I Think I'll Never Forget You for the Rest of My Life

Obviously, Lu Su's opponent failed to put up any meaningful resistance and was defeated by Luffy.

A measly round of sixteen to eight—easy.

Lu Su's current strength was clearly overpowered compared to other Third Year High School students of his generation, at least in Shanghai City.

Over the next few days, he breezed through the quarterfinals and semifinals without any trouble.

By the time the finals arrived, the Talent Cup's popularity in Shanghai City had reached unprecedented heights after all the previous days of competition.

Naturally, an enormous crowd had come to watch in person.

"I wonder who'll end up winning the championship."

"I'm rooting for Kong Cong. That Bo of his looks insanely fierce, okay?"

"I think Lu Su is stronger. You can't get any information from his card at all, and he basically steamrolled every previous match."

The audience was buzzing with discussion. After several days of competition, the fact that Lu Su was a Bronze Grade Card Master had yet to be exposed, leaving the outcome uncertain in the eyes of the spectators.

But the guests' section had long since seen through Lu Su's strength, so naturally, they had no doubts about who would win.

"President Bai, have you finished making Lu Su's medal yet?"

A guest joked with one of Jincai Credit's executives.

President Bai did not take it seriously and simply chuckled. "Listen to you. The match hasn't even started, and you've already decided Lu Su will win?"

Although, after meeting Chairman Liu that day, President Bai had already known that Lu Su winning the championship was practically beyond dispute.

In previous years, Kong Cong would absolutely have been considered a prodigy.

Unfortunately, he had run into the even more monstrous Lu Su.

Of course, Kong Cong himself had no idea what kind of formidable opponent he was about to face.

The other guests burst into laughter at President Bai's words, and the air was filled with cheerful energy.

Regardless of what the guests thought, the finals finally began amid commentator Xiao Mo's shouts.

"After two weeks, the Talent Cup has finally reached its highly anticipated finals!"

"Let's welcome Lu Su from Shanghai City No. 1 High School and Kong Cong from Zhendan Affiliated High School!"

As the iron gates of the waiting area slowly opened, Lu Su's and Kong Cong's faces appeared on the massive screen through the cameras.

Lu Su looked calm, with no trace of emotion on his face.

Kong Cong, on the other hand, looked slightly nervous.

Still, he was a genius after all. He quickly calmed himself, and his nervousness was replaced by determination.

The two slowly walked into the battle area.

Unlike in the previous matches, both Lu Su and Kong Cong had small microphones clipped to their collars this time.

As a result, everyone present could hear their voices.

"Lu Su, you're strong, but the championship will only be mine!" Kong Cong was still young at heart, and the heated atmosphere in the arena stirred his fighting spirit.

Before Lu Su could respond, commentator Xiao Mo began shouting excitedly.

"Our contestant Kong Cong is coming in hot! It looks like he's determined to take the championship!"

Hearing that, Lu Su gave Xiao Mo at the commentator's desk a speechless glance and silently thought, What a troublemaking clown.

That tiny movement was caught by the director and projected onto the giant screen at the center of the venue.

Living up to his reputation as a troublemaking clown, Xiao Mo immediately grinned and deliberately misinterpreted Lu Su's expression. "It seems our contestant Lu Su is rather dismissive of that."

"What kind of sparks will these two create tonight? Let's wait and see!"

Suppressing the urge to roll his eyes, Lu Su took a deep breath and silently waited for the referee's whistle.

The moment the sharp whistle sounded, Luffy instantly appeared in the battle arena.

To Lu Su's surprise, Kong Cong summoned two cards at once.

One was the Black Iron Grade Red Card that had appeared throughout the competition—Blade Soldier Chief Bo.

And the other...

Standing beside Bo was a humanoid creature card whose appearance resembled that of an ordinary human.

Yet the mud-covered body of this humanoid creature card, along with the drumlike beating of its heart, told everyone present that this card possessed something extraordinary.

While the audience was still confused, commentator Xiao Mo spoke at just the right moment. "We've just received information from the commentary desk. This is Kong Cong's other card: Wu Qi Guó Mín."

"That's right, it's also from the Classic of Mountains and Seas."

"It can form the Bond, Overseas Northern Classics, with Bo."

As Xiao Mo explained, Kong Cong's voice rang out from across the field. "Lu Su, you're very strong, so from here on out, I'll be giving it everything I've got!"

With his words, Wu Qi Guó Mín immediately leaped onto Bo's back.

Lu Su could not help but freeze. This was a route he had never anticipated.

As a long phantom lance condensed in Wu Qi Guó Mín's hand, Bo suddenly accelerated, carrying him as he charged toward Luffy.

In the midst of the charge, Luffy's feet sank into the ground as though they had fallen into a swamp.

"This is my blood-pumping combo skill!" Kong Cong's voice rang throughout the arena.

Luffy seemed to have been baffled by the sudden turn of events as well. He tried to pull his feet free with both hands, letting out a confused sound. "Huh?"

Just as Bo's attack was about to arrive, Luffy rapidly spun his legs and used the powerful force to break free from his predicament.

And then—

He flew into the air.

Everyone watching the match was amused by Luffy's actions.

They had never expected Luffy's fighting style to be so unconventional.

"Lu Su's card is way too entertaining."

"Yeah, I never expected him to be able to fly."

"But what a shame. It looks like fighting two against one is still a bit too much for him."

At that moment, Kong Cong stared dumbfoundedly at Luffy flying through the air.

Fortunately, his card had aerial options as well.

The lance in Wu Qi Guó Mín's hand slowly dispersed, transforming into a massive bow instead.

A dark, gleaming arrow gradually condensed before shooting fiercely toward Luffy.

Luffy twisted aside to evade the incoming arrow, then wiped nonexistent cold sweat from his forehead with one hand. "That was close, that was close."

Watching Luffy fool around, Lu Su spoke helplessly. "Alright, Luffy, stop playing around. Finish this quickly."

Naturally, Lu Su's words also echoed across the battlefield.

Little Mo's incredulous voice rang out. "What did we just hear? Lu Su actually told him to stop playing around?!"

A trace of embarrassed anger appeared on Kong Cong's face.

As if sensing its master's anger, several blades instantly appeared beside Bo and shot toward Luffy.

Wu Qi Guó Mín also kept drawing its bow and firing arrows.

"Gum-Gum Rocket!"

Yet when Luffy's hands descended from the sky with terrifying gusts of wind, all resistance seemed utterly futile.

"Boom!"

The scattered smoke instantly obscured the scene in the arena.

Kong Cong's face turned from red to deathly pale, and his doubtful mutter echoed throughout the battlefield with the help of the small microphone. "You're..."

"Bronze Grade?!"