Chapter 166: Aether Academy Loses. Darius.

Day 3

After another hot night with the girls. The early morning air over the Void Empire was cold, sharp, and crisp. Heavy grey clouds hung low and heavy in the sky, casting long, dark shadows across the giant arena.

Down below on the ground level, thousands of fans packed into the high stands, their loud cheers and stomping feet echoing through the massive open air.

Inside the resting area set aside for Aether Blessed Academy, things were much quieter and far more relaxed.

The private seating area sat right near the main arena floor so students could easily walk out onto the stage when their names were called over by the commentators or the speaker system.

This seating area was lined with soft leather chairs, and long wooden tables loaded with fresh fruit, cold drinks, and meat platters.

Lynx sat comfortably in the front row of the private box, his long legs stretched straight out in front of him on a low footrest.

He wore the special dark uniform reserved exclusively for him by his system, matching the deep blue style of the Aether Academy uniform but trimmed with dark black fabric that highlighted his broad shoulders and narrow waist.

His silver hair glinted under the dim morning light, and his bright blue, silver, eyes ringed with gold, scanned the arena floor with complete calm.

Sitting around him were his women.

Kira sat to his left, her deep orange eyes fixed on the lower ring while her sharp posture showed she was ready for anything.

Ava sat right beside him on the edge of his leather chair, her long white hair flowing all the way past her waist like a soft silk blanket, her soft skin glowing with unbelievable health.

Lira, and Ophelia rested nearby on the wide plush couches. None of them looked tired or drained in the slightest, even though Lynx had taken all eight of them into his Mind World for another intense, non stop night of passion that lasted for hours on end.

By using his Yin Yang Harmony Method every single night without fail, every drop of pure, raw energy Lynx shared with them during sex flowed directly into their bodies and mana pathways.

Their mana channels were constantly expanding, their fatigue was wiped away, their muscles were fully healed, and their physical strength had surged to five times what it used to be.

Across the spacious area, "King" Julian and his elite squad, Kol, Mars, and James, sat together in their bright golden Aether uniforms.

Julian was supposed to be the official king and leader of Aether Academy, but he did not even try to meet Lynx’s gaze.

Whenever Lynx casually glanced over in their direction, Julian quickly turned his head to look at the wall or talk to Mars, completely avoiding any direct eye contact.

Everyone sitting in the private room and standing in the stands knew the plain truth, Lynx was the true king of Aether Academy in every single way that mattered.

Once they returned home to the empire, taking the official title was going to be a simple walk in the park.

"The tournament is moving much faster today," Professor Rose said softly, stepping over to lean against the back of Lynx’s chair. Her deep red eyes swept over the massive crowd shouting in the stands.

"Today is the third day. The outer academies are done testing the waters. They are starting to push their strongest Year 4 students forward early to secure their spots for the second round."

"Let them try whatever they want," Lynx replied, a faint, lazy smirk touching his lips as he crossed his arms behind his head. "It does not change a single thing for us. They are just filling up the ring."

On the far side of the Aether Blessed Academy students waiting area, Queen Eleanor stood surrounded by her four personal enforcers.

She looked like true royalty in her glowing golden uniform, her long purple hair tied loosely at the very bottom with a small black ribbon.

Beside her, Layla rocked back and forth on her feet, her fiery amber eyes sweeping over the crowd while her massive chest strained against her uniform top with every breath.

Iris stood quietly beside her, her midnight black hair falling past her waist while her dark silver eyes stayed focused on the stage.

Rhea twirled a lock of her icy blue bob hair around her finger, while Nadia rested her hands on her wide hips, near her gigantic ass, her rich dark skin shining under the stadium lights.

"The lower year matches are starting up," Layla muttered, crossing her arms tightly under her chest. "The other academies brought heavy senior hitters today. They are trying to knock out our younger students since they can’t knockout our Year 2 students."

The huge screen hanging high over the center of the stage lit up with bright white letters, revealing the first matchup of the morning.

[NEXT MATCH: MARKUS VANE - BEACON ACADEMY - YEAR 4 VS. TOBY REED AETHER ACADETHER - YEAR 1]

Toby, a young Year 1 student wearing the standard deep blue Aether uniform, stepped out onto the open white flagstones.

His hands trembled slightly at his sides as he looked across the floor at his opponent. Markus Vane was a tall, heavyset Year 4 senior from Beacon Academy wearing a bright purple uniform.

Markus had spent four whole years refining his Earth affinity, and his physical presence was heavy, solid, and intimidating.

"Don’t worry about losing, little Year 1 kid!" Markus laughed loudly, his deep voice echoing across the lower ring. "I’ll make sure to send you back to your professors in one piece!"

Toby swallowed hard, taking a defensive stance. "I earned my spot here. I won’t back down!"

"FIGHTERS READY! BEGIN!" The refree called out.

Toby immediately tried to channel his Wind affinity, summoning a sharp gust of air around his boots to boost his physical speed and get around his opponent’s flank.

But Markus was far too fast, calm, and experienced. Without wasting a single extra movement, Markus slammed his right metal boot hard against the solid stone ground.

CRACK!

A massive wave of thick, dark brown Earth affinity shot straight through the stone floor like a rushing river.

Giant stone pillars erupted out of the ground directly beneath Toby’s feet, shattering his wind barrier in less than two seconds flat.

The heavy force lifted Toby straight into the air and threw him forty feet across the stage. He hit the stone floor hard, tumbling three full times before sliding to a complete stop against the outer boundary line.

He tried to push himself back up on his elbows, but his breath was completely knocked out of him, and his body gave out as his eyes rolled back.

"WINNER: MARKUS VANE: BEACON ACADEMY" The refree screamed.

"IT LOOKS LIKE BEACON BLESSED ACADEMY GAVE AEHTER BLESSED ACADEMY ONE OF THIER MOST DEVASTATING LOSS IN THEIR HISTORY!" The commentator shouted.

The Beacon section of the high stands erupted into loud, stomping cheers, waving their purple banners in the air.

With Toby’s sudden defeat, almost all the five Year 1 students sent by Aether Academy had now officially been eliminated from the overall tournament. Each defeat under 40 seconds.

They had fought bravely in their opening fight, managing to land a few solid hits and force their senior opponents to take damage, but the difference in age, raw affinity comprehension, and physical training was simply too big to overcome.

Over the next few hours of Day Three, the matches continued at a rapid, violent pace across the main stage.

NEXT MATCH: KEVIN BANKS - HEATHER BLESSED ACADEMY - YEAR 4 VS. CARTER AETHER ESSED ACADEMY - YEAR 1.

Carter, another brave Year 1 student from Aether Academy, tried to use his Ice affinity to create a spinning, defensive Ice shield around his entire body to block incoming strikes.

However, the Heather senior possessed a far deeper, higher comprehension of Fire. With a quick, powerful swing of his right arm, a massive stream of blue flames vaporized Carter’s Ice shield in an instant.

The blast of extreme heat sent Carter flying backward off the stone ring, his blue uniform scorched along the edges.

"WINNER: KEVIN BANKS - HEATHER BLESSED ACADEMY"

The stands erupted once more.

"ALL YEAR ONE AETHER BLESSED ACADEMY STUDENTS ARE ELIMINATED!!"

"NEXT MATCH: DARIUS - VOID BLESSED ACADEMY - YEAR 4) VS. MASON BEACON BLESSED ACADEMY - YEAR 3"

Darius, a Year 4 senior from Void Blessed Academy, stepped onto the stage sealed wkth a translucent light but effective barrier with complete composure.

"BEGIN."

Opposite him, Mason of Beacon Academy immediately dropped into a heavy stance, channeling his Earth affinity to coat both legs in thick, dense stone armor.

"BEGIN!" The refree yelled with his loud voice.

Mason went on the attack right out of the gate. He slammed both palms onto the ground, launching a continuous barrage of sharp Earth spikes that erupted from the stone floor straight toward Darius’s position.

Instead of backing away, Darius unleashed his A Rank Wind affinity. Wrapping compressed gusts of wind around his boots, he glided across the battlefield with crazy agility, dodging the rising stone spikes by mere inches while closing the distance at high speed.

Seeing Darius rush straight into his range, Mason smirked and swept his right arm outward, raising a ten foot thick stone wall to block Darius’s path while simultaneously prepping a boulder-shattering punch behind it.

"Got you!" Mason yelled.

Darius didn’t even slow down. Mid sprint, he layered his Fire affinity directly over his Wind blades, creating a violent, spinning flame cutter around his right hand.

CRACK KABOOM!

Darius drove his fiery wind blade straight through the center of the stone wall, slicing clean through the rock barrier in a split second.

Before Mason could react to his wall shattering to pieces, Darius burst through the smoke, stepped inside Mason’s guard, and delivered a swift, flame boosted palm strike directly to Mason’s chest.

The explosive physical impact blew straight through Mason’s stone armor, knocking the breath out of his lungs and sending him tumbling twenty feet across the flagstones to the arena boundary, completely unconscious.

"WINNER: DARIUS - VOID BLESSED ACADEMY!"