Chapter 42: You Can Be a Bit Arrogant

Fifty arenas held matches at the same time, with the second round only taking an hour to finish.

Under the gazes of more than two thousand people, accompanied by the big screen being refreshed in the stadium, only fifty names remained at the top.

Jack Clark saw his name ranked at 49th and revealed a faint smile on his face.

Besides him, he also saw the names of familiar people. Crystal Leinster successfully defended the 10th place, Matt Watkins at 29th, and Marcus Lee, whom he defeated, at 34th.

It was just that Mandy Leinster, the Class Leader's sister, was ranked at 40th.

This ranking made Jack Clark slightly apprehensive because he felt that this girl named Mandy Leinster was very strong, maybe even stronger than Marcus Lee.

On the main stage, Vernon Leinster announced, "The second round of the competition is over. Now we have the challenge matches. Those who aren't satisfied with their ranking have one chance to challenge someone in the top ten."

"If you win, you move forward; if you lose, your original ranking remains unchanged. Is there anyone who wants to challenge now?"

"Me, I want to challenge the 20th place."

"I want to challenge the 10th place."

"Me, I want to challenge the 15th place too..."

They were all first-year freshmen, all at the First Layer Heaven. With no worries about their rear, who would be afraid of who? As a result, many of those with lower rankings chose to challenge those ahead.

Including Zac Lyons, who was ranked 50th, who chose to challenge Mandy Leinster, who was ranked 40th.

On the other hand, Jack Clark didn't make a move, and no one challenged the top-ranked Jane Aiken.

Under everyone's attention, the challenges quickly ended, and all those who challenged the top ten failed. In contrast, some who challenged those ranked in the 20s and 30s succeeded.

"Now I announce that the first game of the Freshman Ranking Tournament is over."

"On the main stage, Vernon Leinster solemnly said, "All freshmen who ranked in the top 50 will be granted an extra five contribution points per month during school time, lasting until the second grade."

"In addition, all students will receive a 20% discount when exchanging school resources."

As soon as Vernon Leinster finished speaking, a staff member hurriedly came up to him and whispered something in his ear.

After listening, Vernon Leinster nodded slightly, then said gravely, "I have some matters to attend to with the teachers present, so everyone can disperse. Your contribution points will be credited to your Student IDs tomorrow."

After saying this, the teachers hurriedly left.

Jack Clark carried his knife to the audience seats, where Justin Welan excitedly shouted, "Jack, you really made a big splash this time, making it into the top 50!"

Jack Clark replied with a smile, "Is it really that exaggerated? It's just 49th place."

Justin Welan was speechless, "Jack, you're good at everything, but your humbleness always makes me want to hit you, seriously."

Pff! Freya Louise couldn't help but laugh at his words.

Justin Welan snorted, "It's just 49th place. If you don't want it, give it to me. I didn't even get into the second round of the competition. I've had worse luck than you."

Freya Louise came up to Jack Clark and smiled, "Actually, you can be a little more arrogant, Jack, because being in the top 50 of the freshmen is really impressive."

Out of the nearly two thousand students in their grade, over seven to eight hundred have successfully established their Foundation. Additionally, there are over a hundred so-called 'geniuses' cultivating Advanced Skills.

Under such circumstances, for Jack Clark, who was practicing the low-level Dragon Elephant Power, to make it into the top 50 was quite a surprise and astonishment to all who knew him.

Including Crystal Leinster and Matt Watkins, no one thought that there would be someone in their class who could make it into the top 50, especially since that person seemed to have an average initial talent.

That's why Freya Louise said he could be a little more arrogant because he had earned it.

Jack Clark smiled and said, "Okay, I'll be a little more arrogant, at least until everyone breaks through to the Second Layer Heaven."

Laughing and chatting, the three of them mingled with the crowd and left the stadium.Over two thousand people left the sports stadium in groups and went their separate ways.

Today's competition was intense and exciting for the participants, but not many people attached great importance to it at the vast South Sky High Martial Arts Campus.

Even the school authorities only had some teachers present, with no leaders attending.

As for the senior students, most of them were not at school, and only a few of those who were at school came to watch out of interest.

For them, a First Layer Heaven competition held no attraction, and they would rather spend the time cultivating.

...

It was only three o'clock in the afternoon, and while Justin Welan and others went to practice, Jack Clark followed Freya Louise to the thirty-third floor to read.

After flipping through a bookshelf, Jack took out a book on Mutated Beast anatomy while Freya had already sat by the window with a book of Taoist Scriptures in her hands.

Jack sat down across from her and asked curiously, "Why do you always sit in this spot?"

Freya brushed a strand of hair away from her ear, revealing a pretty, fair side profile, and said with a smile, "Because the view is wide open and I can enjoy the sunshine."

"Don't you think reading quietly in the lazy, slanting sun in the afternoon is very poetic?" With that, the girl playfully winked at Jack.

Unexpectedly, Jack was stumped and replied, "…You talk a lot, but you have a point."

With that, the two shared a faint smile before each lowering their heads to read, savoring the rare afternoon time.

It didn't look like they had just experienced an intense and spectacular competition.

However, while claiming to read, Jack's mind was mostly sinking into the Heavy Armored Beast.

The brief glory of today was not getting to his head; he was well aware that his current advantage would not last long.

If he wanted to maintain or even surpass the strength of those 'geniuses' in the Second Layer Heaven, he could only count on his Avatar's further Evolution.

Beneath the surging river's surface, the ninety-centimeter-long Heavy Armored Beast wandered around, its eyes scanning through the murky water for prey.

A school of upward curved mouth fish swam by above, varying in lengths of nearly a meter to a few tens of centimeters.

However, the Heavy Armored Beast merely glanced at them before resuming its leisurely patrol along the riverbed.

After hunting these past few days, Jack found that these common fish species were generally low in nutrients and the best nutrition came from mutated large fish species.

The same-nutrient Mutated Fish could deliver several times more high caloric energy after being consumed, greatly promoting the growth of the Heavy Armored Beast.

Suddenly, a huge shadow with astounding speed charged into the school of fish ahead, breaking the water and swallowing a one-meter-long upward curved mouth fish in its large mouth.

It was a mutated fish more than three meters long, resembling a large-mouthed catfish, covered with black scales, and its massive head made up half of its body, measuring about a meter wide.

Its mouth was filled with numerous sharp teeth, and its four one-meter-long barbels floated as it consumed more than ten upward curved mouth fish in just a few passes, showing its ferocity.

BANG!

At that moment, the riverbed mud exploded, and the previously slow-moving Heavy Armored Beast burst forth with strength on its limbs and charged towards the mutant catfish amidst the rolling mud.

Noticing the incoming Heavy Armored Beast, the huge mutated catfish did not retreat but advanced, and its huge mouth opened wide like a black hole, emitting a powerful suction force.

GULP! The mutated catfish swallowed the Heavy Armored Beast in one bite.

Compared to the over three-meter-long and one-meter-wide mutated catfish, the Heavy Armored Beast, which was less than one meter long, was just a small guy, and it was eaten…

Suddenly, the mutated catfish went crazy, rolling violently in the water, and thick blood gushed from its gills.

A black skull burst out of the mutated catfish's head, and the blood from the three pairs of feather-horns on either side filled the black armor of the beast, making it look extremely ferocious.