49: Chapter 49 Vice Dean
The Vice Principal seemed to notice his gaze as well and turned her head to look over.
Their eyes met in mid-air, locking for a full five seconds.
Lin Fan finally snapped out of it, quickly looking away and lowering his head as he walked toward the spectator stands.
The Vice Principal's gaze, however, followed his back the entire time.
"This kid..."
She whispered to herself, her eyes reflecting a complex emotion.
As the Academy's Vice Principal, she naturally knew about Lin Fan.
After all, he was the only rare element holder in the academy, but also the notorious "Trash Mage."
To her surprise, Lin Fan didn't show the slightest hint of panic when faced with her stare.
Any other student would have been so nervous they wouldn't know what to do with themselves.
But this boy not only met her gaze calmly.
When he looked away, there wasn't a trace of fear in his eyes; instead, it seemed as if he had realized he was being rude and deliberately withdrew his gaze.
"Interesting. He finally promoted to a First-Order Mage."
A faint smile tugged at the corner of her mouth, and she decided to pay more attention to this student named Lin Fan during the competition.
A moment later, all the students had arrived, and the academy's teachers were all present as well.
The Vice Principal finally began her speech.
She started with a few words of encouragement for all the students.
She praised everyone's usual hard work and encouraged them to keep it up, saying this was only the starting point of their journey as mages.
Then, she got straight to the point and explained the purpose of the gathering.
"I assume you've all received notice from your teachers, so I won't go into too much detail about the specifics of the competition."
"I only want to emphasize one thing: the academy is adopting a new format this time to give every student a fair chance to compete."
"Being a fourth-year student doesn't necessarily mean you are stronger than your juniors in the third or second years..."
The Vice Principal gave a few brief instructions, reminding all participants not to underestimate their opponents and to give it their all.
After all, there was a clear entry threshold for this competition... only students who had reached the First-Order Mage realm were eligible to participate.
Furthermore.
She also emphasized the importance of the All-Academy Star Supremacy Competition.
It wasn't just a contest between the various academies in Baiyun City, but also an important channel for major Magic Universities to select new students.
Every year during the Academy Star Championship, major Magic Universities would send representatives to watch and record students who performed exceptionally well.
After the competition, these students would often receive admission letters from the Magic Universities.
Simply put, this was a golden opportunity for students to make a name for themselves and leap through the dragon's gate.
At the mention of Magic Universities, the students' blood began to boil, and their anticipation for the competition instantly reached its peak.
They couldn't wait for the matches to start so they could secure a spot and obtain an entry ticket for next month's championship.
After all, each academy only had five slots for the competition.
After finishing the precautions, the Vice Principal began reading the rules of the competition.
At the same time.
Two teachers stepped onto the arena stage; they would serve as the referees for this competition, responsible for intervening promptly if a match spiraled out of control.
The participating students would need to go through layers of competition to finally determine the top five, earning the qualification to participate in the Academy Star Championship.
A total of three hundred and fifty students were participating in this competition, with half the contestants being eliminated each day.
The competition would last for five days, and a contestant had to win five consecutive matches to break into the top five.
As her voice fell.
The Vice Principal's figure vanished from the arena stage, drawing a chorus of gasps from the students below.
But Lin Fan and the teachers present remained calm... with their strength, they naturally saw the truth.
The Vice Principal hadn't actually vanished into thin air.
Rather, she had left the arena at a speed so fast it even shocked Lin Fan.
"Her strength far exceeds the realm of a Tier 3 Mage."
Lin Fan thought to himself.
Meanwhile.
The teachers had already begun reading out the names of the contestants.
On the arena stage, two boys were standing opposite each other.
One was wearing the academy uniform with a deep blue cloak draped over his shoulders;
The other was wearing a bright red cloak.
One was a fourth-year Water-element Mage, and the other was a third-year Fire Mage!
"Begin the match!"
With the Referee Teacher's command, the match officially started, and the two students moved immediately.
Boom!
Two auras erupted one after another on the arena stage...
Both released the pressure of a First-Order Mage simultaneously, their cloaks snapping in the wind generated by their magic power.
The students in the stands watched the confrontation on the stage with great interest and excitement, their cheers rising and falling.
Separated by more than ten meters, their eyes locked and their expressions solemn as they summoned their respective Elemental Star Maps.
A mage at the First-Order Mage realm only needed to condense a single Star Pattern to cast a spell.
In an instant, five dazzling blue star points and five crimson star points appeared behind each of them, respectively, beginning to rapidly connect into patterns.
"Go for it! Crush him!"
"Show them that we underclassmen aren't easy targets!"
"Give that junior a good lesson!"
"Let them see the power of the fire element!"
In the spectator stands, students cheered loudly, rooting for their classmates or those with the same elemental attribute.
The teachers on the sidelines also watched the match with interest.
Three seconds later, the Water-element Mage was the first to complete the construction of the Star Pattern!
He shouted the incantation, and the blue Star Pattern behind him flared with light.
"Water Blade!"
Several drops of water instantly condensed in front of the Star Pattern, then merged into a meter-long Water Blade that shot toward the Fire Mage student opposite him.
The Water Blade's speed was neither fast nor slow as it sliced through the air, closing in step by step.
Seeing this scene.
The water-element students and fourth-year students in the stands cheered, applauding the Water-element Mage.
On the other side.
The Fire Mage student's movements were only a second slower than his opponent's, taking four seconds to complete the Star Pattern condensation.
A large crimson Star Pattern formed above his head.
Facing the incoming Water Blade, his expression was calm and he didn't panic at all.
As soon as the Star Pattern was formed, he immediately launched a counter-spell.
"Fireball Technique!"
The crimson Star Pattern above his head suddenly heated up, and a fireball the size of a watermelon condensed in front of it.
Under his control, the fireball whistled as it rushed toward the Water Blade.
This maneuver made his classmates and the fire-element students cheer excitedly.
In their eyes, this duel was simply magnificent.
The two spells collided violently in the center of the arena.
Bang!
With a loud bang, a small explosion erupted, and scalding steam instantly filled half of the arena.
However, the next second...
Whoosh!
A dim Water Blade, looking as if it might dissipate at any moment, actually charged out of the smoke, still flying toward the Fire Mage student in the red cloak.
The scales of victory had already tilted.
Clearly.
The difference in their magic power intensity was obvious at a glance.
This Water-element Mage's realm was likely one or two minor levels higher than his opponent's!
Even so, the Fire Mage student didn't flinch when he saw the incoming Water Blade.