Chapter 97: The Crownless King

The Susano'o swung its flame blade, black flames coiling around the blade’s edge, meeting Akatsuki Jin: “Boom—”

At the moment the blade collided with the golden rainbow, a massive energy shockwave pushed the protective barrier outward, making spectators feel suffocated, many phones knocked from their hands by the tremors.

“So tough?” Akatsuki Jin’s eyes flickered with surprise.

The golden rainbow formed by Akatsuki Jin struck the Susano’o’s armor with a deafening crash, yet only caused it to wobble slightly!

“This is the true Susano’o,” Jiang Xia’s voice echoed through the armor, “Now, it’s my turn!”

The spectator seats erupted in chaos, everyone stunned by this sudden turn of events.

Jiang Xia raised the Juken Sword and slashed toward Akatsuki Jin; the sealing power within the blade sent a jolt of dread through Akatsuki Jin.

He hastily condensed flames into a shield, but the Juken Sword struck it and instantly sealed it—flames could no longer burn.

“Impossible!” Akatsuki Jin roared, his deep golden flames surging again, “Sacred Flame!”

Golden flames burst from his body, lashing straight at the Susano’o, engulfing the entire arena in deep golden fire, temperature soaring to extremes, the protective barrier beginning to melt.

Jiang Xia willed it, and the Susano’o’s flame blade swung, unleashing countless black flames toward the Sacred Flame.

Black flames and Sacred Flame collided, each eroding the other, neither able to overpower the other.

“Your black flames are indeed strong—but not enough!”

Akatsuki Jin’s eyes flashed with ruthlessness as he poured all his spiritual power into the deep golden flame, “Three-Legged Manifestation!”

The deep golden flame coalesced into a three-legged fire bird, its wings spreading to cover the entire arena, radiating a cataclysmic aura as it charged toward the Susano’o.

“Heavenly Obstruction: Meteor Strike!”

Jiang Xia’s eyes hardened with resolve; his Rinnegan activated, and two colossal meteors plummeted from the sky, smashing through the barrier and crashing into the fire bird.

“Lingxi, doesn’t this scene feel familiar?” Wang Teng stared at the arena, awestruck.

Ye Lingxi watched Jiang Xia on the stage, her face filled with concern, not responding to Wang Teng’s remark.

In the VIP seats, Zhao Tianji stared at the scene, utterly stunned: “I always thought we understood Jiang Xia well enough—turns out this kid still surprises us!”

Qingyun spoke up: “This era is brimming with geniuses; heroes flood the land like fish crossing a river.”

“Indeed, we must never underestimate these prodigies. Until yesterday, we didn’t even know where Akatsuki Jin obtained the Golden Crow inheritance or this Sacred Flame.”

On the stage—

“Boom—”

The meteors collided with the fire bird; the entire arena shook violently, the protective barrier shattering completely.

The referee immediately activated emergency defenses, summoning a stronger energy shield to encase the arena and prevent the energy from spilling into the spectator seats.

When the dust cleared, the Susano’o had vanished; Jiang Xia’s face was pale, blood trickling from his lips, while Akatsuki Jin knelt half-bowed, his battle armor shattered, his body charred black, his aura reduced to a mere flicker.

Jiang Xia looked at Akatsuki Jin: “Itachi lost.”

Akatsuki Jin opened his mouth to speak, then spat another mouthful of blood; finally, he painfully lowered his head and forced out three words: “I… surrender.”

Silence. Dead silence.

Then, thunderous cheers, gasps, and exclamations erupted like a mountain collapsing and ocean surging!

“Jiang Xia! Champion!”

“My god! Is this prodigy from the Literary Academy truly invincible? So terrifying!”

“A new king ascends! Truly a king without a crown—the top spot on the Prodigy List has changed hands!”

On the high platform, Qingyun smiled and clapped his hands; Lei Zhan stared at Jiang Xia with burning admiration and longing.

Representatives of major factions wore complex expressions, but all understood: from today, the balance of power among the young generation of Shanhai Pass had changed utterly!

After the finals, the award ceremony was held at the center of the arena.

Qingyun stepped onto the podium, holding a golden trophy, a Heavens’ Mechanism Black Card, and a black-gold SS-grade protective armor.

“First, congratulations to Jiang Xia for winning the championship of this Three Trials Prodigy Competition!”

Qingyun’s voice echoed through the arena via speakers: “Your strength and talent fully deserve this championship.”

“Here is your reward: SS-rank magic treasure, Xuan Armor; Heavens’ Mechanism Black Card (holders enjoy the highest-tier services at the Heavens’ Mechanism).”

Jiang Xia stepped onto the podium, took the trophy, the black card, and the Xuan Armor, and bowed slightly to Qingyun: “Thank Itachi, Grand Master.”

“Don’t thank me—it’s yours by right.”

Qingyun smiled. “The future of Shanhai Pass needs talents like Itachi.”

Then Akatsuki Jin, Cui Jue, and Du Gu Yun ascended in turn to receive their rewards: Platinum Cards and S-rank magic treasures for the top five; Gold Cards and A-rank standard equipment for the top ten.

After the ceremony, Wang Teng slapped Jiang Xia on the shoulder, excited: “Old Xia, awesome! Now we’re officially among the top names in Shanhai Pass!”

Jiang Xia chuckled at his words: “We’ve only just begun to stand out among the young generation—those old monsters probably don’t even notice us.”

Ye Lingxi, beside him, joined in with rare humor: “Don’t be modest—my grandfather and others hold Itachi in high regard; many factions now see Itachi as a prized catch.”

“Heh.”

Three days after returning to the training camp, the atmosphere turned grim—the graduation assessment was finally here.

Inside the mission hall, the air was oppressively heavy.

On the massive holographic screen, crimson text scrolled:

【Graduation Assessment: Clear the “Shadow Canyon” region beyond Shanhai Pass and establish the forward base “Panshi.”】

【Task Details: Shadow Canyon lies three hundred li beyond Shanhai Pass. Recent monitoring shows abnormal frequency of beast activity, with energy fluctuations of a Peak King-rank beast. Eliminate primary threats within the canyon, deploy defensive arrays, and ensure the forward base is established and held for 72 hours.】

【Requirements: Base teams on original Prodigy squads; adjustments permitted. Each team must have no fewer than five and no more than ten members. Evaluation based on clearance progress, defensive fortification construction, duration of defense, and team coordination.】

【Warning: Outside Shanhai Pass, the Shanhai Order does not suppress power. Exercise extreme caution!】

“My god…” Wang Teng stared at the screen, inhaling sharply, “Straight-up Peak King-rank? And outside the Pass? Is this graduation assessment planning to burn us alive as kindling?!”

Ling Zhantian clenched his fists, his eyes burning with battle lust: “Now this is more like it! Simulated battles in the camp were never enough—real battlefields lie beyond Shanhai Pass!”

Wang Shichen adjusted his glasses, analyzing calmly: “The key point is the absence of Shanhai Order suppression.”

“That means our familiar benchmarks for beast strength are nullified—their actual combat power will far exceed our expectations.”

Ye Lingxi turned to Jiang Xia, her cold eyes asking: “How do we arrange the team?”

Jiang Xia scanned the group, his voice steady: “Our core team stays unchanged—we’ll add a few more members skilled in defense and support.”