Chapter 66
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Chapter 66: The Competition Begins
As Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen stood in silence, contemplating how to borrow money from Lei Jun, a familiar voice called out.
“Zhenzhen, Zhang Yu, you’re already here?”
The two of them turned around and saw Zhao Tianxing emerging from the subway station. They rushed toward him like a pair of zombies, embracing him as if he were their savior. Zhao Tianxing had come specifically to watch their competition.
“Old Zhao, lend us some money,” Zhang Yu said. “We need to buy dinner.”
After a long moment, Zhao Tianxing transferred only 10 yuan, looking helpless. “My mom is afraid I’ll spend money recklessly, so she only lets me take this much when I go out.”
Useless mama’s boy. I’m ashamed to be associated with you.
But 10 yuan was better than nothing. Dragging their hungry bodies along, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen ran into a nearby convenience store and bought a few steamed buns. However, with their current cultivation and physical prowess, a few mere buns could hardly satisfy the hunger gnawing at them.
Bai Zhenzhen’s eyes gleamed with a predatory green light as she stared at the convenience store. “Yu Zi,” she said suddenly, “let’s rob the convenience store.”
Zhang Yu nodded. “Alright. You do the robbing, and I’ll be in charge of disposing of the loot.”
Bai Zhenzhen then asked, “Do you think Bailong High School will provide free food?”
“Free?” Zhang Yu scoffed. “We’ll be lucky if they don’t charge us double.”
At that moment, both of their eyes suddenly lit up.
They saw a familiar figure standing before the gates of Bailong High School, gazing reverently at the school’s sign while taking photos with his phone.
“Old Qian!”
Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen rushed over and grabbed Qian Shen’s arm. “Treat us to dinner! We’re too hungry to compete!”
Qian Shen looked at them quizzically, then tapped open his phone. “Will 300 be enough?”
Holy shit! Zhang Yu was stunned.
He began to reflect on what he had been doing for the past two months. Being friends with a card slave like Bai Zhenzhen? Hanging out with a useless mama’s boy like Zhao Tianxing?
Old Qian! You’re my only true friend!
Thanks to Qian Shen’s generosity, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen devoured twelve 10-yuan meal sets at the convenience store, costing them 120 yuan.
Patting her slightly bulging stomach, Bai Zhenzhen said with satisfaction, “That should be enough. We still have the competition ahead, so we should only eat until we’re half full.”
Zhang Yu nodded in agreement and turned to Qian Shen beside them. “Don’t worry, Old Qian. We’ll pay you back after the competition, once we get the prize money.”
Qian Shen, however, seemed unconcerned about the money. He scratched his head and asked, “Um… will Zhang Pianpian, the student who scored 699, come to watch your competition today?”
Zhang Yu glanced at Qian Shen with pity. Ah, poor Tom, completely infatuated with that top-scoring student.
Zhang Yu wanted to tell him that with his 620 points versus her 699, the gap was too wide for them to ever be friends.
But after patting the meal in his stomach, Zhang Yu said, “She probably won’t come. She’s very busy and wouldn’t have time to watch a first-year competition.”
Qian Shen nodded thoughtfully. “That’s true. She’s in her third year now, so she must be busy preparing for the National College Entrance Examination and university interviews.”
Zhao Tianxing, standing nearby, kept glancing nervously at the time on his phone. “Didn’t you agree to meet Teacher Lei at midnight? It’s almost time. Shouldn’t we head over?”
So the group of four returned to the main entrance of Bailong High School. Seeing that Teacher Lei Jun had not arrived yet, Zhang Yu suggested they go inside to wait.
But as soon as the four of them came within a meter of the school’s boundary, they were seemingly detected by some sort of device.
A warning blared from a nearby electronic screen. “Non-Bailong High School personnel are prohibited from entering.”
The four of them turned to look at the screen, which displayed a set of rules.
To visit the school, please scan the QR code to purchase a visitor ticket.
A single-person, 12-hour tour pass, (Access to floors 1-3) – 500 yuan.
High School students scoring 660+ on High School Monthly Exam or National College Entrance Examination – Free Entry
Persons scoring below 550 or without high school education – Entry prohibited
Damn it. So underachievers and dogs aren’t allowed in, huh? Zhang Yu thought, staring at the electronic screen. It’s bad enough they won’t let anyone in who scored below 550, but why do you need 660 or higher to get in for free?
Zhang Yu looked at the information on the screen, then glanced at his companions. He felt as though Bailong High School had just thoroughly looked down on all four of them.
And as for buying tickets… he certainly did not have 500 yuan in his bank account.
Was he really going to be eliminated from the competition by a 500 yuan fee before it even started, right here at the school gate?
Embarrassed, Zhang Yu could only turn his head to look at Qian Shen again, and he noticed that Bai Zhenzhen was doing the exact same thing.
Qian Shen, however, was gazing at the grand entrance of Bailong High School with a look of reverence. “It’s just as I heard,” he murmured. “Not just anyone can walk through Bailong’s gates.”
With that, he prepared to scan the code and buy a ticket.
Just as Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen were about to ask Qian Shen for a loan, Teacher Lei Jun finally arrived, fashionably late.
“You two don’t need to buy tickets,” Lei Jun said, waving a hand at them. “We’re all here for the competition. Bailong High School has already provided us with passes.”
After receiving the electronic tickets from Lei Jun, the group finally entered Bailong High School smoothly. Only Zhao Tianxing remained outside the gate, his face flushed with embarrassment.
Under the watchful eyes of the other four, Zhao Tianxing awkwardly scratched his head and said repeatedly, “You guys go ahead. I need to call my mom for money. Once I buy a ticket, I’ll come find you.”
Lei Jun knew that Qian Shen and Zhao Tianxing were there to watch Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen’s match, so he nodded. “The competition venue is on the Basement. Come find us later.”
As Zhang Yu and the others stepped inside Bailong High School’s main building, Zhang Yu noticed a peculiar scent in the air.
At his side, Qian Shen took a deep breath and exclaimed in admiration, “Did you guys smell that? This sweet fragrance in the air? Bailong High School specially adds a cognitive enhancer to the air circulation system. It boosts brain concentration, increases neural excitability, and has a hint of fruit and floral fragrance added to it…”
Zhang Yu was speechless. Damn, even the air in Bailong High School really did smell amazing.
As the group continued forward, they saw that the corridor floor was divided into white and red sections.
The white section in the center was marked “Exclusive lane for students of this school scoring 660 points or above.”
The red sections on either side were marked “Exclusive lane for students of this school scoring below 660 points.”
Zhang Yu froze for a moment, then let out an exasperated laugh. Seriously? So anyone below 660 points has to walk on the side, huh?
Qian Shen, standing beside him, chimed in, “Bailong High School has score-based restrictions for students entering and exiting different zones and facilities. Students must stay within the areas designated for their score range.”
Zhang Yu was speechless again. Wait, why are you explaining this? Qian Shen, you’re from Songyang! How do you know so much about Bailong? Planning to defect, are you?
They followed the corridor to the elevator, intending to take it down to the Basement. However, they found a sign that prohibited anyone scoring below 660 points from using the elevator.
Zhang Yu realized that at Bailong High School, anyone below 660 points was essentially not treated like a person and would find it difficult to move around.
Fortunately, as visitors, they were not subject to these rules designed for the school’s own students.
They took the elevator to the Basement, and an enormous sports arena that was over ten meters high and spanned more than ten thousand square meters suddenly appeared before them.
High school students milled about everywhere, which clearly indicated that many of the competitors from various schools had already arrived.
Yet, as Zhang Yu looked around, he noticed that nearly all the contestants were from the top three famous schools. He could barely see anyone from other high schools.
Compared to the Magic Power Competition, this Martial Arts Competition is practically an internal league for the top three famous schools.
In the surrounding spectator stands, besides scattered students from various schools, there were three distinct groups of students sitting ramrod straight, their posture like disciplined soldier formations.
Observing the rows of students in their school uniforms, Zhang Yu exclaimed in surprise, “Are those students from the top three famous schools?”
He was genuinely taken aback. “Students from the top three famous schools aren’t seizing every single second to study? They’re here watching the competition?”
He particularly noticed the students from Bailong High School. Each one had their eyes wide and chests puffed out, looking spirited and radiant, as if they had hyperthyroidism.
[Note : A person with hyperthyroidism has symptoms like excessive energy, wide-eyed stares, restlessness, and heightened metabolic states. In here it’s used satirically to describe someone exhibiting unnatural, frantic vigor]
Just then, a male voice came from the side. “They’re all first-year students from the top three famous Schools. After all, observing the battles of powerful peers is also beneficial for improving one’s own Martial Arts Combat skills. Recognizing the gap between oneself and the elite can better strengthen one’s resolve to pursue the Martial Dao.”
Zhang Yu and the others turned to look in the direction of the voice.
Lian Tianji from Purple Cloud High School was approaching slowly. He smiled at Zhang Yu and said, “I guessed you would come for the Martial Arts Competition. And sure enough, I found you.”
Lian Tianji glanced at Zhang Yu and his group with surprise. “Did Songyang only send this few of you?”
A moment later, he nodded thoughtfully. “Well, I suppose it’s understandable. It is Songyang, after all.”
Zhang Yu felt his Songyang school uniform had been subtly slighted again.
But Zhang Yu had never been a loyal Songyang student, so what did he care if Songyang was looked down upon? His true identity was an outsourced employee of the Songyang City Patrol Team.
Curious, Zhang Yu asked, “How many people did the top three schools send?”
Lian Tianji pointed to a section of the arena. “See? They’re all over there. Purple Cloud, Bailong, and Red Pagoda. Each school sent a full team of ten. We already had a preliminary round at our own schools, and only those who won a spot in the top ten could come to compete.”
After parting ways with Lian Tianji, Lei Jun said, “Let’s go. We’ll report to the contestant’s rest area first. Qian Shen, you can find a seat for yourself in the audience.”
Zhang Yu and his group arrived at the rest area assigned to the various schools.
Zhang Yu surveyed the rest areas for the Three Schools, Key High Schools like Songyang, and then the other ordinary high schools.
How should he put it…?
He felt the three types of rest areas were like the difference between a ‘VIP lounge’, a ‘shaded pavilion’, and a ‘straw mat’.
The ‘VIP Lounge’ for the top three Schools was furnished with sofas and recliners and was stocked with drinks, fruit, and snacks.
The ‘Shaded pavilion Area’ for the Key High School had a row of chairs and a box of water.
The ‘Straw Mat Area’ for the ordinary high schools, meanwhile, just had a row of benches.
It seemed Old Man Bai Long was afraid that students from the lousy ordinary high schools would come to Bailong High School just to freeload.huh?
“This is such blatant discrimination.”
Meanwhile, after watching the trio leave, Qian Shen made his way to the spectator stands.
Just as he was about to find a place to sit, he noticed a familiar figure in front of him.
He hurried forward and saw that the person was wearing a hat, sunglasses, and a mask. The moment they saw Qian Shen, they quickly turned away.
Qian Shen looked from the top of the person’s head to their face and asked in surprise, “You… are you He Dayou, the 611-pointer?”
So, He Dayou, the 611-pointer, was definitely worthy enough to sit with him and watch the competition.
He Dayou had been desperate to avoid being recognized, especially by anyone from his school. He particularly wanted to avoid anyone thinking he was there to watch Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen, which was why he had disguised himself and snuck in.
But now that Qian Shen had recognized him face-to-face, he could only turn back with a helpless expression and say, “Yeah, you’re here too, huh, Qian Shen.”
Qian Shen asked curiously, “Are you here to watch Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen’s Martial Arts Competition too?”
He Dayou chuckled dismissively. “With their skills… They wouldn’t even reach the average level in this competition. What’s there to watch?”
“Actually, a middle school classmate of mine is competing. They specifically invited me to come and watch.”
Qian Shen simply sat down beside He Dayou, his curiosity piqued. “Which high school is your classmate from? What’s their score?”
He Dayou turned his head away, clearly not planning to talk.
***
Back in the competition arena.
The contestants gathered together to hear the organizers announce the rules.
“To prevent strong competitors from being eliminated too early, this competition will begin with a seeding round,” the announcer declared.
“Based on your seeded scores, everyone will be divided into eight groups. Within each group, you’ll draw lots to determine your opponents. The top-ranked contestant from each group will advance. These eight competitors will then enter an elimination tournament…”
Just as everyone was wondering how the seeding scores would be determined …
Thud!Thud!
Accompanied by heavy footsteps, a golden figure over two meters tall slowly strode into the arena.
The referee at the front announced, “For the seeded score round, each of you will take turns sparring with a Yellow Turban Warrior.”
“The average Physical Strength Level of this year’s contestants is 1.98, so the Yellow Turban Warrior will maintain a Physical Strength output of 1.98. You will each spar with it for one minute.”
“The judges will then score your performance within this one-minute period.”
“The detailed scoring rules are as follows…”
