The azure dragon's voice rolled out like thunder.
"That's right. His name was Jason."
"He was a fortunate man… and at the same time, a deeply unfortunate one."
"The first person to reach the Dreamlike Forest is granted a chance. If they pass the trial, they gain control over the entire Dreamlike Forest."
"That includes command over various S-rank Divine Domain creatures, SS-rank Divine Domain creatures, and even the core power of every Divine Tree."
"Unfortunately, he failed the final trial."
"And now he is forever trapped inside the Dreamlike Forest."
Hearing that, Adrian Vale's brows drew together slightly. He had already guessed where this was heading.
Sure enough, the azure dragon continued without hesitation:
"You now face the same choice."
"If you wish to continue forward, then at the final Divine Tree, you will undergo the true trial."
"If you choose to leave now, then you will never again gain entry to the Dreamlike Forest. And you will receive no reward of any kind."
"Now tell me your answer."
Raven Shaw immediately turned to look at Adrian.
Adrian slowly lifted his head and looked straight at the enormous dragon.
"Senior," he said gravely, "what about you? What exactly is your role in all this? Or rather… what will become of you in the end?"
Rumble…
The giant azure dragon let out a low growl, and a trace of boundless desolation surfaced in its eyes.
"I didn't expect a little one like you to ask that question at a time like this," it said. "Very well. I'll give you an answer."
"In a sense…"
"I am the core of the final Divine Tree."
"So if you pass the final trial, I will completely merge into that last Divine Tree. Only then will you truly gain control over the entire Dreamlike Forest."
Adrian then asked the question weighing most heavily on his mind.
"And if we fail?"
"Will we end up just like Jason—trapped here forever, waiting for the next people to enter the Dreamlike Forest?"
The azure dragon gave a heavy nod.
"That's right."
"You will be trapped here forever. You will not age. You will not die."
"But once your lifespan should have ended, if you ever leave, the Dreamlike Forest will disappear from this world entirely."
"By the same logic, if you succeed, Jason will be freed…"
"…and completely vanish into ashes."
At those words, both Adrian and Raven froze.
And Dragon Nation's viewers watching the livestream were equally stunned.
"So if they fail the final trial, that basically means they can only stay in the Dreamlike Forest forever?"
"And the worst part is, if the next person to open the Dreamlike Forest reaches the final Divine Tree, then whether that person succeeds or fails, the previous failed challenger gets wiped out anyway!"
"That's way too brutal. This trial must be unbelievably hard."
"Exactly. Jason was already strong enough to break through all those Divine Domain creatures and make it this far, and even he still failed at the final step."
Inside the studio of I Came to Watch the Divine Domain, Bingbing wore a worried expression.
"Professor Luo, why do I feel like neither of the two options the azure dragon described is actually a good one?"
Professor Luo let out a heavy sigh.
"They really aren't good choices."
"Adrian and Raven have already invested a huge amount of time and energy to make it this far. If they give up now, then everything they've done until this point will have been completely wasted."
"And in the current international climate, that would be a terrible outcome for Dragon Nation."
"But if they continue and accept the trial…"
"…then they may very well fail completely."
Bingbing's expression tightened at once.
"Captain Ryan Cole, what kind of choice do you think Adrian and Raven will make?"
Ryan Cole answered without the slightest hesitation.
"From the very beginning, Adrian has faced one problem after another, but I've never once seen him retreat."
"So he'll definitely choose to continue."
"And just like Professor Luo said, they've already endured so much to get here. How could they possibly choose to give up at the final moment?"
After hearing the panel's analysis, Dragon Nation's viewers became increasingly conflicted.
"I really want to beg Eat-Stream Adrian Vale and Boss Raven to leave right now. This final trial sounds way too dangerous."
"Exactly. If the azure dragon is really the core of the final Divine Tree, then that alone proves the last trial is going to be absurdly difficult."
"But we all know Adrian's personality. There's no way he'll listen to us."
"And the worst part is, he still has zero interest in opening the overlay. Every decision he makes is entirely his own."
"I was still hoping I'd get to attend an Adrian meet-and-greet one day. Is that really just a dream now?"
Dragon Nation's people were deeply worried about the final trial. In their eyes, Adrian and Raven's chances of passing it were frighteningly low.
Meanwhile, viewers from other nations had already begun celebrating.
"This is great. No matter what choice they make, Dragon Nation is going to lose big this time."
"If that guy chooses to keep going, he'll probably die in there."
"And if he gives up, then doesn't that mean everything he's done these past few days was completely meaningless? His country gets nothing!"
"Hahaha! Looks like the true world power will still be Miracle Nation. We've already begun our rise!"
"Eastern Isles isn't backing down either! Our nation already has three contestants who've won in a row, and another one is about to step up. He'll definitely win too!"
Inside the Blue Star Deathmatch arena, the next two duelists had already taken their places.
One of them was draped in a red kasaya, his expression solemn and unwavering—
Fahai, Dragon Nation's contestant.
His opponent was Eastern Isles contestant Kamen Rider.
Kamen Rider's armor looked like that of a grasshopper warrior, and every inch of his skin was hidden beneath the suit.
But in previous battles, he had already displayed remarkable combat ability. That was the only reason he had made it this far.
After witnessing three utterly satisfying victories in a row, Eastern Isles viewers were already overflowing with confidence in their nation's contestants.
"What's so special about Fahai? No matter how strong he is, he can't possibly be Kamen Rider's opponent!"
"That's right! Our Kamen Rider's jumping power is outrageous. Fahai will never be able to force a frontal fight!"
"With one casual leap, Kamen Rider can leave Fahai choking on dust. Fahai is definitely going to lose this time!"
"Only Eastern Isles contestants are truly the strongest! We're going to take the most qualification slots for sure!"
On the other side, Dragon Nation viewers were equally full of confidence in Fahai.
"How could one of those 'life's going pretty well' Eastern Isles contestants possibly stand against Fahai?"
"Fahai only needs one punch to flatten that disgusting grasshopper."
"I've never seen anyone wear an actual locust shell as armor. He looks exactly like some disgusting crop pest."
"I seriously want to slap that giant locust to death. Things like that are a farmer's worst nightmare!"
Inside the arena, Fahai brought one hand together in a Buddhist salute and said,
"Amitābha. Benefactor, why not show your true face? Why cover yourself in such a strange form?"
As he looked at the insect-like armor covering Kamen Rider, Fahai's brows drew together tightly.
Locusts had always been one of the great scourges of farmland. Once they gathered in numbers, they became a plague.
And because of that, Fahai had always despised such pests.
Kamen Rider's muffled voice came from beneath the helmet.
"This is one of my combat forms. If you think your chances are small, then why not surrender now?"
"I won't make things difficult for you."
Fahai's face showed a trace of surprise.
"Since the battles began, you are definitely the first person bold enough to talk like that to me."
"It seems this poor monk has both the duty and the responsibility to educate you properly today."
Hearing that, Kamen Rider sneered.
"I've watched all of your previous fights."
"Your best fighting style is close-range combat. You rely on your powerful body to crush your opponents."
"But unfortunately for you, in today's match…"
"…you'll never touch me."
Fahai's expression remained calm.
"Then let us wait and see."
With that, Fahai took the red kasaya draped over his body and calmly placed it on the ground.
He had entered combat posture.
On the opposite side, Kamen Rider slammed his right foot against the earth and, like an afterimage, shot straight toward Fahai at terrifying speed.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The air boomed with sonic bursts, a testament to just how explosive his speed and momentum were.
Fahai's entire body tensed, muscles swelling as he lightly drove one fist forward.
The air directly in front of him exploded with a violent roar. The punch compressed the air so fiercely that it detonated inside the limited space before him.
Seeing that, Kamen Rider's face changed instantly, and he rapidly retreated.
Whoosh!
Kamen Rider's body became a white streak and disappeared from the front line, then his relieved voice rang out.
"Your strength really is terrifying. But you'll never be able to hit me—"
Before he could finish, Fahai's expression turned utterly serene.
The next moment, dazzling golden light erupted from his body.
At the same time, the kasaya lying on the ground began to shine with golden radiance as well.
A huge Buddhist silhouette appeared behind him.
Then Fahai stepped onto the kasaya itself, and his entire body transformed into a streak of golden light that shot after Kamen Rider.
Kamen Rider was instantly horrified.
"How is this possible?!"
"How can you fly?!"
He began frantically leaping higher and higher, once even exceeding fifteen meters in height.
Even so, Fahai remained directly behind him.
A fist the size of a sandbag rapidly filled Kamen Rider's vision.
With a muffled grunt, Kamen Rider's body was blasted downward like a cannonball and smashed brutally into the ground.
Boom!
A deafening roar exploded through the arena.
Then Will of Blue Star announced the result.
[Congratulations! Dragon Nation contestant Fahai has won and secured entry into the Divine Domain: Forbidden Zone!]
[Eastern Isles contestant Kamen Rider is defeated and will continue in the next Deathmatch round.]
Although Fahai had sent Kamen Rider crashing into the ground with a single punch, Kamen Rider's life force had not fully dissipated.
Because he remained capable of fighting, the Will of Blue Star judged that he still retained eligibility for another Deathmatch round.
At this moment, inside the arena, fifty granite seats had already been arranged across a high viewing platform.
All contestants who had achieved final victory were gathering there one after another.
Eastern Isles' Sword Saint.
Kishou Arima.
Tsukiyama Shuu.
Miracle Nation's Joker.
Magneto.
And Dragon Nation's Wuxian, Zhang Zhiwei, and the others had all already taken their seats.
A white light flashed.
Fahai arrived and took one of the seats.
"Amitābha. This humble monk greets you all, benefactors."
Fahai respectfully cupped his hands in greeting toward Wuxian, Zhang Zhiwei, and the others from Dragon Nation.
Wuxian and the rest nodded in return.
The scissor assassin Wu Liuqi spoke up carelessly.
"Hahaha! Fahai, I seriously love your fighting style. Hope we get the chance to spar properly someday."
"Of course, of course." Fahai naturally felt a close affinity toward his fellow Dragon Nation contestants, and a smile appeared on his face.
Then another white flash lit the platform.
Miracle Nation contestant Venom / Eddie Brock finally secured one of the seats and arrived among them.
The moment Eddie appeared, every gaze on the platform shifted toward him.
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