69novels Chapter 177 The Competition Begins
Chapter 177 The Competition Begins
People from all over the world flocked to Venice, and the small city saw its number of tourists triple in just three days.
The local government also immediately introduced corresponding policies to limit the flow of visitors.
After all, people come to watch the competition between young geniuses from universities around the world. This kind of magic duel extravaganza, held every four years, is quite interesting for them.
At the Governor-General's residence, the national flags of the 32 selected National Government teams were also raised high.
These 32 national teams are all outstanding teams that have performed exceptionally well in national tournaments or training exercises in various regions. Each team is also ranked in order, which indirectly reflects the overall magical level of each country. Of course, this measurement will not be too biased.
The countries that can enter Venice to participate in the World University Wars are basically all considered magical powerhouses.
As the sun rises, magical cannons boom across the Venetian sky, and a dazzling, sacred light pours down, falling upon the vibrant faces of people from all over the world.
At this moment, everyone couldn't help but hold their heads high, enjoying the spotlight. They were all dreaming of this day, from this moment on, they would no longer be unknown little mages, and all their past efforts would have been worthwhile!
Following the opening remarks by Doge Fabio of Venice, the representatives from various countries were introduced.
After the opening ceremony, the exciting and tense lucky draw began.
"Captain, go draw lots," Feng Li said.
The captains of the 32 teams stepped forward, went to the drawing area, took a drawing card, showed it to the referee, and then returned to their respective teams.
Occasionally, you can hear sounds of people beating their chests and stamping their feet, probably because some weaker countries have drawn the cards of stronger countries.
Unsurprisingly, the Chinese team was drawn against the Japanese team.
The Japanese team erupted in joyful cheers, which drew discontent from some members of their own team.
"I don't know what these guys are so happy about, acting like they've got us cornered." Jiang Shaoxu was very disdainful of their reaction.
"There's nothing we can do. The previous generation's rankings were too low, so naturally they put us in the weakest tier. The previous generation wasn't weak either; it's just that we ran into those American bandits," Jiang Yu explained helplessly.
"Let them enjoy themselves for now, and on the day of the official competition, they'll be crying for their parents!" Guan Yu said with a cold snort.
On the other side, the Japanese team also put aside their smugness and began to professionally discuss how to deal with the Chinese team.
Fujiwara Nobuko looked solemnly at the two documents in her hand, each containing a photo of Lu Jie and Mo Fan.
"Were these the two guys who killed Casso back then?"
"Oh, I almost forgot about these two guys!" Shao Hegu's tone immediately turned serious as he realized that Lu Jie and Mo Fan had shown remarkable combat prowess in the confrontation with the Red Ornament Guild, especially the former, whose plant-based abilities were incredibly powerful. He not only had the ability to alter the landscape but could also turn the entire battlefield to his advantage.
Not to mention his azure flames, which were truly ferocious; even a tiny bit of them burned Kasuo to the point of excruciating pain.
"What's there to be afraid of? In my opinion, only those two are really good in the Chinese team. The rest are just so-so. Do you think those two can carry the team?" The newcomer Yosuke said arrogantly.
"Don't be careless!" Fujikata Nobuko scolded, then added, "Remember, you must be meticulous in everything you do, otherwise you'll only hurt yourself!"
"Yes, mentor!"
"The opening match is a 5v5 team competition. We will send five players, and the Japanese team will send five players," Feng Li said.
With the mentors present, it's natural for them to make the decisions.
Feng Li glanced at Mu Tingying and the others, and said in a calm tone, "The injuries of the rest of you have not yet fully healed."
"Don't go."
Upon hearing this, Mu Tingying and the others widened their eyes. Such an important opportunity to shine in the opening match, and they were just going to ban them like that?
No matter how they argued, Feng Li would not let them take the stage.
Such a great opportunity was missed, and they all glared angrily at Mo Fan, wishing that the anger in their eyes would materialize and burn Mo Fan to ashes!
Mo Fan had a gloating look on his face, but he was still regretful in his heart. He regretted not going harder and beating them so badly that they couldn't participate in the later competitions!
"Mo Fan, you should go take a break too!" Feng Li glared at Mo Fan fiercely.
This person is a real headache!
"Mu Ningxue, Jiang Shaoxu, Nan Jue, Jiang Yu, and Guan Yu, the five of you get ready." Feng Li directly called out the names of these five people.
"Isn't it a bit too conservative to conserve strength like this?" The other mentors felt that Feng Li was being too conservative.
The three most powerful fighters in the team are Lu Jie, Ai Jiangtu, and Mo Fan. Sending one of them would be great. They made the group of Japanese scream and yell. Isn't that a kind of beautiful music?
Moreover, the Japanese team is not weak either. If these five players were to falter, it would be a huge blow to their morale.
Feng Li pondered for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the team members.
"Old Feng, we still need to win this first opening match." At this moment, an elderly man with gray hair and ordinary clothes came from behind the rest area.
His bright eyes naturally fell on Jiang Yu, who hurriedly stepped forward and respectfully greeted him as "Teacher."
"Chief, why are you down here too?" Several instructors looked at the old man with great surprise.
Zhao Manyan knew that Mo Fan was face-blind, so he immediately explained it to him.
"I knew I wasn't wrong about you guys; you made it this far without incident." Han Ji smiled slightly as he saw Lu Jie and Mo Fan.
"Are you worried about us being eliminated?" Mo Fan retorted.
"Haha, no, it's just that someone's been a bit restless, and I'm worried you might get fired or something," Han Ji said cheerfully.
Han Ji chatted with Lu Jie and Mo Fan for a few minutes, and eventually they returned to the issues that everyone was more concerned about.
"Send Xiao Ai up there. These two little ones are the best of the best, so we can't just send them out so easily," Pang Lai said.
"Yes, Chief." Feng Li nodded.
Nan Jue was replaced by Ai Jiangtu, and the captain took over the first battle.
"Mentor, Shao Hegu from the Japanese team is also very strong. I've met them before, and in my opinion, that guy's strength is not much weaker than mine," Ai Jiangtu said somewhat seriously.
During the raid on the Red Ornament Guild, although Lu Jie and Mo Fan were the most prominent, when the others fought against the government army and the Red Ornament Guild's powerful mages, he paid special attention to Shao Hegu. Ai Jiangtu's impression of him could be summed up in four words: "No weaker than me!"
"Even you're not confident?" Pang Lai was somewhat surprised that Ai Jiangtu would say such a thing.
"I'm not entirely confident; it depends on the specific field," Ai Jiangtu said.
"If you're not confident, let me do it. I'm confident," Mo Fan said.
"Get out of my way!" Feng Li glared at Mo Fan.
"I will do everything I can to secure our first victory!"