The Only Player in ‘Child of Stardust’
Chapter 228 - 157: Golden Legend

Chapter 228: Chapter 157: Golden Legend

"There’s a bit of a crowd."

From the spectator seats, the headmaster of the Magic Academy stroked his beard and spoke indifferently.

Zhou Yuan looked over, cautiously studying him.

The headmaster wore a spotless white robe, and his beard and hair were also completely white. On his aged face were four eyes, each deep and reserved, seemingly possessing the wisdom to see through everything.

His entire being did not exude the slightest trace of magic power, making him appear surprisingly ordinary compared to the other high-level academy personnel around him. However, the floating text above his head indicated that he was anything but an ordinary old man.

[LV93·Headmaster of the Magic Academy]

One of the strongest in this game’s current plane.

Don’t be fooled by how impressive he looked now. In the game, he was actually a pushover, easily slain by players who developed to the late stage.

Mages in this game followed the "high attack, low defense" setup. Even if they could casually cast forbidden spells capable of obliterating heavens and earth, their physical bodies were not much stronger than ordinary people, making them easy prey for warriors.

Cases like the dwarven Martial Monk Saixi specializing as a mage were extremely rare, almost one of a kind.

"Very well, it means the competition is fierce."

Beside him, a middle-aged man in a fiery red robe replied coldly, "Only the most outstanding mages have the right to join the Demon King’s army and meet the Demon King. Those who are here just to make up the numbers deserved to die; it helps to filter out the true strong ones. Eight is fine."

Several academy professors around them nodded in agreement, acknowledging this notion.

"Since there are no objections, let’s begin the draw."

At the headmaster’s command, a host came onto the stage holding a box for the participants to draw their lots.

Zhou Yuan drew the number "1." His opponent was a female mage named Lixia, level 77, specialized in mental magic.

The number 1 also meant the first battle. After the drawing ceremony, the others left the high stage, leaving only Zhou Yuan and Lixia.

"I didn’t expect this kid could survive to the main match..." In the stands, Saba’s eyes flickered as he stared at Zhou Yuan.

He had actually underestimated the intensity of the pre-competition. He had thought at most half the people would die, but in the end, only eight were left. And in such a severe struggle, Zhou Yuan still managed to remain unscathed... He admitted that he had slightly underestimated his cheap disciple’s abilities.

As the saying goes, teaching a disciple might starve the master. Zhou Yuan had only been learning magic pharmacy for a few days and had already shown amazing talent, nearing the threshold of a 5-star potion master. Coupled with his recent performance, he was undoubtedly among the elite of the Magic Academy’s new generation.

Perhaps it wouldn’t take many years for him to surpass, or even replace Saba’s position!

This was something Saba could not tolerate, but thanks to the contingencies he had placed in the "Potion of Knowledge," he wasn’t afraid of Zhou Yuan’s betrayal. However... what if Zhou Yuan eventually developed an antidote?

Given his demonstrated talent in magic pharmacy, it wasn’t an impossibility.

Saba felt a bit unsettled. Perhaps he needed to think of a way to restrict Zhou Yuan’s talent...

While he pondered, the match began.

Silver light shone, enveloping the entire high stage.

Zhou Yuan and Lixia’s figures started to shrink rapidly, and the ground quickly turned a soil-brown color. Amidst deafening noises, rocky mountains emerged from the ground.

Solid rocks, sand, soft mud, hills... Under the transformation of magic, a desolate desert landscape appeared on the high stage.

The application of spatial magic made the arena look like a miniature model to the spectators, but for Zhou Yuan inside, he was entirely in a vast, barren desert with no end in sight.

He wasn’t too surprised. At this level, matches should be held in special arenas. High-level combatants’ casual moves could cause catastrophic destruction, potentially demolishing the Magic Academy with a slight lapse in control.

Hearing the signal for the match’s start, Zhou Yuan quickly took out and drank bottles of pre-brewed magic potions.

Using magic potions was allowed in the match, giving participants from the Potion Department a significant advantage, which was why he had been targeted these days.

But to be honest, Zhou Yuan hadn’t actually killed that many people. When he made his moves, other participants did too. The planned daily kill count of ten never met the target, ultimately only killing thirty or so. The rest were not his doing.

Regarding the last few opponents, he had considered assassination, but each had their own methods, hid in hard-to-find places, or stayed near academy teachers, making secret kills difficult and forcing him to give up.

Conversely, in the arena, everything became simpler. If you couldn’t beat him, he’d kill you. Even the headmaster couldn’t say anything.

The weak fell prey to the strong; only the powerful could meet the Demon King.

After drinking the last bottle of magic potion, Zhou Yuan’s form completely disappeared into thin air. He flew into the air, searching for Lixia’s position.

It didn’t take long for him to locate her.

Lixia stood atop a mountain. The barren desert hills around her made her position very apparent.

She seemed to want to confront him head-on, without hiding her whereabouts at all.

[Even if I don’t remind you, you should realize this is a trap. Once you make the first move, Lixia can use the magic power fluctuations to locate you and launch a mental attack in an instant, turning you into a brain-dead vegetable. However, she overlooked one point—you are not a mage.]