The instant his number was called, Long Haochen opened his eyes. He had long been eager to fight the other Fifth Order competitors.
His earlier battle with Han Yu had left him unsatisfied. Besides, Han Yu was not as strong as Yang Wenzhao or Jiang Feng.
In Long Haochen's eyes, his greatest opponents were Jiang Feng and Yang Wenzhao. Now that his place in the finals was secure, he had nothing left to worry about. All he wanted was an exhilarating battle-a duel between Retribution Knights.
Long Haochen had never lacked confidence. Even when facing Long Xingyu, the Divine Seal Knight of Judgment and Adjudication, he dared to draw his sword and fight him-during training, of course.
Even if he lost, he would show his full strength.
Yang Wenzhao was likewise a young prodigy, someone who had always been the center of attention.
His grandfather was the current leader of the Temple Alliance, the master of the Knight Temple, and one of the three Divine Seal Knights.
Thus, Yang Wenzhao had received the finest training from childhood. Combined with his considerable natural talent, this gave him the confidence to become the foremost knight of the Knight Temple's younger generation, or even the foremost talent of the entire Temple Alliance's younger generation.
Moreover, he would not underestimate anyone. Even though Long Haochen was currently only a Fourth Order Knight, he would take him seriously enough to ensure he never suffered an unexpected defeat.
Han Yu had already become the laughingstock of the Knight Temple, and even the entire Temple Alliance. Yang Wenzhao did not dare follow in his footsteps.
Of course, although Yang Wenzhao was a Retribution Knight, he had spent much of his childhood training under Yang Haohan and had developed the steady temperament of a Guardian Knight. This had also played a crucial role in his growth.
The match began, and neither summoned his mount. Long Haochen even abandoned his usual sword-and-shield setup, wielding two swords as he fought fiercely against Yang Wenzhao.
Jiang Feng was somewhat puzzled. The Demon Hunt Squad Selection Tournament had already reached its fifth round, yet Long Haochen's mount companion, Haoyue, had not appeared even once.
Could he be evolving a third head?
Jiang Feng was puzzled. He had already intercepted the Seventh-Rank Dragon Core and used it to hatch Dragon Baby, so where would Haoyue get the energy needed to evolve?
Could Long Haochen have encountered another opportunity?
Jiang Feng was a little surprised. Could the God of Calamity's return already be inevitable?
Unable to work it out, Jiang Feng could not be bothered to dwell on it. He would deal with whatever came his way. Even if Haoyue truly evolved a ninth head and became the God of Calamity, the Nine-Headed Chimera, Austin Griffin, there was still Long Haochen.
Jiang Feng only needed to possess the strength to help Long Haochen kill himself at any time before the God of Calamity returned and tried to destroy the world.
Because of the Blood Pact, once Long Haochen died, Austin Griffin could only die along with him.
Looking down at Dragon Baby nestled in his arms, Jiang Feng thought, Thank goodness my own mount companion has a clean background. Not some reincarnated evil overlord, but one I raised myself.
To be honest, Jiang Feng was already eager for Dragon Baby to grow up. He wanted to know just how powerful his abilities would become.
Even if he could not compare to a cheat like Haoyue, he would still be the strongest of all the other mount companions.
With the help of the system merchandise, the Demon Dragon Soul, Dragon Baby's bloodline had evolved, giving him the potential to become a divine beast.
Even the Elf Dragon the Goddess of Nature had left on the Holy Demon Continent to protect Dream Paradise was only at the ninth level of the ninth order and had never broken through to the divine level.
Jiang Feng stroked Dragon Baby's scales while watching the match in the arena.
The battle had reached a fever pitch.
Although Long Haochen's Innate Spiritual Power was as high as ninety-seven points, he was the Knight Temple's unparalleled Child of Light, with talent unsurpassed throughout history.
But he was still too young, only fourteen years old. Competing in the Demon Hunt Squad Selection Tournament at such an age, he and the Assassin Temple's Reincarnation Saintess, Sheng Cai'er, could be considered the two youngest contestants in the tournament's history.
Jiang Feng was different. He was already fifteen, not exactly young anymore.
His youth meant that Long Haochen had yet to fully mature. Although he had already reached the peak of the fourth order, he had not broken through to the fifth and could not contend with Yang Wenzhao, who was at least at the third level of the fifth order.
Yet to everyone's astonishment, a glimmer of red suddenly lit up in Long Haochen's eyes. His combat strength surged, allowing him to face Yang Wenzhao head-on for a short time.
On the dais, even Han Ci, seated in the very center, was alarmed. He could not help saying, "This little fellow really dares to use anything. He even knows Sacrifice, a seventh-order Temple Knight skill."
Yang Wenzhao was startled and had yet to grasp what was happening, but his excellent combat instincts drove him to unleash his full power, holding nothing back.
At last, Yang Wenzhao sensed the sorrow, despair, sharpness, and vastness filling the golden-red light radiating from Long Haochen.
At that moment, he finally understood. Long Haochen had actually used Sacrifice. Was he not afraid of exhausting his blood essence and dying?
Yang Wenzhao's brows knitted tightly. This is only a match. Is there any need to risk your life like this?
The referee did not stop the battle, so Yang Wenzhao could only fight him with all his strength.
At the same time, he grew worried. Facing an opponent like Long Haochen was truly a headache.
The rules expressly forbade maiming an opponent. If Long Haochen depleted his blood essence by using Sacrifice, he probably would not die, but if he were left crippled, who would bear the responsibility?
If Jiang Feng had known what was troubling Yang Wenzhao at that moment, he would certainly have said that someone would give him the answer tonight.
In the arena, Long Haochen's resolve to face death ignited the purest fighting spirit and all the blood energy in his body. The golden-red light erupted with unprecedented power.
Finally, the decisive strike burst forth.
Long Haochen used his Holy Guidance Spirit Furnace to release the Sixth Order knight skill, Lock-On, then unleashed a Holy Sword version of the Spiral Slaughter Sword with the resolve of someone prepared to die.
This was the strongest blow Long Haochen could currently unleash, and one with which he staked his life.
Faced with such a difficult opponent, Yang Wenzhao dared not hold anything back. He had not forgotten the warning offered by Han Yu's defeat, so he decisively used his own Spirit Furnace.
Star Sea Spiritual Furnace!
Specks of blue light drifted out from Yang Wenzhao's chest, like glittering blue gemstones flying forth, and collided with Long Haochen as he descended from above.
Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom...
A string of thunderous explosions rang out as terrifying fluctuations of Spiritual Power swept through the arena. The blasts hurled both of them back thirty feet, and they paused to catch their breath.
Although using his Spirit Furnace had consumed a considerable amount of Spiritual Power, as long as he remained uninjured, Yang Wenzhao would still be a strong contender for first place among the knights in the upcoming ranking matches.
Long Haochen planted both swords against the ground. The red glimmers in his eyes gradually faded, his face turned waxen, and he was so weak that he could not utter a single word.
"I admire you for forcing me to use my Spirit Furnace. If we were the same age, I might not be able to defeat you. I look forward to fighting you again once you have a mount." Yang Wenzhao felt genuine admiration. After all, comprehending Sacrifice, one of the knightly virtues, meant that Long Haochen's future achievements were bound to be considerable.
Not everyone possessed the courage to face death with such resolve.
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