novelraw Chapter 325: The First Elimination Match — Lonia Academy!
Chapter 325: The First Elimination Match — Lonia Academy!
Although the group stage had ended smoothly, there was still the more important elimination round ahead, so no one relaxed. After a simple meal, they all returned to rest early.
In the evening, the extra training sessions were, of course, still indispensable.
Lin Mo's Constitution attribute had now reached a very impressive level. Coupled with his equally high Spirit attribute and the rapid-rest method of "Meditation," for him, staying awake for several consecutive days was no longer a problem.
When he did sleep, just two or three hours were completely sufficient.
The vast amount of remaining time was naturally used to help a certain "little glutton" make progress.
The results were naturally gratifying.
After evolving from "Shared Cultivation" to "Dual Cultivation," the effects had once again received a significant boost. Moreover, it allowed for learning each other's Exceptional-Grade Skills during the process. The imposing "Parry and Flash" that Ellie had used previously was precisely learned from Lin Mo.
Simultaneously, Lin Mo had also gained a considerable amount of proficiency in several skills through this method. Calculating it, the progress wasn't slow at all, almost comparable to going to the outskirts of the Silent Forest to kill those not-so-high-level monsters.
The "Dual Cultivation" skill had already reached Level 3, its improvement speed equally astonishing.
Others, such as the "Attribute Enhancement" skill reaching Level 5, "Shield Against Demons" being learned by Finnie and raised to Level 3, and on the warrior skill side, Ellie had learned "Crag Breaking Strike," also helping Lin Mo level this skill to Level 2.What was rather unfortunate was that the team currently lacked a Mage Professional, so Lin Mo couldn't use this method to improve his spell proficiency.
Thinking about these matters, Instructor Flora's enchanting face involuntarily surfaced in Lin Mo's mind...
...Forget it, better get up quickly. It's getting late.
Lin Mo casually squeezed the softness in his palm, sitting up amidst Finnie's delicate cry, letting Sherfilia help him wash up and get dressed.
After fermenting overnight, the news that the Doria Kingdom Academy had upset a previous top-eight team and forcefully advanced to the elimination round had now spread throughout the entire Imperial Capital and surrounding cities, becoming a topic of conversation for many during their leisure time.
Not only that, the message had also been transmitted via magic communication to neighboring kingdoms, which naturally included the "party involved," the Doria Kingdom.
This heartening news was akin to an "earth-shattering" major event for a small kingdom like Doria.
The streets of the entire Royal Capital were filled with noise and endless sounds of celebration.
The Kingdom was already popping champagne, but over in the Empire, the Academy Grand Competition continued.
The elimination round arena was set in the Violet Empire Academy's largest main venue, which they had visited during the opening ceremony.
At this moment, the spectator stands were packed. Besides the contestants, numerous high-ranking officials and nobles from the Empire and various Kingdoms had gathered here, their gazes all focused on the central stage. The air was filled with a tension far more intense than during the group stage.
The elimination round adopted a "single-elimination format," one match decides victory or defeat. If you lose, you directly bid farewell to the competition, preparing early for the next one.
Apart from the few extremely confident academies, the vast majority of contestants were very nervous.
The intensity of the elimination round was completely on a different level from the group stage.
Not only were the opponents stronger, but because it was a melee, the situation was also more chaotic. It wasn't like a one-on-one where you could devote yourself entirely to the fight in front of you. You needed to be constantly vigilant of your surroundings, consider coordination with your teammates, and even tactical planning, etc.
Amidst that tense atmosphere, the draw ceremony concluded.
"Imperial First Academy, versus Donis Kingdom Academy!"
"Pfft—"
Flora beside him couldn't hold back and directly laughed out loud.
This Donis Kingdom really had the worst luck. They were the first to encounter them in the group stage and lost miserably. Relying on having one fairly strong instructor in their team, they scored quite a few points in the instructor group stage, barely squeezing into the elimination round. And now, right off the bat, they had to face the strongest Imperial First Academy. This luck... really, no one else had it.
The many contestants from Donis Kingdom immediately looked as if they were mourning their parents. If the elimination round didn't allow direct surrender, they probably wouldn't even have the heart to fight.
That was the Imperial First Academy! Even their weakest student was Level 13! The instructors at their academy might not necessarily be able to beat the strongest few students...
What the hell were they supposed to fight with?
"Imperial Second Academy, versus..."
The draw continued, and soon it was their turn.
The students from the Kingdom, including Elvish and the many instructors, nervously awaited the result.
"Give us a weak one, there's still a medium-sized kingdom left, draw it for us!"
"Yeah, yeah, we're the only small kingdom in the elimination round, give us a weak draw!"
"..."
Amidst everyone's prayers, on the stage, the draw result was announced.
"Doria Kingdom Academy, first-round match versus... Lonia Kingdom Academy!"
"Oh?"
Lin Mo raised an eyebrow. What was this... fate bringing enemies together?
The Lonia Kingdom was precisely that large kingdom that had previously participated in the Hunting Competition. Back then, they had sent a few of their weaker members to show off, only to have their faces thoroughly slapped, not even making it into the top three.
Over on the Lonia Kingdom side, the old dean leading the team revealed a smile upon hearing their opponent was Doria Kingdom.
The face they lost last time at the Hunting Competition, this time he was going to get it all back!
Of course, he was aware of Doria Kingdom's performance in the group stage, but so what?
Once you enter the elimination round, the strength of the students isn't that important anymore, at most accounting for fifty percent, and sometimes only forty or thirty percent.
The key to victory lies in the strength of the instructors!
Among those instructors from Doria Kingdom, there simply weren't any strong ones. With a total of five instructors—one Level 14, two Level 15, two Level 16... this configuration held no competitive edge whatsoever before their kingdom.
Their kingdom had one Level 15, two Level 16, one Level 18, and one Level 20!
The disparity in strength was self-evident.
Of course, even so, he wouldn't let his guard down. Necessary discussions on countermeasures and tactics would not be lacking.
Their two kingdoms' match happened to be drawn as the first one to be fought.
On either side of the stage, the two teams entered in turn.
On Doria Kingdom's side, they couldn't even field ten students, their momentum clearly weaker than the opposing side by a few degrees.
But the expressions on the faces of the few walking at the very front were filled with confidence.
Lonia Kingdom, of course, didn't show weakness either. The tall, middle-aged Mage leading their team observed this side with a cold, stern expression. His gaze swept over the Doria Kingdom members, lingering briefly on Lin Mo and Ellie, a flicker of contemplation in his eyes. He then summoned his students and the other instructors to begin discussing tactics.
The pre-match preparation time wasn't long. A few minutes later, the instructors from both sides first left the stage, leaving only the students facing off against each other.
The referees then ascended the stage. Unlike the group stage, the elimination round had two referees. One was burly, with bulging muscles all over, and the other wore mage robes, exuding a gentle temperament.
A single glance told you they were both experts. If they weren't strong, it would be difficult to handle any unexpected incidents that might occur during the elimination round.
"Match begin!"
The brawny referee raised his hand high, then brought it down.
The match officially began, but neither side rashly attacked. Instead, they first observed their opponents while adjusting their own states.
Lin Mo stood at the rear of his team, clearly not planning to act so quickly. He wanted to see the opponent's movements first.
Soon, Lonia Kingdom took the initiative to attack.
Ten students pressed forward in one go. Among them, a few of the relatively weaker ones actually headed straight for Ellie.
What was the meaning of this? Delivering "kills"?
Ellie was momentarily stunned, but then unceremoniously took action without holding back. Her figure darted and weaved. Those students, only around Level 10, couldn't withstand more than a few moves even with her holding back, and were quickly defeated.
Lin Mo slightly furrowed his brow. He seemed to understand the opponent's intention.
Lonia Academy had directly lost three contestants in less than half a minute, which directly triggered the rule for instructors to enter the stage. The weakest Level 15 instructor from Lonia Academy then ascended the stage and joined the fight.
Clearly, they had planned this—intentionally sacrificing three first to directly bring an instructor into the match.
They understood clearly that relying solely on students, they couldn't defeat the team that had easily overcome the Lix Kingdom in the student arena competition.
But, what could a single Level 15 instructor do?
Watching that Level 15 instructor go after Ellie, Lin Mo gave a disdainful smile and shook his head.
The battle had fully commenced. Apart from Ellie's side, the top-tier students from Lonia Kingdom actually headed straight for Eve and his own position.
Wanting to quickly break their core strength?
Lin Mo still wasn't in a hurry to act. He didn't want to reveal his full strength for the time being. He would hide his strength and methods as much as possible; the more he hid, the more he could catch opponents off guard during crucial matches later.
Thus, he only displayed the strength already known from before, joining the fight, unhurriedly tangling with them.
Over on the other side, the mid-tier contestants from Lonia Kingdom went after the remaining members of Doria Kingdom.
These students, including Milun, were generally around Level 8, naturally no match for these opponents who were Level 10 or even Elite Level. But strangely, they merely surrounded Milun and the others, not really attacking much, nor were they in a hurry to defeat them.
Wanting to farm them?
Flora immediately saw through the opponent's plan. These few weaker students indeed posed little threat even if left alive. Letting them leave the stage early would instead allow their own instructors to come on.
Lonia Kingdom wanted that instructor to tie up Ellie, then have their top students take down Lin Mo and Eve first.
Just... could they really take them down?
Flora felt like laughing.
They still hadn't figured out who the biggest "tiger" was.
On the stage, the fight between Ellie and the Lonia Kingdom Academy instructor was nearing its end.
Even though both were Level 15, the opponent before her simply had no power to resist, like a little chick, easily handled by her.
Ellie didn't even need to use any powerful skills or moves. Relying solely on her own stats and the basic "Frost Slash," she could suppress and beat the opponent.
Meanwhile, over on Lin Mo's side, those students' actions were similarly not going smoothly.
The strongest few students from Lonia Kingdom did have some skill.
The leader was a Level 14 Mage, assisted by two Level 13s and one Level 12. Normally, taking them down should indeed be a matter of course.
But the reality was vastly different from what they imagined.
Even using only the performance of a Level 13 Swift Warrior, Lin Mo could easily handle the joint assault of one Level 14 Mage and one Level 13 Warrior, and still have energy to spare.
As for Eve and Sherfilia facing one Level 13 and one Level 12, logically they should be crushed. But with Finnie's magical support, Sherfilia, at Level 11, powerfully suppressed the opponent's Level 13 Warrior.
And while Eve wasn't a match for the Level 12 student, with Finnie's buffs, and the fact that the Level 12 was a Knight who didn't pose too great a threat to her, the battle situation actually reached a stalemate for a while.
Below the stage, the face of the Lonia Academy's leading dean grew increasingly ugly.
Soon, that Level 15 instructor had his arm severed by a slash from Ellie's sword. He hurriedly left the stage to let the Empire's Priests help treat him and reattach the severed limb.
Simultaneously, Milan and the others seemed to realize something, unwilling to hold the team back. They fought the opponents head-on. The few students from Lonia Academy, forced by necessity, could only strike and injure them.
Within a short minute, the situation on the field changed drastically.
Lonia Academy's instructor was defeated. Two more instructors entered the stage. On Doria Kingdom Academy's side, they also lost 4 students, bringing their first instructor onto the stage.
But this way, the disparity in strength between the two sides actually became even more pronounced.
After all, it was 2 instructors versus 1, and the opponents had one Level 16, while they had one Level 14.
That instructor understood this, so upon entering the stage, he immediately rushed to Lin Mo's side to "rescue" him. The two joined forces to quickly "take out" the two strongest students from Lonia Kingdom's side.
The two newly entered instructors from Lonia Kingdom Academy were instantly furious and attacked rapidly. Lin Mo, without the slightest hesitation, directly fled, "selling out" his own Level 14 instructor.
The audience below the stage was stunned.
"Woah? No way, he just sold him out like that?"
"Look at that instructor's expression, he's completely dumbfounded..."
"Hahaha... This Lin Mo is really something!"
"What 'something'? It was meaningless for him to stay anyway. Those were two Level 16 instructors. If he stayed, he'd just be a speed bump..."
That Level 14 instructor seemed to realize something, understanding that Lin Mo still wanted to hide his strength.
But you hiding means... what about me?
His face turned ashen as he looked at the two powerful instructors, the corner of his eye twitching.
Very quickly, this instructor received a severe beating and left the stage bruised and swollen.
Subsequently, on Doria Kingdom Academy's side, Flora and Amy entered the stage.
One water, one fire, two Level 15 Mages, plus Ellie—three Level 15s versus two Level 16s.
As for Lin Mo, he was still watching the show, not in a hurry to clear the field.
After all, if he also knocked the remaining few students of Lonia Kingdom Academy off the stage, forcing their Level 18 and Level 20 instructors to come on, then he would have no choice but to step up himself.
It had been a long time since he'd seen Flora in action. He wanted to appreciate Flora's strength from his current perspective... and also give Ellie, who lacked experience fighting Powerful Experts, some practical combat practice.
Put in the terms of a xuanhuan novel, Ellie's strength was forcibly "infused" into her, her foundation unstable. So it was best to consolidate it more...