The first match of the quota competition began, and Mu Chen easily overwhelmed Chen Tong, quickly bringing it to an end. The lightning-fast exchange left the audience in awe. Although it concluded in just a few minutes, those with real strength clearly saw how much more formidable the young Mu Chen was than his opponent. Both were at the initial stage of the Spirit Wheel Realm, yet their combat power was on two completely different levels.
"That Mu Chen... is he the son of Mu Feng, the Lord of Mu Territory? He certainly has skill."
"I heard that he was once the only one in the Northern Spirit Realm to qualify for the Spirit Road, but later, for some unknown reason, he was expelled."
"This guy's demeanor is also hard to fathom. With his ability, he probably wasn't too bad in the Spirit Road to be expelled, right?"
"Who knows... but even if he was expelled, with his current ability, I don't think it would be difficult for him to enter one of the Five Great Academies."
The arena buzzed with discussion. Clearly, the recent match had drawn everyone's attention to the renowned young man.
Mu Chen didn't know what they were discussing. He returned to his seat among the Eastern Academy disciples. Across from him, on the Western Academy side, Liu Mubai calmly stood up and stepped onto the arena stage.
On the Eastern Academy side, many worried and sympathetic gazes fell upon Mo Ling's ashen face, green as a banana leaf. Mu Chen patted his shoulder in encouragement. Only then did Mo Ling grit his teeth, stand up, and walk forward.
Liu Mubai indifferently glanced at Mu Chen, then shifted his gaze to his opponent, Mo Ling. He adjusted his sleeves and muttered,
"Just admit defeat and get down."
Mo Ling, suppressed by Liu Mubai's aura, faltered, but still gritted his teeth and said,
"Please enlighten me!"
Liu Mubai coldly shook his head,
"Ignorant."
Faced with Liu Mubai's attitude, the already pale Mo Ling turned crimson. However, the opponent's strength far surpassed his own. It was understandable for him to be so arrogant; Mo Ling himself had no recourse. This match was certainly a loss, but he couldn't lose in too ugly or cowardly a manner.
Mo Ling took a deep breath to gather courage, clenched his fists, and activated the spiritual energy within his body, letting it surge throughout. The power filled his body, making him feel a little more confident. He quickly stepped forward, charging towards Liu Mubai to launch an attack.
Mo Ling was also a capable individual. In fact, in the Heavenly Realm of the Northern Spirit Academy, he was among the top ten. However, before him was clearly the number one, Liu Mubai, who had monopolized that dominant position for several years, unchallenged by anyone.
Facing such a formidable opponent, if he didn't go all out from the start, he probably wouldn't last long.
Liu Mubai looked boredly at Mo Ling rapidly charging towards him. He leaned slightly forward, a small explosion sounded beneath his feet, and his figure instantly transformed into a streak of red light, shooting out.
The speed was incredibly fast. Mo Ling had only just seen a fleeting red glow when, in shock, he saw Liu Mubai appear right in front of him. A strong hand struck out, landing directly on his chest before he could even activate his defenses. Spiritual energy erupted like a volcanic eruption.
"Bang!"
A heavy slap echoed. Mo Ling's attacking posture was completely shattered. In an instant, he flew backward, fresh blood gushing from his mouth, and he rolled miserably on the stone floor.
A powerful and forceful move caused a stir among the crowd. Mo Ling, at the initial stage of the Spirit Wheel Realm, had absolutely no chance to retaliate against Liu Mubai!
"How terrifying!"
Su Ling swallowed hard. The title of number one in the Northern Spirit Academy was certainly not an empty boast!
Mu Chen also intently observed the battle. When Liu Mubai made his move, his gaze became serious. That guy's speed was not much inferior to his own; Liu Mubai was truly formidable.
"Hmph, they're fundamentally not on the same level."
Chen Fan, nearby, also sighed. Just like Mu Chen and Chen Tong in the previous match, Mo Ling and Liu Mubai were completely mismatched.
On the arena, Liu Mubai indifferently looked at Mo Ling's struggling body, a sneer of disdain on his lips. He was about to turn and leave. Such a boring fight held no interest for him.
"Wait..."
A hoarse, difficult voice came from behind him. Liu Mubai frowned and turned around. Mo Ling was wiping away the blood from his mouth, trying to move his limbs, and gritted his teeth, saying,
"I haven't lost yet!"
Liu Mubai slowly narrowed his eyes.
Mo Ling once again mobilized the spiritual energy within him and continued to charge forward, taking the initiative to attack.
"Boom!"
It was still a dry sound. Liu Mubai flashed like lightning, appearing to Mo Ling's right, hooking his leg to sweep across his body, kicking directly into Mo Ling's abdomen.
Mo Ling was sent flying for the second time, fresh blood splattering, looking even more miserable.
Everyone sighed in pity, but then their eyes widened in surprise when they saw Mo Ling still clenching his teeth, continuing to stand up.
"Haha, good! You've got tough bones."
Liu Mubai saw Mo Ling stubbornly clinging to him and couldn't help but let out an angry chuckle. This time, he didn't give Mo Ling a chance to make the first move, immediately lunging forward to attack.
"Thwack!"
Mo Ling was sent flying by a palm strike.
"Bang!"
Before Mo Ling could even get up, Liu Mubai continued to rush forward, his eyes fierce, kicking him in the waist as if kicking a bag of trash, sending him flying dozens of meters.
The dense crowd of spectators held their breath as they watched Liu Mubai torment Mo Ling so miserably, but no matter what, the tenacious young man still gritted his teeth and did not utter a word of surrender.
"What a stubborn kid!"
Many people shouted encouragement. Although Mo Ling's strength was far from comparable to Liu Mubai's, even knowing he was no match, he bravely gathered all his courage to fight, a masculine spirit that earned everyone's admiration.
In the East Courtyard, the disciples watched with heavy hearts as Mo Ling's body was kicked back and forth, yet he stubbornly refused to admit defeat. All of them gritted their teeth in anger; some, unwilling to watch, closed their eyes, bowed their heads, or turned away.
It was truly tragic.
"Damn it!"
Chen Fan gnashed his teeth in fury. If Liu Mubai had simply knocked Mo Ling unconscious, he would have lost, but was it necessary to humiliate someone so excessively?
Tang Tian'er also had a fierce expression, looking at Mu Chen and softly saying,
"Should we concede for him?"
"If we concede, Mo Ling will completely lose his opportunity."
Mu Chen replied softly, his gaze sweeping towards the distinguished guests on the platform. That Mr. Hao was also frowning, observing the battle, his expression unreadable.
"But..."
Tang Tian'er hesitated.
"That's the path he chose. Perhaps he can't compare to Liu Mubai right now, but he has courage, and he will gain dignity. There's something called 'spirit' or 'guts.' A man without that, no matter how powerful his spiritual energy, is useless. He's just a half-man, half-woman, making people despise him even more."
Mu Chen spoke in an even tone.
Tang Tian'er had nothing more to say. Although she truly didn't understand why men sometimes died for their pride, such men indeed made women yearn for them day and night.
The battle was completely one-sided, nothing more than torture. Nearly ten minutes later, Mo Ling was covered in blood, his consciousness already hazy, but he still endured the pain with sheer willpower.
Liu Mubai's face grew darker and darker. This kind of battle was fundamentally uninteresting, as could be told from the jeers all around.
Liu Mubai glared fiercely at Mo Ling, his eyes cold and venomous. "Since you won't surrender, I'll cripple you!"
However, just as Liu Mubai was about to deliver the killing blow, Mr. Hao, who was on the guest platform, lightly waved his hand, and Dean Xiao immediately spoke up:
"The match is over, Liu Mubai wins."
Liu Mubai paused upon hearing this, his fierce gaze still locked on the nearly unconscious Mo Ling. He angrily flicked his sleeve and left. Before stepping down, he shot a glance at Mu Chen, clearly believing this was Mu Chen's trick to intentionally provoke him beyond endurance.
With the match concluded, the East Academy immediately sent a few disciples to carry the severely injured Mo Ling away on a stretcher for care.
"It's my turn."
Chen Fan gritted his teeth in anger and stepped onto the stage. His opponent was also a rather famous disciple from the West Academy. Currently, both had the strength of the early Spirit Wheel Realm. However, compared to a warrior from an exploration team like Chen Fan, the other person lacked much blood-tempered training. The initial exchanges were fine, but as the battle grew more intense, he eventually revealed many flaws, which Chen Fan seized upon, defeating him with a single move.
After Chen Fan was Huo Yun, who, as expected, also secured a victory. Finally, it was Tang Tian'er's match. Her battle excited many people because her opponent was Hong Ling from the West Academy. The clash between the two beauties of the two academies was, of course, very captivating.
Two beautiful girls fighting was much more interesting than the previous battles involving Mu Chen and Liu Mubai, and they fought with increasing fervor. The allure of beautiful women, especially strong, charismatic women, always possessed unparalleled charm.
The match held few surprises, but for those with keen eyes, they would notice the two girls' continuous and graceful combat skills, like two butterflies intertwining, giving a very elegant and beautiful impression.
Tang Tian'er and Hong Ling were evenly matched in strength. Although both displayed many other skills, they found it difficult to truly defeat their opponent. Finally, Mr. Hao spoke, declaring the match between the two a draw.
For a battle to secure a quota to end in a draw surprised many. If it was a draw, how could the quota be split? However, since this was declared by Mr. Hao, they could only keep their doubts to themselves.
As that match concluded, the arena unexpectedly became much more excited. Several powerful cultivators sat up straight, observing the battle below. This was because the next stage was the challenge to compete for the seed quota.
Through the previous matches, they all clearly saw that only two people, Mu Chen and Liu Mubai, were qualified to contend for this special quota.
And coincidentally, these two were the young masters of Mu Territory and Liu Territory, two territories with extremely conflicting relations. The battle for the seed quota was seen as a contest between the two territories.
Who would be the last one standing, no one knew...