Chapter 18: Unexpected Champion
For instance, in school, a dozen or so of the most excellent senior teachers only have the strength of an Apprentice Level Nine Martial Master, yet their status is no lower than an ordinary Earth-rank Martial Spirit Master. Combined with bonuses and salaries, they don't need to leave the city to hunt savage beasts to live a very wealthy life. Some countries even provide opportunities for artificial awakening or exchange for precious martial arts or secret manuals once such teachers reach a certain standard of merit.
On Arena Two, the match between Di Xuanluo and Zheng Meimei had not yet ended—or rather, it had only just begun.
Yang Tong and Feng Xiaobo stood to the side, watching closely.
Zheng Meimei's physique on the stage was like a moving mountain, truly shocking. At the same time, her movement speed was not slow, and her striking power reached a full six or seven hundred kilograms!
Clearly, given Zheng Meimei's current age, the probability of her reaching Apprentice Level Six Martial Master was near zero. Thus, having such terrifying strength meant she must have cultivated a set of relatively profound or high-level amplification martial arts. If Di Xuanluo went head-to-head with her, he would likely suffer a great loss; after all, the difference in their builds was too vast.
However, Di Xuanluo also had his advantages. His dodging was very precise; he had been attacking Zheng Meimei the entire time, while she hadn't been able to land a single hit on him.
Yang Tong watched Di Xuanluo's dodging and attacking carefully. After a while, he suddenly seemed to discover something. His eyes widened, flashing with a look of surprise: "This is inch strength!" And it wasn't just ordinary inch strength. Ordinary inch strength is a short-distance power-exertion technique, considered a very profound method. Seeing it in such a high-martial world didn't surprise him, but Di Xuanluo was using multiple inch strength, which had extremely strong penetrative power and even contained hidden force.
Having understood this, he couldn't help but silently praise him. To deal with a difficult opponent like Zheng Meimei, one could only destroy her from the inside. When the hidden force injected into her body exploded all at once, Zheng Meimei would certainly be unable to hold on. This method was a bit ruthless, but if it were him, he would also have to use it under these circumstances.
Multiple inch strength... Did Di Xuanluo have other hidden methods? He should have no problem with this match; he would be his opponent in the next round.
"Damn it, damn it! Stop jumping around like a flea, will you? Are you even a man? If you have the guts, face me head-on! You annoying bug! Bug!" Zheng Meimei's patience was nearly exhausted. In her fury, she roared loudly, absolutely livid.
"Hmph!" Di Xuanluo snorted with disdain, ignoring Zheng Meimei's words. Meanwhile, he was silently calculating. Having struck her with so many bursts of hidden force, they should have exploded by now. Could this fat girl have such a powerful body that she could forcibly suppress them?
"Ah—" Zheng Meimei was finally knocked down by a punch from Di Xuanluo. No, it should be said that the accumulated hidden force finally exploded at this moment. Zheng Meimei screamed in pain and collapsed to the ground.
Di Xuanluo breathed a sigh of relief. To strike dozens or even a hundred bursts of hidden force in a single match was, honestly, quite exhausting.
"1, 2, 3, 4..." The referee began the countdown.
Zheng Meimei lay on the ground, her whole body in pain, but she wasn't knocked unconscious. She was filled with hatred, her teeth itching with resentment. Boundless anger and hatred made her forget everything else; she had only one thought: to defeat Di Xuanluo.
"7, 8, continue!" When the referee reached eight, Zheng Meimei stood straight up from the ground, which was incredibly eerie.
"Di Xuanluo, I'm going to take you down!" she roared as if unconsciously, and a powerful force erupted from her body.
Principal Long stood up from his chair in shock and exclaimed, "This... this... this is awakening! Spiritual power awakening!"
Zheng Meimei struck a palm toward Di Xuanluo's location. A surge of power gathered in her palm, and with a swing, she struck it out.
Caught off guard, Di Xuanluo was hit squarely by this force. He spat out blood and was sent flying off the arena.
Principal Long's figure blurred, appearing just in time to catch Di Xuanluo. He checked his pulse, took out a pill, and placed it in Di Xuanluo's mouth. He let out a long breath and said, "Someone, take Di Xuanluo to the infirmary. His injuries have stabilized, but he needs to rest for a while."
After knocking Di Xuanluo away with a palm strike from a distance, Zheng Meimei smiled slightly, then went limp and fainted.
"Someone, take Student Zheng Meimei to the county hospital and tell the doctors there to take good care of her." Principal Long was in a great mood. To think that someone would unexpectedly undergo awakening in this session! Hahaha... this was a great achievement! A joyous occasion, a truly joyous occasion!
He quickly regained control of his emotions and announced loudly, "Since Student Zheng Meimei and Student Di Xuanluo are unable to continue the competition, I declare that the champion of this elementary grade comprehensive tournament is Student Yang Tong. Congratulations to him for becoming the champion of this year's tournament!"
Yang Tong snapped out of his surprise. Hearing Principal Long's words, he felt speechless, with an indescribable feeling in his heart. This result was both what he wanted and somewhat unsatisfying.
Overall, however, he was still very happy. At least those ten low-grade high-rank beast crystals were in his hands. With them, the fate-altering copper coin in his sea of consciousness would have the energy to be repaired.
"Yang Tong, your luck is simply beyond words. You won the championship so easily," Feng Xiaobo said enviously.
"No, my luck isn't the best; Zheng Meimei's luck is the best!" He shook his head. After a talent awakening, although it was impossible to instantly surge to the Earth Rank, there was no doubt that once one possessed spiritual power, even at the apprentice level, they would be invincible among their peers. Furthermore, from Apprentice Level Nine to Earth Rank Level One, there would be no bottleneck to speak of—one could cross it entirely and reach the heavens in a single step.
"Sigh, it's a pity that everyone's awakening is closely related to their personality, environment, and circumstances; it can't be replicated." Feng Xiaobo also understood that Zheng Meimei had hit the jackpot this time by unexpectedly awakening her spiritual power. It was truly lucky. "Who would have thought that life qi and anger could also lead to awakening? Why don't I have such good luck?"
The award ceremony was quickly prepared, and Yang Tong luckily stood in the first-place position.
Principal Long personally handed the trophy and the ten low-grade high-rank beast crystals to him, encouraging him: "Study hard. Effort and sweat will not be in vain. I hope you can continue to move forward. The next genius to undergo awakening might just be you. Always maintain your confidence, understand?"
"Yes, Principal!" He took the trophy and the beast crystals, feeling happy. The beast crystals were finally his.