As soon as they stepped out of the dormitory building, Quinn and Ivencel were standing under the shade of a tree, talking about something.
Suxing couldn’t help but smile and quickened his pace to approach them.
“What are you two talking about?”
Quinn glanced at Avril, who was walking slowly behind Suxing.
After Suxing shook his head at him to indicate everything was fine, Quinn finally spoke, “We’re talking about Kaka. We think he might be under some… pressure.”
“Hm?”
Suxing looked puzzled.
“Isn’t he just treating this arena match as a test of his abilities? He should be the one among us with the least pressure.”
Quinn nodded.
“That was true before, but after the three of us won, things changed a bit.”
Suxing understood immediately.
There were only four people in their group.
Since three had already won, it was natural for Kaka, the last one remaining, to feel some pressure.
Seeing that Suxing understood, Quinn frowned.
“What should we do? I hope he doesn’t let the pressure mess with his performance.”
Avril, who had been following behind them, couldn’t help but laugh when she overheard their conversation.
“He? Performance? I don’t even know what you’re worried about!”
No one paid her any mind. Suxing picked up where Quinn left off.
“I actually think it’s a good thing.”
“Huh?”
Quinn’s glasses nearly slipped down his nose.
“Why do you say that?”
Ivencel nodded in agreement with Suxing.
“He’s right.”
Suxing explained, “A certain amount of pressure pushes people to improve. Kaka has always been a carefree optimist who rarely feels pressure. This should be a chance for him to grow.”
Ivencel added, “He’s been too lax all this time.”
Watching their serious discussion, Avril was surprised and tugged on Suxing’s sleeve.
“Hey! You don’t really think Kaka can win, do you?”
Suxing turned to her, lazily answering, “Why not?”
His tone sounded both dismissive and genuinely earnest at the same time.
They walked in silence until they reached the entrance to the Illusion Arena, where Avril consciously parted ways with them.
Once she left, Quinn asked, “Why did you come out with her?”
Suxing tilted his head and tapped his chin with a finger.
“I found something interesting. Besides, Kaka doesn’t hate her, right?”
Ivencel hit the nail on the head.
“You’re just looking for a sponsor, aren’t you?”
Suxing laughed off the comment and followed the others into the Illusion Arena.
***
Inside the Illusion Arena, the crowd was still roaring with excitement.
Even though this final battle between the top student of the grade and the one ranked last looked one-sided, no one could deny it was a highly anticipated match.
Quinn scanned the stands and was surprised to see a student who looked like a reporter weaving through the seats with a microphone designed for recording and amplification.
“Today, this reporter will bring you full coverage of the most exciting match among the first-year students! Let’s start by interviewing some freshmen and hear their thoughts on this battle. Hello…”
Quinn couldn’t help but scoff at the absurdity of it all.
“Can our academy really have reporters?”
Suxing glanced over and quickly understood, explaining, “That’s a student from the Spirit Realm Academy. He’s probably a reporter for the campus newsletter.”
“Campus newsletter?”
This piqued Ivencel’s interest as well.
Suxing nodded.
“It’s basically the school newspaper that covers campus life. Since it’s run by the academy, it won’t distort facts or create drama intentionally.”
After a moment, she added, “But they don’t cover everything—only what they consider major recent events.”
Quinn looked surprised.
“So even the upperclassmen find this match exciting?”
Suxing shook her head, indicating she wasn’t sure either.
Ivencel quickly figured it out.
“It’s because of the identities behind them.”
Suxing suddenly understood.
“I see! A match between two freshmen isn’t interesting by itself, but a match between the second son of Unicorn Bank and the heir of Pike Pharmaceuticals definitely draws attention.”
Hearing this, Quinn frowned.
“That means this is more than just an exam—it could be about the pride of two major factions.”
Suxing reassured him casually, “At times like this, the one to worry about is Victor.”
Quinn, who wasn’t as naïve as Kaka, immediately grasped the situation.
Victor was the recognized genius, while Kaka was considered a loser.
If Kaka lost, it wouldn’t matter much.
But if Victor lost, he’d face a storm of accusations.
Suxing sighed thoughtfully.
“That’s why people need to learn to hide their strengths. Showing all your excellence at once is foolish.”
Quinn held a different view.
“Showing your talents is the right thing. People who mock someone for not being perfect are the real fools.”
Ivencel sneered.
“Hmph, only those who can’t maintain their excellence are fools.”
As they talked, Kaka and Victor had already stepped onto the arena stage.
Victor arrogantly threw out a harsh warning.
“If you give up now, you might still save some face.”
Kaka scratched his head and grinned foolishly.
“Thanks for your concern! But I won’t give up. Let’s settle this!”
From the stands, Avril covered one eye and muttered, “This guy… he’s doing it on purpose, isn’t he?”
Suxing couldn’t help but smile and whispered to the two beside him, “Avril actually asked Kaka to forfeit before. Believe it or not, he probably said the same thing back then.”
Quinn’s eyes widened.
“Avril must have been really angry.”
More than that, Suxing thought.
She got so mad she gave him a thousand yuan!
Ivencel’s eyes twinkled with amusement.
“What an idiot.”
“Start the exam!”
Norman’s command rang out.
All eyes focused on the arena.
Victor quickly summoned his Illusion Spirit, the Dragon Scale Tiger—a golden tiger-like spirit covered with shimmering scales, with a pair of antlers like a deer’s.
“Little Dragon! Unleash the Thousand Scales!”
At that command, the Dragon Scale Tiger trembled slightly as the scales on its body flickered.
Suddenly, some of the scales detached and shot toward Kaka at incredible speed.
Kaka leapt but missed the first wave of the scale attack.
Everyone expected the scales to return to the tiger, but instead, they changed direction midair and continued to attack Kaka.
Kaka was not surprised. Suxing had already shared this info.
Victor’s scales could stay detached for a full minute before needing to return to the body.
After dodging the second wave, Kaka prepared to counterattack.
He swiped downward, and suddenly, the stone pillar behind Victor shattered in half.
A blue figure appeared behind the broken pillar—it was Kaka’s Illusion Spirit, Little Blue.
The crowd gasped.
They all knew Kaka’s Illusion Spirit—it was just a pufferfish that could only puff up.
This had been a running joke among the first-years for a long time.
No one expected such a useless Illusion Spirit to have a hidden ability—and a remarkable one at that.
During exams, many candidates tried ramming the pillars.
Some used large Illusion Spirits or ones made of stone or steel.
None managed to break a pillar.
But now, Kaka’s tiny “useless” Illusion Spirit had effortlessly done what others couldn’t.
Many were shocked.
The keen-eyed students realized clearly—something was about to change.
Victor was also startled, but his good battle instincts allowed him to roll out of the pillar’s attack range just in time.
“So that’s the real use of your Illusion Spirit?”
Victor got up from the ground and looked at Kaka with surprise.
Kaka, as usual, couldn’t sense any hostility.
Shyly but happily, he nodded, “I only just found out myself. Pretty awesome, right?”
Victor didn’t reply.
Instead, he used the next wave of scales to answer.
The arena match continued.
Kaka dodged Victor’s fierce attacks while trying to trap him according to his plan.
But Victor, raised by Pike Pharmaceuticals with all their resources, was no fool.
Kaka’s little tricks couldn’t fool him.
Victor sneered and leapt out of Kaka’s carefully constructed “trap,” then mocked him pityingly, “What else can you do now?”
Kaka hadn’t expected his plan to be uncovered so quickly.
Not exactly a strategic thinker, he was trapped in a bottleneck.
Victor easily climbed a shorter pillar and leisurely attacked Kaka with the scales from above, wasting his strength while taunting him half-heartedly.
His insults weren’t just verbal; the attacks were designed to humiliate.
Victor could have launched a massive assault to exhaust Kaka, but instead, he used a few scales to slash Kaka’s face and clothes, making him look even more miserable.
Kaka was simple-minded, but not stupid.
He felt Victor’s malice and dodged the scales with difficulty, utterly embarrassed.
“Finding a new use for that useless Illusion Spirit doesn’t change the fact that it’s still worthless!”
“Little Blue is not useless!”
“Think carefully. You’re useless yourself. You only hold others back.”
“I’m not…”
“You’re so bad, your teammates will probably abandon you, right?”
Kaka panted heavily, sweat dripping from his chin to the ground.
His clothes were tattered and torn, some places bleeding.
In stark contrast to Victor, who was almost unscathed.
He ran for his life, but Victor’s questions echoed relentlessly in his mind.
Will they really abandon me?