Though the azure blue flames were rising high into the air around his tall and mighty frame, the heat and the destructive power did not seem to affect him at all; instead, he was the ruler of the light and the blaze - the Descendant of the G.o.d of Azure Light!

His eyes glowed blue, similar to how Alayna's eyes did, only brighter and more brilliantly; a sign of the complete unlocking of the strongest move of a bloodline, pus.h.i.+ng the G.o.d's blood to its limits and taking on the form of an incarnation of the G.o.d of Light!

In fact, it was as if though an angel or a G.o.d's avatar had descended from the astral plane and was come to pa.s.s judgement on any who dared stand up against him!

Right now his face was locked in a stoic, deific gaze even as his eyes swam with a vision of an azure blue starry sky, one completely foreign to the sky above planet Yiluo - perhaps a remnant of a far-off ancient realm from ages past, one that was both mystical and profound!

At this time, Darius seemed all-powerful, the muscles on his body perfectly highlighted in the flas.h.i.+ng blue aura and it seemed as if a single move of his could surpa.s.s the Grandmaster level in termso f power.

But he stood silently, apart from the roaring sounds of the flames surrounding him, as he watched Lars' sail through the air like a wounded eagle plummeting from the mountain tops!

Lars tumbled head over heels, body and head reeling but his mind still lucid. It was just a pity; his body and strength at the Adept-level looked to be just too weak to even compare with Darius' strength...!

He landed in a limp heap at the edge of the arena, much to the relief of some audience members and to the disappointment of others. It looked like it was not yet over, the fight would still go on!

Lars stayed on the ground for a moment, trying to rest and regulate his breathing. When Mr White started to come over to check if he was out of commission or could still continue the bout, the heavily injured youth raised up one hand to signal that he wasn't out for the count just yet.

But as he lay there, he considered his options.

'Demon-Hunting Arts... The first layer is a seal... But it doesn't look like it will be useful if the gap in abilities is too big...'

'Then... How about my soul-imprint of Greed...? With the multiplication effect... No, I'm worried that Darius' networth may be too great for it to make much of a difference... After all, he has the backing of a mysterious faction... It's not that simple even for a talent of sublime bloodline to rise to his level... I heard he has a Myth-level teacher and the corresponding wealth of an entire sect behind him...'

'JUST F***ING DO IT ALREADY KIDDO! STOP WASTING TIME! I really don't get this game of yours anyway... Just upgrade yourself to the Master level and wipe the floor with the kid...!'

Lars chuckled slightly and replied to the exasperated penguin, 'Who was it who suggested I seal my strength in the first place, huh...??? Huh????!!?'

'....Forget I said anything!!! Look after yourself!!! But remember, if you lose, you gotta buy me 10 cartons of fis.h.!.+ The freshest fis.h.!.+'

Then Lars heard a sleepy, mumbling voice chip in, '...And lots of fresh vegetables too... *Yawn*...'

It was his turn to be speechless as he slowly raised himself to his feet. What a good life it must be to sleep, criticise and comment on everything their contractor and host did... And they still got to enjoy a good life! He really should make best use of the Abyss Points exchange that was coming up next week... Else it wouldn't be worth putting up with the nagging two freeloaders!

'It's time... You're right, buddy. But not Master-level... Let's see how I fare after a "sudden breakthrough" to the Elite-level...'

Lars was smiling inside even as he put on a grim and determined expression, limping to his feet and clutching his bloodied right arm, injured badly from the shards of his ruptured longsword.

He continued to make an expression that said, "I am using all my willpower to forcibly level-up! By sheer pa.s.sion, strength of will and blind luck, I can just-so-happen to level-up in the middle of a fight!" and frowned so deeply that a veritable valley formed in the middle of his left and right brows.

Then his aura began to boil over... And release resplendent beams of energy trailblazing into the sky and forcing most of the spectators to cover their eyes and gasp in awe!

As Lars crafted his mana into a roleplay of leveling up and breaching through to a new realm, he wondered if the theatrics were enough and decided to up it a bit more. He shot out double the rays of golden light until it painted a wondrous scene in the entire sky of the stadium until he was satisfied that it was clear enough that "I'm leveling up, everybody!"

But little did he know just how great a commotion he had caused...

"What... What is this phenomenon...?" Many voices cried out in shock, wondering just what the amazing display of colours and the prismatic rays of light meant; but it seemed no one had seen such a panoramic scene before!

Even Darius' eyes perked up and his brows trembled slightly despite his suppressed emotions in his G.o.d's incarnation state, while Vignis and Yusof both gasped in surprise.

"I-I don't know! I've never seen anything like this before!" More voices cried out in amazement as the great and glorious s.h.i.+ning lights began to condense around Lars' body, forming a golden sh.e.l.l streaked with dark crimson bands.

It was at that point that a voice resounded from the n.o.ble stands as a person whose voice had never been heard before in Gorun City shot to his feet and exclaimed in shock.

Mythical G.o.d-spear Alucard!

"No! No!!! It's impossible, no...!! It can't, it c-can't be!!!" He looked incredulous, unable to believe what was occurring before his eyes as he anxiously hurried over to the frontmost edge of the private viewing booth he shared with Duke Leanne and her daughter Alayna. In his single-minded rush, he directly knocked over some of the servants and stewards, inadvertently breaking some of their bones and even crippling one as he knocked the arena worker flying!

At the sight of Alucard's consternation and shock, Duke Leanne too arose from her divan and was concerned. What had gotten into the esteemed senior?!? Was the display of lights really so amazing?

She crossed over to stand at the edge of the railings beside Alucard, simultaneously waving for the servants to treat the wounded and tossing a bag of coins as compensation for their injuries. Then she turned away and ignored the commoners as she waited for Alucard to explain.

He shot a perfunctory glance to Leanne at his side before returning his full attention back to the stage far down below them where the golden sphere with dark crimson bands began to spin, accelerating faster and faster in its rotations. Then he spoke, casually but also with the air of a senior educating his junior.

"Woman...! Have you not heard...? Do you truly not know...? The history of the Yiluo Empire... And why this planet is even named planet Yiluo in the first place...?"

Duke Leanne was stunned as she remained silent. She had to admit, she was truly one who did not enjoy studying, especially not history books! Slightly embarra.s.sed about the fact that she did not know, she coughed and apologised.

When Alucard saw that she truly did not know, he glowered at her with a condescending frown and muttered, "How can this airheaded woman govern a city when she doesn't even value the history and annals of the modern world...? Sigh..."

Then he shook his head and sighed as he explained with impatience, "Simply put, there were 2 things recorded in the records available only to royalty and their kin along with all Myth-realm pract.i.tioners; two things that have always stood out as astounding about our Yiluo planet and the founder of the Yiluo Empire. The first, this one is better known - she conquered up to the 12th floor of the Tower of G.o.d and gained both the power and the right to manage the entrances to the Tower on this planet which have been guarded closely by the Empire ever since then!"

"But one question needs to be asked, and that leads to the second fact that set her apart!"

Alucard breathed deeply and had a mysterious look on his face as he explained, "Just how could a then-peasant girl manage to first of all qualify to enter the Tower of G.o.d in those chaotic times where there was no one administrating the entire entry to the Tower...? The answer... She was incredibly, incredibly, insanely powerful among all the youths under 18 years old!"

Leanne c.o.c.ked her head in curiosity and gave Alucard a sardonic smile at that point, saying, "Obviously she must have been... Else how could she have made such great achievements where few others across the ages have even reached the 12th level...?"

Alucard shook his head, smiling like a teacher before his students as he clarified, "Her strength is not the point here... The key thing is this: in some obscure records available in Danedaar's library, it was discovered that one thing stood out in her growth and youth that was different, so very different from all others..."

"Well...? What is it...?"

"Ahem... It is that firstly... She would breakthrough in realms in the middle of battle! Whether by strokes of epiphany or sudden comprehension, she continuously exceeded her cultivation midway through a fight where she was bound to lose!"

"And secondly! When she broke through realms..."

He turned to meet Leanne's eyes as he reached these words.

"The phenomena were exactly like what the boy is showing us right now..."

* * * * *

While this conversation was going on, an oblivious Lars decided that his performance of audio and visual effects was enough and began to wind down the vortex of golden light - though he was slightly surprised himself at the dark-red bands that formed on the sh.e.l.l of golden mana... He wondered where that had come from...

As Lars emerged from the coc.o.o.n, the audiences were filled with amazement.

For he had not advanced to the beginning nor middle Elite-level...

Nor even to the peak Elite-level...

But to the greatest limits achievable before crossing over to the Master-level, a pseudo-Elite cultivation!

As Darius' already serious face took on a grave look, Lars smiled even as he fixed his sharp eyes on his opponent and said, "Ready for round three...?"

And he burst forward, no longer with a sword in hand but instead with his two hands at either side encased in sparkling, crackling golden energies, showing his true abilities as a Legendary Mage (in disguise)!