Chapter 104: Competition Among the Strongest

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation  Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

They reached the end of the tunnel surrounded by trees.

Ahead of them was a unique hophornbeam statue. The sculpture was of an old farmer resting while he happily watched his saplings grow stronger.

Even though the statue was dark and not shocking, Meng Chao knew that it portrayed Jin Zhenglin, the old dean of Agricultural University.

Jin Zhenglin was an experienced agronomist and genomist, He had created more than one hundred ways to combine Earth’s products with the creatures of the Other World, and he also took part in designing the 3D farms, which helped the production of food in a single unit to surpass Earth’s production rate by fifty times. The facilities in the farm could even transform spirit energy into light for photosynthesis so that the 3D farms could be buried underground. It created a brand new man-made ecosystem.

It was because of his contributions that Dragon City’s population was able to shoot up within a short few decades in this small space despite the injuries sustained in the first decades of warfare.

Jin Zhenglin, the old dean of Agricultural University, who had solved the food problem; Fang Mochun, who had created many laws for superhumans and created the system for the superhuman society to run smoothly; and Battle God Lei Zongchao were all acknowledged by the government and the people. After Dragon City transmigrated to this place, they were among the ten pioneers with the greatest influence.

Beside the old dean were two stages. One of them was used as the registration spot for new students, while the other was a huge arena.

After the new students reported themselves, they headed to the arena. Nearly one thousand people were there. All of them shouted at the top of their lungs and cheered for their respective courses.

The martial artists and monster controllers fought against each other in the arena. Monsters and beast souls fought for superiority in a fierce fight.

“Meng Chao!”

Before he could stand on tiptoes to see better, Meng Chao heard a clear voice from the registration counter.

Ning Xueshi led a few students toward him with a smile.

She was dressed in a simple pleated skirt and her uniform, but it managed to bring out her snow-white skin.

She had a smile that could melt ice mountains, and it was something her coursemates rarely saw.

For a period of time, regardless of whether it was the seniors around Ning Xueshi or the new students who had just entered the university, all of them cast sideways glances at Meng Chao. They could not understand how this person, who only had spirit tattoos on his right arm, could receive such VIP treatment from this senior.

While Meng Chao was hospitalized, Ning Xueshi had come to visit him a few times and become familiar with the Meng family. “Uncle Meng, Auntie Bai, Lil’ Sis Bai, you’re all here?”

“Ms. Ning, hello.” Meng Yishan and Bai Suxin greeted her happily.

The wary look in Bai Jiacao’s eyes disappeared. A thought appeared in her head, and she suddenly drew closer, rose on her tiptoes, and said softly, “Big Sis Ning, why didn’t you drop by when my brother was discharged? That day, a pretty girl came over to meet my brother, and she even packed things up for him. She was with him when he was discharged. I remember that her surname is Yan. Do you know her?”

Ning Xueshi’s smile turned a little stiff.

“I think that Big Sis Yan is so pretty that she’s a little sleazy. She’s not as pure as you are, Big Sis Ning. But I think my big brother is besotted with her. When he looks at her, he can’t keep her eyes off her. He was about to start drooling,” Bai Jiacao said seriously.

Ning Xueshi narrowed her eyes.

Meng Chao smacked Bai Jiacao’s head. “What are you talking about? You’re being really sneaky.”

“It’s nothing.” Bai Jiacao covered her head and changed the topic. “Hey, Big Sis Ning, what’s the arena over there? They’re having a really fierce fight!”

“Martial arts course and monster controller course are doing a course competition. This is an old tradition of Agricultural University. You know the saying, no one is content with being second best. Their fighting ideals are quite different. One of them thinks that modifying monsters to fight is better, and the other thinks that killing monsters, eating their flesh and blood, getting their vitality magnetic field, and turning them into beast souls is the best way. Neither side can convince the other, so they fight in the arena.”

Bai Jiacao was curious. “Why did they choose to fight today? Isn’t this the day new students register?”

“It’s exciting to fight in front of the new students!” Ning Xueshi smiled. “The students from the martial arts course and monster controller course are mortal enemies since birth. No matter what, when, and why, as long as someone gives someone else a wrong look, they start fighting.

“The university often organizes all sorts of competitions for them to vent their anger and so that they can exchange their skills. But the competition organized on the day the new students register is the most exciting. Both sides fight seriously because it’d be really embarrassing if they lost in front of so many new students!”

Bai Jiacao’s eyes lit up. She asked eagerly, “Who’s winning and losing now? Is the martial arts course or monster controller course stronger?”

“The sophomores and juniors are participating in the competition this time. Each side sent ten contestants out. They’ve fought nine rounds by now. The monster controller course has won six times, and lost three times. The final round is starting now,” Ning Xueshi said.

“Huh?”

Bai Jiacao pulled a long face.

Even though she was very displeased with her older brother constantly “suppressing” her, they were a family. When they were outside, she naturally stood on her older brother’s side and hoped that his martial arts course was stronger.

She did not expect that the strongest fighting course in Agricultural University was not its martial arts course, but monster controller course.

Yet that was to be expected. The university’s nickname was Monster University, after all!

As the crowd spoke, a loud shout rose in the arena.

A sophomore from the martial arts course with spirit tattoos all over his body gathered the spirit flames on his arms to form two golden tiger heads. They opened their mouths and went to bite their opponent.

His enemy was a standard monster controller with a brainwave enhancer on his forehead. Dense spirit tattoos that flowed about slowly, like they were living veins, surrounded his eyes and temples. His brainwaves turned into visible electric waves that crawled into the brain of a reptile, which had a receiver on its head.

The monster controller used a biochemical monster. He had not caught a monster to tame it.

Instead, through genetic modifications and biochemical technology, he had blended many monsters together and even implanted a large amount of machines into the monster’s body.

Such creatures had a tough body that could withstand all sorts of modifications. They often had reactive armor and firearms, which was why they were known as amalgamation monsters, and their fighting power was much stronger than that of normal monsters.

The amalgamation monster in the arena might not have firearms, but it was made up of seven or eight different reptiles. At first glance, it looked like the combination of a python and crocodile, but there was a sturdy shell on its back. There was also deformed swelling at the end of its tail. It was covered in bumps, like a natural morning star.

The martial arts course student had attacked a few times, but his attacks were blocked by the sturdy shell.

Soon though, the martial arts course student finally found an opening and struck the monster controller with his beast soul.

But this was a trap set by the monster controller. The amalgamation monster had seemed to be slow in reacting, but in truth, it swung its tail just on time and struck the martial arts course student’s back.

Whoosh!

The tail’s end broke off. It was only connected to the reptile with an alloy chain, which made it into an actual morningstar. The reptile’s attack range instantly increased by close to five meters. The angle of its attacks also became very tricky.

“Urk!”

Before the tiger soul from the martial arts course student could reach his opponent’s chest, a solid hit landed on his back. He coughed up blood and fell from the arena like a kite with its string snapped.

Ten matches had been fought, and the monster controller course won seven times. They won with an overwhelming advantage and defended their glory as the strongest fighting course in Agricultural University.

The victors would definitely flaunt their victory, and the monster controller course students who had just joined the university shared the glory. They cheered loudly.

The losers were humiliated. They hung their heads down, and even the martial arts course students who had just entered the university felt like they had been dealt a heavy blow.

Of course, since newborn calves were not afraid of tigers, the new students of the martial arts course did not admit to defeat so easily.

They gritted their teeth and clenched their fists. With intense gazes, they looked at the monster controller course students.

The new students across from them felt arrogant and looked at them with huge grins.

Just like that, they formed a grudge against one other on the first day of university.

They swore that they would definitely train hard and seize or defend their glory.

This was also the goal behind why the university organized the competition on the day that the new students came for registration.

Based on past experiences, the glory and shame helped the new students set their minds on learning, and they would start practicing madly with every second they had.

“Meng Chao, I just don’t get it. Why did you register for the martial arts course?” Ning Xueshi frowned. “With your talent, if you joined the resource course, in less than a year, you’d definitely become an outstanding harvester. I mean, even if you regard fighting highly, you could just go to the monster controller course. Your score was definitely high enough for it.

“The fighting power of monster controllers is even higher, and they delve deep into monster structures. In fact, they participate in the creation of man-made organs too. They are highly related to harvesting skills, and you wouldn’t be wasting your talents at all.

“But you chose neither and picked the martial arts course, which always scores second place in Agricultural University. Did you know that over the past ten years, the martial arts course has been suppressed so much by the monster controller course that its people can’t lift their heads? Their admission score is more than twenty points lower than the one for monster controller course!”

Meng Chao naturally could not tell her that it was because he knew that in the future, Agricultural University’s martial arts course would rely on the Ultimate Style to rise to power and they would be able to fight on equal grounds with Dragon City University’s martial arts course.

The monster controller course would not be able to declare themselves kings for much longer.

He thought about it and said, “I still like the feeling of my fists connecting to flesh. I feel like relying on monsters, guns, and machines to fight isn’t too realistic.”

“But you’ve only cleared three main meridians—” Ning Xueshi blurted out. She was afraid that she had just touched upon a sensitive topic for Meng Chao, though, so she waved her hand and said, “Oh well, since you’ve chosen the martial arts course, practice the Beast Soul Style properly.

“When you’re free, come to the resource course. Harvesting monsters is very helpful even when you absorb beast souls. If you can’t handle it, when you reach your sophomore year, you’ll have the chance to change your course. Come, I’ll bring you over to register yourself.”

With Ning Xueshi leading the way, Meng Chao soon completed the complicated procedure.

Based on the rules, the family members were not allowed to follow the children who went to take their introductory courses.

Ning Xueshi told Meng Yishan and Bai Xueshi that the university had prepared free lunches for the family members, so they could have food first before they left.

As the saying went, “All the good food is in Agricultural University.” It specialized in all sorts of delicacies, and the students here could have much better food than many of the luxurious hotels. Since the family had come, it would be a waste if they did not taste it.

When Bai Jiacao heard this, she immediately started drooling. She quickly waved goodbye to her older brother and dragged her parents off to the canteen.

Ning Xueshi was from the resource course, so she was not familiar with the internal structure of the martial arts course.

But a lot of new martial arts course students had already gathered beside its arena. Among them were people Meng Chao had met before.

One of them was Xie Feng of Dragon City Second Great High School, who had fought with Meng Chao in Test Area 5523. He raised his arm up and shouted loudly with a bright smile on his face, “Meng Chao!”

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