At the critical moment, Wu Qianqiu barely managed to form an energy barrier in front of himself.
An immense force struck immediately afterward. The energy barrier shattered, and he was sent flying backward, crashing to the ground.
The spectators who had been cheering for Wu Qianqiu fell utterly silent.
After all, that bull had only two Demon Crystals embedded in it.
While Wu Qianqiu... had three.
Giving Wu Qianqiu almost no time to react, the burly man charged again, leaping up and bringing his fist down hard toward the ground with a piercing rush of wind.
A trickle of blood spilled from the corner of Wu Qianqiu's mouth. Gritting his teeth, he surged with energy and dragged his body two meters backward, barely avoiding the blow.
He rose, and the second Crystal Stone on the sheet of paper behind him flashed. A character appeared on the blank paper.
"Slash."
An invisible blade of energy materialized above the burly man's head and plunged down.
Immediately afterward, a second character appeared on the paper.
"Bind."
The burly man's body was abruptly restrained, leaving him able only to watch as the blade drew closer and closer to his forehead.
In the end, it stopped above his head and dissipated.
At the judges' table, Qian Shu looked grim. "Wu Qianqiu wins."
The overwhelming victory they had imagined never materialized. Instead, he had nearly suffered an unexpected defeat.
Yuan Qingshan fixed his calm gaze on Qian Shu, his expression icy. "The Education Department allocates quite a bit of funding to your Spirit Mind Academy every year, doesn't it? And all you've taught them is how to show off?"
There was no trace of joking in Yuan Qingshan at that moment. "Using good looks as a gimmick to recruit students, building hype around Wu Qianqiu before