Ron adjusted his breathing lightly, quickly contemplating several possible strategies in his mind.
He immediately transmitted his thoughts to Dale with Spiritual Power:
"Maintain distance, don’t take the initiative to attack. The true strength of this Scorpion far exceeds what it appears; for now, we’ll only perform long-range harassment and wait for the right moment."
Dale nodded gently, showing absolute trust in her master’s judgment.
On the high platform, Hayek’s voice rang out again: "Finals, begin."
With the command, the Magic Chains suddenly disappeared, and the Scorpion wobbled its massive body, seemingly still adjusting to the abrupt return of its freedom.
Its movements were sluggish, and its gaze remained muddled, but Ron caught an unusual detail:
The energy flow within that huge body was gradually accelerating, like a volcano about to awaken.
The participants did not act immediately, all cautiously observing the terrifying creature.
The air was filled with an almost palpable tension, as if an invisible string had been pulled to its limit.
After a moment of silence, one participant standing at the front took the initiative to attack.
He was a short but muscular Intermediate Apprentice, with a conceited smile on his face, clearly confident in his combat abilities.
"I’ll go first!"
He directed the six-armed Otherworld creature to charge fiercely at the Scorpion, while he quickly constructed a Magic Model and unleashed a series of fireballs.
This seemed to be a signal, and the other participants soon began to act.
A tall participant controlled a composite creature of shells and tentacles, launching acid from afar;
Another manipulated an insect creature with several pairs of wings, constantly harassing the Scorpion’s view.
Various spells and energy attacks rained down on the Scorpion, turning the battlefield chaotic and sending energy fluctuations rippling everywhere.
The Scorpion’s attention was drawn by an apprentice with a Lizardman, its tail raised high like a deadly scythe.
The apprentice was panic-stricken, but his Lizardman Slave reacted quickly, stepping forward to shield with its Scale Armor against the first blow.
Taking advantage of the moment, various chaotic attacks struck its huge body, though the creature simply flipped over with indifference.
Holt’s Earth Elemental Golem advanced steadily, each step causing the ground to quake slightly.
Ron knew Holt initially joined the Candidate Wizard ranks as part of the Law Enforcement Team, his combat experience notably extensive.
Perhaps he chose the Earth Elemental Golem for its versatility, with its only drawback being relatively slow speed, but otherwise without weaknesses.
The Earth Elemental Golem was massive and sturdy, even taller than the half-crouching Scorpion.
At this moment, the advantage of choosing the Golem immediately became apparent: its body made of Earth Element is completely immune to toxins, making it the ideal choice against the Scorpion.
The giant stone fist struck directly at the Scorpion’s head, producing a dull thud, yet only causing the giant beast to jolt its head.
"The Earth Elemental Golem indeed was a wise choice for this duel."
Ron continued analyzing, while also focusing on the Scorpion’s reactions.
The opponent’s choice was undoubtedly well thought out, but whether this frontal assault tactic could be consistently effective remains to be seen.
Trish and Li Yue opted for guerilla tactics, with the speed and agility of the Leopard Girl being her greatest advantage.
Ron noticed that the brown-haired girl’s gaze briefly rested on Dale, seemingly contemplating whether to offer assistance.
But soon, she shook her head and turned in another direction.
In such competition, even friends must first consider their own interests.
Compared to Cynthia, Li Yue appeared more nimble in battling the Half-beastman, her form shimmering like a phantom, inflicting tearing damage on the Scorpion repeatedly.
Her precise claw strikes hit the Scorpion’s joints, each attack drawing a small amount of blood, then swiftly retreating to dodge the lazy counterattacks.
The audience in the stands began to buzz with discussions, most gazes focused on the participants taking the initiative in their attacks.
In contrast, Ron and Dale’s conservative strategy seemed particularly conspicuous—or perhaps, attracted some disappointed looks.
"Look at that Alchemist, truly only dares to hide behind."
"Haha, what kind of display can an Alchemist have in battle? Him reaching the finals is a miracle itself."
"His slave is a Sea Siren, right? What can it even do in this kind of land battle?"
Disregarding the idle chatter from the stands, Ron at this moment remained calmly observing the shifts in the battlefield.
In his view, those eager to showcase themselves were the truly ignorant ones.
Through Extraordinary Recognition, he already knew the danger this Scorpion posed.
Making a rash move would only make oneself the first batch of sacrifices.
In front of the Scorpion, those contestants who charged forward seemed to find confidence.
Although the monster was massive, its movements were sluggish, seeming not fully awake yet, with almost no effective defense against the many attacks.
Its counterattacks appeared fierce, but its slow speed allowed most combat slaves to easily evade them.
The first six-armed creature from the Otherworld to charge in, under its master’s control, climbed onto the Scorpion’s back with six arms simultaneously gripping the vital points, trying to subdue the beast with the Strangulation Technique.
Its master shouted triumphantly from the side: "See that? This monster is nothing to fear!"
For a moment, the scene presented a spectacle where the contestants seemed to have the upper hand.
Holt’s Earth Elemental Golem moved in without hesitation, its massive stone fists pounding the beast’s body repeatedly, producing dull thudding sounds.
The Scorpion’s poison sting retaliated, but every strike was easily blocked by the golem’s rocky body, rendering the toxin ineffective against the lifeless Elemental Body.
Trish and Li Yue watched the situation from the sidelines, seemingly assessing whether to engage more deeply in the battle.
Their eyes occasionally glanced towards Ron, clearly wondering what the companion who has remained observant was plotting.
"Trish!" Ron suddenly called out from afar, warning: "The Scorpion is not fully awake yet, don’t get too close!"
Trish was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, looking over with a complex expression.
She seemed to be contemplating whether to trust Ron’s warning, as in this gladiatorial contest, everyone was for themselves, and no one truly considered others.
After a moment’s thought, she ultimately chose to act cautiously, signaling Li Yue to keep some distance, using the dart tied to her thigh for harassment rather than recklessly getting close like the other contestants’ slaves.
Ron understood her mindset—in this gladiatorial contest, they were all competitors.
She couldn’t entirely trust others, even if they had a good private relationship.
Such a mindset was common in the Wizard World; Ron was long accustomed to it.
Amidst this atmosphere of vigilance and suspicion, the Scorpion, which had been almost passively taking hits, suddenly let out a low growl.
Then, with lightning speed, it bit down on the nearest combat slave, a scorpion-man controlled by a low-ranking contestant.
With a crisp "crunch," the scorpion-man’s upper body was bitten clean off, blood splattering, staining the surrounding sand a dark red.
Its limbs tumbled in the air, entrails strewn about, emitting a foul stench.
The Scorpion lowered its head, swallowing the remaining half of the carcass whole, its movements incredibly swift, unlike its previous languid state.
During the devouring, its eyes shimmered with a strange light, as if absorbing some kind of energy.
The scorpion-man’s master let out a tragic scream, his face instantly turning pale, clearly suffering a mental rebound from the slave’s death.
He staggered back a few steps and then collapsed to the ground, losing his combat abilities, and was soon swiftly moved off the field by the Elemental Servants.
Subsequently, the Scorpion’s thick tail sting hooked.
The arrogant six-armed creature clinging to the Scorpion’s back was similarly impaled without resistance, then brought to the giant mouth amidst struggles...
Amid an indescribable sound of chewing, its master—the short and stout Apprentice—was likewise carried off by the Elemental Servants.
These two sudden sacrifices instantly tensed the atmosphere on the field.
The contestants paused their offensive, starting to reassess the situation.
Some bore expressions of fear, obviously regretting their earlier reckless behavior.
Ron seized the opportunity, quickly adjusting his strategy:
"Dale, we can show a bit of our strength now."
He ordered through spiritual transmission, without a trace of panic:
"But for now, stay on the periphery to harass, but don’t draw too much attention, aiming to make it expend more energy."
The Little Sea Siren’s eyes flickered with solemnity, then she swiftly took action.
From her back emerged a wing-like structure formed by condensing water elements, with faintly visible flowing patterns on the surface.
This was a special technique developed by Ron and Dale over several weeks—Water-shaped Wings.
Using water elements to provide the basic structure while wind elements supplied power and directional control, forming a special ability capable of effectively gliding in non-arid zones.
Dale leaped gracefully, her water wings instantly unfurling, carrying her gliding across the battlefield.
Unlike floating, this gliding relied on the wind, conserving more energy without losing much agility.
The spectators let out exclamations of surprise, seemingly unprepared for a Sea Siren to exhibit such astonishing mobility on a land battlefield.
For Dale, who demonstrated gliding capability, the only real threat from the Scorpion was its thick, retractable tail sting...