Chapter 68: A Visit in the Night
On the arena, the battle was still ongoing.
Li Yuan, holding his long spear, was continuously attacking Wu Luo, who wielded a sword and shield.
"Bang!" With a fierce sweep of his spear, Li Yuan forced Wu Luo to stumble back.
"Li Yuan, it was my mistake. I didn't recognize you at first and shouldn't have attacked you," Wu Luo said hurriedly while desperately defending himself. "But if you keep fighting me, others will take advantage."
As a master of both sword and shield techniques, having reached the peak of the third level, Wu Luo could still withstand a few moves from Li Yuan when giving his all.
"Take advantage?" Li Yuan's icy gaze swept around. The other participants, who had already retreated far away, panicked and withdrew even further.
They knew that in the process of chasing Wu Luo, Li Yuan had already killed five participants with ease.
Such dominance and strength—who wouldn't be afraid?
Moreover, for the other participating students, Wu Luo was also a formidable opponent. If Li Yuan took him down, their chances of making it into the top ten would increase.
"In this match!"
"No one is qualified to take advantage." Li Yuan's voice was cold. "Die!"
Did he have a grudge against Wu Luo? No!
But he needed an opponent, so why not Wu Luo?
To Li Yuan, the other participants were not challenging enough.
In contrast, Wu Luo was the strongest, capable of exchanging a few blows with him.
"Slash!"
"Boom! Boom!" Li Yuan thrust his spear again, the spear shadows shifting as each strike was fierce and violent.
"Damn it! This Li Yuan is a madman," Wu Luo, who was doing his utmost to defend, was almost spitting blood in frustration. Given his strength, breaking into the top ten of the cage brawl should have been a piece of cake.
"Clang!" The two clashed like lightning. Li Yuan's attacks were swift and relentless, like waves, one strike following another.
Wu Luo's defense was flawless, but each clash left his arms numb, making it increasingly difficult to fend off the attacks. After twelve consecutive strikes, Li Yuan seized an opportunity and pierced his throat directly.
Blood splattered.
"Couldn't hold on... Is this the skill of the fourth grade?" Wu Luo's body dissolved into nothingness.
"My attack is much weaker compared to Wu Dongdong and Tian Dazhuang, especially Tian Dazhuang," Li Yuan thought as he watched Wu Luo's body disappear. "Tian Dazhuang's broadsword is highly offensive, and his martial skills are indeed much higher than mine, probably around 20% of the fourth level."
The opponent had broken through at least three months earlier, so it was normal for his skills to be more advanced.
Moreover, Li Yuan excelled in defense rather than offense.
Even so, if he were to fight Tian Dazhuang in the arena, Li Yuan believed he still had a chance to win.
The gap between the peak of the third level and the fourth level was immense.
But the gap between 2% and 20% of the fourth grade? Both had achieved a unity of mind, body, and weapon; the difference was only in the degree of power exertion, a gap that wasn't insurmountable.
"Kill!"
Li Yuan wielded his spear and continued to attack others.
In the entire arena, few could withstand even two strikes from him, each falling one by one.
Surround and attack? Even if they could coordinate, it wouldn't necessarily be enough to kill Li Yuan.
The final showdown was between Li Yuan and another student, Xiong Xiaocheng, who had been preselected by the five major schools as an A-level candidate.
In fact, Li Yuan had deliberately avoided him, giving Xiong Xiaocheng the opportunity to hunt down other participants.
"I'm already second."
"First place? This Li Yuan is too fierce; my chances of winning are slim." Xiong Xiaocheng stared at Li Yuan, feeling as if a tiger was watching him.
He was already sweating profusely.
"To win, there's only one chance."
"Attack wildly, no matter the cost, and maybe I'll win." Xiong Xiaocheng made up his mind. He also wielded a long spear.
Since he was already second, he might as well give it his all.
"Whoosh!"
Xiong Xiaocheng lunged at Li Yuan, his spear thrusting fiercely and violently.
"Gold-Splitting Spear Technique?" From the starting posture and force application, Li Yuan instantly discerned, "He's an expert in the 'Gold-Splitting Spear Technique'?"
Like the Starry Spear Technique, which perfectly complemented the 'Rock Solid Training Method,' the 'Gold-Splitting Spear Technique,' one of the seven high-level training methods, also had its matching second-level spear technique.
Li Yuan had often fought on the Starry Sky Combat Network and had seen many experts, so he could recognize some techniques.
Especially since he had encountered a Meteor level expert who used the 'Gold-Splitting Spear Technique,' a fierce and wild technique that had left a deep impression on Li Yuan. He had reviewed the footage multiple times.
"Boom!"
"Boom! Boom!" Li Yuan, in a killing frenzy, swung his spear with a whistling sound, attacking with attack. After just three clashes, he disarmed Xiong Xiaocheng, sending his spear flying.
"Slash!"
The spear tip swept across, a head flew, and the body dissolved into nothingness.
In the entire arena, only Li Yuan remained.
...
"What a steady spear. He must be good at defense," Tian Dazhuang on the spectator stand watched Li Yuan with fiery eyes. "Another fourth-grade expert!"
"I've been too narrow-minded. I can't take Dragon Senior's words at face value."
"Just in Jiangbei Province, with me included, there are already four fourth-grade experts. Are there any more hidden ones?"
"How many are there nationwide? Globally?" Tian Dazhuang pondered, "Li Yuan?"
"I'll remember you."
...
Whoosh!
Li Yuan's figure appeared at his seat, immediately attracting the attention of over a hundred students around him, all looking at him.
"Li Yuan?"
"From Jiang City? There's a Wu Dongdong and a Li Yuan in Jiang City; no wonder it's the provincial capital."
"But I hadn't heard any teacher mention his name before."
"Maybe he was hiding his strength during the early exams?" Many students whispered among themselves.
In the first three rounds, the three fourth-grade experts who had erupted, Tian Dazhuang, Wang Yu, and Wu Dongdong, were all well-known.
Many didn't know their faces but had heard their names.
Only Li Yuan was different.
With a total martial score ranking only over two hundred in Jiang City, he was indeed inconspicuous.
After this battle, Li Yuan was destined to rise in fame among the students participating in the invitation event.
"Li Yuan, awesome." Gu Qianghan turned around, excitedly shouting.
Li Yuan smiled.
"Li Yuan, impressive. I underestimated you before." Wu Dongdong looked at Li Yuan as if discovering a treasure, curiously saying, "You are a fourth-grade spear master; I'm also a fourth-grade spear master. We must spar sometime."
"Sure," Li Yuan agreed readily.
But Lin Lanyue only smiled slightly, "Congratulations on taking first place. Fifty thousand Blue Star coins—you'll have to treat us later."
"Sorry," Li Yuan smiled, "I didn't tell you before. I just broke through my spear technique yesterday."
"Oh?"
"Just broke through yesterday?" Lin Lanyue realized, "So, your collapse in the martial arts room yesterday was related to your breakthrough in spear technique?"
"Yes," Li Yuan nodded.
...
The fifth and sixth rounds of the cage brawl continued.
However, no more super experts like Li Yuan or Tian Dazhuang appeared.
In a sense, this made these two rounds more exciting, giving most participants more room to showcase their skills.
With all six rounds concluded, of the ten students from No. 1 High School in Guan Mountain District, only Li Yuan and Lin Lanyue secured the first and second places.
The other eight students didn't make it into the top fifty.
This made Dong Haifeng and the others realize the gap.
Perhaps in the overall martial scores, some of them slightly surpassed Li Yuan during the early exams due to 'spirituality bonus.'
But in real strength, the gap was vast.
In the "Jiangbei Martial Arts University Invitation Event," representing the highest level of high school students in Jiangbei Province, Li Yuan remained the most dazzling.
While they had become ordinary members among thousands of elite students.
...
"I announce, the cage brawl is over." The black-clad man's voice remained resonant, "The sixty students who received rewards can check their accounts."
"All Blue Star coin rewards have been distributed."
The end of this event also marked the conclusion of the first day's itinerary for the invitation event.
...
Virtual Network, Personal Space.
"Fifty thousand Blue Star coins, credited." Li Yuan had already received the bank account notification, smiling, "Jiangbei Martial Arts University's efficiency is indeed high."
The most timely feedback is the best motivator.
...
Exiting the virtual network pod, Li Yuan chatted with Gu Qianghan while taking a can of cola from the fridge.
"Beep~"
"Beep~" The doorbell rang at the entrance of the martial arts room.
"So late, who could it be?" Gu Qianghan looked puzzled, "Who is it!"
"I'll get it," Li Yuan smiled, going to open the door.
At the door stood a bald man and an elder in a black robe.
"Who are you?" Li Yuan felt a bit hesitant; he could sense the aura emanating from the two.
Moreover, Li Yuan instinctively probed and found that both individuals' life levels exceeded the detection limit.
This indicated that both were at least source warriors.
"Student Li Yuan."
"I am Vice Dean Li of the Sixth Institute of Kunlun Martial Arts University," the bald man smiled slightly. "I have come to formally extend an S-level special training invitation to you on behalf of Kunlun Martial Arts University."
"Can we talk privately?"