Midsummer of Drizzle Rain Month had passed, and Emberflow Month was about to arrive. In this lukewarm season, the New Star Tournament, which had spent nearly a year in preparation, finally officially began.
For those watching the matches, the first day of the New Star Tournament had been exceptionally thrilling. Not only had the contests risen and fallen dramatically, they had also offered plenty of highlights.
Whether at the arena, in taverns, or anywhere people gathered, there were essentially three things everyone was talking about.
The first was today's most exciting match.
"Gloomlight" Xi Li versus "Cold-Eyed Cat" Ye He.
Xi Li's origins were unknown. She was an exceedingly gloomy woman, always shrouded in a dark aura, yet glimmers of light occasionally flickered in her eyes, and "hope" was forever on her lips. She was like a believer in the deepest darkness, yearning for the light of hope to descend.
"Cold-Eyed Cat" Ye He, on the other hand, came from Winter Academy. His personality suited his name as well. Though handsome, his gaze upon others was icy to the extreme. Like a cat, he was cold, elegant, noble, and clearly detached from everyone else.
Both stood at the very pinnacle among apprentices. Xi Li's power was highly strange—at times murky and obscure, at times bright and radiant, as if she stood between light and darkness at once. Ye He was no less impressive. His understanding of his own bloodline had reached a level that even formal wizards found astonishing. The black cat he transformed into had nearly reached a complete beast form.
Although Ye He, as a bloodline-side apprentice, held a considerable advantage in matches against opponents of the same level, the power Xi Li erupted with was simply terrifying.
The two were utterly evenly matched. The intensity of the