Chapter 77 - 73: Semi-final Scene (Seeking Subscriptions! )_2
After practicing for seven days with the help of the Meditation Acceleration Card, Xu Ran could clearly feel that he was getting closer and closer to breaking through the second stage of contract power.
So, he had to make every second count.
Xu Ran instructed Ziyun, then closed his eyes and quickly entered a state of meditation with the help of the Acceleration Card.
“Meow-” (Go Beast Master!)
Watching the hard-working Beast Master in meditation, Ziyun’s eyes were filled with emotion.
The previous three hours of training had made it feel sleepy. It skillfully picked up the corner of the blanket, covered Xu Ran’s legs and waist, crawled into the bed beside Xu Ran, and fell into deep sleep.
As time passed, the next morning arrived.
After preparing food for the inhabitants of the Foster Shop, Xu Ran and Ziyun headed straight to the semi-finals venue.
The semi-finals returned to the venue of the previous open audition.
Unlike the previous audition, there were no empty seats in the audience half an hour before the start of the competition.
Enthusiastic spectators arrived early, looking forward to the exciting face-off
to come.
The central Fighting Platform had also been adjusted to some extent. A five hundred meter diameter round Battle Stand was spacious enough for elite level pet beasts to battle.
There was a milky white light film rising from the edge of the Battle Stand, converging into a giant half-spherical shape above the venue, keeping the fluctuations in the venue from affecting the audience.
The semi-finals only had four contestants, and they were arranged in the contestant seats.
As soon as Xu Ran took his seat, countless gazes were cast from the audience.
Is this the guy who was advertising?
“Yo!”
Not long after Xu Ran sat down, Xu Jiujiu arrived.
She sat in the fourth competitor’s seat adjacent to Xu Ran and spoke with a beaming smile, “How have the past three days been?”
“A bit busy.” Xu Ran smiled, “The advertisement was too effective.”
Xu Jiujiu opened her mouth, obviously not expecting Xu Ran to answer like this.
She looked behind Xu Ran, didn’t find the familiar backpack, and smirked, “So you didn’t prepare to advertise today?”
“Well…” Xu Ran wore a rare awkward expression on his face, “When entering the venue, the staff told me about the contestant security check phase, and after the security check, they took my bag and said they would return it after
the competition.”
“HOW come I didn’t have a security check?” Xu Jiujiu blurted out involuntarily.
Seeing Xu Ran’s increasingly awkward expression, she realized what was happening and found it hilarious, “Looks like you’ve been targeted by the organizers.”
“No problem, I already have a new plan.” Xu Ran kept a calm expression.
No one can stop his advertisement!
“Alright, are you ready to fight me?” Xu Jiujiu squinted, her wheat-coloured skin and short hair making her seem like a fierce leopard, much different from her usual dorky self.
“I’m ready.” Xu Ran nodded slightly, a glimpse of combat spirit in his eyes.
If he lost the match, the advertisement effect would be compromised.
“Meow-” (Bring it on!)
Ziyun ha’ed at Xu Jiujiu, its aggressive yet cute appearance was quite adorable. “Alright, my dog is also ready for ten free Pet beast cleaning and caring services.” Xu Jiujiu retracted her fierce aura, and her smiling look seemed harmless, “It’s so expensive, what a bargain!”
“Boss Xu, you’re here early!” During their conversation, Gu Ling came up smiling and sat in the second competitor’s seat next to Xu Ran. Her Dark Scale Dragon followed behind her, making Ziyun instantly fluff up.
In a short while, Lyu Guang also arrived and sat in the first competitor’s seat.
He gazed expressionlessly at the other three, took a good look at the Dark Scale Dragon behind Gu Ling, then crossed his arms and leaned back. He seemed to be communicating with his Combat Bear Apprentice, who hadn’t arrived yet.
As the four contestants of the semi-finals gathered, the atmosphere in the field became more heated, with cheering interspersed with the names of the four contestants echoing from all over the stands.
With the appearance of the host and an inspiring opening speech, the semi-finals of the New Beast Master Challenge Match officially began.
The first to enter the stage were the two contestants from the Red Group who drew numbers one and two.
Lyu Guang vs Gu Ling.
In the contestant seats, Xu Ran and Xu Jiujiu both sat upright, staring seriously at the two who had entered the field and were facing each other at a distance.
No matter what the outcome of today’s semi-finals, their opponent in the finals two days later would be one of the two in front of them.
Now was the best opportunity to understand the strength of their future opponents.
“Please have both contestants ready their pet beasts.” The referee’s voice, amplified through the sound system above the battle arena, echoed throughout the stadium.
Gu Ling and his Dark Scale Dragon, who had brought their pet beasts early to compete, were in their positions as soon as the referee’s voice fell. Behind Lyu Guang on the other side, a hexagram star array quickly emerged, and a bear almost as tall as him stepped out of the strong wind.
“Next!”
Lyu Guang tossed a headband to the Brawl Bear Apprentice, at the same time tying another one quickly around his forehead.
“Ha!”
With a grunt, the Brawl Bear Apprentice accepted the headband and skilfully tied it on, entering the ready battle area while doing so.
“This…” In the contestants’ area, Xu Ran’s expression became somewhat strange.
Although he noticed the matching headbands that Lyu Guang and his pet beast wore during the rematch, this was his first time witnessing the moment they put them on.
“That’s a tradition of the Bamboo Leaf Martial Arts Pavilion,” Xu Jiujiu, his partner, chimed in. “They believe that having the Beast Master and the pet beast wear the same item for a long time helps increase their level of understanding each other.”
“Those two headbands have been in use since Lyu Guang contracted with the Brawl Bear Apprentice, going on for two or three years now.
Xu Jiujiu paused slightly, a perverse glint appearing in his eyes, “Want to steal his headbands? That way, he won’t be able to perform at his full capacity in the finals.”
Xu Ran’s lips twitched, “…let’s just watch the match.
The countdown began as the competitors took their stances in their respective areas.
Three seconds later, the official match began.
“Brawl Bear Apprentice, Free Step!”
The moment the whistle blew, Lyu Guang powerfully pointed towards the direction of the Dark Scale Dragon.
“Ha!”
At the sound of his voice, the Brawl Bear Apprentice sprang into action. Using his muscular, powerful paws, the Brawl Bear Apprentice started charging towards the Dark Scale Dragon.
Contrarily, a whirl of pitch-black energy bullets swirled and screeched towards it.
“Tramp, tramp!”
Facing the oncoming energy bullets, the Brawl Bear Apprentice changed the rhythm of its steps and leapt away, skilfully turning in mid-air and landing four metres away to dodge the attack.
While evading, the Brawl Bear Apprentice continued its charge.
“Boom!!!”
The black energy bullet that missed its target fell heavily onto the sturdy platform, leaving traces of pitch-black swirling wind.
That was just the start of this battle between the two pet beasts.
A volley of black energy bullets assembled on the Dark Scale Dragon’s claws and was hurled mercilessly towards the Brawl Bear Apprentice, which dodged nimbly and closed the distance between itself and the dragon.
Brawl Bear Apprentice’s two-star skill, Starlight Level – Free Step! Dark Scale Dragon’s one-star skill, Starlight Level – Dark Elemental Pearl! Amid the roar of explosions, the Brawl Bear Apprentice and the Dark Scale Dragon were now separated by a mere five meters.
“Now!”
Clenching his fists, Lyu Guang cried out, “Overlapping Shadow Fist!”
“Ha–”
The Brawl Bear Apprentice’s eyes suddenly sharpened. Its paws that were initially at its back were now clenched into fists. Within a blink, it bombarded the Dark Scale Dragon with a blur of punches.
The Brawl Bear Apprentice’s two-star skill, Starlight Level – Overlapping Shadow Fist!
Upon careful observation, one would realize that the Brawl Bear Apprentice s swift and shadowy punches were not random, but followed a fixed routine and trajectory.
They were part of the Bamboo Leaf Martial Arts Pavilion’s ancestral boxing technique – Drifting Leaf Boxing!
Some pet beasts with a combat system attribute have the ability to learn human martial arts. The Brawl Bear Apprentice is one of them. The fusion of combat skills with boxing techniques often results in a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts!
This was Lyu Guang and Brawl Bear Apprentice’s most potent strike!
Considering that many readers have expressed their dislike for staying up late for updates, starting tomorrow, the updates will be changed to midday at twelve o’clock, and henceforth be fixed at this time..