Night of the Broken Gliph

The competition became increasingly intense. 

The number of eliminated participants reached a few dozen, and the fifth floor was now the main battlefield.  

Starting from the fifth floor, areas were no longer segregated. Instead, they were replaced with a huge, spacious area. Participants would now be exposed to immediate danger from opponents unlike previous floors where they were able to hide or walk past others. Not only that, the power of the blood spectres also increased; they were no longer as weak as ordinary beasts, but as strong as a grade one gliphic beast! 

This group competition not only showcased an institution’s general ability but the individual strengths of participants! 

The rule of only allowing a participant with sufficient blood intent eliminated the possibility of winning by numbers. For example, some disciples from the powerful Apex Temple, including Yuen Yau, were already qualified for the fourth floor from the very start. However, Yuen Yau wanted to ensure that all his fellow schoolmates were able to get promoted, which was why he had to face Kam Chin Kee in the end. 

Thus, before Yuen Yau came across Chui Yim and friends, some of his peers had already reached the fourth floor. 

In other words, this competition was more about individual ability than group work and unity! The best method in this competition was to be capable of working alone, target powerful blood spectres or other lone participants for their blood intent, collect all the blood intent and reach the next level quickly and efficiently! 

On the fifth floor, there was a decrease in disciples working in big groups. Duos and trios formed of capable disciples were the most commonly seen. 

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Bak Wai Chuk was accompanied by two other teens that wore the same outfit as him; a blue robe decorated with yellow stars. All three of them were from the Stars Unite Education Centre.

Other than Kong Yau, who left the team to act alone at the start of the competition, the three of them were the only Stars Unite Education Centre disciples who made it to the fifth floor. 

Truth be told, this inter-school exchange was a huge blow to Bak Wai Chuk. He didn’t know when he and Ha Yu Bing became the greatest enemies, but it was probably even before he ranked higher than Ha Yu Bing on the Blue Skies Rank or their encounter back at the Engraved Mountain Range. After the gliphism segment yesterday, where he witnessed Ha Yu Bing perform excellently and create her own personal gliph under pressure from her clan as well as her competition, Bak Wai Chuk knew that she had already left him behind. 

Even so, Bak Wai Chuk was not discouraged. As the saying goes, “Neither prosperity nor failure last forever.” He knew that if Ha Yu Bing could make it, he could as well. 

He viewed this chance to enter the Metallic Blood Giant Tower as a great opportunity for himself. Unlike others, he wasn’t aiming for a win, he only wanted to reach the sixth floor and find a spot where he could quietly absorb blood intent. The thickness of the blood intent increased as the floors went up. The blood intent on the fifth floor was thrice as effective or even more than that of the first floor! 

His companions had the same aim as him, thus they were acting cautiously as they searched for opportunity…

“Watch out!” Bak Wai Chuk suddenly had a bad feeling and pounced in front. 

Boom!

A huge bear paw smacked down on them. The gliphist next to Bak Wai Chuk didn’t react in time and vomited blood before being sent out of the tower. 

“Damn it!” Bak Wai Chuk turned to see a two-meter-tall translucent bear made of bloody fog standing behind him. 

“What a powerful blood spectre! It’s as strong as a grade one gliphic beast!” 

Bak Wai Chuk exchanged glances with the remaining gliphist, who wore a solemn look just like him. 

“I’ll cover you.” The other gliphist knew that he was weaker than Bak Wai Chuk so he volunteered and Bak Wai Chuk immediately took half a step back and started drawing gliphs. 

Swoosh…

Anyone who could enter Stars Unite Education Centre was no weakling, thus the duo got to work immediately as the other gliphist drew a Wall Prison to block the bear while Bak Wai Chuk launched an attack at the giant blood fog bear. 

Unfortunately, the giant bear was so powerful that only ripples were created from these attacks. 

Boom! 

It opened its bloody mouth and smashed a few layers of the Wall Prison with a single attack! 

“Hurry up! I can’t take it anymore!” The gliphist yelled only to receive a calm reply from Bak Wai Chuk, “Already done.”

The latter waved his left hand and pure white gliph strings solidified. Even though Bak Wai Chuk had yet to create his personal gliph, it wasn’t a tough task for him to find a gliph that suited him at Stars Unite Education Centre, the best institution of gliphists in the South. 

The white gliph strings took the form of bamboo.

Rustle…

As if the wind was blowing, the gliph-string-formed bamboos let out rustling sounds. 」

“Sonic Bamboo,” Bak Wai Chuk said calmly. 

As one bamboo created rustling sounds, more and more bamboos made the same sound like a domino effect, and these sounds were just like daggers, shooting into the bear’s body. 

Sonic Bamboo was more than a basic gliph, that was why a Stars Unite Education Centre disciple would choose it as his main gliph. The con was that this gliph required time to draw, which meant that during a fight, the gliphist could only perform it with cover. However, the gliph would slow the enemy and leave physical injuries. 

The other gliphist came to his senses and drew a gliph he was familiar with in an instant. 

Working together, the gliphists made the bear retreat!

“Kill, Sonic Bamboo!” Bak Wai Chuk yelled and the white bamboo rose into the air, piercing through the middle of the bear’s brows. The bear turned into a ball of blood fog right away. 

“Huff…” The both of them exchanged glances. They could still see the fear lurking in each other’s eyes as they let out a sigh of relief. Gliphists were stronger than gliphers of equivalent state, but close combat and physical strength were something they lacked, which was why the giant bear could take down one of them in an instant. 

It was a tough battle for the duo. 

They hurriedly took in the blood intent left by the bear and their fellow gliphist, ready to enter the sixth floor. They planned to search for a hideout and focus on absorbing their blood intent. 

Tip tap…

Clear footsteps were heard. The person clearly did not have the means to keep himself hidden. “Indeed the Stars Unite Education Centre, all of their disciples are outstanding.” 

“Who are you!?” Bak Wai Chuk’s face changed. “Show yourself!” 

A figure wearing a tight vest appeared. This was their uniform, and Bak Wai Chuk immediately identified that this person was from Blacksmith Academy. It was rumoured that their uniform was designed uniquely as they did not want clothing to hinder their arm movements since blacksmiths made use of their arms a lot. 

However, this boy was different from most of his schoolmates. Most of them had a bulky form and looked like human-shaped beasts, yet this teen had a slender figure and appeared almost skeletal with the vest on him. 

“So it’s a friend from Blacksmith Academy.” Bak Wai Chuk bowed slightly. He wasn’t fearful as the Blacksmith Academy was only known for their forging skills and had weak strength in general. 

The slender disciple bowed back. “Greetings, friends from Stars Unite Education Centre. Since we are in a competition, I hereby apologize if I offend any of you.” 

Bak Wai Chuk’s face fell immediately. “So this friend of Blacksmith Academy wants to attack us?” 

The other did not reply, but the plain ring on his left little finger lit up slightly and a sword appeared in his hands.

His intentions were obvious. 

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