Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Yi City Center Arena.
The roar of tens of thousands of people converged into a scalding tide, humming above the massive circular stands.
The faint scent of ozone produced by sweat mixed with high-concentration energy dissipation made every breath carry a burning sense of excitement.
The annual College Entrance Martial Arts Examination Arena Tournament was the stage for countless young professionals to showcase themselves and fight for glory.
In the waiting area, the atmosphere was as heavy as iron, filled with the smell of gunpowder.
Warriors in plate armor brandished greatswords, creating dull wind pressure.
Mages had elemental glimmers around their fingertips, silently practicing spell models.
Rangers in leather armor with shortbows wiped their arrows over and over.
In the crowd, a Damselette wearing silver-white Paladin armor was particularly eye-catching.
The Damselette was about seventeen or eighteen years old, her appearance ninety percent similar to the person beside her.
In her left hand, she held a kite shield with faint gold light patterns on the edges; the shield's surface still had some un-wiped dust, clearly having just finished a battle.
She was Selene, and at this moment, she leaned toward Celeste, who was in a pure white priest robe, her tone jumping with the joy of a recent victory:
"Sis, I just finished! My opponent was a Level 19 Berserker, and I pushed him off the stage in less than three minutes!"
"His heavy axe hit my shield, and it didn't even leave a white mark!"
As she spoke, she tapped the shield proudly, making a "thump-thump" sound.
Several graduating students nearby looked over upon hearing this, and some whispered:
"Was that Paladin from Arena 2 in Area A just now her? I heard her defense is incredibly tough; no matter how the opponent attacked, they couldn't break it, and finally, she knocked him off with a Sacred Shield Impact."
"She looks exactly like that priest next to her. Twins?"
"What a pity, the older sister is a priest... Isn't that class just for grinding points in Domain matches? Coming to the arena, isn't that just a free win for others, a one-round trip?"
The whispers weren't loud, but they were clearly heard.
The smile on Selene's face froze instantly, her cheeks puffed out as she glared fiercely at those gossiping people.
"Sis, ignore them! Later, when you show off your big treasure, it'll surely scare their eyes right out of their heads!"
The corners of Celeste's mouth curled slightly, and she tapped her sister's shoulder armor lightly to reassure her.
She ignored the surrounding gazes, her mind immersed in her thoughts, silently reviewing every detail of the Thousand Rock Army Spear Technique.
The staff was just a facade.
That heavy weight in her hand and the essence of the spear technique had long since become her instinct.
Just then, the optical computer in the waiting area suddenly sounded a mechanical prompt, interrupting the whispers in the room:
"Area A, Arena 3: Celeste vs. Li Yue! Players, please proceed to the arena immediately!"
Celeste stepped forward, empty-handed, and walked toward the arena.
Her tall figure, set off by the pure white priest robe, moved with steady steps, unexpectedly exuding the aura of a martial arts master.
Her opponent, Li Yue, was a Level 17 Assassin.
She had a slender figure and a pretty face, but her beautiful eyes flickered with undisguised jealousy and contempt.
As classmates from the No. 7 High School, they knew each other, but only superficially.
Celeste had heard that Li Yue once had a conflict with a female priest and had since taken out her anger on the entire female priest community.
At this moment, Li Yue held a dagger in each hand, the edges shimmering with a ghostly green light.
Seeing Celeste go up empty-handed, a mocking arc curled at the corner of her mouth.
"Oh, isn't this our No. 7 High School's famous 'big' priest, Celeste?"
She deliberately looked Celeste up and down, her gaze lingering briefly on that impressively curved chest.
"What, knowing you're going to be a one-round trip, you didn't even bother to bring a staff? Might as well have not signed up in the first place!"
She toyed with the daggers in her hands and spoke unhurriedly, her voice not loud but enough for those in the front row to hear clearly.
"If you ask me, you female priests should honestly stay in the back of the team as healers. Why insist on coming up here to make fools of yourselves?"
"Look at your figure; you don't look like the type who can fight. Why not just admit defeat now to avoid crying on stage later? That wouldn't look good."
"There are no teammates here to show pity; crying and acting fragile won't get anyone to comfort you!"
Certain hints in these words caused a burst of laughter from below the stage.
Priests are not suitable for arena matches; this was everyone's consensus.
Although Li Yue's words were harsh, they hit upon the "common sense" in many people's hearts.
Below the stage, Selene's face was flushed with anger, the veins on her hand holding the shield bulging, wishing she could rush up and "reason" with her immediately.
At that very moment, a voice suddenly rang out in Celeste's mind.
[Ding! Detected the target's extreme contempt for the priest class. Triggering temporary task: "Don't Bully the Poor Damselette"!]
[Task Requirement: Defeat Li Yue in a fair and square manner with absolute dominance, breaking the stereotype that "priests cannot engage in melee combat," and make the contemptuous one pay the price!]
[Task Reward: venti trial card (24 hours) x1, joy value +200!]
Celeste raised an eyebrow.
venti trial card? And 200 joy value?
Fun delivered to her doorstep; why not take it?
In her originally calm eyes, a flicker of cold fire ignited.
She looked up, staring straight at Li Yue, her tone flat but every word like a needle.
"As a main combat class, your level is lower than mine, a support; that is sloth."
"Arrogant before the battle, speaking wild words; that is pride."
"Evaluating an opponent only by class and appearance; that is shallow."
"Taking out personal grudges on an entire class community; that is stupidity."
She paused, her gaze sweeping over Li Yue's face, which turned from white to green, then from green to a furious red.
"The one who should admit defeat is you."
These unhurried words were like invisible slaps, hitting Li Yue's face hard from both sides!
The smile on her face froze completely, the contempt in her eyes replaced by shock, which then turned into a flush of wrath.
For a Level 17 Assassin, her level was indeed embarrassing.
And those insinuating comments had carved the word "shallow" onto her face.
"You're looking for death!"
Li Yue squeezed three words through her teeth, her eyes turning cold.
"Fine, I want to see what tricks a stubborn-mouthed priest can pull off!"
Seeing this, the referee immediately stepped forward to announce the rules: "Intentional injury is prohibited. Those who fall off the arena or lose combat capability will be judged the loser—Match start!"
The moment the whistle blew!
Li Yue's figure blurred instantly, directly activating [Stealth] and disappearing from everyone's sight.
The most classic opening move for an assassin: use invisibility to circle behind, launch a backstab, and take out a squishy target in one combo.
A commotion broke out below the stage. Many people who had just thought Celeste's rebuttal was beautiful were now breaking into a cold sweat for her.
After all, no matter how beautifully one spoke, it couldn't change the fact that the class was countered.
Selene clenched her fists nervously below the stage.
However, Celeste on the arena was exceptionally calm.
She didn't even do what any normal priest would do and immediately cast Veritas: Shield on herself.
She just stood quietly in place and closed her eyes.
The battlefield intuition of the Millelith gave her a beast-like sensitivity to killing intent and changes in airflow.
In her sensory world with her vision closed, to the left, a faint turbulence in the airflow was tracing an arc at extremely high speed, circling toward her back.
Here it comes!
Just as that aura circled to five meters behind her, a blurry shadow suddenly solidified!
Two poisoned daggers, carrying a bone-chilling coldness, silently stabbed toward the vital point of her back!
Now!
Celeste moved!
With a thought, an exquisite staff, pink and white with a bud-shaped ruby set at the end, appeared out of thin air!
That staff was radiant and colorful, looking completely unlike a weapon.