As the Demonic Grizzly Bear closed the distance, the Demonic Mantis Shrimp launched itself with astounding speed, evading the bear's initial swipe. With a swift and powerful motion, it struck the bear's side with one of its club-like arms. The impact was like a thunderclap, sending shockwaves through the air. The grizzly bear stumbled, surprised by the sheer force of the shrimp's strike. Although its beast tamer had warned about the shrimp's powerful smash, the force exceeded its expectations.
The grizzly bear, ignoring the pain, retaliated with a massive paw swipe, aiming to crush the mantis shrimp. However, nothing escaped the extraordinary eyes of the mantis shrimp as it dodged the blow and countered with another rapid strike, this time targeting the bear's leg. The bear roared in pain as the mantis shrimp's blow cracked its bone.
The crowd watched in awe as the battle unfolded, the mantis shrimp's relentless assault gradually wearing down the grizzly bear. The bear's movements grew slower and more labored, each strike from the mantis shrimp injured it significantly. Bloodied and battered, the bear made one last desperate charge.
With a final burst of speed, the mantis shrimp dodged the bear's charge and delivered a decisive blow to the bear's head. The impact was staggering, and the bear collapsed, unable to withstand the mantis shrimp's relentless onslaught. It was just too strong.
"Fisherwomen wins!" The announcer ended the match.
The previous two tournaments' champion, the Demonic Mantis Shrimp won overwhelmingly again.
There was nothing Kael Stormfang could do to help his spirit beast in that fight at all. He was relieved when checked on his grizzly bear. It was barely alive. He thought that the last strike had killed it. He sighed. Both he and his sister lost in this round. He thought they could become the champion this time.
The mantis shrimp quickly returned to Fisherwomen and she got back to her seat while staring at Leyvi. Although they had just won, she couldn't be happy at the moment. She didn't expect the man who showed interest in her today would be her final opponent.
Usually, she didn't really fear any beast tamer, but this time she was troubled by her opponent, Leyvi, or to be specific, the Demonic Bison. She had observed the bison's fights closely and knew it had some kind of terrifying ability to deflect damage back at its enemy on top of being extremely sturdy.
Because of this, this time, she didn't have any confidence to win. Her mantis shrimp's powerful smash would be its own downfall. She didn't mind losing, but not this time. She needed the first-place prize, the newly designed beast tamer ring artifact to help her mantis shrimp become a high-level demonic beast.
"Maybe if I flashed my private parts more, he would let me win? Hmm... there's no way, right? What if I trade something for the ring? Hmm... I have nothing to trade. Reddie found many unique things, but I sold them off already for money and cultivation resources. Haaa.....why is my life so hard....." Fisherwomen was talking to herself.
During the break between the rounds, she thought hard about a strategy to win against Mr. Bison but nothing useful came up.
"Ladies and gentlemen, it is night right now, and it's about time to start our final round! We shall begin with the fight between the Stormfang siblings, Lira Stormfang versus Kael Stormfang!" The announcer spoke with a lot of hype.
"I admit defeat!"
Huh? What?? What's going on here? Why admit defeat? Give us the fight. The crowd was surprised and disappointed by the sudden voice.
It was Lira Stormfang. She had surrendered without fighting. To her, there was no reason to fight for the third place. They both came from the same clan so it doesn't matter who wins the third prize. Although it would disappoint many people, she didn't care.
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The announcer was flustered, "Miss Lira Stormfang, are you sure you want to do this?"
"Yes, I concede the third place to Kael. I have no interest in fighting him. Let's get on with the final round," Lira said firmly, turning away from the arena.
The crowd murmured in disbelief, but the announcer had no choice but to accept her decision. "Very well, then we shall proceed to the final match! Ladies and gentlemen, welcome the champions of the previous tournaments, Fisherwomen, and our newcomer, Leyvi Leyan, the dark horse of the tournament, winning every match with his two spirit beasts! A Demonic Red Fox and a Demonic Bison!"
Contrary to everyone's expectations, Leyvi summoned Stripey, his small Demonic Monkey, as he intended to lose the fight. What he wanted was the metallic durian, the second-place prize. Although he was tempted to get the first place prize, the Beast Tamer Qi-Sharing Pair Rings, fulfilling his promise to his wife was more important. He doesn't want another one of his wives to give him the silent treatment. Wait, Lilian had always been silent because she was mute.
Fisherwomen's expression was a mix of shock and confusion. She had studied every move of Mr. Bison in the previous rounds and had thought of a somewhat countermeasure for his reflective body just a few moments ago. Now, with a small and seemingly weak monkey standing before her, she didn't know how to react. The crowd was equally baffled, murmurs of "What's he playing at?" and "Is he throwing the match?" spread through the coliseum.
Stripey was originally a small monkey, to begin with. Even after he became a demonic beast, he still retains his original size, refusing to grow bigger of his own volition. He could grow bigger if he wanted to like any other demonic beast, but he just chose not to. He preferred being small and avoiding fighting.
Stripey's eyes grew wider from all the eyes on him, and the banana in his tiny hand slipped from his grip, landing on the arena floor with a soft thud. The crowd's murmurs grew louder as they watched the absurdity unfold.
"Umm Boss, do I really have to fight?" Stripey asked his tamer, his eyes wide with apprehension.
"Do your best, Stripey," Leyvi said with a firm nod, a smirk playing on his lips. He knew that the little demonic monkey was not a fighter, but he just wanted to see what he would do in a situation like this and train him accordingly later.
The crowd waited in anticipation for the fight to begin, and when the announcer's voice boomed through the coliseum, Stripey took a deep breath and faced the mantis shrimp with as much courage as he could muster. Fisherwomen, on the other hand, looked at the small Stripey with confusion. Was this really his final trump card? No no. She couldn't underestimate Leyvi.
As the mantis shrimp approached, its intimidating eyes locking onto Stripey, the monkey's expression grew paler. It was a stare that could freeze a river in the middle of summer. Stripey tried to stand his ground, but his knees began to wobble, and the banana in his hand slipped away again. He looked so tiny compared to the towering mantis shrimp.
The crowd held their breaths, expecting an unexpected twist to the battle. Fisherwomen's mind raced, trying to understand why Leyvi would bring such a seemingly weak spirit beast to the finals. But before she could act, Stripey's eyes rolled back, and with a faint squeak, he crumpled to the ground, unconscious.
Stripey fainted from the stress. The atmosphere in the coliseum shifted from excitement to disbelief. Some even chuckled, assuming it was a ploy or a dramatic act. The mantis shrimp hovered over Stripey, unsure what to do with its opponent's sudden and unexpected action.
Leyvi had his palm on his face. He knew Stripey was a coward but he didn't expect for him to faint right away. It seemed that he had been neglecting Stripey too much. He needed some real training.
The crowd grew restless and some of them started to boo. They had been looking forward to an intense final battle, but what they got was the most ridiculous they ever witnessed. Not only the fight for the third place didn't happen, even the final match was a joke. The announcer looked at the unconscious monkey and the victorious mantis shrimp, unsure how to proceed.
"Hahaha! I lost! Miss Fisherwomen, congratulations. You are the champion again." Leyvi laughed about it and congratulated her with a big smile. This was the outcome he wanted anyway so he didn't mind. As for the audience? Who cares about them? They could be angry all they wanted.
Fisherwomen looked at the unconscious small monkey and then at the smiling Leyvi. She couldn't believe it. Did he throw the match? Did he do this because of her earlier teases? She blushed deeply, feeling a mix of embarrassment and arousal. She didn't expect Leyvi would intentionally lose to her because of that. What a nice guy. For some reason, the more she looked at Leyvi, the more charming he became.
Oh no, what's happening to her?
The announcer had no choice but to declare Fisherwomen the winner of the final round, as Stripey was out cold and didn't seem to be waking up anytime soon. The audience was a mix of confusion and annoyance. Some were shouting for a refund, while others just laughed at the ridiculousness of the whole situation.