Shu Er gave a sinister smile. "I tell you you're fat, and you start panting? A mere young demon dares to fight my Green Fang Snake, with its sixteen years of cultivation? You're asking for death! Green Fang Snake, spit venom!"
The Green Fang Snake, now six feet long, coiled into a formation. At Shu Er's command, it immediately opened its jaws and sprayed a streak of glimmering green venom.
"Dodge it. Use the Leaping Technique," Chu Yun ordered.
The venom shot out very quickly, almost as fast as Minor Pill Fire. But among venom, water bullets, and pill fire, venom was the slowest. Chu Yun's Heavenly Fox could dodge the Linked Pearls water bullets fired by a Martial Dao Crab with fifty-six years of cultivation. How could it fail to dodge venom?
The Heavenly Fox floated around the edge of the battlefield like snow flying through the air, effortlessly dodging one venom attack after another.
Wu Datou smiled. Thinking of all the sparring drills Chu Yun had asked him to put together, he finally understood. Chu Yun had long anticipated today's match and prepared for it in advance.
The Three Elders also nodded repeatedly, delighted to see that the Heavenly Fox had already trained its Leaping Technique to a high level in just three days. Dodging this venom posed no problem at all.
Lady Shu looked very unhappy. Tension showed between her brows. Unconsciously, she had risen from her chair and walked to the very edge of the battlefield.
We have to win! The first test had already let Chu Yun take first place. If he came in first again in the second test, there'd hardly be any point in holding the third!
She clenched her fists, waiting and hoping, having endured for decades until at last she had a chance to rise above the rest.
If we win this battle, we'll be tied. Then we can drag the result to the third round! Lady Shu silently encouraged herself. Shu Er had become her last hope.
Shu Er sneered at Chu Yun. "You coward. Can you do anything besides run?"
"Come on, if you've got the guts! Come here—I'll poison you to death!" He made no effort to hide his hostility. As far as he was concerned, he had Chu Yun completely under control. His Green Fang Snake was driving the Heavenly Fox around in a panic, leaving it no chance to strike back.
"You're too green, Chu Yun. You actually thought you could fight me! A demon beast match isn't just about the beasts themselves. You need money too! Hahaha! Do you have any Ascension Essence Pills? You were thrilled just to get one Foundation Strengthening Pill. I've used ten Ascension Essence Pills, and each one is worth more than your Foundation Strengthening Pill!"
"And take a look at this." He patted the Immortal Pouch hanging in plain sight and said smugly, "An Immortal Pouch. Do you have one? You don't even have a pouch to carry your demon beast! You penniless loser—what are you going to fight me with?"
"Stop putting on a brave face and surrender already. I don't want to waste my precious time here." Shu Er barely deigned to look at anyone, as arrogant as a rooster.
The crowd around them buzzed with discussion.
"Shu Er's no good. He gets a little money and turns into such a big shot!"
"This is so irritating. That little brat's the island master's son? Is he really his own flesh and blood?"
"People are always saying how cruel Lady Shu is to the island master's adopted son. I never believed them before, but now it looks like they were right."
"Ah, poor young master Chu Yun. With a stepmother and brother like that, it's no wonder he's suffered for all these years!"
The Three Elders wore grim expressions too. Shu Er was unbearably arrogant. They couldn't stand the sight of him.
Wu Datou remained expressionless, but quietly edged a few steps farther away from Lady Shu.
Lady Shu listened with a face like frost. She knew she had little standing on Shu Family Island to begin with. Once this magical arts match was over and the spectators went home, wouldn't the whole island hear about it?
So what? Standing means nothing to me. I don't need people's approval. I only need Shu Er to take first place and get into Heavenly Song Academy!
Her attention was entirely consumed by the battle in front of her. Everything else was a minor detail, not worth thinking about.
Shu Er kept provoking him, but Chu Yun merely smiled, deaf to his taunts. In Chu Yun's eyes, Shu Er was little more than a clown. A clown's bluster was only good for a laugh.
Chu Yun's temperament had long since been tempered into something calm and unshakable. The insults of a clown could not raise even the slightest ripple in his heart.
"Spitting venom is a magical art too, and it consumes quite a bit of demon essence. Much more than the Leaping Technique. If this keeps up, Shu Er will be the first to run out of strength," Old Red Spear said with a sudden laugh.
The other two elders felt the same.
Old Fish King gazed at Chu Yun in the arena and sighed. "I'm seeing more and more that this kid Chu Yun is no simple fellow! Look at how calm and composed he is. He must have figured it out too. He's trying to win against a stronger opponent by wearing him down."
Old Monkey Qiao's brows shot up. He looked as proud as if someone had just praised his grandson. "Old Fish King, that's stating the obvious! Chu Yun is the island master's son, so of course he's no simple fellow. Shu Er, heh, won't be a match for Chu Yun either."
"The real key is that his Fire Fox is so heavily mutated. It can actually ignore the effects of rank suppression. That's what lets it keep this up. Sigh, I don't know whether that's a blessing or a curse. The mutated Fire Fox has such excellent aptitude, but it won't get far."
Old Red Spear sighed. They all attributed the Heavenly Fox's unusual performance to its "mutation."
Mutated demon beasts truly couldn't be judged by ordinary standards.
They had no idea that the Fire Fox before them was a Supreme-Grade Demon Beast. It wouldn't even occur to them. In their minds, a Supreme-Grade Demon Beast was a treasure found once in ten thousand—a creature no one would encounter in an entire lifetime. At best, they might hear of one in a legend. It was far too distant from their world.
Besides, even Supreme-Grade Demon Beasts were still affected by rank suppression.
Few people could see how the battle would unfold. Apart from the Three Elders, who had extensive combat experience, only Wu Datou, the Spirit Beast Masters at the Earth Altar, and a handful of others had noticed.
One of the four Spirit Beast Masters guarding Lady Shu furrowed his brow. He wanted to speak up, but after seeing her expression, wisely thought better of it.
Lady Shu's eyes shone, and her breathing quickened. She could see hope—real hope!
The sight of the Green Fang Snake driving the Heavenly Fox around in all directions had been etched into her mind. She wasn't a Spirit Beast Master, of course, and lacked the trained eye to read how the battle was developing.
All she saw was the Green Fang Snake dominating the fight, with the Heavenly Fox on the verge of defeat.
Her heart pounded, her face full of hope.
There's hope. There's still hope! she cried to herself.
"There's no hope. You've already lost!" Shu Er jeered too. He glanced sideways at Chu Yun, looking at him as if he were a servant—or an ant.
Chu Yun remained calm and unbothered. His gaze rested on the arena, but his thoughts had already drifted elsewhere.
I'll take first place in this test. Even if I come in last in the third and final test, I'll still win overall. Getting into Heavenly Song Academy is practically settled. It'll be crucial to my plans and a tremendous help. But the Heavenly Fox's cultivation is a little low... After this battle, I'll head back into the island's forest and give its cultivation a proper boost.
First place was already all but certain. Chu Yun had the small battle unfolding before him firmly in hand, though hardly anyone present could see it.
Sure enough, as the battle dragged on, Shu Er's expression began to change.
He could clearly feel his Green Fang Snake tiring and its demon essence running low. Meanwhile, the other side's Fire Fox was still lively and energetic, its fighting strength intact.
"Damn it." He narrowed his eyes, finally realizing something was wrong, and issued a new command. "Green Fang Snake, use the Slithering Technique. Get close to it before spraying venom."
Chu Yun smiled, a trace of mockery flashing in his eyes. You only noticed now? Isn't it a little late?
The Green Fang Snake dropped its coiled formation. Its green body slithered toward the Heavenly Fox.
The Heavenly Fox hadn't received a new command from its master, so it naturally followed its original instructions and kept dodging with the Leaping Technique. It jumped and shifted position again and again, but even after the Green Fang Snake had slithered around for a good while, it hadn't managed to close the distance.
The circular battlefield on the Earth Altar had no theoretical blind spots. The Heavenly Fox made perfect use of that.
A moment later, Shu Er's face turned livid. He shouted, "Chu Yun, you coward! Do you dare to stop and fight me head-on?"
Chu Yun sneered without a word.
Another moment passed, but the battle still hadn't progressed. Shu Er flew into a rage and roared, "Chu Yun, you spineless coward! What's the point of running away? If you're a man, turn around and fight me!"
Chu Yun didn't move.
Lady Shu was unhappy too. She shouted, "Running away won't solve anything. Chu Yun, stop stalling. You've already lost. Struggling is useless!"
Some spectators had grown bored too, and chimed in. "That's right, turn around and fight! Running away won't win you the match. This is so dull."
"Hmph, what do ignorant children know? This is a strategy! A war of attrition, understand? Which side is using up more energy? The longer this goes on, the better it is for the Fire Fox. Stop shouting nonsense and embarrassing Shu Family Island!" An expert who knew what he was talking about spoke up.
His words stirred up a thousand waves.
It was as if he had pierced the paper over a window, suddenly enlightening a great many people.
By this point, the battle's direction was almost clear. The Fire Fox's advantage was gradually becoming apparent.
"Oh! I see it now too. What a strategy—a war of attrition, winning against a stronger opponent. Impressive!" someone exclaimed, slapping his forehead.
"I knew something felt off. So that's what's going on!" someone said, slapping his thigh.
Of course, some people still didn't understand. But now they didn't dare say a word. The tide of opinion had turned. Better to hide one's ignorance than to make a fool of oneself.
Lady Shu looked utterly unconvinced.
"No way! What kind of eyes do you people have? My son's Green Fang Snake clearly has the upper hand!" She turned around and loudly protested.
Immediately, someone in the crowd gave a cold laugh. "The upper hand? Lady Shu, turn around and take another look. Which side has the upper hand?"
Lady Shu turned around. Her whole body jolted. Stunned and speechless, she stared in disbelief at what was happening on the battlefield.
The Heavenly Fox's counterattack had begun!