Chapter 12: The Bet
You know what's worse than facing an opponent who clearly wants to pummel you into the ground? Facing that opponent while a helpful AI system keeps calculating your chances of survival in real-time.
"Probability of defeat: 92.4%," Azure chimed in as Zhou Ming stretched lazily, his practice sword glinting with an eagerness that seemed excessive for training equipment. "Though I suppose 'defeat' is better than 'total annihilation', which was my initial calculation!"
"Not helping," I muttered, trying to focus on my own warm-up exercises. The combat evaluation area had been cleared, with other disciples forming an expectant circle around the edges. I spotted Wei Lin actually taking bets, because of course he was. The odds probably weren't in my favor.
"First match," Senior Sister Liu announced, "Zhou Ming versus Ke Yin. Standard evaluation rules apply - no lethal techniques, no permanent damage." She paused, giving Zhou a pointed look. "That means no 'accidentally' crippling your opponent's cultivation base."
Zhou's innocent expression wouldn't have fooled a blind cultivator. "I would never dream of it, Senior Sister. This is merely a friendly evaluation match."
Right. And spiritual beasts were just misunderstood puppies.
"Remember," Liu continued, "as Ke Yin is in Qi Condensation Second Realm, this will be primarily a test of martial arts prowess. Spiritual battle techniques are restricted until Third Realm for good reason - they drain too much qi for lower realm disciples to use effectively in combat."
That was both good and bad news. Good because it meant Zhou couldn't use his more devastating spiritual techniques. Bad because he was still physically stronger, faster, and had probably forgotten more martial arts than I'd learned so far.
"Begin!" Senior Sister Liu stepped back, and Zhou immediately launched into motion.