A Popular Opponent

After the duel, the staff member who was usually quite familiar with Fran looked at the remaining space with a somewhat dazed expression.

The site has suffered unprecedented large-scale damage.

The entire Duel Arena was filled with activated, abnormal Fire Element, and sparks mixed with charred blackness could be seen everywhere on the ground. The temperature of the arena was at least five degrees higher than usual.

Even more terrifying was the wall that Fran had targeted with her Pyroblast. Fran had just used her Elemental Conversion twice, and the terrifying Fire Element had gathered on that Pyroblast.

This Pyroblast not only pierced through Warren's defenses but also struck behind Warren, leaving a huge crater filled with Fire Element.

This hole will likely require the replacement of a significant amount of special metals, which will cost a considerable sum, meaning he'll have to fill out forms again.

"Fortunately, there wasn't any systemic damage here, otherwise I would have to submit the application for a repair site right now."

He surveyed the damage to the arena. Although Fran's sudden display of terrifying destructive power had worried him, Fran had been dueling in this arena for the past few days, so the damage this time was clearly less than the damage he suffered every day.

"Hopefully, that mage won't use those high-powered spells in future duels. Wouldn't it be better to just use Greater Fireball instead?"

He expressed such anticipation.

"Please register me for the duel tomorrow afternoon."

Just then, Fran's voice came from the side, bringing him back to his senses. He first gave Fran the set of words that he had to say according to procedure.

"Duelist ID XXXXXX, congratulations on accumulating 100 Preliminaries Contribution Points. You are now eligible for the Preliminaries rankings, which are updated weekly and can be checked every Monday."

Fran paused for a moment, knowing that with the current information collection methods of the Alliance, it would be difficult to achieve the effect of displaying rankings in real time.

"What ranking would I likely get?"

The staff member paused for a moment, then said:

"I think it's around 3900. There are probably around 4400 mages with a score above 100 right now. Many people request a pause in their duels once they reach 100."

"Based on your record, you'll likely finish around 3900th place."

Fran raised an eyebrow, then asked a question that she was very concerned about.

"How many ranked individuals are there on our Number Nine Floating City?"

This is a very important issue for Fran. The Champion Mage Challenge is a large-scale event that spans the entire the Alliance, and the number of participants is certainly not limited to those in Number Nine Floating City.

"We currently have about two hundred ranked duelists, and about two hundred of them should be eligible to accept duel applications."

Fran's tense brows began to relax. Two hundred people were enough for her to complete the next thirty duels.

This is good news for Fran; at least until she reaches 150 points, she doesn't need to consider whether to travel to other Floating City to find opponents for duels.

Although Number Nine Floating City is the headquarters of the Alchemy School, where would a School dedicated to exploring patterns find so much time for duels? Wouldn't it be better to spend that time on research and experiments?

The places where Magic Duel truly flourished were the seventh Floating City of the Sword Chant School and the Number Three Floating City, which was known as the most prosperous area of the Alliance.

Even the Main Tournament of the Champion Mage Challenge was held on Number Three Floating City.

"Please reschedule my duel for tomorrow afternoon."

"Okay, I've applied for it for you..."

On the other side of the Duel Arena exit, Warren staggered out and saw several of his friends sitting on the sofa chatting. He irritably squeezed between two mages.

"Warren, you're finally back. How did it go?"

Since Warren had gone in an hour earlier, the mage had long lost his sense of time while chatting with his friend, which is why he felt that Warren had been gone for a long time.

Seeing Warren's pale face, the other mage knew that the outcome might really be bad.

Before he could even speak, Warren interrupted and answered:

"We let her win 3-0. There was nothing we could do; she's just too strong."

"3-0!! Warren, weren't you prepared? How did it become 3-0?"

Warren found an unopened bottle of deluxe liquor on the table, opened it with magic, and then chug it down his throat.

"Don't drink it like that! Let us have some too..."

After a flurry of activity, Warren, under questioning from his friends, began to recount the details of the battle that had just taken place.

"I didn't believe what those mages said at first, that her casting speed was so fast that you couldn't even cast a shield..."

"But in my first match against her, I realized I was wrong. Her casting speed really is that fast. I estimate she's about 30% faster than a normal Second Order Mage."

"Is it really that fast? Is it Spirit Realm Talent or a special mage Profession? Have you found any relevant information?"

A monk asked.

Warren pursed his lips and didn't answer; his expression seemed to say, "I don't know."

Then, Warren took a sip of his drink and continued:

"I originally used the first two rounds to gather information about her. In the first round, I learned that she really did have such a fast casting speed. In the second round, I learned that her spell accuracy was very high, and she was outstanding among mages..."

"In the third round, I took advantage of her fighting style, defended against several of her attacks, and successfully activated the Alchemy School's [Metal Essence] defense."

At this point, one of the mages couldn't help but complain:

"You've even brought out this thing, why haven't you won yet?"

"Exactly. I remember when the Elemental School were at the second tier, they didn't seem to have any specific spells to counter such strong defenses, right? To break through your shield, they'd have to cast at least three or four spells. By then, you would have won long ago."

Warren rolled his eyes at them, then slowly said:

"That's what I thought too. After I drank that expensive bottle of Metal Essence, I felt I had it in the bag. Then my opponent, that Elemental School mage, showed me his powerful Mental Power..."

His friend fell silent, because when Elemental School possessed powerful Mental Power, they often belonged to the renowned Yobner Society within the Elemental School.

"The mages of the Yobner Society, don't they have their own internal promotion paths? Why are they competing with us for the Champion Mage spot?"

"Perhaps she didn't qualify for promotion to the Yobner Society, so she's trying to rely on this Champion Mage Challenge."

"What kind of utter nonsense is that? She could beat Warren, how could she not get the internal promotion knowledge..."

Generally speaking, mages from the University Association don't participate in the Champion Mage Challenge. In fact, many mages who have access to the third-tier Promotion Method don't choose the Champion Mage Challenge as their path to advancement.

Because no matter how difficult the internal promotion methods of those schools are, they are not as difficult as the current Champion Mage Challenge.

There are over four thousand contestants in the Preliminaries with scores above 100. No matter how much magical advantage those University Association mages have, can that advantage really compare to those with over a hundred years of dueling experience?

Therefore, those University Association and mages who can find other ways to advance to the third tier will not choose the path of the Champion Mage Challenge.

This path is far too difficult. Even the most powerful mages have to admit that the mage who ultimately wins the championship certainly had a significant element of luck.

So, back to why that wizard from the Yobner Society would participate in this Preliminaries: if that wizard could defeat Warren so easily.

This is enough to show that she is absolutely Talent in magic. Moreover, she can also use the advanced technique of Elemental Conversion. A mage like her should have already obtained a simpler Promotion Method the ranks.

The most prominent feature of the Champion Mage Challenge is its low entry barrier; its advancement difficulty can definitely be said to be the pinnacle of the difficulty for advancing to the Third Order Mage.

"Why would a mage from the Yobner Society compete with these people for a spot in the Champion Mage Challenge?"

One mage said indignantly, "These Magic Duel, to put it nicely, have a high Talent for fighting, but in reality, they have no other choice but to participate in this competition if they want to advance."

In the Alliance, there are generally only three paths to gain the knowledge needed for advancement.

The path to management requires perseverance, and even after perseverance, there's no guarantee of promotion. Therefore, most mages don't expect to advance through this path.

The path of a researcher requires a lot of Talent. Talent mages excel in this field, making it a breeze for them. It is also the most difficult path for ordinary mages.

The last path is to join the Alliance's Battle Mage Corps, where one can work normally and steadily for hundreds of years without necessarily obtaining Promotion Method.

To get Promotion Method here, you have to participate in special operations with double-digit death rates. If you can stay in particularly dangerous places for two years, you might be able to get promoted.

However, that was far too dangerous, several times more dangerous than Magic Duel lacking proper protection.

Therefore, many mages, lacking both Talent and the willingness to risk their lives in Battle Mage Corps for Promotion Method, are forced to spend Gold Coin to participate in the Champion Mage Challenge and gamble for a chance.

This has led to the Champion Mage Challenge becoming what it is today, with more and more mages participating in the Preliminaries, including even mages from academies like the Yobner Society.

"But has she now achieved a 10-game winning streak of 3-0?"

One of the monks raised an eyebrow and asked slowly.

Warren already knew his friend's plan; since he had failed, his friend could seize this opportunity.

"Yes, you should hurry and go find the front desk, otherwise other mages who want to make a name for themselves will beat you to it, and that wouldn't be good."

Two mages immediately ran to the front of the stage. If they could really end Fran's winning streak, even by just one game, it would greatly enhance their reputation and make them eligible for more funding.