Lu Yin used Flash-Step to appear right in front of Uro. "Sorry, but please hand over the Bottomless Pool." As he spoke, he struck with a palm. As the palm emerged, the stars appeared, and his hand was even wreathed in battle-qi. Uro's expression changed drastically. He crossed his arms to block. Phht! He was smashed into the mountain wall, then through it, slamming hard into the ground, his arms in agony.
He gritted his teeth in anger. Another battle-qi expert! Where did the Tenth Academy get so many freaks?
In that instant, a shadow fell over him. Another palm print pressed down. This time, it wasn't Lu Yin, but Xia Luo.
Uro roared, raising his own palm. A Fire Realm technique—Huo Hai Fen Tian (Sea of Fire Burns the Heavens)! He transformed Star Energy into flames, plunging Xia Luo and a thousand-meter radius into a sea of fire, even igniting the valley, attempting to counter-injure Xia Luo. However, his palm strike inexplicably dissipated as it approached Xia Luo. The Star Energy... had been resolved.
If it were a student from another academy, they might have been stunned. But not Uro. He was a student of the Sixth Academy, the academy that housed almost all of the Starry Sky Academy's Lockbreakers. He was all too familiar with this scene. This was a Lockbreaker's technique: resolving Star Energy. There was even a Lockbreaker among them!
Uro was blasted into the ground once again.
The five attacked relentlessly. Facing a peak Limiteer expert like Uro—even if they could fight above their level—it was still very difficult for any single Domain Master to withstand. It was impressive that Uro wasn't dead.
Lu Yin's group stood quietly, looking at the ground. Uro possessed the "Chi You" spirit-type talent. His true strength was only now beginning to show.
Chi You was a red-furred strange beast, shaped like a fox and wreathed in flames. A third eye grew on its forehead, capable of spitting extreme high temperatures. It was a very strong beast.
A sharp "Hsss" sound rang out. The earth shattered, and flames erupted from the cracks. Uro shot out from the ground, disheveled and ferocious, a phantom of a Chi You behind him. "You Tenth Academy bastards! I'll slaughter you!" With a roar, the One-Pattern Battle-Qi on Uro's body became even more distinct. He shot toward Lu Yin. He had realized this was the one who said he wanted to seize the Trial Site.
Lu Yin's eyes turned cold. He used the Heavenly Star Palm again, nine stars revolving, wreathed in battle-qi, and clashed with Uro. As their battle-qi collided, a shockwave swept the ground, spreading into the distance and tearing the black earth.
More than ten kilometers away, Wu Da stared in shock. A crack had appeared at his feet. His eyes lit up with excitement. A big battle! Thinking this, he immediately rushed forward.
Boom! The ground exploded. Lu Yin and Uro were pressed into the earth. Lu Yin's battle-qi was a level weaker than Uro's, but the Heavenly Star Palm compensated for it, and was even stronger. Uro's organs trembled. He suppressed his shock, a cruel light in his eyes. The third eye of the Chi You phantom behind him locked onto Lu Yin. Lu Yin's scalp tingled. He tried to Flash-Step away but was grabbed by Uro.
Just as the Chi You phantom's third eye shot out a red beam of light, the silvery-white brilliance flashed again. It didn't attack Uro, but instead slashed directly at the red beam, deflecting its trajectory by a few centimeters. The beam grazed Lu Yin's forehead and shot into the ground, instantly melting the black earth.
Uro was furious, striking at Yin with his palm.
Behind him, another Red Lotus (Hong Lian) arrow shot out, targeting not only Uro but also engulfing Yin. Yin didn't retreat. He "ngạnh sanh sanh" (stiffly endured) Uro's palm strike, grabbed him, and smiled. "Let's... die together."
Uro's pupils shrank. Madman! The Chi You phantom behind him turned, its third eye spitting a red beam that melted the Red Lotus arrow. It kicked Yin away. At the same time, Lu Yin's hand fiercely struck Uro's abdomen. His battle-qi was blocked by Uro's, but the explosive shockwave from the nine stars still heavily injured Uro.
Uro's body was sent flying again. He spat out a mouthful of blood in mid-air and crashed to the ground.
Xia Luo and Lulu appeared simultaneously, attacking with full force. Blood seeped from Uro's teeth. He roared. The Chi You phantom behind him exploded, and the extreme high temperature distorted the void, causing it to crack and pushing Xia Luo and Lulu back. Uro himself absorbed the extreme temperature, his body igniting in flames. He raised his hands, creating a fireball. The high temperature vaporized the ground.
Wu Da had just arrived, staring in shock at the scene. He recognized that man: Uro, the Domain Master of the Bottomless Pool, a Top 5 expert of the Sixth Academy. He was being beaten this badly!
"You're not qualified to kill me!" Uro roared, gripping the fireball with both hands and smashing it down toward Xia Luo and Lulu.
The fireball burned with the extreme high temperature condensed from Uro's talent. It burned the void, leaving spatial rifts in its wake and vaporizing the air. This was Uro's full-power attack. Even more terrifying, the fireball was wrapped in a wisp of battle-qi, compressing the attack even further.
This was an attack that only a Domain Master-level expert could block.
Wu Da was shaken. A Domain Master's full-power attack!
Xia Luo's expression was grave. He leaped up, facing the fireball with one palm, his arm moving in an irregular pattern. He first slowed the fireball's speed, simultaneously dissolving the wisp of battle-qi wrapped around it. He himself was forced back a hundred meters by the fireball, but in that hundred meters, the fireball had shrunk by a size.
Uro's expression was one of shock. Even a Lockbreaker shouldn't be able to dissolve his attack so easily. This person was definitely extraordinary. Was he really from the Tenth Academy?
In front of him, a green figure flashed. Lulu crossed space and appeared right in front of Uro. She raised her leg and stomped down hard.
Because Uro had just used his full-power attack, not only was his battle-qi severely depleted, but his reaction speed was also a beat slower. He couldn't dodge, only raise his arms to block.
Bang! The earth shattered again. Uro's entire body was blasted deep into the ground. The surrounding valley crumbled.
Wu Da was almost buried, but he still stared excitedly at the scene. A battle for a Domain Master position! It was so rare. He never thought he'd see one just days after the fight for Blackwater Lake.
The moment Uro was stomped into the ground by Lulu, Yin appeared. His butterfly knives flashed, slashing across Uro's neck and leaving a bloody welt. That slash was too fast. Even if Uro saw it, he couldn't block it. Yin had completely seen through his weakness. At the same time, the void-beast roared, and the Heavenly Beast Claw pressed down. From the distance, the Red Lotus arrow shot out. Both struck the ground, shaking the entire land.
At this moment, after retreating 300 meters, Xia Luo finally dissolved the fireball that held Uro's full power.
The scene fell silent. The group looked at the ground, all letting out a breath. There was no way Uro could have survived, even if he was a Domain Master.
Although they were only Melders, they could all fight above their level, and not just in a normal way. They were all monstrous prodigies. One-on-one, they might not be a Domain Master's match, but when they teamed up, no one could underestimate them.
Mentor Sha Hai had said it: the Tenth Academy had recruited a group of true geniuses. These individuals would be outstanding even if placed in other academies.
...
At this moment, in a crater on the Starry Sky Sixth Academy's Zone Mountain, Uro's eyes snapped open, filled with bloodshot veins. He roared madly, "Tenth Academy! TENTH ACADEMY..."
Uro's roar stunned the many students on the Zone Mountain. They all looked up.
There was an unwritten rule on the Zone Mountain: the stronger you were, the higher up you stayed. Only the strong could stand above all.
Uro was one of the strongest in the Sixth Academy, second only to the Zone Master, and ranked in the Top 5. His position was naturally at the very top.
Not far below Uro, Gass rolled his eyes. Psycho, scared the crap out of me. By my calculations, I can go back in. Such bad luck, to actually die at Blackwater Lake.
...
Outside the Bottomless Pool valley, the group confirmed Uro's death. Lu Yin exhaled. Good. My decision to cooperate with them was correct. In this team-up, I didn't even have to do much. If it had been Shuz and Keke, I would have had to be the main attacker.
"Brother Lu, we've seized the Bottomless Pool. What's next? Uro will never accept this," Xia Luo said, his expression calm. Even after the battle with Uro, he didn't feel too exhausted.
The others all looked at Lu Yin.
Generally, seizing a Trial Site was an individual act. It was rare for people to team up, because even if the Domain Master was defeated, they could retaliate at any time. This group couldn't stay together forever. It was pointless.
Lu Yin shrugged. "Elder Cai's mission was to seize it, not hold it. If Uro comes back, we'll just give it back to him."
"Wouldn't all our effort be wasted then?" Yin said with a grin.
Lulu harrumphed. "My things don't get given to others. That's not how it works."
Michelle didn't speak, but her attitude was clear: she didn't want to give it back.
They were all proud. They had seized it. Giving it back would be humiliating.
"In that case, there's only one solution: guard the Bottomless Pool. Who's willing?" Lu Yin asked.
Xia Luo smiled. "I can. I want to comprehend battle-qi anyway, and I can use that power."
Lulu looked up. "I'll stay. The Bottomless Pool suits me."
"I can stay too," Yin smiled.
Michelle looked at Lu Yin indifferently. "Fulfill your promise first."
"I'll report to Elder Cai first. Whoever wants to stay, stay. This... is our territory," Lu Yin said with a wave of his hand, then left the Purgatory Path.
Michelle immediately left as well.
Xia Luo, Yin, and Lulu glanced at each other and walked toward the Bottomless Pool. In the future, that place would belong to the Tenth Academy.
...
In the distance, Wu Da was excited, muttering nonstop. He was memorizing, repeating the text he was about to publish, learning it by heart without missing a word. The news of the battle at the Bottomless Pool would definitely cause a sensation. After all, these people were all from the Tenth Academy. It was time to investigate their backgrounds.
...
Tenth Academy, Treasury Pavilion. Elder Cai raised an eyebrow. "You seized the Bottomless Pool?"
Opposite him, Lu Yin nodded. "Yes, I seized it."
Elder Cai grunted. "Good. Mission complete." Then, he stared at Lu Yin. "Kid, do you know why I gave you this mission?"
Lu Yin shook his head.
"The Ten Academies Tournament isn't just simple fighting. Besides determining the strongest in the Ten Academies, there's one other thing: determining the ranking of the Ten Academies," Elder Cai said slowly. Seeing Lu Yin's confusion, he continued, "In the end, the Starry Sky Academy is an academy, not a pure fighting machine. For an academy, the most important thing is education. Not just of one person, but of a group. Only by having many experts can an academy's educational success be proven."
"You mean... the Ten Academies Tournament requires all of us to cooperate?" Lu Yin was surprised.
Elder Cai nodded. "Of course. Even if you're recognized as the strongest in the Ten Academies, without the help of your classmates, you won't even make it into the final battle."
Lu Yin fell into thought.