Preliminary Round [Monday, Please Vote!]

Early the next morning, the long-awaited Genius Battle finally began!

Before the main campus lay a broad, level square.

The morning mist had yet to disperse, but many students were already waiting there.

There were both male and female students, most of them Heavenly Supreme Level students above Level 25, with a small number of Heavenly Micro Level students. As for the academy's strongest Heaven Dou Class Soul Elders, not a single one had come.

What was being held in the square today was the Genius Battle's Preliminary Round.

Heaven Dou Class students were all above Level 30. They did not need to participate in the Preliminary Round and could enter the Genius Battle directly. This was a privilege the academy granted its most outstanding students!

Around the square, several teachers dressed in golden robes chatted idly among themselves. They were the referees for this Preliminary Round, responsible for maintaining order during the competition!

On a quiet path leading to the main campus.

A youth in fitted black clothes strode swiftly down the road, followed by a red-haired beauty he simply could not shake off. She chattered incessantly all the way, following him into the competition square.

The youth was naturally Fang Xuan, while the charming red-haired beauty was his teacher, Ruolan.

All the way there, Teacher Ruolan had been explaining the competition's precautions to Fang Xuan. Although she was being responsible, her chatterbox nature made the usually taciturn Fang Xuan frown.

"Alright, that's about enough."

Ruolan smiled faintly, one hand resting on her slender waist while the other patted Fang Xuan's shoulder. In a teasing tone, she said, "Do your best, 'Number One'!"

Faced with that disbelieving expression, Fang Xuan could not help curling his lip.

If he was entering a competition without aiming for first place, was he supposed to be specifically aiming for second?!!!

A Heavenly Micro Level student declaring that he wanted to take first place in the Genius Battle immediately sparked ridicule throughout the class. From students to teachers, every one of them laughed until they doubled over.

Fang Xuan did not offer any further explanation. All he needed to do was figure out how to defeat his opponents.

"Teacher, who is the strongest person in Heaven Dou Academy?! What level are they now?!" He looked seriously at Teacher Ruolan, hoping to get some useful information from her.

He was not worried about today's Preliminary Round. Those participating were only students in their twenties in level, and the highest was merely Level 29. Such strength posed no threat to him at all.

Compared to that, the truly young geniuses of the academy were Fang Xuan's greatest enemies.

"The strongest person..."

Teacher Ruolan rubbed her chin and thought seriously for a while before saying, "There really are quite a few formidable youngsters this year. Among them, Yu Tianheng of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and Little Overlord Chu Zhongtian of the Heaven Dou Empire should be the academy's most outstanding students. At such young ages, they have already reached Level 37. Their Martial Souls and Soul Rings are both top-tier. Even against Soul Ancestors above Level 40, they have the strength to fight!"

"Yu Tianheng, Chu Zhongtian..."

Fang Xuan murmured the names, slowly falling into thought.

He knew of Yu Tianheng. He would later become the Captain of the Imperial Dou Team and came from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, one of the Upper Three Sects. His Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul was also a top-tier Martial Soul. He should be Heaven Dou Academy's most outstanding student.

As for that Chu Zhongtian, Fang Xuan had never heard of him.

However, since he could be mentioned in the same breath as Yu Tianheng, his strength was surely not weak.

Level 37 Soul Power, combined with a top-tier Martial Soul, was enough to rival an ordinary Soul Ancestor. Such strength could be called terrifying.

Fang Xuan's level was still far too low. If he encountered Yu Tianheng or Chu Zhongtian, he would probably have a hard time of it and might even lose.

"Oh, right, there is one more person..."

At this point, Teacher Ruolan frowned and said, "That person is usually very low-key and elusive. He rarely displays his strength in front of others, but his strength absolutely cannot be underestimated!"

"Who?!!"

"Douglas, the prince of the Balak Kingdom!"

Fang Xuan raised a brow and silently remembered the name.

"Be careful. Don't get eliminated in the Preliminary Round!" Teacher Ruolan clearly had high hopes for Fang Xuan and hoped that he could achieve a good ranking in this Genius Battle.

"Mm, I understand." Fang Xuan nodded seriously.

"Oh, right."

Suddenly, a dangerous curve formed at the corners of Teacher Ruolan's lips. Her delicate finger tapped Fang Xuan's little head as she said enticingly, "Fang Xuan, if you really take first place, this beautiful teacher will give you her first kiss. What do you think?"

Of course, she knew such a situation was absolutely impossible. She would already be burning incense in thanks if Fang Xuan could successfully make it through the Preliminary Round. This little wager was purely to tease him.

Who would have thought that Fang Xuan would stare at Ruolan with a look of disgust? "You should save your first kiss for whichever blind man falls for you. I'm not interested..."

She was already twenty-six or twenty-seven, almost thirty, and still had her first kiss? An old leftover woman!

That was what Fang Xuan thought. If this were Earth, she would probably have her parents worried sick. How could she still be leisurely wandering around here?!

Watching the furious Teacher Ruolan leave, Fang Xuan calmly leaned against a wall and quietly waited for the competition to begin.

As time passed, more and more students gathered in the square. By the time it neared ten o'clock, more than two hundred students had come to participate in the Preliminary Round—an extremely frightening number.

With so many contestants, who knew how long this Preliminary Round would take to determine a winner.

Fang Xuan could not help feeling a headache coming on.

At that moment, a gray-haired elder stepped onto the stage, cleared his throat, and announced in a voice that reached every corner of the square, "Quiet, everyone. I am the host of this Genius Battle Preliminary Round. After careful deliberation by the academy, this year's Preliminary Round will be held in the form of an elimination match..."

An elimination match?!

Upon hearing this, the participating students in the square froze slightly, then began whispering among themselves.

"This year's format is simple: a melee! A grand melee! Everyone around you is your enemy. Within the time it takes for one stick of incense to burn, defeat as many opponents as possible!

"Once the incense burns out, the fifty contestants still standing in the arena will successfully advance. If the time limit is reached and there are more than fifty people remaining..."

At this point, the gray-haired elder said coldly, "Then everyone present will be eliminated!"

Another uproar swept through the square!

They were forcing everyone to desperately eliminate their opponents!

A two-hundred-person grand melee!

They had to eliminate three-fourths of the contestants within the time it took for one stick of incense to burn!

This year's Preliminary Round was likely the most difficult in history. Upon hearing this, many contestants turned pale, their expressions becoming extremely ugly.

"A grand melee? Interesting..."

Light surged in Fang Xuan's eyes. He was greatly looking forward to this chaotic battle.

A new week had begun. I want to make a push for the new book rankings, at least into the top ten. Please support me and vote more! Muah~