21: finals

The semi-finals were as Lin Ye expected; he faced the Light Element Mage, Bai Xiaoxiao.

He was a little confused why a man would have such a feminine name.

But he didn't say anything.

With Great Achievement Star Force boosting his Inch Step, his speed was astonishing; after enduring a few light sword spells, one punch was all it took for Bai Xiaoxiao to enter a peaceful slumber.

Before losing consciousness, he had only one thought: finally, he could get a good night's sleep.

These past few days had exhausted him; noble mages were not as energetic as those barbarians.

Ma Junjie also quickly dealt with his opponent; the Arcanist, who mastered arcane energy and comprehended the power of runes, was too young, and his comprehension was not enough, so he was brutally beaten by this barbaric monster.

The finals were scheduled for the afternoon, so Lin Ye rested for a while, mentally simulating his battle with Ma Junjie several times.

Ma Junjie wasn't idle either; Lin Ye's information was very transparent, almost completely exposed, while he still had a few tricks up his sleeve.

The finals began.

The arena was packed with people, filling the 200,000-capacity venue to the brim; many ephemeral sky-eyes were broadcasting the competition, as Magic City University's freshman competition had always been popular, with many people enjoying watching it.

Medical staff, general staff, and security personnel were all in position.

In the conference rooms of various academies, teachers and leaders were also watching the live broadcast.

Due to the unique system of universities, teachers were not present at the events; all large and small competitions were left to the students themselves. With the intelligent system in place, there would be no errors or omissions.

Many senior students participated as on-site staff and security personnel. As for medical personnel, they cooperated with well-known local hospitals.

Lin Ye and Ma Junjie stepped onto the ring.

"Lin Ye, I truly admire you. I never expected a second-tier Martial Artist like you to reach this stage," Ma Junjie said, appreciating Lin Ye and hoping to recruit him for his team, so he wanted to build a good relationship with him now.

Lin Ye was also amiable; it was true that the current situation made people envious, but it was still very necessary to build a good relationship with a rich young master.

"Young Master Ma, you're the one we envy, born in Rome."

The two exchanged a few more compliments, and then the match began.

Dragon Transformation.

Muscle Master.

Ma Junjie shot into the sky like an arrow, thinking to himself, "This guy is hard to deal with; I can't clash head-on with him!" With a thought, he continuously spat out a series of scorching fireballs.

Lin Ye's eyes were sharp; he had actually anticipated this move from Ma Junjie. The fireballs flew slowly, not fast at all, which was a piece of cake for him. He dodged them easily with a flash of his body.

Lin Ye was well aware of magic-side skills. While fire-type attacks were incredibly powerful, their trajectories were relatively slow; in contrast, light and wind-type skills were much faster. Recalling the attacks from the Light Element Mage he encountered earlier that morning, he indeed found them difficult to dodge. However, fortunately, light-type attacks were much weaker, so there was no need to be overly afraid.

Seeing that his fireball attack had no effect, Ma Junjie didn't waste too much of his Star Power. His body suddenly erupted in blazing flames, instantly transforming into a mighty and majestic Red Dragon, swooping down with bared fangs and claws.

Facing such a sudden change, Lin Ye dared not be careless. He immediately unleashed all his abilities, pushing the Inch Step technique to its limit, his body flashing away like a ghost.

In this exchange, Ma Junjie finally witnessed Lin Ye's astonishing speed firsthand, realizing that continuing this way would be futile.

Since neither ranged attacks nor charges had any effect, Ma Junjie immediately lunged forward, engaging Lin Ye in close-quarters combat. At the same time, the massive claw he used to defeat Lin Yao gradually materialized.

"Just as I wished!" Lin Ye secretly rejoiced.

In fact, Lin Ye didn't want to continue the stalemate with Ma Junjie. Although the attacking party would consume more energy, his own Star Power was not as abundant as his opponent's, so if they continued to drag it out, the outcome of the battle would still be unpredictable.

Thus, Lin Ye unleashed all his might, delivering a powerful blow—a Cannon Fist. His entire fist was enveloped in black-silver Star Force—this was the additional boost from cultivating Star Force to the Great Achievement realm.

With a loud "bang," the two retreated from the aftermath of the fierce collision.

"As expected of a Dragon-human, his physical strength is truly astonishing."

Lin Ye secretly marveled. However, Ma Junjie himself felt the damage from that blow more directly: "A Great Achievement-level ability is indeed terrifying; my hand is already numb..."

Ma Junjie knew he couldn't let his opponent have his way, so he opened his mouth and spat out a fireball.

Lin Ye sidestepped and quickly closed in on Ma Junjie, unleashing a barrage of Cannon Fists like a violent storm. Ma Junjie hastily used his giant claw skill to block again, but this time he chose not to clash head-on with Lin Ye. Instead, he seized the opportunity to throw a fireball at Lin Ye's face.

"Damn ranged attacks!" Lin Ye cursed inwardly, realizing that he needed to master ranged attack abilities as soon as possible, otherwise being kited by enemies like this was truly infuriating.

Although Martial Artists possessed many ranged skills, most of them were Gold Level or higher.

How annoying! After enduring a fireball spell attack, Lin Ye immediately retaliated with a devastating Cannon Fist.

Thus, the two went back and forth, one launching fireballs, the other retaliating with Cannon Fists. They fought to a standstill, their wounds increasing.

However, after being hit by another Cannon Fist, Ma Junjie finally couldn't hold on. He quickly flew into the air to evade. After all, the power of Cannon Fist was simply too great; even a giant statue probably couldn't withstand a few such heavy blows.

Originally, Ma Junjie had hoped to rely on his strong and tough physique to engage Lin Ye in close-quarters combat, but now it seemed he was still slightly inferior?

Since small fireballs were useless against distant enemies, he simply stopped wasting Star Power. The fire elements within his body began to gather frantically in his chest, gradually becoming more violent and scorching. In the blink of an eye, his entire chest had turned fiery red.

"Red Dragon Breath!"

Accompanied by a roar, a burst of raging flames, several times more terrifying than a small fireball, erupted from Ma Junjie's mouth. At this moment, he seemed to have transformed into a terrifying flamethrower, unleashing endless power downwards.

And this so-called "Red Dragon Breath" was actually one of the Dragon race's most powerful moves—a Star Level skill! Moreover, this skill could be mastered without special training; it was, so to speak, an innate talent of every Dragon-human.

Lin Ye desperately dodged, cursing inwardly. This skill was simply too powerful, far exceeding the level they should be at!

The Star Force on his body surged like a tide, continuously gathering on his skin, forcibly unleashing a portion of the power of Star Force Body Armor. However, this was merely a drop in the bucket.

That strange breath could move freely, making it impossible to defend against! Although Lin Ye tried his best to dodge some of it, more of the breath mercilessly struck him.

In an instant, he felt as if he were in a boiling oil pot, his whole body aching intensely. His left arm, in particular, was severely damaged, with some areas already carbonized, and exposed blood vessels clearly visible. Not only that, his upper chest and upper abdomen also became red and swollen, covered with white blisters.

Despite suffering such heavy injuries, Lin Ye gritted his teeth and persevered, refusing to fall easily. Ma Junjie, on the other hand, was pale; that last breath attack had almost exhausted a large amount of Star Power within him. However, the results were fruitful: Lin Ye's left arm was completely crippled, and his upper abdomen and chest also suffered severe burns.

Following this, Ma Junjie mercilessly spat out three small fireballs in quick succession, blocking all possible escape routes for Lin Ye. At the same time, the Red Dragon launched a fierce charge, and Ma Junjie poured all his Star Power into preparing for the final blow—Dragon God Dive!

Lin Ye had no retreat now; the small fireballs blocked his path like an iron wall. If his body had been unharmed, he might have tried to force his way through the fireballs to escape, but now, severely injured, he was powerless to endure the intense pain and impact of this blow. Even if he managed to resist, he would inevitably be slowed down by the pain and ultimately still be pursued.

Lin Ye clenched his right fist, and a black-silver Star Force surged continuously from his palm. Then, he unleashed his full power—Cannon Fist!

The fiery giant dragon roared and lunged at the black fist, and in an instant, the two collided with a crash! A small red-black tornado erupted from the center of the impact, visible to the naked eye, and chaotic energy swept all around. The two, their strength exhausted, were sent flying like withered leaves in the wind.

After falling heavily to the ground, Lin Ye spat out a mouthful of blood, staining the ground in front of him. His hands were already crippled, but his strong willpower allowed him to struggle to support himself and stand up again.

Looking at Ma Junjie, the previously bright red fist prints on his body had now turned pitch black, with the mark left by that last punch on his chest being the most obvious. At this moment, he was already too weak to get up; the Star Power consumed from enduring so many Cannon Fists earlier had almost completely depleted him.

"Ma Junjie has lost combat capability. The winner of this match is Lin Ye of Martial Artist Academy," the cold voice of the referee robot announced.

The entire audience instantly erupted! A second-tier Martial Artist defeating a third-tier powerhouse, and his opponent was even a top-tier Red Dragon-human among third-tiers. Such an incredible result was truly astonishing.

"Lin Ye is awesome."

"Are Martial Artists that strong? Damn it, did I miss out on a super choice?"

"Ma Junjie actually lost, incredible. He's considered a strong one among third-tiers, right?"

The doctors immediately rushed up, and with familiar holy light, his charred skin quickly peeled off, and carbonized muscle fascia also detached and regrew.

The doctor bandaged Lin Ye's burned areas and instructed, "Don't engage in strenuous activity these next few days. Your wounds are quite severe; you need to wait for the flesh to heal and replenish plenty of water and nutrients. Remember to go to the hospital for follow-ups every day; you'll need a few more Holy Light treatments."