The Bloodthirsty Berserk Bear was indeed a powerful offensive talent. Its main drawback was that during battle, the bloodthirsty desire would gradually erode one's consciousness, weakening their mental power. Without a strong will, one could easily get lost. Otherwise, it would surely be an SSS-tier talent. Coupled with Zhao Xiong's nearly two-meter height against Lin Ran's one meter eighty, he possessed a physical advantage. It was difficult not to naturally favor him.
Hearing the surrounding affirmations, Zhao Xiong's smile grew more ferocious. As he chuckled, he theatrically flexed his bicep towards Luo Qingyan, who stood beside Lin Ran, almost making Luo Qingyan nauseous. Seeing Luo Qingyan's disgusted expression and her deliberately averted gaze, Zhao Xiong's face darkened, and he turned his rage-filled face towards Lin Ran beside him.
Among the new students of this batch, Luo Qingyan's popularity was undeniably high. Her stunning beauty, perfect figure, SSS-tier talent, and lack of trouble from a prominent family background... She was the perfect match for countless people. The only pity was that Luo Qingyan had a big problem beside her. It was Lin Ran, with whom she had countless rumors. This made Lin Ran intensely envied by many. Tall and handsome, with strong talent and bloodline, and a celestial companion like Luo Qingyan by his side daily... Just thinking about it was enough to make one spit blood with anger.
When Lin Ran had just introduced himself, if looks could kill, Lin Ran would have been riddled with wounds by now. At this moment, Zhao Xiong, channeling his frustration from Luo Qingyan, also turned his ire towards Lin Ran.
Seeing Zhao Xiong glaring at him, Lin Ran smiled nonchalantly. "As the department heads just said, our Yan University encourages sparring."
"Since that's the case, sparring is not impossible..."
"However, without something at stake, wouldn't that be boring!"
Zhao Xiong's smile deepened slightly. "You want to make a wager? Fine! Just say it!"
Lin Ran's eyes narrowed. "I heard that those ranked between 21st and 30th receive a substantial basic academic credit subsidy of 650 points from the school."
"How about this, I don't want to be too harsh. Let's bet 500 academic credits."
"Leaving you with 150 points, if you're careful, it should be enough."
Upon hearing Lin Ran's words, Zhao Xiong's smile froze. He hadn't expected Lin Ran to dare play such a big game, directly proposing 500 academic credits. That was a full 500 academic credits! If he only received his monthly subsidy, at a rate of 65 points per month, it would take him nearly eight months... This wager was truly too extravagant.
The reason Lin Ran was doing this was primarily to deter these challengers. If they weren't dealt a painful blow all at once, they would keep buzzing around him like annoying flies.
"500 academic credits..." Zhao Xiong's expression became much more serious. Looking at Lin Ran's calm smile, he suddenly felt a bit less confident.
Seeing Zhao Xiong's hesitation, Lin Ran sighed, "As expected, dogs that bark the loudest often don't bite."
"Qingyan, let's go." Saying this, he prepared to pull Luo Qingyan away.
Provoked by Lin Ran's words, Zhao Xiong's face turned a deep red. "Wait!"
"500 academic credits it is!"
"Are you afraid of me?"
"Bring it on!" Having been so insulted by Lin Ran, Zhao Xiong felt that if he let Lin Ran leave like this today, he might as well give up on mingling in the circle of special recruits from now on.
Lin Ran nodded with satisfaction. "Hand it over then! What, shall we find a notary?"
"No need! Aren't we here?"
At this moment, Lü Qiufeng and Lin Miao, who had been watching the spectacle, emerged from somewhere and waved at them.
Lü Qiufeng continued, "Let me introduce myself first. I am Lü Qiufeng, the department head of the Kylin Department at Yan University."
"And this is Lin Miao, the department head of the Azure Dragon Department."
"With the two of us, plus the three on stage, we have enough notaries!"
A clamor erupted from the onlookers. They never expected that the two people chatting and laughing with Lin Ran earlier were actually the remaining two department heads of the school! No wonder Ling Shangqing on stage pretended not to see anything...
Hearing Lü Qiufeng's words, Zhao Xiong's face grew even more displeased. Damn it! Why were the department heads of these two departments so close to Lin Ran? Could it be that Lin Ran truly had some grand method? Worthy of them recruiting him before the freshman competition? But the arrow was already on the string and had to be shot. Zhao Xiong took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "Then let's begin!"
Gao Xian smiled and pushed his hands up to the sky. All the tables and chairs in the conference room immediately flew up. Then, a circular arena appeared in the center.
Gao Xian chuckled, "Come, each of you transfer 500 academic credits to me, and I'll keep them safe for you."
"You two will battle it out within the arena... A radius of 25 meters should be enough for you to fight."
"However, since you're fellow students, try not to defeat the other too badly."
"It would be too embarrassing."
Gao Xian said this while looking at Lin Ran. But with his winking and nodding, it was as if he was telling Lin Ran to fight him to the death.
Feeling underestimated once again, Zhao Xiong transferred his credits and then roared as he stepped onto the arena, clenching his fists towards Lin Ran. Lin Ran followed him onto the arena, adjusting his expression slightly.
Xu Sheng on the side was also intently watching the two. His student number ranked 14th, considerably higher than Zhao Xiong. But facing Zhao Xiong's gaze, he couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive. The Bloodthirsty Berserk Bear talent truly had its unique advantages. If his primary method, Black Flame, might not be effective, and his own toughness was countered, how would Lin Ran fight this battle? If it were himself, what tactics would he employ?
However, the five department heads standing by seemed to favor Lin Ran... Luo Qingyan, a seasoned fighter herself, watched the two on the stage, excitedly waving her small fists, almost wishing she were the one on stage. But her Divine Angel talent was considered extremely monstrous even among all SSS-tier talents. Moreover, Divine Angel was a well-rounded, hexagonal talent. Losing to a woman would be even more humiliating, so no one dared to test its edge.
Lin Ran looked at Zhao Xiong, who was poised for battle, and casually twisted his neck. "You asked me to give you some pointers earlier, so I shall give you just that!"
"Within two moves, if you can still stand on the stage, I'll consider myself defeated."