Lu Fengyi watched as Wang Ying stepped towards the stage, about to ascend the stairs that led to the top of the duelling ring. Deciding quickly to begin his plan early, Lu Fengyi called to her, "Wang Ying! Wait a moment."

Stepping forwards from the other students, Lu Fengyi turned around before addressing Zhang Xuan, "Zhang laoshi, please allow me to battle next."

"Heh?" Zhang Xuan hesitated slightly at first, however seeing no reason why not to accept, he relented before waving his hand, "Alright. Wang Ying, come down and let Lu Fengyi go up first."

"I thank teacher for your considerations." Lu Fengyi performed a formal bow before ascending the steps, apologising to Wang Ying on the way up, "Sorry I took your opportunity. I'm just really itching for a fight."

Of course, being the nice person she was, Wang Ying shook her head before wishing Lu Fengyi good luck and walking back to where Zhang Xuan stood.

Seeing Lu Fengyi's actions, Lu Xun paled in fright before quickly calling for Du Lei to return. Even if he were to send his strongest student to fight against the Elite Student, it would only be calling for a crushing defeat. Sure it wouldn't be humiliating, however it would definitely be scarring for the competitor.

Frowning at Lu Xun's indecision, the overseer called over, "Lu laoshi, is there anything wrong? You need to send a student up to face Zhang Xuan's student."

Hearing the words, Lu Xun felt completely stifled.

Have you been living under a rock? He's the Elite Student, alright? Even most of my second and third year students would still lose miserably against this Lu Fengyi. One must know that only half a week after arriving at the academy, Lu Fengyi had advanced from being a completely useless boy to a fully fledged genius with the strength of a Dantian realm pinnacle cultivator. Aren't you just driving me into a corner here?

Lu Xun breathed deeply before answering, "Senior adjudicator. None of my students will be able to defeat the opponent."

The adjudicator raised an eyebrow, "So you forfeit then? You must know that you've already lost two battles and forfeiting will mean Zhang Xuan will win."

Lu Xun could only grit his teeth together in annoyance as he came up with the most optimal solution, "How about this. Since it's the final battle, why don't I challenge my peer, Zhang laoshi to a battle instead?"

"This competition is between students. If you wish to fight Zhang laoshi, you will have to obtain his assent first."

The adjudicator crinkled his brows in disappointment. Originally, he had a decent impression of Lu Xun laoshi, the star teacher of the academy, however after seeing that the man couldn't even gather the courage to send his students against Lu Fengyi made him only feel the beginnings of disdain.

Of course, Zhang Xuan had no problem going for a duel as his own cultivation of a Tongxuan realm cultivator was more than sufficient to deal with Lu Xun, who was an entire cultivation level lower, however that would not gain him anything, but instead possibly giving him the name of someone who bullied the weak.

Just as Zhang Xuan was about to consent to the suggestion, each of the five students around him stood up abruptly before stepping forward and shouting.

"You dare challenge our teacher?"

"Then we, the students of Zhang laoshi, challenge you to a battle."

"We will preserve Zhang laoshi's reputation. No one may sully it!"

Together, the five students stood in a straight line, chins up and faces proud. If anyone were to even try and cause their teacher to suffer, they would retaliate in the best method possible, with their own abilities!

Lu Xun paled at the display of confidence and willingness from Zhang Xuan's students. While it was true that Lu Xun was the star teacher of the academy, his students that would be able to do the same as Zhang Xuan's students had could be counted on a single hand. Even among those, majority would be the third year students, who had spent much more time with him than the others.

Swallowing in anxiety, Lu Xun could feel cold sweat running down his back, "Very well, I shall acce..."

"Wait!" Lu Fengyi called out.

In an instant, all the faces within the hall turned towards Lu Fengyi as he stepped to the top of the stage. Upon arriving, he began speaking once more, "Lu laoshi, you shall not be fighting Zhang laoshi today. You shall not be fighting those students either."

Ready to pull his hair out in frustration, Lu Xun contained his anger, "Then what do you suggest."

Lu Fengyi put on a wide grin before responding, "Your opponent shall be me."

Lu Xun heaved a sigh of relief. He had wondered what kind of devilish idea the Elite Student would have, however if the only thing he needed to do was face Lu Fengyi, he still had enough confidence to defeat him. After all, even if the boy was an Elite Student, in the end, Lu Fengyi had only truly started cultivating a month ago. If he could not even defeat such a student, wouldn't he be losing too much face?

"Alright, I accept your challenge. I will lower my cultivation down to that of a Pigu realm cultivator so that it isn't a skewed fight." Lu Xun spoke proudly.

"Haha, no need for that." Lu Fengyi waved away the suggestion.

Lu Xun crinkled his brows in confusion, "You mean you wish to fight me with your current cultivation? I'll have you know that I'm currently of the Pixue realm. No matter how talented you are, you won't be able to defeat me."

"You won't need to worry about that. Let us begin our battle." Lu Fengyi displayed an impatient face, however inside, he grinned devilishly. The final objective he needed to complete was a face slap, and what better way to do it than this?

With a leap, Lu Xun jumped upon the duelling arena before quickly scanning over Lu Fengyi. While he wasn't too worried about defeat, the confidence that the boy radiated was not something he could ignore. If anything, although his brain was telling him that nothing was wrong, his gut tightened in fear, as if about to face the greatest ordeal of his life.

Lifting his hand in the air, the adjudicator prepared to begin the match, "Are both parties ready?"

"Yes."

"Yes."

"Alright. The match begins now!"

Contrary to Lu Xun's expectations, Lu Fengyi did not rush forward impulsively like youngsters generally would, instead circling the arena as if waiting for him to make the first move. As an experienced fighter, Lu Xun's instincts told him that there would be nothing gained from making the first move, and hence he began circling the arena as well.

"Do you wish to know why I proposed the challenge even though I was at such an obvious disadvantage?"

Lu Xun looked up at Lu Fengyi, who had stopped circling and was now standing still. Unknowingly, Lu Xun gulped in partial fear.

Suddenly, Lu Fengyi closed his eyes and a storm of energy began to build around him. Realising what he was trying to do, Lu Xun widened his eyes in disbelief.

"Shit!"