On the ring, sweat streamed down and left dark marks on the mat.
Mydei's chest heaved violently as he clamped his arms tightly around Phainon's waist, trying to flip him over with brute force.
The initial probing with technique was gone. The grappling on stage had returned to its purest form.
Strength.
A pure contest of strength.
"Ugh... Ah!"
Mydei let out a low roar. His neck turned red. He could feel the pressure from Phainon's arms growing stronger.
"Hmph..."
Phainon let out a muffled grunt, but his eyes remained as calm as an abyss.
Everyone subconsciously held their breath.
Castorice's pen had already stopped moving. She was leaning forward so much that she was almost standing up from her seat.
Inspiration... her inspiration was about to explode!
This wasn't just wrestling. This was a symphony of strength and beauty, a poem of conquest and being conquered!
It was...
[Holy shit, that waist, those legs, those muscles... I declare I have my dream material for tonight.]
[Are these two monsters? It's been ten minutes already and they're still grappling? Do they have that much stamina?]
[I feel my adrenaline surging! Fight! Make it even more intense!]
Backstage, Su Chen silently held his water cup with a calm expression, but the slightly upturned corners of his mouth still betrayed his true feelings.
"Tsk, what a pity. If our team had won, all this hype would have been ours." Sparkle watched with shining eyes from the side, muttering nonstop. "Lock him! Yes! Use your legs to lock his waist! Put some power into it, muscles!"
"Beep——!"
At that moment, a sharp whistle cut through the tense air.
The referee rushed onto the ring and forcibly separated the two who were still tightly entangled.
Mydei and Phainon released each other at the same time. Both were somewhat exhausted. They supported themselves on their knees and panted heavily.
Sweat had soaked their hair and stuck to their foreheads. Their vision was slightly blurred.
Mydei raised his head and looked at Phainon across from him. His eyes no longer contained only fighting spirit — there was now also a trace of recognition between equals.
Phainon also looked back at him and nodded calmly.
The two appreciated each other.
Owlbert wiped the sweat from his forehead and picked up the microphone. "After the final judgment from the referee team! This match ends in a draw between contestant Phainon and contestant Mydei!"
"According to the rules, both will be eliminated at the same time! Let us give a round of applause... to thank both of them for this wonderful match!"
The moment his words fell, the bullet comments erupted in an uproar.
[A draw? Elimination? I can't accept this!]
[Nooo! I haven't seen enough! Can we have a rematch, Director? I'll pay!]
[What a shame, a real shame. I still wanted to see them in the finals.]
[Wuwuwu my muscle CP is gone just like that...]
The sighs of regret hadn't lasted long before Owlbert announced the next match.
"Next, let us welcome the second group of the upper bracket onto the stage! They are — Feixiao from the Feixiao Team! And Acheron from the Acheron Team!"
The moment Owlbert finished speaking, the direction of the live stream comments did a complete 180-degree turn.
[Holy shit! Feixiao versus Acheron?]
[Women... women fighting?]
[Hehe... hehehe... I love watching women fight the most!]
[Questioning Zi Qiao, understanding Zi Qiao, becoming Zi Qiao!]
[The person above is not right in the head! But... I like it too, hehe.]
Under everyone's expectant gaze, Feixiao walked onto the ring with steady steps.
Today she was wearing a cyan long windbreaker, looking valiant and heroic.
She walked to the center of the ring, neatly tied her long hair into a clean high ponytail, and then, under everyone's gaze, stylishly removed her windbreaker.
Underneath was a form-fitting cyan sports tank top.
Smooth arm lines, firm shoulder and back muscles, and a near-perfect set of abs that faintly showed — all revealed under the spotlight.
It was a kind of beauty filled with power, yet without losing feminine grace.
[Aaaaaah Feixiao General!!! I can!!!]
[That physique! Those muscle lines! General, kill me!]
[I declare, Feixiao is my one and only big sister! Who agrees? Who objects?]
[Who can resist this?! Even as a girl, I'm about to get a nosebleed!]
Feixiao flexed her wrists and neck. Her gaze was sharp as she prepared for battle.
However.
One minute passed.
Three minutes passed.
Five minutes passed.
The other side of the ring remained completely empty.
Acheron had not arrived.
[??? What's going on? Where's Acheron?]
[Did she forfeit? Is she scared?]
[Impossible. Acheron's character setting would never be scared. There must be some accident.]
[I'm dying of anxiety. Are they fighting or not? Director, cut to the Acheron Team's camera! Let's see what Silver Wolf's expression is!]
— —
At the same time.
Inside a lounge at the Penacony Grand Theater, the atmosphere was completely different from the main venue.
Inside the room, the only sound was the crisp clacking of mahjong tiles.
"Hahahahahaha!" Skott looked at the tiles in front of him and suddenly burst into maniacal laughter.
"I told you, ever since I started playing mahjong with you three, I haven't won a single round! My luck has finally turned!"
With trembling hands, he drew a tile from the wall, glanced at it, and then erupted into even louder laughter.
"Hahahahahaha! Pure suit — one dragon! Self-draw! I self-drew!!!"
He excitedly slammed the tile onto the table, preparing to enjoy the peak joy of victory in his life.
The next moment.
"Bang——!!!"
The thick wooden door of the lounge was violently kicked open from the outside.
The mahjong table lost its balance and flipped over. Tiles scattered everywhere.
Skott's mouth hung wide open. The tile in his hand had yet to fall.
Qingque, Fu Xuan, and Jing Yuan all turned their gazes toward the doorway.
Acheron stood there with a blank expression, staring at the door she had just kicked open.
Behind her stood a cameraman carrying a camera, looking even more lost.
"Where the hell is this? How did I end up here?"
Acheron slowly turned her head and looked at the four petrified people inside the room.
"May I ask... do any of you know where the competition venue is?"