"Mr. Gan Jin won't fail to find a mage, will he? If need be, our Kai family can assist. Still, I—I truly hope this matter proceeds fairly."

Kailer feigned amusement, though inwardly he desperately prayed Gan Jin wouldn't manage to secure a mage, lest he impulsively agree to fight all three bouts alone.

Gan Jin’s cold snort had barely left his lips when a clear, ringing female voice cut in from the doorway: "This one... would I suffice?"

Everyone turned to look. Standing framed in the wide doorway was a slightly petite magic apprentice. Her oversized mage’s hat obscured her features, but the voice confirmed she was female.

Biluo stood at the entrance, peering timidly over the brim of her hat at the tense, sword-drawn atmosphere of the courtyard. Her hands nervously twisted together in front of her until her gaze landed on Gan Jin amidst the crowd, whereupon her tension eased slightly.

Not long ago at school, when Gan Jin had abruptly turned and left upon hearing about Luolin, Biluo had followed, worried. She simply couldn't keep up with Gan Jin’s stamina and arrived breathlessly, finally gathering the courage to speak after overhearing the final exchanges between the opposing parties.

Kailer was the first to laugh. Wasn't that Biluo? The worst student ever enrolled at the Auckland Academy of Magic and Warfare. The idea of her stepping up for Gan Jin was almost too good to be true! If Gan Jin had actually managed to find a powerful mage, it would have been a considerable headache, but if it was Biluo... that was simply perfect. "I have no objection," Kailer shrugged, his shoulders bunching as he looked mockingly at Gan Jin, "The question is, do you dare partner with her, student Gan Jin?"

Gan Jin looked at Biluo and saw that beneath the brim of the hat worn by this usually timid female magic apprentice, there shone a light of seriousness, of genuine desire to help, utterly devoid of retreat.

Gan Jin gave a cold smile. A duel? The laws of the Zhence Dynasty were explicit: killing an opponent during a duel did not count as murder. Gran and Kailer instigating this duel was merely providing themselves with a legitimate, justifiable reason to kill him.

Biluo stepped over the threshold, moving slowly toward the center of the courtyard. The tall, muscular warriors, faced with this diminutive and seemingly timid magic apprentice, unconsciously parted, creating a path for her toward the coffin.

Biluo reached the coffin and bowed deeply to Luolin’s casket. Her smooth, bright black hair cascaded over her shoulders, sparking an impulse in onlookers to lift her hat and behold her true face.

"Heh heh..." Kailer sneered a few times, "It seems Gan Jin doesn't dare use Biluo as a partner either. Why don't we help you find someone else?"

The usually timid Biluo moved a little closer to Gan Jin, making a clear gesture that she intended to assist.

Gan Jin was somewhat surprised. This girl, who had always been so timid in the Four Seasons Valley, should surely understand what a duel implied—the very real possibility of death involved.

In the Zhence Dynasty, a duel often meant an incessant fight on the stage until one side was dead.

Biluo stood quietly before Gan Jin, her mage’s hat pulled even lower. She herself couldn't explain why she possessed the nerve to offer help in such a perilous duel.

"Fine, what time?" Gan Jin made up his mind. At worst, he would simply fight all three bouts himself. His hidden trump cards were numerous: the Nine Demon-Subduing Battles! The Eighteen Hammers of Ascending Force! The Wind and Cloud Golden Body, Iron Body Realm! Myriad Shadows! And the Gan family's ultimate hidden art, the Kun Battle Technique, not to mention the secret skill of Divine Archery with his throwing knives!

A mage? Gan Jin truly didn't care. Want to keep their distance? No problem! Who was the natural enemy of a mage in this world? An archer!

Agreed? Kailer could scarcely believe what his ears had registered. Gan Jin, who knew exactly what level of apprentice Biluo was, had actually accepted? Was he being impulsive? Or did he have a secret weapon? Could he possibly be a Demon-Subduing Warrior?

Kailer vigorously shook his head, his face etched with self-mockery. That hypothesis was too absurd. How could Gan Jin be a Demon-Subduing Warrior? Perhaps, if he were lucky in the future, he might become one, but definitely not now! Becoming a Demon-Subduing Warrior required Dou Qi secret arts! Gan Jin’s disappearance in the Sunset Mountain Range for the past two years meant he couldn't possibly have accessed those secret arts; at best, he had merely honed the strength of a tenth-level warrior to a stunning degree.

Yes! That had to be it! The more Kailer pondered, the more certain he became that his deduction was correct. Gran wasn't just a Demon-Subduing Warrior; he was one who had refined his Dou Qi using the Eighteen Aperture Secret Art. That gave him five years of mastery, plus Kaichi! Hmph hmph! Yes, my nephew Kaichi—he possessed a true trump card no one suspected!

A Bloodline Warrior! Kailer excitedly clenched his fists. The Kai family had never been a Bloodline Warrior lineage, until his younger brother married a woman from a collateral branch of the Thunder Leopard Bloodline family.

Women almost never showed any potential for bloodline awakening in Bloodline Warrior inheritances, and the chance of a natural awakening was even rarer.

Yet, Kaichi became that rare lucky exception. Without any bloodline awakening altar provided by the Kai family, he successfully awakened naturally, and now represented almost the entire future hope of the Kai family—they were even grooming him as the heir to the family head. Bringing him to Auckland this time served two purposes. First, to help Kailer seize the position of Principal at the Auckland Academy of Magic and Warfare. For a family, controlling a magic and warfare academy, even a junior one, meant they could scout for necessary talent in the future, and those talents would be more reliably loyal.

Second, it was meant as training for Kaichi—letting him join the academy's sparring exchange meet and leading a weaker academy to achieve some prominence would make him more likely to be noticed and seriously recruited by higher-tier, quality warrior academies.

Kaichi! That’s right! I still have Kaichi! Kailer felt infinite confidence thinking of his nephew. Bloodline Warriors were always invincible! Even Gran, a powerhouse five years into the Demon-Subduing Warrior realm, never acted arrogantly in front of Kaichi.

"Since Gan Jin agrees, how about tomorrow?" Kailer fixed Gan Jin with a paternal, benevolent smile, afraid that if the date was set too far off, Gan Jin might realize his situation and find a stronger mage through Fabridis to replace the inferior apprentice Biluo.

Gan Jin smiled, "Since you chose the time, how about I choose the location?" Kailer confidently spread his hands, making a gesture of complete deference, "Agreed."

"Right here," Gan Jin pointed to the ground beneath his feet, his domineering aura suddenly erupting from his body, "In the courtyard of this funeral hall! I want to do it right in front of that fat man, so he can watch me!"

Sabonis stared at Gan Jin, quietly sucking in a breath of cool air. This aura... At his age, how could he possess such overwhelming presence? If I had faced him at his age, I would have certainly lost! Perhaps even Fabridis, at this age, didn't possess an aura half as commanding as this Gan Jin? Could Gan Jin actually be Fabridis's disciple? Had the Thunderbolt, who never took students, finally accepted one?

It was highly possible! The more Sabonis scrutinized Gan Jin, the more certain he became of his guess. Fabridis, despite not being a Bloodline Warrior, possessed formidable, overbearing strength, and his mannerisms were always autocratic—he truly shared a subtle resemblance to this young man! The only difference was that Gan Jin's sharpness was more acute, carrying greater impact; the young man was like a drawn battle saber.

Wait! Sabonis’s eyes suddenly narrowed to a sliver, a cold light shooting out from his pupils and focusing entirely on Gan Jin. He gasped internally, nearly shouting out loud: A Demon-Subduing Warrior!

Heavens! Sabonis’s attention seemed nailed to Gan Jin, and his heart churned with colossal, surging waves. This discovery was utterly unexpected!

Could this kid be a Bloodline Warrior? Impossible! Sabonis instantly dismissed that notion. A youth under nineteen, if he were a Bloodline Warrior, would need to activate his Bloodline Awakening Transformation to manifest the realm of a Demon-Subduing Warrior! Yet, this young man showed not even a hint of transformation!

A commoner? Sabonis felt the muscles in his back stiffen; the situation was truly shocking. A commoner under nineteen years old had actually forced his way into the Demon-Subduing Warrior realm! Even if he had only used the Twelve Aperture Dou Qi refinement secret art, it was still incredibly difficult to accept.

Sabonis painfully tore his attention away from Gan Jin and furtively glanced at Fabridis beside him, quietly warning himself: It seems Gan Jin must indeed be his disciple. Then, the way I just spoke up to help Kailer... I might have easily offended him. I’ll have to talk to Kailer afterward and ensure that they absolutely do not kill Gan Jin during the fight, otherwise, if the Thunderbolt explodes in rage... he has the Provincial Warrior Guild backing him up in the Yongliu Province!

If a provincial Warrior Guild ignited the flames of its fury, even the Kai family—

Fabridis's shock was no less than Sabonis's. He had assumed Gan Jin was merely a peak tenth-level warrior. His plan had been to hastily set up a Grand Spirit Doubling Array for him tonight, risking a violation of Warrior Guild rules to secretly pass him the Seventy-Two Aperture Dou Qi Condensation Method, so they could contend with the Kai family tomorrow!

A superior Dou Qi condensation method would always surpass an inferior one. Compared to a Demon-Subduing Warrior who had spent five years refining Dou Qi using the Twelve Apertures, the Seventy-Two Apertures, after just one night of refinement, would still possess a greater quantity of Dou Qi.

"I didn't expect he had already condensed it..." Fabridis sighed inwardly. "But I wonder how many apertures he used for the refinement secret art? If the number of apertures is too few, I’ll be extremely busy tonight. I’ll first shatter his existing Dou Qi into Dou Force, then use the Spirit Doubling Array to help him re-condense it with the Seventy-Two Apertures... Fortunately, this boy is a Forgemaster; the Warrior Guild will simply process his membership application later, no great fuss."