"What kind of miracle is this? How could they send out a contestant like that? He's sick. Completely insane."
"It's over, it's over. That lunatic has already entered the Divine Domain. Who knows what he'll turn into by the end?"
And beyond that, the entire world finally realized something else from this scene:
some of the Blue Star Deathmatch contestants had already secured their chance to enter the Divine Domain: Forbidden Zone.
It would not be long before the vast pool of Deathmatch survivors formally stepped into that world as well.
The curtain over the Divine Domain was about to rise once more.
Inside the Dreamlike Forest, Adrian Vale and Raven Shaw stood frozen in place, staring straight ahead at the enormous azure dragon before them.
At the same time, the dragon had already opened its eyes and was staring back at them.
Neither Adrian nor Raven dared make the slightest movement.
A single wrong move might trigger the dragon's retaliation in an instant.
The creature before them was like a mountain given life, vast enough to crush them at any moment with overwhelming force.
Only Adrian's kagune had already burst free from his body, though part of its power remained held back, ready at any moment to seize Raven and pull both of them out of this deadly zone.
Then the hundred-meter dragon suddenly let out a long, heavy sigh.
In that instant, the suffocating tension in the clearing faded.
"I have waited for many years," the azure dragon said slowly, "and at last, I have waited for the two of you."
"You two little ones are both fortunate… and unfortunate."
The giant dragon showed no sign of attacking. Its voice was steeped in ancient weariness, but completely devoid of killing intent.
A flicker of confusion passed through Adrian's eyes. The blood-red glow in his left eye slowly dimmed, and in the next instant, he directly withdrew his kagune.
He could feel it clearly.
The azure dragon had no intention of attacking them.
"Senior… what do you mean by that?" Adrian asked gravely.
The giant dragon continued,
"You may set your hearts at ease. I will not attack you."
"My task has always been to guard this Dreamlike Forest and wait for the arrival of those fated to come here."
"A thousand years ago, someone came here."
"He failed."
"And now, a thousand years later, I have finally waited for you."
Roar—!
The hundred-meter dragon suddenly raised its head and shot into the sky.
Its colossal body rose like a true mountain uprooting itself from the earth, casting a vast shadow over the land.
The sunlight vanished at once, swallowed by storm clouds that gathered around the dragon.
It spread its wings and beat them slowly.
A terrifying gale swept across the entire region.
Flowers, grass, and trees were ripped from the ground in an instant and shattered by the storm.
The destructive force of an SSS-rank Divine Domain creature was plain for all to see.
When Adrian saw this, his expression changed slightly.
"This thing is definitely stronger than an ordinary SSS-rank," he said at once. "There's another source of power inside it."
The next moment, the azure dragon let out a heaven-shaking roar.
That sound rolled through the entire Dreamlike Forest.
At the same time, the storm around it accelerated wildly.
Sky and earth alike seemed to be on the verge of collapse.
Watching through the livestream, Dragon Nation's viewers could not help crying out in shock.
"So this is an azure dragon that has survived since ancient times? Just how strong is it?"
"It's a good thing this thing never planned to attack Adrian and Raven. Otherwise this really could have turned into a disaster."
"I never imagined those two would be this lucky. I wonder how many secrets this dragon is hiding."
"This is the first time I've ever seen Eat-Stream Adrian Vale look this tense. He probably doesn't even have an appetite right now."
At the same time, inside the Blue Star Deathmatch arena—
the next two contestants had already taken their places.
One of them was none other than the Sword Saint of Eastern Isles—
Ashina Isshin.
At this moment, Ashina Isshin wore a white robe draped loosely over his body, his aged but still powerfully muscled chest exposed. In his right hand he held a slender sword, and beneath his chin hung a small goat beard.
His opponent was Adam, Miracle Nation's contestant.
Adam looked calmly at the old swordsman opposite him. Since he had been created by Miracle Nation's top brass as a weapon, the fame surrounding Ashina Isshin stirred no emotion in him at all.
Ashina Isshin frowned slightly and said,
"This one's body is filled with artificial structures. He was not a human who grew naturally."
"If he's a weapon of war, then I have no reason to hold back."
Shhk!
A bright light flashed through Ashina Isshin's eyes. In the next instant, he burst forward at astonishing speed.
"Ashina Single Slash!"
Clang!
A streak of bright white light tore through the air and shot straight toward Adam's chest.
This was only a probing strike, used to gauge Adam's strength.
No matter how confident Ashina Isshin was in himself, he would never underestimate any opponent.
Adam's eyes flashed. He clenched both fists and met the white slash head-on.
A crisp impact sounded.
His fists were instantly torn open, turning bloody on the spot—but he still managed to block Ashina Isshin's sword strike.
Ashina Isshin frowned faintly.
"So he does have some substance."
The next to attack was Adam.
He charged forward like a moving fortress, his feet stamping deep marks into the ground as a savage aura swept through the arena.
Seeing this, Ashina Isshin remained perfectly calm.
He took a slow half-step backward, and the long blade in his hand traced lightly through the air.
"Flowing Water."
In the next instant, Ashina Isshin's swordsmanship became like an endless stream.
Wave after wave of white sword energy piled together, layering over one another until the air itself turned white.
Crash!
The river-like white sword energy surged forward and swallowed Adam whole.
Crash! Crash! Crash!
Adam's arms slashed wildly through the storm, and even the joints of his body became weapons—but in the blink of an eye, his entire body was drenched in red.
When the stream of white sword energy finally vanished, Adam's body crashed heavily to the ground, fresh blood spreading across the arena floor.
Will of Blue Star announced the result at once.
[Eastern Isles contestant Ashina Isshin wins and secures entry into the Divine Domain: Forbidden Zone.]
[Miracle Nation contestant Adam is defeated and will continue in the remaining Deathmatch rounds.]
Because Adam had not completely lost his life force, the Will of Blue Star allowed him to remain eligible for later matches.
Ashina Isshin slowly sheathed his sword and looked toward Adam's fallen body.
When Eastern Isles' viewers saw this, they went completely wild.
"This is our Eastern Isles contestant! This is our nation's Sword Saint! He is invincible beneath the heavens!"
"If Lord Ashina Isshin calls himself second under heaven, no one would dare call themselves first!"
"Ashina Isshin is the pride of Eastern Isles! There is no way he can lose!"
"Ashina Isshin has already stepped into the realm of the divine! His swordsmanship is enough to touch godhood!"
Elsewhere, Kishou Arima easily beheaded Greenhair, the contestant from Mung Nation.
The battlefield they had fought on was already carpeted in dense green hair.
Only the area where Kishou Arima stood remained untouched.
Arima glanced at Greenhair's corpse in mild disgust, shook his head, and said,
"What a thoroughly disgusting combat style."
"But his value has now been fully exhausted."
Soon after, Will of Blue Star declared that Kishou Arima had secured his qualification to enter the Divine Domain.
That scene sent Eastern Isles' viewers into a frenzy.
"Our nation will always stand at the top of the world! No one can stop us!"
"Eastern Isles is the strongest nation on Earth! Neither Dragon Nation nor Miracle Nation can compare to us!"
"Eastern Isles will keep advancing!"
The next Deathmatch still featured an Eastern Isles contestant.
This time, it was Tsukiyama Shuu.
With his purple hair and pale, handsome face, he gathered a fresh wave of adoring fans the instant he stepped onto the field.
Tsukiyama Shuu advanced with elegant steps, looking toward his opponent from Brown Sugar Nation—
Tangxin.
"Heheh… this one really does look like an ingredient," Tsukiyama said, a spark of excitement flashing through his eyes.
To him, Tangxin was an exceptional ingredient.
"I have never before seen an ingredient that can move freely and think for itself. I'm already eager to make you the centerpiece of my cutting board."
A strange gleam flickered through Tsukiyama's eyes, like a gourmet driven half-mad by appetite.
On the opposite side, Tangxin—whose skin glowed faintly red—wore a cold expression and said,
"I can sense the aura of my own kind from you."
"You are someone who refuses to stay within the proper boundaries of food."
"But unfortunately, you have already strayed onto the wrong path."
"Today, I will personally teach you that not everything can be treated as an ingredient."
Without another word, Tangxin flicked his sleeve.
A chain of red gelatin masses appeared in midair, merging together into a giant crimson jelly figure.
Then, under Tangxin's control, the massive jelly figure charged straight ahead.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Each step shook the ground like a moving fortress.
Seeing this, Tsukiyama drew a short knife and said cheerfully,
"You are about to become one of my ingredients. This is a top-tier cutting tool—you should feel honored."
And with that, the two of them began close combat despite the huge difference in body size.
Tsukiyama moved with dazzling agility, darting around the enormous red jelly figure and carving wound after wound across its body.
But that alone was far from enough to trouble Tangxin.
Under Tangxin's control, the giant red jelly figure rapidly split apart.
Split! Split! Split!
One after another, jelly figures over two meters tall appeared across the Deathmatch arena, then swarmed forward all at once.
From then on, Tsukiyama Shuu and Tangxin turned the battlefield into a grotesque culinary performance.
The red jelly constantly shifted shape—forming strange weapons, and even bows and arrows—attacking Tsukiyama in wave after wave.
And every time Tsukiyama successfully cut through them, he happily gathered the red jelly pieces as though he were collecting ingredients.
The small blade in Tsukiyama's hand kept carving away at the red jelly, until eventually Tangxin stood there with a pale face, his expression ugly.
Not far away, countless neatly arranged portions of red jelly sat spread across the ground like dishes waiting to be served.
Tangxin clenched his teeth and said,
"I surrender."
Tsukiyama made no attempt to continue attacking. Instead, he smiled and said,
"What an excellent ingredient."
"This time I'll let you go. I hope you work harder in the future and produce even more of this lovely red jelly."
"If there's ever a chance, I'll personally visit Brown Sugar Nation to find you."
[Eastern Isles contestant Tsukiyama Shuu wins and secures entry into the Divine Domain: Forbidden Zone.]
[Brown Sugar Nation contestant Tangxin is defeated and will continue in the remaining Deathmatch rounds.]
This battle had felt less like a fight and more like a culinary duel.
Although Tsukiyama was clearly stronger, he showed no real intention of harming Tangxin. Instead, he simply treated the red jelly as ingredients and processed them one after another.
And this match left food lovers around the world completely overjoyed.
"It was perfect! I may not be able to smell the jelly dishes Tsukiyama made, but just watching the forms take shape is already making me starve!"
"If I could eat food made by Tsukiyama just once, I'd die with no regrets!"
"I wonder if he runs a restaurant in everyday life. I'd love to visit it and have the meal of my life."
"As expected of someone called Gourmet. The way he fights really does feel like he's cooking. It makes your appetite explode."
"I've already eaten ten bowls of rice, but my stomach is still telling me I can keep going!"
Inside the Dreamlike Forest, the hundred-meter azure dragon's eyes filled with a trace of distant memory as it slowly said,
"So… you're interested in the first person who reached the Dreamlike Forest?"
"Very well. Then I'll tell you a few secrets."
"Though I suppose they're not really secrets anymore."
"You've probably already heard his voice."
The expressions on Adrian and Raven's faces changed dramatically.
Adrian's expression turned serious at once.
"So the old bastard who's been threatening us from the shadows all this time…"
"…was the very first person to reach the Dreamlike Forest?"
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