I Have A Divine Tree In My Heart

The advanced martial artists were already a threat to Lin Yao. If it was not for the Armored Body Of Light, Lin Yao’s probability of beating the advanced martial artists would be less than 30%. These 15 people could already be considered Lin Yao’s formidable opponents.

However, this was not what upset Lin Yao the most. What made his heart sink was that… as the group walked on, a few more cars entered from the outside. When he saw those cars, a clamor ensued at the venue and everyone present turned toward the approaching vehicles with a solemn expression.

“Ninghai No. 1 High School is here.”

Ninghai City No. 1 High School, the strongest high school in Ninghai City, only had 800 students. Nevertheless, all of them were elites. To Lin Yao’s knowledge, the martial artists that were deemed rare in his class were common in the third-year cohort of the Ninghai No. 1 High School.

Most terrifyingly, the No. 1 High School was not only strong overall but also consisted of 95% of the geniuses in Ninghai City.

When the principal had assigned this mission to Lin Yao and the group, he had only requested that No. 4 High School defeat No. 3 High School and No. 2 High School. He had no plans to compete with No. 1 High School at all.

Due to various factors, Lin Yao could clearly perceive something when everyone from No. 1 High School arrived at the venue.

After arriving and surveying the surroundings, Lin Yao had discovered a total of 15 advanced martial artists from No. 2 High School, No. 3 High School, No. 4 High School, and the various dojos. However, when the group from No. 1 High School arrived, this number instantly climbed to 60. There were 45 advanced martial artists from No. 1 High School, which was thrice the total figure of all the other schools and dojos.

However, this was not his greatest woe. Out of the 45 people, four people were standing at the forefront. Although he was very far away, Lin Yao felt somewhat suffocated by the aura exuded by the four of them.

“This feeling… Warlords… Four of them!”

“Tsk… 45 advanced martial artists and four warlords… Only one intermediate martial artist is participating in this competition. This is No. 1 High School. They are really terrifying!”

“This is indeed terrifying, but it’s also normal. When the students progressed from junior high school to senior high school, all the fairly talented and wealthy ones went to No. 1 High School. They have that many good seedlings. How can they not be strong?”

“Sigh… I have to pray and hope I won’t encounter anyone from No. 1 High School that quickly.”

“It’s useless to pray. We’ll definitely encounter them. Although the lots for the city competition are said to be drawn randomly, everyone knows there is a covert operation after a few rounds. The warlords are automatically deemed seeded players. The advanced martial artists will only encounter the intermediate martial artists in the first few rounds of the battle. During the team competition, the few other high schools and dojos will also fight against one another to determine the winner before contending with No. 1 High School.”

The young man who was talking shook his head, but he was not overly resentful. This kind of “covert operation” was very normal. It was impossible for the competition to commence with a battle of the strongest, which would result in the elimination of the warlords.

Such a staggered arrangement was allowed. What was most dreaded at a competition was manipulating the rankings under the table.

The No. 1 High School, which had been provided with all the best resources of Ninghai City, was indeed a colossus. Numerous people felt suffocated just by perceiving their aura.

At that moment, Tu Hong spoke and poured oil on the flames.

“Do you feel the gap now? I have another piece of bad news to tell you. There are many powerhouses in No. 1 High School. Due to the large number of strong people, they can fight against each other. Therefore, they are generally stronger than you guys. The powerhouses can improve faster when they mix with other powerhouses.”

These words made everyone go even more silent. Upon seeing this, Tu Hong said, “There is a huge gap, but you guys still stand a chance. You’ve lost the chance to advance to a good senior high school, but progressing to university is important. A good university can save you more than 10 years of hard work, so I wish you all the best. Strive to do well in the college entrance examination.

“Also, please don’t give in to too much pressure. Nobody told you to beat No. 1 High School. Our targets are No. 2 High School, No. 3 High School, and the few dojos.”

Tu Hong’s last words made many people heave a sigh of relief, but Lin Yao didn’t. As he was staring at the team from No. 1 High School, Lin Yao’s eyes were shining. He refused to admit defeat.

‘The warlords aside, I may stand a chance to beat the advanced martial artists.’

Lin Yao, who was unwilling to be subdued by others, had a sharp look in his eyes. He soon discovered that he was not the only one. Several people present also had enthusiasm in their eyes, whereas a few others didn’t seem bothered. The last one—Yan Yan—was standing beside Lin Yao.

With a cold and icy expression, she clenched her fists as she stared at a particular individual from the team of No. 1 High School. She then said coldly and decisively, “I will not fail.”

After speaking, she turned her cold, icy gaze toward Lin Yao and the others.

“The warlords aside, we can’t lose to the advanced martial artists at the team competition.”

Tu Ying and Zhang Feng also felt that something was amiss. Yan Yan seemed to have a feud with someone on the opposite side.

“Uh, we will try our best.”

“Don’t worry, we won’t lose to them intentionally. The Bodhi Leaf is waiting for us.”

Regardless of whether it was for the sake of the rewards offered by the city or the principal, Lin Yao and the group would do their best.

As the few of them expressed their ambitions to one other, they also reached their seats in the stadium. Lin Yao was happy that this was an open-air stadium. In the absence of walls and a ceiling, he was able to absorb the sun’s rays at a moderate speed.

Lin Yao and the group were not alone while waiting in their seats. A large number of ordinary students from Ninghai No. 4 High School also came to watch the competition, and so did the other schools. The schools had allowed the students to form groups to watch the competition.

However, Lin Yao frowned when he saw Yan Yan looking greatly affected after seeing No. 1 High School. She was very concerned about the outcome of the competition.

Just as Lin Yao was about to close his eyes to rest and sunbathe, she actually sat beside him and began to discuss strategies with him.

The topic was basically the tactics targeted at a certain team.

“There’s someone in No. 1 High School that uses flames. She has even recruited a few vassals. All five of them have fire abilities. They will most likely form a team to participate in the battle. When fire-type abilities are stacked, it’s extremely…”

“Do you have a feud with her?”

“This has nothing to do with you. You just have to know that she is from No. 1 High School and she is our enemy. I’m explaining this information to you.”

These words left Lin Yao speechless. Regardless of whether the opponent had an enmity with Yan Yan, they would strive to win if they were to encounter them. Therefore, it was not a waste of time to know this information in advance.

Upon seeing that Lin Yao was willing to listen, she quickly went on. “That person has fire abilities and is adept at mid-range to long-range attacks. Steel is a conductor of heat, so Classmate Shi Qiang won’t be able to withstand it, and Classmate Tu Ying’s iron blood can’t resist the flames either. Classmate Zhang Feng’s blood and aura manipulation will also be affected by the flame energy. I need to subdue the other party. I can only rely on you. Your light abilities can offset the damage of my frost and can also do the same for some of the damage caused by the flames…”

During the past few days of battle, Lin Yao had also fought with Yan Yan several times. Of course, he hadn’t gone all out. Yan Yan’s forte was frost, and her breeze of cold air could freeze people’s muscles. However, when the cold air reached Lin Yao, it was as awkward as Zhang Feng’s use of blood manipulation against Lin Yao. Neither of them could invade his body. At the moment, Yan Yan was also pinning her hopes of victory on Lin Yao.

As he listened to Yan Yan, Lin Yao contemplated how to deal with the opponent. While the two of them were conversing, something that surprised Lin Yao occurred.

Some rich and powerful people arrived at the venue and were about to enter the private room next to the stadium.

Lin Yao was not surprised by the arrival of the rich and powerful. As mentioned by the two young men outside the venue, this competition was a grand event in Ninghai City, and all the people fighting today were the future of Ninghai City. Whenever such a competition was about to start, the rich and powerful clans of Ninghai City would come to select and invest in some people.

The recruitment of sons-in-law indeed occurred. In fact, it had occurred quite a number of times, even though the union of two families by marriage was cliché and reeked of feudalism.

Nevertheless, one could not deny that there were reasons why this method had been continued from ancient to modern times. An arranged marriage was the best way to unite a genius with a large clan.

Perhaps some people would say that an arranged marriage might fail, but if such a marriage failed, other ways of binding such people and families were even less reliable.

In order to keep their family prosperous, it was normal for the families in the city to come and watch the competition. Many of them looked at each other and laughed when they saw the shirtless Lin Yao.

He was too conspicuous with his naked upper body, and this was indeed a little offensive. However, for the sake of becoming more powerful, Lin Yao didn’t care about any of this.

To his surprise, a cold and aloof woman who arrived with the crowd frowned upon seeing him, and Lin Yao could sense disgust and malice coming from afar.

Ever since he had attained the Light Adjustment ability, his appearance and figure had been improving day by day. Being shirtless would not reduce Lin Yao’s charm. On the contrary, his exquisite and perfect body had attracted the gazes of more people. Teenage girls would at most blush upon looking at his body.

However, many young women would stare at Lin Yao with scorching gazes, as if they could not wait to devour him.

Now, Lin Yao could actually sense disgust, and he was naturally surprised.

‘This person is immune to my charm. This should be a very principled or determined person. Forget it, you can hate me if you want.’

Lin Yao had plenty of mental strength and was only momentarily and slightly surprised. However, what happened afterward made him realize he was an innocent bystander who had gotten into trouble due to someone else.

After that woman stared at Lin Yao several times, she remained on the path for a short while and waved her hand in the direction of No.1 High School. Soon, a beautiful girl ran over to the young woman and whispered in the latter’s ear.

After a few sentences, the girl’s eyes lit up and she looked in Lin Yao’s direction. She then ran over to Lin Yao with a smile.

Upon seeing this, Lin Yao went silent. A cold, icy chill was coming from his side. Turning his head, Lin Yao discovered Yan Yan watching the girl with a cold and aloof attitude. However, Lin Yao, who was more familiar with Yan Yan, could sense that this attitude was not Yan Yan’s usual indifference but loathing.

Ice and Snow Princess, Yan Yan, had a very strong and dominant aura in Ninghai No. 4 High School, and ordinary people would stammer when she looked them in the eye and spoke. However, this obviously did not apply to the girl in front of them.

“Sister… Ooh… I’m so sad. Your lovely sister is here, but you didn’t stand up to welcome her.”

“I’m not your sister.”

“Oh, I have always treated you as my sister.”

“Ha ha.”

Although these two words were short, it was a formidable way to end the conversation. Unfortunately, it wasn’t effective this time. The seemingly naive girl didn’t understand Yan Yan’s attitude or why she was keeping her at arm’s length. She smiled and said, “Sister, you’re really representing No. 4 High School at the competition. Alas, I’ve clearly tried to persuade you several times that it would be best to transfer to No.1 High School. You will be defeated miserably if you compete like this.

“You’re such a beautiful person. If someone tramples you under their feet and ravages your face in the mud, I’ll feel really sad.”

In a naive tone, the girl in front of them uttered vicious words, but she said these words with a sweet smile on her face without revealing any trace of an oddity. Lin Yao was somewhat astounded by her ability to do that.

Those words had also agitated Yan Yan, making her aura turn increasingly cold. “You will be the loser.”

“Oh no. Don’t tell me you think that No. 4 High School can contend with No. 1 High School, Sister?”

Boom.

The sound of ice shards exploding came from between Yan Yan’s fingers, and frost was now blooming with Yan Yan as the epicenter.

“Yan Yu’er, do you want a fight?”

Yan Yan’s completely estranged attitude made the girl in front of her pause for a moment, but her expression soon returned to normal.

“He he… Sister, don’t get angry. Mom is sitting up there, so how can we fight? Oh, I almost forgot. I came here to pass you a message from Mom.”

After sticking out her tongue and apologizing with an obedient expression, she said, “Mom told me to tell you that you’ve grown up and it is fine for you to make friends, but as the daughter of the Yan Family, you have to be careful who you befriend. If you are looking for a soulmate, Mom is willing to hold a party for you to interact with some promising young men.”

These words made Lin Yao laugh.

“It seems we’ve been mistaken for shady and dubious friends.”

Lin Yao smiled at his teammates. However, what happened subsequently made Lin Yao’s face darken.

“No, it’s just you.”

“This has nothing to do with us.”