133: Chapter 133 One Finger Flick, Mage's Nemesis, Sky-High Odds

"Is this your full strength?"

This sentence was like an invisible slap, struck fiercely across the face of Zhao Lei, who was sprawled on the ground.

His pride, his confidence, and all the dignity he held as an S-rank Genius were crushed to pieces at this moment.

Zhao Lei's lips trembled, his eyes were bloodshot, and the halo of being a Genius had completely faded from his face, leaving only hysterical madness.

"No... that's not right! You cheated!"

As if clutching at the final straw, he used every ounce of his strength to point at Lin Qi, roaring hoarsely at the referee below the arena.

"He must have used some kind of forbidden item! An item that can negate Spell damage! This is cheating! Foul!"

This shout startled the audience out of their stupor, and countless gazes turned in unison toward the referee's bench.

Cheating?

That's right! That is the only explanation!

How could a LV.1 Blank Slate withstand the ultimate move of a Peak Second-Transition Mage without a scratch?

This isn't scientific! This isn't data-driven!

The head referee also realized this and immediately activated the arena's built-in maximum-authority detection array.

Hum—

A pale blue light screen descended from the sky, enveloping Lin Qi from head to toe and scanning him repeatedly.

A few seconds later, the detection results were clearly displayed on the big screen for everyone to see.

[Contestant: Lin Qi]

[Vital Signs: Normal]

[Energy Fluctuation: Weak]

[Equipment Check: No over-spec magical items]

[Contraband Check: None]

[Judgment Result: Everything Normal]

Looking at the cold lines of data on the screen, the head referee broke into a cold sweat; he was also completely baffled.

The instrument showed that everything was normal and no forbidden items had been used.

Then how could one explain the unbelievable scene before them?

The entire arena once again fell into a whirlpool of discussion.

"No cheating? Then how did he do it?"

"Could it be some kind of hidden S-rank Talent? One specialized in countering Spells?"

"Even with an S-rank Talent, it couldn't be this outrageous, right? He didn't even have an energy shield and just took it head-on with his Physical Body?"

On the arena, Zhao Lei stared at the detection results, completely dumbfounded, his last sliver of hope shattered.

Lin Qi looked at his embarrassing state and felt a bit bored.

This type of mage, who relies excessively on skills and data, possesses a flashy stat sheet but collapses faster than anyone else the moment they encounter a counter that exists outside the rules.

He couldn't be bothered to waste any more time on such trash.

Lin Qi extended an index finger, pointing it from a distance at Zhao Lei's forehead.

Zhao Lei's body shuddered violently, as if he were being watched by a venomous snake, and a chill surged from the soles of his feet straight to his scalp.

"Get off."

There was a hint of impatience in Lin Qi's voice, like he was shooing away a fly.

"Stop making a fool of yourself here."

The moment his words fell, he bent his finger and flicked it lightly.

There was no grand momentum, nor any dazzling light effects.

Only a simple, flicking motion.

Snap!

A dull explosion rang out in the air!

Where his fingertip made contact with the air, a ring of visible white shockwaves even appeared!

Inch Power!

This flick seemed effortless, but with the augmentation of ancient martial arts techniques, the piercing power that erupted instantly from his fingertip was in no way inferior to a bullet from a large-caliber sniper rifle!

"Ugh!"

Zhao Lei let out a short, miserable cry.

He was like a ball hit head-on by a high-speed truck; his body folded backward in an exaggerated posture, his feet left the ground, and he went tumbling backward through the air!

Whoosh—Bang!

After tracing a parabola several dozen meters long in the air, he crossed the edge of the arena and fell with perfect precision into the decorative ornamental pool below, splashing a large amount of water.

The gazes of the one hundred thousand people in the arena followed his flight trajectory.

When he landed in the water, everyone saw that a purple-red lump, the size of an egg, was swelling up on Zhao Lei's forehead at a speed visible to the naked eye.

His eyes rolled back, his limbs twitched twice, and then he completely lost consciousness, floating face down on the water, his life or death unknown.

"..."

"..."

"..."

The entire Tianqiong Arena was deathly silent.

Everyone, including the referee, commentators, and contestants from other academies, looked at the boy who was slowly retracting his finger as if they were looking at a prehistoric beast.

Shattering a Spell with a slap.

Flicking a living person away with a finger.

Is he even human?!

After a long while, the head referee, who looked as if he had just been fished out of water, shuddered, picked up the trembling microphone, and announced in a distorted voice with all his might.

"This match... Longya Academy, Lin Qi... wins!"

Boom!

This announcement was like dropping a piece of ice into a calm pot of boiling oil.

The audience instantly erupted into a buzzing sound that was more intense, strange, and shocking than at any time before.

"What was that? What kind of ability was that?!"

"I saw it! When his finger flicked out, the air exploded! That was pure physical power!"

"Sanctification through the Physical Body? Is this a Martial Artist from the legends of the old era?"

"No! I think it's some kind of equipment effect! Gauntlets or brass knuckles that can compress power into shockwaves!"

All sorts of guesses were running wild.

But no matter which one it was, none could perfectly explain the scene that just overturned their understanding.

On the Starry Sky Academy's instructor bench, the face of the team leader was already ashen. He stared fixedly at Lin Qi as he walked off the arena, his eyes as if trying to see through him inside and out and dig out all his secrets.

Lin Qi ignored all the gazes around him and walked back to the Longya Academy rest area on his own.

The way his teammates looked at him had changed from initial disdain and confusion to deep awe and fear.

Li Qingxuan sat in the corner, watching the figure walking back calmly, his eyes incredibly complex.

His past pride seemed so ridiculous at this moment.

"Is this your new ability?"

After Lin Qi sat down, Li Qingxuan finally couldn't help but ask in a dry voice.

"Spell immunity?"

Lin Qi didn't even look at him; he just pulled the unfinished animal-skin ancient book from his Storage Ring and shrugged.

"It doesn't count as that."

"I'm just a bit thick-skinned, that's all."

A bit thick-skinned?

Li Qingxuan's mouth twitched, and he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.

You call this thick-skinned? This is Dragon skin, isn't it!

The impact of this battle was profound.

The name Lin Qi, along with his ridiculous LV.1 stat sheet, had completely made a name for itself in the Five-Academy League.

A brand-new title that made all magic-class professionals shudder began to spread wildly in private.

Mage-Killer!

In the subsequent matches, any magic-class professional who drew Lin Qi would have their legs go soft before even stepping onto the stage, their morale plummeting directly to the bottom.

Just as the atmosphere in the rest area was strange, a chubby figure came tumbling and crawling in; it was Zhang Wei.

His face was flushed red, not from running, but from excitement.

He grabbed Lin Qi's arm, incoherent with excitement.

"Qi... Brother Qi! We're rich! We're rich!"

Lin Qi raised an eyebrow and finally looked up from the ancient book: "Oh? How much did we win?"

Zhang Wei excitedly held up one finger.

"One hundred million?" Lin Qi guessed.

Zhang Wei shook his head like a rattle-drum.

"One billion?"

Zhang Wei was still shaking his head; because he was too excited, the fat on his face was trembling.

Just then, a man wearing a casino vest, his face pale as paper, looking as if his parents had died, walked over, trembling, supported by two bodyguards.

He looked at Lin Qi, his lips purple, and with a crying tone, he fell to his knees with a thud.

"Big Brother! Master! You are my own master! Please, I beg you, that money... we really can't afford to pay it!"