198 Struggle to the End!

“Yes.” Tang Wulin, Mu Xi and a few other youngsters said respectfully.

In the sea of green that was this group of blacksmiths, Mu Xi stood outbrightly as a speck of red—the only woman among them.  

After listening to Cen Yue’s warnings, Tang Wulin and Mu Xi set off.

“Good luck, junior disciple brother!” Mu Xi rubbed Tang Wulin’s head andpinched his cheeks before releasing him.

Helpless to the pinching, Tang Wulin began to miss her frigid disposition. Atleast back then, his cheeks were spared.

He could feel the shift in atmosphere at their hotel as the start of thetournament drew near.

Nearly all of the hotel’s patrons were here for the event. Besidesparticipants from Eastsea City there were also numerous people from otherplaces, all preparing hastily.

When he returned to his room, Tang Wulin was greeted by Xie Xie’s tremendoussnoring, the culprit already sound asleep. Starfished on the bed, he barelyresembled a human.

Tang Wulin descended on his own mattress. Instead of pulling at the coattailsof slumber, he sat cross-legged and peered out the window. His gaze wanderedpast the sharp edges of the deep blue sea, zigzagging across the surface to noend. The rush and ebb of the tide granted him a peace of mind. He shut his eyesslowly and began meditating.

Just as the clumsy bird flies early to the forest, he could not squander anyopportunity to cultivate. Blacksmithing, on the other hand, was not a problem.As Cen Yue had informed him, finding anyone who could surpass his craft at hisage was like searching for a needle in a haystack.

Although he would be advancing through the competition with Mu Xi, Tang Wulinunderstood that when the final rounds approached he would need to carefullymake a decision. If Mu Xi seemed to have a shot at becoming the champion, thenhe would yield the spot to her. However, in the event that Mu Xi could notproceed, he would remove his handicap, aiming for victory instead.

As for the soul master’s competition, he could not shake off his nervousness.Despite being considered pretty formidable among his peers, he would be facingsoul masters several years older than him in the Skysea Alliance Tournament!The difference in cultivation from a single year was tremendous. He could onlyimagine what a gap of five years would be like.

While wielding three rings, Mu Xi only hoped to place in the top eight. Hepossessed one ring and his teammates held two at most. Just how far could hehope to go?

At the very least, we can’t lose in the knockout phase! That would be toodepressing for both us and Teacher Wu.

I’ve got to do my best! Struggle to the very end!

Tang Wulin dispelled such distracting thoughts. Regardless of what happens,I’ll persevere! 

The opening ceremony of the Skysea Alliance Tournament was held in SkyseaStadium. It was the largest stadium in the Skysea Alliance, boasting a maximumseating capacity of eighty-thousand people.

For the economic bloc that was Eastsea Alliance, the Skysea AllianceTournament was a grand occasion that the entire federation paid attention to.Outstanding geniuses would emerge each time the tournament was held.

In reality, the Skysea Alliance Tournament’s original goal was to filterthrough the masses for geniuses to raise. Then they would be groomed intopillars of the alliance.

Within the Federation existed a myriad of factions, with the Skysea Alliancebeing one of the greater ones. Economic-wise, though, it stood as one of theFederation’s major players.

In spite of its economic power, the Skysea Alliance was not satisfied.Although it was easy to jumpstart the economy, building a sturdy foundation wasa different story. Not to mention, they had started developing later than otherregions. The continent’s mainland was filled with major cities, each possessingthousands to tens of thousands of years of history. These cities were litteredwith countless ancient clans that raised powerful geniuses with profoundbackgrounds.

Due to its difference in history, the Skysea Alliance was woefully deficientin talents. In fact, the quality and quantity of its geniuses were beginning todecline.

All of the powerful experts were found inland. Only able to boast of itseconomic might, the Skysea Alliance could not be considered powerful by anymeans and hovered around the continent’s middle levels of prominence.

But how could the Skysea Alliance resign itself to lose in power and prestige?In a bid to select and grow talents, the Alliance established the SkyseaAlliance Tournament roughly two hundred years ago. They offered not only agenerous amount of prize money but some unique prizes as well. This way, thetalents would receive the support needed to further pursue their paths, whichwould bolster the Alliance’s strength.

At the crack of dawn, representatives from the various cities flooded into thestadium.

The arena was gigantic, hordes of people teeming within as far as the eyecould see. The terrace had long since been filled with spectators.It was TangWulin’s first time in such a grand stadium. Excitement permeated the air as theopening ceremony proceeded. Surrounded by so many taller people, Tang Wulincould hardly see what was happening. He could only hear a few encouraging wordsthat marked the end of the ceremony.

Next came the drawing of lots for the various competitions.

This matter was handled by the teachers, leaving class zero twiddling theirthumbs.

The stadium erupted with joy as a platform was rapidly built in the center.

“What are they doing?” Tang Wulin asked Xie Xie.

Xie Xie answered, “Right, you wouldn’t know about this. They’re about to holdan exhibition match. I heard they paid an enormous sum to invite some powerfulpeople from Shrek Academy this time. Their opponents will be the champions ofthe seven-man team competition from the last tournament. The Alliance is doingthis to show everyone the gap between our strengths. Though, I’m not sure ifthis is the best decision.”

Gu Yue cut in from the side, “Why do you think so?”

Xie Xie simply shrugged. “Isn’t it obvious? Within a certain range, the gap instrength can be encouraging, but once the gap surpasses a certain level, ittransforms into a chasm. It’ll be an insurmountable reminder that onlydiscourages people.”

A giggle escaped from Xu Xiaoyan’s lips. “You sure know how to explain things.You’re just a child and you’ve already thought it out. Don’t you think theAlliance’s higher-ups would have come to the same conclusion? I bet they havesome plan in place on how to handle this.”

“I’m starving. Does anyone have anything to eat?” A voice sounded out suddenly.

Tang Wulin turned toward the source of the noise and saw a little fattyscurrying about the crowd, asking random strangers for food as they passed by.

“Huh. Another glutton has appeared.” Xu Xiaoyan absentmindedly said.

Xie Xie coughed. “Xiaoyan! You really have a way with words.”

Xu Xiaoyan realized her indiscretion. She hastily pursed her cherry-red lipsand stuck out her tongue.

Tang Wulin didn’t mind the quip since there was no denying he was a glutton.He walked toward the little fatty.

“Here, eat this.” Tang Wulin handed him some dried fish.

Due to his high energy consumption, Tang Wulin always carried some snacks onhim like dried fish, beef jerky and other portable foods loaded in protein andcalories.

“Thank you, thank you.” The little fatty’s eyes lit up at the sight of thesnack. He immediately began devouring it while nodding in satisfaction.

Seeing the little fatty eating so happily, Tang Wulin couldn’t help but feel asimilar urge overtake his body. Unable to fight it, he started nibbling on somefish too.

“It’s pretty tasty! There isn’t any dried fish as good as this where I’m from.Thank you, big brother.” The little fatty looked around Tang Wulin’s age andhad a way with flattery.

“You don’t need to call me big brother. My name is Tang Wulin. You might evenbe a bit older than me. How old are you?” Tang Wulin asked.

The little fatty said, “I just turned ten. How much older than me are you?There’s no way you’re younger, right?” He stood half a head shorter than TangWulin.