Li Wei picked up the shattered shell. Magic Patterns were engraved on the inside.

He looked toward the Hermit Crab Demon Beast crawling out of the smoke.

The corners of his mouth lifted into a smile.

He had seen through the Hermit Crab Demon Beast’s true nature.

This wasn’t a real Magic Beast at all, but a Magic Puppet placed on the beach by the Mage Association.

No wonder these Magic Beasts possessed such incredible Magic Resistance.

They were puppets specially crafted by the Mage Association.

They were meant to weed out the Mages who weren’t strong enough.

Only Mages who could defeat the Magic Puppets were qualified to proceed to the second round’s venue.

This was all part of the Mage Association’s plan.

WHOOSH!

A gust of wind blew past, dispersing the smoke. The Hermit Crab Demon Beast with the shattered shell stood frozen in place.

A moment later, the Hermit Crab Demon Beast retreated into its shell and burrowed underground.

Li Wei knew this meant he had passed.

He crossed the beach and walked toward the forest.

The fact that he could destroy the Hermit Crab Demon Beast’s shell meant he was qualified for the second round.

CRACKLE!

Li Wei felt a blast of cold air wash over him.

He turned his head and saw a puppet Magic Beast frozen into an ice sculpture.

A figure walked toward the forest with calm composure.

A thought stirred in Li Wei’s mind. ’It’s that Ice Element Mage, the one who froze the sea to cross it.’

’To freeze a puppet Magic Beast so easily... he must already be at Tier Two.’

CRASH!

The ice shattered. The puppet Magic Beast, having broken free, did not continue its attack. It burrowed underground to await the next contestants.

One by one, more contestants defeated the puppet Magic Beasts on the beach and entered the forest.

"Hey, you got here quick!"

Xiong Er waved an arm, greeting Li Wei.

"You were faster," Li Wei said with a smile.

"Nah, I just got lucky and landed not far from the island."

Xiong Er said with a good-natured laugh.

As they left the beach and walked onto the grassy terrain of the forest...

A voice announcing that he had passed rang in Li Wei’s ears.

"Congratulations, contestant, on passing the first round. You may exit the Island Secret Realm at any time. The second round of the competition will begin tomorrow."

Li Wei wasn’t in a hurry to leave. He stood at the edge of the forest, watching the others.

He observed the different Mages’ techniques and how they dealt with their enemies.

THUD!

Li Wei turned his head toward the sound.

Xiong Er had been stopped by an invisible wall.

He ran his hand along the invisible wall. "I’m blocked," he said. "Guess there’s no way to go take a look ahead of time."

Li Wei walked over as well and found a massive Barrier before them.

After watching the fights on the edge of the forest for a while, Li Wei remembered that Gu Ze and Rota were still waiting for him.

So, he exited the Island Secret Realm.

Li Wei returned to the audience seats.

When Gu Ze saw him return, he said regretfully, "Where’d you go? You missed an incredible scene."

"What was so incredible?" Li Wei asked as he sat down.

"The incredible ways the Mages of different elements crossed the sea," Gu Ze said.

"The first round has entered its second stage now. The Mages who were able to cross the sea have basically all reached the coast. They just have to defeat a Magic Beast to enter the second round."

Gu Ze explained, as if afraid Li Wei wouldn’t understand.

Rota asked curiously, "How does the Mage Association make those Magic Beasts so obedient?"

Li Wei smiled faintly. "Maybe they aren’t real Magic Beasts. They could just be Magic Puppets."

Gu Ze and Rota froze for a moment when they heard this.

The two of them mulled it over. "That’s possible," Gu Ze said with a nod.

Li Wei looked down. The stage in the Beast Fighting Arena was displaying scenes from within the Island Secret Realm.

The forest and volcano regions of the Island Secret Realm were shrouded in dark clouds and had not yet been opened, so they couldn’t be viewed.

The spectators could only see what was happening in the ocean and on the beach.

Li Wei saw that there were still quite a few Mages struggling in the sea, slowly advancing toward the island.

Suddenly, his gaze shifted, and he saw Lilith enter the forest.

Lilith didn’t fight the puppet Magic Beast; she simply transformed into a shadow and slipped into the forest.

Her form only became visible again as she was exiting the Island Secret Realm.

"Wilder’s made it to the beach," Gu Ze said, looking down below.

"That couldn’t have been easy," Rota remarked with a sigh.

Wilder emerged from the sea, spitting out a mouthful of seawater with a look of disgust.

The last time, at the Kovada Mine, he had used a Random Teleportation Scroll and ended up teleported into an underground river.

He had drifted along the underground river into a lake before he was finally discovered and rescued.

Ever since then, he’d had an indescribable fear of water.

Because of this, he had even specifically learned the Underwater Breathing Spell.

He never expected it would come in handy during this competition.

A turtle puppet Magic Beast crawled toward Wilder.

Wilder’s expression was grim as he unleashed all of his frustration on the Magic Beast.

He was a Ring Mage, and his Casting was fast.

The moment the turtle puppet Magic Beast got close, a barrage of sharp stone pillars erupted from the ground.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

The turtle Magic Beast was flipped over, landing on its back with its limbs flailing, unable to turn itself over.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

After attacking for a while and realizing he couldn’t get through the incredibly sturdy shell, Wilder gave up his assault on the turtle Magic Beast.

He skirted around the overturned turtle, which was spinning on the ground, and headed for the forest.

Seeing Wilder enter the forest, Gu Ze said happily, "Mage Wilder made it to the second round, too!"

"This time, Maple City surely won’t come in last!"

"It’s hard to say," Rota said, shaking his head. "Although Mage Wilder is a Tier Two Ring Mage, it’s precisely because he’s a Ring Mage that he doesn’t have much of an advantage in the tournament."

It’s easier for Ring Mages to advance in tier than it is for traditional Mages.

In past tournaments, it wasn’t uncommon to see Tier Two Ring Mages under the age of twenty-five.

However, the Mages who ultimately win the championship are usually traditional Mages.

Gu Ze looked at Li Wei and said with relief, "Good thing you’re not participating this time. Otherwise, you probably would’ve been eliminated right away."

"The first round is very unforgiving for a Fire Element Mage like you."

Li Wei was speechless. ’Can’t you have a little more faith in me?’ he thought.

For now, all he could do was nod and agree. "Yeah, lucky I didn’t join."

The majority of Mages were eliminated by the ocean. A small portion were stopped on the beach, unable to enter the forest.

Some Mages even managed to pull ahead of others in the beach area.

The competition continued until noon, when the thirty contestants advancing to the second round were finally decided.

After the thirtieth person entered the forest area, all the Mages in the Island Secret Realm heard an announcement that the round was over.

The Mages who were still fighting or struggling to swim all looked up at the sky in a daze, unable to believe it was over so quickly.

The Sun hadn’t even set.

Then, everyone was forcibly teleported out of the Island Secret Realm.

The Mage Association announced the list of contestants for the second round.

At the same time, they announced the Rules for the second round, giving everyone time to prepare.

"For the second round, each contestant is permitted to use one piece of Tier One Magic Equipment."

"The second round will take place in the forest region. All contestants will have to survive in the Island Secret Realm for seven days. During this period, the use of Space Items is forbidden. Other than the selected piece of Magic Equipment and the clothes on your back, you may not bring any food into the competition area."

"The Mage Association has placed Magic Cards throughout the forest. After the seven days are up, the ten contestants holding the most Magic Cards will advance to the third and final round."

"All contestants, please prepare accordingly."

Li Wei’s brow furrowed when he heard this.

’Seven days? How am I supposed to hide that from Gu Ze and Rota?’

Li Wei pondered the problem as he walked back to their inn.

He had one idea: use the Illusion Technique on his Shadow Attendant and have it take his place.

But that would mean losing his Shadow Attendant’s support.

The trade-off wasn’t worth it.