ETR | Chapter 71

After the preliminaries ended today, Zong Manluo found him and specifically mentioned Xiao Wan, praising how well he was taught and how much he resembled him, clearly a child raised by Xiao Xueman.

Xiao Xueman didn't say much, but he was happy inside. After all, it was his own son being praised.

Xiao Wan was very important to him, not just as a companion or a way to make up for the family bond Xiao Xueman never had. It was as if he saw another version of himself in Xiao Wan.

This "another version of himself" didn't mean that Xiao Wan and Xiao Xueman were very alike. In fact, if you looked closely, their personalities had many differences. It was just that kind of indomitable courage that made Xiao Xueman feel nostalgic.

But fortunately, Xiao Wan could be protected and grow according to his own wishes, and he would have a great life ahead.

Xiao Xueman leaned against the door, lost in thought for just a moment. Xiao Wan and Yun Rong saw him too. No matter what face Xiao Wan showed to the outside world, whether vengeful or fierce, he was always gentle and soft with Xiao Xueman.

"Daddy," Xiao Wan's eyes lit up when he saw him, "You're back!"

Xiao Xueman sat beside him, habitually ruffling his hair.

"Uncle Xiao," Yun Rong also looked at him with sparkling eyes, "You saw us from the judge's seat, right? Did we do well?"

"Very well," Xiao Xueman didn't mention the team incident. Based on his memory, he pointed out some mistakes and errors Xiao Wan and Yun Rong made during the battle and evasion, telling them to pay attention next time.

Xiao Wan and Yun Rong listened attentively and didn’t dwell on the matter. For now, the incident was in the past.

Those annoying people didn’t make it to the finals, and they didn’t break any rules to get punished, so there was no need to spend more time on it.

Time was precious now, and summarizing their shortcomings and studying powerful opponents was the top priority.

“Lu Ming from Wangtian Immortal Gate is a lightning type,” Yun Rong said. “If I meet him, it will probably be a tough battle.”

Besides Lu Ming from Wangtian Immortal Gate, the second place in the preliminaries, although it seemed like a fluke due to Xiao Wan and Yun Rong’s unexpected situation, was not weak either.

A girl from the Snake Clan, with rare poison-type mutated spiritual power, managed to take second place despite the disadvantages of poison type in the preliminaries.

In a one-on-one, she might not be worse than Lu Ming.

The third was someone chosen by Feng Yiyan from the Mercenary Guild, who seemed like a well-behaved girl, water type.

Her style was somewhat similar to Xiao Xueman’s, using water type, originally an auxiliary spiritual power, in a very aggressive way, forming a violent water type similar to Feng Yiyan’s lineage.

Xiao Xueman knew this information too, but as a judge, he couldn’t provide or discuss it.

He could give Xiao Wan and Yun Rong suggestions for their own improvement. Other judges also had sects, which was normal, but he wouldn’t discuss other contestants’ situations with Xiao Wan at this time.

"This year's Blue Sea really has hidden talents," Yun Rong sighed, "Not to mention, some people deliberately hide their skills, even those with top ten strength might hide behind the top hundred, not showing their full strength in the preliminaries."

In front of so many mutated spiritual powers and unconventional talents, Xiao Wan and Yun Rong seemed much more normal.

However, for the upcoming matches, Xiao Xueman couldn't accompany Xiao Wan to watch. The matches he was responsible for were about to start.

There weren't many slots for the five-person team battle, only eight hundred slots. Moreover, even if the team members were of similar age, if they were divided by twelve-year intervals, many teams might have members from two different age groups, making it hard to group them.

So, the team battle groups were expanded, still under a hundred years old, divided into four groups every twenty-five years, with two hundred slots per group.

Individual matches always stole the spotlight at the Blue Sea Arena, but the winners of the team matches often went far. Teams that performed excellently were always targets for recruitment by major sects.

After all, in individual matches, combat skills and personal abilities were most important, but in team matches, the overall view and leadership ability of cooperation were more crucial.

For major sects, both strength and intelligence were indispensable resources.

After the individual matches, things outside the arena became more lively.

Betting could start outside, which was a fixed project of the Blue Sea Competition, giving everyone a sense of participation. The organizer of the betting was the Blue Sea Competition itself, as each event required money, and the house never loses.

As a judge, Xiao Xueman couldn't participate in the betting, as it might affect the fairness of the judges. But Xiao Wan and Yun Rong, as contestants, could.

"Fortune favors the bold," Xiao Wan bet all his saved money on himself, "Money can be saved again, but you have to have this bit of confidence."

Yun Rong wasn't as decisive as Xiao Wan, and the Purple Cloud Lynx had a bit of a treasure-hoarding nature, so he bet half. But he didn't bet on himself; he bet on Xiao Wan.

He was a year older than Xiao Wan, and their spiritual power was about the same, but Xiao Wan was indeed better in combat. Yun Rong, having followed him for so long, felt this deeply.

"I will win." Xiao Wan promised him, "I won't let you lose money."

Yun Rong smiled and said, “Of course, I’ll try my best too. I’m also a popular contestant. If I take first place, I won’t mind losing this half of the money. If we meet in future matches, you better not underestimate me.”

Xiao Xueman knew about this, but at this time, he didn’t have the time to say any encouraging words to Xiao Wan.

Once the team matches started, he was so busy he couldn’t even return to his room.

With eight hundred teams in the team matches, the preliminaries provided twenty venues, with a draw-based confrontation system and a time limit.

Each venue could host five matches per day at the prescribed speed, meaning the preliminaries would take a full four days.

Although there was real-time projection, it was impossible for Xiao Xueman to monitor all twenty venues simultaneously.

He had over sixty judges under him, so he could delegate tasks without needing to handle everything himself.

Moreover, the rules for team matches were clear: knocking all opponents out of the field counted as a win.

If the time ran out and both sides still had members left, the number of remaining members would be compared.

If the numbers were the same, the judges would evaluate the performance of both sides to decide the winner.

Most matches were without controversy, but once there was a dispute, it could easily lead to dissatisfaction from both sides.

Xiao Xueman encountered a dispute on the first day.

It was the last match of the day. Everything had gone smoothly before, with nineteen out of twenty groups determining a winner before time ran out.

But the last group was still locked in a stalemate as time was running out.

Xiao Xueman had actually noticed this group from the start. These two teams were evenly matched. He could tell at a glance that both teams were strong.

The downside of the draw-based one-on-one system in the preliminaries was that if a weaker team got lucky and drew an even weaker opponent, they could advance.

If a very strong team, even one that could rank in the top three, got unlucky and drew the first place, they might not even make it past the preliminaries.

But rules were rules, and from a certain perspective, luck was also a part of strength.

When Xiao Xueman finally went over, time was almost up. He stood outside the arena.

As the match was about to end, he saw two members of Team Two working together to knock one member of Team One out of the field. Both teams were left with two members on the field.

After a period of stalemate, the whistle blew in the arena.

“Chief Judge,” the three judges responsible for this match were a bit dumbfounded. Seeing Xiao Xueman come over, they breathed a sigh of relief, “I’ve been watching closely, but…”

It was indeed difficult to judge. These two teams were clearly evenly matched.

Xiao Xueman glanced at him and said, “I’ll handle it.”

He entered the arena, first helping the member who had been knocked out to a seat on the side, then said to the remaining members, “You all did well. Take a break first.”

Because they were evenly matched, neither team had given up. He saw that all the team members were trying hard, working together, and fighting until the last moment. Xiao Xueman liked kids like this.

Winning or losing was temporary, but an excellent team would bring them wealth more important than temporary honor.

Generally, teams consisted of one member each from the gold, wood, water, fire, and earth elements. Water for healing, wood for recovery, earth for defense, and gold and fire for attack or control.

This was the standard model. Of course, many teams adopted different models, and each member’s cultivation direction might vary. But the two teams in front of him both used this basic approach.

"So, who won?" The gold-type boy from Team One was obviously more impatient, wanting to know the result right away.

Xiao Xueman looked at him and asked, "Do you want to know the result first or the reason?"

The boy hesitated, exchanged a glance with his teammates, and said, "The result."

Team Two also wanted to know how Xiao Xueman would judge.

"The winner is Team Two," Xiao Xueman announced the result without hesitation.

"Why?" The gold-type boy from Team One got agitated and stood up, "Why?"

“First, although both teams ended with two members on the field, Team One had gold and fire left, while Team Two had gold and wood.

When I helped you earlier, I measured your spiritual power reserves. Team One, although left with two attackers, had little spiritual power remaining. Team Two’s wood-type member had the strongest control over their own element among you.

As long as they remained on the field, in another quarter of an hour, maybe even less, Team Two could have knocked Team One out. This is a foreseeable outcome,” Xiao Xueman explained.

He paused and continued, “Second, both teams’ captains are fire types. When the match paused, with both teams having fire, gold, and wood left, Team One’s fire captain didn’t have a clear grasp of the situation.

You were indeed the strongest attacker on the field, but you were being reckless.

At the last moment of the match, Team One had three members left, and Team Two had two. Team Two was trying to knock out Team One’s weakest wood type.

At that moment, you should have switched from offense to defense. As long as you had more members than them, the result would have been clear. But you didn’t, maintaining an aggressive stance, which led to your team’s weakest wood type not being well protected, allowing Team Two to seize the opportunity and knock them out, resulting in a draw.”

“In fact, Team One, in terms of overall strength, is slightly stronger than Team Two. But team matches are about cooperation, tacit understanding, and well-planned strategies,” Xiao Xueman said. “In summary, I believe Team Two won this time.”

The young people present listened to him, and neither side spoke further.

Team One wasn’t dissatisfied, and Team Two wasn’t smug. Instead, the captains of both teams stepped forward to bump fists, showing respect for their opponents.

With the result announced, both teams prepared to leave, supporting each other.

But Xiao Xueman called them back.