Youth Martial Arts Tournament (3)

A hundred and twenty-eight youths stood in the field for the second day's opening ceremony.

These youths had survived the preliminary stage where they had to fight more than a hundred opponents at once. Every single one of them was seen highly by the audience.

For the instructors of the royal academy, these youths were an important assets for the future. A spot for them had been reserved in the year's new batch of disciples. The ensuing fights would only serve as an exhibit of their current talent.

For the audience, they were just in for a good show.

In the second round, the competitors will perform in a one-versus-one duel. The loser would be eliminated, while the victor would proceed to fight the winner of the previous fights.

Usually, in this kind of setup, the pairings would be done with a lottery. However, in this case the tournament management had created the pairings beforehand. They wanted the youths to be able to showcase their abilities as much as they could, so they rigged it to make sure each fight was as closely-matched as possible.

Their evaluation was based on the preliminary stage, so naturally competitors who had hid their abilities would have an advantage. Then again, if they were good enough to win the preliminary without their full strength, that would just added another value from the academy's viewpoint.

Today, the duels of each round would run simultaneously on each of the eight smaller arenas. The next round would start at the moment all the eight arenas had concluded their fights. Competitors who could finish their fight earlier would be able to rest longer before the next fight.

The day's tournament would end when the they had gotten the best eight for tomorrow's quarter final.

"Alright, go break a leg!" Sean slapped William's hand in a high-five.

"Break whose leg...?" William blinked rapidly, thinking that this guy could actually be that cruel.

"What? No, that's just a figure of speech... you know what, forget it, just do your best out there!"

The rules were still the same. No killing or crippling the opponents. The fight would continue only someone gave up or got knocked unconscious.

With the sound of a gong, each competitors entered the arena.

As fate would have it, William's first fight was against Gilbert's friend, the second spear-user.

"It's you!"

"Funny how life works sometime," the spear-user guffawed. He spun his spear around, and then pointed the tip to William. "Let's do this. I won't lose so easily this time!"

His opponent was more careful this time. He utilized the spear proficiently to keep William at range. Whenever the boy tried to move closer, the spear would block his path, forcing him to step back else the dulled tip would hit his vital spot.

He wasn't as reckless as yesterday. He shouldn't get wounded so early in the fight!

"Hah!"

The spear-user was getting impatient. He performed a quick stab, targeting William's arm. Unfortunately, William managed to avoid it by a hair's breadth.

This chance wasn't wasted by the boy.

Before the spear-user could retract his weapon, William rushed forward, planting a palm strike on his chest. He felt a strong force shaking his entire body, causing his knees to tremble.

If William used a bit more force, he most likely would had fainted.

"Heh. I give up."

Nevertheless, it was a great fight. The two youths shook hand as the audience cheered on.

Sean had passed his first round too. His weapon of choice was a staff, while his opponent was bare-handed like William. Sean was defensive by nature, so he relied on exhausting his opponent while keeping them checked with the range of his staff. In the end, one slip up was all that he need to secure the win.

Sixty-four remained.

William's opponent was also bare-handed. This time, William won with relative ease.

On the other hand, Sean was eliminated. His opponent was a noble, and the difference in their cultivation quickly showed its effect.

"Man, I was fighting against someone in qi condensation stage! That's unfair!"

It was simply a bad luck.

Thirty-two remained.

"Hey, if we win our matches, it'll be us next."

Before the rounds started, Gilbert approached William and said that. Indeed, if they followed the schedules, it would be as he had said.

The prospect of a rematch with Gilbert got William fired up.

His opponent was unexpectedly a noble. Thankfully, it was a youth in elementary stage. As they exchanged kicks and punches, William noticed that while the opponent's cultivation base was stronger, their movements weren't as fluid as he had expected. It seemed that the opponent had won by merely overpowering their rivals with his cultivation.

After a brief struggle, William managed to subdue the noble. The kid harrumphed before walking away with a flushed face.

William's stretched out hand was left hanging pitifully in the air...

Sixteen remained.

It would be the last round for the day. The audience were excited. They already had chosen favorites, there was even an underground betting going. The audience mostly put their bets on the nobles, who had definitive advantages over the commoners. However, some were rooting for the underdogs, like William. He was unexpectedly popular with the crowds.

"I didn't notice it before, but your movements are good!"

Sean threw a water pouch at William. He had been watching the boy's fight from the sidelines. Unlike most competitors who aimed to overpower the opponents, William fought by utilizing nimble footwork and exploiting gaps in the opponent's defense. That made his fights enjoyable to watch.

"I was taught martial arts by my village elder. He only reached qi condensation stage for his entire life, so he taught me not to rely on cultivation but also train my body."

"Made sense!"

The boys noticed someone coming over to their spot. It was Gilbert. A shadow loomed over his face.

"Sorry, William. I lost..."

Winning or losing was normal in a tournament. It wasn't something worthy to mull over too deeply.

However, Gilbert was frustrated beyond his imagination.

"I couldn't do anything. It's so overwhelming..."

His opponent, which was also William's next opponent, was a noble. He already expected a tough fight, but he never thought that it would be so one-sided!

"Be careful against her. Don't underestimate her just because she's a little girl!"

A little girl? William raised an eyebrow.

As William stepped into the arena, he saw a petite girl dressed in bright blue dress. She looked young, way, way younger than William. With long, silky golden hair that shone under the sunlight and smooth, jade-like skin, she looked like a beautiful, but fragile, bisque doll.

Her eyes, however, showed him a sharp, determined gaze. A fiery spirit dwelt within.

It was clearly not a little bunny. It was a fierce tigress!

"My name is Christina of house Altair. Please take care of me."

She made a gesture of salute at William, her voice clear and steady.

"I'm William. Let's have a good fight!"

He readied his stance. When the referee gave the signal to start, he pushed his feet to lunge forward, intending to close the gap in an instant.

However, he was rooted on the spot.

The little girl was exuding a strong pressure just from her gaze. A milky-white aura surrounded her body, which quickly spread over the arena, putting an invisible weight on William's shoulders.

Qi condensation stage! And this dominating presence, this degree of aura manipulation, it wouldn't lose against the village elder!

"Peak rank...? Really?"

William gritted his teeth, stomping his feet on the ground to stabilize himself. While he was still struggling, the girl had unsheathed her sword. It was a bit shorter than the usual saber, perhaps to accommodate her physique. The aura in her body began to surround the blade, making it glow brightly.

"To be able to withstand my full pressure... you're not bad."

In his village, William was considered the strongest in martial arts. He was the fastest to develop. However, the elder had repeatedly warned him not to be arrogant. In this world, there will always be someone stronger and more talented than him. In the eyes of those geniuses, William was just slightly better than normal people.

Today, he finally understood the meaning of the elder's words!

However...

'I can't give up just yet. I won't give up!'

He never wanted to be the best. All he'd wanted was to see how far he could go, to see how much he could cultivate as a martial artist.

If he was afraid of losing, he wouldn't be able to win!

"Heaaah!'

He roared, forcing the pressure away with sheer willpower. Even though his body was still heavy, he trudged forward, readying himself for the girl's attack.

A blade slashed toward him, tracing a dangerous path toward his neck.

William hopped a step backward, dodging the blade in the nick of time.

While the girl was still in the middle of finishing her slashing motion, William twisted his body, putting his entire weight into a left hook. The girl noticed it, and then raised her arm to block his fist.

When he fought the thugs before, he was acquainted with the feeling of hitting a martial artist's qi aura. However, back then, he only felt a slight resistance as the qi. This time, it felt as if he had punched a steel wall. The sheer toughness made him flinch in pain.

The girl was also frowning.

"So heavy... as expected, you're really not bad..."

The girl raised her leg, and then kicked William on his chest.

It was a kick infused with qi. William felt as if he had been struck by a carriage. He was sent flying across the arena before crashing down at the edge.

"Guh..."

His entire body was trembling. Even so, he staggered, trying his best to stand up one more time. Sadly, his body betrayed him. His vision was getting blurry. He felt his body going numb, starting from his feet up to his neck.

In the end, he couldn't get back up. He fell off the stage as his consciousness slipped away.

---

When he came back to, he had already been brought to the infirmary.

The doctor said that he didn't suffer any major injury, his body had just been knocked out by the huge shock after getting hit by a qi-infused attack. Not to mention it was a powerful one.

William had been eliminated rather early in the round. At the moment, three more fights were still undergoing. However, Sean and Gilbert had decided to watch over William instead of watching the fights. William was touched by these brothers' camaraderie.

"That girl... is she in the peak stage?" William pondered.

"Half-step to foundation establishment. I overheard an instructor saying that," Sean

"My God... and she's just what, seven?" Gilbert sighed, feeling that this world was really unfair.

A divine bloodline. A bottomless talent. Limitless cultivation resources from birth. All of these culminated into the beings known as the geniuses. That little girl was just one of the many.

Compared to them, William, Sean, and Gilbert were really just tiny ants!

The day ended in a sour note, but in the end, their gains weren't that bad.

Sean had at least one victory, while William and Gilbert were better off. While it was a shame that they couldn't enter the quarter final, it had been a good learning experience.

The next day, they entered the stadium with a spectator mindset, just wanting to enjoy the occasion.

The girl he had fought before, Christina, had advanced to the final. Her opponent was also from house Altair, a nine-year-old boy called Charles.

"That's her older brother," Gilbert said with a bitter smile. "Also a half-step."

Dear. God.

When the two monsters collided, it seemed as if the earth was shaking furiously. Christina was wielding a sword, while her brother used a fan. It was a weird choice of weapon, until William noticed that when it was infused with qi, it was even stronger than the common swords.

"Yeah... I'm glad I'm not in the quarter final. Imagine meeting them, sheesh!" Sean trembled on his seat.

"They're already holding back when fighting us, you know," Gilbert retorted. He had also fought Christina before, so he knew.

As for William, he was transfixed with the battle that was unfolding below.

Flashes of light cut through the air as their weapons, glowing with milky-white aura, clashed ferociously, causing sparks to fly all over the stage. Neither combatants wanted to back down. They were using the same techniques, as well as coming with a similar cultivation level.

In the end, it was a matter of willpower.

William clenched his fists, thinking that this was the world he was going to step into.

'Will I be able to do the same thing in the future?'

He didn't want to think about talent, as it wasn't something that he could change. He had to believe in his hard work.

He would just compensate by training twice, thrice, even ten times more than them!

The final was concluded after an hour of grueling fight.

Charles had managed to disarm Christina due to a moment of carelessness. Perhaps because he was older, he had a slightly better stamina than his sister, giving him a slight advantage. He was declared as the victor soon after.

The closing ceremony was attended by all the competitors who had registered, regardless of their defeat or victory. While only the top three were given their respective medals, competitors who had passed the preliminary were also given an appreciation token with the emblem of Heavenly Blessing Kingdom carved on it. It was the proof that they had showed great abilities in this tournament.

The King gave a farewell speech afterwards.

As he listened to the sermon, William's gaze wandered toward the finalists, Christina and Charles Altair.

'One day... one day I will be able to fight at the same level as those geniuses!'

He was about to retract his gaze when he noticed something.

In the lower podium, where the lesser relatives of the royal family sat, he saw a black-haired boy with a sharp glare sitting alone in the corner. His facial features looked similar to the King and his sons. He thought that it was just one of their relatives, so he didn't pay more attention. However, every time he stole a glance that way, he began to suspect something.

It was as if that boy was staring right at him...