Zhang Wei's sharp gaze fell upon Feng Qiang, a smug smile playing on his lips as he beckoned her. "Come up here; your luck has run out."

Undeterred, Feng Qiang met his gaze with determination, striding confidently towards the stage. However, before she could reach it, a reassuring hand landed on her shoulder. She turned around and saw Eli Shan standing there, a confident grin on his face.

"Don't worry about him; leave him to me. I've been itching for some action. If I don't move now, I might as well die of boredom right here." His words, delivered with a casual confidence, eased some of the tension in the air.

Feng Qiang turned her gaze to the headmaster, who offered a reassuring smile and a nod, silently indicating that she could leave the situation to Eli Shan to handle.

Meeting Eli Shan's casual gaze, Feng Qiang nodded with a smile. "Don't kill him."

Eli Shan nodded back. "Don't worry, I won't." He strode confidently toward the fighting stage, his black dress with a grand collar flowing in the air.

As all eyes turned to Eli Shan, shock rippled through the onlookers.

"Holy school is sending a 25th-ranked guy to fight against Zhang Wei?"

"Maybe he's a burden now, and they just want to eliminate him?"

"Yeah, but I don't think Zhang Wei would leave him in one piece if he really faced him."

"Maybe the Holy School wants to test Zhang Wei's strength before sending their strongest participant, Feng Qiang?"

Among the audience, Eli Shan's parents displayed a mix of happiness and worry. Their child was on stage, but the opponent he was about to face was renowned as the strongest student.

Soon, Eli Shan stood on the arena. As he entered, his handsome confident face and black flowing dress caught the attention of all the students too.

When the students of the holy school, who had been eliminated from the tournament and were watching the battles from the first floor, saw Eli Shan finally making a move, excitement surged through their minds, and cheers erupted from their location.

"Big Brother Eli Shan beat him to a pulp!"

"Show him the power of the holy school, Big Brother Eli Shan!"

"Big brother Eli Shan, beat him like you had beaten me like a dog."

Hearing these cheers, confused murmurs spread among the onlookers. Why were they cheering for Eli Shan? Wasn't he just an average student?

Hearing the cheers, the crowd continued to be puzzled. However, Eli Shan's parents felt a surge of happiness as they also joined in.

"Son, show them that you are my son!"

"Honey, do you want him to lose by showing that he is your son?"

......

Inside the arena, Zhang Wei erupted with the peak stage of the Zun realm. The overwhelming cultivation sent a palpable pressure, causing even the distant audience to feel its weight.

Zhang Wei looked down at Eli Shan, his anger evident. "Kid, I don't like fighting against weak people. So get out of my sight and you will be spared from the pain."

Eli Shan casually stood in the middle of the pressure and turned toward Feng Qiang to ask, "Hey, Feng Qiang, was this the tournament of argument?"

Feng Qiang curled up her lips in amusement. "No, this is the tournament of strength."

Eli Shan nodded, turning his gaze back to Zhang Wei. "Did you hear? We're not here to chit-chat or warn others. Just come at me if you're not scared. Dumbass!"

Hearing Eli Shan, the audience burst into laughter, especially the students of Holy School. Even Hao Yu couldn't help but smirk. "This guy has a sharp tongue, as always."

Seeing that Eli Shan was making fun of him, Zhang Wei's eyes turned red in anger as he furiously declared, "You... You will regret it!"

He took a thunderous step forward, cracking the heavy floor with his bare foot, and threw a punch toward Eli Shan.

The punch was so strong that, even before it landed, the pressure emanating from it changed the expression of the audience. It wasn't even the blink of an eye but a collective thought gripped the mind of onlookers—No one could save Eli Shan anymore!

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Feeling pity for Eli Shan, everyone instinctively closed their eyes, a collective shudder passing through the onlookers. Especially the girls—they couldn't bear to witness a guy as handsome as Eli Shan dying through this brutal punch, a punch which was strong enough to send shivers down their spines even though they were so far away.

The students of the Holy School, however, were undeterred by the clash. Instead of recoiling, their cheers grew louder, excitement radiating from them like a palpable wave. The thrill of the confrontation seemed to intensify their enthusiasm as if they were sure who would be the absolute victor.

In a split second, just as the fist was about to make contact with Eli Shan's face, he simply grinned and casually waved his hand.

Suddenly, a mysterious dark sword aura burst forth from Eli Shan, covering the entire fighting stage in shadows. People, including the king on his throne, strained to see what was happening inside, but no matter what they did, they couldn't see anything under the impenetrable darkness!

When their eyes failed them, they attempted to use their spiritual awareness to understand the situation. Their spiritual consciousness came out of their body and went inside the darkness engulfing the fighting stage. But to their surprise, once their spiritual consciousness entered the dark aura, it was as if a veil had descended upon their senses. Not only were they unable to perceive anything, but there was also an unsettling sensation as if the very fabric of their spiritual consciousness was on the verge of being torn apart.

In an instant, everyone retracted their spiritual consciousness, their faces marked by horror and disbelief.

No one could fathom what transpired inside that mysterious darkness.

Even the king was caught off guard. He tried his best to find what kind of technique was it, but to no available.

Soon, the sword intent dissipated from the fighting stage, revealing a sight that was hard to believe.

Zhang Wei, hailed as the strongest among the junior fighters, lay on the stage with millions of cuts on his body. Looking at his condition, it was nearly impossible to imagine what he had endured inside the dark aura. Although he was still alive due to Eli Shan's mercy but he would require several months of bed rest to recover.

Silence...

Eli Shan stood alone, surveying the stunned crowd from the elevated stage.

A hush fell over everyone.

The entire arena seemed to hold its breath.

Then, as if a spell had been broken, the silence shattered into an uproar.

"Whoa!"

"He is so cool!"

"Will you marry me?"

"Look, look, he is my son!"

Shocked and delighted voices filled the air. The guy they were neglecting till the end, defeated the strongest candidate of the tournament? It was hard for anyone to believe.

The headmaster took a step forward, breaking through the noise, and declared proudly, "He is the real king of the Holy School."

Eli Shan's parents, who had been watching the battle from above, embraced each other, tears of joy streaming down their faces.

Huang Shan scanned the crowd, his demeanor smug. "Look, he is my son."

Yui Shan, equally smug, chimed in, "Yes, yes, he is my son."

A woman sitting nearby interrupted, "Huh, what are you saying? He is my son."

Huang Shan's expression suddenly darkened.

Yui Shan shot a sly smile at Huang Shan. "Is that so? You never told me about it."

Eli Shan, standing proudly in the arena, glanced at his parents. A playful smile formed on his face as he watched his mother, Yui Shan, biting Huang Shan's hand in jest.

Eli Shan smiled at the amusing spectacle, and soon, his parents regained their composure, beaming at him with starry-eyed pride.

Then, Eli Shan cast a sly smile down at the defeated Zhang Wei, his words dripping with confidence, "You were right; let's wipe out some weak schools." Then, he turned his attention toward the Great Heaven School, the school Zhang Wei hailed from, and challenged them with a shout, "Come at me, all of you!"

After days of intense battles, only ten students remained standing in the Great Heaven School. They looked at Eli Shan and felt that in the fight between him and Zhang Wei, Eli Shan hadn't used his full power.

But what could they do? Either they run away with tails between their legs or fight against Eli Shan to prove themselves!

Hearing Eli Shan's challenge, the host, still recovering from the shock, appeared on the stage and called out to the remaining students of the Great Heaven School, "Do you guys accept the challenge?"

Well... The Great Heaven School chose the second option. "We will fight!" They announced and with determination on their face, one after another appeared on the stage.

However, their determination soon turned to dismay as Eli Shan stood atop a pile of defeated opponents, casually remarking, "Weakass."

He jumped down from the stage and cast a glance at Lin Feng. Lin Feng met with his glance as his lips curled up, whispering, "I need to fight against him, otherwise I'll die from loneliness!"

Soon, as the top three schools left, Lin Feng went ahead and wiped out another school. "Weak people, not really worth my time."

Instantly, the host reappeared on the stage, capturing everyone's attention. With a resolute tone, he declared, "Now, the third-rank school will be Great Heaven School, and the rankings below them have already been decided. The main event is about to begin for the top spot between Rock Dragon School and Holy School."

A wave of joy swept through the crowd. In the Holy School resting area, Feng Qiang glanced at her headmaster, she saw tears streaming down his face, accompanied by muttered words of joy, "Finally, our old prestige is back. We can return to the times when our school was number one."

Similar emotions ran high in the headmaster of Earth Dragon School.

"Let the final battle begin!"

With that, the host left the fighting stage, leaving Lin Feng alone on the fighting stage. He turned towards the Holy School and smiled like a maniac, "Eli Shan, I can't wait anymore! Please come here and fight me, or I won't be able to sleep tonight!"

Eli Shan, standing with his headmaster, locked his eyes with Lin Feng. He looked at him as if he was looking at his long-lost lover. A broad smile, revealing all his teeth and grinning like a madman. "Don't worry, even I haven't been able to sleep either."

In a sudden blur, Eli Shan vanished from his position. The next moment, the sound of a fist collision spread through the arena. The stage, constructed from one of the strongest metals, shattered into pieces and the shockwave created by the collision, changed the expression of the onlooker.

With their fist against each other, Eli Shan and Lin Feng laughed together, as if they could read each other thoughts.

Looking into Eli Shan's eyes which were filled with madness, Lin Feng expressed himself with excitement, "With just a glance, I understood how lonely you were, because I am the same."

Eli Shan chuckled in response, "Yeah, you're right! So, let's fight to our heart's content!"