New Card! The Challenge Tournament Begins!!

Lin Xia's eyes widened, and he stared blankly with his mouth hanging open.

He truly couldn't believe what had just happened.

Meng Bo had hurt him, but hadn't killed him...

No! To be precise, he hadn't even hurt him—his wound had clearly been healed by Meng Bo. Otherwise, Lin Xia would have gone into shock from blood loss long ago.

"What exactly are you after?"

Lin Xia got to his feet and headed toward the secret realm's entrance, thinking, After the Challenge Tournament, I'm definitely going to the Meng Family to get an explanation from you!!

"Whoosh—!"

The next second, Lin Xia disappeared.

It was just as hot inside the secret realm, and the air was still thick with a pungent smell of sulfur.

Lin Xia used the same old method.

First, he summoned Buou and joined him in wiping out the minor monsters.

Then, when the leader appeared,

Lin Xia had Buou hold it off while he began charging up the Neo Tri-Beam.

Ten seconds later.

"Neo Tri-Beam—!!"

With Lin Xia's furious shout, a powerful wave of energy that shook the heavens and earth instantly swallowed the figures of the leader and Buou.

Before long, the shockwaves gradually subsided.

The secret realm's exit appeared behind Lin Xia.

But he didn't hurry inside. Instead, he narrowed his eyes at the pop-up window.

[Defeated the Flame Snake Leader. Experience +1500!]

[Level up!]

[Level increased to LV8!]

[Obtained a new Card!!]

[Card type: Transformation Card (SSR)!]

"It's an SSR Gold Card!!"

Lin Xia's eyes lit up, and he eagerly read the card's name aloud. "Great Ape!?"

[Great Ape: Also known as 'Great Ape Transformation.' After using this Card, a tail immediately grows, and you can transform into a 15-meter-tall Great Ape instantly without having to stare at the full moon for a long time. Your combat power and defense increase significantly, and you gain the passive skill 'Raging Kong.']

[Raging Kong: After taking damage, absorb it, then multiply it by 2 and automatically attack the source of the damage!

Note: This skill can only be triggered 20 times during each transformation!]

"Gulp~!"

Lin Xia swallowed and blinked.

As a Dragon Ball fan, he was naturally very familiar with the so-called "Great Ape Transformation."

It was a standard ability for every Saiyan.

But Lin Xia hadn't expected that he'd be growing a tail too...

Fortunately, the tail only grew after he used the Card. Once the Great Ape Transformation ended, the tail would disappear.

Otherwise, walking around with a tail as a human... would be pretty weird.

"Raging Kong—absorb damage, then reflect it back twofold... That's kind of overpowered!"

Lin Xia rubbed his chin, first excited, then disappointed. "Too bad it can only be triggered 20 times. Otherwise, I really could've taken on the whole world by myself..."

[Hidden Weakness (visible only to you): You won't lose your reason after transforming into a Great Ape, but your tail is a fatal weakness. If your tail is grabbed, you'll be completely powerless. If your tail is cut off, you'll return to your normal form!!]

"Yikes..."

Lin Xia sucked in a breath. "As expected, even the weakness is exactly the same as in the anime..."

Still, the good news was that there was no Dragon Ball anime in this world.

So he didn't think anyone would guess that his tail was his weakness, right?

Lin Xia picked up the Card floating in front of him.

It was cool to the touch, yet felt substantial.

The image on its face showed a Great Ape wreaking destruction in a city, with a bright moon overhead.

"Whoosh~~"

Lin Xia put the Card away and promptly left the secret realm.

By the time he returned to the dormitory, it was already dark.

After chatting with Xu Jian for a while, he began to feel sleepy.

The next day, at nine in the morning.

The competition was due to begin in an hour.

From above,

an endless line had already formed outside City S's largest arena.

The arena looked a lot like a soccer stadium, but instead of a grass field at its center, there was a square Otherworld ring.

"Everyone at the back, take it easy! Enter one at a time, in an orderly fashion!"

Standing at the entrance, the tall ticket inspector gazed at the dense crowd and cursed inwardly. Still, he forced a smile and said, "Have your tickets ready! If you didn't get a ticket, step out of line on your own. Don't waste everyone's time..."

There was no way the capitalists would pass up a chance to make money.

Today was the decisive, winner-takes-all battle to determine the fate of the "Great Xia First Academy," so of course it was a business opportunity!

More than 3,000 students from Imperial University and Huajing University were allowed in for free.

As for the remaining 47,000 seats in the arena, they had all been sold at exorbitant prices.

As for what had motivated the people who bought tickets, that was anyone's guess.

"Hey, kid! Where's your ticket?!"

The ticket inspector planted his hands on his hips and glared at him.

Lin Xia sighed and pointed at the giant poster behind him.

The ticket inspector frowned and turned to look at Lin Xia's image on the poster. His expression relaxed at once.

By the time he turned back with an ingratiating smile, Lin Xia had already walked around him and entered the arena.

As soon as Lin Xia entered the dim tunnel, three figures blocked his way.

He didn't recognize the middle-aged men on either side.

But the girl standing between them made his expression turn grave.

"Did you think you could kill my younger brother and get away with it?"

Zhang Ting folded her arms and gave him a piercing look. "And you even dared to provoke Qin Tianyu... Looks like today's your funeral!"

"You've got it backwards."

Lin Xia lowered his shoulder and shoved Zhang Ting and the middle-aged men aside, walking straight between them. His voice was icy as he said, "Qin Tianyu was the one who provoked me."

With that, Lin Xia stopped. "I was able to kill your younger brother, and I can kill you too. If you provoke me again, I'll reunite you and your brother!"

"Gulp~!"

Zhang Ting swallowed instinctively. She stared at Lin Xia's imposing back, momentarily at a loss for words.

Only after Lin Xia disappeared into the tunnel

did Zhang Ting mutter, "Tch, what a poser! The moment the competition starts, you're dead!!"

"The third Challenge Tournament between Huajing University and Imperial University is about to begin!

This is also the final tournament!

And this time, they've scrapped the original 5v5 format and adopted a new 1v1 format, where the winner takes all!

If Imperial University's representative wins, they'll hold on to the title of 'Great Xia First Academy'!

If Huajing University's representative wins, they'll become the new 'Great Xia First Academy'!!"

On the ring, a skinny young man in a black suit, with dyed blond hair and sunglasses, held a microphone and spoke passionately:

"My name is Shan Ming. I'm an Awakener from the Commentary Department, and I'll be your host for today's competition!"

Cheers erupted from the more than 40,000 spectators in the stands, their excitement palpable!

"Next, allow me to introduce the competitors in today's match!"

Shan Ming pulled out a cue card and read, "The competitor representing Huajing University is..."