Worldwide Class Change: Minimal Effort, Maximum Reward!-Chapter 18, Announcement of Jianghe Hunter Academy Tournament (2)

Chapter 18: Chapter 18, Announcement of Jianghe Hunter Academy Tournament (2)

The moment Instructor Han finished speaking, the quiet courtyard erupted into movement. Students rushed toward the registration tables near the combat arena entrance, excited voices filling the air as they pushed forward, eager to secure their place in the tournament.

"This is our chance!"

"Top Ten rewards are already amazing!"

"But the champion reward... that’s insane."

"Regional Elite Academy..."

Even the usually composed students were unable to hide the anticipation burning behind their eyes.

At the edge of the courtyard, Wang Hao swallowed nervously, glancing between Lin Yi and the surging crowd.

"...Brother Lin."

Lin Yi glanced at him.

"Yes?"

"Are you seriously going to join?"

Lin Yi smiled faintly.

"Of course."

Wang Hao looked conflicted, scratching the back of his head as he searched for the right words. "I mean... I believe you’re strong. But the tournament will have monsters like Chen Feng." He said the name with a particular weight, as though simply speaking it aloud was enough to make his point.

"The Stormblade Swordsman?"

Wang Hao nodded vigorously. "That guy is already Level 15. He’s basically the tournament favorite before it’s even started."

Lin Yi shrugged casually, his gaze drifting toward the arena.

"That sounds interesting."

Wang Hao stared at him for a long moment.

"Brother Lin... you’re way too calm."

Just then, a small disturbance rippled near the entrance as the crowd’s chatter shifted into hushed whispers.

"He’s here."

"Chen Feng..."

A tall young man walked toward the registration table with an unhurried stride, his dark combat uniform catching the faint morning breeze. The long sword across his back gleamed under the sunlight, its blade polished to a mirror sheen. Chen Feng’s expression was completely still as he picked up the pen and wrote his name on the sheet. No hesitation. No excitement. Only the quiet, unshakeable confidence of someone who had never once doubted the outcome.

Several students watched with open admiration.

"That’s the future champion."

"No doubt."

Meanwhile, another figure approached from the opposite side of the courtyard. Silver-blue hair shimmered beneath the morning light, and a frost spear rested with practiced ease in her hand, its crystalline tip catching the sun in pale flashes. The surrounding students instinctively parted as Su Qinghan passed through, the faint chill of her presence enough to create space without a single word. She calmly added her name to the registration sheet, her handwriting clean and precise. Then, for just a moment, her gaze lifted and crossed the distance of the courtyard.

It landed on Lin Yi.

The two of them held the look briefly, neither speaking. Then Su Qinghan stepped aside without expression, leaving the table open.

Wang Hao stayed close as Lin Yi finally walked toward the registration desk, his voice dropping to a low whisper.

"...People are watching."

"They always do."

As Lin Yi reached the table, the instructor overseeing registration looked up with a pen already in hand.

"Name."

"Lin Yi."

The instructor paused for just a fraction of a second, his pen hovering above the page. The name tugged at something familiar, though he could not quite place it. He wrote it down without a word. Behind them, the whispers had already started spreading outward through the crowd like cracks through ice.

"That’s him."

"The Laborer."

"The one from the rumors."

Chen Feng, who had lingered near the edge of the registration area, turned slightly. His gaze settled on Lin Yi with calm, measured interest, the way a seasoned fighter sizes up something worth paying attention to. For a brief moment, the two of them simply looked at each other across the short distance between them.

Chen Feng smiled faintly.

"Good. Looks like the rumors weren’t enough to scare you away."

"I’m not easily scared."

Chen Feng let out a quiet, unhurried chuckle, as though he had heard many people say those exact words before. "I hope that’s true." Then he turned and walked away, his footsteps calm and even against the stone ground.

Wang Hao exhaled slowly beside Lin Yi, the breath leaving him like he had been holding it the entire time.

"...Brother Lin."

"Yes?"

"You just attracted the attention of the strongest guy in the academy."

Lin Yi said nothing for a moment. His gaze moved past Wang Hao and settled on the towering stone walls of the combat arena rising at the heart of the courtyard, its weathered surface carved with the names of past champions. A faint glimmer of anticipation stirred behind his eyes.

"That’s the whole point of a tournament."

Behind him, the registration list continued to fill with names, one after another, each one a fighter with their own reasons for stepping forward. And tomorrow, when the first bell rang out across the arena, none of those reasons would matter.

Only results would.