Larris planted his feet, mana glowing brighter around his arms and chest.
His breathing grew heavy, his entire body humming with power, and his eyes locked onto Dahlia.
"You really are strong, Dahlia. But can you take this? I’ve gathered all my mana into one attack."
Then, suddenly, he told another surprising sentence.
"Although I believe you can’t take this, let me give you a chance. If you can block it... Then you win."
Dahlia smirked, waving her hand toward him.
"Sure. Give it to me. I will show you just how strong I am."
The crowd roared, stomping their feet as Larris raised his massive axe high above his head.
The axe came down in a crushing arc, the force so immense that the entire arena floor cracked open.
A wave of raw mana blasted out, tearing through the stone tiles and rushing straight toward Dahlia.
Spectators in the front row shielded their eyes.
"That’s one of the Stone Fang’s ultimate techniques!"
Dahlia’s eyes widened for a moment. She had never seen anything before.
Garion had always taught her one thing: strengthen the body first, and mana was only there to empower the body.
And yet, here before her was a technique that used mana itself as the attack.
Dahlia wasn’t even panicking, but excited, even as the wave of mana tore across the arena toward her.
After this fight... I’m going to make Master teach me something .
She lowered her stance, planting her feet wide, clenching her fists, and rising her chest as she pulled every ounce of mana from her cells to cover her body.
"Alright then... Let’s see whose body breaks first."
And finally, the wave of mana slammed into Dahlia, ripping her body apart, spraying her blood across the arena.
The shockwave also shook the arena, making it difficult to see as a thick cloud of dust appeared.
And when the dust began to settle, a figure slowly appeared, Dahlia, but she was not in good condition.
She was still standing, but her body was covered in cuts and bruises, and blood streaked down her arms and legs.
Some shouted in disbelief, while others screamed her name. The rest cheered for Larris for unleashing such a devastating technique.
Larris stepped forward, raising his fist high to the sky and smirked toward the crowd.
Several elders in the premium seats even clapped their hands, convinced the match was over.
The gray-robed elder turned to Garion, smiling smugly.
"Too bad, my friend. It seems that your disciple has lost. Don’t worry, five decades are not that long."
Garion’s expression froze for a moment.
The elder leaned in closer, ready to savor the feeling of winning over the confident Garion.
But when he looked clearly at Garion’s face, the elder’s face changed.
Garion was not in despair, but instead, his grin was so wide it nearly split his face.
He then turned to the grey-robed elder, his face was like he lost nothing
"Lost? Are you really sure about that?"
The gray-robed elder blinked, startled.
Garion leaned forward, pointing to the stage.
"Look again more clearly, old man."
The grey-robed elder quickly turned back to the arena.
On the stage, Larris was still basking in the cheers, lowering his guards.
And ni that moment... THUD!
A shadow blurred in front of him, Dahlia.
Larris’ eyes went wide.
Dahlia smirked, her face pale from blood loss, but her gaze was still sharp.
"Master always said ’never to lower your guard until the very end.’"
Before Larris could move, Dahlia twisted her hips and poured the last of her mana into her fist.
Her fist smashed into Larris’ chest with explosive force, sending him flying across the arena.
Larris then slammed into the far wall with a deafening boom, and he was knocked out instantly.
Silence fell for a moment before the crowd erupted into a larger one.
"Unbelievable... She managed to beat all others to be the last one standing!"
The announcer, still trembling, raised both arms and shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Winner, Dahlia of the God Gym!"
The arena shook with cheers, celebrating the fact that Dahlia had managed to win this tournament with very small odds.
The elders were in shocked. Mouths hung open, and eyes stayed locked onto the stage.
"How... how can she still move after that?"
"Not just moving. She can even deliver a punch strong enough to beat Larris!"
Even the gray-robed elder, who had smirked confidently before, now sat in silence.
Finally, he shook his head, sighing quietly.
"To think... that girl Dahlia was this strong. She managed to defeat all competitors, including both Larris and Elira."
The whispers from the other elders grew louder.
"Really unbelievable. Both of them were peak Saturation Stage cultivators."
"They were already half a step into the Mana Core Realm."
"And yet... they still lost to an unknown girl even after working together."
The gray-robed elder turned to Garion again, sighing once again.
"My friend, indeed... I admit I’ve lost this time. I never thought your disciple could really defeat those two."
Garion leaned back in his chair, grinning so wide his teeth showed.
"Of course she did. She’s my disciple and we’re from the God Gym."
He jabbed a thumb on his own chest and laughed.
Several elders frowned at his arrogance, but Garion didn’t care and kept grinning.
The gray-robed elder raised his hand, waving him off.
"Yes, yes. I hear you. Now follow me, it’s time for me to reward her."
Garion blinked. "Reward?"
The gray-robed elder smirked, tilting his head slightly.
"You don’t know? This year’s tournament... I am the one who oversaw it. You can say... that I am the top authority around here."
Garion was a bit surprised, but he just laughed and didn’t panic.
"You’re the big boss here, huh? You should have just said it earlier."
The gray-robed elder narrowed his eyes at him, already expecting fear or at least caution. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn NoveI~Fire.net
Instead, all he saw was Garion’s carefree grin.
"You really are interesting. Most people tremble when they know me, but not you."
Garion just laughed harder.
"Scared? Why would i be scred? My disciple just crushed your entire tournament! What do i habve to be afraid of?"
The gray-robed elder shook his head slowly, but this time there was a faint smile.
"Hmph. Bold words. Very well then, let’s see if you can keep talking so loudly when you hear what comes next."
The other elders leaned forward, curious, as Garion’s grin only grew wider.