“Eat slower.”
Lin Xing looked helplessly at Lumiya, who was wolfing down her food, and silently handed over a cup of Soy Milk.
The boy sitting opposite, along with his Thundercrystal Lion beside him, fell completely silent.
Both the boy and the lion stared fixedly at the blonde girl gulping down her Soy Milk—“glug glug glug”—unable to suppress the twitch at the corners of their mouths.
The match was about to begin, and yet their opponent was still busy stuffing her face; the scene was truly laughable and exasperating at the same time.
The Referee’s hand holding the whistle froze in midair, his face also filled with mixed amusement and frustration.
He had clearly blown the starting whistle three minutes ago, yet these two contestants had turned the arena into a cafeteria.
Lin Xing was busy handing Lumiya Soy Milk and wiping her mouth, while the boy opposite actually fished out some Dried Meat from his backpack and began feeding it to his Thundercrystal Lion squatting on the ground.
The Referee rubbed his temples and was just about to step forward and remind them, when he saw the Thundercrystal Lion, with the Dried Meat clamped in its mouth, shake its head disdainfully at the Meat Bun.
Lumiya, in turn, shook her head and, holding up half a Meat Bun, gave the Dried Meat a big thumbs-down.
Seeing this harmonious scene, the Referee swallowed the words that were at the tip of his tongue.
Now he didn’t even need to hurry them.
Even though the fight hadn’t begun, the tension on the field was already palpable.
Lumiya chewed the last bite of her Meat Bun, wiped her mouth, and looked at the Thundercrystal Lion across from her with a hint of provocation in her eyes.
The Thundercrystal Lion was not to be outdone.
It swallowed the Dried Meat in a single gulp, its tail patting its Beastmaster.
The moment all the food on the field was put away,
Both sides moved almost at the same time.
Dense violet lightning instantly crackled around the Thundercrystal Lion.
Its four paws dug into the ground, and it charged toward Lumiya like a bolt of lightning, scorching a trail of charred earth in its wake.
Lumiya nimbly sidestepped, narrowly avoiding the Thundercrystal Lion’s charge.
At the same time, her Dragon Tail swept out with a howling gust, aiming for the lion’s flank.
The Thundercrystal Lion reacted swiftly, forcefully twisting its body and blocking the Dragon Tail with a lightning-wreathed paw.
A muffled “boom” sounded as lightning collided with dragon scales, sending a shower of blinding sparks and knocking the Thundercrystal Lion several steps back.
Zhao Lei, the Thundercrystal Lion’s Beastmaster, narrowed his eyes:
“I didn’t expect your beast’s strength to be this formidable! No wonder they call her a humanoid beast! Thundercrystal Lion! Go! Lightning Net!”
Immediately, lightning surged all around him, and he swung a longspear fiercely at Lin Xing.
The Thundercrystal Lion reared back and let out a thunderous roar, its jaws gaping wide.
In an instant, a Lightning Net large enough to cover half the arena formed with a deafening boom, purple bolts crackling and darting through the web like a swarm of frenzied silver serpents.
With a shrill “zzzzzt” it swept down toward Lumiya.
Flames surged violently at Lin Xing’s fingertips, the golden-red tongues coalescing into a half-meter-thick Fire Shield, its surface sizzling and popping with leaping sparks.
The moment the longspear, whistling through the air, struck down, the Fire Shield exploded, sending a blast of hot embers and thick smoke billowing out.
Taking advantage of the smoke cover, Lin Xing retreated dozens of steps in the blink of an eye.
Somehow, a bow woven from flames had already materialized in his hand.
The bowstring trembled lightly, and a Flaming Arrow wreathed in golden-red fire was nocked and loosed, its scorching heat forcing Zhao Lei back several steps.
Zhao Lei steadied himself, the longspear spinning rapidly in his palm, lightning winding around the shaft in a spiral.
Suddenly, he hurled the spear, the shaft transforming into a streak of purple lightning that shot straight at Lin Xing’s face.
Lin Xing’s eyes narrowed, and he drew his Flame Bow to full draw once again.
Three Flaming Arrows fired simultaneously, colliding with the Lightning Longspear.
With a thunderous “boom,” electricity and fire burst and filled the air.
Seizing the moment, Zhao Lei gathered lightning at his fingertips, summoning several Lightning Spears that shot at Lin Xing in rapid succession.
Lin Xing’s feet moved quickly, dodging through the arena as flames twisted around his fingers to form chains.
He snagged one of the Lightning Spears and swung himself toward another, causing the Lightning Spears to collide and explode, filling the air with smoke once more.
Taking advantage, he circled to Zhao Lei’s side, golden-red flames swirling around his hands as he launched a searing attack at Zhao Lei’s lower back.
Zhao Lei was no slouch either; lightning blazed from his hands as he twisted to meet Lin Xing head-on.
Fire and lightning clashed violently, the impact making the entire arena tremble with a resounding “bang.”
Sparks of lightning and fire scattered like a rain of stars, and the aftershocks forced Zhao Lei to stagger backward, a numbing tremor spreading from his arms through his whole body.
On the other side, Lumiya frowned at the Lightning Net closing in on her.
This thing? Wouldn’t it burn her clothes?
She pursed her lips in hesitation for half a second, then a scorching heat wave erupted around her.
Golden-red streams of air spiraled upward, distorting the very air with their heat.
She slowly raised her hand, dazzling Golden Light gathering at her fingertips.
With a sudden motion, her five fingers curled into claws and tore forward!
The Lightning Net covering half the arena was ripped open with a neat tear, an invisible wave of heat howling through the gap, its force undiminished as it surged straight for the Thundercrystal Lion.
Lumiya stood firmly in place, as if nothing had happened.
The Thundercrystal Lion, battered by the heat, stumbled backward again and again.
It spat bolts of lightning in counterattack, but each one was melted away by the golden-red aura swirling around Lumiya.
Seeing his side being pushed back at every turn, Zhao Lei felt a pang.
Since awakening his SSS Potential, he had been invincible in the branch academy, never once tasting defeat.
He’d set his sights on the championship—who could have imagined suffering such a setback in the quarterfinals?
Yet despite this, there was not a hint of retreat in Zhao Lei’s eyes.
If anything, his fighting spirit burned hotter than ever.
Lightning crackled around the longspear in his hands, the tip blazing with purple light as he transformed into a flash of lightning.
“Good! Again! Thundercrystal Lion, Thunder Strike!”
The Thundercrystal Lion understood, leaping up with all four paws.
Lightning gathered around it, forming a sharp, shining spearhead as it dove toward Lumiya like a meteor.
At the same time, Zhao Lei attacked from the flank, his spear cloaked in lightning, forming a pincer attack with his beast.
“Careful!” Lin Xing warned urgently, fire at his fingertips twisting into chains that shot out to entangle Zhao Lei’s spear and slow his assault.
But Lumiya remained perfectly calm, spinning like a top, her Dragon Tail slicing through the air in a sweeping arc.
With a loud “boom,” her Dragon Tail smashed into the Thundercrystal Lion’s Thunder Strike, shattering the lightning spear in an instant.
At the same moment, she sidestepped Zhao Lei’s longspear, golden light gathering at her fist as she slammed a punch down on the spear’s shaft.
Zhao Lei felt a tremendous force surge through him, nearly wrenching the spear from his hands and forcing him to stagger backward several steps.
“This can’t be!” Zhao Lei’s face was filled with disbelief.
He and the Thundercrystal Lion had never failed with their pincer attack, yet it had been broken so easily.
But Lumiya gave her opponent no chance to catch his breath.
She shot toward the Thundercrystal Lion like an arrow from a bow, pushing off the ground and leaping high.
Her small fist glowed with dazzling golden light as she brought it crashing down on the Thundercrystal Lion’s head.
The Thundercrystal Lion hurriedly raised its paw to defend, but as the golden fist struck, it felt a mountain-like force slam into it.
Its sturdy paw bent under the blow, and its massive body was smashed into the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Lumiya flipped in midair and landed lightly, opening her mouth to unleash a stream of golden-red Dragon Flame, the fire lashing out like a whip toward Zhao Lei.
In the blink of an eye, what had been a coordinated assault by the Thundercrystal Lion and Zhao Lei was broken apart by her overwhelming strength alone!
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