After winning the semifinals as a freshman with only Tier 2 intermediate-level strength, his reputation was unparalleled, and the entire Polar Star Academy was discussing him during dinner.
The students who regarded him as an idol were even more out of control.
The Polar Star Academy teachers seemed surprised at how Li Jiye was promoted to the finals.
The finals were set to be two days later. On this day, the teachers and students who had been following his matches all waited in front of the ring ahead of time.
Time passed by, and as the sun hung high above the sky, the day of the match drew closer.
As always, Li Jiye arrived at the venue half an hour before the match. When the crowd saw him walking over, they immediately stepped aside and made a path for him. Unintentionally, Li Jiye was now revered by his peers.
"Your opponent in the finals is Jovic. His skill is very strange. Remember, if he uses his martial art, immediately retreat and stay three feet away from him." As Li Jiye's mentor, Daphne was providing him with the information she knew about his opponent.
"Oh? He's that powerful? If Li Jiye can't get close to him, won't he be at a disadvantage?" Alice, John, and the other students in Daphne's class couldn't help but feel stunned after hearing this. They further noticed Daphne's solemn expression.
"Teacher Daphne, is there something special about Jovic's martial art or skill?"
Li Jiye raised an eyebrow and already made a vague guess in his heart.
"Indeed… Jovic's elemental skill is a variant of the Wood Element — Poison."
Abnormal elements were no longer a particularly rare thing now. Frowning, Li Jiye could only submit to his fate, and he immediately took a deep breath before jumping onto the ring. There, he closed his eyes and meditated before the match began.
A few minutes later, Jovic walked to the edge of the ring, surrounded by a group of seniors. The Tier 2 or 3 seniors glanced at Li Jiye with complex expressions, seemingly apathetic about the outcome of this battle.
"Now that the two players are in place, let the finals begin!"
The referee called for the start of the match, and Jovic gave a meaningful smile.
"I thought it would be Benzema or Selmore competing with me for the championship today. I didn't expect to face off with a junior with only Tier 2 intermediate-level strength…"
Anxious to fight his opponent, Li Jiye focused on Jovic, and information on him instantly popped up in his mind.
Human: Jovic
Skill: B-level Venomous Refinement Skill
Realm: Tier 2 (Peak Advanced-level)
Martial Arts: Poisonous Bite (C-level), Fatal Extraction (B-level), Lethal Twine (Uncompleted)
He was a Tier 2 advanced-level student!
Li Jiye was looking at Jovic with eyes full of solemnity, but Jovic didn't seem to be bothered at all.
"Let's wrap up the small talk… Why aren't you planning to attack first like in your previous match?" Jovic squinted his snake-like eyes and glared at Li Jiye. Obviously, he didn't intend to face a stalemate situation with Li Jiye. As soon as his voice fell, he raised a palm towards Li Jiye. Instantly, dark green poisonous gas spat out from his palm.
Li Jiye frowned and swiftly avoided his attack with Shadow Wind Steps.
Even from a distance, he could vaguely feel the majestic elemental energy from the dark green poisonous mist. As long as he reached out a little bit, the toxin would climb up his body like maggots feeding on a corpse.
"Falling Leaves Deadly Knives!"
After barely avoiding the expanding poisonous fog with Shadow Wind Steps, Li Jiye swiftly flicked his hands, and in the next second, more than ten leaves shot through the fog towards the center of the ring.
Although the poisonous fog concealed his vision and he didn't know Jovic's position now, he believed that even the peak strength of Jovic wouldn't be able to avoid the multiple Falling Leaves Deadly Knives being thrown out simultaneously.
Thinking of this, he reached out with his right hand to quietly touch the hilt of the knife on his waist. To take advantage of the moment Jovic revealed his flaw, he was prepared to attack with the mighty Wave Decapitation.
However, what happened next was somewhat beyond his expectations.
"Did you think the condensed knife technique would distract me?"
Jovic's voice sounded vaguely through the thick poisonous fog. Li Jiye tried to gain insight into his position with his ears to no avail.
"My 'Fatal Extraction' is condensed with pure elemental power. Don't underestimate it as just being a mist, its defense is comparable to a wall built by the Earth Element. Haha. Junior, you'll really have to pull up your socks if you want to defeat me."
Facing the incredibly dense poisonous fog, Li Jiye knew that his opponent wasn't simply shooting his mouth off. With a flash of inspiration, he withdrew the long knife and slashed several times in the air. The knife energy laced with Shadow Wind Steps chopped up the dense fog in an instant. At the same time, Li Jiye dashed forward and walked continuously around the ring with Shadow Wind Steps.
Shadow Wind Steps was originally a martial art that used the Wind Element to increase his speed. Now that this martial art was pushed to its limits, bursts of turquoise wind and waves rose immediately above the ring. As they intensified and became more powerful, Li Jiye's figure seemed to be hidden in the whirlwind he had created.
"…Interesting…"
After a long time, the seemingly viscous poisonous gas was driven out of the ring slowly by the cyclone. Jovic didn't expect Li Jiye to use this trick to break his Fatal Extraction.
Now that the Wind Element was getting stronger and stronger on the field, it disrupted the highly toxic attributes in Jovic's body and finally created a flaw in the poisonous fog he was constantly forming.
Given his rich combat experience, Li Jiye immediately noticed the gap in the poisonous mist. Instantaneously, knives flying with the might of Wave Decapitation flew through the gap.
"Yes!"
He didn't use Wave Decapitation to attack Jovic. After all, with Tier 2 advanced-level strength, it would be easy for Jovic to break through the B-level Wave Decapitation.
The real purpose of the Wave Decapitation was to simultaneously detonate the ring with the Wave Decapitation.
A deafening roar resounded through the entire venue as the Wind Element above the ring reached its peak. Huge winds and waves swept past, and Jovic's poisonous fog could no longer persist. It disappeared in the blink of an eye.
"Senior… you've lost!"
Li Jiye had already taken this opportunity to place his long knife at Jovic's neck.
The collision between the elements made the constantly revolving poisonous energy inside Jovic's body turn upside down. He smiled bitterly and glanced sideways at Li Jiye.
"You truly deserve the title of the strongest freshman… What a pity. If I had meticulously studied Lethal Twine before this, I would never have lost so easily…"
However, these words were useless now. Li Jiye's eyes lit up when he heard his opponent surrender to him. He immediately put his long knife back into its sheath and bowed again to Jovic.
After a short silence, the whole venue became full of voices again. Be it the freshmen or the seniors, all of them were cheering for Li Jiye.