Chapter 376: Is This Second-Year?
Within the Spirit Realm Network, the teachers of the Civil Engineering Department were simultaneously watching multiple matches.
The ten elimination round matches were being held concurrently, displayed as ten windows floating before them.
By shifting their focus, they could observe the battlefields from various angles through live cameras.
As the battles began, the primary focus naturally fell on the two inheritors of Heavenly Kunlun Mountain-Moving Divine Power.
However, the elimination round hadn’t paired the senior Eight-Year Mo Shangjin against Tenth-Year Xuan Liangtian.
Consequently, both effortlessly crushed their opponents, offering little spectacle.
Instead, the clashes between the War Faction and Peace Faction proved far more intense and captivating.
Su Yanyang darted across the battlefield at breakneck speed, unleashing torrents of power that utterly shattered his opponent’s defenses.
“Su Yanyang has mastered six of the Seven Absolutes of Civil Engineering with remarkable skill and profound cultivation. He’s almost certain to make the top seven this time.”
“Once he fully masters the Seven Absolutes of Civil Engineering, he’ll be eligible for the Military Certificate, right? Our Civil Engineering Department will have another student wielding military-grade Power.”
Meanwhile, in another camera angle, a young woman transformed into a towering giant over ten meters tall, her three heads and six arms rampaging through the battlefield as if it were deserted.
Each of her six arms gripped a magical artifact, and every time she activated one, advertising slogans flashed across the screen.
“Xiao Yunji’s Transforming Bionic must be the latest model, right? It maintains a humanoid form for cultivation but shifts into combat mode when needed.”
“Six advertisements in a single competition? Her future prospects are limitless.”
“Xiao Yunji might even obtain her Military Certificate before Su Yanyang.”
As the teachers discussed the students’ performances in the various competitions, one suddenly exclaimed, “Wait, does this student know the Nine Heavens Cloud Void Force?”
This remark immediately drew everyone’s attention. They turned to the competition the teacher was watching and saw Zhang Yu unleashing the Nine Heavens Cloud Void Force, delivering ten strikes in an instant that sent Cong Na flying.
Lang Yougong’s eyes flickered with surprise. “Zhang Yu knows the Nine Heavens Cloud Void Force? Ten strikes in an instant… he must be at Level 10 already.”
Although the Nine Heavens Cloud-Sky Essence was already a former military-grade cultivation method, its performance was clearly far superior to… almost all expert-grade methods.
Years ago, witnessing this scene would have prompted the teachers to immediately apprehend Zhang Yu for unauthorized use of a military-grade cultivation technique.
But the next moment, as Zhang Yu unleashed another ten strikes in an instant, a teacher exclaimed in astonishment, “Has he already cultivated the Nine Heavens Cloud Void Force to Level 20?”
“He’s only a second-year student, yet he’s reached Level 20 with the Nine Heavens Cloud Void Force?”
“And that’s on top of cultivating the Battle Demon Life-Shattering Art to Level 20 as well…”
More teachers turned their attention to the competition between Zhang Yu and Ma Xuan.
Their astonishment deepened as they watched Zhang Yu charge into the enemy formation, single-handedly disrupting their lines. By leveraging the Nine Heavens Cloud Void Force’s ability to redirect force, he fought against multiple opponents simultaneously, holding his own against fourth year, fifth-year and sixth-year students.
Lang Yougong sighed, “What remarkable martial dao innate talent! He’s not merely using the Nine Heavens Cloud Void Force to redirect force; he’s also mimicking his opponents’ movements with Gang Qi, fully unleashing the power of their attacks.”
He marveled, “This is truly repaying them in kind, yet without infringing on any cultivation art copyrights. Brilliant!”
Tu Lishan added, “It’s not just martial dao innate talent; he’s fighting multiple opponents simultaneously.”
“Accurately mimicking another’s techniques in the heat of battle is already rare.”
“Mimicking multiple opponents’ movements makes it exponentially more difficult.”
“And while mimicking multiple opponents, he must also control the rhythm, combining these copied techniques with his own power to counter each opponent’s unique style. This requires immense mental fortitude and lightning-fast thinking.”
A teacher nodded slightly, reviewing Zhang Yu’s records. They confirmed he had indeed reached the Realm of Spirit-Flesh Unity and had purchased a mental cultivation technique to enhance his thinking speed.
This mental cultivation technique was naturally Zhang Yu’s method of concealing his Immeasurable Heart Inner Dharma Body, and its use at this moment was perfectly timed.
Listening to Lang Yougong and Tu Lishan’s analysis, and recalling that Zhang Yu was only a second-year student, the crowd felt they were witnessing the meteoric rise of another Heavenly Chosen from the Civil Engineering Department.
True Person Scorching Thunder thought to himself, “In another five or six years, he might become another Mo Shangjin.”
“It’s just a pity… he’s aligned with the War Faction.”
As Zhang Yu’s class director, True Person Scorching Thunder felt conflicted about Zhang Yu’s academic performance.
Zhang Yu’s excellent grades were undoubtedly a credit to his directorship.
Yet as a teacher aligned with the Peace Faction, he didn’t want Zhang Yu to become too powerful, especially surpassing Ji Yuanshu.
At that moment, Wei Huai, another teacher from the Peace Faction, coldly remarked, “His innate talent is indeed remarkable, but charging into enemy territory alone is reckless and impulsive.”
“The Civil Engineering Competition isn’t played like this.”
“This approach isn’t suited for Civil Engineering. He’d be better off transferring to the Security Department.”
“Just watch, Ma Xuan will take care of him soon.”
Ma Xuan was truly unwilling to endure the chaos any longer.
He knew he couldn’t let Zhang Yu continue to disrupt things.
“Cong Na, Ji Yuanshu, I’m withdrawing the Minor Threefold Combination to deal with Zhang Yu first.”
“Retreat separately and avoid getting entangled with Shi Huaiyu and the others.”
With that, Ma Xuan withdrew his magic power, causing the distant sandstorm to collapse with a thunderous roar.
As Ma Xuan’s power dissipated, the Minor Threefold Combination unleashed by Shi Huaiyu surged with renewed force, accelerating its advance toward Ma Xuan’s construction site, engulfing everything in swirling sand.
But Ma Xuan ignored the approaching onslaught. He intended to eliminate Zhang Yu completely before Shi Huaiyu’s forces could arrive.
“Zhang Yu, I admit I was wrong. I underestimated you.”
“I shouldn’t have tried to suppress Shi Huaiyu while simultaneously dealing with you.”
“If I had abandoned suppressing Shi Huaiyu the moment you arrived and focused solely on suppressing you… none of this would have happened.”
As he spoke, Ma Xuan reactivated the Minor Threefold Combination. With a stomp of his foot, the ground beneath him trembled violently.
“Zhang Yu, did you really think I hadn’t considered a way to deal with you?”
With a sudden, violent tear of his hands, the earth before him seemed to be ripped apart by invisible, colossal hands, revealing a deep chasm.
In an instant, the combatants who had been locked in battle plummeted downward.
But layers of mud and sand quickly solidified into stepping stones beneath Bu Ziran and the others’ feet, allowing them to leap out of the pit.
Zhang Yu unleashed a palm strike, sending waves of Gang Qi crashing against the nearby rock wall. Just as he was about to use the recoil to climb out… a massive shadow enveloped him.
A colossal hand composed of mud and sand, as heavy as Mount Tai, slammed down upon him with crushing force.
Under this overwhelming display of raw power, Zhang Yu grunted and was smashed back down into the depths with a deafening crash.
Ma Xuan clapped his hands together, sealing the chasm. The earth abruptly returned to its original state, but Zhang Yu’s figure had vanished without a trace.
Deep underground, Zhang Yu felt the cramped space around him and his gaze sharpened. “Do you think you can keep me suppressed here forever?”
After temporarily suppressing Zhang Yu with his full power, Ma Xuan continued to direct the battle.
Seeing the tsunami of sand and dust controlled by Shi Huaiyu bearing down on them, Ma Xuan unleashed a palm strike, sending a massive wave of sand and dust surging forward to meet it.
But in the next instant, Che Yufei and Shi Yunxiang, flanking left and right, erupted with surging Gang Qi. Like colossal hammers and drills, they tore through the airborne sand and dust.
Ma Xuan thought grimly, “Was the distance too short? Did I fail to gather enough momentum?”
“Hmph, Zhang Yu’s stalling still gave them the opening to close in.”
Just then, Cong Na and Yang Yan charged forward, intercepting Che Yufei and Shi Yunxiang.
As the clash erupted, Che Yufei and Shi Yunxiang winced in pain. “These guys’ Bionics are tough as hell. This fight’s gonna cost a fortune in repairs.”
At that moment, Tian Yang activated the Great Wind Heavenly Dust Palm.
Tian Yang thought to himself, “This cultivation art, derived from construction site dust pollution, dust control techniques, and dust suppression methods, is perfectly suited for this environment.”
Under Tian Yang’s cover, the group surged forward again.
But in the next instant, thunderlight erupted from behind them.
A swirling mass of Thunderfire Gang Qi, resembling a cannonball, shot forth from hundreds of meters away, hurtling directly toward Che Yufei.
The attacker was Ji Yuanshu.
Surrounded by a whirlwind, he moved at supersonic speeds behind Shi Huaiyu’s group.
His Bionic arms unfolded, revealing external meridians that connected to form a rail system. This system heated the Gang Qi while Electromagnetic Magic Power accelerated it, creating Gang Qi cannons with a range exceeding 500 meters.
With relentless barrages, Thunderfire Gang Qi projectiles rained down on Shi Huaiyu’s group from behind.
Locked onto by the Sixth-Generation Soul-Chasing Eye, Ji Yuanshu’s Gang Qi cannons fired instantly whenever an enemy’s silhouette was exposed, seizing every opportunity.
Connected to Ma Xuan’s network, Ji Yuanshu’s Bionic Eye continuously received target designations marked by Ma Xuan.
Often, as Ji Yuanshu fired a Thunderfire Gang Qi cannon, Ma Xuan would manipulate the surrounding sand and dust to scatter, revealing the hidden target and making Ji Yuanshu’s attacks even more unpredictable.
With a thunderous roar, another Thunderfire Gang Qi blast was shattered by Xiao Qingxuan’s Dragon-Shaped Gang Qi.
Beside him, Shi Huaiyu’s expression darkened as she glared fiercely at Ji Yuanshu in the distance.
Ji Yuanshu’s constant flanking maneuvers and relentless artillery fire from every angle kept them perpetually under attack from both sides.
Whenever they tried to eliminate Ji Yuanshu first, he would manipulate the storm, retreating and repositioning at three times the speed of sound.
Throughout this process, Ji Yuanshu continued to bombard the battlefield.
Combined with Ma Xuan’s Minor Threefold Combination for battlefield control…
This was precisely why Shi Huaiyu and her group had been stalled.
“He’s more annoying than a fly,” Shi Huaiyu muttered.
She hadn’t expected that when they threw Zhang Yu at their enemies to disgust them, they would be equally disgusted by Ji Yuanshu, whom their opponents had sent in return.
Watching this unfold, Ma Xuan thought to himself, “At the same Cultivation Realm, cultivation and combat prowess aren’t perfectly equivalent.”
“Especially as the environment and battlefield conditions change, the one who determines victory isn’t always the strongest person present.”
“Ji Yuanshu’s perfected long-range attack mode will secure our victory in this battle.”
“Keep firing, Ji Yuanshu. I’ll ensure your destructive power is fully unleashed.”
As Shi Huaiyu activated the Minor Threefold Combination and lunged toward Ji Yuanshu, Ma Xuan immediately coordinated with his teammates to attack Che Yufei and the others.
While Shi Huaiyu maintained the frontal assault with the Minor Threefold Combination, Ji Yuanshu resumed his long-range bombardment.
Ma Xuan chuckled inwardly. “No matter which strategy you choose, you’ll only expose your weaknesses.”
Just then, Ma Xuan’s brow furrowed slightly.
He felt the ground beneath his feet tremble violently.