Chapter 197:

.After a one-hour break to give both participants and the audience time to rest and refresh, the competition resumed.

Finally, with the first place already decided, it was time for the other rankings to be determined.

Each of the participants would have to compete in three matches, and naturally, whoever won all of them would take the second place, while those who lost one or more matches would take the remaining positions.

After another round of matches that managed to excite the audience in the colosseum, even the last rankings were decided. Sёarch* The NôvelFire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Of the remaining four, the demonic cultivator secured the fourth position, while the third place was taken by Hu Xingyan, who narrowly lost to Xiang Hua, who took second place.

Finally, the last contestant secured the fifth place, and with that, the final rounds in both categories were officially concluded.

The announcer, seeing the crowd cheering for their favorites, couldn't help but feel happy inside.

And how could he not?

After all, this year's tournament was undoubtedly one of the most spectacular of the past centuries.

And all thanks to one person, Nuyu.

Although the other young generation talents had performed beyond expectations, the one who was always a step ahead was the masked boy.

From achieving a perfect score in the theoretical test, thus securing a place in the Hall of Fame of the colosseum, to taking first place by defeating all his opponents with a significant margin, he was certainly a dark horse no one expected.

After giving the crowd time to celebrate, he proceeded to announce the awards ceremony.

It was time for the top-ranked contestants to receive their well-deserved prizes.

As he moved towards the stage where this year's awards would be announced, he paused for a moment, his forehead furrowing slightly.

'Hm? Was it just me, or did the ground just shake a bit?' he thought.

The tremor appeared and disappeared quickly, leaving him momentarily confused, and judging by the expressions of a few others, it seemed they had noticed it too.

'Strange, there are never earthquakes in this part of the continent,' he thought, hoping it was nothing concerning.

Ethan, who was on the alignment stage along with the other participants, also noticed the tremor.

With his heightened perception, he quickly identified the source of the quake, discovering it came from none other than the imperial castle.

He immediately sent a mental message to Bai Yu to ask about what was happening, and in no time, he received the response.

'I see, so it has begun,'

***

A few hours before the tournament's end.

In the throne room, the emperor sat with a calm gaze directed forward, where a person was bowing to him.

The room, aside from the two of them, was empty, even though it was still early afternoon, a somewhat unusual sight, but the emperor had ordered everyone to leave and asked his trusted right-hand man to stay behind.

He continued to look at the kneeling figure of his counselor , who, seeing that the other party wasn't saying anything, decided to speak and ask.

"Your Majesty, is there something troubling you?"

The emperor said nothing and continued to look calmly at the person in front of him.

This made the counselor feel slightly pressured.

As this scene unfolded, the shadows of several figures could be seen materializing in various parts of the room.

Some behind the numerous stone pillars, others in the arches of the room's ceiling, and some just a few meters behind the throne.

As these figures appeared, neither the emperor nor his counselor moved, as if unaware of their presence.

Finally, after a few more seconds, the emperor's face showed an expression different from before.

The advisor, noticing this change, looked at the emperor with a puzzled expression.

'A smile?'

Just as he was wondering what had made the emperor show that expression, he finally opened his mouth and uttered a few words.

"Just as I expected, you managed to infiltrate the imperial castle despite the barrier surrounding it," he said, his voice still calm, as he moved to stand up.

"But it doesn't matter. In fact, it's better this way; this way, the capital won't have to suffer any damage," he said.

And just as the counselor, still a bit confused, was trying to understand the meaning behind the emperor's words, the emperor took out a scroll from his dimensional ring and, looking at it for a moment with an indifferent expression, he turned to his counselor and said.

"Tell me, do you know what this is?" he asked, referring to the scroll he held in his hand.

The counselor, who was still kneeling, looked at the scroll with a confused expression for a moment, but then his eyes widened as a flash of realization struck him.

Immediately, he stood up, rushing towards the emperor, and in that moment, the dozens of dark figures that had appeared also moved.

The emperor, targeted from all sides, maintained the smile on his face and clenched his hand, setting the scroll aflame.

Due to the intensity of the flames, it ignited instantly, and suddenly a sphere of energy emerged from his palm and enveloped the entire hall, engulfing it completely.

What was once a grand, luxurious hall was now nowhere to be seen, and in its place, there was only an endless dark space, where beneath lay an ashen-gray ground that seemed made of collected ash, and above, what could be called a sky cloaked in black.

In the middle of this infinite space, twelve figures stood, ten surrounding the other two.

The ten dark figures, whose features were previously hidden, were now revealed, showing a form that no normal being should ever have to witness in their lifetime.

Completely black bodies, covered in a layer of black smoke, taller than two meters, with long limbs ending in five pairs of claws.

Their faces bore no expression, in fact, they had no faces at all.

What they had was a black mass with two white circles in place of eyes.

All of them stood motionless, surrounding the two, but their attention was solely on one of them, that is, Long Hao, the emperor. Find exclusive stories on мѵʟ

While the emperor wore a serene expression on his face, his counselor, who had now abandoned any semblance of composure, looked at him with a crazed gaze and said.

"How the hell did you manage to get your hands on that?" he asked as black smoke began to pour out from him.

From his feet to his clothes, and even his hair, which began to rise and twist in the air.

"Oh, that? It was a gift from my wife. You should know her well, no?

After all, you were the one who ended her life," he said, as a bluish-black aura also began to surround him, and in his hand appeared a large sword made of black metal and other materials of unimaginable value.

Hearing the emperor's words, the counselor lost even the last bit of composure he was holding on to, as his skin, from which black smoke was also emanating, started to crack, revealing underneath only a dark mixture.

"It seems you already know," he said, as by now his entire 'container' disintegrated, leaving in his place a figure almost three meters tall, made entirely of thin shadows, with elongated limbs, and two long protrusions growing from his head.

"That woman has been a thorn in our race's side for a long time. Who would have ever thought that even after she left this world, she would still create trouble for us?"

he said, his tone, which previously resembled that of a middle-aged man, now a mix of vibrating voices.

One could feel all the frustration and anger contained within his words.

"I don't know why you decided to join us even in this space, but rest assured, I'll make you regret doing so," he said, no longer restraining his anger.

The emperor, who hadn't said a word until now, paid no attention to the demon before him and simply let out a deep sigh as he tightened his grip on the sword's hilt.

"Wait for me just a little longer; soon, I'll join you,

but first..."

With eyes glowing yellow and a deep gaze, the emperor prepared to attack.

And as if a signal had been given, the ten figures also dashed towards him at incredible speed.

"I'll deal with him."