As they watched the dust that had yet to settle, the spectators widened their eyes and furrowed their brows, looking extraordinarily tense, as though waiting for the curtain to rise on a spectacular show.
On one side stood a member of one of the three renowned quasi-emperor clans in the Demonwood Domain. Since Beast Emperor Sky-Piercing Blackwood had no clansmen, they stood below one beast and above all other living beings in the entire Demonwood Domain.
On the other side was the Boarding Shop owner who had just fought twice in succession, using a different Contract Beast each time, yet stunning the audience with both appearances.
The only unknown in this match was that Xu Ran had sent out his third Contract Beast, which had not taken the stage before.
So who had gained the upper hand in their first clash?
As the lingering dust slowly dispersed, puzzlement began to mingle with everyone's tension and anticipation.
It was too quiet.
With ordinary dust like this, even a slight clash between the two sides would have stirred up an energy storm strong enough to blow it away. Yet it was dispersing far too slowly, as though neither side within had moved at all since that first collision.
What exactly had happened?
The spectators grew increasingly curious, and the dust finally cleared enough for them to see what lay inside.
When they saw the current state of the human, his Contract Beast, and the Night-Devouring Bear, the entire venue abruptly fell silent.
Then an uproar erupted.
Xu Ran stood holding a long saber, its sharp tip almost touching the spot between the Night-Devouring Bear's eyes. The keen blade aura had already pierced its thick, highly defensive fur, exposing a sliver of flesh.
The Night-Devouring Bear had lost all its earlier ferocity and