Chapter 160: The First Half of the Finals

Black Feather was startled and thought to himself, "Adoptive father? ... Will he come in person tomorrow to present the awards?"

Yixin grievedly clutched his forehead, instantly feeling a crushing pressure. He kicked Black Feather's stool and said, "It looks like we have to win tomorrow ... otherwise, how could we ever show our faces to the old man ..."

Early the next morning, the very first match was the duel between Bai Shengye and Reina.

He was busy running around beneath the fighting ring, taking out the ample restorative potions he had prepared overnight from his medicine chest, and handing them out bottle by bottle to everyone.

"I've improved the formula; these are specially concentrated. Even if I get eliminated in this match, the medicinal effect will last well into the second half."

"Thank you for your hard work, preparing for the match while also making potions for everyone," Shen Zaiguo said thoughtfully.

"Just making thorough preparations," Bai Shengye smiled, though his expression was far from relaxed.

He hadn't felt this nervous even during his battle against the Poison Vulture. After all, pharmacology was his specialty, and he knew which antidote to use for every poison; everything was within his control without too much suspense.

This time, however, his opponent's strength was unknown, and furthermore, she was a whole realm higher than him. None of his other potions would be useful, leaving him to pin all his hopes on the amplification potions and stamina-recovery potions. Moreover, in the battle against the Poison Vulture, he had sustained severe injuries, and the internal energy within his body was not yet at its peak.

Black Feather patted him on the shoulder. "Show the momentum you used to defeat the Magma Behemoth!"

Bai Shengye smiled, waved his hand, and said, "When has this young master ever feared anyone? Don't worry."

At this moment, the team from the Royal Magic Academy appeared in the opposing waiting area.

The host announced:

"Respected audience members, friends who have come from afar! The annual Magic Tournament has finally ushered in its exciting grand finals! Competing for the title are the elite contestants from the Holy City Magic Academy and the Royal Magic Academy; the champion will be born among them! Now, let us welcome the first pair of contestants for the first half of the match: the lightning-attribute mage Reina, and the ice-attribute mage Bai Shengye, to the stage!"

The surrounding spectator stands were packed to capacity. Amidst the cheers, Bai Shengye stepped onto the arena.

The cross-body bag at his side was stuffed to the brim with mana-replenishing potions. In this round, he had to give it his absolute all.

After Reina stepped onto the stage, the staff behind her flashed with several bolts of lightning, her arrogant demeanor exposed for all to see as she lifted her chin and said:

"Let's make this quick and decisive, handsome! My time is very precious, you know!"

She picked up her staff, stood firmly, and before the host could even say "Begin," she lunged forward.

The host, who had still wanted to make some introductions, saw Reina's stance and hurriedly shouted:

"The match be... begin!"

Bai Shengye let out a contemptuous chuckle: "Such an impatient chick, skipping the foreplay entirely." His staff instantly morphed into its second form.

"Dragon of Ice Breath!"

A phantom of an ice dragon soared up from behind him, exhaling a mist of frost. Through these days of combat, his ice dragon form had also evolved, appearing much more solid with the crystal-clear scales on its wings plainly visible.

Who among those still standing on the finals stage was not one in a hundred chosen强者? Right from the start, the two of them unleashed their strongest techniques to clash.

"Lightning Descent!"

Reina also fully activated her lightning power, and several terrifying bolts of thunder plummeted simultaneously from directly above Bai Shengye's head.

"Ice Dragon Guard!"

Layer upon layer of ice walls continuously formed along the spine of the ice dragon. Although they were blasted to pieces by the lightning, they instantly closed up again. Below them, Bai Shengye waved his hands, sending frigid glaciers surging from the ground toward Reina.

"She's strong..." Bai Shengye thought to himself, enduring the immense pressure bearing down from above. "As expected of peak strength; she managed to shatter my ice dragon defense. It seems her mana intensity is superior to mine."

"Chain Lightning!"

Seeing that the lightning from above was not enough to harm Bai Shengye, Reina unleashed a second skill simultaneously, moving swiftly in an arc to close the distance to him.

Several flashing balls of lightning formed in the air, a glowing chain connecting Reina's palm to Bai Shengye's body as crackling orbs of electricity raced rapidly along the chain, continuously striking at Bai Shengye.

The characteristic of this move was that it locked the enemy down with a lightning chain, leaving them nowhere to dodge. Although Bai Shengye's body was left numb from the electric shocks, the lightning chain simultaneously shortened the distance between Reina and himself, making it convenient for him to deploy his Frozen Hell.

"Frozen Hell!"

Howling gales enveloped Reina from all directions. The ground beneath her feet froze instantly, and her previously rapid movement speed slowed down drastically.

"Great! She has entered the range of the Frozen Hell, we should win this!" Ling Xiaolei said nervously from beneath the stage, everyone's eyes filled with anticipation.

Bai Shengye locked onto Reina's position with his staff, continually centering the eye of the storm on her. As she ran, her feet were hindered by the wind and snow, and the soles of her shoes were glued to the ground by rapidly forming frost, nearly causing her to stumble several times as her speed grew slower and slower.

Yet Reina did not reduce her attacks against Bai Shengye in the slightest, the lightning above continuing to pound down:

"Hmph, you're using both Ice Dragon Defense and Frozen Hell at the same time; your mana consumption must be huge. Let's see how long you can last!"

A dazzling expanse of lightning filled the heavens and earth.

Every time the ice dragon's defense overhead was shattered, Bai Shengye lost a considerable amount of mana, but his offense only grew stronger. Not only did the meandering glaciers formed by his Ice Blade Sword fiercely assault Reina, but he also accelerated the rate at which the ice layer condensed beneath her feet, suddenly causing clusters of ice spikes to erupt along her path, forcing her to dodge left and right.

When she stepped onto the ice surface once more, the speed at which she lifted her feet could no longer keep up with the freezing speed. The ice layer rapidly covered the tops of her feet and crept upward along her calves.

"Not good!"

She stumbled forward out of balance, and swirling snowflakes immediately piled up around her. The moment her elbows hit the ground, frigid ice shot up from the earth to encase her, freezing her into a sculpture in an instant.

Immediately following that came a merciless Ice Blade Sword, making the ice encasing her even thicker, followed by the wind and frost blades of the Frozen Hell, which steadily lowered the temperature of the body trapped within the ice.

"Freeze, frost and snow!"

Bai Shengye said in a cold voice, and the lightning above suddenly vanished.

"Well done!" Ling Xiaolei leaped up from beneath the stage, shouting to cheer him on.

"How can this be?" Renault couldn't believe his eyes. "Big sis is at peak strength; how could she be frozen by a mere pharmacist!"

The corners of Bai Shengye's lips curled upward as he steadily controlled the Frozen Hell in his hands, while simultaneously gulping down a mana-replenishing potion.

He thought to himself, "As long as she is completely frozen, this match is won!"

The chilling Qi continued to erode Reina's body. Through the thick layer of ice, her eyes were wide open, her face growing paler by the second. Suddenly, a fierce glare flashed in her gaze.

"Summon Lightning!..."

She shouted fiercely in her mind. A wave of lightning rippled outward from her entire body, and at the same time, she used her own power to summon a thunderbolt of judgment from the nine heavens. A dragon of lightning pierced through the space between heaven and earth, instantly shattering the ice layer to pieces!