Even the people at the judging seats were whispering and simultaneously turning their attention to the seated Wizard Level judges, hoping they could give a definitive conclusion.
The Wizard Level judges pondered for a moment and shook their heads, everyone understood then that Trom had not yet lost, the competition was still ongoing.
But what exactly was happening inside?
In the arena enveloped by darkness—
Asaz lifted his head and looked at the opponent. Given the intensity of the explosion just now, Trom should have been seriously injured or at least affected by it.
Yet when Asaz looked over, he found that Trom had no injuries at all, instead his body was wrapped at some point in a glowing white deerskin with velvet.
This piece of deerskin had completely absorbed the energy of the Demon’s Fire.
When the Demon’s Fire burned out, the deerskin remained completely undamaged.
Seeing this, a flash of surprise crossed Asaz’s eyes: What’s going on?
"I did say, even if it’s just one-thousandth of my power, it couldn’t be so easily neutralized... Ah, I see." A deep and ethereal voice reached Asaz’s ears.
The one speaking was the Demon hidden in the Void—Sebastian.
"What is that?" Asaz asked.
"The fur of an ancient Phantasmal Beasts that lives in the Abyss." Sebastian said.
Since it grows in the Abyss and managed to survive from the ancient times to present day, it indicates one thing: it naturally possesses the power to ward off various dangers of the Abyss. And one of the most common monstrous powers in the Abyss is the Demonic Power.
So it makes sense that this deerskin could ward off Demonic Power.
"With that deerskin, this will be difficult," Asaz frowned, "The Demon’s Fire is ineffective against him, and using Demonic Power attached to his flesh isn’t as strong as his either."
Could this competition only end in defeat? He was somewhat reluctant. Once he secured the top triumph in the newcomer competition, he could then make a request to the upper echelons of the Sky Mechanical City, at which point he could... Asaz didn’t want to think further, because Sebastian could pry into his thoughts.
"My dear Milor, are you under some misunderstanding? Did I ever say that my Demon’s Fire was ineffective against him?" Sebastian’s voice reached Asaz’s ear.
The information in the voice made Asaz envision a demon in black attire, smirking mockingly in the deep darkness.
Asaz shook off the illusion in his mind: "You mean, the Demon’s Fire is effective?"
"Of course, the Demonic Power I lent you was barely one-thousandth of the normal concentration. You can now withstand one percent, by which time even the fur of ancient Phantasmal Beasts will not withstand the burn of this density of Demonic Power."
A gleam of joy flashed in Asaz’s eyes: "Please grant me power."
Sebastian: "I can certainly grant you power, but my dear Milor, haven’t you forgotten something?"
Asaz: "After the competition ends, I will immediately prepare a gourmet sacrifice."
"Good that you haven’t forgotten, but..." Sebastian’s laugh carried a trace of cruelty: "This time, I want a cuisine made from the living, like that little Phantasmal Deer opposite you. I would like to taste what a human merged with ancient Phantasmal Beasts bloodline tastes like."
At the end of his words, a moist sound could be heard, clearly Sebastian licking his lips.
Asaz’s expression immediately darkened: "Impossible!"
"Don’t refuse so quickly. Don’t you really want to win the championship? What you could accomplish with the championship... Isn’t that your wish?" A sinister laugh followed, and then Sebastian’s voice deepened: "Then, wouldn’t you be able to restrain human Wizards from me? Isn’t that your wish?"
Asaz’s expression looked troubled.
"How strange, do you wonder why I would know your wish? You always dare not think about it, which makes me very curious about what you plan to do after winning, so while you were asleep, I quietly probed a little." Sebastian laughed heartily, seemingly unconcerned that Asaz wanted to restrain him.
"Just by defeating him, you can take a crucial step towards your wish, aren’t you looking forward to it?"
"Just need to make him into cuisine... you’ll be one step closer to restraining me, aren’t you tempted? Moreover, it’s just once; I will only taste cuisine made from a living being once."
Asaz coldly said, "Do you think I would believe a demon’s words?"
Sebastian: "Why not believe? I have even exchanged my surname with you... Milor, a name I’ve carried for thousands of years, I’ve now given it to you. Everyone might deceive you, but I wouldn’t."
Asaz sneered, Sebastian could clearly feel that there wasn’t the slightest swaying in Asaz’s heart.
"Your cheap Mentor Tubal at first also vehemently rejected me, but later came into my embrace." Sebastian: "Since you are willing to inherit the contract with me from your Mentor, why not follow your Mentor’s example?"
"It’s precisely because he embraced you that he fled to the Southern Domain, and eventually did not end up dying there."
"But Tubal didn’t regret it until his death." Sebastian: "Having inherited his legacy, you should inherit all his wills as well."
"I will not inherit his will, nor will I ever make humans into culinary sacrifices for you." Asaz: "I’d rather admit defeat."
"If you lose, then you can’t restrain me anymore."
Asaz: "It doesn’t matter, because you can’t be rid of me either. Sebastian... Rowle."
Rowle, once Asaz’s last name, but now exchanged with Sebastian. Thus, when Asaz mentioned Rowle, he felt extremely conflicted.
Sebastian, utterly unconcerned with Asaz’s attitude, simply kept chuckling lightly, his laughter echoing continuously in Asaz’s mind.
Asaz opened his eyes, ignoring Sebastian, and instead looked at Trom across from him.
Although the sly demon had tricked him and did not lend him the Demonic Power, he still had some remnants of Demonic Power within him. Asaz planned to make one more gamble... Trom appeared unscathed, but perhaps he was internally drained, maybe giving Asaz a chance to exploit him?
With this thought, Asaz began to take action.
The previous conversation with Sebastian seemed long, but in reality, it was merely a second or two. Trom was caught off guard by the exploding black-red sphere. Although his deer skin provided some cover, his thoughts were still scattered, allowing Asaz a chance to strike first.
A black-red sphere floated in front of Trom.
Upon seeing the black-red sphere, Trom finally snapped back to his senses, his eyes flickering with fear. He instinctively picked up the deerskin, hoping to avoid another attack from the Demon’s Fire.
However, when the black-red sphere burst open, Trom did not feel the impact. Instead, he smelled a familiar pungent odor.