"Hahaha, Brother Fan, how do you even know that?"Xiao Wu was very surprised upon hearing Zhang Fan's words. She hadn't expected him to even know that Bibi Dong was Yu Xiaogang's first love.
Meanwhile, Liu Erlong, watching Yu Xiaogang, showed no expression at all.
After all, she had long since lost all feelings for Yu Xiaogang.
So, whether he lived or died didn't matter to her anymore.
But seeing Yu Xiaogang in Tang San's arms—how the two looked together—she couldn't bear to look. She turned and walked away.
"These two... are truly a match made in heaven!"Xiao Wu burst into laughter.
After that, they all left.
…
Later that evening, they ate dinner together.
Liu Erlong sat at the head of the table as the dean. She looked up and swept her gaze across everyone."The finals are about to begin. I think you've probably forgotten the format I once explained. So let me repeat it. There are thirty-three teams participating in the finals. Among them, three are seeded teams—sent by the two great empires and the Spirit Hall—and they are your greatest threats."
"The finals consist of five rounds.The duration is much shorter than the qualifiers and public matches,but the competition is more intense.Each round will be followed by a rest day.Before the final five rounds, there will be a three-day adjustment period.In the first round, the three seeded teams get a bye.The remaining thirty teams compete for fifteen spots to advance.Losers will be eliminated.This brutal elimination system makes every team fight desperately.By then, all hidden powers will be revealed—give them a surprise."
Liu Erlong took a sip of soup and continued:
"According to the rules, in the second round, the top teams from each empire's district get a bye—we are one of them.So, we won't need to fight in the second round.At that time, sixteen teams will battle for eight spots in the third round.Including the two teams with byes, that will be ten teams total.The second-place teams from the preliminaries get a bye in the third round.The remaining eight teams will compete to determine four more, joining the others in the fourth round.There are no byes in the fourth round.Only the top two teams from the preliminaries get those advantages.The fifth and final round consists of the last three teams.They will fight in a round-robin style with seven participants each to determine the team with the strongest individual power.The two losing teams will then fight in a team battle.The winner of that will challenge the individual match winner to determine the final champion."
"Got it!"Everyone nodded. In any case, they didn't really need to remember—just show up when called.
"No matter who the opponent is in the first round, everything will be arranged by Zhang Fan! Lanxing Academy will win for sure!"
Liu Erlong raised her glass of wine.
Everyone else raised their drinks as well.
"You're very likely to face an academy from the Star Luo Empire in the first round."
Liu Erlong thought for a moment and added,"But with your strength, victory should be easy."
"Mm!"Zhang Fan nodded.
Yu Xiaogang didn't attend the dinner—instead, he was preparing to flee. He snuck out through the back of the restaurant, hopped onto a carriage, and sped away.
He drank while driving the carriage out of Spirit City, galloping wildly, not even knowing where he was going.
Suddenly, he crashed into a cliff.
As he fell, a tree broke his fall.
When he woke up, he found himself in a cave.
Inside the cave was a statue that looked both male and female. In front of the statue was a treasure chest.
"Ding! Plot-altering mission triggered."
[Yu Xiaogang opens the treasure chest in front of the statue and sees a secret manual called 'Taiyin'.] Four words could be changed.
Zhang Fan saw the system pop-up and paused for a few seconds—Yu Xiaogang was really stumbling into a fortuitous encounter. With a flick of his divine sense, he realized Yu Xiaogang was no longer in the restaurant. Looks like after getting emotionally wrecked by Bibi Dong, and falling into rock bottom, he decided to run away.
Then he fell off a cliff and got a lucky break?
Was this a karmic rebound after all his misfortune?
Sometimes, when your luck hits rock bottom… that's when fortune comes?
With a mischievous grin, Zhang Fan immediately changed the words "Taiyin" to "Sunflower Manual".
"Ding! Plot modification successful. Minor deviation. Reward: 40 plot points."
Yu Xiaogang opened the treasure chest in front of the statue and saw a secret manual titled "Sunflower Manual".
He was stunned."Why would such a secret manual be here?"
He opened it and read the first line:"To master this divine skill, you must first…"
"Uh…"When Yu Xiaogang saw the words "self-castrate," he was petrified on the spot.Wasn't this the martial art he had invented himself?
Except he didn't realize this was a weakened version of the Sunflower Manual.
"Hahaha… I didn't die falling off a cliff—instead, I was gifted with a divine skill from the heavens!"
Yu Xiaogang laughed madly, thrilled as he held the Sunflower Manual like a priceless treasure, reading it from every angle.Then, he sat down cross-legged and began to cultivate.
(Latest novels at 69 Book Bar – First Release!)
The night was misty, life was like a dream.
Three days later.
Early in the morning, all participating students were led to the competition grounds by staff from Spirit Hall.
Each academy had its own designated rest area. These areas were built around the arena. On the side opposite the Pope's Palace was the VIP section, where representatives of the two empires and members of Spirit Hall sat to spectate.
As soon as they arrived and hadn't yet settled in, Liu Erlong was called to draw lots.
The first-round draw was crucial—getting a weak opponent would be a huge advantage.
Especially since Lanxing Academy had a bye in the second round. If they won the first match easily, they could rest until the third round.
That would be their real trial.
Liu Erlong soon returned, wearing a smile."One bad news and one good news. Which do you want to hear first?"
"The bad news."Dai Mubai answered.
"The bad news is… your opponent is Blazing Fire Academy."Liu Erlong said with a mysterious tone.
"And the good news?"
Zhang Fan asked curiously. This time, Blazing Fire Academy wasn't going to merge with God Wind Academy, nor would they give up the finals.
"The good news is… they've forfeited the match. They won't be fighting us!"Liu Erlong replied with a smile.
"Uh… looks like they were scared by our Brother Fan and decided to quit right away!"Xiao Wu praised Zhang Fan.
"Mm, that's likely."Ning Rongrong nodded.
"Then let's start watching the elimination matches."Liu Erlong looked toward Zhang Fan and the others.
"Sure!"Ning Rongrong and the others nodded.
Xiao Wu joined them nearby.
Zhu Zhuqing followed closely behind Zhang Fan.
The first match wasn't between strong opponents, so Lanxing Team relaxed and chatted in their rest area.
Meanwhile, after three days of cultivating the Sunflower Manual, Yu Xiaogang felt great—he had broken through from level 29 to level 30.
He was thrilled.
He also noticed that his skin had become fairer and smoother.
He hadn't expected the manual to improve his complexion too.
His hair had even grown longer.
This caught him off guard.
He felt completely full of power.
"Whoosh…"He climbed back up from the cliff. It wasn't that tall, and with his level-30 soul power, he climbed up easily.
He returned to Spirit City, took a bath, changed his clothes, and wore a red robe before heading to the competition area.
He now found himself liking the color red.
(End of Chapter)