Playing inventor in a cultivation world

Bang!

Immediately the disciple’s voice dropped, Nilas moved. He shot straight at Ariana, deciding to face her in close combat and pressure her psychologically.

The silver-haired girl was unfazed. She didn’t even unsheath her sword. Instead, she raised her hands, creating two water serpents that spun around her. The fierce water serpents shot at Nilas, stopping his charge.

"Storm Fists!"

The instant he spoke, his fists were covered with violent sparks of lightning. He threw two sharp punches at the serpent’s, destroying a portion of their bodies.

Still, the water serpents crashed into his chest with a heavy blow, almost sending him flying.

Nilas stabilized his footing, his expression hardening.

’This girl... her skills are top-notch. But I can win.’

He spread his arms, shouting again. "Storm Fists!"

More lightning covered his hands, even reaching his elbow and forming a type of vambrace.

Ariana also summoned two more water serpents, with a serious expression on her face.

’Is he trying to wear me out first? But we have the same level of spirit energy. What would Big Brother Seraph do...?’

Her eyes narrowed in concentration, and she attacked Nilas with her water serpents.

"Haaa!"

The boy bellowed as he threw two punches, destroying the water serpents immediately. Ariana was surprised, but she didn’t fall into a daze. She reacted immediately, whispering. "Water Blades."

Four water blades manifested at her sides, then shot at Nilas like speeding discs.

The boy spun around, dodging the first one and smashing the other two apart, then he blocked the last one by crossing his arms.

Just as he prepared to attach Ariana again, the one he had previously dodged came back spinning like a disc.

His eyes widened, but it was already too late to dodge. The water blade cut into his back, drawing blood.

"Ugh."

He grunted, a pained expression on his face. Feeling the blood flowing from his back, he became furious.

"Don’t blame me for bullying you! Lightning Strikes!"

All around Ariana, sparks erupted, making the girl wary instantly. She tensed, her hands moving to cast a skill.

"Water Bubble!"

A thick orb of water enveloped her, protecting her from anything threatening. Nilas wasn’t deterred. He swung his hands down, a vicious glint in his eyes.

"Fall!"

The lightning sparks turned into full strikes, smashing against the shield and threatening to shatter it. However, the shield was surprisingly sturdy. It withstood the onslaught of lightning, only rippling with each strike.

Nilas’s expression hardened, and he immediately poured more spirit energy into the skill. The lightning strikes turned from blue to purple, becoming very intense.

The ripples on the water bubble became intense as it struggled to cope with such offensive attacks.

Ariana’s brows furrowed, a bead of sweat rolling from her forehead.

’Strong! I’m not sure I can last against this guy!’

She immediately began planning her next moves while the bubble threatened to burst and shatter.

All around, the other participants and their guardians watched with bated breaths. This fight was intense, and it was the first where they saw a participant bleed.

Elder Wang nodded to himself. ’Both are good. But it is obvious that this girl has lower experience than Nilas. Though, I can see hints of cunningness in her attacks.’

Meanwhile, Seraph folded his arms with a smile. "Elder. Why don’t we bet when Ariana is going to win?"

"Huh..." Elder Cassius deadpanned, feeling speechless. He soon recovered and turned to the boy. "Why should I bet with you?"

Seraph blinked, then adopted a pained expression. "How cruel. This old man doesn’t want to play with young children."

Elder Cassius glared at him, making him fall silent. Still smiling, he turned to look at the intense battle and whispered.

"How long do you intend to drag it out?"

Back on the makeshift stage, Ariana’s water bubble finally showed signs of cracking. The cracks spread like tears across the bubble, and soon, the fragile shield collapsed.

Nilas’s eyes glinted with joy. "Ha!"

The lightning strikes rained down on the defenseless Ariana, making a loud explosion and kicking up a cloud of dust.

The surroundings went silent, and everyone waited to see Ariana’s condition as the dust cleared.

"Huh?" Nilas’s eyes widened in surprise, seeing the girl unharmed and standing.

She gave him a cold smile, then unsheathed her sword.

On the original stage, Elder Wang’s eyes glinted with approval.

’She made the collapsing water bubble into a second skin, then strengthened it enough to withstand the final barrage of attacks while confusing her enemy—a genius idea.’

Ariana took a stance, then took a series of quick steps forward.

"Seraphim Sword: First Form—Split the Solid!"

Her attack was fast, arriving before Nilas in a blur. The boy immediately crossed his arms, coating them with tightly-packed lightning.

Her sword clashed with the lightning vambraces, forcing its way through and cutting his arm slightly.

"Argh!"

The boy was startled, leaning back to observe his bleeding arm. He became even more furious, glaring at her like a frenzied beast.

He charged straight at her, believing he could easily dominated her at close range. However, Ariana wasn’t deterred.

She welcomed his punches with her sword, always forcing him to retreat with each strike. Although the lightning vambraces protected his arms a bit, they couldn’t stop him from being injured.

"Die!"

Shouting in desperation, the boy threw a bloodied fist at her. Ariana surprised him by throwing a water blade at him, forcing him to abandon attack and instead defend himself.

Immediately after he blocked the water blade, Ariana shoved the pommel of her sword into his guts. The boy doubled over, coughing and wheezing in pain. He looked pitiful, his neat robes stained with blood and dirt.

The female Soul Cross Sect disciple on the stage smiled and announced. "Ariana wins."

The crowd cheered, having enjoyed the fight. A few other youngsters even gained insight through the battle.

Ariana was called up the stage, where she was given a tag and congratulated. She returned to Elder Cassius and Seraph, a wide smile on her face.

She crashed into Seraph, hugging him tightly as she tried to suppress her excitement. The white-haired boy smiled and patted her head, "You did a good job, Ariana. I’m impressed."

She whimpered in response, pressing her face tighter into his chest.

"Ahem! That’s enough." Elder Cassius cleared his throat, glaring at Seraph.

’What? What did I do?’ The boy was perplexed, not understanding why the man was glaring at him.

Snorting, the man gently pulled Ariana away from him and patted her head. "I’m proud of you, Ariana. Just like your father would be."

The girl beamed at him and said, "Thanks, gramps."

Seraph blinked, coming to a stunning realization. Elder Cassius was Patriarch Gomen’s uncle, and therefore a Granduncle to Ariana.

’Is that why he was glaring at me? I thought we were all family.’

Displaying a subtly pained expression, he turned back to the next battle on the makeshift stage.

It was between one of Melox’s underlings and another guy with a four-ci-aptitude. This particular Melox’s underling had earth affinity while his opponent had water affinity.

The battle between them was rough and short, with Melox’s underling becoming the winner.

’What a bore.’ Seraph commented inwardly.

["I just keep wondering how long you’ll maintain that smile on your face. 18 years? 20? What if a traumatic experience occured to you? Hm? What will you do? Will you still be able to sm—"]

"Halo, shut it."

Seraph sighed, almost facepalming. It seemed that the sentient system had been constantly trying to trigger him for whatever reason he didn’t know.

Ignoring it, he refocused on the battles that kept happening. A few ones were notable, while the others were just plain and uninteresting. Melox’s other underling was defeated, much to Ariana’s delight. The guy himself won his own match, leaving the stage with a proud look that made his guardian cringe.

At some point, Seraph was bored he started falling asleep until he heard a soft voice call out to him.

"Number 64."

His eyes snapped open, and he looked at the stage. A young boy(?) with straight, long hair stood calmly, his eyes fixated on Seraph.

’Hm? This is strange. He looks too feminine.’

["It is obviously a girl trying to confuse the crowd. Don’t mind it."]

Halo’s comment made him nod, and he approached the makeshift stage with measured steps and a light smile.

His opponent landed on the makeshift stage too, his beautiful eyes staring at Seraph Solemnly.

The female disciple stepped back and said. "Begin!"

However, unlike the others, Seraph and his opponent didn’t move. They just kept staring at each other, as if in a staring contest. The other participants were surprised, expecting immediate action and flashy moves.

However, Seraph and his opponent didn’t even pay attention to them. On the stage, Elder Wang frowned slightly.

’What are they doing? Are they...?’

His eyes grew wide.

Just when it seemed like no one was going to attack, they both moved. Their hands reached for their weapons, and they leaned forward. At that moment, Seraph heard Halo’s words.

["You can never win this match. She’s too strong."]