Caesar also chuckled in resignation,
"Yes, the future belongs to him..."
"But this year, let's leave the opportunity to us old guys!"
"Now, it still belongs to us!"
"My only goal is to win the championship! No matter who stands in my way, I will defeat him severely!"
Arthur rolled his eyes beside him,
"Although, do you have that strength?"
"Based on what Lin Ran has shown so far, I feel like we're in a precarious situation..."
"Not to mention, that tin man also seems to have become much stronger this year."
"It's tough..."
Although Caesar's expression wasn't pleasant, he still shook his head firmly,
"Those are not things I can worry about..."
"What I can worry about is how to move forward step by step without wavering!"
Arthur gave Caesar a thumbs-up,
"Hey, I don't have your deep obsession..."
"For me, whose state of mind has greatly changed, winning the championship would be the best."
"But if I can't win, then forget it! I'll honestly go home and take care of my own little patch of land..."
Catherine blinked,
"When did you become so open-minded?"
Arthur chuckled,
"Probably when I almost died at the hands of the Sea-Flipping Demon Whale..."
"From that moment on, I felt as if my entire being had been elevated."
"It's better to be alive!"
"As long as I'm alive, what honors and value can't I strive for in the future? Why be fixated on this one moment?"
"The road of life is long, there's no need to cling to one single thing."
Caesar tilted his head,
"You've gone around in circles for so long, aren't you trying to say this to me?"
"I feel like there's more to your words!"
Arthur burst into laughter,
"No, no... you're just overthinking it, my friend..."
"Everything I say is to admonish myself."
"I'm not so saintly as to preach to every lost soul..."
"Although being persistent in one's own beliefs isn't exactly being lost..."
"Alright, alright! Let's stop talking about this, let's watch the match!"
"..."
As Arthur changed the subject, the three of them turned their attention back to the competition arena.
And by this time, the arena had become a completely one-sided affair.
After realizing he couldn't hit Lin Ran no matter what, Efra had lost most of his initial fighting spirit.
He had no idea how to handle such an incredibly frustrating situation, and could only dart around like a headless fly, trying various methods.
However, while he had the heart to try endlessly, he didn't have the endless time for it.
Not to mention that the Amaterasu that Lin Ran had continuously burning on him had already scorched him to a crisp.
Just the five or six divine strikes released to pursue his movements had inflicted severe injuries on him with each hit.
And after Lin Ran's final divine strike snapped his left leg bone, Efra finally collapsed powerlessly onto the ground.
"Not doing so well, young man, running out of steam already?"
"I originally thought with your burly physique, you'd be able to keep running for a very, very long time!"
Lin Ran slowly walked up to Efra and once again gently rotated the tomoe in his eyes.
Efra was about to raise his head and curse to boost his morale.
But as soon as he looked up, he met Lin Ran's terrifying eyes.
Those eyes seemed to possess a chilling aura that robbed the world of all its brilliance, directly captivating his soul...
Tsukuyomi!
Under the absolute mental suppression, in less than a second, Efra completely collapsed.
His head buzzed, and he fell to the ground, blood flowing from his seven orifices, his body limp, completely devoid of any combat ability.
Lin Ran, without hesitation, kicked Efra again, sending him off the stage:
"Next!"
With the experience from the previous few matches, Vassili was now quite practiced. He quickly dealt with Efra and then calmly waved his hand,
"Isaias, you go!"
This tactical arrangement once again stunned the audience and contestants:
"What do you mean, he's still not going himself?"
"He's playing this strangely... Even if he's truly afraid, he'll have to face them sooner or later. Why keep hiding himself?"
"Incomprehensible, truly incomprehensible..."
"Could it be that this guy doesn't even know the strength of his own subordinates and is trying them out one by one like a fool?"
"That would be too absurd..."
"If Vassili were that foolish, he wouldn't be considered an opponent at all..."
"Ah, forget it... Who knows what his plan is, let's just bear with it and watch."
"If after this, it's still a mess, it won't be too late to criticize then!"
"..."
This time, Vassili seemed to have made up his mind. He completely ignored the audience's doubts and merely watched Isaias charge forward.
Upon entering the stage, Isaias smiled happily,
"Lin Ran from the Dragon Country... I'm honored to be your opponent..."
"Earlier, I noticed that your bloodline seems to be the Golden Dragon—an extremely rare mythical beast. I've wanted to experience it for a long time..."
"After all, the bloodline I possess is also a rather uncommon dragon-type bloodline!"
"Who is the true Dragon God will soon be revealed..."
After hearing what this fellow named Isaias said, Lin Ran almost burst out laughing.
Good heavens, someone actually volunteering to be an easy meal these days!
Since he himself possesses a dragon-type bloodline, wouldn't he know that higher-ranking dragons have absolute suppression over lower-ranking ones?
Or does he feel his dragon bloodline is more noble than the Golden Dragon?
Looking at Isaias's proud and confident face, Lin Ran could already imagine his future existential crisis.
So Lin Ran sighed,
"Then... shall we begin?"
With that, Lin Ran adopted a nonchalant posture, waiting for Isaias to charge forward.
Seeing Lin Ran's indifferent demeanor, Isaias was immediately annoyed.
How dare he look down on me like this? It seems I must show him something truly powerful to enlighten him!
"Hoo-ah!"
As the countdown ended, Isaias unleashed his long-hidden bloodline ability.