169 Chapter 169

Vadena City, Military Training Grounds

A week has passed since the second part of the Tournament occurred. As of right now, the contestants already got their rest and healed their injuries

They are now in their top shape and are ready to fight each other

In one of the training grounds that the military owned, the contestants gathered. The training ground was a wide open space that are constantly maintained by the military

There are more than enough spaces for the contestants to fight each other. They could freely move around

“Greetings, Space Monarch!” Both the contestants and audience greeted as they bowed their heads after the old mage appeared

Space Monarch simply nodded his head at them before waving his hand. All the people no matter how strong they are were lightly pushed back by him

After that, the wide open space was seemingly cut into three with a wall separating them

The wall was not visible to the eyes but every mage could sense that there was something separating the training grounds into three

It was as if space itself has separated the area into three. It was a very peculiar feeling

“The rules for this round, I believe everyone is already aware. The first part is an elimination round to further trim down your numbers until only ten mages remained”

“However, the 5th fusion rank mages are exempted from the elimination round. But if any of the 4th fusion rank mages believe that they could defeat a mage above their level, feel free to challenge them and you’ll directly enter the top ten”

“When only ten contestants remained, they will draw lots and fight each other. The losers would directly enter the top six to ten and they would fight again to determine the exact ranking”

“The winners would enter the top one to five and they would do the same to determine their exact ranking. Those that have an additional life would be given a second chance to fight another opponent without being pushed down the rankings”

“And oh, this year, I decided that if any of our 5th fusion rank mages are impatient, they could directly ask to fight other mages at their rank. As long as they defeated all the 5th fusion rank mages, they would directly be given the spot of top one”

“If in the low chance that one of the four 5th fusion rank mages succeeded in defeating the other three mages at the same rank, not only would I grant them a wish within my capabilities, I’m also willing to be their guardian”

In the latter part, Space Monarch looked at Rezen directly and none of the people present thinks that it was weird

Everyone has seen and watched Rezen’s performance. He was the dark horse among the dark horses

It was already weird for an 18 year old youth to reach the 4th fusion rank yet he actually did it while possessing more than ten mystic gems at that level

Claude Preston has always been famous for his talent but even his speed of cultivation paled in comparison to Rezen

Rezen noticed the gaze that the Space Monarch was directing at him and he could only sigh internally

He knew that his performance has attracted too much of an attention but it was a risk he was willing to take to advance quicker

Fortunately, as long as Rezen upgraded his farm once again, he knew that even if he cannot defeat a 7th rank mage, he could still keep his life

With that in mind, Rezen stepped out from the crowd and bowed his head to Space Monarch

“I wish to fight my fellow 5th fusion rank mages, Sir Space Monarch” Rezen said and Space Monarch’s smile grew bigger

Rezen was extremely eye catching and Space Monarch was curious about him. With the performance that Rezen showed, Space Monarch thinks that he has the talent to reach the 7th rank

It wouldn’t hurt to befriend a mage that has the potential to reach the highly revered 7th rank

“Alright then. Let’s start with Soul Crusher from the Military”

Soul Crusher was the mage in the 4th Place in the second part of the Tournament

Amongst the contestants, at the 5th rank (including Rezen that was a 5th rank Tattoo Warrior) she was the one that got the lowest number of points from the second part of the Tournament

Of course, that doesn’t mean that she was the weakest. Some things also depend on luck

She wasted a lot of time trying to encounter one of the suppressed Tentacle Spawn before she could hunt down the weaker spawns

Even then, her score was only a bit behind the other 5th fusion rank contestants. That shows how strong she is especially considering that she is a member of the Military and possesses great fighting skills

With another wave of Space Monarch’s hand, Rezen and Soul Crusher were sent into the training grounds to fight against each other

The woman stared at Rezen with eyes filled with curiosity. This man was practically unknown to everyone just weeks ago. But now, his name was spread not only in the Eastern Country but also in the other countries

If given enough time, his fame definitely wouldn’t lose out against Claude Preston

“Please be lenient to me” Captain Soul Crusher said humbly with a harmless smile. However, her body exudes a sense of confidence that only geniuses have

In the Eastern Country, there are few people that could be compared to her. Even if it was a 5th fusion rank mage at or below 30 she was one of the strongest

Despite watching Rezen’s performance prior to this, she still thinks that she is stronger and could win

What she has in mind is probably what the other 5th fusion rank mages have in mind and was a perfectly normal thought to have

In return, Rezen simply nodded his head apathetically. His carefree attitude irks the opposing mage and she summoned her mystic gem

As soon as the signal to start was given, her soul-type mystic gem immediately resonated with the natural laws

“[Hellscape!]”

Magic circles formed on Soul Crusher’s eyes as she tried to use one of the most common soul-type spells but Rezen looks completely unfazed

This was a great shocker to Soul Crusher and the others. As long as the target’s soul is weaker, they would be affected by the spell even if they don’t completely succumb to it

Considering that Rezen is just a 4th fusion rank mage, he should fall prey to this spell. But now, he doesn’t seem to be affected by the spell at all

Rezen knew whom his enemies would be and even before coming here, he already made plans

He has various mutated plants that he used beforehand. Right now, a soul-type spell wouldn’t be able to easily affect him

Rezen has no qualms playing dirty since winning and becoming the champion is extremely important to him

“[Sun Stream!]”

Rezen waved his hand as he summoned his sun-type mystic gem along with the creation of his magic circle

The magic circle instantly releases a stream of energies from the sun which shocked the viewers

“F-fifth rank!”

“T-that’s certainly a mystic gem and a spell at the 5th rank!”

“H-holy cow! How is this possible?!”

“An 18 years old 5th fusion rank mage? Unbelievable! This was too unbelievable!”

“Isn’t he far more talented than the Dark Saint?”

“Pah! The Dark Saint is to said to be heaven’s chosen but in front of this Rezen, he is nothing!”

Even Claude only reached the 5th fusion rank when he was in his twenties which was more than enough to make people view him as a peerless genius

However, right now, there was someone that beat his record. The youngest 5th fusion rank mage and he even has a high chance of beating Claude’s record of reaching the 6th fusion rank in the shortest amount of time

The 5th rank alone is already a realm that many mages couldn’t reach even if they spend decades of their life. But Rezen actually reached it in less than a year of starting the path of mages

Even the term monstrous genius is already not enough to describe someone like him

This situation has caught Soul Crusher off guard but as a mage with bountiful experience, she still managed to retaliate

“[Soul Stream!]”

With a wave of her hand, a purplish stream of energy was sent by Soul Crusher to meet Rezen’s stream spell

One yellow and one purple stream of energies confronted each other. Sparks flew around due to the collision of spells and the air itself vibrated

As soon as Rezen received the Gaia’s Crystal from Kacy, he upgraded his farm. And with the wealth that he possesses, he used one mana stone after another for the farm to absorb to the point that he now has a few mystic gems at the 5th rank that further elevated his powe