingdom of Aixia. It is possible that we won’t be severely punished even if we killed somebody. Moreover, it was only rebuking the teacher. Teacher Zhen must have been  afraid about your laziness and that you wouldn’t want to participate in the National Advanced Magic Academies’ competition, so he came up with this plan to make you agree to participate.”

Mu Zi’s words helped me confirm my feelings. ‘That’s right! I’m a Magister. How could I be punished? Except for Teacher Di, who else would be able to control me in the  Kingdom?  I’ve really been tricked.’

I bitterly laughed. “Teacher Zhen is really crafty, but since it’s too late to regret it, let’s just treat it as an outing.”

Mu Zi nodded. “But I think this competition might not be that simple. If it was, why would Teacher Zhen be so set on having you participate? He could just randomly choose a few strong students, instead of us, to participate in the competition.”

I held Mu Zi’s hand. “It doesn’t matter as long as we deal with it together… though I doubt there’ll be anything that could get

the better of me! Haha!” My confidence had increased greatly after the strenuous victory over Si Feng Ri.

Mu Zi, who was both displeased and annoyed, took back her hand and said, “It’s still broad daylight. How can you behave like this? Annoying!”

I leaned over and smiled. “In that case, tonight…?”

Mu Zi knocked on my head before she turned and ran away. “You’re hateful! Let’s just quickly go to where Teacher Zhen is.”

Teacher Zhen was reclined in his seat and seemed as though he was looking at something when we entered his office.

After he saw us entering the room, Teacher Zhen put down the magic book he was reading. “You two have come. Mu Zi, Zhang Gong must have told you about the competition.”

Mu Zi nodded.

Teacher Zhen smiled. “That’s great! I’ll have to trouble you two this time.”

I bitterly smiled. “You’re quite capable to have created a trap especially for me. I was totally tricked this time.”

Teacher Zhen broke into laughter. “It’s a pity that it’s already too late for regrets, even if you’ve realized it. The task for this competition is very easy, so don’t complain. I am unable to send teachers with you as the Academy still has to function normally. You can just go there by yourselves. I have already made arrangements to notify the rest of the students participating in the competition. You’ll head out tomorrow morning. Zhang Gong, I really don’t have a choice. Please don’t blame me.”

What was the point of refuting him if it had already been finalized? It looked like the time was actually quite limited, so we’ll have to head out tomorrow. “Let’s just head out tomorrow then. Is there anything else we will need to take note of?”

Teacher Zhen gave me a piece of paper. “This is a recommendation letter. All of your names are on it. I have written that you’re all magic scholars so that it won’t be too ostentatious. You just have to directly head to Forest Dragon Magic Academy. There will be people there to receive you. ”

I took the introductory letter. Written on it was how my academy would be sending a year five student, Earth magic scholar, Si Wa Ming; a year four student, Water magic scholar, Hai Yue Xin; a year three student, Fire magic scholar, Ma Ke Sai De (His previous alias was used so as to not expose him); similarly, a year three student, Light magic scholar Zhang Gong Wei; and finally, a year three student, Wind magic scholar, Mu Zi Mo to participate in the Triennial National Advanced Magic Academies’ competition.

‘Royal Advanced Academy’ was inscribed at the top of the letter along with Teacher Zhen’s signature and the Royal Advanced Academy’s official seal stamped on it.

I said, “This team is really compatible! Except for a dark magic magician, the other five elements have been covered.” After hearing my words, Mu Zi’s expression twitched a little, but it recovered before I noticed it.

Teacher Zhen replied, “That’s right! You’ll become representatives of the strongest users of each of the elements. You must work hard.”

I asked, “Do you still have something to give us? It can’t be just this paper, right?”

Teacher Zhen nodded. “That’s correct! You only need this paper. What else do you want?”

I rubbed my forefinger against my thumb. “How about giving us some money for our expenditures? We are helping the school compete in this competition. You should make an amethyst card for everyone. Hehe.”

Teacher Zhen mockingly scolded. “You shouldn’t  be  so greedy. Do you think that the amethyst card is that easy to make? However, it’s alright. I will give it to you. Hehe. Actually, other than Mu Zi, all of you have the amethyst card already, so don’t think that I don’t know about it. Getting the amethyst card for Mu Zi is understandable as it’s paired with her capability. I have decided to give all of you 1000 diamond coins. This should be more than sufficient for your expenditures.”

I wanted to exclaim that I felt like I had been duped. ‘That’s right! Si Wa Ming is the Royal Mage Union leader’s disciple. How can he not have an amethyst card? There obviously isn’t a

need to comment about Ma Ke. Hai Yue is an elite of the young generation in one of the three main families. I feel as though I have made a loss. If I had known that, I would have picked something else. An old ginger is indeed hotter than a young ginger!’

Mu Zi asked, “Are there any benefits in obtaining the championship?”

Teacher Zhen smiled and replied, “Of course there are. The academy will record your great achievements and someone with a negative record will have all of his demerit points erased from the records.”

I angrily said, “Wah! You’re really too…”

Mu Zi also complained, “The academy is so stingy and still wants us to expend our energy for it.”

Teacher Zhen replied, “Then what more do you want? How about this? If you bring back the championship, you will be able to change your status at the Magic Union for free.”

It looks like it is a little useful as my current status is only that of a Great Mage.

Mu Zi, on the other hand, was still unsatisfied. “You really don’t have a substantial reward?”

Teacher Zhen was taken aback and replied, “You don’t need to worry about your next meal or having clothes on your back, what other substantial award do you want? Didn’t I already agree to give all of you 1000 diamond coins?”

I suddenly thought of an idea. “How about this? We don’t want to make things difficult for the school. How about giving us the right to get free food at a restaurant with your assistance? It will just be used during our school years. All of our expenditures will be paid for by the school. After all, the academy’s food really isn’t that nice.”

Teacher Zhen replied, “What? The food in the academy is not nice? This is a problem. I’ll definitely have it changed. I’ll accept your condition.” He thought, ‘Just how much money can you spend on food in a month, even if you can eat a lot?’

Mu Zi looked at me in agreement. “Alright! I will represent the team about having our meals at the Ascending Jade Tide in the future.”

Chapter 2 – Abnormal Tournament

I continuously expressed my support for Mu Zi’s words. Teacher Zhen’s expression changed, as he had never thought that we would pick that place. As the Royal Advanced Magic Academy’s Principal, he definitely knew what the price of the food at that place was like. He bitterly smiled, “It’s  too expensive at that place, can we change the place?”

Mu Zi and I stubbornly shook our head. Mu Zi said, “Nope! If you want to change the place, then you have to change the participants as we won’t be participating in the competition.”

Teacher Zhen’s thoughts were that even if Mu Zi didn’t want to go, it would be totally fine as the main competitor he wanted was me. He lowered his head and considered for a bit. If Mu Zi didn’t go, I won’t go. Forget it! He clenched his teeth and said, “Alright! It is decided then.” He would just find Prince Ke Zha and ask him to reimburse him in the future. Thinking about that point, Teacher Zhen smiled happily.

I said satisfied, “That’s great! Since that is settled, we will head back to pack up.”

Teacher Zhen nodded. “You’ll gather at the entrance of the academy at 9 o’clock tomorrow morning and head out together. You should have a map. Do you know how to get there?”

I nodded. “You don’t have to worry about that.”

Teacher Zhen fixed his expression and said, “You’re the most talented students of the academy. Please stay safe on your

journey. The competition has a dreadful rule. Although it will still be forbidden to kill their opponent, they can  seriously injure them or even mutilate them.”

I turned pale with fright. “What?! Why is there such a horrific rule?”

Teacher Zhen sighed. “Who knows? The rule has already been in place for a very long time. The reason was that too many restrictions would make competitors unable to brandish all of their strength; which in turn affects their advancement. However, I have complete trust in you, or are you perhaps not confident in your abilities?”

Damn! It looks like Mu Zi was right, there is actually such a

conspiracy.

Mu Zi replied, “We’ll head back first then.” After  she  said that, she dragged my stunned body out of the office.

As he saw us leave, Teacher Zhen muttered, “I hope that you will return safely. This is also the best chance for you to train.”

After the school ended for the day, we went to find Ma Ke. After meeting him, I asked him, “Do you know about the competition already?”

Ma Ke’s expression dampened before he nodded his head.

I asked curiously, “Why are you looking so distressed? What’s the matter? You’re a magic scholar. It can’t be  that  you’re scared to lose?”

Ma Ke sighed and said, “Boss, you just don’t know how abnormal the Triennial National Advanced Magic Academies’ competition is. I’m getting worried just thinking about it.”

I patted his shoulder. “I know about that. Isn’t it because the competition doesn’t forbid anyone to actually seriously injure their opponent? It shouldn’t matter as I’m leading the team. What are you so afraid of?”

Ma Ke shook his head. “It’s not only that. The competition allows all of the other seven Advanced Magic Academies, except ours, to send out their teachers to participate in  the competition. Boss, did you know that all of the academies are using the defeat of our Royal Advanced Magic Academy to gain glory?”

I asked, astonished, “What! Teachers are allowed  to participate in the competition. Isn’t that just too unfair?”

Mu Zi calmly said, “Why is that unfair? If they don’t allow the teachers to compete and use only their students,they won’t be even able to lift our shoes. I had already told you that Teacher Zhen won’t give you an easy mission. So that’s how it really is.”

Ma Ke continued to say, “Mu Zi’s analysis is right. The other academies all have magic scholars for Principals. Magic scholar teachers are very rare. In the past, there have been a few academies that sent five teachers to compete in the competition.”

I asked, “What was the final outcome? Who was the champion?”

Ma Ke replied, “It was our academy that had brought back the championship. However, there were only two people that were able to walk back on their own. One of them is the Academy’s top ranker, Si Wa Ming.”

I muttered, “Only two people that can walk back  on  their own, so it will mean that the others…”

Ma Ke nodded. “That’s right! One was seriously injured while the other two competitors were crippled.”

It really was abnormal. I replied, “Sorry, brother! I’ve gotten you involved, as I was the the one who asked Teacher Zhen to nominate you. I’ve really caused you trouble this time.  I wouldn’t have let you come with me, if I had known that it would be this dangerous. You should follow me to Teacher Zhen’s place, so that I can help you remove your name from the list. Teacher Zhen will definitely approve, if uncle Ke Zha is with us.”

Ma Ke shook his head. “It’s useless Boss! It’s my father that has arranged for me to go.”

Mu Zi frowned, “Why? You’re his dearest son.”

Ma Ke replied, “My father has very high expectations for me, and equally stringent demands towards me at the same time. This is an extremely good chance for me to train, so I must participate.”

I sighed, “I actually thought of creating a chance for you to get closer to Hai Yue. I haven’t thought that it will be such an abnormal competition.”

Ma Ke was greatly alarmed. “What! Hai Yue is also going? It can’t be!”

I awkwardly smiled. “That’s correct, Hai Yue is also coming as well.”

Mu Zi consoled Ma Ke, “This is really an opportunity. You can only express your sincere feelings for her when in dangerous times. You can relax as we had arranged her to fight the last match. If we can get three victories before her turn, she will be safe.”

Ma Ke nodded and looked at me. “Boss! I really don’t know if I should scold you or thank you instead.”

I sighed. “It’s all my fault. I didn’t clarify before  easily agreeing to it. Isn’t Mu Zi also going to experience such danger? No matter how difficult it will be, we must protect the Mu Zi and Hai Yue’s safety.”

Ma Ke replied, “Let’s do that! I’ll go and pack up as we will leave tomorrow morning.”

After bidding Ma Ke farewell, Mu Zi and I looked at each other.

I held her hand and said, “Mu Zi, I’m really sorry. I’ve forced you to participate in such a terrifying competition.”

Mu Zi leaned towards me and hugged my waist lightly. “Since I was young, I have never known what it is to be afraid. Isn’t it more thrilling this way? Don’t worry, everything will be fine!”

I hugged her tightly and felt that my emotions had stabilized a lot. I swore to myself that I would use my very life to protect her and not let her suffer even the tiniest bit of harm.

After sending Mu Zi back to the dormitory, I didn’t return to

mine. I left the academy, even though the sky had completely darkened. I would be out for one to two months. I wanted to let Teacher Di know about this.

After reaching the Intermediate Magic Academy, I related the entire situation to Teacher Di.

Chapter 3 – Preparing For The Journey

Teacher Di said, “You… Who can you blame for this? Who told you to not listen properly in class? Even though this competition is definitely shrouded in danger, I have complete faith in you. The other seven advanced  academy  definitely won’t have any Magisters. You just have to keep the others safe. Do you understand?”

I nodded. “The reason why Teacher Zhen wanted me to go at all cost was probably for safety.”

Teacher Di nodded. “It is fine as long as you understand. I don’t know why, but I keep getting bad feelings from Mu Zi. I just want to remind you again to pay attention to her.”

My mood dampened. Teacher Di seemed to dislike Mu Zi. “Mu Zi is a very kind hearted girl. I have never gotten bad feelings from her.”

Teacher Di smiled. “Everyone is blind when they’re in a relationship. Let’s hope that what you’ve said is true. It’s really late so you should head back now, and besides, you are going on a long journey tomorrow. Have you got enough money? Do you need teacher to give you some more?”

I’ve always known that Teacher Di treats me best. I shook my head. “Teacher Zhen has given us all 1000 diamond coins so I have enough to spend. I may need to go away for a few months this time. Please take care of your health.”

Teacher Di said with a gentle expression, “I know that you’re a good child. When you’re outside, please pay attention to your surroundings. You mustn’t be careless and remain modest and keep cool at all times.”

I respectfully agreed.

Teacher Di walked me to the entrance of the Intermediate Magic Academy. He gave me a few more warnings and sent me out of the Intermediate Magic Academy.

After leaving the Intermediate Magic Academy, I went to buy some daily commodities and some food that was a little less perishable from the main street and placed them in my spatial space. ‘Mu Zi is a little piglet. How can she go without food? I

also can’t bear to see Mu Zi starve. After interacting with her all this time, I feel that what she is most interested in is food.’ After settling this, I headed back to the academy.

The night at the academy was really quiet, as all you could hear was some nocturnal birds calling out occasionally. I quietly walked back to my dormitory. Just as I was about to open the dormitory door, I heard a familiar voice call me from behind.

“Zhang Gong, you’re back!”

I became alert and shuddered; causing my goosebumps to rise up. I turned around and gave a sigh of relief. It was Hai Shui. I patted my chest. “Wah! It’s you, Hai Shui. You must know that a person can be scared to death!”

Hai Shui lowered her head and said, “Sorry!”

I asked her, “Have you been waiting for me all this time?”

Hai Shui nodded. “That’s right! Why are you back so late?”

Hai Shui clearly had lost a lot of weight. I sighed in my heart. “I went to Teacher Di for a while so I came back late.”

Hai Shui dully said, “You went to Teacher Di? Is it to bid him farewell?”

I was startled. “How did you know?”

Hai Shui replied, “Sister told me that she was arranged by the Principal to participate in the eight Advanced Academy’s competition. Why didn’t you let me participate? Do you find me annoying?” Her eyes became watery as she asked that.

I hastily explained, “Why would I feel that way? How could I avoid you. You should know that this competition isn’t that simple. Moreover, I can’t make the decision to decide who participate in the competition as it is Teacher Zhen’s arrangement. I really didn’t have a choice.”

Hai Shui muttered, “How about you help me beg the Principal to let me go with you guys.”

I said with difficulty, “I’m afraid that it is impossible as this matter has already been finalized and can’t be changed. Hai Shui, just be my sister, alright?” I looked at her to express my deepest feelings.

Hai Shui looked at me while tears were rolling down her delicate face. “It can’t be that we really aren’t fated to be together, right? Why? Why does is it have to be this way?”

I didn’t dare to help wipe her tears away, and instead consoled her saying, “Hai Shui, don’t be like this. There are still a lot of good guys available for you to choose from.”

Hai Shui constantly shook her head and said, choked with sobs, “I…I won’t see you off to..tomorrow. I hope that you..you will stay safe during this trip.” After she said that, she turned and ran away without looking back.

As I looked upon Hai Shui’s back fading in the distance, I sighed heavily.

Dawn of the next day. I packed up and stopped by the girl’s dormitory to get Mu Zi.

Mu Zi said, “I have my own amethyst card so I will give yours back.”

I took the amethyst card back from her. “When did Teacher Zhen give it to you? Why did I not know about that?”

Mu Zi smiled, “Before you come this morning, he had told a teacher to pass it to me and tell me that the card already has 1000 diamond coins.” Teacher Zhen’s efficiency wasn’t too bad.

We had already unknowingly arrived at the entrance of the

academy. Ma Ke was already there and was chatting to a student that had a robust body.

I walked over and said, “Ma Ke, you’re quite early.”

Ma Ke smiled and replied, “I had to come early. Boss, what do you think about my clothes?”

I then noticed that there was something different in his clothing. He wore a bright red magic robe and there was gold embroidered on the robe. It seemed that he had cleaned up a lot, which suited his originally valiant and formidable-looking appearance.

I smiled, “Not bad! You’ve really put in some efforts. This is?”

Ma Ke saw me looking at the student beside him and hastily introduced him to me, “This is Si Wa Ming, the academy’s top expert.”

Ah! It’s him! I looked at him carefully. He seemed to be 170cm tall and looked very sturdy. It was as though he was a warrior.

He extended his hand to me and said, “ How can I be the academy’s top expert in front of Zhang Gong? Hehe.”

So he was that easy going. I shook his hand and said, “Brother Si Wa, you’re too courteous. Reputation comes naturally from real distinction so your position as the academy’s top expert should still be yours.”

Mu Zi said from beside me, “That’s enough! You don’t need to be so formal with each other. Why hasn’t Hai Yue come yet?”

Ma Ke replied, “That’s right! Why isn’t she here yet? It is nearly time to depart. It can’t be that she is not coming right?”

I shook my head, “She has to come, since this is a decision that the academy made. Surely, she will come.”

Just as I said that, Hai Yue’s familiar figure appeared in our sight. She was similar to Hai Shui as she had also lost a lot of weight. She looked really pitiful.

Ma Ke showed a little heartbroken expression and went up to her. “Hai Yue, you’ve finally come.”

Hai Yue coldly glared at him and wasn’t at all interested in his new attire. She didn’t bother replying to him and walked past him after glaring viciously at me. “Everyone has gathered already. Let’s go!”

Mu Zi walked up and said. “Hai Yue, it seems that you have lost a lot of weight.”

Hai Yue looked at her and said, “Really?” And simply turned and walked out of the academy without waiting for anyone else. I patted Mu Zi’s shoulder to gesture her to follow her.

Si Wa Ming obviously didn’t understand our interpersonal relations so he just felt that something was up with Hai Yue.

Our group  of  five  step  foot  on  the  road  towards  Martial

Return City.

Chapter 4 – Heart Breaking Confession

The coldness that Hai Yue had displayed caused the team’s atmosphere to become somewhat awkward, and as a result, Ma Ke didn’t dare to go near her again. The first day of the journey quickly came to an end.

We had travelled about 100 km (and utilised magic in isolated areas). There were no village or shops in the near  distance. Since the sky was already pitch black, I told Si Wa Ming, “Brother Si Wa Ming, it is already night and everyone is tired from the long journey today. How about we find a place that can shelter us from the wind and spend the night out in the open?”

Si Wa Ming raised his head and looked at the sky. “It  looks like that’s the way it has to be. Does anyone have any other opinions?”

Mu Zi and Ma Ke definitely had no other suggestions. We looked at Hai Shui and she silently shook her head in response.

Seeing that she didn’t oppose the idea, we walked to an area behind a small slope that was surrounded by trees and near a river. It was a good camp site.

Ma Ke and I cut down a few trees to make a few wooden beds. Even though it was a little difficult, it was still better than sleeping on the ground.

Mu Zi asked, “What shall we eat tonight?”

I sniggered, ‘I knew she would ask this question.’ I purposely frowned. “Oh no! There really is nothing to eat. It looks like everyone will have to bear with it.”

Si Wa Ming replied, “Do we still even bear our hunger any longer? I will hunt some wild animals later so everyone can have a taste.” This brat had spoiled my plan to tease Mu Zi.

After Mu Zi heard his words, she glanced at me and said, “That’s great! I always wondered what wild animals would taste like. Si Wa, quickly go get some!”

Si Wa laughed and walked away after turning around.

I snorted and whispered, “Si Wa! Si Wa! You address him so intimately.”

Mu Zi pinched my back, making me scream out in pain.

“Who told you to not get any food for me? You think I’ve been addressing him intimately? I will show you what intimacy is when he returns!”

She really is a little hot pepper; I couldn’t tease her at all. I bitterly smiled. “It’s my bad, alright, mistress?” I took a bottle out of my spatial space and gave it to her. “Here, have a drink. It’s fruit juice. Even though it is uncomparable with the Ascending Jade Tide, it is not too bad.”

Mu Zi changed from angry to happy as she took the bottle of fruit juice. I took a few more bottles out and gave one of them to Ma Ke. When I tried to give a bottle to Hai Yue, she ignored me, took out her own bottle, and used water magic instead.

I asked Hai Yue, “Is it worth the trouble? Can the water elements taste better than fruit juice? Are you still mad at me for what I had done previously? Didn’t you shoot an ice cone at me? It can’t be that you are going to be angry with me your entire life? If a girl is always angry, she will age really quickly.”

Hai Yue glanced at me, but remained silent.

Ma Ke supported me by saying, “What boss says is right! We were in the wrong before, but now we are going into a group competition. We must work together to achieve our goals. You should try to control your anger as much as possible.”

Hai Yue coldly replied, “If it wasn’t for you, Feng Liang wouldn’t have left me. Have you experienced the pain of losing your beloved? Other than making cynical remarks, what else can you say?”

Ma Ke and I looked at each other. We didn’t expect Hai Yue to hate us to this extent. Ma Ke became teary eyed as he walked to the side and lowered his head to drink his fruit juice.

She really didn’t give us any face. I felt that it was unfair for Ma Ke. I coldly rebuked, “Feng Liang Ri leaving you has nothing to do with Ma Ke. If you want to blame someone, you should just blame me. Do you want to know the reason why he left? I will tell you now. His Ri family had been influenced by dark forces, forcing every member of that family to become evil. Because the Ri family’s leader’s plan failed, he was exposed as an evil servant, having no choice but to force his entire family into fleeing the kingdom.

As the plans of the Ri family’s leader failed, it exposed his evil characteristics so he had no choice, but to lead his family to be on the run.”

Hai Yue shouted, “You! You’re lying! The three main families have always been nobles in the Kingdom. How could the Ri family be influenced by evil forces? You are just lying to me so Ma Ke, who is destined to be forever alone, has an opportunity to get me.

But let me tell you that I’ve already given my heart to Feng Liang. Humph! This person here will never get the chance to make me fall for him!”

I rebuked angrily, “You! Why are your words always so hurtful?”

Ma Ke walked out from behind my back and placed a hand on my shoulders, holding me back, indicating that I should stop arguing with Hai Yue.

He looked abnormally calm and walked to be in front of Hai Yue. He sighed and said, “I understand. I have finally understood that I have never been in your heart.”

Ma Ke stared at Hai Yue and tears flowed down his face.

I wanted to help him to settle this injustice, but was held back by Mu Zi. She whispered, “It isn’t easy for Ma Ke to be this brave. You should just let him settle this matter on his own as it only involves the two of them. We should let them settle this problem themselves.”

Hai Yue turned her head and didn’t look at Ma Ke.

Ma Ke inhaled deeply and said emotionally, “I was twelve that year when I first entered the Royal  Intermediate  Academy. After entering the academy for a short while, I met you. Even though I was still young at the time, I had always had the feeling of you being my counterpart in life. I had deeply fallen for you, who was a year older than me. Every time I go and find you or even just say a line to you, I feel oddly satisfied. Even though I was always getting beaten up by brother Hai Ri, I had never regretted it. The twelve year old me still didn’t know anything about love, but your image had already been engraved in my heart. I know that it would be impossible to erase this image of you from my heart. The education imposed on me by my family had always been really strict since I was young, so I never got the chance to enjoy a normal childhood, and I never knew how it felt to be truly happy. However, when I first saw you, I knew that I was happy. My heart beats for you and I like that. I have always been teased by others as being a young loner in the realm of relationships. I didn’t even care if I got badly battered, as I was willing to endure it, as long as I got to see you.”

Saying until here, Ma Ke choked on his sobs.

I was deeply concerned about Ma Ke while tightly grasping Mu Zi’s hand. This was the first time that I heard Ma Ke talk about how he felt for Hai Yue. Even though I know he likes Hai Yue, I never would have known both the depth of his love and the indescribable pain he always felt.

Hai Yue didn’t interrupt as Ma Ke spoke, but just listened in silence. After Ma Ke controlled his emotions, he continued to say, “Brother Hai Ri has told me that the power I wield isn’t good enough for you and told me to give up. But can I really give up? No! After that, I have practiced the magic that I was not fond of everyday like an insane person and kept thinking of ways to increase my magic power. It was all so that I can be suitable to be with you and the strength you hold as the eldest

daughter of Xin family.”

Chapter 5 – A Pair Of Puppets

Ma Ke continued to say, “I’ve known you for about six  to seven years already. To be honest, I am a person who isn’t good at expressing himself. I can’t cheer you up with words, so I just love you silently. However, now I know what true love is. I am confident in saying that you are the one whom I love the most in my life. In the academy, just by sneaking peeks at your familiar figure, I felt very fulfilled . If I ever have the fortune of hearing you speak without blaming me, it will be the happiest day of my life. I have always thought that you’d understand me one day and then willingly fall into my arms to become  my bride. However, Feng Liang appeared, and my dreams slowly shattered. I knew that my chances with you were diminishing more and more. You minded me even lesser. My heart felt as though it has been painfully pierced by you time and time again.”

Mu Zi and I were deeply moved as Ma Ke mournfully described the depths of the feelings he had for Hai Yue. Mu Zi’s tears had dampened my shoulder.

“Now, I have completely awoken from my dream. From what you’ve said, I understand that I will never have a chance. Haha. (His smiles were even harder to bear than his tears). I have awoken, completely awoken! Hai Yue, you can stop worrying. I, this piece of sticky rice cake, won’t cling to you anymore. You will not need to be troubled by me ever again. I only want to tell you this. What Boss Zhang Gong said isn’t a lie, but the truth. The Ri family leader, Si Feng Ri’s, evil nature was exposed when he was being beaten by Zhang Gong. Please don’t think I’m lying, but Boss Zhang Gong has already reached the Magister level. I was also there when they fought. Do you still remember the fight between Boss and Feng Liang? That last move by Feng Liang, that sign still hasn’t woken you up? Even though  I already don’t have a chance, I still hope that you will find a good partner. Finally, I hope that you will stay happy and blissful, forever.” After saying that, Ma Ke turned and ran away.

Just as I was about to chase after him, Ma Ke’s voice carried over, “Boss, I want to calm down by myself. I’ll return by tomorrow morning.”

I sighed heavily. Hai Yue looked as though she had become a block of wood and remain seated motionlessly.

Si Wa’s voice rang out, “I can also prove that what Ma Ke said was true. My teacher was at that match. He even praised Zhang Gong’s strong magic power. Hai Yue, if you still don’t believe that it is true, you can also ask your grandfather.” He was carrying two unknown wild animals back.

Hai Yue suddenly screamed out, “Stop talking! You all just stop talking!” Turning around, she ran away. One ran off and so did the other… Mu Zi said, “She is just having a tough time accepting the truth right now. I’ll go and watch over her. You can prepare the meals first.”

In this kind of situation, who still had the mood to eat? Si Wa tossed the wild animals aside and sat down. He said, “When I just came back, I heard what Ma Ke said. I never knew that he has such strong feelings.”

I replied, “Not just you, even I did not really know the depth of his love. The wound this time is too deep. You tell me, how are we going to compete? Two are already experiencing psychological problems. Oh right! I haven’t had the time to ask you this. How was the situation like when you previously participated in the competition?”

Si Wa said with lingering fear, “To be honest, I really didn’t want to participate. Even though my abilities have increased since then, those who can’t withstand their opponents will end up helping the lunatics.”

“Lunatics?”

“That’s right! There are lunatics. You wouldn’t know, but for the sake of defeating our academy, the other seven academies have sent out their best line-up. And not just that, once they start fighting, they will be extremely reckless. Though their powers aren’t great, you won’t be able to withstand what they will do for the sake of victory. Do you know why the three from our academy were seriously injured during the previous competition?”

I asked, “Why?”

Si Wa looked frightened and said, “Those three students were injured by the opponent’s life magic.”

I was startled. “What? Life magic? They were really that desperate?”

Si Wa nodded. “I remember how the previous water mage, Magic Scholar Nan Si’s serious injury was precisely caused by a Great Mage’s life magic. Even though senior Nan Si won the match, his leg….”

It looked like I needed to review the competition. It was more terrifying than I had anticipated. It’s fine if it were me, but the most terrifying outcome would be if Mu Zi or anyone else were to be hurt.

Si Wa continued to say, “So once the competition starts, we must fight with all our might from the start and not give our opponents the chance to retaliate. Otherwise, they will all use life magic and stake their lives just to try and defeat us. We will be the ones that suffer heavily if it comes to that.”

I nodded. It could only be that way now.

“Alright! Let’s stop talking about this. Zhang Gong, how shall we prepare the game?”

I sighed, “After what has happened, who will be in the mood to eat? Let’s just release them. I have some rations. We should rest after eating some.”

After a long time, Mu Zi and Hai Yue came back. Hai Yue looked really depressed. The moment she came back, she went to her assigned position and slept. Though before she slept, she looked at Ma Ke’s empty bed.

I wanted to ask Mu Zi about Hai Yue, but she looked exhausted. After she took the food I passed to her, she ate it quickly and went straight to bed. They all fell asleep while I stayed up to be the night vigil. Throughout the entire night, Ma Ke still hadn’t come back. Dawn came. Just as I was getting worried about Ma Ke, he returned. His appearance gave me a shock. In the space of one night, his originally bright red hair had dulled to an ash red.”

I ran forward and grabbed his arm. He looked at me with lifeless eyes. “Boss, we should head off.”

I asked, “What happened to you?”

Ma Ke faintly smiled and said, “I’m fine. You don’t need to worry about me.”

I frowned. “With you like this, how can I not worry?” I took out some food and water from my spatial space and forced him to eat it. After that, I woke up the team to start heading out.

Mu Zi was startled when she saw Ma Ke’s appearance. I held her back and waved my hands frantically at her.

When everyone had woken up, Hai Yue saw Ma Ke’s appearance and her entire body shuddered. Wordlessly, she just quietly ate the dry food.

The journey on the second day was worse than the first, as even Ma Ke didn’t talk now. After walking for half a day, we reached a small town. Mu Zi, Si Wa and I discussed for a while and decided to find an inn to rest. The conflict within the team was extremely terrible. How were we going to participate in the competition?

Ma Ke and Hai Yue had become blockheads. They didn’t say anything as they followed us. They did whatever they were told to, just like puppets. I had tried to persuade Ma Ke, but I soon realized that his heart seemed to have died. I could only hope that time will cure everything. It looked like bringing Hai Yue

on the team for this competition is a wrong decision.

Chapter 6 – Enlightening Ma Ke

I can finally make up for last night’s lack of sleep tonight.. After eating some food with the rest, I asked Mu Zi to guide Hai Yue more before I pulled Ma Ke into the room.

Ma Ke still looked wooden. After we entered the room, I first gave him a violent punch. He was struck dumb by the sudden strike. I said angrily, “For a girl, is it worth it? Don’t let me see you like this again! A man must have an indomitable spirit. Why should a manly man be afraid that he won’t have a wife?”

Ma Ke bitterly smiled. “What if this was the case with Mu Zi and you?”

I instantly deflated like a popped balloon and sat on the bed. “You really know how to compare, I am the one that is trying to guide you here.”

Ma Ke sighed heavily. “Boss, I know you meant well. I will recover. Thank you for trying.”

I patted his shoulder. “Why are you thanking me? If I didn’t make Hai Yue come with us, you wouldn’t have taken such a heavy blow. Loosen up a little! Since you have already decided to give Hai Yue up, what else is there that you can’t let go?”

Ma Ke shook his head, saying. “If I could truly completely let her go, it would be a relief. The heart I had for her is already dead, but if you tell me not to care or think about her, I still

can’t do that.”

I stared at him. “Let me ask you a question. What is the purpose of this journey?”

Ma Ke was stunned. “Isn’t it to go and compete?”

I continued to ask, “Compete in what?”

Ma Ke replied, “The Eight Advanced Academies’

Tournament.”

I nodded. “It looks like you have not forgotten about that. You should know how cruel and dangerous this competition is. If everyone was in the same state as Hai Yue and you, there won’t be a single one of us that will return in the same condition as we had started out with. Do you understand? Since you love Hai Yue so deeply, you should not want her to get into any harm. Since it is like that, you must pull yourself together. If only Hai Yue is down, we can still rely on the four of us to fill her spot. However, if both of you are down, then what do you want us to do? Do you think we can guarantee that you two won’t be harmed? Do you understand?” After saying that, my expression was very severe.

Ma Ke’s eyes looked a little livelier. “Boss, I understand. Don’t worry! I will pull myself together for everyone and for Hai Yue.”

My serious expression softened and I smiled, “That’s great! All of us must work together to cross this hurdle smoothly. I will give you a sentence from the book that Uncle Ke Zha gave to me: In life, you will gain and lose things but you also can’t force things to happen. You have to think about it. Everything will be the best if you follow your fate.”

Ma Ke muttered silently, “In life, you will gain and lose things but also can’t force things to happen. That’s right! Maybe Hai Yue and I just aren’t fated to be together.”

I patted his shoulder. “Brother, do you see clearly now? Liking a person doesn’t mean that you definitely need to get her. Her happiness should be the goal that you should striving for instead.”

Ma Ke sat on his bed and said, “Let me think. Let me think.”

‘I hope that after my guidance, he will be able to pull himself together. This word ‘relationship’, it can really deeply hurt people. I hope that my relationship with Mu Zi will be smooth, as I really don’t want to experience the bitter taste of love.’

I no longer pestered Ma Ke as letting him think it through himself should be the best solution.

Even though so much had happened, my tiredness still overpowered my constantly pondering mind. Very quickly, I

dozed off.

Who would have thought that once I slept, it would be until the next morning.

**Ah! After waking up, I felt that the fatigue that I had accumulated during the first two days had already been washed away. My magic power was abundant to the extent of surging as it circulated in my body.

After leaving the room, I asked one of the attendants, “Where are my friends?”

The attendant replied respectfully, “Your friends are having their meals at the first floor’s diner.”

Such injustice! They didn’t even wait for me. Hearing that they were all eating, my stomach growled.

I more or less cleaned myself up and dashed down the stairs. I hoped that they’d left some breakfast for me.

After entering the diner, I went to the corner table where they were having their meal. It looked like I wasn’t too late. I

shouted, “You’re too much! It’s breakfast time and you didn’t even wake me up!” I dashed over, took a steamed bun, and bit into it savagely.

Mu Zi smiled. “Look at yourself! You look just like a reincarnated hungry ghost. Eat slowly, don’t choke on it!”

Ma Ke replied, “It’s Mu Zi who didn’t let me wake you. She said that these two days you’ve been tired and so to let you sleep some more.”

I swallowed the food in my mouth and laughed, “So that was the case. I have wrongly accused you. I’m sorry for that. Ma Ke, your complexion looks much better.”

Ma Ke glanced at Hai Yue, who had her head lowered as she ate. “I have let go of everything already. There is no use to thinking any further, so what is the point of thinking about it? Boss, what you said is right. In life, you will gain and lose things but also can’t force things to happen.” After hearing what Ma Ke had said, I clearly felt that Hai Yue had shuddered a little.

Mu Zi asked in astonishment, “Zhang Gong, when did you become so knowledgeable? That sentence have such deep meanings.”

I said complacently, “But of course. Without any  learning, how could I pursue you?” I definitely wouldn’t tell her that it was from a book.

Hai Yue stood and said, “You guys continue with your meal. I will head back to pack up first. Mu Zi, when it is time to leave, please come and get me.”

Mu Zi nodded. “Alright! You go and have a rest. I will call for you when we are prepared to leave.”

Ma Ke stared as Hai Yue faded from his sight and told Mu Zi, “It seems that her mood today is better already.”

Mu Zi nodded. “That’s right! Yesterday, I advised her for a

long time. She seems to have thought it through, but she is also currently in a lot of pain. You shouldn’t disturb her and let her heal.”

Ma Ke nodded and didn’t say anything else.

After eating, everyone packed up and continued to on the path towards Martial Return City.

On the way, Ma Ke gradually recovered his initial easy-going mood. He didn’t disturb Hai Yue at all. Not a single word was exchanged between them. Hai Yue was still very uncooperative, but she was not as cold as when we first headed off from the academy.

As we were reaching the border, we slowed down our pace. Hai Yue suddenly walked to my side and said, “Zhang Gong, I want to discuss something privately with you.”

Chapter 7 – Hai Yue’s Apology

Hai Yue wanted to speak privately with me? What is she going to say to me? I looked curiously at Mu Zi. She nodded. Hai Yue and I slowed down until we were behind the rest. After Hai Yue saw that there was some distance between us and them, she said, “Zhang Gong, I want to apologize to you. Previously, I have wronged you.”

I felt flattered. Hai Yue had just apologized to me, I didn’t hear it wrongly, right? I said awkwardly, “You don’t have to be so courteous. Actually, there were also many areas where I was in the wrong.”

Hai Yue turned around and had her back facing me. “After traveling with all of you these past few days, I already feel much better. I know now, that you’ve always been a good person. I had been blinded by anxiousness and hatred previously.”

I asked, “Did you call me out just to apologize to me?”

Hai Yue nodded. I couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. I thought that she was going to ask about Ma Ke. Could it be that it really was impossible for them to be together?

I asked her, “Is there really no chance of you and Ma Ke being together? Ma Ke is really not bad. Why won’t you give him a chance?”

Hai Yue turned her head back and smiled at me. “Mu Zi has

also asked me that question. Let’s just leave it up to fate. Let’s go! What I said to you just now definitely cannot be told to him.” I was elated. ‘It seems that Ma Ke had finally moved Hai Yue, the towering iceberg. I am really happy for that brat.’

I purposely asked, “Who is he?”

Hai Yue’s face reddened. “You’re hateful! Stop acting dumb!”

I smiled and said, “It has been such a long time since I have seen you smile truthfully.”

Hai Yue replied, “You’re always smiling so mischievously. I really don’t know what my sister and Mu Zi like about you.”

I smiled, “You won’t know about this, but I have a lot of good points. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Mu Zi.”

Hai Yue changed back her expression. “Staying on this topic, let me ask you. What are your plans in settling your relationships with Mu Zi and my sister?”

I sighed. “Hai Shui is a good girl, but I can’t be with her as I had already given my heart to Mu Zi. I had also clarified this with Hai Shui already.”

Hai Yue replied, “Matters concerning emotions truly are unclear. Hai Shui is stronger than Mu Zi in all aspects, but you still stubbornly choose her.”

“Can we not talk about this? All I can tell you is that my feelings for Mu Zi won’t change in my lifetime.” After saying that, I used short distance teleportation to chase up to  the group. Hai Yue shook her head and ran to catch up.

I abided to the promise with Hai Yue and didn’t say a word of what we spoke about to Ma Ke. Mu Zi looked as though nothing happened. I pulled her aside and asked her, “Why aren’t you asking me about what Hai Yue and I had talked about?”

Mu Zi held my hand and whispered, “I believe in you!” Her words made me feel a warm current in my heart. I held her hand up to my lips and kissed it deeply. “You’re so awesome, my wife!”

Mu Zi pushed my hand away and said, “You’re annoying. Let’s go! We are reaching the Martial Return City!”

The Martial Return City wasn’t big and was smaller than expected. Once I entered the city, I stopped a passerby. “Can you please tell me where the Forest Dragon Magic Academy?”

The random person showed a stupefied expression. “You must be an outsider. Don’t you know that this entire city is the surrounding perimeter of the Forest Dragon Magic Academy?”

‘Ah! This entire city is the academy’s outerior? It can see how high the prestige of the academy is.’

I smiled in return. “Can you please tell me where the center of the Forest Dragon Magic Academy is?”

The passerby pointed in a direction. “You must be here for the examination. There is still quite a way before you reach the enrollment area. You just have to walk straight down this path. You will be able to find the center of the city.”

I told  everyone  after  the  passerby  left,  “It  seems  that  the

power that the Forest Dragon Magic Academy holds is not small.”

Ma Ke replied, “Of course! The Forest Dragon Magic Academy is an Advanced Magic Academy that is only second to our Royal Advanced Magic Academy. They are also our strongest opponent.”

We reached the entrance of the Forest Dragon Magic Academy, and although the building wasn’t as luxurious as the Royal Advanced Magic Academy, it still gave off a heavy atmosphere.

I walked up to the guard at the entrance. “Hello, we are from the Royal Advanced Magic Academy. Can I ask……”

I hadn’t finished what I wanted to say as I was interrupted by the guard. He shouted, “Ah! You are from the Royal Advanced Magic Academy. Please come with me.”

The guard brought us into the Forest Dragon Magic Academy. The academy’s verdant and lush trees and numerous flowers all around us was really pleasing.

He brought us to a big building and said, “Please wait a moment. I will go and announce your arrival.” After he said that, he ran into the building.

After a while, a few people walked out with the guard. I stared at the three other people who walked out. They were all around fifty years old. They showed what kind of magic they used by wearing the fire, water and wind magic robes respectively.

The one wearing the fire magic robe walked up to us. “Welcome to our Forest Dragon Magic Academy. I am the vice Principal. Please come inside.”

They were so polite, we definitely couldn’t forget  our manners. We bowed simultaneously. “Our greetings to the teachers.”

The vice Principal nodded before bringing us into the academy. As we walked, he said, “This is our academy’s main

school building. You must be ridiculing us.”

Si Wa Ming said, “This place is very good and isn’t any worse than our academy’s. Vice Principal, do you recognize me?”

The vice Principal looked at him and his expression suddenly changed. He was startled and replied, “Ah! Aren’t you the one that represented the Royal Advanced Magic Academy at the previous competition, Si Wa?”

Si Wa smiled. “That’s me!”

The vice Principal muttered, “Why have you not graduated yet?”

“I was a year two student when I came here previously. I am now in year 5 and will be graduating soon.”

We had reached the vice Principal’s office at that moment. He led us to sit at the sofa. “I represent the Forest Dragon Academy to welcome you all.”

I smiled and said, “You’re too courteous. I hope that your team will have mercy against us.”

The vice Principal looked at me and said, “It should be you who should be merciful. That’s right! According to the procedure, can you let me have a look at the  introduction letter?”

I gave the vice Principal the introduction letter that Teacher Zhen had passed to me.

Chapter 8 – Arriving In Forest Dragon

After the Vice Principal read through the letter, he sighed. “There are really so many talents in the Royal Magic Academy… All the students are magic scholars, even three years later.. You’re all truly incredible, but can you introduce yourselves? All your names are in this letter; I just don’t know who they refer to.”

“That’s fine. I’m an earth element magic scholar,  Si  Wa Ming,” he said with a smile.

I said, “Light element magic scholar, Zhang Gong Wei, a Royal Advanced Academy year 3 student.”

Mu Zi said, “Wind element magic scholar, Mu Zi Mo, a Royal Advanced Academy year 3 student.”

Ma Ke said, “Fire element magic scholar, Ma Ke Sai De, a Royal Advanced Academy year 3 student….”

Lastly, Hai Yue said, “Water element magic scholar, Hai Yue Xin, a Royal Advanced Academy year 4 student.”

The vice Principal looked startled as he moved his gaze to me. “I had read the introduction letter and thought that it had been written wrongly. You truly are a light element magic scholar! There aren’t many magicians who are willing to try and learn light magic. It must have been quite difficult for you to train to such a high level.”

I smiled. “You’re far too humble. When we first arrived here, we realized that the entire Martial Return City is the outer perimeter of the Forest Dragon Advanced Magic Academy. You should also have a large number of talented students here.”

The vice Principal replied, “It’s a pity that most of those talented students have gone to the Royal Magic Academy. If you could transfer to this academy, that would be great!”

Mu Zi replied, “I’m afraid that, currently, it would be impossible as we are already rooted in the Royal Magic Academy.”

The vice Principal sighed. “I know it is… It’s just that I desperately pray for exceptional talents. Even if our academy is ranked second in the Kingdom, we are still far from reaching the level of the Royal Advanced Magic Academy.”

Ma Ke spoke up just then. “May I ask if any of the other six academies’ competitors have arrived yet?”

The Vice Principal replied, “Currently, the competitors from the Shell Order Advanced Academy and Contemplation Advanced Magic Academy have arrived, so you’re the third academy to arrive. We also have finished preparations for the arena since the competition will begin in ten days.”

Si Wa replied, “We’ll leave it at that for now. Where will we

be staying? After traveling for so many days, we are a little exhausted. Can you please help arrange a place for us to stay?”

The vice Principal chuckled. “Of course! We have already arranged for you to stay at the Forest Dragon hotel. The quality of that place is fairly decent. Since you have traveled from such a distant place, the Principal and I are holding a welcoming reception for you before sending you to the hotel.”

“You’re too courteous. It’s really unnecessary to hold a welcoming reception only for us,” I replied respectfully.

The vice Principal responded, “The five of you are the Kingdom’s jewels. You are able to reach such a high level in magic while being so young. It makes everyone envious. So the

welcoming reception… Please don’t refuse us. You will also have the opportunity to taste our delicacies. For now, you can wait here, while I go and get the Principal.” After he said that, he left the office.

“They’re quite polite, and it seems that they don’t have much animosity against us,” I said.

“Right now they are polite. Just wait until the competition starts. It definitely won’t be like now, as  everyone  will  fight with all their might. You should know that this will be noble magicians fighting against ordinary magicians. It’ll be like fighting in a war, so you mustn’t be careless,” said Si Wa as he bitterly smiled.

“A battle of noble magicians against ordinary magicians? It can’t be? We aren’t nobles,” I said, surprise filling my voice.

Ma Ke smiled as he replied, “Boss, you have to think it through. Hai Yue, Si Wa, and I are all nobles, and you’re the successor of Teacher Di. Teacher Di currently holds the Duke position so it makes you half a noble. Mu Zi got into  the academy through her skills so she is an exceptional talent. She will then be designated as a noble when she graduates. So to say we are mage nobles isn’t really wrong.”

What Ma Ke said had made sense. Mu Zi said, “It’s no wonder why they fight with all their might. They already think the competition will only be nobles against ordinary magicians.”

The opening of a door sounded. The vice Principal and a very old magician (who looks similar to Teacher Di) came in. “Let me introduce him to you. This is our academy’s Principal, Cha De, wind element magic scholar.”

We hastily bowed and said, “Our greetings to the Principal.”

The old Principal smiled. “You don’t have to be so courteous at my place. You can treat it as though it is your own home. There’s no need for etiquette as we don’t have too many formalities here. Let’s go! Since you have come from afar, you must be hungry. Let’s go and have a meal.”

I like eating. I also saw Mu Zi’s eyes light up. These few days were harsh on her as we didn’t eat any proper meals.

After the vice Principal’s introduction, we understood that the Forest Dragon hotel had a diner, entertainment areas,  and living areas. The high class hotel was for relaxation and it was where all of the competitors would be residing.

When we arrived at the banquet hall, it looked like the vice Principal had already set up everything. The large table, which held many cold dishes, was able to seat 20 people with ease.

The vice Principal said, “You may take your seats first. I will go and invite the other two academies to our meal. It will be much more lively if everyone comes to eat .”

In just a short moment, the vice Principal returned with ten other people and sat opposite of us, while introducing  us. “These few students are the competitors from the Royal Advanced Academy.”

We hurriedly stood up, and Si Wa represented our team and said, “Our greetings to all of you.”

The old magician opposite of us said, “I’m the Contemplation Advanced Academy’s vice Principal. I have brought five of my students to participate in this competition. Please give us some pointers.”

Another middle aged magician said, “I’m Shell Order Advanced Academy’s head instructor and have brought my

team here.”

The opposing competitors were mostly fire and wind element magicians. It was obvious that their goal was to be on the offensive. The competitors from the two academies looked calm and collected, as though they didn’t care about us.

When the Forest Dragon’s vice Principal told the waiter to serve the dishes, the 10 of us sat down.

The head instructor from the Shell Order Advanced Academy said, “I heard from the vice Principal that the five competitors are all magic scholars. That’s incredible! I hope that you’ll be merciful during the competition.” Lun Ke Advanced Academy was ranked eighth among the advanced academies. They were

the weakest and their capabilities weren’t even comparable to the Royal Intermediate Academy. Their competitors definitely wouldn’t be able to fight against us. He was saying that so as to prevent unnecessary injuries.

Chapter 9 – Provoking A Defeated Opponent

Si Wa said, “You’re too humble. We aren’t as powerful as the Vice Principal describes us to be. We will still need your care and guidance.”

One of the students from Contemplation Magic Academy said, “Stop pretending to be gracious! During  this  competition…” The Vice Principal from the Contemplation Magic Academy glared at him. “What right have you got interrupting him? Are you as strong as him? If you were a magic scholar like him, I would have made way for you.” That student looked away but still retained an unsatisfied appearance. With that, the atmosphere of the banquet became a little awkward.

Right at that moment, the dishes were served. Forest Dragon’s Vice Principal said, “Alright! Let’s dig in. There will still be opportunities for us to interact after the meal.”

The food was pretty decent. It seemed like the Forest Dragon’s hotel had put some effort into providing a full spread of dishes for us. ‘I looked at Mu Zi’s large sparkling eyes and her nose that was sniffing continuously – she was just too adorable!’ I  leaned into her and whispered, “You can’t hold back any longer, right? Hehe.”

She eyed me silently.

Forest Dragon’s Vice Principal said, “I have not treated my guests well enough. Everyone, please dig in!”

We had been waiting for those words to leave his mouth. Mu Zi and I started to wipe out the dishes without a trace of decorum. Si Wa whispered to me, “Zhang Gong, eat slower. Don’t let others think we are uncivilised.” I slowed my pace after hearing his words. Although he told me to tell Mu Zi the same thing, I couldn’t bear to do that as I loved how Mu Zi’s gusto in eating her food. It was extremely moving to me.

Mu Zi’s eating prowess was gradually exposed she would gobble up at least half of every new dish that was placed in front of her. She didn’t even bother to look at her surroundings, concerned only with eating seafood.

Everyone was stupefied. The Vice Principal ordered two more rounds of 10 extra dishes and barely managed to keep the situation under control.

A mocking voice entered my ear at that moment. “Wah! Look at that! The Royal Magic Academy female student eats like a pig, as if her life depended on it. It looks hilarious.”

If he had directed that at me, I would definitely have merely returned his words with only a smile, but he was insulting my beloved Mu Zi, making me instantly rise in rage. I slammed my hand down on the table and shouted at the direction of the voice. “Who are you calling a pig?!” It startled Mu Zi, who was still chowing down on her food. She raised her head, but had no inkling of what was going on.

A skinny fire magician stood up, pointed at Mu Zi and said, “I am referring to her. Why? Are you going to bite  me?”  His speech made the students in his entourage break into loud laughter.

It is that same brat from the Contemplation Magic Academy. I rapidly started gathering light elements as my entire body simultaneously released an icy realm and emitted a strong killing intent.

After hearing the student’s words, Forest Dragon’s Principal frowned and looked meaningfully at the Contemplation Academy’s vice Principal. The Contemplation Academy’s vice Principal barked, “Hua De, what are you saying? Sit down at once!”

After hearing Hua De insult Mu Zi, even Si Wa could no longer hold back. “Could it be that the students of the Contemplation Magic Academy are lacking in education?” His words made the opposing student glare angrily at him.

I raised my left hand and pointed it to Hua De. “You, get out here and face me!”

The Forest Dragon’s Vice Principal saw that the situation was deteriorating and quickly tried to salvage the situation. “Hua De, quickly apologize to Zhang Gong.”

Hua De ignored Forest Dragon’s Vice Principal and instead muttered, “She really does look like a pig when she eats, but you don’t allow me to comment on that.”

I could no longer hold restrain myself and raised my hand to attack him, but Si Wa held me back. “Don’t fight here! It wouldn’t be good for us if we destroyed anything here.”

I coldly said, “Alright. Do you dare to face me outside? If you can withstand a single attack from me, I will let you go.”

Except for my team members, who all knew that I was a Magister, the rest of the magicians believed that I was bluffing. Hua De was a Great Mage. To be able to defeat him in a single strike; it would be a little ridiculous.

The Vice Principal of Contemplation was angered by what I said as he thought that I had humiliated his academy. “Alright. Hua De, go spar with that student. I really would like to see how he is going to defeat you with a single strike. Remember, it’s just a single strike.” His last statement was to remind Hua De that he just needed to defend against a solitary strike.

Hua De looked at me viciously and turned to walk out of the hotel. Just as I wanted to follow him out, Mu Zi tugged at my hands that were shaking in anger. “Zhang Gong, let’s just let it go. I admittedly did eat a little too much earlier and can’t really blame anyone for commenting negatively on that.” After she said that, she lowered her head and assumed a pitiable appearance.

On seeing this, my heart broke and stubbornly replied, “If he had insulted me, I wouldn’t have minded. However, he insulted you, who is the person I love the most. I want him to know that he will not be able to bully our Royal Advanced Magic Academy easily!” After saying that, I broke free from Mu Zi’s hold and walked out.

Si Wa followed me and said, “Zhang Gong, don’t expose too

much of your strength as we will still need to compete later on.” I understood the meaning behind his words and nodded.

The plaza in front of the hotel was sufficient for our fight. Hua De and I stood 20 metres apart and stared at each other. I already comprehended the reason behind him rushing out hastily earlier. It was so he would have ample time to cast a few wind defense spells.

I chuckled and said, “Get ready to receive my attack! Light elements! Please form a blade that can conquer every obstacles and eliminate the enemy standing in front of me.”  My  chant was actually only for show, but in reality, my spell utilised the fusion of battle spirit and elements that I had already prepared.

Hua De was smart enough to know that by solely defending, he wouldn’t be able to block that attack. He immediately shot a large Wind Tornado at me.

I wore a cold smile and completely dominated him with my tyrannic power. Then, I waved my right hand and a  golden white large blade struck at him.

The other people had walked out of the restaurant just in time to see my light blade.

Previously, when Teacher Zhen had carelessly received my fusion spell, he had suffered despite his abilities. Needless to say, Hua De, who was only a Great Magician, had no chance at all The light blade smoothly cut the large Wind Tornado in half

and collided head-on with his defence magic. Even though he had insulted Mu Zi, it wasn’t bad enough to warrant in his death.Thus, when the light blade was about to slice his body, I altered the strike to a blade slap that made the blade hit him with its broadside. Just like that, all of his defensive spells completely shattered. He cried out and violently coughed out blood as he was sent flying.

I put my hands down and the corner of my lips curved up as I let out a thin, cold smile. Ma Ke ran over and shrieked, “Wah! Boss, you’re so cool!” All of the people from Contemplation Advanced Magic Academy and Shell Order Advanced Academy were stunned. The Vice Principal of Forest Dragon was so startled by the outcome that his jaw dropped and was at a loss for words.

Chapter 10 – Dual Academy Withdrawal

After some time, the vice Principal of the Si Long Advanced Magic Academy snapped back from his shock, running over to embrace Hua De while glaring at me with rage. Hua De was his beloved pupil, and thus, Hua De’s arrogant and domineering persona grew as a result of his constant pampering. But this time, he was unlucky to have met and angered me.

I coldly smiled. “You should really educate your student when you head back. You should have known that words are able to cause a great deal of trouble. I held back this time, but if he were to anger me again… I won’t be as polite as I was this time.”

The face of Contemplation’s vice Principal glowed  crimson red, and he raised his hand, shooting a fireball at me. “I will stake everything and fight you!” Just when I wanted to counter his attack, Si Wa had already moved in front of me to cast an earth shield, blocking it. “Vice Principal,  please  conduct yourself with dignity. Zhang Gong won the fight against your

student fair and square.” he said, as his lips curled into a cold smile.

The vice Principal of Contemplation knew he couldn’t fight against us. He carried the severely injured Hua De withanger still painted on his face, and walked to the front of Forest Dragon’s Principal. “Our Contemplation Academy no longer has the face to stay. Principal Long Yu, we forfeit this competition.”

Principal Long Yu knew he wouldn’t be able to make him stay. He could only turn to his vice Principal while his own heart filled with dread… “I will remember all of you. The humiliation and the hatred from injuring my disciple; I won’t ever let this go that easily. Let’s go!” said the vice Principal of Contemplation, while glowering intensely. And with that being said, he exited with his other disciples to pack up their belongings.

Si Wa walked in front of Principal Long Yu and said, “Principal, we are sorry about creating trouble for you.”

What could Principal Long Yu even say? He was  too frightened by my strength. He smiled. “You’re not to be blamed. It was they who were too domineering, not you. We should, however, return and continue our meal..” I thought, ‘This old

fox, he didn’t stop our match. It is likely he wanted to gain even a small insight into what amount of power we hold. I will just act dumb this time… I also have no regrets in beating away the Contemplation Advanced Academy so quickly, as we can frighten Forest Dragon, and I also gave Mu Zi her revenge.’ Instead, I am elated! What I didn’t thought about is how the

Contemplation Magic Academy had actually gone back in anger. This was great, one less enemy!

Mu Zi pulled me, who was still furious, back to the diner. The Principal and vice Principal of Forest Dragon Academy were definitely more courteous than before. He kept on adding more dishes for us. I had listened to Si Wa prior to the fight, and I was

still hungry… But I didn’t care anymore. I pulled Mu Zi along, and beneath the shocked eyes of the surrounding people, I ate my meal like a savage.

The end of this ‘sumptuous’ lunch finally came about, and so, we bid the Principal of Forest Dragon farewell and prepared to head to our rooms for some rest. However, the head instructor of the Shell Order Advanced Magic Academy spoke at that moment. “Can you please wait for a moment before leaving? I wish to announce something with all of us here.”

We stopped and waited to hear what he had to say.

Principal Long Yu of Forest Dragon Academy could already feel like it was going to be bad news. “We have just seen the

strength of student Zhang Gong and feel that our Shell Order Academy is unable to compete against him. Therefore, I have decided, in order not to disgrace myself, to forfeit from this competition as well,” said the head instructor of Shell Order.

Principal Long  Yu  hastily  replied,  “How  can  you  say  that?

Don’t we have an agreement?”

“Even if there is an agreement, I won’t allow my students to risk their lives,” replied the head instructor without hesitation. “You also witnessed the fight. Can you guarantee that even you yourself would have been able to block that strike? My academy’s power is weak, and Hua De fought today! My team doesn’t even have a single magic scholar, how could we possibly compete? I’m sorry, but we’re leaving…” After he said that, he took away his students and even walked right past us.

Although we also bid our farewells, the difference was that we headed to our hotel, which was arranged by Forest Dragon. It actually wasn’t that bad since they gave us a large suite. A huge lounge welcomed us, while two bathrooms and five bedrooms were spread along the sides. The decorations weren’t very magnificent, but all of the necessities were there. The main satisfaction, however, was in its cleanliness.

Ma Ke lay comfortably on the couch in the lounge. “Wah! Our results today weren’t too bad. We just got here, and we already beat one academy and managed to scare away another. Our opponent only has five academies left.”

“Even though the situation seems advantageous to us, don’t you think we have exposed some of our capabilities a little too much? This will only increase their jealousy toward us.” Si Wa said with a deep frown.

“That’s right! What Si Wa said makes sense.” Mu Zi nodded in agreement.

I muttered, “I’ve already contributed my portion to that. . I had said that I would defeat him with one strike, so…..”

Si Wa smiled. “We can’t blame this on you, Zhang Gong. If it was me, I also wouldn’t have been able to hold back if my beloved has been insulted. We are lucky, though, that you held back at the last moment and didn’t kill Hua De. If not, our grudge with Contemplation would have been even worse.”

“Kill?” I replied with eyes wide open. “I didn’t even think of that before… It is illegal.”

The other four started staring at me with my own expression. It made me feel uneasy. “Why are all of you looking at me like this? Is there something on my face?”

Ma Ke replied, “Boss, are you alright? You’re a Magister! Even if you were to kill someone, it won’t matter as Magisters have a count’s privilege. Say, if you were to kill Hua De, or even that vice Principal, the Kingdom won’t punish you at all.”

I stared at Ma Ke for what seemed to be ages. “This must be why ordinary magicians hate us so much! Nobles! Is being a noble really that good…?”

Mu Zi smacked me. “Stop being so melancholic and moody! We are all exhausted. Let’s have an afternoon nap. I am going to sleep already.” Saying that, she gave her body a lazy stretch, then turned around and heading to her room.

I started following her with a smug grin all over my face. “I’ll help you fix your bed. Hehe.”

Mu Zi walked inside her room but stopped me outside her room. “Don’t look so smug! You think I don’t know about your perverted mind? You want to take advantage of me? No way!” After shouting at me, she pushed me farther away from  the room and prevented me from entering.

I helplessly walked back to the lounge. When they saw my discomposure, they laughed, and even the usually quiet Hai Yue grinned.

Si Wa said, “Zhang Gong, you were met with a closed door, right? Where is the light blade that you cast  before?  Just destroy that door! Haha!”

I glared at him. “I don’t dare. If you dare to, then you can go try. I’m scared of her… I’m doomed for the rest of my life!”

Si Wa said, “I dare even less than you do, and I’m not taking that chance either. If I really entered her room after breaking down the door, I would definitely be hacked to death by you.”

Chapter 11 – A Man’s Sorrows

The atmosphere of the team was so comfortable. I felt a warmth deep in my heart as I saw everyone getting along with each other. “Big Brother Si Wa, stop teasing me! You’re so powerful. How can I be your opponent?”

Si Wa was stunned. “Zhang Gong, this is the first time you call me big brother.”

I sighed. “Big brother Si Wa, to be honest, when I first saw you, I’ve had my guard up. This is because of the relationship after the battle between your teacher, Teacher Du Yu Xi, and us. However, after interacting with you these last few days, I’ve realized that you aren’t an evil person. Moreover, we are similar in many areas. We should definitely become friends. You’re also older than me, so naturally I will call you big brother. Hehe.”

Si Wa nodded and his eyes were filled with strong emotions. “Alright! I’ll recognize you as my brother. Actually, Teacher Xi has had his difficulties while supporting Duke Te Yi. I can’t tell you what they are, but you will find out in the future. However, I can assure you that Teacher Xi is a morally upright magician.”

I laughed. “I believe what you say. We will be real brothers from now on.” I walked over and tightly held onto  Si  Wa’s hand.

When everyone discussed the child of light in later generations, most of them would think that the child of light was successful as he had many powerful and inseparable friends and brothers.

It wasn’t until night before they woke up from their dreamland. Mu Zi suggested, “Let’s go for a stroll. It wasn’t easy to get here. We can’t go back empty handed.”

I immediately expressed my agreement as it’s most important to support my wife. After everyone agreed, we got changed, had dinner, and walked out of the hotel together.

The Martial Return City wasn’t very prosperous, but it was still a middle sized city. The various big and small shops were a feast to the eyes. Mu Zi and Hai Yue were girls after all. They became partners and picked and bought whatever they liked. The three of us men had become their goods storage rack as we walked behind them. In a short while, my body had numerous bags that were hung on me, including some bags from Hai Yue. I could have just tossed them into my spatial space, but Mu Zi was

afraid that she might have bought a double of something, so I had to carry them.

I looked at Ma Ke and Si Wa who were sniggering. I had a sudden thought and gave Ma Ke everything that Hai Yue had bought. Hehe. He would definitely not reject me. Even if he did, it wouldn’t work. The other thing that made me feel relieved was that even after Hai Yue found out her bags were on Ma Ke, she didn’t comment on it. She continued handing me the things she had bought, and I would pass it to Ma Ke.

But I noticed that Ma Ke never expressed any joy.. When the girls were busy choosing a shop, I asked Ma Ke, “Hai Yue allowed you to carry her things. Why aren’t you happy?”

Ma Ke bitterly smiled. “Boss, I am not unhappy but just don’t dare to be happy. Becoming depressed after so many years of happiness… All I can feel is the larger my hope, the more upset I become. I cannot afford to be depressed again already.” ‘What

he said is true. It isn’t easy for him to let go of Hai Yue in his mind and let go of his feelings. If he tries to start that relationship again, I doubt that he would ever be able to move on.’ I patted his shoulders. “Brother, the same phrase again.

You’ll just have to wait for your fate to play out.”

The three of us men were extremely exhausted, but Mu Zi and Hai Yue were still full of energy. It must be in a girl’s nature. I really couldn’t stand it any longer. I shouted at Mu Zi, “Mu Zi, can we have a break? Just look at me, there aren’t any more places to put any more things.”

Mu Zi turned her head back and saw a pitiful storage rack that hung numerous shopping bags, which was me. I was covered by the numerous items she had bought. Mu Zi said in astonishment, “I have bought so much? I’m nearly done

anyway. Let’s head back!”

Yay! We were finally released. Ma Ke and I both heaved a sigh of relief. Si Wa laughed at our misfortune on the side. “It is so relaxing not being in a relationship. Haha.” We didn’t have any energy to rebuke him and just wanted to quickly head back to the hotel.

After the long and arduous journey, we finally reached the hotel. I placed Mu Zi’s things in her room. After that, I sat on the couch and no longer had the will to get up. Ma Ke similarly placed Hai Yue’s things at the front of her door and quietly sat on the couch.

Mu Zi leaned towards me. “Zhang Gong, you must be tired.”

I took a breather and said, “That’s right! I can’t even move anymore. Don’t ever ask me to go shopping with you anymore. I really can’t stand it.”

After hearing what I said, Mu Z raised her eyebrows and protested coquettishly, “What did you say? Do you find me annoying?”

When I saw that her getting angry, I hastily held her hand and smiled. “What I said previously is wrong. I am a little tired so my thoughts are now jumbled. What I actually meant was I will definitely go shopping with you often. I can also increase my knowledge that way. Hehe.”

Mu Zi changed from anger to joy and said, “That’s more like it! I’ll help you massage your arms.”

I didn’t work for nothing today. Mu Zi’s tender and delicate hands massaged my arms back and forth. It made me so comfortable that I sighed in satisfaction. ‘This is awesome. I really want to take her out for more shopping.’

Ma Ke looked at our intimate pair and shook his head. He just went back to his room. When Hai Yue saw Ma Ke’s dejected look, her body unexpectedly shuddered.

I pulled Mu Zi and whispered to her, “Can we go to your room? I really want to see what you bought.”

Mu Zi looked at me and said, “You can come to my room, but you mustn’t have any bad intentions.”

‘Damn! I have been seen through by her again.’ I dejectedly replied, “Alright.”

I helped her tidy up everything she had bought while sitting on her floor, and Mu Zi was constantly telling me where to put each item.

I moved my hands in a daze. I didn’t know how long it had

been, but I stretched out my hand and didn’t feel any more items. I slowly opened my eyes and looked around. I had finally finished tidying up her things. Mu Zi was lying on her bed and reading a magic spell book. I sat on her bed and gestured to hug her.

Mu Zi was startled and blocked my extended hands. “What are you doing? Are you done packing up already?”

Chapter 12 – The Tournament Begins

I nodded with sparkles in my eyes. Mu Zi said vigilantly, “What are you doing? Since you have packed up already, you should go back and rest up. I know that you’re tired.” After she said that, she got out of her bed and pushed me out of the room. I instantly felt a sense of loss. I worked so hard for nothing today. I looked at the closed door and shook my head as I sighed. I just swayed back and forth as I headed back to my room.

Mu Zi’s door suddenly opened. She ran out of the room in a bouncing and vivacious way. She placed her arm around my neck and kissed my face. I was stunned beyond belief. Mu Zi, taking advantage of this, dashed to her room while I stood there in a daze, unable to react.

I touched the spot her moist lips had pressed on just a moment before. I felt a sweet feeling filling my heart. Even though I was unsatisfied, it was still better than nothing.

It seemed that the strength I showed had frightened the Vice Principal and Principal of Forest Dragon. They didn’t invite us to join them anymore. The Vice Principal of Forest Dragon came to our rooms this morning.

When I opened the door, I saw him. I politely said, “You’re here. Please come in.”

The Vice Principal of Forest Dragon sat on the couch. “Tomorrow is the competition. How are your preparations?”

I chuckled and said, “We didn’t know how to prepare. We left it as it is and planned to just compete. So how are we going to compete?”

The Vice Principal smiled. “With your capabilities, this competition will be a breeze for you. You will fight with all of the competitors that the other academies choose. Everyday, you will fight two matches. If you win against the last competitor, the championship will be yours. If any of the other academies win against you, that academy will become the champion.”

I was startled and frowned. “In other words, it will be a tag battle.”

The Vice Principal awkwardly smiled. “It wasn’t arranged like

this at first, but the strength that you had shown us was too powerful. Thus, after discussions between the academies, we decided to use this way to compete.”

Ma Ke walked out at that moment. “This method of competition is too unfair. You said you had discussed this with a few of the other academies? Did you discuss this with us? If you want to compete in such a manner, we won’t participate.”

‘That’s true. If we compete in that manner, even if we are strong, we will definitely pay a price for the last victory.’ I thought for a while. “How about this? We will follow your arrangement, but only if we are allowed to compete once a day. You need to at least give us some time to rest.”

The Vice Principal thought for a moment and  replied, “Alright. We will go according to what you have requested. I will head back first to change the arrangement.”

After we bid this devious old man away, we had a group meeting to decide how to deal with the situation.

Si Wa said, “I knew the incident from that day  would influence the competition. It has actually become a tag battle.”

Ma Ke replied, “That’s right! It was unreasonable for them to make the decision to compete in this manner.”

I replied, “Stop arguing already! It is already finalized. It’s more important to think of a way to deal with the situation. I believe the reason they arranged this tag battle is to decrease our strength before defeating us with a strong opponent at the end. Thus, they will arrange for the competitors to  be  from their weakest to their strongest. In every match of the competition, it will be a best of five battles. In other words, if the starting competitors are weak, we will be able to win this competition easily. In order to have resting time, I suggest that we fight in two groups. This way, we can rest a day.”

Mu Zi replied, “How can our team of five separate into two groups?”

I chuckled, “Isn’t that easy? Si Wa, Mu Zi and me will be a group and Ma Ke, Hai Yue and me will be the other group.”

Hai Yue replied, “Won’t you be competing every day that way?”

I shrugged my shoulder and said, “It shouldn’t matter. I doubt that they could withstand more than a few of my attacks, so it shouldn’t be too tiring.”

Ma Ke replied, “The suggestion that Boss came up is the best solution right now. Since it is like this, Boss, Mu Zi, and Si Wa will compete first. You must win all of the matches.”

I smiled. “Relax! Don’t you believe in me? It won’t be a problem. If we meet with an extremely strong person during the second part of the competition, I have a secret weapon.”

Ma Ke was startled but made a realization. “Xiao Jin?”

I nodded. “That’s right! It’s him. When Xiao Jin and  I combine our might, it would even cause some trouble for Teacher Zhen. Hehe.”

Mu Zi pulled me and asked, “Who is Xiao Jin?”

I replied, “If you give me a kiss, I will tell you.”

Mu Zi hit my head and said, “Don’t even think about that! If you don’t want to say so, then forget it! Who would really want to know about that?”

I rubbed on the spot she had hit. “If you don’t want to kiss, then forget it. Why do you need to be so fierce?” This made everyone break into laughter.

We wore our magic robes the next day. I wore the light magic robe that Teacher Di had given to me, which is white  with golden edges. Mu Zi wore a green magic robe to represent that she uses wind element magic. Hai Yue wore a blue magic robe to represent that she uses water element magic. Ma Ke wore a red

magic robe to represent that he uses fire element magic. And lastly, Si Wa wore a yellow magic robe to represent that he uses earth element magic.

After putting on their magic robes, everyone looked unusually energetic. When the five colours merged together, it attracted a lot of attention. When we reached the battle arena of the Forest Dragon Magic Academy, there was a vast crowd in front of us. The interiors filled with teachers and students from the academies while commoners crowded the outer area, full of excitement in lieu of the coming matches.

Our arrival stirred up a commotion within the arena after we entered.. The Vice Principal came over and said, “You have arrived. The other competitors of the five academies have already arrived.” After he said that, he led us to where the competitors are.

There were a lot of people sitting at a side. They must be the competitors from the five advanced academies.

The Vice Principal said, “Since all of the competitors are here, let’s start the competition.”

After we all nodded in agreement, we walked to the center of the 3000 square meter competition ground. He announced, “Everyone please keep quiet as the competition is starting. In this round of the competition, the Royal Advanced Magic Academy will be facing the Bi Si Pu Advanced Magic Academy in a tag battle. Can both the teams please decide quickly on their arrangement of competitors and give them to me.”

The arrangement in the competition was chosen by both teams. It was impossible to know who the opposing team would send out, so it was definitely still stochastic.

I walked over and gave him the match line-up\. The  first battle will be me; the second battle will be Mu Zi’s turn; the third battle will be Si Wa’s turn; the fourth battle will be Ma Ke’s turn; and lastly, it will be Hai Yue. We would definitely not allow our opponents to persevere to the end.

Chapter 13 – Effortless Victory

After a long while, the Vice Principal reentered the arena. “Alright! For the first battle in the competition, it will be Zhang Gong Wei from the Royal Advanced Academy against Lu Si Nan. The two competitors are requested to enter the arena.”

I walked leisurely into the arena with both my hands at my back. My opponent seemed to have a medium build and looked a little younger than me. Judging by his magician robe, he looked like a wind element magician. He was obviously nervous that his opponent was me.

The Vice Principal said, “Alright! The competition begins!” After saying that, he dashed out of the arena to join the rest of the teachers from the Forest Dragon Magic Academy in strengthening the protective barrier.

My opponent bowed to me and said, “Please give me some pointers.”

I smiled and said, “You don’t need to be polite. Let’s battle.”

Lu Si Nan silently chanted and waved both his hands and numerous wind blades flew towards me. He actually used such a weak attack against me. I didn’t bother increasing my defense spell and casually waved my left hand, sending forth a small dimensional slash. It instantly attracted all of his spells toward it; and even his body was being attracted into it.

I smiled at him, but didn’t attack him. “It’s best that you retreat, as I don’t want to hurt you.”

Lu Si didn’t respond. It was obvious that he was clenching his teeth before he started to chant his greatest spell. “Free Wind! Use your….”

Hehe! I had achieved my goal, as I wanted him to do that. If not, with his wind like agility, he would still be able to fight me for quite some time. However, he had already chanted his spell and could no longer be stopped. I gathered my fusion spell of battle spirit and elements in my right hand and waited for him to cast his spell.

“Cloud Oppressing Tornado!” It seemed that he had used an

advanced wind spell. It looked like that was his limit though. He was as strong as Hua De and was at most a Great Mage. The difference was that I had good feelings about Lu Si as at least he was a polite student.

I waved my right hand and shot out a white fusion spell, and the audience gasped in surprise. The chaotic wind element was cut in half and the white ray shot directly towards Lu Si.

I was able to freely control the fusion spell due to my large amount of practice. Just as the light blade was going to reach him, I made the fusion spell move to strike at the air and lightly swiped the spell at him, which sent him out of the arena.

It had only been a few minutes since the start of the

competition. The Vice Principal frowned as he announced, “Zhang Gong from the Royal Advanced Magic Academy wins the first match.” I knew that in his heart he was wondering, ‘Why was Zhang Gong so powerful? Just what did he use to defeat Lu Si?’

I walked down from the battle stage and told Mu Zi, “It’s up to you now. You have to end the match as soon as possible.” Mu Zi nodded and lightly floated to the center of the battle stage. Her opponent was a fire element magician. It seemed that he was slightly stronger than Lu Si.

After the match began, I was flabbergasted as this was the first

time I’ve seen her fight. ‘Is Mu Zi fighting in a competition? She looks as though her life depends on it. It didn’t matter what her opponent was doing. She just continuously shot out advanced multi-directional offensive spells. She is wasting too  much magic power this way. Wind element magicians will use their

agility and techniques to win the match? I thought she would be able to conserve her magic power better than me. I would never have imagined that she would cast multi-directional offensive

spells. I’m impressed.’

I turned to ask Ma Ke, “Does she always fight like this?”

Ma Ke nodded. “Mu Zi’s attacks are always very violent. I don’t know how she can cast her spells quicker than most of us. Though she didn’t cast her spells so casually during the time she was not a true magic scholar, it was still very incredible when I was defeated by her endless offensive attacks previously.”

As expected, Mu Zi’s multi-directional spell made it difficult for her opponent to withstand her spells. He could no longer withstand her attacks. Mu Zi wasn’t as polite as me. She cast a Wind Tornado to send her opponent off the battle stage. He would be unable to get out of bed for two days after this and

that would only be under a magician’s treatment.

Mu Zi’s face was crimson red when she left the battle stage. Zhang Gong said, “Little missy, didn’t I tell you to conserve your magic power? Why did you use a multi-directional spell?”

Mu Zi pouted her lips and replied, “You’re annoying. I am just too lazy to move. Isn’t it better to just stand there and cast continuous attacks? The opponent will just move off the stage by himself after a while.” ‘What else can I say? Isn’t she really lazy?’ I just shook my head and didn’t dare to continue reprimanding this terrifying woman. I held her hand and continued to watch the third match.

Si Wa leisurely walked onto the battle stage. His opponent

was a fire element magician. I believed in Si Wa as his magic could counter some fire magic and the difference between his abilities and his opponent’s was large.

Once Si Wa reached the battle stage, he said to his opponent, “You should prepare a few defensive spells as my attacks are very strong. I may accidentally cripple you in the process.” His opponent had already been frightened by the first two matches. After he listened to what Si Wa said, he blankly cast some defensive spells.

I laughed as I watched the battle stage. “Si Wa is so capable. The moment he came onto the stage, he has already diminished the fighting spirit of his opponent.”

Si Wa used a strengthened Earth Spear to sweep at his opponent’s legs. The opponent’s defensive spell wasn’t bad as the earth spear didn’t pierce his defense. It should have been Si Wa’s intention. We didn’t want to hurt others unnecessarily, after all. Although it didn’t pierce through his defense, his opponent was tossed up high in the sky like a cannon  ball. When he landed, he was naturally off the battle stage. I hadn’t thought that the one who would win in the easiest way was Si Wa. It looked like he had a lot of experience.

Ma Ke whispered to me, “Si Wa had always used this move to defeat a lot of his opponents in the academy. His earth magic’s main special points is its unpredictableness and its strong defense. You won’t know where he is going to pierce you from.”

The Vice Principal of Forest Dragon announced, “The Royal Advanced Academy has won by the overall score of three to zero. The second match will be held tomorrow.”

We didn’t think that we could win so easily. We couldn’t help but relax a little.

Si Wa said, “Since I didn’t use up much energy today, let me compete again tomorrow. . We will let Mu Zi rest, so Zhang Gong, Ma Ke, and I will make up tomorrow’s team.”

The second day’s match was the same as the previous day as we won the first three battles. But Ma Ke and Si Wa faced some opponents who were quite strong, so they had to put in some effort to win their battles.

Chapter 14 – Suffering Heavy Casualties

It would be Mu Zi, Hai Yue, and I who would compete during the third day of the competition, due to the fact that Si Wa and Ma Ke had used up most of their energy.

Mu Zi and I won the first two battles easily, but the third match would have to be fought by Hai Yue who had never appeared on the battle stage.

Hai Yue looked a little depressed and walked onto the battle arena listlessly. When she raised her head, her heart shuddered as her opponent looked similar to Feng Liang. Hai Yue just stood there and stared blankly at her opponent with a myriad of thoughts passing through her mind. At that moment, her heart was in pain, so she just stood there, rooted to her spot.

Her opponent didn’t think that Hai Yue was acting strangely and was instead was extremely nervous as our team hadn’t yet lost a single battle. He chanted his spells with his head bowed. I was amazed that he could actually form a power ball. It seemed that guy actually had the power of a magic scholar.

His powerball was green in colour as he was a wind magician. However, one could see that it was difficult for him to control the powerball as it flew towards Hai Yue at a slow pace.

There was no one who cared for Hai Yue as much as Ma Ke, so he had already realized that something was wrong  with  Hai Yue. He shouted at Hai Yue, but Hai Yue was in a trance and didn’t hear him, focusing on her inner thoughts instead

My mind screamed out ‘This is bad!’ as the powerball was extremely strong. Even if she was fully awakened from her trance, she still might not be able to deal with it easily. Furthermore, she would be totally unprepared.

I used my magic power to make my voice form a line to reach her ear and shouted.

The loud voice made Hai Yue snap back to reality. Hai Yue was startled and raised her head, and saw the powerball had already closed in on her. Hai Yue wasn’t a Magister so she needed time to chant her spells. She knew at this point she didn’t have any way to dodge this offensive spell, and so she had totally given up on countering the attack. She just made a resolute expression which showed her willingness to die for a righteous cause.

Just when the powerball was about to deal a death blow to her, a red figure suddenly appeared in front of her, shielding her by using his body to stop its the advance. That red figure was none other than Ma Ke.

I shouted from below the battle stage, “Ma Ke!” When the powerball came in contact with Ma Ke, the power of the powerball had succeeded in breaking the simple defense spell that he had cast on himself and hit his chest heavily. Ma Ke cried out in pain and was sent flying. Hai Yue was in shock as she saw what had happened. After seeing Ma Ke’s figure which was blown away, she hastily gathered her magic power to catch him, but Ma Ke’s momentum was too powerful and they were both thrown off the battle stage.

The surrounding observers erupted in an uproar. The vice Principal ran over and asked, “What is going on? Why did you send two of your members onto the stage?”

I didn’t have the time to  deal with him and bluntly  stated, “We concede defeat for this match,” before sprinting towards Ma Ke.

I didn’t have the capacity to bother about rebuking Hai Yue at that point and immediately used an advanced recovery spell on Ma Ke. The white light enveloped Ma Ke’s entire body and managed to bring him back from the Death God.

Si Wa was already on the battle stage. We didn’t plan for him to participate in any matches today, but we were forced to send him out after this incident.

I checked Ma Ke’s breathing and monitored on his pulse, and heaved a sigh of relief as he wasn’t in immediate danger of dying. However, his meridian channels had been thrown into disarray by the shock of the strong magic power. The worst case scenario would be if his fire elements were to become turbulent and flowed throughout his body. I let out a sigh and waited to get back to the hotel before continuing his treatment

Right then, Si Wa exited the battle stage. He walked over, thoroughly exhausted and asked, “How is Ma Ke?”

I coldly glared at Hai Yue and replied, “He isn’t in mortal danger for now. But this may not always be the case.”

Hai Yue hugged Ma Ke and weeped, continuously muttering,

“Ma Ke, why are you so foolish? Why did you save me?”

I said with hatred, “Ma Ke is foolish to the point of his brain emitting foam. He knows that you have no love for him and yet still risked his life to protect you.”

Even though we had eventually attained victory in the third match, we had lost Ma Ke as a team member and knew that Hai Yue wouldn’t be be a participant tomorrow either. Who would dare let her take the stage again? There wouldn’t be another Ma Ke to shield her from the opponent’s blows this time.

After returning to the hotel, our moods were unusually depressed. Hai Yue had used her strength to carry Ma Ke back and didn’t allow any of us to interfere with it.

She gently placed Ma Ke, whose face was pale white, on the bed, and suddenly knelt in front of me and painfully wailed, “Zhang Gong, I’m begging you! Please….Please save Ma Ke!”

Mu Zi hastily pulled her up and said, “Hai Yue, don’t be like this. Zhang Gong will do his best.”

I sighed and said, “Ma Ke is my brother. How can I not save him? However, because his injury is too severe, I can only temporarily keep his heart beating. We will give up on the competition and immediately head back to the academy as only Teacher Zhen will has the ability to treat Ma Ke.”

Ma Ke hoarsely and softly voiced out at that moment. We hastily gathered at his side. There was blood flowing from the corner of his lips. He forcefully opened his eyes and said in short gasps, “Boss… My brother… It looks like I can’t continue any longer… You must… win the competition… Please don’t… give it up… just because of me…”

I anxiously said, “How can I do that? You must undergo treatment as soon as possible.”

Hai Yue came over and rubbed Ma Ke’s face. “Ma Ke, why are you so silly? You must get well!”

Ma Ke raised his hands with great difficulty and wiped the tears from Hai Yue’s face. He smiled and uttered in short gasps,

“Hai… Yue… you are shedding tears for me… I am already… very happy. After I die… you must… take good care of yourself… and not let your thoughts… overwhelm you…”

I held Ma Ke’s hand and said, “You should also stop overthinking. You will definitely be fine.”

Ma Ke smiled and continued to utter in short gasps, “Boss… I know… how bad my own condition… You don’t need…  to console me… but I have one last request… that I must ask of you… I beg of you… help me to take good care of Hai Yue… and you must become the champions… It is our responsibility… and possibly my last one… You must help me… accomplish it… I know that… with your power… you will definitely… be able to succeed…”

Chapter 15 – Ma Ke’s Crisis

I anxiously said, “But…What will we do about your wounds?”

Ma Ke bitterly smiled and replied in short gasps, “It… doesn’t matter anymore… Boss, didn’t you say… that we should accept our fate…? If I… am really not meant to die… then I won’t die. You must… become the champions… and let the  other academies know… that we… are the strongest…” After he said that, he fainted and a stream of blood continued to pour out from the corner of his lips.

I exclaimed, “Ma Ke, Ma Ke!!!”

Hai Yue stayed beside Ma Ke’s body and wailed painfully till

her voice gave out. I sighed and straightened my body, silently vowing to obtain the championship. I looked at Hai Yue and thought, ‘If I knew this would happen, I would not have arranged for her to come along.’

I said, “Hai Yue, I will have to trouble you to treat Ma Ke. As he has a fire natured physique,the effect of your water recovery magic should not be bad. I will treat him again for now and stabilize his condition. After two more days of the competition, we will immediately head back to our academy to treat Ma Ke.”

Hai Yue nodded.

I started to chant my strongest recovery spell. “Great light elements, please use your unceasing holy light to treat the

injuries before you and use your merciful heart to save the life in front of you, Heart of the Holy Light!”

The surrounding light elements gathered around me and gradually enveloped me within them. The white light ray slowly became golden. It didn’t have any offensive intent, but was compassionate instead.

I made the light elements form a heart shape. A sparkling heart made of the Holy Light slowly appeared in front of me. I extended my right hand and the golden heart floated toward the pale looking Ma Ke and instantly entered his chest. Ma Ke’s entire body became similar to when I gathered the light elements and emitted a dazzling gold light. His pale face became faintly red.

After a long time, the golden light halo disappeared. I checked Ma Ke’s pulse and realized his erratic pulse was slightly better. Furthermore, both his Qi and blood flow were smoother than before. I let out a long breath. My body wavered a little as after using the advanced recovery spell, I had used a big portion of my energy.

Mu Zi hastily supported me. I told Hai Yue, “I will leave the rest to you. You will have to treat him every two hours. That should be able to stabilize his condition for now. I’m gonna go rest.”

Mu Zi helped me back to my room and used a wet cloth to wipe the perspiration from my forehead. She asked worriedly, “Zhang Gong, how are you faring?”

I replied, “I’m fine, I merely used too much of my magic power. I am most worried about Ma Ke’s condition. I used an advanced recovery spell, but was still unable to treat his wound. I am afraid that even Teacher Zhen will be unable to treat him after we return to school.”

Mu Zi sighed. “We will have to see our luck then. I also hope that nothing will happen to Ma Ke.”

I smiled. “This is Ma Ke’s predestined fate. If he manages to overcome this hurdle, he will definitely be able to win Hai Yue’s heart. Ma Ke, my brother, you must survive this ordeal.”

Mu Zi, Si Wa, and I meditated to recover our magic power as fast as we could for the fourth match tomorrow.

We had checked on the more or less stabilized Ma Ke the next day. We didn’t tell Hai Yue before sneaking out of the room and running to the battle arena.

After reaching the Forest Dragon’s arena, the Vice Principal came over to us. He asked in astonishment, “Why are there only three of you?”

I shot him a bitter smile. “Our teammate is in extremely bad condition from yesterday’s injuries and another of my teammates stayed back to look after him, so naturally, only the three of us have come.” After the Vice Principal heard what I said, I saw signs of joy radiate from his eyes. Did he really think that this would be enough to beat us with ease? I thought with hatred, ‘I will definitely let him see some of my might today!’I didn’t hold back any more in the competition, seriously injuring

my opponent with an irresistible force and easily won the first battle.

Mu Zi’s opponent was extremely powerful. It  was  obvious they saw we had only three members and had arranged to place the strongest competitors of the team to the starting battles. Mu Zi had won the battle with a strenuous effort. She collapsed in my arms right after walking out of the battle arena. I realized that Mu Zi had used up an exceptionally large amount of magic power, and would definitely not be able to recover in time for tomorrow’s matches Tomorrow, we would be facing our strongest opponent in this competition, Forest Dragon Magic Academy. ‘What am I going to do? Ma Ke is already seriously injured. I can’t bear to let Mu Zi be hurt.’

Si Wa’s opponent was the strongest competitor we have faced so far in this competition. It was a fire element magic scholar. He seemed to be his academy’s head teacher in fire magic, who was approximately 50 years in age and had exceptionally strong power.

This was the first time that I got to see Si Wa’s strong defence as his opponent was really powerful. He didn’t counter his opponent and instead stubbornly guarded against his opponent to wear down his opponent’s magic power. Their magical beasts battled, but neither side could get an edge against the other. The entire battle lasted for three hours. Finally, his opponent used up the entirety of his magic power and was thrown out of the battle stage after Si Wa forcefully used an earth spear to strike at his opponent.

Although we managed to win all four matches, my heart sank to the bottom of the valley. Tomorrow would be our last battle and I was the only one in full battle condition. Moreover, we would be facing opponents that would be stronger than any competitors we fought up to this point.

I looked after Mu Zi and Si Wa, who were drained of energy, after returning to the hotel. When I went to Ma Ke’s room, I found Hai Yue sleeping beside Ma Ke’s body. She appeared to be terribly tired.

After checking on Ma Ke and finding out that his condition hadn’t worsened, I relaxed my worrying heart a little.

I sat on the couch at the lounge and ruminated, ‘How are we going to fight tomorrow? Mu Zi and Si Wa’s conditions aren’t good. I’m afraid that they won’t even be able to use half of their magic power. They will only lose their battles.’ I clenched my

teeth and made a decision.

I called Mu Zi and Si Wa to the lounge in the morning. From

their exhausted expressions, I knew that they weren’t able to recover a lot of their magic power.

Si Wa said, “Zhang Gong, we should head out already. If not, we won’t be able to make it to the arena on time.”

I nodded. “I will be the only one going. The two of you won’t need to go.”

Mu Zi was startled. “How can we let you compete by yourself?”

I bitterly smiled. “Can you even fight in your conditions? It would be useless even if you went up the stage. Don’t forget that I’m a Magister. I will negotiate with Forest Dragon to fight all three battles myself and will definitely be the  last  one standing.”

Chapter 16 – Facing The Enemy Alone

Mu Zi rebuked with a grave voice. “No! How can I let you risk your life alone? I definitely won’t allow you to do so.”

I replied, “Have you got any better ideas then? Don’t worry! I still have Xiao Jin. He is a dragon king whose ability is definitely not inferior to mine. Do you really think that two Magisters will be defeated by three magic scholars? You all worrying too much.”

Si Wa anxiously replied, “But…”

I interrupted him. “Stop talking! I have decided! Don’t even bother accompanying me, as I will be able to concentrate better

without you there.. Mu Zi, be a good girl and wait for your husband’s good news.”

Mu Zi, strangely, didn’t rebuke me after I self-proclaimed myself as her husband. She leaned toward me and tightly clung on my arm. I felt her worries clearly. After a short moment, Mu Zi raised her head and said with determination, “Zhang Gong, you can go and battle by yourself, but I will go to the arena with you. I want to see you defeat those bastards from Forest Dragon. They actually dared to plot such an underhanded method to compete against us…You mustn’t hold back against them.”

Si Wa chimed in, “I must also go with you.”

Even after  trying  to  convince  them  repeatedly,  I  was  still

unable to change either Mu Zi’s or Si Wa’s mind at all. Seeing that the time for the competition was nearing, I had no choice but to bring Mu Zi and Si Wa along to the arena.

The Vice Principal of Forest Dragon smiled as he came over. “Will you be competing like yesterday?”

I shook my head. “I will be the only one competing.”

He asked in astonishment, “How are you going to compete by yourself?”

I glared at him. “Why isn’t it possible? Won’t it work if I fight all three of the matches?”

The Vice Principal of Forest Dragon looked at me, finding it a little difficult to make a decision. “How about this? I will go and discuss this with the representatives from the other academies. Please wait for a moment.”

After a while, he came back looking a little embarrassed.

I asked, “How did the discussion go?”

The Vice Principal of Forest Dragon said, “They have decided to let you compete by yourself, but on one condition.”

I frowned and asked. “And what would that be? Just say it.”

The Vice Principal of Forest Dragon awkwardly said, “They want you to fight against five people and  determine  the outcome of the battle with a single match.”

Mu Zi lost her temper and cursed loudly, “Are you still human? How can one person fight against five? It’s too unfair. Zhang Gong, let’s go! Let’s not compete anymore!”

The Vice Principal replied, “If you don’t compete, it will mean you have forfeited this competition.”

I coldly looked at him, causing him to move two steps back in fright. I clenched my teeth and said in an icy voice, “I will compete, but don’t blame me for not reminding you:I will definitely not hold back any longer!.” Their despicable acts had thoroughly enraged me. This was the first time I wanted to eliminate my opponents.

The coldness radiating from my body had caused the temperature in the surroundings to decrease drastically. I extended my hand to stop Mu Zi from discouraging me. “Please don’t meddle in this. I really want to see what tactics they will employ.” I took out my magic staff from my spatial space. I knew this match would be just as dangerous as with the battle

against Si Feng Ri.

I rapidly gathered light elements to me as I stood at the center of the battle stage. The surrounding light elements became chaotic as I was enraged.

The opponents I faced were two fire element magicians, two wind element magicians, and one earth element magician. It looked like two of them were students and the others were at least forty years in age. This should be the strongest team that Forest Dragon had. The Vice Principal announced, “The match begins!”

I wordlessly cast my fusion spell of battle spirit and light elements. The opponents stood behind the earth element

magician. They unhurriedly cast multiple advanced defensive spells.

When the fusion spell came in contact with their defensive spells, the sky lit up. I was rebounded backwards and moved a few steps back. I couldn’t help but to inhale a cold breath as I realized that my opponents were all magic scholars.

They didn’t attack me, but instead released their magical beasts. With the magical beast fighting in front of them, I was slowly being suppressed. A strong pressure made my magic robe flutter. I was obviously in a disadvantageous position.

The Principal and Vice Principal watched the match and smiled as they thought that victory was already in their grasp.

I clenched my teeth and shouted, “Xiao Jin, come forth!” This was the first time that I had used my magical beast since the start of the competition. There was a flash of golden light, and Xiao Jin immediately used his body to act as my shield as he realized that there were strong enemies threatening me. He didn’t need me commanding him and immediately released his defensive dragon breath. This instantly lessened the pressure on my body and I heaved a sigh of relief.

I took advantage of the fact that they had not snapped out of their shock from seeing Xiao Jin and started to chant my strong magic spell. I raised the magic staff in my my hand and chanted, “Light elements! My great friends! I beseech of you to use your

powers to become endless brilliant rays, transform into specks of stars and eliminate the enemies in front of you, Bright Star’s Shine!”  This  was   my  advanced  light   magic  spell.   It  was

extremely powerful and, moreover, I could freely control it.

The surrounding light elements became beads of golden light that gathered at my upper dantian. It slowly formed into a dazzling light ball, and looked like a miniature sun while emitting light rays. I softly said, “Break!”  The  light  ball instantly transformed into small light stars that surrounded me.

One of the opponent’s fire element magician, “Everyone! Be careful! The opponent is going to use a strong magic spell. Quickly cast defensive spells and order your magical beast to attack the opponent’s magical beast!”

All of the opponent’s seventh to eighth grade magical beast attacked Xiao Jin. When light stars appeared in front of me, I also commanded Xiao Jin to attack.

Xiao Jin shrieked as he roared. He flapped his enormous wings and tackled the two wind elemental magical beasts and shot a dragon breath at the earth elemental magical beast.

I had completed my Bright Star’s Shine, which covered the sky with light stars that headed towards the five magicians.

The five opponents already knew that this spell would definitely be difficult to counter and they all released their strongest protection spells.

When the light stars were reaching the opponent’s barrier, I smiled and drew a circle with the magic staff in my hand. The light stars suddenly stopped in mid-air and rapidly rearranged themselves like a troop of soldiers forming a straight line before

they shot towards their defensive barrier like a streak of lightning.

The five magical beast’s strengths were much weaker than Xiao Jin’s so they were beaten up by Xiao Jin. In a short moment, Xiao Jin had defeated all of them and came to assist me.

Chapter 17 – Life’s Flame

The thick defensive barrier rippled beautifully as the stream of light stars came into contact with it.  My  five  opponents didn’t have the time to admire the scene and shouted, “Not Good!”. My light stars had pierced through their solid defensive barrier. Even though it didn’t have a lot of force, it had made all of my opponents cough out a mouthful of blood. I had managed to turn the table on them.

Just as I wanted to attack them, my body suddenly went soft. I screamed inwardly, ‘This is bad. These days were too stressful and I haven’t had enough rest.’ After releasing that advanced magic spell, I was left with not much magic power. In actuality, I had forgotten that I had been simultaneously supporting Xiao Jin in his battle. Even though Xiao Jin could gather his own magic power, he still required some of mine.

Xiao Jin roared and I saw that he had forcefully gathered the five opposing magical beasts and shot a light ball at them. They

flew back and could no longer get up. My anxiety eased up little. However, when I wanted to command Xiao Jin to attack my opponents, I saw a strange sight.

All five of my opponents stood in a line, hand in hand, with a determined expression on their faces. The earth element magician, who was in the middle, said, “For the honor of our academy, we will go all out!”

The other four opponents shouted, “That’s right,  for  the honor of our academy!”

Afterwards, their faces started to shine with heavenly light rays.

I had experienced that once, so I knew what they were going to do. I shouted, “Stop!” However, it was already too late as the five of them chanted, “Great Creation God, Please release my life’s potential and burn my life’s flame!”

This was bad, as they were burning their life forces. They had temporarily increased their power with their life force as the price of getting that power. The five bodies lit up with different colours, according to their magic elements.

Xiao Jin felt that this was bad and immediately flew and landed in front of my body.

I sighed. “Is this really worth it? Is victory that important to you? Why are you burning your precious life force?”

One of my opponents wind element magician  coldly  said, “You can just stop pretending already! We have seen enough of your noble countenance. Our life is just that useless. Can you do something about that?”

The fire element magician in middle center said,  “Don’t bother talking to him. Our time is running out. Everyone, quickly start your attacks!”

The burning of their life force had instantly healed the serious injuries on their bodies. Three different magic element spells violently attacked me.

Mu Zi who was below the battle stage screamed. If it weren’t for Si Wa who had held her back, she would have ran up onto the battle stage.

Xiao Jin extended his wings to block the majority of the attacks. I expended a lot of my strength as I fought back. How was this good? I used my defensive spell to fight back against the opponent’s advance. Suddenly, I noticed that Xiao Jin was gradually moving backwards. It seemed that it was  too strenuous for him to block the five magic scholars who had burned their life forces.

I definitely wouldn’t let them hurt Xiao Jin. I gathered as much battle energy as I could to help contribute to the energy needed for Xiao Jin’s next move,but the  opponent’s  attacks were too strong. No matter if it was the Heaven Devouring

Flame Dragon, the Tyrant Tornado, or a Meteor; they were all extremely powerful. Xiao Jin couldn’t hold back any longer. His golden scales spilled out blood and his large clear eyes slowly dimmed.

‘No! I can’t let Xiao Jin die again!’ I forcefully withdrew him into my body and instantly got ready to receive all  of  the attacks. The opponent’s attack had succeeded in breaking through barrier after barrier that I had cast.

The magic robe would help its owner in times of emergency. The gemstone on my chest emitted a light ray as my last line of protection.

As the  opponent’s  attack  ceased,  I  supported  my  seriously

injured body with my magic staff. Fresh blood unceasingly flowed from my mouth. The magic gemstone on my light magic robe had already shattered; It had used its life to protect me. Mu Zi looked crazed as she wanted to come to my side. My body swayed, but I stood up and waved my hand at Mu Zi, saying with a low voice, “I haven’t lost yet!”

Wah! I spat out another mouthful of blood. I knew that I had already reached my limit.

I looked at my opponents and saw that they weren’t in a good state either. Their faces had paled and the flames that burnt their life force had already dimmed.

I couldn’t hold on any longer. My body was already unable to

use any spells. My battle spirit was also unable to circulate in my seriously injured channels.

I smiled gloomily, ‘Am I really going to lose?’

I thought about Ma Ke who was always able to dash in bravely

with no thought of his personal safety. ‘I am afraid that he will never be able to stand up on his own anymore. His last wish is for me to become the champion.

Ma Ke, is your boss done for already? No..No..No! I can do it! I must accomplish my brother’s last wishes.’

I gave a loud and desperate roar towards the heavens and relied solely on my will and walked towards my opponent step- by-step.

The Principal and Vice Principal of Forest Dragon Academy stood up with all of the observers. Everyone’s heart had already leapt up to their throats. The Principal and Vice Principal were already preparing themselves to have their first victory against the Royal Advanced Magic Academy in their entire history of competing.

Suddenly, I felt a warm power surge in my body. I remembered the power that had helped me block Hai Yue’s attack after defeating Feng Liang Ri.

The warm power rapidly flowed through my body. I felt that the broken channels in my body seemed more comfortable. I stopped moving, tightly closed my eyes and let that warm power treat my tattered body.

The five opponents looked at my perseverance and expressed looks of respect. However, they raised their hands to prepare their last attack as that was the last remnant of their magic powers. The earth element magician wore a slightly reluctant expression.

My body slowly emitted heavenly powers that slowly formed into a golden halo. My opponents were startled, but had already released their final attacks.

Two Tornadoes, two Fire Snakes (As they weren’t able to form a Fire Dragon due to a lack of power, I will use Fire Snake to describe their attack) and a large meteor shot towards me.

Mu Zi and Si Wa saw this happening and ran with all their might to enter the battle stage. However, they were prevented from approaching me by an invisible power when they were 10 metres away from me.

Chapter 18 – The Holy Sword Awakens

I raised my head and my eyes had become completely gold in colour. There was a reflection behind my back. If you looked carefully, you would see that the reflection was as though there were six wings that were continuously flapping.

I raised my right hand and a strong light sword appeared that eliminated the opponent’s attacks just as water extinguishes flame. In mid air, their attacks simply disappeared. Just as the sword of light was about to reach the opponents, the pierce changed to a slap, which resulted in them flying out of the battle stage.

This theatrical change in the events caused the entire arena to become dead silent.

The gold light surrounding my body dimmed as my entire body started to slump and collapsed on the floor.

There were signs of dejection in the eyes of the Principal and Vice Principal, as they looked at each other in dismay. It came as no surprise since even after having such a great advantage over their opponent, they still lost the battle. Nobody would  be willing to accept such a situation.

Si Wa carried me and Mu Zi checked my pulse. After realizing that my pulse was stable, she heaved a sigh of relief.

The Vice Principal walked onto the stage, disappointedly, and announced, “This is the end of the Eight Advanced Academies Competition. The final victor is the Royal Advanced Magic

Academy.” Even though I collapsed on the battle stage, I was still on it. It seemed that they still had some morality. They didn’t lie brazenly and announced our victory.

Si Wa and Mu Zi were elated, but were more worried about my injuries. They didn’t care for those people from Forest Dragon and directly carried me back to the hotel.

I felt like I was in a dream. There were bright stars in my surroundings. I looked at all of the unfamiliar things around me, as I was in an extremely vast space. I muttered, “Where am I? It can’t be that I died right?”

A clear and powerful voice voiced out, “Child, you have not died yet. This is our internal heart’s divine space.”

The sudden voice frighted me. I immediately looked around, only to find no life forms around me.

“Stop searching for me, child. You won’t be able to find me, as I am currently in your heart.”

‘What? He says that he is in my heart.’ I curiously  asked. “Who are you?”

“Do you still remember the Holy Sword that the God King gave you? That’s me. If you really want to call me by something,

you can call me Mi Jia Lei. I’m using my remaining consciousness to communicate with you.”

I asked in astonishment, “Are you the Radiant God’s battle angel, Mi Jia Lei, that the God King mentioned to me?”

The clear voice chuckled. “Child, it has been such a long time since I’ve heard that name. Your words have made me feel some warmth.”

“Why am I able to communicate with your consciousness?”

“Your determination has released the Holy Sword, so you are now able to communicate with me.”

I said in surprise, “I have released the Holy Sword. So in other words, I can finally use the Holy Sword.”

Mi Jia Lei replied, “Child, you’re thinking too naively. You can only use a very small portion of the Holy Sword’s power. If you really want to use its full power, you must inherit the power that I had left at the Sky Splitting Great Valley.”

What he said was the same as what the God King had said. I nodded. “I will definitely go there.”

Mi Jia Lei replied, “Even though you were seriously injured this time, you also gained a lot, including the ability to control a small portion of the Holy Sword. You will have to practice a lot to use it freely though. I do not have a lot of remaining consciousness left. I will be able to communicate with you after you come to the Sky Splitting Great Valley. You have to remember that you have to use the Holy Sword’s power to break the seal at the Sky Splitting Great Valley. Our human and God clan’s future will rely greatly upon you. Child, you must work hard…” His voice became weaker as he spoke until it completely vanished.

The surrounding star light gradually dimmed. When everything turned dark, I lost my consciousness.

After awakening again, I felt intense pain all over my body. I

knew that I had come back to reality.

I forcefully opened my eyes and was moved when I found Mu Zi lying beside my bed. Judging from her pale face, she must have been exhausted.

I tried to circulate my internal magic powers. I was surprised to find that the transparent Gold Dan had disappeared; only to be replaced by two small solid Gold Dans that were similar to the Gold Dan I had initially. It seemed that it wasn’t a dream last night. What Mi Jia Lei said was right. I really had some profit from the Holy Sword. Even though the two Gold Dan’s combined power isn’t as powerful as the transparent Gold Dan, I know that if I could practice it to the point that they became transparent, I would have broken through from the Magister level and be headed towards becoming a Grand Magister.

Aside from the two Gold Dan, I found another strange change in my body. The battle spirit in my dantian had warm powers. It should be from the power of the Holy Sword.

After circulating the battle spirit of the Holy Sword to make it slowly move around my dantian once. My entire  dantian seemed to warm up. A comfortable warm power was emitted from my dantan. It permeated through my entire body and treated my injuries. The painful areas immediately felt better after the power passed through them. So, the Holy Sword had such a function. It was even better than my  light  recovery spells.

After making the Holy Sword’s power circulate my  body thrice, I could finally move. I extended my hand and caressed Mu Zi’s messy silky hair. I softly called out, “Mu Zi , wake up! Mu Zi, wake up!”

Mu Zi dazily sat up and opened her groggy eyes. When she saw that I was up, she immediately woke up and said excitedly, “Zhang Gong, you’re awake! You scared me.” After saying that, she threw herself at me and wailed.

She touched my wounds as she did that. I hugged her waist and replied, “Little missy, please be a little more gentle.”

Mu Zi remembered that my serious injuries were still recovering. She hastily got up from my body and replied with deep concerns, “Sorry! I am just so happy that I forgot you haven’t fully recovered.”

Even after she had already sat up, I had no intentions to stop hugging her. Hehe! ‘It’s a rare chance to do so.’

Mu Zi asked, “How are you feeling? Better?”

I smiled and nodded. “You don’t have to worry. I’m fine. After

I rest for a while, I will be alright.” ‘With the power of the Holy Sword to help me recover, I believe that I will fully recover very quickly.’

Chapter 19 – A New Understanding

A satisfied expression was shown on her face. “I won’t allow you to risk your life like this ever again. You don’t know just how worried I was. You were unconscious for a day and  a night.”

I asked in amazement. “It has been a day and a night already? How is Ma Ke? We should head out of the city as soon as possible.”

Mu Zi said dejectedly, “Ma Ke hasn’t woken up since that day, but his condition is still quite stable. He should still be able to stay in that state temporarily.”

I heaved a sigh of relief. “Mu Zi, you go and inform Hai Yue not to worry. After resting for a day, my magic power will recover. I will then set a large teleportation array to send us directly back to the academy.”

Mu Zi said in amazement. “You also know how to create arrays? If you can use teleportation arrays that will be great, it will save us a lot of time. I’ll go tell Hai Yue about this great news.”

I chuckled. “Quickly go and tell her! Your husband has a lot of abilities.”

Mu Zi’s delicate face reddened. “You’re so annoying!” She turned and ran off.

I immediately started to train so that it wouldn’t be too late for Ma Ke to be treated. I continuously circulated the Holy Sword’s power to repair my damaged meridian channels. After just five hours of repairing, all of my meridian channels had fully recovered. The recovery rate had left me in  an exceptionally astonished state.

I walked to the lounge with Mu Zi and Si Wa to eat our dinner together. They were shocked at my recovery speed. We had initially asked Hai Yue to join us, but she said she would eat in Ma Ke’s room to accompany him.

I told Mu Zi, “It is not good for Hai Yue to continue to be like this. Ma Ke hasn’t gotten any better. By the time he get his treatment, she will be totally exhausted.”

Mu Zi nodded. “That’s right, but I already advised her about that a couple of times. She just doesn’t listen to me.”

After dinner, I returned to my room and sat on my bed. I started to meditate for the first time since my two gold dans had formed.

I carefully moved the two gold dans as I didn’t know what would happen. The gold dans were courteous and didn’t give me much trouble. They maintained a certain distance between each other as they moved with one in front of the other. Even though the absorption rate of my magic power didn’t increase much, the compression rate was clearly much faster. All of the magic power that entered my body was quickly compressed and became liquified. There would also be a larger space for me to gather bigger amounts of light elements this way.

After an entire night of meditation, my body surged with magic power. Even though it wasn’t as much as my best state, it was already very powerful. The two gold dans were much more solidified than from the time that I woke up.

I went to Ma Ke’s room at dawn. Hai Yue was lying beside his bed with her pale white face. I checked on Ma Ke and it was as Mu Zi said. His condition had stabilized and the chaotic fire elements in his body were being suppressed by Hai Yue’s water recovery spell, but this was still a bad sign in the long run. I tried to use the power of the Holy Sword to help treat Ma Ke, but I didn’t know why the warm power produced by the Holy Sword wasn’t able to leave my dantian.

After trying for a couple of times, I finally gave up.

I woke Hai Yue up and sternly told her, “Hai Yue, you can’t continue to be like this. I am fine already. You should eat something and go rest in your room.”

Hai Yue shook her head. “I want to stay with him until he gets better.”

I replied, “Even if you want to stay with him, you should rest up as well. Mu Zi should have said this to you before. I am planning to use a teleportation array to teleport us back to the academy. With your body’s condition, you won’t be able to withstand the distorted space. If something happened to you during the teleportation, how am I going to explain to Ma Ke?”

Hai Yue raised her head and stared at me for a long time before saying, “Alright! I will listen to you.”

I extended my right hand and placed it on her forehead and used a recovery spell on her. I was amazed to find that the originally light ray of the intermediate recovery  spell  had turned into a golden ray instead. Hai Yue’s face flushed red under the help of the magic spell.

After the golden light flashed past, Hai Yue released a sigh of comfort. She opened her eyes and said, “Zhang Gong, what spell did you use? It seems different from before. My body feels as though it is filled with energy.”

I also  didn’t  understand  what  was  going  on.  It  should  be

related to two of my gold dans and Holy Sword.

I told Hai Yue, “This only treats the symptoms but not the roots of the problem. You still need to rest to recover  your body’s function. I will look after Ma Ke for you so don’t worry. You should just quickly eat something and sleep. After you recover, we will head back to the academy. I strongly believe that Ma Ke’s condition will improve.”

The first smile appeared on Hai Yue’s face since Ma Ke was hurt. She turned and walked out of the room.

Since my recovery spell had a new breakthrough, why not let Ma Ke be my guinea pig? It might unexpectedly be able to treat him. It would at least not worsen his condition.

“Great light elements! Please use your unceasing holy light to treat the injuries in front of you and use your merciful heart to save the life before you, Heart of the Holy Light!”

The light elements from my surrounding gathered around me and gradually enclosed me in it. There was a gold light ray emitting from my skin. After a while, the sparkling golden radiance of the Heart of the Holy Light appeared in front of me, but it wasn’t the same as before. I realized that now, the Heart of the Holy Light seemed to be alive as it throbbed lightly.

As I inserted the Heart of the Holy Light into Ma Ke’s body, I pressed my hand on his chest. I felt this time the Heart of the Holy Light didn’t disappear as it did before. It seemed to flow into Ma Ke’s body like water flowing everywhere and in all directions, repairing his damaged meridian channels. I was

elated because if this continues, there was hope in bringing Ma Ke back to life.

After Ma Ke’s meridian channels were continuously strengthened by my magic spell, I didn’t know how much time had passed, I withdrew the light elements. I let out a mouthful of breath before reopening my eyes. Hai Yue, Mu Zi and Si Wa all had their eyes widely opened as they looked at me.

Hai Yue anxiously asked, “Zhang Gong, how is he?”

I took a cloth from Mu Zi to wipe the perspiration from my forehead before replying, “I have treated and recovered all of Ma Ke’s meridian channels and simultaneously strengthened them.”

Hai Yue said joyously, “Does this means that he going to be fine?”

Crestfallen, I shook my head and said, “I won’t be able to treat his wound completely because when he blocked the opponent’s power ball, highly compressed wind element entered his body. The chaotic wind elements conflicted strongly against his fire elements. This caused the smooth flowing fire elements to undergo immense changes.”

Chapter 20 – Return To The Capital

I looked at Hai Yue as I continued to say, “There are currently two different elements that are conflicting against each other in his body. My treatment helps him to be able to withstand the destructive forces of the two elements. It won’t really treat him. As time passes, his meridian channels would revert back to its damaged state.”

Hai Yue instantly expressed her dismay and tears flowed from her eyes again as she threw herself at Ma Ke’s body.

I patted her shoulder and said, “Hai Yue, don’t be like this. Even if I am unable to treat him, I can promise you that he won’t be in mortal danger. I just need to treat him once every week. When we leave this academy, Teacher Zhen should have a solution on how to treat him.”

Mu Zi replied, “You should also rest up after using such a powerful recovery spell.”

I nodded. “I will recover my magic power to its best condition in order to keep everyone safe and improve the precision of the teleport. Mu Zi, please help me protect the array. Si Wa, I will have to trouble you to find a secluded place for me to lay the array. Don’t forget that you can’t make any mistakes.” After I said that, I opened the magic array book and gave Si Wa a page from the center of the book.

After three hours, I woke up from meditating. We carried Ma Ke to the place where Si Wa had set the array,

I said, “When I start using the array in a short moment, everyone will have to use their strongest protection spell to protect your surroundings. This is to protect Ma Ke’s safety.”

After I said that, I drew another diagram on the six corners of the array before sitting at a corner and used light elements to power long distance teleportation array.

After a golden light shone, the five of us disappeared from the array.

I had also used my strongest defensive spell to protect the out most surrounding during the teleportation process to resist the warping space. At this moment, it seemed as though time stopped. There was nothing visible in the surrounding.

Everyone had their eyes closed to withstand the immense pressure.

Our bodies suddenly lightened. I knew that it was already the end of the teleportation. I heavily heaved a sigh of relief as the teleport was quite accurate and it succeeded in teleporting us to the place that Teacher Di had previously helped me to set the array in the Royal Intermediate Magic Academy.”

Mu Zi asked in astonishment. “Where is this place? Did we end up in a wrong place after the teleportation?”

I chuckled, “Why do you have so little confidence in your husband? Everyone, welcome to the Royal Intermediate Magic Academy. Teacher Di’s office is close by.”

Hai Yue nodded. “That’s right! This is indeed the back hill behind the Intermediate Magic Academy. I have come here before.”

I replied, “Let’s go! We should quickly send Ma Ke to Teacher Di’s place.”

It was in the afternoon so the academy was quiet, as all of the students were in class. We brought Ma Ke to Teacher Di’s office. However,Teacher Di wasn’t in. Since the room was unlocked, we placed Ma Ke on the bed.

I said, “Teacher Di isn’t here so I will go and find him. You just need to wait for me here.” After saying that, I immediately dashed out. I was extremely familiar with the place as I had trained here for five years already. I quickly found Teacher Di somewhere in the academy.

When Teacher Di saw me, he jubilantly said, “Zhang Gong, you’re back! How did the competition go?”

I painstakingly said, “Even though I had brought back the championship, Ma Ke was seriously injured. Please  quickly come and have a look!”

Teacher Di nodded. “Alright! Where are they?”

I replied, “They are in your office. You had forgotten to lock the door again.”

Teacher Di laughed. “I have aged so I’m not good at anything.

How are Ma Ke’s injuries? Are they serious?”

I nodded worryingly. “I have already stabilized his condition, but…”

Teacher Di replied, “Your restoration spell is of the same standard as mine. If you can’t treat him, I won’t be able to as

well. How about this? Quickly go and find Chuan Song in the Royal Advanced Magic Academy and invite him over to see if he can help. I will send someone to inform the prince.”

I nodded before dashing towards the Royal Advanced Magic Academy.

Teacher Zhen was happy when he saw me. He knew that if I came back safely, this would mean that we had won the championship. He laughed and said, “Zhang Gong, you’re back already? Didn’t the competition just end two days back? How are you back already today?”

I gloomily replied Teacher Zhen, “I was almost played  to death by you this time. Is that really a competition? It’s too

abnormal. We almost didn’t make it back. Please come with me, Ma Ke is seriously wounded and is now at Teacher Di’s place.”

Teacher Zhen was startled and said, “What happened? Ma Ke is injured? Let’s quickly head there.”

I told the entire process of the competition to Teacher Zhen on the way to the Intermediate Magic Academy. Teacher Zhen didn’t say anything, but because he was frowning, I knew that he was unhappy.

We quickly rushed into Teacher Di’s office. Once  Teacher Zhen entered the room, he immediately asked Teacher Di, “Lao Lun, how is he? Can he be saved?” Ma Ke was Prince Ke Zha’s son and also might be the Kingdom’s future prince. If

something happened to him while he was in the Royal Advanced Magic Academy, even if Prince Ke Zha didn’t blame Teacher Zhen, Teacher Zhen himself would also be unhappy.

Teacher Di’s long and white eyebrows tightly frowned and he shook his head. “His condition is not good. If it  wasn’t  for Zhang Gong who helped him to forcefully open his internal channels, he would have died already. You can have a look at his condition yourself.”

Si Wa told me, “Zhang Gong, I will head back first. If there is a new situation, you must tell me. I will head back to invite Teacher Xi over to see if he can help.”

Teacher Zhen replied, “That’s right! Si Wa, you quickly go

and invite that old brat Du Yu over. Hai Yue, you also head home and ask your grandfather and Huan Ying Yue, to come as well. Ma Ke’s wounds are problematic. I currently have no solutions to deal with it. Let’s see if the heads of us old fellows will be able to think of a solution together.”

I pulled Mu Zi out and told her, “Mu Zi, you should head back to the dormitory to rest. You won’t be able to help out. You must be exhausted after these few days.”

Mu Zi pitifully caressed my face, “Zhang Gong, you have lost weight. Don’t be too anxious! Ma Ke will definitely be fine.”

I nodded and lightly kissed her forehead. “Quickly head back!

Have some food and rest up well.”

Chapter 21 – Mysterious Guiding Female Qi

Mu Zi nodded and hugged me tightly. When I wanted to reciprocate her action, she lovably ran away.

As I watched her fading back, I smiled.

After about an hour, Teacher Di’s office became lively. The Yue family’s leader Huan Ying Yue, Xin family’s leader Hai Tian Xin, the leader of the Royal Mage Union, Dun Yu Xi, and Prince Ke Zha gathered. Including me, all six Magisters were gathered here.

The few Magisters looked at Ma Ke’s injuries and could only helplessly shake their heads. Hai Yue expressed a completely depressed and pessimistic expression. She was also stunned when she finally knew Ma Ke’s actual identity.

Teacher Zhen asked, “It can’t be that you few old fellows also have no solution, right?”

Huan Ying Yue replied, “Ma Ke’s injury is too serious. There are currently two different elements fighting violently in his body. For now, we can only forcefully stabilize his condition. If we hastily try to save him, it might lead to his death.”

A pained expression was shown on Prince Ke Zha’s face. He muttered, “Child, Father had always been harsh on you since

you were born. I had never thought that I would harm you. Father has let you down.”

Teacher Zhen dejectedly said, “It’s all my fault! I made him compete in that competition.”

Hai Yue’s body suddenly sank to the ground. She painfully cried, “It’s me! It’s all my fault! If it weren’t for me, Ma Ke wouldn’t be in this condition. God! Please punish me instead and give back Ma Ke’s life!” Hai Yue’s voice was like a cuckoo that was lamenting. Her melancholic voice moved our hearts.

Hai Yue’s grandfather, Hai Tian Xin, walked over and pulled Hai Yue up. Hai Yue collapsed into his arms and grieved heart- brokenly, “Grandfather…”

Hai Tian Xin heavily sighed before saying, “Yue Yue, are you really willing to pay any price to save Ma Ke’s life?”

Hai Yue raised her head and nodded without any hesitation.

Hai Tian Xin solemnly nodded. “Alright! You’re worthy to be the child of my Xin family. You’re willing to pay the price for what you have done.”

Teacher Zhen hastily asked, “Old Hai Tian, do you really have a way to treat Ma Ke’s wounds?” As a Magister, he just didn’t

want to think that Hai Tian who was weaker than him had a way to treat Ma Ke.

Hai Tian Xin nodded. “Our Xin family has a Mysterious Guiding Female Qi. ** This qi would be able to calm the chaotic magic powers. This is usually used when the magic power goes amok.”

Teacher Zhen became elated. “That’s great! If you have a better solution, why didn’t you say so earlier?”

Hai Tian Xin bitterly smiled, “Say earlier? How can I bring that up earlier? Do you know what the price is for using this method? It requires a pure maiden from our Xin family that is unwedded only.” After listening to what he said, everyone was

astonished. It couldn’t be that to save Ma Ke, they would have to ruin someone’s chastity, right? The chastity of girls in the whole world was an extremely important matter.

Hai Yue’s face turned completely red, but remained wordless.

Hai Tian Xin asked Hai Yue, “Yue Yue, grandfather had said the solution already. Are you still willing to save him? Grandfather initially had no plans to say the solution, but Ma Ke had risked his life to save yours. The final decision lies with you to decide whether you will do it or not.”

Everyone looked anxiously at Hai Yue.

Hai Yue looked foolishly at Ma Ke and muttered, “You had suffered so much for me. I should repay you a little.” After that she turned her head and looked determinedly at Hai Tian and said, “Grandpa, I’m willing!”

Everyone shouted in astonishment. Prince Ke Zha emotionally shouted, “Hai Yue, don’t worry! I definitely won’t let  Ma  Ke turn his back on you!”

Hai Yue dully said, “That topic should be discussed  much later. Grandpa, please tell me! How can I save him?”

Hai Tian Xin turned to face Prince Ke Zha. “If Prince Ke Zha believes in me, I will take Ma Ke to our Xin family to treat him.”

Prince Ke Zha considered for a while before looking  at Teacher Zhen. Teacher Zhen subtly nodded at him. He replied, “Alright! Clan Leader, I will have to trouble you!”

Hai Tian Xin nodded. “Your Highness, please don’t worry! Even if I can’t have a hundred percent guarantee it will work, the chances are still extremely high. We will take our  leave first.” After saying that, he ordered people to carry Ma Ke and left with Hai Yue.

After Hai Tian Xin left, Prince Ke Zha asked Teacher Zhen, “Principal, are you sure that Hai Tian Xin can treat Ma Ke?”

Teacher Zhen nodded. “Their Xin  family’s  recovery techniques really has that technique. Your Highness, don’t worry! I believe that there shouldn’t be any problems.”

I walked over and lowered my head. “Uncle Ke Zha, this is all my fault. I didn’t take good care of Ma Ke.”

Prince Ke Zha shook his head. “Zhang Gong, how did this happen? Please tell me what happened.”

I became  extremely  unhappy  and  angry  as  I  recalled  the

competition. I added extra details as I recounted the process of the entire tournament to them.

Prince Ke Zha’s eyebrows frowned as he listened to what I said and his eyes radiated coldness.

After listening to my entire report, Prince Ke Zha said, “Principal Zhen, how could you let them participate in such a dangerous competition? Is that even a competition?” Even though he sounded calm, his voice let out an imposing aura as he spoke.

Teacher Zhen bowed slightly, “Your Highness, I indeed did not think this through enough. However, this competition has been ongoing for many years already. It was passed down from

our ancestors. This time, I have thought that with Zhang Gong, he should be able to win the competition easily. I didn’t think that there were so many loopholes.”

Prince Ke Zha replied, “Forget it! I can’t blame you in this matter. However, there should never be such a competition in the future. It is not actually a competition for interactions and learning, but is just a competition that decreases the number of talented magicians in the Kingdom instead.”

Teacher Zhen nodded. “Understood, I will arrange for that to happen.”

After Prince Ke Zha left, Teacher Di asked me, “Why did you say it in such a gravely manner to the prince? Didn’t you get

Teacher Zhen involved this way?”I felt wronged and explained, “What I said was the truth! The competition is really unfair towards us. You almost couldn’t see me any more. The five magic scholars fought against me and all of them used  life magic. If it wasn’t for my strength being enough to withstand their attack, I wouldn’t have been able to take back the championship.”

Teacher Zhen sighed, “Lao Lun, I am in the wrong for this matter. I shouldn’t have risked putting these youngsters in danger. Stop scolding Zhang Gong already! This is a good lesson that we must always remember!”

Chapter 22 – Returning To Class

After hearing Teacher Zhen’s words, I felt bad. I said, “Actually, I am partially the reason. I wasn’t prepared enough and had inaccurately judged our opponents’ strength.”

Teacher Zhen replied, “This incident was totally unexpected. Who would have known Hai Yue would fall into a trance during the competition. I hope Ma Ke gets well. If not, I will feel uneasy for the rest of my life.”

I smiled and said, “From what the Xin family’s leader had said, the chances for his recovery is high. Ma Ke may have won some profit from his mishappenings. That’s right! Teacher Di, during the competition when I was almost defeated, the defensive power of the light robe that you had previously given to me had protected me, which had saved me when I was in a tight position. However, the gemstone on the robe was destroyed.”

Teacher Di smiled and said, “I don’t mind. Aren’t useful items supposed to be used? Since it had protected your life, it has done its purpose. If it breaks, just let it break.”

I replied, “How can I do that! It was the first item you gave me and also the presentable magic robe. I loved it. Isn’t it a pity that it was ruined?”

Teacher Zhen interrupted, “That’s enough! You teacher and disciple should stop echoing each other. Zhang Gong, you just have to find me tomorrow and I will give you a magic robe which will definitely be better than the previous one!”

My plan succeeded. Haha! I joyously thanked Teacher Zhen and showed a victorious smile at Teacher Di.

After resting for two days, I returned to the academy to continue attending classes. Teacher Zhen had seriously meant his words when all of the negative points that I had previously accumulated were already revoked. The few of us who participated in the competition had freely gotten our magic scholar status approved. Teacher Zhen also gave me a  new magic robe with six beautiful stars on it. Initially, I thought that it was too eye catching and thought that just five stars was sufficient, but Teacher Zhen said that I wouldn’t be wearing this magic robe frequently and forcefully made me accept the six stars. We also obtained free meal vouchers to eat at the Ascending Jade Tide.

(In the first volume, it was already explained that the number of stars represented the strength of the mage. Mage that are learning magic don’t have a star, an elementary mage will have a single star, and so on. It was extremely difficult to increase the

number of stars.)

I carefully held on to the magic robe Teacher Zhen had given me as this old man had bought it with his own money. The magic robe was light blue in colour and was exceptionally soft. The texture was extremely nice to touch. The entire surface of the robe was embedded with countless magic  crystals. According to Teacher Zhen, he had designed and made this robe himself. It was made from the skin of a rare animal called Xi. Other than being durable and tough, it had the effect to make the usage of magic power become smoother. This robe also had 108 blue crystals, 36 red crystals, and three purple crystals. He had used all 147 crystals to form a defensive array. I just needed to insert some magic power into the purple crystal residing at the center of my chest to activate the array which would form a defensive barrier. Teacher Zhen had also told me that its defensive power was equal to an advanced defensive spell, but only needed magic power matching those of elementary level spells.

I had really obtained a treasure. This was awesome. But the magic robe had a flaw. It was too glamorous, especially in the daytime. When wearing it on the street, it would constantly shine out light rays in all directions.

When I told Teacher Zhen about this problem, he chuckled. “Why? You don’t want it? If you don’t want it, you can give it back! I am really reluctant to part with it!”

I definitely wouldn’t give up on such a good treasure. A seventh star had been embedded into the robe to represent my Magister status, as it slept peacefully in my spatial space.

When I entered the classroom, I greeted everyone amiably. It was a pity that only a few students responded to me. I sat in my

seat and asked Mu Zi, “How are you? Did you rest up well?”

Mu Zi nodded. “I had rested up quite sometime already. How about you?”

I smiled. “I am fine. It has been two days since we parted. Did you miss me?”

Mu Zi pouted. “Who will miss you? I don’t even know how Ma Ke is already.”

I replied, “That’s right! I hope he will successfully cross this hurdle. Oh right! Teacher Zhen has given me the free meal coupons. How about at noon, we…”

Mu Zi’s eyes lit up. “That’s perfect! I want to comfort my stomach in the afternoon.”

I chuckled. “I heard the Ascending Jade Tide restaurant really gave some face to Teacher Zhen as they gave him a fifty percent discount. We don’t need to conserve for that old man.”

Mu Zi nodded and we simultaneously said, “Let’s make him poor!” After that, we both broke into laughter.

An angry voice called out, “Zhang Gong Wei, Mu Zi Mo! You two had just ended your confinement period and have already started to disturb the class again!”

Wah! It was already time for class, and coincidentally, it was the same class teacher who had caused me to be placed in confinement. I bitterly smiled and hastily stood up. “I’m sorry, teacher!”

The teacher was stunned as he was unused to me being polite. He frowned and said, “Forget about that! Just listen properly in class!”

I stuck my tongue out at Mu Zi, but didn’t dare to speak any more. I didn’t want to give any more chances for Teacher Zhen to make use of me. ‘What shall I do? I will write a letter to Mu Zi.’ Hehe! I wanted to use my incomparable tender sentiment to tightly bind Mu Zi’s heart to me.

Just like that, a week had peacefully passed.

I had just entered the classroom today and Mu Zi excitedly ran up to me. She made me jump a little in shock. “What has made you so happy?”

Mu Zi excitedly replied, “Zhang Gong! Let’s go and have a look! I heard that Ma Ke has returned to the academy.”

I jubilantly  asked,  “Really?  That’s  great!  He’s  finally  okay.

Let’s quickly check it out!”

I pulled Mu Zi along as I dashed to Ma Ke’s classroom. Since class hadn’t started yet, the classroom was tumultuous. Ma Ke’s seat was surrounded by a lot of people.

I excitedly exclaimed, “Ma Ke! Ma Ke!!!”

The surrounding people moved aside and Ma Ke’s familiar figure appeared in the middle of the crowd. I used a short

distance teleport to warp to him and I tightly embraced him. I was so stirred up that tears flowed out of my eyes.

Ma Ke also embraced me back and muttered, “Boss! Boss! I’m back!”

I let him go and looked at him in detailed. Although Ma Ke had lost some weight, his vigor was very good. It was obvious he was still recovering. I beat him with my fist and said, “Are you really fine?”

Ma Ke nodded. He was choked with emotions as he replied, “Boss! Thank you! Thank you very much! I was already much better three days ago. I was really too bored to continue staying at home, so I came to the academy. Boss, did you know? Hai Yue

has finally accepted me.”

Chapter 23 – Bitterness Ends, Sweetness Begins

“Really? That’s great!” I exclaimed excitedly, “Let’s go out and chat. There are too many people here.” We had become everyone’s focal point after this outburst of emotion.

Mu Zi and I, accompanied by Ma Ke, found a quiet place and sat down.

“Ma Ke, you have finally fully recovered. You have no idea how worried we were.” Mu Zi said.

Ma Ke nodded and replied, “I know! Hai Yue has told me

about everything that had happened. Boss, thank you. Hai Yue told me that we were able to grasp victory in the end.”

I chuckled and said, “Why are you still talking about  that lousy competition? I’m more interested about how you got Hai Yue to accept you. Tell me!”

Ma Ke’s face reddened. “After I got injured, I was  only partially conscious and in a lot of pain. It was as though I was continuously being torn apart. I knew that you had treated me because I sobered up a little, but I fell unconscious again shortly after. I don’t know how much time had passed after that, but then a wave of cool energy suddenly surged through my body and all the pain slowly faded. I felt like I was flying in the sky, it was so comfortable. I thought I had already kicked the bucket. But when I returned to reality and opened my eyes, I found myself in my own room.”

“Why were you in your room?”

Ma Ke continued his explanation, “Hai Yue and her grandfather had sent me back to the prince’s mansion after they treated my injuries.”

“How did you get with Hai Yue then?” Mu Zi asked.

Ma Ke’s face reddened. “Mu Zi, can you move away for a bit?

Some things are better left unknown.”

“What things am I not supposed to hear? I want to listen too.” Mu Zi said with a pout.

Ma Ke’s face reddened further as he whispered, “This is something related to the subject of men and women. Are you still sure you want to continue listening?”

Mu Zi’s small face flushed red. She turned and ran away while saying, “You’re annoying! There is nothing good about you guys!” This just made Ma Ke and I laugh.

“Go on then, what happened?” I urged.

Ma Ke looked around to confirm that there was no one around and mysteriously replied, “When I woke up, there was blood!”

I was stunned. “Where?”

Ma Ke bitterly smiled. “There!” As he said that, he pointed downwards.

I came to a realization and replied, “You’re saying…”

Ma Ke nodded. “That’s right! It is as you think.”

I enviously replied, “You’re so lucky! No wonder Hai Tian Xin was acting so secretive. He even said that the  recovery technique would involve Hai Yue being robbed of her chastity or something. How did you react after that?”

Ma Ke replied,”I wasn’t able to react at that precise moment. The more I thought about it, the more I felt that something was amiss. I told my Father and he immediately had someone invite Hai Tian over, who confirmed my suspicions. My Father arranged my marriage with Hai Yue at that moment. He said that we will get married after graduating!” Ma Ke showed an

infatuated expression as he said that.

”Did Hai Yue agree?” I asked.

Ma Ke nodded. “As soon as I was capable of moving, I immediately went to the Xin clan’s home to find her. She was unwilling to meet me at first, so… Hehe! I pretended to be weak and let myself fall to the ground. She then rushed out of her room to support me. I used this opportunity to assault her romantically and finally got her in my arms. She told me that she was extremely moved after I saved her and understood who would be a better boyfriend for her. She is willing to marry me! Haha!”

I knocked  Ma  Ke  on  the  head.  “Be  careful  now,  you’re  so

infatuated that you’re drooling.”

Ma Ke chuckled. “I’m just that happy! All those years of hard work have finally paid off!”

I nodded. “Brother, you have finally gotten a reward for suffering so much. You must treasure these feelings. Did you ask Hai Yue how she saved you?”

Ma Ke smiled and replied, “Of course I did! She flushed red and refused to tell me though.”

“This means that you haven’t completely gotten  her,  but either way…” I started to reply.

“We can’t act with undue haste. I originally thought about doing that, but she refused. After having to go through so much to get her, I definitely won’t force her. She already allows me to embrace her though. She won’t be able to run away now! I am already extremely satisfied.” Ma Ke interrupted.

‘Ma Ke had finally gotten together with Hai  Yue  after suffering for so long. I truly am happy for him, but I can’t help but wonder when Mu Zi and I will do it and when I can make her completely mine.’ I thought.

“Boss, what are you thinking about?” Ma Ke asked.

I snapped back to reality and replied, “Nothing! I’m  just happy for you. You didn’t get hurt for nothing this time.”

Ma Ke nodded. “That’s right! I have no regrets at all. Initially, when I shielded Hai Yue, at that moment I didn’t think that I would survive. I just wanted to use my own life to protect Hai Yue. The heavens treated me very well. Not only did they give me back my life, they even allowed me to get the love of my life!”

I stood up and patted his shoulders. “Hai Yue has attended class today. Let’s head to Ascending Jade Tide restaurant to have a good meal at noon to celebrate your new life! We should head back to class now!”

Ma Ke also stood up and replied, “Boss, I’ll head back  to attend my own classes. Let’s meet up at noon.”

Mu Zi and I called Si Wa to meet up with Ma Ke and Hai Yue, who kept her head lowered with her face red, at noon to head to the Ascending Jade Tide restaurant together.

I couldn’t resist teasing Hai Yue, “Wah! Hai Yue, why is your face so red? You’re not hurt, are you?”

Hai Yue’s face became even redder as she continued to silently

lower her head.

Ma Ke hastily supported her. “Boss, stop putting her on the spot!”

Si Wa and I laughed.“Now, you’ve started to help Hai Yue already. You brat! You will be dominated by her in the future!” I mockingly scolded.

Ma Ke showed an infatuated expression before replying, “I intend to let her dominate me!” Hai Yue grabbed Ma Ke’s hand and looked at him affectionately.

“Look at them, they’re so cute! I also want to be in charge of you in the future! Are you willing?” Mu Zi said.

‘This is bad. If I reply wrongly, I will be digging my  own grave.’ I bitterly smiled and replied, “Willing! I’m willing! I’m definitely willing!”

It had been a long time since I was this happy. After this ordeal, we had become close friends that could tell each other everything, and we lunched in a perfect and harmonious atmosphere.