At that same moment, Ashina Isshin had already noticed Eddie Brock's stare and slowly raised his head.
A sharp light flashed in the Sword Saint's eyes, as if twin blades were being forged within them.
Seeing this, Eddie Brock spoke in his usual brash tone.
"I never expected a place as small as Eastern Isles to produce so many contestants. But from what I've seen, all of you are just overrated frauds."
"Once we get into the Divine Domain: Forbidden Zone, I'll make sure to test each and every one of you properly."
The expressions of the Eastern Isles contestants immediately darkened.
Kishou Arima spoke first, his face cold.
"For someone who allowed a monster to live inside his body and still made it this far, it seems you've already abandoned the last line separating yourself from humanity."
At once, Venom peeled away from Eddie's body in a mass of black fluid and glared at Kishou Arima with undisguised savagery.
"Eddie," Venom growled, "this one's blood must taste exquisite. And there's something very strange inside him too."
"Maybe we should make him our first target."
Eddie nodded without hesitation.
Not far away, Tsukiyama Shuu smiled faintly.
"This black creature seems like it would pair quite well with chocolate-based ingredients. I wonder whether it could become a truly worthy dish in my hands."
Eddie instantly exploded.
"You sick freak hiding under the excuse of being a gourmet! Aren't you the one trying to turn everyone into food?"
"I'll roast you alive. By the time I'm done, you'll look like a suckling pig fresh out of the fire."
Buzz—
At that moment, Ashina Isshin's right hand moved slightly.
A razor-sharp white sword energy appeared in front of him.
The sword energy trembled faintly in the air.
Seeing this, Eddie sneered.
"Old man, are you trying to scare me? You think I grew up frightened?"
But on the other side, Joker's smile vanished. He stared at the white sword energy, goosebumps rising across his skin.
That sword energy drifted once through the air—
and in the next instant, it was already one meter in front of Eddie.
At once, silence fell across the fifty seats.
Ashina Isshin spoke calmly.
"Miracle Nation contestant, if you want to court death, don't choose this moment."
"Once we enter the Divine Domain, I'll have my fun with you properly."
Then the white sword energy exploded into countless fragments and vanished.
Ashina Isshin slowly closed his eyes again, as though none of this concerned him in the slightest.
Eddie's face had already turned ugly.
That single strike had looked simple, but there had been no clean way to respond to it while seated among the fifty finalists. On the surface, he had clearly lost face.
Zhang Zhiwei gave Ashina Isshin a long look, a glint flashing in his eyes.
Nearby, Wuxian also withdrew his gaze and thought to himself,
So Eastern Isles really does have someone who gave his whole life to the sword…
What a pity. He's already gone down the wrong path.
At the same time, the entire world had seen all of this through the livestream.
Miracle Nation viewers immediately started cursing.
"When did Eastern Isles grow the guts to act against the people they've been following around? Looks like they need to be taught a lesson."
"What was Eddie doing just now? He clearly could've fought back and torn that old man apart."
"There's no helping it. They've all already taken their places among the fifty seats. Before entering the Divine Domain, they can't just start killing each other or they might offend the Will of Blue Star."
"Exactly. The whole point of the Blue Star Deathmatch was to choose stronger contestants for every nation."
"If anyone starts causing trouble the moment it's over, the Will of Blue Star definitely won't tolerate it."
Meanwhile, Eastern Isles viewers saw their Sword Saint act and immediately felt unsatisfied—they wanted more.
At the same time, they began shouting even louder.
"So what if he was facing a Miracle Nation contestant? The nature of this game has already changed. Every nation's strength depends on how its own contestants perform."
"And from what we're seeing now, Eastern Isles' contestants are far stronger than Miracle Nation's!"
"That's right! We already secured three seats early on, while Miracle Nation only managed two."
"Miracle Nation is already declining. I suggest we cut off all cooperation with them."
"Strongly agree. Our nation already has the power to stand at the top of the world."
Dragon Nation viewers, on the other hand, were thoroughly entertained.
"Neither of those countries is any good. Let them start tearing each other apart. Dragon Nation can just sit back and profit."
"Exactly. Dragon Nation already has plenty of seats too. We're the real winners this time."
"And our final contestant, Zhang Qilin, is definitely going to win too."
"Hahaha! Looks like Miracle Nation is about to lose another contestant to Dragon Nation."
The feed returned to the Deathmatch arena.
The final Dragon Nation contestant to take the field was Zhang Qilin.
He still held that black-gold ancient blade, his short black hair neat and clean. The moment he appeared, girls across the world practically screamed.
"I didn't expect Zhang Qilin to look this good on camera! I thought all the pictures online had to be fake!"
"No way. Zhang Qilin is the most handsome. No one in the world compares."
"The way he holds that black-gold ancient blade is so cool! I've already started making a matching figure set—girls, DM me if you want one!"
"And his opponent this time is that dark-looking guy… Deadpool, right?"
Zhang Qilin's opponent was indeed Deadpool of Miracle Nation.
Deadpool carried twin short blades on his back and was also a close-range specialist.
The moment he appeared, he immediately started talking.
"Oh, so it's a Dragon Nation contestant. Looks like the two of us finally get a proper head-on fight. I've been waiting forever."
"As far as I know, your previous weapons were all cold weapons too. But can one weapon really beat my two?"
"I don't think so. Why don't you just surrender now? Saves us both some embarrassment."
"I'm not scared of you, but I'll admit I'm a little wary of that guy called Wuxian. I seriously can't figure out where his upper limit is."
Across from him, Zhang Qilin's expression darkened slightly as Deadpool kept chattering.
"You talk too much."
The next instant, Zhang Qilin swung the black-gold ancient blade.
A black sword energy tore forward.
It rose nearly three meters high and carved a trench almost thirty centimeters deep across the Deathmatch arena floor.
Seeing the black sword energy rushing toward him, Deadpool's eyes widened slightly.
"Oh-ho. Didn't expect you to be this good."
"But if this is all you've got, there's no way you're beating me."
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Deadpool's body vanished at once, the twin short blades already in his hands.
Clang! Clang!
Metal rang sharply through the arena.
Deadpool used the twin blades to block the black sword energy head-on, but the force still drove him backward, gouging two long trenches into the ground beneath his feet.
At that moment, the playful look in his eyes vanished.
Damn it. This guy is strong. I really underestimated him.
Zhang Qilin, meanwhile, had already measured Deadpool's strength from that exchange.
Buzz—
His body swayed, turning into a black shadow across the arena.
Then countless small black sword energies fell like a storm toward Deadpool.
Seeing this, Deadpool's expression changed sharply. His twin blades blurred in constant motion, relying on the toughness of his weapons and the flexibility of his footwork to dodge and block the wave of sword energy.
At the same time, he kept muttering under his breath.
"What the hell is this? Are these attacks really just his normal offense?"
"Then why in the earlier fights did he only use weapons for close combat?"
From the very beginning of this battle, Zhang Qilin had never given Deadpool a chance to fight at close range.
He had simply smothered him with long-range sword energy.
In an instant, Deadpool found himself completely on the back foot.
Seeing this, the contestants already seated among the top fifty finally relaxed.
Zhang Zhiwei said calmly,
"It looks like young Zhang Qilin should be able to take this one."
Beside him, Wu Liuqi laughed loudly.
"That was a given. Zhang Qilin's sword skills are really solid. We've sparred before."
"What he's best at is exactly this kind of ranged suppression. Deadpool was way too arrogant. Right from the start, instead of closing the distance, he just kept talking."
"From that moment on, his defeat was already decided."
Just as Wu Liuqi had said, Zhang Qilin's ranged pressure completely suppressed Deadpool from start to finish.
Before long, Deadpool was boxed in by layer after layer of black sword energy and forced into defeat.
Still, his life was never truly endangered.
At the right moment, the voice of the Will of Blue Star rang out.
[Congratulations! Dragon Nation contestant Zhang Qilin has won and secured entry into the Divine Domain: Forbidden Zone!]
[Miracle Nation contestant Deadpool is defeated and will continue in the next Deathmatch round!]
Whoosh—
A white light flashed, and Zhang Qilin appeared among the fifty seats.
The Dragon Nation contestants nodded to one another—they were natural allies from the start.
Deadpool, on the other hand, had no choice but to continue fighting through the remaining rounds.
Fortunately for him, there were only a few contestants left who could withstand his offense.
After finally taking five straight victories, a white light flashed again.
At last, Deadpool also secured his qualification to enter the Divine Domain and appeared among the fifty.
The moment he sat down, he let out a long breath and said helplessly,
"Zhang Qilin, I didn't expect your ranged attacks to be this strong too. I was careless last time."
"But once we're in the Divine Domain, we have to find a chance to do this again. Next time, I won't give you that kind of opening."
Zhang Qilin only gave a cold nod.
If he could defeat Deadpool once, then he could do it a second time—
or a hundred times.
Back inside the Dreamlike Forest, Adrian and Raven discussed it briefly—
and then, without hesitation, Adrian raised his head and said,
"We choose to accept the final trial."
Crack—!!
Rumble—!!
Thunder exploded across the sky.
The giant azure dragon twisted through the air, its entire body beginning to shine with brilliant green light.
"As you wish."
A massive green beam shot down from the heavens, swallowing both Adrian and Raven whole.
In an instant, the entire livestream turned green.
The next moment, Adrian and Raven found themselves standing in a vast wasteland.
It was an endless stretch of desert and rock, with gusts of wind constantly sweeping yellow sand through the air. Across the entire horizon, not a trace of life could be seen.
Then the azure dragon's voice echoed once more.
"Your task is simple."
"In this sea of yellow sand, find Jason."
"The place where he stands is the place you must reach."
"If you can kill Jason, then you will claim final victory."
"Of course… the power Jason now wields is also extremely formidable."
"Little ones, I wish you luck."
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