e-booksonline Chapter 171 Winning the Championship
Chapter 171 Winning the Championship
On the day of the finals, the Central Martial Arts Arena began to bustle with activity from the early hours of the morning.
Before dawn, the stands were already nearly half full. Some were dozing under blankets, others were breathing out puffs of steam while sipping hot tea, and still others were leaning on the railings, peering towards the arena. By sunrise, the entire stadium was packed, with all 100,000 seats filled to capacity. People were also sitting in the aisles and on the steps, and even the corner of the last row on the top floor was filled with spectators standing on tiptoe. The leader of the Martial Arts Alliance sat in the center of the stage, flanked by the heads of various national delegations. The president of Xingwu University sat in the second row, talking to someone beside him, while the secretary-general next to him jotted down notes rapidly in a notebook. The giant screen overhead was lit up, showing a close-up of the arena floor—the bluestone slabs had been repaired and smoothed, and the cracks left by the battle a few days earlier were no longer visible.
Arthur stepped onto the stage first, his holy armor gleaming brightly in the sunlight, the paladin's emblem prominently displayed in the center of his breastplate. He gripped a knight's longsword in both hands, its blade a pure silver-white, as if forged from some special metal. Four knights followed closely behind, standing in a horizontal line, their shields held together, the edges of their armor gleaming coldly under the lamplight, resembling a slightly curved silver wall.
Lin Chen stood on the other side of the arena, his Xingwu University uniform neatly worn, the Star Sword sheathed, its hilt extending an inch beyond his right shoulder, resting precisely on his shoulder blade. Behind him, Su Muyue stood at the array's core, the array flag folded in her left hand, a faint golden light already gathering at her right fingertips. Leng Feng's blade lay askew at his side, the dark red patterns on its surface shimmering in the sunlight. Chu Fan crouched at the back of the group, his fingers pressed against the ground, his spiritual energy probing into the array nodes at the edge of the arena. Su Ling'er stood between them, the clasp of her medicine box undone, a nascent pill held between her fingers.
A few moments of silence fell over the arena. The referee raised his hand, and golden protective shields rose from the four corners of the ring, closing with a hum above their heads like a giant transparent lid. After confirming both sides were in position, the referee lowered his arm and calmly uttered a single word: "Begin."
Arthur charged forward first. His knight's longsword was raised high above his head, holy light condensing into a broad blade over ten feet long, slashing down with overwhelming force. He didn't test the waters, going all out from the start; the stone slabs of the arena sank slightly by half an inch as the sword struck. Leng Feng stepped forward, blocking the holy light. His battle sword was held horizontally overhead, dark red runes suddenly illuminating its blade, colliding head-on with the holy light and exploding into a blinding white light. Two thin cracks appeared in the stone slab beneath his feet in that instant; his knees didn't bend, and his back didn't hunch.
The other four knights advanced simultaneously, their shields closing to form a silver barrier, their steps perfectly synchronized. Su Muyue raised her hand, and three array flags flew from her palm, skimming the surface of the arena to the flank of the opponent's formation. The array patterns unfolded, golden lines spreading across the ground like water seeping into cracks in stone, silently binding the edge of the opponent's rightmost shield. Chu Fan's spiritual power followed closely, flowing along the golden lines, reinforcing several potential breaches. His fingers traced rapidly in the air, as if adjusting the direction of the array patterns. Su Ling'er stood within the array's range, unleashing several Explosive Flame Pills in succession, precisely striking the shield's joints. The impact of their explosions created a narrow gap between the shields, forcing the opposing knight to shift his weight.
Arthur was held back by Leng Feng, his attempts to dodge several times were forced back to his original position by the force of the blade. Lin Chen never drew his sword, but simply moved steadily along the outer edge of the arena, his gaze sweeping from Arthur's shoulder to the bottom joint of the shield formation, and then across the gaps between the shields. Those gaps were narrow, but every time Su Ling'er's alchemical fire fell or Su Muyue's array pattern was slightly adjusted, a shield would shift slightly by half an inch, and then the knight would correct it himself. These corrective actions formed a predictable rhythm; for example, after the next shift, the return to position would happen exactly at the moment the entire shield formation pressed forward, and at that moment, the edge of the second shield on the right would leave a gap of half a hand between it and the third shield on the left.
As the formation advanced to the middle of the arena, Leng Feng unleashed his eighth strike, clashing head-on with Arthur's holy light. To stabilize his sword, Arthur took a half-step forward with his left foot, causing a brief misalignment in the rhythm of the shield formation upon landing. Lin Chen moved at the exact moment that step landed. He activated his Star Step to its fullest extent, leaving a shallow white mark on the stone slab beneath his feet. His figure trailed a trail of silver afterimages as he slashed diagonally into the gap in the shield formation. All the star energy infused into his sword condensed at the tip, making the blade shine like a thoroughly heated silver ingot, precisely embedding itself into the gap. The silver sword light pierced through the spiritual energy connection layer at the edge of that shield, passing between the edge of the second shield on the right and the shoulder armor of the knight behind, tearing a clear crack within the formation. The four knights simultaneously took a step back, attempting to close the formation, but Su Muyue's three array flags had already spread new array patterns along the crack, like wedges preventing them from closing the formation. Leng Feng swept his blade across, forcing Arthur back. Chu Fan's spiritual power accelerated along the array patterns. Taking advantage of the situation, Su Ling'er added a Blazing Flame Pill to each side of the crack. Flames exploded between the shields, and the knights' formation completely broke apart.
Arthur was forced back two steps by Leng Feng, took a breath, glanced at the scattered formation, then at Lin Chen, lowered his sword tip, and withdrew from his stance, taking a step back. He sheathed his knight's sword, the holy light dimmed, and the emblem on his chest gradually went out.
"I lost." There was no anger in his tone, only a calm acceptance of the fact. "Your strength is undoubtedly number one."
The entire stadium fell silent for a moment, then erupted in thunderous cheers. Some people jumped up from their seats, some waved national flags frantically, some clapped, and some shouted names.