Chapter 47: Contention

Within the arena, drones hummed, transporting box after box of boxed lunches.

The clock had struck noon, lunchtime, after the first two trials of the Dharma Competition. Despite their meals, the contestants continued to dissect the highlights of the previous rounds, their gazes drawn to the score rankings on the massive screen.

The name that once clung to fourth place had vanished, leaving the top ten spots dominated by the renowned White Dragon High, Azure Cloud High, and Scarlet Pagoda High.

As the initial contests concluded, the screen now displayed the cumulative scores, reflecting the true overall standings. Only those who cracked the top ten in this final tally would earn prize money, claim true distinction, and receive the recognition universities craved – advantages in college interviews.

The name that had dared to pierce the veil, momentarily seizing fourth, now seemed a mere phantom, gone as if it never existed. Like a fledgling attempting to soar beyond its limits, it had been swatted back to earth by the overwhelming might of the three elite schools.

Teacher Yan sighed inwardly, "Zhang Yu's initial score in the flying sword competition was simply too low, holding him back. His overall score just couldn't crack the top ten."

But what could be done?

The wealthy possessed an undeniable advantage in flying sword mastery. Teacher Yan couldn't fault Zhang Yu's family for failing to provide him with a magic-imbued flying sword.

"It's just bad luck, I suppose, running into sponsorship from the flying sword manufacturers," she mused.

Nearby, Zhang Yu eyed his boxed lunch with a grimace, "Eighty for this slop? Scarlet Pagoda High is highway robbery!"

As he grumbled, another boxed lunch was thrust before him.

Zhang Yu looked up to see Teacher Yan offering him a second meal.

Teacher Yan smiled warmly, "You've been working hard all morning, I knew you must be hungry. Here, have this one too."

Bai Zhenzhen, watching the scene, secretly rolled her eyes, "Am *I* not hungry? Yu only needed a minute and a half to break down that specialized Dharma, while I had to endure over eight minutes. I'm exhausted."

Teacher Yan beamed at Zhang Yu as he devoured his second meal. Such a large appetite! Clearly, this was a promising student.

Bai Zhenzhen, Qian Shen, and He Dayou might also have big appetites, but without a chance at the ranking in this Dharma contest, weren't they merely gluttonous simpletons?

Teacher Yan encouraged, "You performed admirably this morning. Just do your best this afternoon, and don't put too much pressure on yourself."

Though she secretly hoped he'd summon every ounce of focus to fight for every last point, she knew that Dharma manipulation required a calm mind. Stress could easily backfire.

Anxious that his earlier success in the second trial might create undue pressure, she offered comfort to help him relax for the final round.

She mentally calculated his score, "Eighty points in the first round, ninety-three in the second, totaling one hundred and seventy-three."

Glancing at the scoreboard, she scanned from the leader's one hundred and ninety-five points down to tenth place's one hundred and seventy-six.

"If Zhang Yu can gain just four points in the next round, he can break into the top ten."

Four points might seem insignificant, but in such a high-stakes, competitive Dharma competition, she knew that every point became increasingly difficult to earn.

Especially with the thirty prodigies from the three elite schools vying for those top ten positions.

The thought of those four points made Teacher Yan tense. "It all depends on what this final round entails."

Lunchtime flew by, and the final trial of the Dharma Competition began.

The host strode onstage, announcing, "For martial arts and Daoist techniques, come to Immortal Rhyme! Three hundred laboratories, one hundred cultivation masters, dedicated to immortal education for a century! Thank you to Immortal Rhyme Group for sponsoring this Dharma Competition..."

Immortal Rhyme Group – Zhang Yu remembered the company was affiliated with the Myriad Dharma Sect, the large corporation where he'd participated in the cultivation work-study, earning the Stellar Qi Gathering Method.

He also recalled meeting the Sunny Mountain City director of Immortal Rhyme Group at Li Xuelian's art exhibition.

A moment later, a complex diagram of Dharma circulation was distributed to each participant.

This was the content of the final trial: to transform their Dharma power into a specialized Dharma, following the route indicated in the diagram.

Meanwhile, cameras focused on the contestants, judging their conditions and recording the order in which they completed the task.

As the timer began, students immediately began to circulate their Dharma power along the diagram's route.

Zhang Yu frowned at the diagram.

"This… seems to be a specialized Dharma used for combat."

His command over Dharma power was exceptional, thanks to the tenth level of the Stellar Qi Gathering Method.

However, the route on the diagram was vastly different from the Stellar Qi Gathering Method's circulation.

If the Stellar Qi Gathering Method was an inward cycle, improving oneself, then this route was designed to project Dharma power outward for combat.

He sensed that the diagram's complexity was less than the Stellar Qi Gathering Method.

But its circulation path and the techniques it contained were foreign to Zhang Yu's familiar method.

Especially a certain vibration refinement technique, unlike anything he had encountered.

"This Dharma Competition is going far beyond the curriculum."

And, worst of all…

Zhang Yu glanced at the Feather Script beside him and saw no changes.

"It's not a cultivation art?"

"Then I'll just have to practice forcibly and see what happens."

Zhang Yu gathered the Dharma power in his dantian and cautiously began circulating it according to the diagram.

At the same time…

At the Azure Cloud High location…

Lian Tianji watched Le Mulan not far away, noting her confident expression, and thought, "The venerable top of the year will surely achieve remarkable results. My role is to not hold her back and to bolster our school's overall score..."

Le Mulan examined the diagram and tilted her head. "I think I've seen something similar before."

"Let me think… Is this the protective Qi of martial arts cultivation?"

She circulated her Dharma power and, indeed, began to transform it into the specialized Dharma depicted in the diagram with practiced ease.The protective ki aura, derived from mana, is considered a special type of mana belonging to the martial arts branch within the immortal cultivation system established by the Ten Great Sects.

Le Mulan recalled that converting mana into a protective ki aura requires the step of mana oscillation, and the stronger the quality of the protective ki aura, the more oscillations are needed.

"Each mana oscillation will make the quality of the ki aura formed from mana higher, but also more difficult to control."

"According to the instructions in this diagram, it should require 7 mana oscillations, and then circulate according to the route..."

Suddenly, her brow furrowed slightly.

Listening to the various muffled groans and cries of pain coming from not far away, she felt a sense of disturbance.

Some students were injured while dissolving mana in the previous competition, and their injuries had not yet healed. The moment they began to circulate their energy, it aggravated their wounds.

"These ordinary high school students, can't they afford better healing medicine?"

"Even if they can't afford better healing medicine, can't they even buy better quality painkillers?"

Thinking of this, Le Mulan suddenly realized that these poor people from ordinary high schools might really not be able to afford expensive painkillers.

This is the sound of poverty.

"It's affecting my exam."

But Le Mulan knew that the power of money could isolate the sound of poverty.

With a wave of her hand, she placed a pair of soundproof earmuffs worth tens of thousands on her head. Feeling the finally quiet environment, a smile appeared on the corner of her mouth as she continued to convert her mana.

...

On the other side, at White Dragon High School, Song Hailong stared at the energy circulation diagram in his hand. At the same time, his mana was already circulating naturally, as if moving according to his thoughts, gradually approaching the instructions of the diagram.

Practicing mana circulation with the Heavenly Spirit Root for a long time made him so adept at manipulating mana now that he had removed the Heavenly Spirit Root.

He had practiced many similar problems before, making his actions more skilled and his speed even faster.

Boom!

A mass of mana in his dantian suddenly dispersed into a cloud in a violent oscillation, and then Song Hailong slowly gathered it together again.

"First mana oscillation, completed!"

"Easy! Easy! Easy! Too easy!"

My parents have the most excellent genes after being carefully selected.

I have been staying up late since I was 5 years old.

Now at 16, for the past 11 years, I have been the best performer, with the highest scores, and the strongest physique among my peers in the Song family! I am also the only one among my peers who has never committed suicide, never hated studying, and never been depressed! I am the Song family's ace son!

"You wastes in this arena, how dare you compete with me!"

At this moment, he was wholeheartedly focused, without any distractions or diversions. He only wanted to quickly master the method in the diagram and trample all the top students from the other two prestigious schools under his feet.

...

At the same time, Xiong Bufan from Red Pagoda High School was lying in front of the energy circulation diagram. His eyes were tightly closed, and his furry tail twitched, as if he had reached a critical moment in his energy circulation.

The competition coach next to him watched this scene and thought, "When Bufan and the others were in the breeding base, they were injected with drugs from the womb. Before entering high school, his physique was the most excellent."

"When the school brought him from the protection zone's breeding base, the toughness of his meridians was already more than ten times that of ordinary students. No matter how much he tossed around with his energy circulation, he wouldn't have to worry about getting injured."

"Since he entered the school, I have had him constantly practice the speed of mana circulation."

"He has also practiced the protective ki aura many times."

"He will definitely be the first to master this energy circulation diagram."

"Well, I should indeed have the principal recruit more monsters... I mean... more demonkin students."

"One is not enough? I think it's no problem to get four more for the competition team. Those leaders who insist on a purely human team are too conservative. I heard that the neighboring city already has a pure monster... a pure demonkin team."

...

Zhang Yu had to admit that without relevant training and prior preparation, it seemed difficult to win a place in this round.

Competition is not just a contest of talent and quality, but also a contest of financial resources, power, and background.

Damn it!

Is my competition journey coming to an end?

Zhang Yu! Are you going to be defeated by money?

...

Not far away, Teacher Yan looked at Zhang Yu's troubled expression and sighed inwardly.

Then she glanced at the other Songyang High School students around her, watching them either sweating profusely, or looking pale, or looking like they were desperate to defecate. Teacher Yan shook her head helplessly.

The students of Songyang High School were already inferior to the top students of the three prestigious schools. After failing to achieve competitive results in the Magic Competition for a long time, the school simply stopped investing in this area.

Without the school's investment, the Magic Competition results became increasingly poor, and the school naturally became even less willing to invest. This was a vicious cycle.

And Teacher Yan understood that without the school's strong support and lacking relevant teaching and practice, the two sides were not even on the same starting line.

Just then, a student suddenly raised his hand and said, "I need to go to the toilet."

Teacher Yan cursed inwardly, so you really want to go.

"Go quickly!"

Just then, Teacher Yan suddenly heard the sound of bones and muscles vibrating beside her.

She turned her head and found that it was actually Bai Zhenzhen practicing martial arts.

Has she already given up on herself? This is a competition of mana circulation, what are you doing practicing martial arts?

Zhang Yu was also attracted by the sound of martial arts, and after a glance, he sighed inwardly, "Alas, A-Zhen has been driven crazy."

Hmm?

Suddenly, Zhang Yu felt that the martial arts Bai Zhenzhen was practicing were inexplicably familiar, as if they could be combined with something.

This set of martial arts is very simple, with only six moves back and forth. After watching it quickly, he suddenly realized.

This set of martial arts seems to be able to cooperate with the energy circulation diagram?

Looking at the 0th level of Limitless Cloud Hand that appeared on the feather book, Zhang Yu couldn't wait to pick up Bai Zhenzhen and spin her around.

"A-Zhen!"

"You are a saint!"

"The savior of Songyang High School!"

The energy circulation diagram is a method of mana circulation, while Bai Zhenzhen is performing external martial arts moves.

The combination of the two is a complete combat martial art - Limitless Cloud Hand.

This is an advanced-level martial arts technique.This technique emphasizes inner cultivation over external forms, its essence lying in the application of magical force, in how to transform mana into a protective Qi shield. The six external techniques are less true forms and more examples of application.

This time, Fa Sai had extracted the internal energy circulation diagrams to use as the examination question.

For ordinary people, the presence or absence of external techniques wouldn't affect their learning of the protective Qi shield transformation method.

But for Zhang Yu, whether it was a complete technique or not, whether it could be recorded in the Feather Tome... that was a world of difference.

Zhang Yu didn't know how Bai Zhenzhen had comprehended the external techniques. He could only seize the moment, immediately switch the Feather Tome's specialization to the Limitless Cloud Hand, and begin practicing.

Limitless Cloud Hand Level 0 (0/1, 15.4/5 mana)

Once!

He just needed to practice it once! Even if it was riddled with errors, even if the practice was completely chaotic, he could thoroughly master this Limitless Cloud Hand!