Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Yicheng City Central Arena.
The roar of tens of thousands of spectators converged into a scorching tide, thrumming above the massive, circular stands.
The air, thick with the scent of sweat and the faint ozone tang of high-density energy dissipation, made every breath feel like an exhilarating, searing rush.
This was the annual College Entrance Martial Arts Exam Arena Competition—the stage where countless young Professionals showcased their skills and vied for glory.
In the waiting area, the atmosphere was as heavy as iron, thick with the smell of gunpowder.
A warrior in plate armor swung a greatsword, creating a dull pressure wave with each arc.
A mage's fingertips glowed with elemental light as they silently practiced spell models.
A ranger in leather armor and a shortbow meticulously polished their arrows, one by one.
Amid the crowd, a young girl in silvery-white Paladin armor stood out.
She was about seventeen or eighteen, her figure and features nine-tenths identical to the person beside her.
In her left hand, she held a kite shield edged with faint golden light patterns. The shield's surface still bore traces of dust, clear evidence of a recent battle.
This was Lin Xiyue. She leaned close to Lin Qingyue, who was dressed in simple white Priest robes, her voice bubbling with the thrill of victory.
"Sis, I just finished my match! My opponent was a Level 19 Berserker, and I pushed him off the stage in less than three minutes!"
"His heavy axe slammed into my shield, and it didn't even leave a scratch!"
As she spoke, she proudly slapped her shield, producing a dull thump-thump sound.
Several nearby graduates overheard and began whispering among themselves:
"Wasn't she the Paladin from Arena 2 in Zone A? I heard her defense is ridiculously tough. Her opponent couldn't break through no matter how hard he attacked. In the end, she just knocked him off the stage with a single Holy Shield Charge."
"She looks exactly like that Priest next to her. Twins?"
"What a waste. Her sister's a Priest... Don't they usually just grind points in Dungeon Competitions? Coming to the Arena Competition is basically asking to get eliminated in the first round, isn't it?"
The whispers were quiet but carried clearly.
The smile on Lin Xiyue's face instantly froze. She puffed out her cheeks and glared fiercely at the gossips.
"Sis, ignore them! Just wait until you reveal your 'big treasure'—it'll make their eyes pop out of their sockets!"
Lin Qingyue's lips curved into a slight smile. She gently tapped her sister's shoulder pauldron, silently reassuring her.
Ignoring the surrounding gazes, she immersed herself in her thoughts, silently replaying every detail of the Millelith Spear Techniques.
The staff was merely a facade.
The weighty feel of the spear and the essence of its techniques were already second nature to her.
Just then, the Central Computer in the waiting area blared a mechanical announcement, cutting through the hushed whispers:
"Arena 3, Zone A: Lin Qingyue versus Li Yue! Contestants, please proceed to the arena immediately!"
Lin Qingyue strode forward, empty-handed, toward the arena.
Her tall, slender figure, accentuated by the simple white Priest robe, moved with a steady gait that exuded the aura of a martial arts master.
Her opponent, Li Yue, was a Level 17 Assassin.
Though slender and pretty, her beautiful eyes glittered with undisguised jealousy and contempt.
As classmates from Seventh High School, they knew each other, but their acquaintance ended there.
Lin Qingyue had heard that Li Yue once had a falling out with a female Priest and had held a grudge against all female Priests ever since.
Now, Li Yue stood with a dagger in each hand, their edges gleaming with a faint green light.
Seeing Lin Qingyue walk onto the stage empty-handed, she curled her lips into a mocking smirk.
"Well, well, if it isn't Seventh High's famous 'great' Priest, Lin Qingyue."
She deliberately raked her gaze up and down Lin Qingyue, letting it linger for a moment on her impressively full chest.
"What, you knew you'd be eliminated in the first round, so you couldn't even be bothered to bring your staff? You might as well not have signed up in the first place!"
She casually tossed her daggers in her hands, speaking slowly but loud enough for the front rows to hear clearly.
"If you ask me, you female Priests should just stay in the back and play healer. Why insist on coming up here to embarrass yourselves?"
"Look at that figure of yours—you don't look like you can fight. Why not just surrender now? It'll save you the ugly sight of crying on stage later."
"There are no teammates here to coddle you. Crying and playing the damsel in distress won't get you any sympathy!"
The subtle implications in her words drew a wave of jeering laughter from the crowd.
It was common knowledge that Priests were ill-suited for arena combat.
Though Li Yue's words were harsh, they echoed the "common sense" many in the audience held.
Below the stage, Lin Xiyue's face flushed crimson with rage. Veins bulged on the hand gripping her shield, and she looked ready to charge up and "persuade" Li Yue with brute force.
At that very moment, a voice suddenly echoed in Lin Qingyue's mind.
[Ding!]
[Extreme disdain for the Priest class detected. Temporary Quest triggered: "Don't Underestimate the Young Girl"!]
[Quest Objective: Crush Li Yue in a decisive and honorable victory. Shatter the stereotype that "Priests can't fight in close combat" and make the scornful pay the price!]
[Quest Reward: Venti Trial Card (24 hours) x1, Elation Value +200!]
Lin Qingyue raised an eyebrow.
A Venti Trial Card? And 200 Elation Value?
It'd be a waste not to take this free entertainment.
A cold flame ignited in her previously calm eyes.
She lifted her gaze to meet Li Yue's, her tone flat but each word sharp as a needle.
"As a primary combat class, your level is lower than mine, a support. That is sloth."
"Boasting before the battle even begins. That is arrogance."
"Judging an opponent solely by their class and appearance. That is shallowness."
"Letting personal grudges taint your view of an entire class. That is foolishness."
She paused, her gaze sweeping over Li Yue's face as it shifted from pale to green, then to a furious red.
"The one who should surrender... is you."
These unhurried words were like invisible slaps, striking Li Yue's face from both sides!
The smile on Li Yue's face froze completely. Her contempt was replaced by shock, which quickly morphed into a furious flush.
A Level 17 Assassin—her level was indeed embarrassing.
And those veiled criticisms had practically branded the word "shallow" onto her forehead.
"You!" Li Yue hissed through clenched teeth, her eyes turning cold. "Fine! I'd like to see what tricks a Priest who's all talk can pull!"
The referee stepped forward immediately to announce the rules: "Intentional harm is forbidden. Falling from the arena or losing the ability to fight results in defeat. The match begins!"
The moment the whistle blew!
Li Yue's figure blurred, instantly activating [Stealth] and vanishing from everyone's sight.
It was the classic Assassin opening: use invisibility to circle behind the target, execute a backstab, and finish off the squishy opponent in one combo.
A commotion erupted below the stage. Many who had just admired Lin Qingyue's sharp retort now broke into a cold sweat for her.
After all, no matter how eloquent her words, they couldn't change the fact that her class was at a disadvantage.
Lin Xiyue clenched her fists nervously in the audience.
Yet, on the arena stage, Lin Qingyue remained unnaturally calm.
She didn't even cast [Power Word: Shield] on herself, as any normal Priest would have done immediately.
She simply stood still, closing her eyes.
Her Millelith battlefield instincts gave her a beast-like sensitivity to killing intent and shifts in airflow.
In the sensory world she perceived with her vision closed, a faint disturbance in the air to her left was arcing rapidly toward her back.
Here it comes!
Just as the presence circled to five meters behind her, a blurry shadow suddenly solidified!
Two poison-coated daggers, carrying a bone-chilling cold, silently stabbed toward the vital point of her back!
Now!
Lin Qingyue moved!
Her thoughts raced like lightning. A delicate staff, entirely pinkish-white and topped with a flower bud-shaped ruby, materialized out of thin air!
The staff shimmered with flowing light, its cute appearance completely belying its nature as a weapon.
In the next instant, she gripped the staff firmly with both hands, one forward and one back. Her feet shifted abruptly, her waist twisting to channel a condensed force from the soles of her feet all the way to the staff's tip!
She didn't chant any spells. Instead, with the posture of a Berserker, she swung the staff in a wide, powerful arc!
A fierce, unstoppable horizontal sweep aimed straight at the newly revealed shadow!
[Thousand Army Sweep]!
The sweep was utterly domineering, covering all the space behind her!
The pink staff tore through the air, generating a heavy, oppressive wind pressure and a sharp whistle. It precisely sealed off all of Li Yue's escape routes, hurtling straight for her waist!
Li Yue's pupils shrank to pinpricks in an instant, her mind crashing from the sheer absurdity of the scene!
Not only was this Priest's reaction speed beyond her comprehension, but the staff was taller than she was!
And that ferocious momentum as she swung it—where was the slightest hint of a spellcaster's fragility?!
This was clearly the savage strike of a Berserker
Caught off guard, she had no time to think. Instinctively, she abandoned the backstab, tensing her muscles and crossing her poison-coated daggers in front of her to block.
CLANG—!
A deafening metallic clang echoed across the entire arena!
An irresistible, immense force surged through her daggers, tearing open the webbing between her thumb and index finger and numbing both her arms.
The brutal impact sent her flying backward, forcibly breaking her Stealth. She stumbled back seven or eight steps before barely managing to regain her balance and avoid falling.
Her face was a mask of pure shock and bewilderment.
That strength... that momentum... from a Priest?
And that staff—why could that pinkish thing clash head-on with refined steel daggers?!
Below the stage, a deathly silence fell.
A second later, the crowd erupted into chaos!
"Holy shit! That staff is so long! Wait, why did a staff hitting daggers make a metallic sound?!"
"That last strike! Did I see that right? An Assassin was sent flying by a Priest in one move?!"
"She had her eyes closed! How did she know the Assassin was behind her to the left?"
"But the craziest part is that staff! It's bubblegum pink, cute as a toy, but hits like a battering ram! What the hell even is that thing?!"
In the corner of the System interface, visible only to Lin Qingyue, lines of notifications rapidly scrolled past:
[Elation Value +1+1+1...]
A flicker of astonishment crossed the referee's eyes, clearly unprepared for this turn of events.
Li Yue, now both furious and shocked, steadied herself. Her gaze turned utterly venomous.
Shedding all traces of her earlier contempt, she blurred into motion. Her daggers swung, leaving behind afterimages that coalesced into several clones, all charging at Lin Qingyue from different directions!
Assassin Skill: [Shadow Clone]!
Lin Qingyue stood firm, staff in hand, the core principles of the Millelith Spear Techniques flowing through her mind.
Calm and unhurried, she wielded the pink staff as if it were alive—an extension of her own arm.
At times, the staff's tip struck like a dragon emerging from its cave, precisely shattering the illusory clones as they lunged.
At others, the staff's shaft stood firm as a mountain range, solidly blocking the real body's deadly thrusts.
Amidst the whistling wind of her staff, she completely neutralized the Assassin's swift and unpredictable assault. She even seized fleeting openings to launch fierce counterattacks, forcing Li Yue into a frantic, continuous retreat.
Her skilled staff work, her steady footwork, her sharp gaze—where was the slightest trace of a Priest?
"Is... is that really a Priest? Did I misread the class board?" someone in the audience muttered, rubbing their eyes in stunned disbelief.
"My cousin's a Priest," another spectator chimed in. "Forget melee combat with a staff—he complains even a slightly longer one is too heavy! This woman on stage is a total anomaly!"
"Look at her footwork! Her advances and retreats are perfectly timed, seamlessly blending offense and defense. She's definitely trained for this!"
"But the best part is that staff. Could this be the legendary 'the pinker it is, the harder it hits'?"
The longer Li Yue fought, the more terrified she became.
Her vaunted speed and agility were completely useless against her opponent's staff, which combined overwhelming power with exquisite technique.
The wind from the staff's swings stung her cheeks. Every block sent searing pain through her wrists, making her feel as if her bones were about to be shattered.
I need to get in close! Long weapons are weakest in close-quarters combat!
But Lin Qingyue's control of the battle's rhythm was flawless. Even as her staff swept in wide, powerful arcs, she consistently anticipated Li Yue's evasive maneuvers. The pink staff seemed to have eyes of its own, relentlessly keeping her suppressed at a distance of three steps.
Forced to the edge of the arena by a powerful overhead smash, Li Yue was on the verge of defeat. A glint of madness flashed in her eyes.
She decided to risk it all!
Willing to take a direct hit, she twisted her body at an unnatural angle. Her twin daggers glowed with an eerie light as she unleashed her ultimate skill—[Shadow Strike]!
Her speed exploded, her entire body blurring into a shadow barely visible to the naked eye. She forcibly tore through the staff's defensive screen, lunging straight for Lin Qingyue's chest!
If I can just get close, I'll win!
Facing this desperate, all-or-nothing attack, Lin Qingyue's eyes narrowed. She raised a hand and cast a spell.
[Power Word: Shield]!
A solid platinum-gold shield instantly enveloped her entire body!
The moment the shield materialized, Li Yue's daggers arrived!
Screech! Screech!
Two harsh grating sounds echoed as the daggers slammed into the shield, triggering violent ripples of energy. But ultimately, they failed to break through!
Now!
Exploiting Li Yue's forward momentum, Lin Qingyue flipped her wrist, pulling the staff back before thrusting it forward with sudden force!
A concise, powerful counter-thrust!
No, a counter-staff!
BAM!
A dull, heavy thud echoed.
The massive red gemstone head of the staff slammed solidly into Li Yue's side!
Li Yue's body flew sideways uncontrollably, like a kite with a snapped string, and crashed heavily onto the soft mats outside the arena. Her two daggers flew from her grasp and clattered to the ground.
The entire venue fell into dead silence.
Then, an uproar erupted, louder and more ferocious than ever before!
"She won?! A Priest! With a staff! Dominated an Assassin from start to finish and even knocked her out of the ring with a single strike?!"
"She even cast a shield on herself just before the hit! What perfect predictive casting!"
"So this is how you play a Priest? I've seen the light!"
The referee stood stunned for two seconds before snapping back to reality and announcing loudly, "The winner is—Lin Qingyue!"
Lin Qingyue slowly lowered her staff, which dissolved into motes of light in her hand.
Her breathing was steady, as if she had just completed a simple warm-up.
She glanced at the dumbfounded audience below and at Li Yue, who was struggling to her feet with a look of utter disbelief, her own heart completely unmoved.
[Ding!
Mission "Don't Underestimate the Young Girl" Complete!
Rewards Issued: Venti Trial Card (24 Hours) x1, Elation Value +200!]
The System's notification chimed in her mind at just the right moment.
A Venti Trial Card?
That's Teyvat's Archon of Freedom and Wine!
A ripple finally stirred in Lin Qingyue's heart.
"Sis! You were so cool!" Lin Xiyue was the first to rush to her side, dancing with excitement. "You should have seen their faces, hahaha! They were all completely stunned! And that pink staff of yours—the contrast was absolutely perfect!"
Just then, several classmates gathered around, chattering excitedly:
"Qingyue, that staff technique you used was incredible! Is it a family heirloom?"
"You were so awesome when you retorted to Li Yue, too! Did you know all along you could beat her?"
Lin Qingyue met their curious gazes, her mind racing.
The Elation System was a secret she could never reveal. She needed a plausible explanation for her staff and combat skills.
She offered a slightly mysterious smile and replied vaguely, "Well... let's just say it was a stroke of luck. I can't really go into the details."
The answer clearly didn't satisfy them, but seeing her reluctance to elaborate, they didn't press further. Still, their gazes now held a mix of scrutiny and curiosity.
Lin Qingyue maintained a calm facade, but her thoughts had already drifted to the newly acquired trial card.
The power of the Anemo Archon... what would it feel like?
She needed to find a secluded spot to study it properly.