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Chapter 14 — Duel
Su Cheng stepped into the Magic Association with a complicated expression.
The tower had been expanded by formation arrays, making its interior several times larger than it appeared from the outside. The main hall alone could easily hold over a thousand people.
“Astral Archmages, proceed to the second floor. Spirit and Arcane practitioners, go to the basement level—”
At the center of the hall stood two statues of mages. One of them held a recording crystal, endlessly repeating the same announcement.
“Elemental mages go straight ahead. Those without rank, turn left for testing.”
“Those with rank, turn right to the eastern zone.”
Even amid the surrounding noise and chatter, the broadcast-like voice remained crystal clear.
As Su Cheng entered the eastern section of the hall, the path ahead suddenly transformed. Dozens of stairways branched out in different directions, rising and falling like a fractured maze.
Hundreds of floating escalators crisscrossed in layered tiers, stacking from the ground all the way up to the dome ceiling. At a glance, it looked like a three-dimensional labyrinth.
On various platforms between the stairways were entrances to different academy admissions offices—each one sealed with a distinct magical door leading into an independent space.
On the ground level, however, were shared testing arrays. From a distance, they shimmered in a riot of colors.
There were far fewer mages than warriors. After multiple rounds of filtering, the crowd thinned out significantly, and the surroundings gradually quieted.
Su Cheng walked forward and chose an unoccupied magic array. She took out several silver coins from her pocket.
“I’d like to test my resonance level again.”
These arrays were all set up by the Magic Association, and the staff stationed beside them were members as well.
A mage accepted her payment and gestured for her to stand at the center of the array. He himself stepped onto the outer hexagram pattern and formed several complex hand signs.
The originally dull gray formation flared to life.
A surge of multicolored light swept across it, igniting the entire array from the outer edge inward.
Then—wind erupted from nowhere.
A pale green wind spirit manifested in midair, its ethereal form like smoke and mist. It spun around her in joyful, bell-like laughter.
Within a hundred meters, everyone turned to look.
Association staff, students taking tests, and recruitment instructors from various academies all shifted their attention.
The girl stood in the center of the array. Her hair was lifted by the wind, and her outer robe whipped violently in the air.
“Don’t tell me it’s Supreme grade?!”
“Is it really Supreme?!”
Magic arrays like these gathered a large number of elemental spirits. Different resonance levels naturally produced different reactions.
“…Wind attribute. Supreme grade.”
The supervising mage’s voice rang out clearly.
The staff immediately straightened.
It had been an entire day of testing—this was the first Supreme they had seen. Everyone’s interest was instantly piqued, already speculating which academy she would choose.
Whispers rose from the surrounding mages. Many of them looked at her with unmistakable envy.
Elemental resonance attributes and ranks could, in rare cases, improve with age, but they were usually fixed around sixteen or seventeen. After that, they no longer changed.
Unless external force was used.
But such methods were astronomically expensive—only a very small number of people could afford them.
Half a minute later, the wind spirit dissipated. The pale green glow faded away.
Then came a surge of crimson and silver-blue light.
The temperature in the air rose sharply, accompanied by a crackling electric hum.
A ring of fire erupted midair like a coiling red serpent, circling the formation at high speed as sparks danced wildly.
Lightning threads followed, silver-blue arcs bursting and flickering as they collided with the flames.
“Fire attribute, Supreme grade. Lightning attribute, Supreme grade.”
The surrounding discussion exploded.
Clearly, the Contract God had fully honored its promise.
More and more mages gathered. Several academy recruiters stood at the edge, visibly eager to extend invitations.
A triple Supreme talent.
That alone made her the center of attention—any slightly weaker academy wouldn’t even dare approach.
Most of the instructors present were low- to mid-tier mages, with a handful of high-tier ones.
Their ranks were marked by similar staffs embedded with gemstones, each with elemental patterns beneath them.
The difference between ranks lay in the shape of the gemstone: triangular, rhombus, and pentagon—corresponding to third, fourth, and fifth tier mages.
Su Cheng scanned the crowd and noticed someone at an even higher level.
A Great Mage.
Her staff was embedded with a hexagonal gemstone. The elemental pattern no longer sat beneath the staff, but instead coiled around it like flowing water.
On her robe was a double-cross insignia—the symbol of a certain academy.
Su Cheng’s eyes lit up slightly. She walked over.
“Hello?”
The Great Mage smiled gently and nodded.
“Hello. Interested in our academy?”
A wave of disappointment passed through the surrounding mages. Some looked as if they had expected this outcome all along.
Others still protested unwillingly.
“That’s the Cross Star Academy! Only Supremes are eligible to take their exam!”
“Exactly! With your talent, you can enter any academy directly—and even get a scholarship!”
Cross Star Academy was one of the oldest institutions of the Silver Moon Empire. Over thousands of years, it had produced countless legendary figures.
It was the dream academy of mages and warriors alike.
Its faculty, resources, and historical prestige stood at the very peak of the empire.
Because its entry requirements were so strict, it also had the smallest student body among all top academies.
“They’re extremely strict. Even royalty can’t get in without meeting the standards…”
“Yes,” Su Cheng ignored the surrounding voices and looked at the Great Mage. “May I reserve an entrance exam slot?”
The mage nodded.
“Follow me.”
She led Su Cheng up the nearest staircase. After several turns through shifting platforms, a mirror-like portal appeared in the air, rippling like water.
They stepped through one after another.
The noisy recruitment hall transformed into a spacious, luxurious lounge.
Crimson curved sofas surrounded a round table. A crystal candleholder carved with intricate patterns stood at the center. Several mages sat sorting scrolls, all bearing the same cross insignia.
“Hm?” one of them looked up in surprise. “Another Supreme?”
Before the words even faded, a group of mages emerged from an inner meeting room. At the center was a blond boy.
He was strikingly handsome, dressed in fine embroidered clothing, his expression arrogant as his chin lifted slightly. But the moment he saw Su Cheng, his gaze sharpened with suspicion.
“She’s also Supreme?” the blond boy’s expression changed slightly. He turned to the mages. “Didn’t you say there was only one spot left in the Mystic Division’s Elemental Department?”
“Yes,” one mage replied. “According to regulations, if she passes the entrance exam as well, you two will have to duel.”
Cross Star Academy had three branches. The Mystic Division was for mages, and the Elemental Department trained elemental casters.
“Of course, it’s a controlled duel. The winner enters the Elemental Department of the Mystic Division. The loser may go to the Blade Division.”
“There are still seats available there.”
The blond boy’s face twisted with disgust. His hostility toward Su Cheng deepened.
For him, the entrance exam wasn’t particularly difficult. Anyone with Supreme resonance had a natural advantage—unless they were utterly incompetent, they would pass.
He didn’t believe she could be that useless. So a duel was inevitable.
Ridiculous.
He was a dual-element Supreme. In any academy, he would have been fought over.
And yet he had to compete with some lowborn commoner?
The Blade Division.
A branch for magic warriors, forcing both magic and martial cultivation.
He wanted Cross Star Academy precisely to study ancient and mysterious magic—why should he waste his youth on physical training?
More importantly, human energy was limited. Trying to balance both paths usually meant excelling at neither.
“Ignorant rules!” the blond boy snapped angrily.
Everyone knew Cross Star Academy produced elite fighters, yet its small student intake meant it ranked poorly in overall competition systems.
No wonder.
With such harsh restrictions, other academies would celebrate recruiting someone like him. And yet here they were forcing duels?
Even if the slots were full, adding one more wouldn’t matter.
“Wait,” Su Cheng raised her hand. “This sounds more complicated than I expected. I’ll go home and come back later for the exam.”
The recruitment period lasted several days. Cross Star Academy, however, rarely needed to rush—only Supremes were considered, so candidates were few.
Unlike the Warrior Division, which was currently overwhelmed.
The mages here were quite relaxed and agreed without hesitation.
The blond boy’s expression darkened further.
“You know who I am, commoner?” he said coldly. “If you’re smart, you should—”
Su Cheng tilted her head. “Who are you?”
He sneered.
“My mother is Count Goller—”
Su Cheng barely suppressed a smile.
Just as expected.
In the original story, this blond boy was actually a domineering and vicious noble girl.
Lin Yun, the male protagonist, wasn’t even a mage—he cheated his way into Cross Star Academy using an old man trapped in a bracelet.
The noble girl refused to duel him, thinking it beneath her dignity.
So she sent assassins after him instead. Lin Yun only survived through sheer luck. Injured and unable to attend the duel, he was forced into the Blade Division.
Later… he took revenge by violently violating her.
Su Cheng: “……”
She looked at the blond boy.
“Alright then, young noble… don’t look at me like that.”
The boy froze. “?”
Su Cheng put on a slightly fearful expression.
“You look like you want me dead.”
The boy’s eyes sharpened. “If you’re scared, just forfeit now.”
Su Cheng quickly shook her head.
“But I also want to study magic. Let’s compete fairly. I just want to confirm something—before our duel begins, neither side will do anything to compromise its fairness, right?”
“Ha,” the boy sneered. “Of course I won’t. If you’re implying otherwise, I’ll take it as an insult to the Goller family’s honor.”
“Good,” Su Cheng said seriously. “Then it’s settled. Let’s say this: whoever breaks the agreement will suffer the consequences of their own actions.”
The blond boy looked at her like she was insane.
Who still believed in vows like that?
In noble circles, even written contracts could be broken. Let alone a verbal promise.
But everyone around them was watching.
If he refused, it would look like he had ulterior motives.
“Hmph,” the boy folded his arms. “As it should be.”
Then he turned and left angrily.
Su Cheng let out a long breath.
“That’s good,” she murmured.
She said goodbye to the others, thanked the Great Mage who brought her here, and left while saying she would return later.
At the same time, the blond boy stepped out of the Magic Association with a dark expression.
His attendants immediately gathered around him.
“Young master? Did everything go smoothly?”
“Smoothly?” the boy gritted his teeth. “It would only be smooth if she died!”
He had come from the empire’s central region with two fourth-tier warriors among his escorts. Killing a low-tier mage would be effortless.
From her demeanor, she was likely from some minor common household—at best a slightly wealthy one.
As for the promise?
Breaking it meant nothing.
The blond boy curled his lips.
“Go kill someone. She’s the one who just—”
Before he could finish, he suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Amid shocked cries, his face turned deathly pale. He dropped to his knees, clutching his chest as violent spasms seized him.
It felt as if invisible chains had pierced straight through his heart. Or as if a net of iron wire had wrapped tightly around his flesh.
Each heartbeat brought unbearable pain.
His vision blurred, replaced by a haze of golden light.
Within that light stood a towering figure.
Its body was composed of countless scrolls and papers—parchment, bamboo slips, crystal tablets, leather sheets—all bound together by glowing golden threads.
Its head was a scale.
Its neck was the pillar.
Its arms stretched into a beam holding two plates.
Each plate held a beating heart.
The left heart trembled violently, golden threads spreading through its blood vessels.
The boy’s body stiffened.
He tried to speak—but no sound came out.
His chest convulsed grotesquely. Flesh bulged and collapsed beneath the skin like something alive was crawling inside him.
His ribs snapped with the crisp sound of breaking porcelain, bursting outward like spears.
Torn cardiac tissue mixed with blood and pus splattered like dark sludge.
His lungs were dragged from his chest, hanging in the air like soaked rags.
The stench of blood drowned out the faint scent of burning paper.
Then the body collapsed down the steps.
Chaos erupted instantly. Screams and curses rang out as the crowd scattered in panic.
The blood-soaked attendants stared upward in confusion.
They could not see the divine manifestation. They only rushed forward desperately, trying to save their master—only to grasp fragments of a broken corpse.
At the entrance of the Magic Association, Su Cheng stepped out.
Standing in the shadow of the doorway, she looked down at the chaos on the steps.
Slowly, she removed her hat.
Then she bowed toward the golden light where the god’s manifestation loomed.
