Eastsea Academy!

The heavy hammer covered in golden scales crashed to the ground, smashing a spiderweb-like crack into the stone floor. It spread outward from where the hammerhead struck. Another pair of contestants was sent flying out of the arena, their backs slamming into the base of the railing before they slid down and sat there gasping for breath, hands braced on the ground, their knuckles still dusted with the grit kicked up during the fight.

"Eastsea Academy?!" Someone clutched his head in both hands.

"Yeah, we'd barely even heard of them before!"

"It's unbelievable. An undefeated record."

People in the stands whispered among themselves, their voices gathered beneath the arena dome before bouncing back into the ears of the staff clearing equipment at the edge of the field.

Eastsea Academy.

Over the years, it had always been like soda left in a wine cellar—not strong enough, not pure enough.

On the lists of established academies, its name was always in the last few rows, never something anyone bothered to look at.

Yet no one had expected that this chilled bottle of soda would deliver a kick on the first sip no weaker than any glass of hard liquor.

Nearly everyone was cheering for them. The sound surged from one side of the stands to the other, drowning out most of the whispers from the contestants who had yet to take the field.

The next match would be in the afternoon.

Tang Wulin versus Ye Xinglan.

The group left the arena. The corridor lights shone brilliantly upon them, making them seem even more dazzling than celebrities on a red carpet. Tang Wulin walked in front, his school uniform sleeves rolled up to his elbows, red marks from the recent fight still visible on his forearms. Gu Yue walked beside him, Xu Xiaoyan