Days followed days, weeks formed into months. And now our graduation from the preliminary campus was approaching. There weren't many particularly memorable events; this year at the Shadow department, no one dared challenge me further, and I reached the boundary of the third tier. I broke through in Poison to the second tier; it was called "Wasp of Vengeance." The spell summoned a spiritual insect that attacked anyone who wounded me.
Spirit magic reached the barrier for Intermediate level, and Summoning has long been waiting for a breakthrough. Shelob has already reached the level of a high Servant but cannot evolve until I reach the Intermediate level, and even then she'll need resources for evolution. I've already ordered the remains of a Shadow Sand Spider and a soul fragment from the Court members. They promised to help with that.
During this time I conducted two more Executions, doing them publicly with many witnesses. This once again convinced me that Tang Zhong is preparing me for the role of bait to hook a Black Order cell in Shanghai. But I'm not getting involved in this game and just do what I'm told; besides, they pay very well. Not even with money but with rare resources you can't buy even for money—connections decide everything here. I should sift through memories and find the Spiritual Honey Mo Fan found in the original; besides healing the soul, it accelerates Spirit cultivation well. So many plans after moving to the main campus—huge ones—where will I find enough time for it all?
The exam this year followed the classic scheme: no monsters to catch. Intermediate Magicians from the entire campus gathered and divided into groups, then fought in an elimination tournament. First place received three days in the Three-Step Pagoda, second place two days, and third place one day. From fourth place down, just resources were given. But the main condition for passing the exam was to release Intermediate magic at least once during a match. Otherwise you stay for a second year.
A group of four approached me.
"Hi, Dark Prince. I suggest we all team up!"
This was the monitor of the Lightning department, Zhao Dohai. Or "Prince of Thunder." Local imagination is very limited. There was also the "Queen of Thorns," head of the Plant department, Jiang Dio Xi. The monitor of the Fire magicians "Fire Lord"—Dongfang Kao Ting. And the monitor of the Ice department, Mu Xi Ai—"Ice Princess."
"Dammit, guys, please stop with that. I hope they forget that nickname in the main campus! If you promise to call me just by name, I'm with you."
The guys laughed infectiously at my tirade.
"Then you address us by name too. Let's finally pass the exam and get a pass to the Three-Step Pagoda."
We all shook hands, which became the symbol of our temporary alliance.
The first fight passed in an instant. A mass Spirit attack, interrupting our opponents' star construction, then a wave of Intermediate spells simply swept our rivals away.
In the second fight I decided not to use Spirit; instead my Shadow Spikes pierced their protector—the first spike into the shadow, immobilizing him. The second into the body, depriving him of reason, specifically the ability to think. The Earth barrier protecting the enemy team disappeared after the very first hit. Intermediate spells rushed toward each other. But while a Holy Wall appeared before us quickly, our opponents didn't manage to take care of defense, and the Earth magician couldn't react. The judges had to intervene and shield our rivals from injury or even death.
I started the third fight just like the first, and the team was quickly eliminated.
During the fourth fight, a team with a Summoning magician came out. But instead of protecting its owner, the stone rhino good-naturedly stepped aside and lay down for a nap. While the team was regaining their composure, five Intermediate spells already hit them. Only two managed to protect themselves, but almost immediately two Shadow Spikes hit one Water magician from behind; the second surrendered immediately.
The fifth, last fight for today. Our teams stood opposite each other. Our rivals were very nervous. It was noticeable in their behavior. When the gong sounded, the enemy team immediately went on defense, surrounding themselves with stone walls. Unexpected. And stupid. Moving inside the fortification, I hit them with Spirit, and immediately after started knocking them out with just my fists. One hit was enough for each; the only girl in their company fell to her knees, looking at me with terror. No wonder—the proven tactic didn't work, and her entire team lay unconscious on the ground. And if she even attempted magic, the same fate would befall her.
"How about you just go out and surrender for the whole team?"
"Of course!"
She destroyed one of the walls and went out.
"We surrender!" the girl shouted loudly.
I followed her out. Everyone stood waiting for the rest of the team to emerge, but they didn't appear. One of the judges decided to enter the fortification, and a minute later four bodies floated out on earth waves.
"What did you do to them?" Zhao Dohai asked me.
"They taught me at the Court internship," I shrugged.
"Ah, well that makes sense! I heard future Judges are indeed well trained."
After this fight we dispersed to rest; we have three more fights tomorrow.
The next day only eight teams remained on the field. All fights will be held in turn until a winner is determined. No second chances—only elimination.
For the first fight, we got a quite strong team; I think if not for us, they could have competed for a podium spot, but alas. I won't trade cultivation at one of the best sources for anything. I already have one day in reserve for defeating the beast in the Summoning department tournament, another day for the monitor position, and if we take first place today, I'll be able to go to the Three-Step Pagoda for five days.
After the gong sounded, I immediately used mass pacification on the rivals, but someone apparently had a protective amulet. A stone wall formed before the rivals, blocking the magic I released. I moved to another part of the field while my comrades tried to crack the defense. Behind the wall, a quite pretty girl tried to hold the shield while her teammates regained their composure, but I didn't intend to give them a chance at victory.
Two Shadow Spikes went toward the girl—one into the shadow and the other into the body. Her eyes became glassy, the wall was no longer being fed with energy, and soon it began to crack.
Her team tried to rectify the situation, but I used Spirit magic again, temporarily disrupting the rivals' casting. At that moment the wall finally fell apart and our rivals were hit simultaneously by a Thunderbolt, a Fiery Fist, two Ice Chains, and a Plant Prison. The kids couldn't protect themselves in time, and artifacts were forbidden. So the judges had to intervene, which automatically brought us victory.
The second fight was much easier; none of them had protection from the Spirit element, so we ended the fight in an instant and went to rest.
The entire hall was in shock that we reached the final so easily; after all, a magician with a weak spiritual boundary and no artifacts is defenseless against the Spirit element.
***
The last fight didn't take long. This time we faced a group consisting of representatives of prominent Shanghai clans. I used Expanded Perception and felt spiritual defense artifacts on almost all of them except one girl. It's quite possible the clans issued tools to their scions only for this fight and they will return them afterward. But the fact remains: my spirit is practically useless here.
No problem. We'll just put on more of a show in the final fight; stunning everyone with spirit has become boring.
As soon as the gong sounded, both teams covered themselves with protective spells and began trading spells. I didn't participate in this but purposefully attacked the mind of the unprotected girl time and again. Essentially, it was a four-on-four fight. Neither team could get the upper hand.
At one point the rivals briefly turned off defense to release a spell, and in that moment two Shadow Spikes hit the gap, neutralizing one of the defending magicians. The formation fell apart, gaps appeared in the defense, and Basic rank spells—formed in a second—flew in. The unprotected girl was very confused and couldn't react, finally dropping out of the game. One of the attackers also received a wound and couldn't attack with his previous speed.
I chose this moment to attack. Sinking into the shadow, I emerged behind the second defender and put him in a chokehold. Seeing this, the last healthy attacking magician thought of nothing better than to attack both of us with a Basic Fire Burst, but I plunged into the shadow and moved aside, while the magician I held took the hit.
A Holy Wall appeared before him for a moment, and he was also out. The previously wounded guy managed to dispel my spikes with a flash, but three remained against five. Under the constant barrage, their defense quickly exhausted, as did the magician using it, who immediately surrendered. Only two remained. One was immediately bound by Shadow Spikes, and the second entwined by Ice Chains.
The judges announced our victory.
***
The Three-Step Pagoda, or Boundless Pagoda, is one of the best cultivation sources in China for magicians below the Super level. Today I approached the heart of Pearl University with a five-day pass. What's the main feature of this place? Thanks to the high concentration of elements, cultivation is accelerated here. The space is divided into several levels that must be ascended via steps.
Approaching the guards and handing over the pass, I was escorted inside. Reaching the stairs, I began to climb up. Pressure grew with each step taken. Barely noticeable at first, it began to intensify. Reaching the first platform, I felt as if my weight had doubled and magic elements were barely felt.
Entering the platform, I was washed with pure energy; all fatigue immediately vanished and cultivation accelerated twenty-fold. I remembered cultivating at the source of madness, covering the path of several years in a week. No wonder all Mingzhu students strive to get into this place and fight desperately in ranking battles. To get into this place again, I will also fight my way up the tournament table.
But that's not all, and I stepped onto the stairs leading to the platform above; on it, the concentration of elements will be twice that of the previous one, and so on. I don't know how many floors there are in total, but my goal today is to reach the third platform, where the concentration of elements will be eighty-fold, and as it decreases, return to the second floor. Thanks to such tactics and with the help of my amulet, I'll be able to jump over five-six years of simple cultivation. But my main goal is to break through to the third tier of Shadow and reach the Intermediate level in Spirit and Summoning. Maybe I'll manage to subdue the stars too.
Climbing to the second level was only slightly harder than the first. But the third platform showed me all my overconfidence; I didn't so much climb onto it as crawl. It was that hard for me!
But it was worth it. As soon as I was in place, all fatigue vanished, and pure spiritual energy entered my lungs with my breath, from which my stars simply sang the music of the future breakthrough. Without delaying, I began cultivating: Shadow first, then Spirit, and finally Summoning. Then subduing the nebulae of the last two elements. Taking a deep breath of magic-filled air, I sat in a meditation pose.
Five days passed too quickly. I successfully managed to make all three breakthroughs and start subduing the stars, but after three days, the floor's fullness dropped significantly, falling back to the first floor's levels. After that, I descended and cultivated on the second floor for another two days, subduing all the stars and taking on the Poison. I didn't manage to bring it even to the third-level boundary, but I made a significant leap. On a very good note: upon breaking through to Intermediate Spirit, my spiritual boundary rose again and was now the third. Now I'll be able to hide even better and interact with stars faster, and I'll be interrupting spell construction even for Advanced Magicians. If only I could awaken Space, I could break Servants with pure will.
But what isn't there, isn't there. Leaving the pagoda, I headed to the dormitory. I could live here until the new school year started and then move into the main campus dorm, but I decided not to be cheap and bought an apartment near the university. It cost twelve million but was spacious and conveniently located. And I won't have to explain myself to neighbors in case of anything. And why hide it: now there's somewhere to bring a girl. I'm still ashamed of the consequences of my past abstinence. Lin Yu Xin knows nothing about me except my appearance and what magic I use, but even that is enough sometimes. Although the main character Mo Fan used to smear his face with a pencil and after that no one could recognize him, but that sounds too dubious. Anyway, I need to pick up a girl for the night, rest for a couple of days, and head into the wilderness. I'm tired of sitting still; I want to fight—without preludes, without politics, without clever schemes. Just you and your enemy.