https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-400-A-Toxic-Flame-The-Legendary-Path-/12956013/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-402-A-Gathering-of-Powerhouses-The-Elimination-Round-Begins-/12957280/
Chapter 401: The Conclusion of the First Round! The Mysterious Ye Zhou!
Chapter 401: The Conclusion of the First Round! The Mysterious Ye Zhou!
"Winner: Zhou Yuan from Minyue Province, current record: one win and one loss!"
The chubby boy from Minyue Province exhaled a sigh of relief as he faced an opponent whose strength was not to be underestimated.
However, compared to him, they were still a step behind.
At this moment, having won one battle, he had barely managed to relieve some of the pressure from his previous loss to Grandmaster Su, the beast trainer."
Zhou Yuan quickly took out his academy watch and searched for Grandmaster Su's records and the recent battle footage, causing his heart to skip a beat.
Poison-type beasts, suppressed by Necromancer and Elemental pets, were still feared by many due to their insidious nature and the damage they inflicted on pet beasts.
This was the reason why many dreaded them, despite their ability to be countered.
Even with detoxification, unless the pet beast had an exceptionally strong physical body, the damage to their strength would be significant.
Fang Xu, having faced such a poison, would likely suffer in the upcoming battles.
Even if the poison was removed, the very nature of poison-type abilities was despised by many, as it lingered like an incurable disease.
Zhou Yuan shook his head and scoffed.
Facing such a formidable opponent and still attempting to fight was foolish! The wise choice would be to preserve one's strength for the remaining battles.
Indeed, this was the case.
It was just one battle!
News of Su Ping's second pet beast battle in the second round spread like wildfire among the countless participants and spectators.
The green wolf, whose brilliance was once overshadowed by the paper man on Dream Island, now revealed its terrifying venomous fangs.
The endless mist on the island concealed the poison-type's abilities, making them almost imperceptible.
Many knew of this poison wolf's strength, understanding it to be exceptionally powerful, even capable of killing several Monarch-level ferocious beasts. However, no one had witnessed its abilities firsthand.
But now, they understood.
This terrifying poison, nearly impossible to defend against!
Even through rumors, it was known that Grandmaster Su had only two contracted battle pets.
But neither of them was easy to contend with.
Breaking through the protection of the poison wolf to disrupt the paper man's accumulated power was an arduous task! Even if successful, the time wasted would render the previous efforts meaningless, as the paper man could easily counter with its sword technique.
And failure would result in consequences, as Fang Xu had experienced.
Even with Su Ping's detoxification, the combat strength of the flame pets would still be significantly diminished in subsequent battles.
Having lost several consecutive pet beast battles, Su Ping's first round was surprisingly effortless, beyond his expectations.
The random pairings in this first round ensured that the top-ranked participants from the provincial exams were less likely to face each other.
For instance, the top-ranked participants from each province rarely encountered each other in these matches.
This first round was a true battle royale, a test of strength and strategy.
The odds of advancing were slim, with a maximum of a 20% chance according to basic probability calculations.
In reality, the chances were even lower, further reducing the number of participants who could barely qualify for the second round.
This was a grand battle, a chaotic clash of skills and strategies from countless participants across Dragon Country.
Even Su Ping was impressed by the diverse abilities on display.
Those who made it this far were truly exceptional.
Of course, the main focus of his attention was on a few individuals.
Qin Xiaoxue, Ye Zhou, Dong Muchuan, and even Chen Zhan, who had proactively approached him earlier, were briefly observed by Su Ping.
Among them, the one who truly surprised and piqued Su Ping's interest was not Ye Zhou, who had been making bold statements but kept a low profile, nor was it the confident Miss Qin. It was not even Chen Zhan's Azure Dragon.
Instead, it was the most inconspicuous Dong Muchuan.
Dong Muchuan's ranking in the trial tower at the Capital City Academy wasn't particularly high.
However, during the provincial exam, he truly shone.
He directly surpassed Miss Qin and secured the second position at the Capital City Academy.
In this first round of battles, Dong Muchuan's performance still caught Su Ping off guard.
His combat style was vastly different from most others.
In beastmaster battles, the most direct and exhilarating approach was to pit the combat power of companion beasts against each other.
For example, Chen Zhan and Qin Xiaoxue.
They were the epitome of this style, with Chen Zhan's Azure Dragon and Miss Qin's Crowned Wolf King and Ancient Mutant Tree combination being virtually unstoppable.
One could say their battle style was absolutely domineering!
Dong Muchuan's style, on the other hand, was straightforward and clear-cut. His companion beasts were all spatial manipulation beasts: the Space-Weaving Spider, the Void Mirror, and the Crystal Earthworm.
Spatial manipulation beasts were the epitome of stealth and unpredictability, making them the most suitable for assassination tactics.
Su Ping, however, had no understanding of spatial manipulation beasts were beyond his expertise.
In every battle video he watched, the Crystal Earthworm was rarely seen.
But the Void Mirror remained in Dong Muchuan's possession, while the Space-Weaving Spider typically appeared behind the opponent's neck, promptly tossing them out of the arena.
Su Ping could say that Dong Muchuan's combat style, among all he had seen, was the simplest and most ruthless.
This couldn't help but make Su Ping exhale in slight relief.
There were countless incredible companion beasts in the world.
Countless ingenious methods existed, and one couldn't afford to be too arrogant and dismissive.
If one didn't pay attention, they might find themselves at a disadvantage against tactics like Dong Muchuan's.
However, this type of stealthy assassination had its weaknesses.
In fact, during these ten battles, Dong Muchuan even lost one match!
Indeed, this deeply hidden young heir of the Dong family suffered a defeat in this round.
His opponent in that battle was named Mu Hanchan.
A name with an ancient charm.
Undoubtedly, she was a modern person.
And a stunning ice queen, with snow-white hair and an otherworldly, ethereal aura.
Even in the photos and videos on the hand ring, her expression and demeanor were unreadable.
She seemed like a truly cold and unfeeling stone.
Her background was indeed extraordinary.
She was the top-ranked student in the provincial exam from the jointly established Ice Plateau Advanced Academy of Northland and Fengtian Provinces.
Her method was also straightforward.
The Ice Elemental Sprite simply waved its hand, and the Space-Weaving Spider, which had been lurking in the void, was forced out.
Then, it was completely frozen, losing all its combat power.
Instant kill!
Of course, as Dong Muchuan's final battle, the Space-Weaving Spider and his other two companion beasts were likely not at their peak condition.
But Su Ping believed that even at Dong Muchuan's prime, he might not have been a match for this ice queen.
The reason was simple: Su Ping had a deep understanding of ice-based skills.
Old Liu had been researching the Ice Fang White Wolf's advanced skill at home.
In their casual conversations, they discussed this ice-based advanced skill.
Indeed, this skill used by Mu Hanchan, the top student of Ice Plateau Academy, was instantly recognized by Su Ping.
The ice-based advanced skill, 'Absolute Zero'!
According to Old Liu, this was one of the strongest ice-based advanced skills.
No frills, just pure, absolute zero temperature.
A temperature so cold it could freeze even space instantly.
The skill's description was no exaggeration.
The Space-Weaving Spider, frozen solid, was proof of that.
This was Dong Muchuan's final battle, otherwise, if the Space-Weaving Spider had completely lost its combat power, it might have greatly affected his subsequent battles.
And this was just one example.
In the top twelve of the strongest young Beastmasters in Dragon Country, none were ordinary.
Advanced skills were no longer an absolute, dimension-breaking advantage in this competition!
Although, for now, only Mu Hanchan had demonstrated an advanced skill other than Su Ping's, Su Ping believed that there were definitely more like them!
Not to mention Miss Qin, who had barely contacted him in the past six months.
With Sang Sheng as her backer and her own natural talent, Su Ping was absolutely certain that her three Companion Beasts did not possess Advanced Skills as their trump cards.
Compared to others, Su Ping seemed to be taking it easy.
In ten battles, Su Ping only took action three times.
Except for Fang Xu in the second battle.
In the last two battles, Su Ping also took action,
However, his opponents were even weaker than Fang Xu.
The reason was simple; his last two opponents were already confirmed to be eliminated, and he took action just to make a last-ditch effort while also showing his face in the highly-watched battle.
In the end, not only Su Ping but even the audience could tell that these guys were just fooling around.
So, on this 31st arena, Su Ping didn't do much, but he also took the opportunity to observe many of the other top-seeded contestants.
Besides Mu Hanchan from Ice Plateau Academy, Qin Feng from Xi Jing Ancient College, and Pan Xiaoyu from Nanhai Academy in Lingnan, most of them were quite impressive, completing the second round with ten consecutive victories.
Apart from them...
Su Ping thought again and sat next to the equally leisurely referee Li Ran on the arena, watching Ye Zhou's match once more.
Ye Zhou didn't fight much.
As the first-ranked Beastmaster of the Magic Capital Academy and one of the eight great academies, it was natural that not many would dare to challenge him.
However, Ye Zhou had fought in four battles.
And in those four battles, he had only used one Companion Beast!
Yes, just like Su Ping, only the Ringed Tiger fought.
As for the Ice Cicada and the most mysterious Time-based Artifact Companion Beast, the Time Sandglass, the former remained perched on Ye Zhou's shoulder, while the latter wasn't even used.
This made Su Ping truly suspicious.
However, that Ringed Tiger alone was extremely terrifying.
Time-based Companion Beasts were the most mysterious and rare, but they were often criticized for their lack of combat power.
But this Ringed Tiger didn't show any special abilities; it simply fought with its physical strength.
And its opponents seemed to be dragged into its domain, then defeated by its rich experience.
Just as Su Ping was thinking this, a familiar voice rang out from behind:
"Su Ping, we are indeed kindred spirits. After I finished my battles, I rushed here without stopping, and I didn't expect you to be studying my recordings too!"
Su Ping turned around, and as expected, Ye Zhou's ordinary face appeared before him.
However, what made Su Ping's eyebrows furrow even more was that in these ten consecutive battles, he hadn't seen the most mysterious Time Sandglass,
And at this very moment, it was held in Ye Zhou's hand,
Within the silver sandglass, instead of sand, there seemed to be countless tiny diamonds.
Crystal clear, they shone like brilliant star sand.
Su Ping remembered that even the ancient crow's feathers were indistinguishable, but this Time Sandglass could reveal its origins with just a slight reflection.
Others speculated that Ye Zhou's most powerful Companion Beast was the Ice Cicada that controlled the entire field.
But for Su Ping, it was this Time Sandglass that he feared the most.
"Why are you here?"
"To see you, just like when I personally went to Linzhou after the provincial exam. It's just a pity that you didn't take action much?"
Ye Zhou seemed to regretfully open his mouth, and Su Ping looked at him suspiciously.
"You went to Linzhou? After the provincial exam? When?"
Ye Zhou smiled and nodded: "After your speech, I wanted to see you."
Su Ping's eyes showed his suspicion, thinking this guy was up to something.
"Su Ping, your two Companion Beasts indeed put a lot of pressure on me. I really don't know how you cultivated them?"
Then, within the countless sand grains and stars of the Time Sandglass, in the tiny multifaceted crystal reflections, the figure of Qian Yi from before appeared.
Just like she was in the provincial exam's secret realm.
(End of Chapter)
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