Chapter 66: Four-Academy Exchange, Royal Team vs. Elephant Armor Team

Today.
Heaven Dou Imperial Academy.
The Arena.
The four-academy exchange tournament drew the attention of all.
The circular spirit fighting stage, spanning several thousand square meters, was surrounded by spectator stands capable of holding tens of thousands of people.
Every single seat was taken, filled entirely by the students of Imperial Heaven Dou Academy.
The air was thick with the whispers of tension and excitement:
"Imperial Heaven Dou Academy will definitely win!"
"Don't pop the champagne just yet; neither Elephant Armor, Blazing Flame, nor Wind God is easy to deal with!"
"Captain Yu Tianheng has returned from special training with his clan, so his strength must have grown significantly. Our odds of winning are quite high!"
"Speaking of Captain Yu Tianheng... If only we could invite Sword Wine here, then victory would truly be secure!"
Waves of discussion rose and fell.
Suddenly, countless gazes turned in unison toward the VIP entrance.
A procession of figures walked slowly into view.
Surrounded at the very center was Crown Prince Xue Qinghe.
To his right was Poison Douro Dugu Bo, and to his left were the three members of the Academy's Education Committee: Meng Shenji, Bai Baoshan, and Zhilin.
However, what astonished the students the most was...
Right beside Dugu Bo stood a youth dressed in white.
The youth possessed handsome facial features, with a lazy smile lingering at the corners of his mouth.
"Who... is that?"
"The three committee members are Spirit Douros, and His Eminence Dugu Bo is even a Titled Douro. Why is this young man standing there?"
"I heard His Highness the Crown Prince has a close, trusted friend. Could it be this person?"
"Even if they are good friends, this still shouldn't be happening!"
...
Faint fragments of debate drifted into Li Zhexian's ears.
He helplessly lowered his voice and said:
"I would have been fine just staying in the spectator stands. Why did you have to drag me up here?"
A rare hint of a smile appeared on Dugu Bo's stern and weathered face.
"Zhexian, you were invited here to put out the fire, so don't stand on ceremony."
Meng Shenji, Bai Baoshan, and Zhilin smiled and nodded in agreement.
They were already aware that the white-robed youth before them was none other than the renowned "Sword Wine" of Heaven Dou.
Not to mention his friendship with the Crown Prince.
Just the favor of him stepping in to rescue the academy from this crisis was enough to fill them with gratitude.
After all.
If the Imperial Academy suffered a defeat on its home turf.
The three committee members truly would have nowhere to hide their faces.
One by one, the group took their seats.
As the imperial representative and host, Xue Qinghe rose to deliver a speech.
His gentle voice echoed across the entire arena:
"Welcome to the three outstanding academies visiting Heaven Dou City..."
The lengthy bureaucratic speech made Li Zhexian feel drowsy.
He glanced sideways at the noble-tempered Xue Qinghe beside him.
It was truly difficult to connect the person before him with the fellow who had haggled fiercely over a chicken wing just yesterday.
Fortunately, Xue Qinghe did not drag it out for too long.
Next, Chief Committee Member Meng Shenji began to introduce the three visiting academy teams.
First to enter was the Elephant Armor Academy team.
Seven burly youths, standing over two meters tall and weighing more than three hundred catties each, marched in with heavy, thudding steps.
The mountain-like momentum caused gasps of shock to ripple through the student-filled stands.
Li Zhexian looked upon this group of "human fortresses" with considerable interest.
At that moment.
"Ahem!"
With Dugu Bo sitting in between them, Xue Qinghe leaned back slightly and gave two coughs in Li Zhexian's direction.
Understanding the hint, Li Zhexian leaned back as well and asked with a smile:
"What is it?"
Xue Qinghe quietly extended a clenched hand.
Li Zhexian opened his palm to catch whatever was coming.
Several plump, translucent candied fruits fell from Xue Qinghe's open hand directly into Li Zhexian's palm.
Lowering his voice, Xue Qinghe spoke rapidly:
"Elephant Armor Sect. Captain Huyan Li, level forty-two Defense-type Battle Spirit Ancestor."
"All seven of them possess the Diamond Mammoth spirit, following an extreme single-attribute route without any division of labor for Control-types or Healing-types."
Li Zhexian chewed on a candied fruit and nodded knowingly.
A copper wall formed by seven top-tier Defense-type beast spirit masters was indeed tricky to handle.
As the sweetness melted in his mouth, he suddenly turned his gaze toward Xue Qinghe.
"Is this exchange tournament that important to you?"
Xue Qinghe remained silent for a moment before nodding and replying:
"Ever since I ascended to the position of Crown Prince, this is the first major event I am hosting on behalf of the imperial family. Naturally, I need to make it look splendid."
"Then I understand."
Looking at Li Zhexian's handsome profile, a trace of warmth flowed through the depths of Xue Qinghe's heart.
At that moment.
The Blazing Flame Academy team, dressed in gold and crimson uniforms, entered the arena.
Xue Qinghe was just about to continue the introduction.
"This team is Blazing Flame..."
"I know."
Li Zhexian's gaze fell upon the stage below.
"I saw them just yesterday."
"Oh?"
Xue Qinghe raised an eyebrow slightly.
Her gaze swept over Huo Wu, the team's sub-captain with dark red, voluminous wavy hair, and she said as if casually mentioning it:
"This sub-captain Huo Wu is truly striking and alluring."
"Hmm?"
A swordsman's intuition struck like lightning.
Li Zhexian rubbed his chin and curled his lips, saying:
"She's alright, just so-so."
Seeing Li Zhexian's reaction, the corners of Xue Qinghe's lips curved upward into a faint smile.
As the final academy stepped into the arena.
She put away her playful expression, her delicate face taking on a hint of seriousness.
"Li Zhexian, the other members of the Wind God Academy team are manageable."
"However, their captain, Feng Xiaotian, is by no means an ordinary opponent. He is also a Battle Spirit Ancestor above level forty, and his spirit is the Gale Twin-Headed Wolf."
"The most crucial point is..."
"As far as I know, he has even created his own spirit ability."
"Oh?"
Li Zhexian cast his gaze down toward the stage.
The sunny youth dressed in a light cyan uniform came into his view.
A self-created spirit ability?
That was indeed interesting.
In the original trajectory, Wind God Academy's ranking was second only to the Spirit Hall team and the Shrek team.
"The Imperial Heaven Dou team..."
"Will not be easy to win against."
All three visiting teams had made their entrances.
Appearing as the grand finale was, naturally, the host Imperial Heaven Dou team.
Competing on their home turf instantly ignited cheers and roars that far surpassed anything heard before.
The tournament format was simple and clear.
Four teams draw lots for pairwise duels.
The victors advance, ultimately contending for the championship.
Amidst the watchful gaze of all, the draw results were announced:
Imperial Heaven Dou Team VS Elephant Armor Team!
Blazing Flame Team VS Wind God Team!
Just as the four teams were preparing to take the stage.
Huo Wu of the Blazing Flame team accidentally swept her gaze across the VIP seating area and spotted the white-robed youth popping a candied fruit into his mouth.
"Huh?!"
Her bright, fiery red eyes suddenly widened.
"Isn't that the younger brother who said Sword Wine was amazing yesterday? Why is he sitting up there?!"
Huo Wushuang and the others followed Huo Wu's gaze.
Sure enough...
That white-robed youth was the very person they had seen in the noodle shop yesterday.
Huo Wushuang frowned slightly and said in a deep voice:
"Never mind these trivial matters for now."
"The first match is a fierce battle, so get your heads in the game."
"Understood!"
In another corner of the arena.
The seven members of the Imperial Heaven Dou team slowly ascended the steps.
Yu Tianheng clenched his fists and muttered:
"His Highness the Crown Prince, His Eminence the Poison Douro, and the three committee members are all here."
"If we lose, we'll lose a tremendous amount of face."
Dugu Yan and Ye泠泠 (Ye Lingling) turned their pretty eyes toward the white-robed figure in the VIP stand, a faint smile blooming at the corners of their lips.
With him here today anyway.
There was simply no way the Imperial Academy would lose.
Yu Feng and Aosuo also looked quite relaxed.
"Boss, relax. That person is sitting right up there."
Yu Tianheng's face darkened slightly.
He had only returned to his clan for a few days!
How did it feel like his teammates were about to stop acknowledging him as their captain...
(Three chapters released together)