The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, Ye Feng was startled awake by a knock on his door. Groaning in annoyance, he cursed inwardly at the early disturbance. Reluctantly, he swung his legs out of bed and went to answer it. When he opened the door, he saw a middle-aged woman standing there. Her face was unremarkable, but she wore an azure robe that subtly accentuated her curves. In her hand, she held a neatly folded white robe.
The middle-aged woman looked at Ye Feng blankly and asked, "Are you Ye Feng?"
Ye Feng nodded.
She handed him the white robe she was carrying. "The freshmen competition will start in half an hour. Don't be late, and wear this robe at all times when you are not in your dwelling. This is the academy uniform." She paused briefly before continuing. "I also recommend you visit the library and read up on the academy's rules and regulations—it's for your own good. The competition will be held in the Azure Fang Pagoda. Just ask the other students or the academy staff for directions; they'll tell you where it is."
Ye Feng nodded again and thanked her.
After the middle-aged woman left, Ye Feng quickly took a bath, refreshed himself, and donned the white robe she had given him. He then had his breakfast before stepping out of his room to look for Ye Long.
After walking around the academy for about ten minutes, Ye Feng spotted Ye Long talking with two young men who appeared to be around his age. When Ye Long noticed Ye Feng approaching, he stood up with a smile and said, "Fifth brother, good to see you. These are my friends, Zi Ma and Yang Hau."
Ye Feng smiled and greeted them before turning to Ye Long. "First brother, one of the academy staff told me that the freshmen competition is about to start, and I need to go to the pagoda. Could you show me the way?"
Ye Long smiled. "Sure thing, Fifth Brother. I'm curious to see how you'll perform in the freshmen competition—I wouldn't miss it for the world."
Ye Feng returned his smile and thanked him. Zi Ma and Yang Hau nodded in agreement; they, too, were eager to see how the new students would fare. Deciding to join the two brothers, they all set off together toward the Azure Fang Pagoda.
After a five-minute walk, Ye Feng and his group arrived at the Azure Fang Pagoda. The pagoda gleamed in shades of azure, towering impressively before them. Its massive golden gate, five metres tall and equally wide, gleamed under the sunlight. Atop the pagoda, an Azure Dragon sculpture snarled angrily at the sky, exuding a sense of power and majesty that made the air around it seem charged with tension.
Ye Feng noticed a bulky, muscular, middle-aged man standing imposingly in front of the pagoda. His long brown beard reached his chest, and his messy brown hair framed a tan, weathered face. Clad in an azure robe, he looked every bit a master of authority. Spotting the growing crowd of students, he barked, "Alright, listen up! I don't have all day to waste on you. All new students, step forward! The rest of you, make way for them!"
Ye Feng and the other new students approached the middle-aged man. He cast a quick, appraising glance at them and nodded. "Good," he said. "It seems all 200 of you have arrived. Now listen carefully—I don't like to repeat myself."
All the new students fell silent, their eyes fixed on the middle-aged man as they awaited his words. After a brief pause, he spoke with a commanding tone:
"You will all enter the Azure Fang Pagoda and face the puppets that reside within. Your goal is simple: defeat the puppets on each level and ascend as high as you can. The student who reaches the highest level will be declared the winner of this competition."
"The rewards are as follows: the champion will receive one Rank 3 Monster Core, the runner-up will receive one Rank 2 Monster Core, and the third-place finisher will receive one Rank 1 Monster Core."
"Do I make myself clear?"
All the new students nodded in unison, and the middle-aged man returned their gesture with a satisfied nod. Then, with a swift wave of his hand, four boxes materialized on the ground. Three of them were large and brown, while the fourth was a medium-sized black box that seemed to absorb the light around it.
The middle-aged man added, "The brown boxes contain different types of weapons. Select whatever you deem appropriate before entering the pagoda. The black box holds stones, but be aware—each stone carries an imprinted formation."
The middle-aged man continued, "The formations on these stones will record your progress in the pagoda and monitor your condition while you're inside. If you lose consciousness, or if you tightly grasp the stone, the formation will immediately teleport you outside for your safety. Each of you must pick one stone before entering the pagoda. Do you understand?"
All the new students nodded in unison in understanding.
"Good," the middle-aged man said with a satisfied nod. "Now, go and choose a weapon and one stone from the boxes."
All the students began walking toward the boxes, eager to select a weapon and a formation stone before entering the pagoda. Ye Feng stepped forward and picked up a sword. Its blade gleamed silver, stretching two feet long and three fingers wide. The handle was simple and black, complemented by a modest crossguard, giving the weapon a sleek, unpretentious look that promised precision over extravagance.
Once all the new students had selected their weapons and formation stones, the middle-aged man opened the pagoda's gate. One by one, the students stepped inside, their footsteps echoing as they entered the pagoda.
______
Inside The Pagoda
Ye Feng stepped into the Azure Fang Pagoda, and the moment he crossed the threshold, his surroundings shifted. The first level was far wider than he had imagined—an enormous, empty hall stretching into the distance.
He looked around, bewildered. There was no sign of the other new students.
"Where is everyone?" Ye Feng muttered under his breath. "We all entered the pagoda together… so why am I the only one here?"
A faint uneasiness crept into his heart as he continued scanning the vast space.
Ye Feng walked deeper into the pagoda, his footsteps echoing faintly in the vast space. He stopped abruptly when he spotted a puppet standing ahead of him. It resembled a statue—motionless and imposing—its massive frame carved with broad, armored contours. A giant war hammer rested casually on its shoulder, as if the weapon weighed nothing.
Unbeknownst to Ye Feng, the formation stone tucked inside his pocket began to glow the moment he halted. At the same time, the puppet before him lit up with a sharp, dazzling radiance, as though responding to the stone's activation.
In the next moment, the puppet rushed at Ye Feng with incredible speed, its massive frame moving far faster than something that bulky should. It gripped the war hammer tightly, and with a smooth, terrifying motion, the puppet swung it down at Ye Feng.
Ye Feng's eyes widened in shock. He instinctively raised his sword to block.
"BAAM!"
The impact sent Ye Feng flying like an arrow, slamming him harshly into the wall.
"BAAM!"
A violent tremor ran through his body, and he spat a mouthful of blood. "Damn… that really hurt," he cursed under his breath.
But the puppet didn't give him even a heartbeat to recover. It charged again, hammer raised high, its movements relentless and precise.
The moment it closed in, the puppet swung the hammer horizontally with frightening speed.
Ye Feng forced himself to move, pushing through the pain. He rolled across the ground just in time.
"BAAM!"
The hammer smashed into the spot he had just been, cracking the floor.
Ye Feng quickly widened the distance between himself and the puppet. The puppet jerked its head toward him, its eyes glowing faintly, then charged once more with thunderous steps. As it closed in, the puppet swung its war hammer with the same unnerving smoothness as before.
"SWISH, SWISH, SWISH, SWISH, SWISH!"
But this time, Ye Feng didn't meet the hammer head-on. Instead of blocking like he had during their first clash, he slipped past every strike with narrow, breath-stealing dodges.
"BAAM! BAAM! BAAM! BAAM! BAAM!"
Each time Ye Feng evaded, the hammer smashed into the ground, sending cracks crawling across the stone floor and debris shooting into the air. The force behind each missed blow only made it clearer—one direct hit and he'd be done for.
Ye Feng continued dodging, his breath steady, his expression calm despite the torrent of attacks raining toward him.
"SWISH, SWISH, SWISH, SWISH, SWISH—BAAM, BAAM, BAAM, BAAM, BAAM."
Each swing of the hammer sliced through the air with deadly weight, yet Ye Feng weaved between them like a drifting shadow.
He slipped out of the puppet's reach again, putting a few steps of distance between them. "That's it," he thought, eyes narrowing. "The only way to defeat this puppet… is to counter its hammer strikes."
The puppet charged once more, raising its hammer high.
"SWISH, SWISH, SWISH—BAAM, BAAM, BAAM!"
Ye Feng dodged every strike, his movements smoother and more precise than before.
'After every attack, it always pauses… two seconds. Before it swings again, I can use that gap to counter.'
A faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips as his eyes sharpened.
'Two seconds is enough.'
Ye Feng immediately executed his plan. As the puppet's hammer came crashing down, he slipped to the side with precise footwork—"SWISH". In the same breath, he lunged forward and drove his sword straight toward the puppet's chest.
"CLANK."
The sword blade bounced off as if striking solid iron.
Ye Feng's eyes widened in disbelief. 'Not even a scratch…?' His grip tightened around the hilt as the reality sank in—his attack hadn't left the slightest mark on the puppet's chest.
The puppet swung its hammer at Ye Feng again, but Ye Feng dropped into a low squat, letting the hammer howl past his head. "BAAM!" The ground trembled from the impact. In the same breath, Ye Feng exploded upward and unleashed a flurry of sword strikes across the puppet's body with incredible speed.
"CLANK, CLANK, CLANK, CLANK, CLANK, CLANK, CLANK!"
Ye Feng leapt backward and frowned when he saw that his sword hadn't left even a scratch on the puppet's body again. Narrowing his eyes, he muttered, 'Not even a scratch… I need more power in my strikes.'
The puppet charged at him again, its massive frame moving with unnerving smoothness as it swung its hammer:
"SWISH, SWISH, SWISH, SWISH!"
Each strike crashed into the ground or sliced through the air with brutal force:
"BAAM, BAAM, BAAM, BAAM!"
Ye Feng kept dodging, barely slipping past each blow while his mind raced for a solution. Then his expression hardened.
'No choice. I've never tried it before… and I don't even know if it will work. But here goes nothing.'
Ye Feng focused intensely, channeling his saint energy into his sword. A heartbeat later, brilliant blue energy surged across the blade, condensing into the distinct shape of a drifting cloud.
The puppet's hammer crashed down once more—"BAAM!"—but Ye Feng slipped past the strike with perfect timing. Seizing the opening, he stepped in and swept his sword toward the puppet's neck.
The coated sword blade sliced through the puppet's neck as effortlessly as a knife through butter. The head spun upward, tumbling through the air before dropping heavily to the floor. A moment later, the headless body of the puppet collapsed beside it, and the light within the puppet fading completely.
Ye Feng grinned with relief after beheading the puppet. "It worked!" he shouted. But he had no time to celebrate. The wall in front of him suddenly rumbled and lifted upward, revealing a pair of wooden doors behind it.
The doors creaked open, and two new puppets stepped out. One was short and nimble-looking, wielding a dagger in each hand. The other loomed nearly two meters tall, gripping a long bo staff with an eerily steady posture.
Ye Feng let out a quiet sigh, his gaze fixed on the two puppets as he muttered under his breath.
'Come on, give me a break—I just know this pagoda is going to be a drag.'