Chapter 38: The Strong Strike the Weak

Jack Clark was not surprised by the ease with which he had won.

Although his Dragon Elephant Power had only reached the First Layer Middle Stage, his basic attributes were at least twice as strong as those of his opponents. If he had lost despite that, there would indeed be a problem.

In this world, there is no such thing as the weak overcoming the strong; there is only the strong defeating the weak.

If you win, it simply means you are stronger than the opponent.

Even the geniuses in the cultivation world who are rumored to fight across realms only prove that they have greater Power Explosions or possess stronger Secret Skills than their opponents in an instant.

They must have some advantage to bridge the gap in realms and achieve victory over those at a higher level.

Stepping down from the Martial Arts Arena, Jack Clark, with his long knife on his back, started watching other matches.

Around the fifty arenas were students with weapons on their backs – names and information flickered on the large screen above, and many in the distant audience seats were cheering on their classmates.

Boom!

Under the violent whirlwind, a male student carrying a stick, or rather a pillar, knocked his opponent off the arena. Nearly 2 meters tall, his figure was even more formidable than Marcus Lindsay's, with an aura of terror emanating from his entire body.

What a terrifying strength. Looking at the iron column over 3 meters long and as thick as a thigh, even if made of light alloy, it must weigh at least several hundred kilograms, Jack Clark couldn't help but twitch at the corner of his eye.

Who is this person? So formidable. Jack Clark was shocked.

To wield such a heavy weapon, his arm strength must exceed a thousand kilograms. A First Layer Heaven cultivator doesn't possess such immense strength – could this person have Innate Divine Strength?

Jack Clark originally thought that with his basic attributes surpassing the First Layer Heaven Limit, he would be among the top in his class of freshmen. He didn't expect to encounter such a strong individual, a complete monster.

After taking a long look at the giant-like male student, Jack Clark moved on to the next arena.

It wasn't just Jack Clark who was excited; students in the audience seats were also blood-boiling with excitement as they watched figures with heavy weapons intersect, moving as swiftly as the wind.

Heavy weapons collided, filling the air above the arena with the echoing booms and hums.

Compared to the engaged freshmen, the teachers on the main stage were not too concerned; for them, these freshman competitions were not very interesting.

Too slow, too weak, lacking True Strength, let alone the ability to release True Strength that carries the Power of Heaven and Earth.

Glancing at the monitors casually, a teacher would occasionally call out to stop an arena where someone was fighting too fiercely, declaring the dominant side the victor.

It was then that one teacher asked in confusion, "Mr. Lester, why did the higher-ups allocate so many resources this time, allowing all the First-class Universities to vigorously cultivate this batch of freshmen?"

Vernon Lowe shook his head slightly, "It's not just this batch but every year henceforth, freshmen entering the universities in the Three Major Federation Countries will receive more resources than before."

Lori Parma exclaimed in surprise, "What, the cultivation resources have increased every year, and it's across the Three Major Federation Countries? Could it be that there has been a great victory on that battlefield?"

The other teachers also showed excitement on their faces, assuming this was the reason.

While these teachers were exhilarated, Vernon Lowe appeared somewhat grave as he shook his head again, "No, it's because the Fifth Army Corps has opened up several new Resource Points."

"As for the situation on the battlefield, it's still intense. The pressure on the Third, Ninth, and Fifteenth Army Corps is great, with King-level battles erupting monthly."

"Under such circumstances, the casualties among the corps of the various countries have been increasing over the past two years; more fresh blood is needed to replenish them."

"That's why the higher-ups have added these resources, asking us to expand our training scope, not to give up even on those freshmen who achieve Foundation Establishment within two months."

The grim expressions on the teachers' faces solidified upon hearing Vernon Lowe's words.

"So the situation has become even more critical."

After a long time, Lori Parma slowly exhaled and said, "But even so, is there really a need to expend resources to cultivate those freshmen who can't even achieve Foundation Establishment in a month?"

"If these resources were allocated to the second and third grade students, their growth rate might be even faster."

Vernon Lowe shook his head, "You can't see it that way; the growth of those second and third grade students has already stabilized, and funneling more resources towards them won't make much of a difference."

"On the other hand, for these freshmen, even though the ones who break through to Foundation Establishment after a month have truly poor innate talent and a cultivation speed so slow it's despairing."

"But with such a large base in the Three Major Federation Countries, if another example like the Mysterious Martial King were to emerge, it would be a huge gain for our Human Race."

"I think this is also what the higher-ups mean, to use resources to expand the human cultivation base, in the hopes of seeing a few more 'monsters' with deep accumulation erupting with power, which would enhance the intrinsic strength of the Human Race."

Lori Parma and the others nodded thoughtfully.

Having finished his matches early, Jack Clark wandered from one Martial Arts Arena to another, during which he saw Crystal Lewis defeating her opponent cleanly, and the two nodded at each other as they passed by.

He also witnessed Sawyer Levin being defeated by a very strong female student and stepping down from the stage in dejection.

Suddenly, Jack's steps halted, and his gaze fell on the No.9 Arena ahead, where a beautiful girl who looked almost exactly like Crystal stood sword in hand.

Unlike Crystal, this girl's black hair shimmered with hints of blue, her face always wore a gentle smile, and her gaze was tender, giving off a feeling as soft and soothing as water.

Her opponent was also a female student, wielding a narrow long Samurai sword.

After a nod of acknowledgement, the two sprang into action in an instant, colliding into each other to form two blurring shadows.

Clang, clang, clang!!

Sword light was fierce like the wind, and the swordplay was swift, both figures spinning and leaving afterimages, showing their strong abilities.

Both girls majoring in Sword Skill and Swordplay, one sword light swift as lightning, the other spreading through space like water, captivating the surrounding audience without blinking an eye.

Clang!

Suddenly, a dazzling spark exploded, and the female student using the Samurai sword let out a muffled grunt, her figure appearing at the edge of the arena, her complexion pale.

"I lost." Dropping this reluctant remark, the samurai sword female student jumped down from the arena.

"No.9 Arena, student Mandy Lewis wins. You have completed your matches, please step down from the arena and rest while waiting for the results."

The girl named Mandy Lewis sheathed her sword, stood up, and nodded politely to the classmates watching around, before leaping from the arena to leave.

"So this is the class leader's sister, eh? She's quite strong," Jack thought to himself.

The speed of their movements just now both reached the First Layer Heaven Limit; ordinary people couldn't even follow with their eyes, no less than the proud female student Jack had defeated in the end.

This type of speed was already invisible to ordinary people, not to mention the Kinetic Blessing that came with the speed and the sharpness of the sword skills.

Such strength was among the top among the present freshmen, but Jack could see that Mandy defeated that female student with ease, seemingly without much effort.

"Had it not been for this ranking competition, I wouldn't even have known that there were so many experts among the freshmen," Jack shook his head and sighed, as the slight sense of superiority that had come with his recent surge in physical prowess disappeared without a trace.

This slight advantage wasn't enough for him to sweep through his peers; he still needed to work harder on his cultivation of "Devouring."

Over five hundred contestants across fifty arenas, with one match every ten minutes. It took until noon to complete the first round with each person having fought six matches.

Everyone dispersed to have lunch.