In the rest area at the edge of the arena, the mysterious staff in John's hand, its light now restrained, gradually transformed into a cloud of earthy yellow gas under Ymir's guidance.
This gas seeped into John's body, condensing into a deep, special rune on his chest, resembling a miniature version of the staff.
His aura grew even more profound and subdued, pressing down on the ground beneath him, causing it to sink as if it could no longer bear his weight.
John slowly opened his eyes, feeling the surging mana within him and the immense power emanating from his chest. A look of solemn determination appeared on his face.
Three years of painstaking cultivation had led to this moment of settling old scores. The humiliation of being rejected three years ago would be repaid a hundredfold today!
With a step, John pressed down on the ground, causing a deep indentation as he flew up and landed heavily on the arena.
"The three-year agreement has arrived, Marry. I, John, am here to challenge you!"
As he charged onto the arena, John's previously restrained aura exploded outward with his twisted, frenzied voice, stirring up invisible ripples of wind.
Gold-tier level 8!
The spectators near the arena looked up in astonishment at John. Most prodigies of his generation were only at the silver-tier, and even the most exceptional had just broken into the gold-tier.
But here was John, revealing an extraordinary level right from the start, causing many mages who had previously underestimated him to change their expressions drastically.
The further one progressed in cultivation, the greater the gap between each tier, becoming almost insurmountable!
Across the capital, the Azure Kingdom, and even the entire continent, prodigies who reached gold-tier level 8 at such a young age were exceedingly rare.
And now, John had joined that elite rank! It was impossible not to be shocked and amazed.
"Making a strong first impression, this John is very confident about today's battle. To reach this tier in just three years, he is indeed an exceptionally rare genius. His chances of winning this battle are high!"
"If he continues to break through at this pace, he might be the number one, second only to Owen!"
"That's right, I've heard that this three-year agreement is not just a battle; they also made a wager!"
"I heard that if John loses, he will have to serve the Azure Kingdom for life, responding unconditionally to their missions."
"I've also heard that Kyrik has already begun mobilizing for war. If John loses, he might be conscripted into the army, answering the Azure Kingdom's call. The battlefield is a place where death is almost certain..."
"But if John wins, Marry will become John's maid, serving him for three years!"
"Tsk tsk, the stakes are high no matter who wins or loses. No wonder both John and Marry are taking this so seriously."
The crowd looked at John standing on the arena, his aura raging, with a look of anticipation on their faces. They hadn't seen such a spectacle in a long time.
At that moment, as John rushed onto the arena and issued his challenge, Marry, holding her longsword, leaped gracefully onto the platform amidst the expectant gazes of the Council of Elders and the royal family members.
She landed lightly, like a falling leaf, her beautiful eyes fixed on John not far away.
John's breakthrough to gold-tier level 8 had indeed shocked her, but that was all. She had also made thorough preparations to win today!
"Are you still just at silver-tier?" John sneered as Marry landed on the arena, his domineering aura crashing towards her like a tidal wave.
Marry's body trembled slightly. She deftly played with her longsword, and wisps of sword energy, like white silk, began to flow from her body, swirling around her.
The domineering aura approaching her was immediately torn apart by the slender sword energy.
Marry's aura also surged at this moment, and in an instant, she reached gold-tier level 8 as well!
The sharpness of her aura clashed fiercely with John's heavy and domineering presence, creating a whirlwind in the center of the arena, neither side willing to back down. "Gold-tier level 8?! Marry was clearly a silver-tier mage before; how could she have such a massive breakthrough and improvement in such a short time?!"
Many mages looked at this scene in disbelief. Previously, when Marry fought Alfonso, she was only at silver-tier level 9. This sudden increase seemed too extraordinary to be true.
Marry's expression remained calm as she listened to the crowd's exclamations.
She had been using a secret technique from Luna Academy to suppress her tier, aiming for a significant breakthrough.
A day ago, in preparation for this battle, with substantial support from the royal family and the Council of Elders, she lifted the suppression, causing her tier to surge to gold-tier level 4.
Then, with the help of special potions from the academy, her tier rapidly increased to gold- tier level 8.
Though she didn't know how John had managed such a swift breakthrough, he could forget about overwhelming her with his tier alone.
"No wonder she's backed by Luna Academy and the Azure Kingdom's princess..." John thought, slightly surprised by the scene before him.
His current tier was achieved entirely through Ymir's guidance and help, along with countless adventures and the special Armament Merge technique that allowed him to fuse with a
unique staff.
He had thought he had left Marry behind, but she had caught up.
"Since you have made thorough preparations for today, you should also remember the wager we made back then," John said, taking a deep breath and showing a hint of reminiscence on
his face.
Marry nodded seriously, "I remember, but in the end, the one who will be defeated is you!"
"Is that so? Since you acknowledge the wager, let's have everyone here bear witness. If I lose, I will serve the Azure Kingdom for life. If Marry loses, she must be my maid for three years!" John's emotions grew more intense as he spoke.
Although the spectators were already aware of the wager, hearing John confirm it again made their breaths quicken.
Their eyes were fixed on John and Marry, not wanting to miss a moment of their battle.
The stakes of this wager were enormous!
"Enough talk, let's begin!" Marry wanted nothing to do with John and aimed to defeat him quickly so she could ask Owen why he hadn't come to witness the event.
As soon as she finished speaking, the light on Marry's longsword intensified, radiating a pure white glow that exuded a holy and pure aura, clearing the surrounding air.
Seeing Marry attack proactively, John laughed heartily.
The staff in his chest emitted a special light that spread along his body and onto the arena, transforming into an ancient formation that covered the entire platform.
Immediately, the dense patterns on the arena emitted powerful magical waves, transforming into thick earth patterns that intertwined, creating massive blocks of earth the size of houses,
encircling Marry like barriers.
These barriers began to spin rapidly, distorting the space around them.
Trapped within these patterns, Marry's vision quickly blurred and became chaotic, giving her
a disorienting feeling as if she were in a vast desert.
Boom!
Suddenly, the sound of something breaking through the air echoed.
A massive earth pattern surged toward Marry, shining brightly and enveloped in a thick, earthy aura, locking onto her.
Marry's pupils contracted as she struck forward with her sword, one slash after another.
Her sword strikes were like waves crashing in succession, creating numerous afterimages. Fierce sword energy continuously flew from her blade, striking the incoming earth pattern.
Boom!
Under the intense bombardment of sword energy, the advancing earth pattern slowed down. However, more earth patterns rapidly formed behind it, crashing forward with unimaginable force.
They shattered the sword energy and continued their relentless charge towards Marry.