216 Controlling Crane, Capturing Dragon

Wu Zhangkong thrust his palm forward, shooting Tang Wulin backward to the walllike an arrow. A split-second before he slammed into the wall, an attractiveforce gripped him, suspending him in the air. He descended to the ground.

It feels so strange.

Being as clever as he was, he understood what this mystical sensation was.Ideas began popping up one after another on how he could incorporateControlling Crane, Capturing Dragon into his arsenal.

He could draw his opponents toward him using this art, placing them withinattack range of his golden dragon claw. This would tremendously improve theeffectiveness of his golden dragon claw.  

Even Ye Xinglan, a Shrek Academy student who wielded the powerful StargodSword, treated his claw as a serious threat.

The magnificence of Controlling Crane, Capturing Dragon struck him. This artwould maximize the brief window of time in which he could utilize his claw.

So it’s like this.

“I’ll teach you the basics of Controlling Crane first. Memorize this.Controlling Crane is built upon your foundation from the Mysterious HeavenMethod. You circulate the soul power in your dantian and then move it alongthis meridian…”

As he guided Tang Wulin through the process with his own soul power, a stringof detailed instructions flooded out of Wu Zhangkong’s mouth.

Tang Wulin soon discovered that Controlling Crane and the Mysterious HeavenMethod shared several circulation paths. He circulated his soul power accordingto the Mysterious Heaven Method, spinning it within his meridians and into hispalm to create an attractive force.

For the rest of the morning, he immersed himself in practicing ControllingCrane. Unlike with the Purple Demon Eyes, Tang Wulin wrestled with itsapplication. Despite receiving Wu Zhangkong’s guidance, he struggled with thebasics, needing more time to put it to practical use.

Tang Sect arts are so mysterious.

Tang Wulin applauded his decision in joining the Tang Sect. As a one-ringedsoul master, his greatest weakness was the number of rings he held. The TangSect’s secret arts were the perfect remedies.

☀

“How are you feeling? Can you compete today?” After lunch, Gu Yue bombardedTang Wulin with questions.

Tang Wulin responded with a nod. “Of course I can. Oh yeah, it should be around-robin now, right?”

According to the rules of the competition, thirty-six teams would battle itout in a round-robin tournament after the two initial knockout rounds. Thissegment divided the remaining teams into four groups, each consisting of nineteams. Every team would participate in eight matches and fight the other teamsin their group one by one. Winning a match earned them two points while a lossgained a grand total of zero. If they somehow fought to a draw, then both teamswould receive one point.

After each team had fought against every team in their group, the top four ofeach group would advance. A total of sixteen teams was given this honor. Fromthere, a final knockout tournament would be held until the champion teamemerged. Only the top sixteen received awards.

These rules applied to both the youth and adult division.

For Tang Wulin’s team’s first two matches, lady luck had smiled down uponthem; they didn’t chance upon hidden tigers but rather docile cats Now, it wastime for the round-robin.

“Yeah. We’re in the third group,” Xie Xie said.

Tang Wulin asked, “Have you guys investigated our opponents’ strengths yet?”

Xie Xie shook his head. “I couldn’t find anything at all! There are too manypeople to investigate and even when we were watching the others battle, we wereacting like pure spectators. We’ll have to adapt to the situation. Fortunately,I heard that those two from Shrek aren’t in our group.”

Great. We’re not meeting them in this mini competition.

Both Tang Wulin and Ye Xinglan were well aware of how they compared againsteach other. He was no match for her, and if she had been more cautious, TangWulin wouldn’t have lasted as long as he did. But now, it was the teamcompetition, where a single individual’s strength did not make or break thebattle. He had confidence in his teammates.

“Then it’ll be us three battling with Xiaoyan as the substitute. Sounds good?”Tang Wulin confirmed with Xu Xiaoyan.

Nodding and beaming a smile, she answered. “Captain, I heard that the finalswill be held at night to maximize viewership.”

The gears in Tang Wulin’s head spun into action, each cog interlocking withand leading the other. This was a critical piece of information that wouldchange their tactics.

The Skysea Alliance Tournament had gone on for a few days now, with theblacksmith’s competition rankings already announced. The champion was Mu Xi,the daughter of the eighth-rank Saint Blacksmith, Mu Chen. This outcome hadlong been predicted by those of the blacksmithing world. After all, Mu Chen wasthe sole eighth rank-blacksmith in the Skysea Alliance.

Although Eastsea City lacked in other aspects, its blacksmiths were excellent.Mu Chen was revered in the Skysea Alliance.

Even so, the blacksmith’s competition wasn’t a major attraction, especiallythe junior division. Regardless of the field, geniuses needed time to bepolished like a lump of raw jade. A truly peerless blacksmith in theory wouldbe no less than forty years old.

The competitions for mecha craftsmen, designers, and mechanics were still inprogress. Compared to the blacksmithing competition, these events boasted astructure that was far more complex.

Of course, soul master events were the most popular. Whether it was theindividual or team competitions, it was a feast for the eyes that came onceevery three years.

Among the soul master events, the finals for the seven-man, five-man, andthree-man team competitions received the highest ratings. The junior division’sratings, however, paled in comparison with the adult’s, since the former’saverage cultivation level wavered around two rings.

Thus, the three-man team competition was scheduled for the afternoon while theseven-man was scheduled for the night. This was prime time, when viewershipwould be at its peak. Those with deep pockets could be found in the spectatorstands while those without would watch it at home on their soul TV.

☀

Skysea Stadium, box seven.

This seating belonged to the VIPs in attendance. A towering glass screen facedthe stadium, allowing those within a clear view of the battles. The glassscreen also doubled as a soul screen that let the occupants select any match towatch. It didn’t matter if those battles were in progress or had ended.

Currently, two people stood in front of the screen. One was a man with longhair, snow white strands drifting in the wind and blending in with his purewhite attire—Wu Zhangkong.  

Standing beside him was a lady about twenty-six years old. She was extremelypretty with a head of exotic long white hair. She was clad in dark greensportswear. Her viridian eyes twinkled with both vitality and ferocity.

Her white hair and Wu Zhangkong’s white robes seemed perfectly coordinated.

“I only let her stir things up because they’re your disciples, you know?Aren’t you the least bit worried?” The pale-haired lady cracked a wry smile.

Wu Zhangkong asked indifferently, “Why would I be worried?”

She raised a brow. “It seems you’re quite confident in your disciples? Do youthink your teaching skills already surpass the academy’s?”

Wu Zhangkong shook his head. “I’ve long since stopped caring about victory ordefeat. I didn’t have them compete with aims of victory.”

“How’s the kid from yesterday doing? He has a variant martial soul right?” Thewhite-haired lady asked.

He shot her a look. “If I told you that I’m not sure what’s going on with hisbody either, would you believe me?”

The woman was stunned. “I’ll believe you. When has Sky Ice Wu Zhangkong evertold a lie? But really? Even you don’t know? That’s really strange then.”