Chapter 343: The Difference in Levels of Life
As for the repeated upheavals surrounding the finals, Xi Min hadn’t kept her students completely in the dark. But there was only so much she could say—she gave a few reminders and assured them that they only needed to focus on the matches. The rest was nothing for them to worry about. Incidents like those wouldn’t happen to them.
Soon, the day of the finals arrived.
The entire tournament had stretched over quite a long period, but for extraordinary individuals, that time wasn’t nearly enough to bring about any major breakthroughs. At most, it allowed them to refine their mastery of abilities in life-and-death combat and accumulate more extraordinary energy.
Thus, all ten finalist teams had already been briefed by their academy analysts—what to watch out for, which opponents to challenge.
But in the end, the decisions would still be theirs.
The finals stage was set in the center of a massive arena, capable of holding two hundred thousand spectators.
On the way to the venue, even from inside the car, Xu Zhi could hear the deafening cheers outside—the roar of the crowd, the surging noise of countless people gathered together, and waves of enthusiastic support.
None of the top ten teams lacked fans. In previous years, finals tickets would be snapped up at exorbitant prices by supporters. But this year was different—there was a new group of attendees who didn’t favor any team. They had come solely to see the [Executor].
Xu Zhi herself was quite curious about this [Executor]. There were many referees at the finals, and it was said that the Executor would sit among them as a supervisor. The referee area was visible to the public—so naturally, he would be as well.
Entering the preparation area through the participants’ passage, Xu Zhi glanced through the glass toward the referee section on the opposite side of the arena. It was located on the second level, separated from the audience. For now, it was empty—the match hadn’t officially begun.
The preparation period passed quickly. With the host’s impassioned voice, the ten finalist teams appeared one by one according to their rankings, then returned to their assigned preparation areas. After completing the formalities and stepping back, Xu Zhi looked again toward the referee section—
—and realized that, at some unknown moment, someone had quietly taken a seat there.
His figure was hidden beneath a wide, dark green referee’s robe. His face was concealed by the hood, leaving only a portion of his chin and his hands visible.
Mysterious. Low-key. Blending among the referees without drawing attention.
And yet Xu Zhi noticed him immediately.
Some instinct told her—
this person was likely the [Winter] Executor.
It was somewhat different from what she had imagined. She had expected a far more grand and conspicuous entrance. Instead, it was understated to the extreme. Even the host made no mention of the Executor at all.
As Xu Zhi withdrew her gaze, she noticed something subtle—her teammates were also glancing, intentionally or not, toward the Executor’s direction.
Realizing this, she looked elsewhere.
And found that the extraordinary individuals in other preparation areas were doing the same.
It seemed that no matter how low-key this Executor tried to be, he still unconsciously drew the attention of other extraordinaries—like a flicker of light in the darkness.
Was it curiosity?
Partly.
But not entirely.
Xu Zhi remembered the feeling when she looked over—that faint, indescribable sensation.
Perhaps that was the real reason.
If she had to describe it, she would say it was the natural pull of a higher level of life toward a lower one.
No matter how restrained he was, he couldn’t conceal that difference.
Before the match began, the use of extraordinary abilities in the preparation area wasn’t entirely forbidden. Xu Zhi cautiously activated her [All-Seeing Eye]—but instead of looking directly at the Executor, she observed elsewhere.
That was enough for a test.
When the brief opening ceremony concluded and the host reiterated the rules before officially starting the finals, Xu Zhi knew—
the Executor likely hadn’t noticed anything unusual about her.
Otherwise, given the series of incidents already plaguing the league, if he had detected something off, the match wouldn’t have proceeded so calmly. She would have been dealt with discreetly first.
Although she had already been fairly confident, confirming it still left her slightly puzzled.
The Executor’s level of existence was undoubtedly higher than hers.
And yet—even so—he hadn’t detected her anomaly?
She carried many secrets. Her circuit, after all, had been something she cobbled together herself. She couldn’t discuss it with anyone. Even now, knowing she might have created something extraordinary, she had no way of gauging just how concealed her dual-circuit secret truly was.
From the looks of it, she might have accidentally created something even an Executor couldn’t immediately perceive.
In any case, it was good that nothing was wrong.
She had to secure a place in the Lost Lands.
For that, some risk was worth taking.
If even the slightest irregularity were discovered, she would immediately use her [Lamp]-type ability, [Spirit Body], to create a duplicate and transfer her [Moth] circuit into it. Though it would weaken her, with Lian City and Light Institute backing her, unless the Executor could destroy that spirit body instantly, there would be no evidence against her.
Of course, once the [Moth] circuit was separated, she would lose access to [All-Seeing Eye], making the finals more dangerous.
Fortunately, she wouldn’t need to go that far.
“The match has begun.”
The preparation areas for the ten teams were arranged close together, ordered from first to tenth. If a challenge succeeded, the teams would also switch their preparation areas accordingly.
As the host had explained, after the start of the match, each round allowed a ten-minute decision window. If no team issued a challenge within those ten minutes, all teams would lose one challenge opportunity. The first team to declare a challenge would initiate the match.
There were no intermissions—matches would continue until final rankings were determined.
The moment the host announced the start, the first ten-minute countdown began.
To issue a challenge, a team simply needed to activate the declaration function in their preparation room.
“We can see that after the host announced the start, none of the ten teams have made a move yet.”
At the commentary desk—unheard by the competitors—the commentators narrated for the audience.
“That’s normal. There’s ten minutes, and it’s the first round—everyone wants to observe first. I’d guess the first challenger will appear around the seventh or eighth minute.”
Xiaoxiao speculated.
Time ticked by.
As the countdown on the central holographic screen reached the eighth minute—
suddenly, the display shattered.
The red digits broke apart, replaced by a bold number:
[4]
“Hejiang City Academy, ranked fourth, has initiated the first challenge! So—who among the top three are they aiming for?”
