Fighting the Ranking

The next day, the sun shone brightly in the sky~~~

Today, the Dragon Ranking competition officially entered its second phase. The three hundred students on the Dragon Ranking would spend the next two days sprinting to improve their positions.

Don't underestimate these rankings. Sometimes, even a difference of one position could lead to a vast disparity in resources.

Take Yang Chengzhi, for example. The first time he broke into the top 100 of the Dragon Ranking, the Spirit Crystals he received from the academy alone amounted to tens of thousands annually. But later, when he dropped to the bottom of the Dragon Ranking, the academy only provided him with a thousand Spirit Crystals each year. The difference was so immense, it was almost unbearable to look at.

In addition to Spirit Crystals, the academy also rewarded students on the Dragon Ranking with cultivation techniques, martial skills, and spiritual artifacts. Of course, these rewards were also tied to rankings; the lower a student's rank, the fewer rewards they received.

Therefore, for the students on the Dragon Ranking, the battle for positions in this second phase was particularly crucial. It could be said to be a competition that determined the height of their future cultivation.

On the Jiaolong Plain, three hundred students stood on the arena, watched by over two hundred thousand spectators in the stands.

The vice-dean, Zhou Wuji, was still presiding over the second phase of the competition. This time, he didn't fly into the air but stood on the ground, facing the three hundred students, and said with a smile, "First, congratulations to everyone for successfully passing the first phase of the test. Next, you will all welcome the second phase, the 'ranking battle' test. I will briefly explain the rules for the second phase's 'ranking battle'~~"

"Since Zhenguan Academy was founded, it has a history of five thousand and eighteen years~~~~" Zhou Wuji then continued his solo performance, and after about ten minutes, he finally stopped his lengthy speech.

"I wish you all a good ranking in the upcoming ranking battle. Alright, I now announce that the second phase of the Dragon Ranking competition officially begins."

After Zhou Wuji finished speaking, he retreated to the stands to accompany distinguished guests. At this moment, an old man in white robes from the edge walked to the center. A blooming peony was embroidered on his sleeve.

This was the symbol of an academy instructor.

He looked at the three hundred students and said in a voice like a morning bell, "Are there any challengers?"

"Two hundred and ninety-ninth, student Zhao Minggang, challenging for ninety-ninth place."

"Two hundred and eighth, student Qian Long, challenging for one hundred and forty-ninth place."

"One hundred and sixtieth, student Sun Ganglie, challenging for forty-ninth place."

"..."

On the Jiaolong Plain, the announcements of challengers echoed incessantly.

The sounds were incredibly loud, resonating throughout the entire Jiaolong Plain.

"This is truly exhilarating!" Ma Feifei exclaimed from the stands.

This was the first time Ma Feifei had felt the charm of this otherworld from the bottom of his heart. The pre-competition chanting sounded like stirring music, each call piercing directly into Ma Feifei's heart, making it tremble.

The over two hundred thousand spectators in the stands, regardless of their cultivation level, were deeply moved by the chanting at this moment, watching the arena with solemn expressions.

It was as if everyone could feel the five thousand years of glory of Zhenguan Academy through the students' chanting, and feel the continuous efforts of generations of young students striving for their lifelong dreams.

This was the charm of the Dragon Ranking competition.

As the chanting began, students who wished to challenge the rankings jumped onto the defending students' arenas, starting the second round of 'ranking battle' matches.

The rules for the second phase were actually very simple. If a challenger won, they would inherit the defender's current rank. If they lost, they could continue to challenge another person, with unlimited attempts until the end of the competition. If a defender lost, they would automatically swap ranks with the challenger. However, this was not their final rank; the defeated defender could still transform into a challenger in the subsequent time and challenge other defenders, also with unlimited attempts until the end of the competition.

Therefore, the 'ranking battle' in the second phase was generally more chaotic than the 'defending the rank' in the first phase. However, precisely because there were no limits on failure, the 'ranking battle' in the second phase was also exceptionally exciting. Since they could challenge someone else after failing, everyone simply started by challenging defenders with slightly higher ranks. What if they got lucky and won? Who could say for sure?

Even the top-ranked Xiaoyaozi was currently facing challengers.

Of course, some students were more cautious, starting by challenging defenders with ranks close to their own, climbing up step by step, steadily and surely.

Regardless, the rules of the second phase turned the competition into a free-for-all, with everyone employing their unique skills, like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea.

But amidst this lively competition, there was one person who was incredibly bored: Yang Chengzhi!

Actually, Yang Chengzhi didn't want to be like this, but he couldn't help it. His rank was three hundredth! Who would be so bored as to challenge him?

If someone challenged him and won, what would happen? Could there be a rank lower than his? Any of the other two hundred and ninety-nine students on the field had a higher rank than him.

Losing would be even more embarrassing. If he couldn't even defeat the last-ranked person, how could he dare to be ranked ahead of them?

Therefore, in previous years, students ranked three hundredth on the Dragon Ranking, as long as they didn't challenge others, others wouldn't challenge them.

Yang Chengzhi was leisurely on the arena, while Ma Feifei in the stands was also not idle. He was currently working on his book, "Yang Chengzhi's Revenge."

"Within a month, Chengzhi's cultivation soared, and he returned to the academy to participate in the Dragon Ranking competition. In the first round, he easily defeated a Peak Spirit Master Stage Nine cultivator. Entering the second phase, the remaining arenas erupted in battle, yet only Chengzhi's spot remained unchallenged."

"Brother Ma, why are you writing Yang Chengzhi into your book?" Zhou Zhuling asked curiously from the side. For the past few days, Ma Feifei had been constantly writing with paper and pen. Zhou Zhuling, who was often by his side, had occasionally glanced over and discovered that the protagonist of Ma Feifei's work was Yang Chengzhi.

Ma Feifei didn't look up, continuing to write as he said, "It's nothing much, I just feel his experience is quite inspiring, and it's similar to the book I want to write, so I'm using him as a prototype."

Zhou Zhuling seemed to understand but not quite. She glanced at Ma Feifei's paper and pen and asked curiously, "Are those books in the bookstore all written by you, Brother Ma?"

The books in Ma Feifei's shop were all signed with names she had never heard of.

Ma Feifei heard this, stopped writing, tilted his head, and pondered, "I suppose so."

How could Ma Feifei explain? If he said no, it would be untrue, as he had indeed written those books. And it was only because he had the system that those books possessed some special abilities; without the system, they would be no different from ordinary books. But if he said yes, the content of the books wasn't originally his creation.

However, since he had arrived in this otherworld, and only he knew about it, claiming them as his own was not entirely wrong.

Although she always felt that Ma Feifei had written these books, hearing a definitive answer from his mouth still made Zhou Zhuling somewhat delighted. Talented women have always admired talented men, and this was no exception.

"Brother Ma, your books are truly well-written, especially 'My Fair Princess.' Xiao Yanzi is particularly likable," Zhou Zhuling praised.

"I think Ziwei is written best. She appears delicate but is strong inside, which is somewhat similar to my sister's personality," Zhou Guanyu, who had also read 'My Fair Princess,' chimed in.

"Heh heh~ Is that so~" Ma Feifei felt a bit awkward! It was one thing for him to admit he wrote the books, but discussing the characters as if he were the author made Ma Feifei a bit flustered. Being thin-skinned was one thing, but the crucial point was that he hadn't written these characters himself! How could he know the perspective from which Aunt Qiong Yao wrote these characters?

"Tsk tsk, I'm starting to suspect that Ziwei in 'My Fair Princess' was created by the shop owner based on his elder sister as a prototype," Zhou Guanyu teased.

Well, this guy had quite an imagination.

Zhou Zhuling didn't say anything, lowering her head shyly as she quietly observed Ma Feifei's reaction.

Ever since meeting Ma Feifei, this girl had made lowering her head a basic move and blushing a common occurrence.

"Quick, look! Someone's going to challenge Yang Chengzhi."

Suddenly, a commotion erupted from the back of the stands.

Since their section of the stands was closest to Yang Chengzhi's arena, any movement there was quickly noticed by everyone.

Ma Feifei found it strange and looked up. "Someone's challenging Yang Chengzhi? Who would challenge him at his rank?"

Indeed, someone was walking towards Yang Chengzhi's arena, and it was a woman.

She wore a white scholar's robe, with three blooming peonies embroidered on the sleeves, and was a fellow student from the same year as Yang Chengzhi.

"Yun Chang, ranked fifteenth!"