When Ethan Chen opened his eyes again, he found himself standing in a dense forest. Towering trees reached up to the sky as if they could pierce it. Even the smallest tree was over ten meters tall, thick and robust—requiring nearly ten people holding hands to encircle the trunk.
"The competition has begun. From here on, it's all up to you." Ryan Ling, hands in his pockets, carried no weapons, and looked at Ethan and the others with a relaxed expression, full of trust and expectation. He gave them a thumbs-up for encouragement, then in a flash, disappeared from sight.
Once the match began, the three moved forward as previously agreed, with Ethan Chen taking the lead.
Moret quickly activated his wristband, projecting the map of the Forest of Direwolves onto the ground, then looked at Ethan. "Which marker should we head for?"
Although Moret had the strongest overall abilities among the three, their life strength had all been set at Level 5. In terms of pure martial skill, he was actually the weakest of the trio!
Before Ethan, the top martial skill in Liang City had always been held by Liu Bo of Liang City No. 2, known as the "Specialized War God." Moret was a well-rounded type—smart, physically capable, and skilled in arts. He knew when to act and when not to. Despite being Liang City's No. 1 overall, he did not flaunt his strength and willingly assumed the role of junior companion.
Ethan studied the star markers scattered across the map for a moment, then pointed to the nearest one. "Lucky, there's a badge really close to us."
"Then let's check if it's real or fake!" Moret and Liu Bo nodded simultaneously.
The three immediately set off, leaving the starting point behind and quickly advancing toward their target.
Harbor City No. 1 High School, Grand Auditorium.
Four massive screens formed a rectangle in the center, projecting images with a full 360-degree view. The seats were packed with students from grades one through three. Eyes fixed on the screens, they were both excited and eager.
The screen displayed the Tier 1 Spirit Realm—the Forest of Direwolves! The Spirit Realm wasn't isolated; with the current tech of high martial civilizations, interdimensional visual transmission was possible, though without sound.
Excitement came from having a day off from classes, and anticipation because they could see the school beauty, Kathy Zhou!
Kathy Zhou, a campus celebrity, came from an unparalleled family, possessed breathtaking beauty, and supreme talent. Even before adulthood, she had a loyal fanbase, and countless media companies had extended offers. Her fans never missed any of her competitions and were already seated in the stands, cheering for her.
"Take first place in one go, Senior Zhou!""Kathy Zhou! You're my goddess!""Kathy, Kathy, ruling all eternity!"
In the VIP front row, middle-aged men in suits sat. They were the principals of the participating students' schools.
"Good morning, Principal Luke." A shiny-haired man approached as if greeting an old acquaintance.
"Benjamin Zhao!" Principal Luke recognized him and smiled.
"I wonder if Liu Bo and the others can successfully collect two badges," Benjamin Zhao, as Principal of Liang City No. 2 High School, naturally attended, sitting next to Principal Luke.
Usually, principals wouldn't personally watch the Hundred Cities Championship. But this year's competition was different. The Badge Contest was a newly introduced element and a debut for the Seventh Ecological Circle. Principals attending would need to file reports afterward, so they flew in early.
"Don't worry, the three of them are quite capable. The first round should be fine.""As for the next two rounds… that depends on luck!" Zhao nodded. He didn't know the exact abilities of the other teams. Without Liu Bo, Liang City No. 2 wouldn't have qualified for the Championship. Principals in attendance mostly came from key high schools; ordinary high school principals like him were rare.
At this moment, a striking long-haired man approached.
"Principal Luke?"
Luke looked up, surprised. "Ian Cao?"
"Graduated many years ago, haven't seen each other in ages. I heard you're now Principal of Canton City No. 1 High School. Congratulations, Canton City is a major city."
Ian Cao smiled, naturally taking the seat to Luke's left, nodding at Benjamin Zhao.
After a few polite exchanges, Cao turned the conversation: "Principal Luke, how far do you think your team can go?"
"How far? You seem confident," Luke replied with a smile.
"Well, if nothing unexpected happens, we might reach the third round!"
"Third round? That's top ten! Looks like Canton City produced a good candidate this year." Cao nodded, acknowledging the talent, confident at least for the first round.
Luke's smile was barely perceptible: "Shall we… have a little competition?"
"Let's see which team can find two badges and report first!"
"The loser gives one Marrow Cleansing Pill—deal?"
Ethan and his team pressed on, and within five minutes, reached their destination. A badge marked with the character "Gao" lay quietly on the ground.
The trio didn't rush. They first surveyed the surroundings, tossing a small stone toward the badge to test it. Though Principal Zhou had said all badge locations were safe, trust wasn't guaranteed.
After three minutes of testing with no traps detected, Ethan cautiously approached and picked it up.
"I thought the badges near the starting point were likely fake, but this one's real."
Ethan smiled, silently grateful for his luck. Finding a real badge wasn't easy—it relied heavily on chance. His method was simple: check each one and rely on luck.
Moret projected the map of the Forest of Direwolves again. "Looks like you're lucky. Pick another marker."
Suddenly, three sharp rushing sounds came from ahead.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Three men with long spears appeared. The leader had a buzz cut and sharply defined features—handsome, but with a stern look.
Seeing Ethan holding the "Gao" badge, his expression hardened. "I didn't expect someone to be faster than us."
"Liang City team, hand over the badge if you don't want to be eliminated!" All participants' uniforms displayed team names.
Ethan and his companions tightened their grip on their weapons. With only fifty badges available, half the teams were destined to fail. A battle was unavoidable. They hadn't expected it to come this fast.
They'd been in the Spirit Realm less than ten minutes. There were a thousand teleportation points, so it was just bad luck that someone else was near the same marker.
Seeing the opponent's Canton City team tag, Ethan remained cautious. Canton City, a large city, had students far stronger than Liang City on average. For example, Harbor City No. 1 High School, a central city school, almost always took first place in the city championship.
Outside, the screen split into multiple views; many students watched with binoculars.
"Looks like two teams met!""So soon? They've been in less than ten minutes!""Probably because their starting points were close and they had the same target."
As the view zoomed, everyone saw the two team names: Liang City Team and Canton City Team!
"This…" Ian Cao stared at the screen, feeling a sudden rush of joy. He paused. "Sorry, Principal Luke!""Your Marrow Cleansing Pill, I want it!""But don't worry! I'll cover your night flight!"