Stark silence reigned over the arena as the spectators stared at Rao Wu, Lu Lin, and Aeriole in disbelief. What the hell just happened!? One second, Aeriole appeared to be the definite winner, but then she suddenly lost out of nowhere? Could someone please explain this!?

"I... I don't believe this." The announcer was the fastest to recover, his voice pulling the audience back to reality. "Do my eyes deceive me? Aeriole Von Basten, the Phoenix Princess, has fallen! We have a winner! At one hundred to ninety-nine victories, the savage child, Rao Wu, has won this competition for the monsters!"

Following the announcer's shout, the stadium erupted in a massive uproar as some cheered, booed, or screamed in joy or rage. The audience had already taken Rao Wu's loss as fact, so the announcement was like a sledgehammer to their expectations.

"Haha! I'm rich! Rich!" Some audience members who bet on the monsters' victory celebrated their tremendous wins, whereas many more lamented their unforeseen loss.

Rao Wu, oblivious to the audience's feelings, looked at Lu Lin with a pleased smile as he resonated with her soul. "Whoa. You evolved? You're noble-rank now." That's right. Lu Lin had broken through to noble-rank and was at Third Phase, Second Stage. Her advancement had stalled somewhat, but Rao Wu did not mind, because her evolution more than made up for it.

Lu Lin warmly smiled as she bent down and inspected Rao Wu's injuries. "Master is in such a state because of me. I should have awakened earlier. My apologies, master."

"Heh, nonsense," Rao Wu weakly shook his head as he lay within the flowerbed. His body was racked with immense pain. It felt like someone was simultaneously stabbing thousands of needles into his skin. Having felt it once, Rao Wu knew this was the backlash for using Overdrive. At least he did not pass out this time—a significant improvement.

Rao Wu looked at Lu Lin with a hint of regret. "You could have evolved again if you didn't wake up. Sorry for wasting your opportunity." Although Rao Wu was happy he won, he was not sure the trade-off was worth it. Lu Lin had been gathering the seed's energy over the past few months for one final push to evolve once again.

The Dryad would have succeeded in a few more days, but she then unleashed all that energy as soon as she awakened. That was the only reason Lu Lin could unleash an attack capable of binding an emperor-rank existence. However, this meant Lu Lin would have to seek out another fruititous encounter to break through to monarch.

The world was vast, and such encounters were plenty, but the chances of running into one were surprisingly low. Only the truly lucky, blessed, or brave managed to encounter these.

"Mm-mm." Lu Lin shook her head as she warmly smiled, "This is for the best. We got to repay your Uncle Twilight and Aunt Midnight just a little for raising you. There will be many more chances to evolve, but there might not be another chance to do something like this for them."

"I honestly hope there isn't," Xian Da grumbled as he trudged up to Lu Lin and Rao Wu. An acrid smell wafted off his burnt fur, revealing terrible burns on his skin. "I don't want to fight this kind of unreasonable monster again."

Rao Wu chuckled and then winked at Xian Da. "We'll have to face many more unreasonable monsters, though. We can't become Emperors without those kinds of fights."

"Ugh, don't remind me." Xian Da snorted and then looked at Lu Lin. "Welcome back, Lu. Thanks for the assist. You saved us back there."

Lu Lin chuckled and then bowed her head. "Thank you for protecting master as long as you did. I was able to rest easy knowing you and Ju Tu were watching over master."

Rao Wu, suddenly feeling a headache, grimaced and said, "There's someone angry at being left out."

Lu Lin, realizing her mistake, laughed, and then corrected herself, "Sorry, Raven. I'm thankful to you, too."

After the rascal relaxed, Rao Wu shook his head and then looked at the unconscious Aeriole. "She should be fine, right? I didn't hold back because she's strong."

"Let me see her."

Rao Wu looked up at the woman who suddenly cast a shadow over them. The strange dark-skinned woman was about six-foot tall and had prominent purple eyes. An unlit cigarette was wedged between her thin lips, which were pressed in a thin smile. Her white clothes looked stylish and expensive, but most eye-catching was the white scarf tied around her neck. There were splotches of red on the scarf that looked like bloodstains, but it was hard to tell at first glance.

"Hey, kid! I'm talking to you!"

"Ah, sorry." Rao Wu immediately apologized as he released Aeriole. The armband on the strange woman's right arm identified her as a medic, though Rao Wu had not seen her in the previous few rounds.

As if pleased by Rao Wu's actions, the woman nodded and then said, "Good. You are not as dull as you look. Now, let's see here." The woman placed her palm on Aeriole's head and then sent her soul energy into the young girl's body to inspect it. Within moments, the woman quickly retracted her palm and then belched out a clump of flames. Her lips curled in a sneer as she glared at Aeriole, "That damned stingy phoenix. I'm only checking if she's alright. Must you be so hostile all the time!?"

The woman paused to take a breath and then looked at the confused Rao Wu. "Don't worry, kid. You're vicious enough, but she'll be fine. She just needs a few hours rest to recover her soul energy." She then lifted Aeriole and unceremoniously draped the child over her shoulder. "Ah, my name's Kama," she revealed as she looked at Rao Wu. "You look like the type that gets injured a lot. Who knows, you might require my services soon.'

With those words, the woman left with Aeriole, finally allowing the referee to step in front of Rao Wu.

The middle-aged man wore a wry smile as he looked at the injured child. To think he actually won. The referee sighed and then asked, "Can you stand? I need to declare the winner officially."

Rao Wu groaned, but then rolled off the flowerbed and stood up with Lu Lin's support. With a weak smile, he looked at the referee and asked, "Is this good enough? I don't think I can stand on my own."

The referee chuckled as he grabbed Rao Wu's left hand. "That's just fine." He then raised Rao Wu's hand and shouted, "The Eternal Spring Competition has finally concluded, with the monsters' victory! Everyone give a hand to this young man for overcoming the odds!"

"Whooo!" Most of the audience cheered in joy and elation, having finally gotten over their initial shock. Indeed, the underdog story was always more entertaining. Plus, these trainers had no personal stake in the Eternal Spring. Whether 70:30 or 30:70, the profits would not come their way but rather be swallowed up by the more prominent clans.

In a way, Rao Wu's victory felt like the satisfying slap many wished they could bestow unto the larger clans and royal family themselves.

On the podium, Twilight's eyes watered with pride as he watched the child below. Yes, this was how it should be. The son of Rao Taylor was destined to stand head and shoulder above his peers. This was only the beginning. In the future, countless more would venerate the name Rao Wu.

Twilight turned to look at the arrogant Bu Lu, but the young prince was nowhere in sight to his shock. Sensing something wrong, Twilight quickly turned back to the arena. "Rraff!" Twilight's enraged bark caused the podium to tremble when he saw Bu Lu standing in front of Rao Wu. It did not take a genius to know the prince's intentions.

Bang! Twilight and Midnight made to jump out of the podium, but they struck a formidable, translucent barrier. Enraged, Twilight turned to Hao Ranhui and barked, "[The hell do you think you're doing!?]"

Hao Ranhui sneered as he glared at Twilight and Midnight. He waved a finger, and twenty soldiers poured into the closed-off podium and trained their rifles at the Star Dusklight Wolves.

The Soul Society representative's fingers clenched her armrest as she turned to glare at Hao Ranhui. "What exactly are you doing right now?"

Hao Ranhui, not daring to offend this woman, quickly adopted a meek expression as he stated, "It's only for security, madam. The soul monsters have expressed killing intent towards the kingdom's royalty. Protocol demands they be held for questioning."

"You will do no such thing," the representative coldly replied. "This is a friendly competition with Soul Society's reputation on the line. I will not have you cause an incident that could tarnish the organization's name." She tapped on the armrest and then looked at Midnight and Twilight. "That said, I did feel your killing intent. You will wait here until I resolve your issue with the Second Prince."

Midnight gritted her teeth in anger and frustration, but Twilight looked at the veiled representative with a strange glare. Eventually, he snorted and then calmed Midnight as he turned to look at the arena grounds. 'Let's see what you're planning.'

Meanwhile, within the arena grounds, a weak Rao Wu frowned when an unfamiliar young man suddenly appeared in front of him. He did not know why, but the man's face pissed him off. Rao Wu had never felt this kind of instinctive rejection to anyone, so he was momentarily puzzled.

"Congratulations on winning the competition," Bu Lu's calm voice echoed around the arena's speakers, causing the spectators to strain their ears in anticipation. "Your display of bravery and strength is a shining example for the next generation." He then shook his head and said with a sad smile, "Alas, this world is too dangerous for a hybrid child like yourself. What do you say? Would you like to be contracted to me?"

"What!? The Second Prince wants to contract that hybrid!?"

"Wow! Talk about ascending to the highest heights in one go. From Jungle Boy to a prince's contracted. Who has ever heard of such luck?"

The audience clamored as they rapidly processed the Second Prince's invitation. No one found it weird that the Second Prince wanted to contract a minor. Most humans viewed hybrids as tools to expand their soul pets rather than beings with their own will. So, it was only right that Rao Wu be contracted to the high-ranking Second Prince. If anything, the crowd envied Rao Wu's 'luck.'

However, at least one person did not appreciate the Second Prince's offer.

"No. I'm good." Rao Wu shook his head and casually waved his arm. "I want to walk my own path."

Second Prince Bu Lu's smile turned stiff as he glared at Rao Wu. He then tapped his collar and then said, "Stupid child. I gave you a chance, but you refused the toast. Now, you'll be forced to drink a forfeit."

"Huh?" Rao Wu cocked his head to the side in confusion.

Bu Lu's smile returned as he tapped his collar once more and then said, "You made the right decision. However, since you do not know the contract, I will perform a temporary slave contract to protect you from those who would seek to harm you."

Rao Wu frowned as he looked at Bu Lu. "Are you deaf? I said no."

Unfortunately, Bu Lu had used Rao Wu's lack of experience against him. The Second Prince used a soul technique to isolate the sounds ten meters around himself from those outside. He transmitted his voice via a microphone attached to his collar, but the sensitive equipment did not pick up Rao Wu's voice.

Hence, the crowd could only use context clues to judge what was happening.

If Rao Wu were more experienced, he would have learned a soul technique to sense the fluctuations of a soul technique being used in his vicinity. But, such was life. Often, a child only grew up after experiencing the negative repercussions of their ignorance or actions.

Bu Lu's lips curled in a sinister smirk looked at Rao Wu. He switched off his mic and then said, "Your insolence knows no bounds. We'll fix that shortly." Bu Lu raised his hand and placed his thumb on Rao Wu's forehead.

Rao Wu knew this was the process to begin the soul slave contract. However, surprisingly, neither he, Xian Da, or Lu Lin reacted. In fact, they sneered at Bu Lu with stark ridicule like he was the biggest idiot.

Bu Lu, believing this to be a youth's ignorant arrogance, sneered at the child as he began the incantation. A summoning circle broke out of his hand and then wrapped around Rao Wu's head. The ring then descended to Rao Wu's chest and began constricting as if to bind his heart.

Just as the ring was about to disappear into Rao Wu's chest, he looked up at Bu Lu and flashed a grim smirk. "Try not to die, alright?"

Bu Lu, sensing grave danger, wanted to stop the contract, but it was too late.

Boom!

Rampant, violent soul energy exploded out of Rao Wu once the ring touched his heart. For a brief moment, the arena caught sight of a muddy silhouette and hundreds of chains, which promptly disappeared before anyone could confirm the sight.

Bu Lu, meanwhile, crashed to the ground, frothing at the mouth as the tyrannical soul energy ran amok in his body. He suffered severe damage to his soul channels, and the energy even destroyed a few soul spaces, resulting in instant death for the soul pets housed there.

Rao Wu coldly smirked as the stadium erupted in another uproar—this time for a completely different reason. "Serves you right."

"Idiot." Xian Da seconded as he glared at the crumpled prince. "You want to contract Rao Wu? You're a thousand years too early for that!"