16 Chapter 16

After using his Black Earth Bull body enhancement, he charged and his fist was let loose. He knew that she would have to evade his attack or risk a few broken bones. He was that confident in his strength. After all his attack could tear open steel in a matter of moments. So what was a little midget going to do?

Instantly he saw the girl lunge toward him, her fists on a straight collision course with his. All thoughts of meticulous planning on her next move went out to the wind when he saw her joyful expression. Yes! She would fall before him. Seeing this was her course of action, he urged more strength into his fist in case she could wriggle her way out.

Her fist had disillusioned him completely - it blurred midway and curved upwards - several milliseconds swept by. He saw his folly too late. The fist brutally hit his hard tanned skin-hide. A cunning smile lit her face as he lost feeling in his forearm.

The skin was burnt beyond salvation or mercy - on her part. His arm's muscles fell slack and a loud gunshot sound thundered. Silence. Shock. The audience was of course shocked by this. They couldn't even understand how this had happened. The majority of them had prepared for the eventual defeat of the girl. They were also horrified by the scorched black skin and oozing blood and the clean break of the forearm.

Daniel took in a portion of the tense air and continued watching. Charles took in a breath of cold air and imagined himself in such a situation. His mind-monkey ran wild and he found himself burnt to ash - to his chagrin. Her physical speed, flexible reactions, sharp-edged mind, and outrageous strength made a deadly combo.

Bruce's eyes watered and bloodied involuntarily due to the sharp jolt of pain. He roared in anger and - without caring of the consequences - used an earthly torrent. His arms had been raised due to the impact of the strike which was perfect to manipulate the earth element.

Behind him, a part of the hard earth liquefied and enlargened significantly. Becoming a large mass of yellow-brown it gained the characteristics of a restless ocean. Spewing waves of earth, it rushed forward devouring the petite figure.

The audience shook their skulls, lamenting at the spectacle before them. Both figures were enveloped in the tremendous sands due to the proximity of the two contestants. Both of them would be severely injured without a shadow of a doubt.

The reality however seemed to be cruel to them when the dust settled shadowing the winner. A shadow figure of a girl blended into the dust and the robust body of a boy In the ground. Blue flames danced and then flickered back to the blazing red it originally exhibited.

"The winner is Helen Casey." The senior's voice shook them to the core. Never in their lives did they think the girl would win. After all, she was lower in terms of physique and strength. It was impossible. Yet it happened. Ridiculous!

But the evidence was right in front of them. Licking the ground was Bruce and Tasting the first stars of victory was Helen. Their minds were having problems processing this information. The elder had undoubtedly declared her the winner, so why should they dispute it? With the monster that flicked the boy with her fingers like a fly, would she absolve them if they disagreed? From what they had seen, the elder was like... Quicksand. Invitingly good-hearted and then she drags you. To the bottom. Spiritual demise.

The senior wasn't interested in what they speculating but if she did know she would make them bleed. Nosebleed? No, she would wring their talent like a sponge. Clean until even the air would kiss them. Total monsters, no generation would be able to surpass this one, her mind was burning. She would make them a strong generation of mages, that was her wish now. Although the ugly bull would need some mental help. Thankfully it was fixable.

In the end, only Daniel and the senior saw the pale blue flame flicker and give rise to the vermillion fire. According to what they knew, flames exhibited by a mage would depend on three factors. A strong incarnation, luck, and talent. Based on what they saw the non-luminous flame was of course hotter than the luminous flame. It was able to pierce Bruce's skin with no problem and burn him to a smoldering black.

And by the looks of things, it was only a curtain-raiser. They grimaced at this thought. And of all things, she was a tier 1 mage. Tier 1! She would be a monster of Sky. Sky Cloud Academy would nurture those they considered monsters to their utmost limit. After all, it would be an excellent addition to their dignified, far-reaching fame.

If at tier 1 she could deal with her counterparts in such a manner, what about when she reached tier 2 and other higher tiers on the cultivation path?

Helen seemed to not put Bruce in her sights. She thought of him as a white nutjob whose movements were too unprecise, wasteful, and clumsy and his way of attacking were clear to her. Brute force was his forte. But his strength wasn't properly directed to an opponent's vital weaknesses but with whatever direction his mind thought of. His main problem was first, his temper and emotional stability.

The ability to keep calm in any situation was extremely handy. Cultivation needed a clean, empty, and floating state. If these were not achieved, cultivation would not be possible. The way Bruce got enraged from a simple, yet gruesome, result from their first exchange determined the battle. Afterward, when he reflected on this battle he finally understood it. She knew it as well but kept her peace.

Secondly was not taking advantage of flaws in one's stance or attack. Since Bruce initiated the battle first, Helen took a hyena's view of this situation. She scrutinized the boy's attack stance and took advantage of her overwhelming speed to deal with the fist. Deliberately she made his ego beef its unmanly chest of contempt for a smaller girl, to catch him off guard with fake-out. Breaking the attack from the forearm, absorbing, redirecting, and adding her strength and flames she decided the first exchange.

Her neck twisted as she gazed at the spectators. Sifting through the more interesting individuals, she pointed at a figure in the crowd confidently.

"Teacher, I ask to challenge him,"

Pin drop silence.

A faint smile graced his arrogant lips as he saw who her next target would be. Charles chuckled as everyone's gaze sharpened toward the target. Calmly, with a tinge of excitement, he nodded. The poor target was Charles with his green eyes blazing with intense battle intent.

"Sure. Tomorrow at 9 but first let the other battles end."

The elder smiled as she responded casually. The crowd was in an uproar. Murmured excitement twitched to life as it spread like a disease. Even Daniel felt his heart race.

"I pray for you, man. If you can defeat her, I owe you 50 gold. What do you say?" Daniel happily suggested.

Charles' formerly arrogant aura seemed to have been spilled on cold water as his expression to a more casual one.

"Yeah If I lose it will be double!" Charles huffed and stomped back to the dorm to prepare himself for the battle.

Daniel smiled with glee as he watched the boy shuffled back. He stayed behind to watch the matches and he participated in them from time to time. Of course, he didn't even release his ice element and overwhelmed the others with his stats. His speed and strength were used delicately with his intelligence in his planning. He wore down the opponent's mana reserves and dealt a final blow.

Some understood and after the first three rounds, the advantage was lost. There was a moment he was tempted to use his element but he used his cunning mind to best his foes. Simply he hadn't lost a single match and thankfully, the elder didn't send the losers home but they remained.

"All right, today's matches have been concluded. Go back to your dorms and come here by ten to nine for the match. That's all, dismiss." She spoke in everyone's ears. Her spiritual power was high to be able to pierce into the natural protective screen of the spirit and transmit the message effortlessly.

The excitement bubbled in the young teens as they chatted excitedly to their dorms. Betting one's wealth was allowed by Sky Cloud Academy which encouraged healthy competition. Maybe not to the barely getting by students but it was fair.

He spent some time after the dismissal roaming around the place and came about the kitchen. Accidentally he scented a thick aroma of meat, spicy enough and with just the right balance of the ingredients. But he didn't seem interested in the meal. The silent scent of cooked rice wafted in with a mix of delectable vegetables.

Since he was nearby he could wait on a dusty white chair that echoed its loneliness. His warm ass would put itself on it giving it some heat as he patiently waited. His thoughts wandered. Time passed to the mid-afternoon (3 PM), he didn't notice the long line that had formed at 1:32 PM disappeared. Neither did he notice the food supply dwindling.

Charles seemed to have gotten stuck in the dorm. Cultivating, comprehending. It simply meant he took his opponent seriously. His thoughts began to break away and crumble as his head began to throb. He could feel the flow of blood, the calm beat. Push and pull.

His stomach lurched and growled as he ran into the kitchen to pick a serving. A plate, spoon, fruit, rice, meat, and vegetables lined up neatly. He was disappointed to find that the food had been majorly picked up. One spoon of each was all was left as he closed the metallic tin with its lid. He sat in a dark and lonely corner as he absently ate his food.

"I even thought you were dead when you ignored the rowdy cafeteria."

His gaze glinted as they followed Helen's frame. She looked charming and pretty with the tracksuit on with the purple and black striping. The shoes were a pair of light, laced, and black sports shoes. Her hair was tied and combed with almost no curl in it. A ponytail set and small gold-colored earnings added to this.

"Shouldn't you be prepared for the battle tomorrow? After all, you are the one who challenged Charles."

"I should but I wanted to tour the school a bit... What are my chances of winning?"

"Why are you asking me?" He asked quizzically

"You are his dorm mate so of course, I ask!"

"You did your homework." His voice dripped with sarcasm. "If I thought about it, 40%."

He would answer honestly since he saw she didn't have any ill intentions for either him or Charles. Many thought she was crazy to be taking on extra work to challenge students on the first day. The first was meant for enjoyment like easy Friday. Touring, chatting, settling in but she wants to do any of that.

She frowned, thinking. Silence. Comfortable silence calmly settled in. At least for Daniel, that is. He seemed to not bother as he sat comfortably looking at the soft-looking, white clouds rolled by as the afternoon sun burned down. It was summer.

"Thanks for the info. So what's your name?" She asked.

"You're welcome. Daniel Wright." He offered her his hand. She took it firmly and with wiry strength from her fingers. She didn't offer her name but he knew it off-head anyway so no harm done

"I'm guessing you won't tell me your friend's soul attribute? I thought so, well bye," She saw him shake his head and waved as she left. Wait! She doesn't even know her opponent's element? Yet she challenged Charles and revealed her element...

Speechlessly Daniel wondered whether he broke any rule by telling her, the chances of victory. Maybe Charles wouldn't know about it. Whilst he shifted to and fro, he saw some of the teachers. It was weird in that, one could see an elderly man going to his sixties and another a woman in her early twenties. The ages didn't seem to add up.

He also managed to catch a general view of the class structures of the other classes. Class 2 had two streams, north, and south. Class 3 had two streams as well, west and east. Class 4 was the same until the sixth year which had one stream, Alpha. The toilets and dining hall were smartly placed and looking spic and span. Generally, all was well.

Darkness set in and his Golden Eyes dimmed to the pale blue they originally exhibited. Sitting in the dorm was Charles, and Daniel meditated silently not disturbing the other. After all, tomorrow was an equally important day.