It was lunchtime.
The plaza sat empty and idle.
Meanwhile, the staff took the opportunity to clean the arena, carry out maintenance, and check the protective barriers.
But many of the onlookers crowding the perimeter refused to leave even to grab a bite. They just stayed put.
They were terrified that if they stepped away, someone else would snatch their prime viewing spot—and once that happened, squeezing back into the front rows would be no easy feat.
Over in the VIP sections reserved for the major powers and noble houses, attendants were also stationed, waiting attentively.
Now.
The competition had reached the semifinals, and the final championship stage was just around the corner.
Out of the original one hundred contestants from across the cities, only four remained.
Among them.
The two names generating the most buzz were, without a doubt, Lu Ran and Zhang Zheng.
Lu Ran needed no introduction. He’d amassed a legion of female fans and had carved his way through every opponent—all while being a Necromancer who hadn’t summoned a single undead minion.
On top of that, from start to finish, he’d relied on nothing but a single Blood Spear to rule the arena and crush everything in his path!
No one had been able to withstand Lu Ran’s attacks!
Under the might of his Blood Spear, the likes of Heavy Armored Berserker Wang Yan, Summoner Cen Yunuo, Mystic Diviner Zhao Xuan, Spacewalker Su Xiaoyue, and Earth Knight Zhou Fu had all fallen one after another.
What’s more, all of these classes were theoretically hard counters to the Necromancer profession.
And yet, Lu Ran had blown each and every one of them away!
Furthermore.
Aside from the few opponents he’d instantly eliminated, plus Su Xiaoyue who’d surrendered voluntarily, Zhao Xuan stood out as a special case.
Even a full ten seconds of maximum-output burst damage hadn’t managed to chip a single point off Lu Ran’s health!
Lu Ran was the undisputed favorite to take the championship!
Before this.
Many had speculated that the match between Cong Shuang and Lu Ran would be an absolute spectacle.
But no one had expected a dark horse to emerge out of nowhere—the Earthwalker Zhang Zheng—who’d crushed Cong Shuang with overwhelming dominance and claimed victory.
Now, Zhang Zheng had gained a fair bit of attention as well. But compared to Lu Ran? He was still light-years behind.
As for the other two finalists, they were practically invisible.
Sure, they’d fought their way here, but their classes were mediocre, their skills were average, and the opponents they’d beaten were unremarkable. Nothing about them stood out.
Realistically, they’d be gone after this round.
Of course, that was assuming Lu Ran got matched against Zhang Zheng, while the other two duked it out between themselves.
All across the plaza, the buzz of chatter never died down.
“This is so exciting! Two matches this afternoon—an absolute clash of titans!”
“Titans, my foot. With Lu Ran in this tournament, there’s no contest. It’s just a slaughter.”
“I know, right? The guy doesn’t even use any other skills—the fights are over way too fast!”
“This has got to be the weirdest tournament in years.”
“No kidding. A Necromancer made it all the way to the finals, and even Cong Shuang got taken out by some unheard-of class.”
“Hopefully Zhang Zheng puts up a fight and doesn’t get wiped out the second he steps into the ring. That’d be boring.”
“I also heard the championship prize this year is insanely generous. Wonder what it is?”
“Come on, that’s classified info. No way they’d release it early. Whatever you heard is probably just hearsay—don’t take it seriously.”
…
Amidst all the chatter.
Time flew by, and soon it was match time in the afternoon.
The spectators had already gathered back in full force, buzzing with excitement.
The various noble families and major factions were also on high alert, hoping Zhang Zheng would deliver a stellar performance and become their next target for recruitment.
Because while Lu Ran was undeniably powerful, getting close to him was far too difficult.
The joint preliminary membership backed by the Four Great Guilds? They probably couldn’t pull that off!
For now.
Zhang Zheng had no notable backing.
If he performed well enough, he’d make for a solid target and a promising ally.
Of course.
Up to this point, the crowd still had no idea which faction Lu Ran was affiliated with as a probationary member.
There were whispers that he might be a preparation member of the Heavenly Dao Alliance, but nothing had been confirmed yet.
Meanwhile.
Yu Qingcang had already submitted Lu Ran’s recommendation to the Tianfu Association—this would mark the association’s very first comprehensive evaluation to decide whether a Necromancer could be admitted.
Over at the Cong family’s section.
Cong Shuang had already been eliminated and had withdrawn from the competition.
Now she sat beside her younger sister Cong Yu, gazing at the two empty arenas with a complicated look of unwillingness in her eyes.
“Sis, do you think Lu Ran can win the championship?” Cong Yu suddenly asked.
“Probably… It shouldn’t be a problem,” Cong Shuang replied after a moment’s thought.
“Probably? Lu Ran’s this strong—there’s no way he loses, right?” Cong Yu pressed.
“On the surface, it looks that way. But nothing’s set in stone. I never thought I’d get knocked out before the semifinals by some Earthwalker from a third-tier main city either,” Cong Shuang said with a shrug.
“That Earthwalker—is he really that strong? He seemed pretty average to me. The only annoying thing was his anti-magic skill. Otherwise, with your burst damage, you probably could have beaten him,” Cong Yu analyzed.
“There’s no ‘probably.’ A loss is a loss. Besides, he was gunning for Lu Ran all along—I wasn’t even on his radar. He might have other tricks up his sleeve for Lu Ran. I hope Lu Ran can pull through,” Cong Shuang said thoughtfully.
“I believe Lu Ran won’t lose. And honestly, at least you two didn’t have to face each other—otherwise I wouldn’t even know who to root for,” Cong Yu said with a cheeky grin.
Cong Shuang was left speechless.
“You little brat—you’ve already put me on the same level as Lu Ran that fast. And now that I’m eliminated, you actually seem pretty happy about it,” Cong Shuang said, half amused and half exasperated.
“Hehe… that’s not it, sis. You’re overthinking it,” Cong Yu laughed sheepishly.
Cong Jixian, surprisingly, didn’t interject.
He just listened from the side, and whenever Cong Yu brought up Lu Ran, his ears perked up.
But he never voiced his opinion, leaving everyone wondering what was going through his mind.
Just then.
Lu Ran arrived.
As he entered through the contestants’ tunnel, he crossed paths with Zhang Zheng.
Lu Ran hadn’t planned on acknowledging him.
But.
Zhang Zheng looked at Lu Ran with a grin and said, “The championship battle will be between you and me. If we get lucky this round and match up, well—you’ll be leaving early.”
His face still wore that friendly smile, but his words were dripping with provocation.
Lu Ran frowned slightly as he looked at Zhang Zheng.
He said flatly, “That confident?”
Zhang Zheng dropped the pretense and continued with that same grin, “The Hundred Cities League is all about strength. And your strength is enough to make me take you seriously. Honestly, though, you’ve been pretty lucky. If you’d run into me in any of the earlier rounds, you’d have been eliminated long ago.”
To be frank, the taunt came off as pretty brainless. Lu Ran couldn’t even begin to guess what Zhang Zheng’s actual goal or motive was.
But Zhang Zheng didn’t seem inclined to say more.
He just tossed out one final line: “Hope you get lucky this time and don’t face me. That way we can have a bit more fun. Beating you in the finals should make for a better show, don’t you think?”
With that.
Without giving Lu Ran a chance to respond, he quickened his pace and strode off into the distance.
Lu Ran stared blankly at Zhang Zheng’s retreating back.
Even Su Ting couldn’t stand it anymore.
She clenched her teeth and said, “Lu Ran, if you get matched with him, beat the hell out of him—don’t give him an inch! He’s way too arrogant!”
Lu Ran shrugged and said, “Don’t worry. I will.”
