- The Indoors Arena -

It was around 9:00 in the morning. When we arrived at the Arena, all the other classes were already there. They eyed us with condescending looks as we walked to our reserved section in the audience. For the record, the Arena was by no means small. In the center was a square platform surrounded by a powerful magic barrier where contestants could battle without worrying about hurting onlookers. Surrounding this platform on all four sides were rows on rows of seats for the audience. Each level of the main campus had a room like this, though for the upper grades the center platform was bigger since their duels were of a higher caliber.

After a short while, an old voice rang out from the speakers, which were usually used to announce the victor of a duel. Come to think of it, this was the same arena where Feng Mian and I had ours. However, today, it was used to something much grander.

The classes will choose their representative for the main tournament through today's series of battles. However, at the same time, all the other classes will be watching, so the smart contestants won't show all their trump cards if possible. This was the system Shanghai Magic Academy used every year for the Advancement Exams. They were a school that focused on real battle experience.

"I welcome you all to the Shenzhen Magic High School Advancement Exams," the old voice said. "Today, the intra-class tournaments will take place. And tomorrow, the main tournament will." I could immediately tell who it was: Song Qian Long, our school principal...and also my godfather.

Song Qian Long continued explaining how today was going to work. To summarize, the first class to go would be Class A, followed by Class B. There would then be a 1-hour lunch break at 12:00, with everyone grouping back here once more at 1:00. Then, the intra-class tournaments of Class C and D will take place, in that order. By the end of the day, the representative teams of each class for the main tournament happening tomorrow will have been decided.

"And with that, the Advancement Exams - begin!" Song Qian Long's voice echoed throughout the entire arena. Cheers erupted from the audience; everyone unable to contain their excitement any longer. I didn't really care about this exam one way or another, but...I felt something deep within me long for battle. I couldn't really describe this feeling, but it was somewhere between excitement and an unquenchable thirst for blood.

"The first match of the day will be a heated clash between two top tier teams in Class A - The Red Dragons and The Cursed Warlocks!"

Wait. They had team names...? I looked over at the four girls (two sitting on either side of me), who were also wondering the same thing. I then glanced at Mr. Wang, who sheepishly looked away when he met my gaze.

...So he had forgotten about that.

I sighed and turned my focus back on the match. But I couldn't help but wonder what kind of name would be announced when it was our turn...

The Red Dragons. By the name of the team, I expected them to specialize in Fire Magic. The five people who walked on stage were all wearing a red-colored variation of the original school uniform, which was black for boys and white for girls. I then looked down at my own attire - a black hoodie and ripped jeans. I self-consciously pulled the hood over my head, and continued observing the situation.

The opponents of the Red Dragons were a team known as The Cursed Warlocks. Something to do with Curse Magic, perhaps...? As the five students walked out of the gates across from the Red Dragons, I immediately narrowed my eyes.

They were wearing an indigo-colored variation of the school uniform. There were 4 boys and 1 girls, all with haughty looks on their faces. I felt an inner feeling of hatred swell up within me as soon as I saw who the team consisted of. Not only were Li Mu Shen and my ex-fiancee (Lan Gui Ying) there acting all flirty, the one leading them...

...He was the person I didn't want to see most: Xuan Kun.

The girls beside me also seemed to have realized this. They looked over at me in worry.

"Xuan Kai..." Feng Mian murmured in concern.

I shook my head. "Don't worry about me. More importantly, this is a good opportunity to see him fight live."

I noticed Feng Mian blush slightly even under the dim lights of the audience area, where we were sitting. "You're right, but...I-I wasn't w-worrying about you..." she murmured sheepishly, which was cute, to be honest.

I closed my eyes, and opened them again slowly, watching on as my former brother began crushing his opponents.

*****

(Xuan Kun's Perspective)

Pfft, The Red Dragons? More like the red lizards. They were weak, and this was boring. There was only one person I was excited to face, heheh....

"Are you ready to fight?" the leader of the red lizards asked me, disturbing my thoughts.

"Huh?! You just fucking disrupted my train of thought!" I shouted back, ignoring his question completely. Weaklings didn't get a right to talk.

The boy looked taken aback at my words, and his face soon turned down into a scowl. "Not even showing the minimal amount of respect for your opponents...very well. You asked for this."

My lips twisted up into an evil sneer. "Heheheh...that's more like it."

He found motivation to fight, and was resenting me deep in his heart. I finally found a reason to even duel this guy. I would crush his confidence, over and over again. Why? Because it's fun, of course. I love destroying opponents who think they have a chance against me, or have a burning will to fight. It's always so satisfying, seeing their torn expressions as I torture them, again and again...

But since this is a team fight...I'll have him experience the feeling of seeing his own allies get hunted, one by one...hahaha!

"The Red Dragons vs. The Cursed Warlocks: Duel - Begin!"

*****

(Xuan Kai's Perspective)

The instant Song Qian Long announced the beginning of the duel, Xuan Kun began launching a barrage of Curse spells at the boy who appeared to be the leader of The Red Dragons. They had a brief conversation beforehand, but since that wasn't broadcasted I had no way to find out what they were talking about.

However, the broadcast began now, and we could all hear what they were saying within the dueling platform. Though I was fairly sure most of the words we'll hear would just be incantations for spells, with Xuan Kun here, I couldn't tell for sure.

"Here, how do you like that, huh?!" Xuan Kun yelled as he launched Curse Element spells one after another with a evil cackle, expression nearing that of a mad man. "What about this?!"

"Ngh..." The leader of The Red Dragons was still standing and doing his best to block the incoming attacks, but he was slowly getting worn down and wouldn't last too long. Xuan Kun...he was combining Maledictum spells of different types to slowly weaken his opponent. His teammates kept the other team's members busy while he continued toying with the poor leader of The Red Dragons...to put it blandly, this was a pitiful sight.

"P-Please...stop..." the leader of The Red Dragons begged miserably, his confidence and spirit from earlier nowhere to be seen. He was crawling on the floor, with no strength left to even stand, much less fight.

"Heheh...since you asked so nicely..." Xuan Kun murmured darkly, an ominous Void Element ball of energy began forming in his hand. "I'll put you out of your misery."

An explosion ensued-

"Duel End: Victor - The Cursed Warlocks."

*****

The rules of a 5v5 team fight were as follows:

- Each team is to designate a leader.

- If the leader of a team is knocked unconscious or has his school badge destroyed, then the team that the leader belongs to loses the entire fight.

- Surrenders can only take place if more than half the team's members agree.

- Contestants may not receive any type of external help, including Magic Artifacts.

- Killing, crippling, and similar acts are all forbidden.

Those were the rules, but...Xuan Kun had left them just barely alive. While on the surface this may seem like a vile act to do and shouldn't be allowed, the rules only say you weren't allowed to actually kill your opponents. Therefore, leaving them with just a strand of life left will not result in any direct punishment. That's the reason Xuan Kun was able to act so boldly without any fear of getting banned from the tournament or even expelled from the school.

That wasn't to say his actions were justified, however. He had a nasty reputation in the school, but because everyone fears him and his backing (The Xuan Family), no one confronts him directly, so he just continued doing as he pleases with no constraint.

I clenched my fists as anger swelled up in me. There was a difference between torturing innocent people and killing the bastards who deserved to die. Xuan Kun was the former, while I was the latter. Before, I was forced to do this Advancement Exam - if I didn't, Liu Jian would crush this entire school.

But now...I had one more reason to participate.