Two pairs of fists, each brimming with the tumultuous surge of battling spirit, collided in an instant. In a flash, a ripple of force surged out from the point of contact like a wave, instantly sending all the withered leaves at their feet flying into the air, fluttering about.
“Puchi!”
As the two fists met, the blue-clothed youth finally felt the terrifying power of Xiao Yan’s punch. The moment their fists touched, a numbing sensation spread up his arm, and then a terrifying force surged out, rushing into his body through the point of contact. Thus, the blue-clothed youth spat out a mouthful of bright red blood.
Spitting out a mouthful of blood, the blue-clothed youth stumbled back several steps, a look of ferocity flashing across his face. His body trembled, and a pale blue battling spirit rushed out, forming a blue armor of battling spirit on his body. But just as the armor was formed, a ghostly black shadow appeared before him once more.
A cold laugh rang out, and the blue-clothed youth felt his vision blur. Then, a sharp pain spread from his chest. Finally, he felt himself being flung backward, crashing heavily into a tree trunk, and spitting out another mouthful of blood. When he looked down with great difficulty, he was horrified to find that the battling spirit armor he had just summoned had shattered completely under the blow.
Huddled like a prawn, the blue-clothed youth had not even raised his head when he heard several dull thuds nearby. Looking around, he saw his four companions, all bleeding, roll to his side. At this moment, a look of terror finally crept onto his face.
Clutching his chest, the blue-clothed youth suddenly noticed a pair of feet appear before him. A cool voice sounded, “If you want to continue getting beaten, then stay huddled. I don’t mind kicking you a few more times.”
Hearing this, the blue-clothed youth shuddered, then hurriedly lifted his trembling head, looking at the black-robed youth standing before him and the two men and two women behind him, a hint of fear in his eyes. “W-what do you want?”
“I ask, you answer,” Xiao Yan said, towering over the five terrified students. He slowly gripped the handle of the heavy ruler on his back, then pulled it out with a sudden jerk. The heavy ruler, with a whooshing sound, planted itself in the ground in front of the blue-clothed youth, the wide blade exerting a tremendous pressure on him.
“What do you want to ask?” The blue-clothed youth swallowed a mouthful of saliva, slowly calming down. After all, according to the rules, killing was forbidden in this forest; otherwise, the elders, who were always watching, would immediately appear, and the punishment for breaking the rules would be severe depending on the circumstances. Therefore, although he was worried about physical punishment, he was not overly concerned about his life.
“How big is this forest?” After a moment’s thought, Xiao Yan first asked the simplest but most important question. If the forest was large, they needed to prepare for a long-term battle. If it was small, they could change their strategy and directly charge towards their destination.
“Very large.” The blue-clothed youth’s answer made Xiao Yan sigh inwardly.
“Do you have a rough map of the forest?” Xiao Yan glanced at the blue-clothed youth and suddenly waved his hand, turning to Xuner and the others, “Each of you take one of these people and interrogate them separately. We’ll compare their answers later. If their answers differ, we won’t hesitate to use harsher means. Although we can’t take lives here, causing serious injuries shouldn’t be considered a violation, right?”
The last words were said with a smile, directed at the five blue-clothed youths. Xiao Yan’s words made the faces of the five blue-clothed youths turn extremely ugly. This action almost completely eliminated any thoughts they might have had of lying.
Following his instructions, Han Xue and the others each grabbed one of the senior students and moved to the side. As Wu Hao turned away, he couldn’t help but say, “That’s a good move.”
Xiao Yan smiled and turned his gaze back to the blue-clothed youth in front of him, saying slowly, “Now, answer.”
“We have a rough map, but it’s not very detailed. We bought it in the inner courtyard during the hunting competition, and it cost us a whole day’s worth of ‘Heavenly Fire Energy.'”
The blue-clothed youth forced a bitter smile and obediently took out a rough piece of paper, handing it to Xiao Yan.
“Didn’t you guys place a lot of importance on ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’? Why spend a whole day’s worth on such a crude thing?”
Taking the paper, Xiao Yan’s mouth twitched slightly at the crisscrossing lines that looked like large black crosses. Could this be called a map?
“No one wanted to, but it was mandatory. If you didn’t buy it, you couldn’t participate.”
Mentioning this, the blue-clothed youth’s mouth quivered, a pained look on his face, and he gritted his teeth, saying, “When I bought this junk, my heart was bleeding. If it weren’t for the fact that we could snatch ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ from the freshmen, I would never have spent a whole day’s worth on this worthless map. The bastards in the inner courtyard are vampires!”
“How many senior students are participating in the hunting competition?” Xiao Yan put away the map and asked, frowning.
“Also fifty, five people per team, ten teams in total.” The blue-clothed youth glanced at the other interrogations and sighed helplessly. He couldn’t guarantee whether his companions would tell the truth or lies, but given the odds, he chose to tell the truth.
“How strong are they? Are they all like you?” Xiao Yan continued to ask.
Xiao Yan’s question made the blue-clothed youth roll his eyes. What did “all like you” mean?
“Eight teams are similar to us. We’re all students who entered the inner courtyard last year. There are also two teams of seniors who have been in the inner courtyard longer, so they are stronger than us. I think they’re about as strong as you…”
The blue-clothed youth looked at Xiao Yan oddly, wondering why this freshman was so strong. Last year, even the top five freshmen were robbed in this forest. Despite their resistance, their disunity made it hard to mount a coordinated counterattack, leading to their defeat. It was strange and unsettling that this year, the seniors were being robbed by the freshmen.
Thinking of this, the blue-clothed youth felt the urge to curse. Why was there such a huge gap in treatment between freshmen?
“As strong as me?” Hearing this, Xiao Yan frowned. Two teams of members as strong as him would be troublesome. It seemed that passing this “Heavenly Fire Energy Hunting Competition” wouldn’t be easy.
“The two teams are easy to identify. One team wears all black, and the other wears all white. Every year, these two powerful teams participate in the hunting competition. In the inner courtyard, they are known as the Black and White Demons. In the past decade, no freshman team has ever managed to get past their block.”
The blue-clothed youth’s words carried a hint of reverence.
“Black and White Demons?” Repeating the name, Xiao Yan nodded slightly, then turned to Xuner and the others, asking the most important question, “What is the use of this so-called ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ in the inner courtyard? Why are you so obsessed with it?”
“Heavenly Fire Energy is crucial in the inner courtyard. It’s the reason why freshmen who enter the inner courtyard see their strength improve rapidly.”
This question made the blue-clothed youth hesitate for a moment before he reluctantly opened his mouth, “In the inner courtyard, there is a ‘Heavenly Flame Training Tower’ buried deep underground. Training inside the tower is twice as effective. The deeper you go, the faster you progress, but the cost is exorbitant…”
“To enter the ‘Heavenly Flame Training Tower,’ you need ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ from the fire crystal card. The energy is displayed in days. The fire crystal card you hold is enough for five days of training. After five days, you must earn your own ‘Heavenly Fire Energy.’ Of course, on the first day of each month, the inner courtyard provides seven days’ worth of ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ as a sort of… living allowance.”
Saying the last word, the blue-clothed youth’s face looked somewhat odd.
After hearing the blue-clothed youth’s explanation, Xiao Yan was surprised. He hadn’t expected the inner courtyard’s training method to be so bizarre. To train in the so-called ‘Heavenly Flame Training Tower,’ you had to pay, and the cost was the ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ on the fire crystal card…
“So, to train, you need ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ as a fee. No wonder these guys are so eager for the ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ we have…”
Xiao Yan gave a bitter smile and glanced at the blue-clothed youth, saying softly, “If all the ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ is used up, how do you get more? Do you have to wait for the next month’s allowance?”
“Of course not. In the inner courtyard, there are various ways to earn ‘Heavenly Fire Energy,’ such as sweeping the tower or copying scrolls. Of course, the amount earned this way is small, so some stronger students hunt magic beasts and exchange their cores for ‘Heavenly Fire Energy,’ or challenge others in the inner courtyard arena. The winner can claim the loser’s ‘Heavenly Fire Energy.’ There are many ways to earn ‘Heavenly Fire Energy,’ but they all require sufficient strength. Otherwise, you won’t earn anything and might end up losing everything.”
The blue-clothed youth shrugged and hesitated slightly before adding, “Another way to earn ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ is to rank on the inner courtyard’s ‘Strong List.’ As the name suggests, it’s a list that measures strength, and it’s the most prestigious list in the inner courtyard. There are fifty spots on the list. If you can rank on it, you’ll receive a monthly bonus from the inner courtyard, which increases with your rank. This is the most comfortable way to earn ‘Heavenly Fire Energy,’ because once your name is on the list, you can focus on training in the ‘Heavenly Flame Training Tower’ without worrying about running out of ‘Heavenly Fire Energy.’ So, all the students in the inner courtyard strive to get on this ‘Strong List.’ The competition is fierce, and often, those who rank on the first day are challenged and defeated by newcomers the next day.”
Taking a deep breath, Xiao Yan nodded slightly. Though his face remained calm, his heart was filled with anticipation and curiosity for the mysterious inner courtyard. This unique system truly lived up to its reputation as a cradle for the strong.
In the outer courtyard, students rarely experienced such intense competition. Although there were some talented students, they could not compare to the inner courtyard, where the system was specifically designed to cultivate the strong.
“Heavenly Fire Energy… hmm, it seems to be a very tempting thing. Even I am now enticed by it.”
Xiao Yan chuckled softly and turned to Xuner and the others, whose eyes also shone with a fiery excitement. Clearly, the inner courtyard had truly captured their interest, and the ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ was firmly etched in their minds. In the inner courtyard, having ‘Heavenly Fire Energy’ meant rapid training and a closer path to becoming a true powerhouse.
“Heavenly Fire Energy… a truly wonderful thing…”
Xiao Yan murmured softly, a sinister smile spreading across his face. He slowly lowered his head, smiling warmly at the blue-clothed youth, and said, “Thank you, senior, for your information. But now, please hand over your fire crystal card, okay?”
The blue-clothed youth’s face changed drastically as he stared at Xiao Yan’s smile, his battling spirit surging. But before he could move, a huge black shadow crashed down, stopping in front of his pale face.
Looking at the large ruler, the blue-clothed youth swallowed a mouthful of saliva with great difficulty. After a moment, he sat down, his face ashen, and his hands trembling as he took out a light blue fire crystal card from his storage ring.
Xiao Yan took the light blue fire crystal card with a smile. When he saw the red number “28” on it, his smile widened significantly.
Holding one black and one blue card, Xiao Yan rubbed them together, and a flash of light appeared. The black card now read “26,” while the light blue card had shrunk to “7…”
“From now on, the roles of hunter and prey in this hunting competition can be reversed, because the prey is now interested in the hunter…”
Looking at the “26” on the black fire crystal card, Xiao Yan murmured softly.
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