80 Commentary (1/2)
”It’s the fourth one!”
When Sydney ran after girl into the underground square, he heard everyone cheer, ”Fourth one! Fourth consecutive win!”
”Go Eastern Ye!” Excited girls jumped around, waving their hands in the crowd. The people in the front row yelled, ”Don’t stop! Keep going! It’s time for the fifth!”
The girl stopped at the entrance. Not knowing what was happening, she looked around and saw the youth with white hair just like hers.
Standing in the center of the snake ring, the youth stood quietly, panting and fatigued. There was a hole in his jacket, and one could vaguely see burn marks. A part of his arm had been burned too. He writhed in pain. Four overlapping Flow runes on the back of his neck had turned crimson red. They were swollen slightly, as if blood were about to seep out. It was like an ugly scar.
Using Flow to control his blood flow, his physique had gone from that of a weak kid to a hundred times that of an average person’s. That strength shook inside his body, causing sharp pangs of pain. His bare skin had already turned red, and was so swollen that it was ready to burst.
That was the biggest downside of Flow. One must have precise control to achieve the strengthening effect, otherwise it would just harm and weaken the body. After using it four times, his body was at its limit in terms of strength and endurance. If he continued like this, his organs could be injured. He could even die.
He sighed. He had overestimated himself. Using that type of shameless method to win five rounds had been his plan, but he had already reached his limit after the fourth round. But it was okay. He could still continue.
He chuckled and took a deep breath. The cold air rushed into his lungs and his pounding organs settled down. Looking back, he raised his hand and announced, ”Next one!”
--
”He can’t keep going any longer,” Edmund’s friend said sinisterly from the side. ”This is a good opportunity.”
”Not yet.” Edmund’s expression was serious. ”A student can cast more than ten runes in a short period of time. Even if he has no physical energy left, he can still cast runes.” Looking toward his left, he said, ”Jon, go up this round. Push him to his limit, but not all the way. I want to end him personally.”
”Don’t worry.” The thin kid named Jon smiled. His sickly pale face was flushed with excitement. Feeling the sachet at his waist, he said, ”I’m well prepared.” With that, he walked out from the crowd and stepped into the circle.
Seeing him, Brian’s eyes filled with satisfaction. Jon was different from the previous cannon fodder. He had been a student for more than a year. He may not have grasped combination runes, but he was already better than most students. ”Are you ready?” he asked.
Jon stated, ”Teacher, Ye has already fought four consecutive rounds, and has used up a lot of energy. To make this round fair, I would like to use the challenger’s special rights and increase the density of aether. This way, it’ll be easier to cast runes.” He paused and smiled. ”I don’t want to take advantage of him.”
Brian nodded in satisfaction. ”Of course.” Without waiting for Ye Qingxuan’s reply, Brian knocked on the head of the snake. Cold light shone from its eyes instantly. The density of aether increased four-fold inside of the ring!
The crowd fell silent. But the commoner students quickly reacted and started yelling, ”Despicable! Shameless! How is this fair?”
”Do you have any dignity?”
”What’s wrong?” Bai Xi glanced at Charles. ”Isn’t it good to increase the density? It should be easier to chant now.”
”It depends.” Charles’ brows furrowed. ”The strength of a rune’s effect depends partially on the density of the aether, but don’t forget that it only applies to cast runes. For precision runes that require a precise structure, high density actually makes things harder. If Yezi keeps using that tactic, Flow’s burden on him will increase four-fold too! They’ve found his loophole. He doesn’t have a perfect of a control on Flow yet.”
--
In the center, Ye Qingxuan sensed the thick aether in the air. After a while, he looked up at Jon. ”Is this your tactic?”
”It’s not only that.” Laughing coldly, Jon reached into the small satchel and pulled out a thin strand of spider web between his fingers. The audience erupted into shocked yells.
”Recitation supplies!”
”He’s using other supplies to strengthen the effect! Despicable! So despicable!”
”Apparently, when high level musicians cast music scores, they can use specific supplies to strengthen the effect.”