FALLEN ORACLE

**Chapter 4: The Special Competition (9)**

Then, without warning. Nika, still stunned from being eliminated, was suddenly hit by a massive force. Her body was flung dozens of meters, nearly knocked off the cliff.They looked closer. Her red standard robe had completely shattered. Blood seeped from her forehead. The impact had knocked her unconscious.This was shocking. To protect the students, Professor Tress's robes had enhanced protection after turning red. Ordinary magical or physical attacks couldn't damage them at all. That was why before the competition, he said no one could really punch through his robes.But Nika's situation was clearly different. She was genuinely injured. The blow had utterly destroyed the enhanced robe.As they stared in shock, the thing that had attacked Nika revealed itself—a six-legged monster about ten meters long and over two meters tall.It had a ferocious human face, except for two meter-long fangs jutting from its lower jaw. Its six legs resembled human arms and hands, only much larger. Apart from its face and legs, its body was covered in thick silver scales—grotesque and terrifying.When Nika was knocked flying, the monster hadn't been visible. It must have used magic.A monster using magic sounded terrifying, but Chen Yi and the others knew this wasn't rare on the continent of Alpha. Even so, this monster's appearance and displayed magical power far exceeded anything they had ever known."Wh-what is that thing?" Liv was too frightened to speak properly."Careful. It might be a pureblood demonkin," Chen Yi said in a low voice.He had once read a legend: during the God-Demon War ten thousand years ago, some mages captured by the Demons suffered horrific t*****e. The Demons, having suffered greatly from magic, believed that "only magic can defeat magic."So they used an evil art called "genetic engineering" to cruelly fuse those mages with various native monsters, creating creatures that possessed human intelligence and magic along with monsters' powerful physiques—demonkin.Ten thousand years later, the Demons were long gone. Most demonkin had been wiped out by the combined efforts of gods and mortals. Most of the rest, unable to reproduce, had quickly gone extinct.Only a very few survived—those that hadn't been exterminated and weren't affected by reproductive issues. Some of these mated with monsters, producing offspring that could use magic—which was why many monsters on the continent could manipulate mana.Even rarer were cases where demonkin mated with each other. Their offspring were pureblood demonkin—possessing the same terrifying power as their ancestors from ten thousand years ago.Pureblood demonkin were extremely powerful, but also extremely rare. The professors at Rongqi Academy probably had no idea such a creature lurked in the White Sand Rainforest—otherwise, they would never have chosen this location for the Special Competition.Clearly, this demonkin had been hiding nearby, waiting for Chen Yi's squad and Bill's squad to wear each other down, then struck at the one with the lowest robe durability and the most offensive power—Nika.Seeing his girlfriend in mortal danger, the usually calm Bill panicked.He immediately used Telekinetic Control, trying to dominate the demonkin.But he forgot a core principle of psionic magic: only a stronger will can control a weaker one—almost never the reverse.Still, Bill was strong. Though he couldn't fully control the demonkin, his mental interference threw it into disarray. Reluctantly, it changed its target instead of finishing Nika off.The demonkin opened its massive jaws wide and blasted a hurricane at Bill.Still in the middle of casting, Bill couldn't react in time. He was knocked flying, his spell completely broken. If Chen Yi hadn't quickly deployed a shield behind him, Bill would have been blown off the cliff.Even so, his protective robe was completely shattered. The shield spell that stopped him from falling also cracked apart.Professor Tress's robe had failed instantly. Mendes's shield staff's spell had crumbled at the first touch.Everyone still conscious now understood: this demonkin was no opponent they, as trainees, could easily handle."Chen Yi, what do we do?" Phil found a chance to ask quietly.Phil had been his brother for eight years. They knew each other inside out, so Chen Yi easily understood Phil's implication: they could abandon Bill's crew and have their own squad retreat.Phil was shrewd. Born into a general's family, he had grown up around high officials and nobles. Unlike his sister, Phil had learned the ways of officialdom from his father from a young age. In a sense, his "high emotional intelligence" was just another form of shrewdness.The demonkin's attention was now fully on Bill's crew. Its strength far exceeded theirs. Even if they abandoned their classmates, no one could reproach them afterward.Moreover, with the demonkin's sudden interference, two of the opposing squad had already had their robes turned red. If they did nothing, first place—the ascendant's rings—would certainly fall to the four of them."Save them," Chen Yi said after a brief pause.Though disappointed, Phil nodded solemnly. He might not care about Bill's crew's lives, but he cared about Chen Yi's."Liv, protect Nika. Bill, the rest of you, fall back toward me!" Chen Yi commanded. "Their robes are completely destroyed. Professor Tress will sense it. They'll be rushing here now."Chen Yi's words steadied everyone's nerves. But privately, he was uneasy: with this demonkin's power, could the professors be certain to win?He made up his mind: even if only to protect themselves, they had to kill this demonkin quickly. Given the situation, they couldn't possibly hold out until the professors arrived.So Chen Yi decided—he would use Thunderstrike.