"So strong..."

  Referee Carlos raised his arm to shield himself from the oncoming wave of air. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would hardly dare to believe that such a terrifying aura was radiating from a Beast Warrior who had just started his freshman year of high school.

  "That is..." Fly narrowed his eyes slightly, looking behind Gideon King.

  Behind Gideon, a phantom nearly three meters tall slowly emerged.

  This phantom was covered entirely in golden scales. Its back was lined with bone plates running from the nape of its neck down to its tail. Veins like leaf patterns grew on the surface of the bone plates, emitting a faint, ghostly blue glow.

  What made Fly feel even more incredible was...

  Gideon King's Beast Totem possessed solid, knotted muscles and held a pale blue steel trident in its hand. Its head was exactly the same as the ancient Dragon Race recorded in books.

  "The Golden Draconian!?" Referee Carlos, who was knowledgeable and experienced, couldn't help but let out a cry of surprise.

  Although Ironpeak Academy had competed with Concord High before, the contestants from Concord High, despite trying their best, hadn't been able to force Gideon King to take the field.

  So until now, Gideon King's Beast Totem was making its debut in this arena for the first time.

  The audience seats, which had been filled with boos, suddenly became silent.

  The entire audience was awestruck by Gideon King's Beast Totem.

  Even the two commentators, Jude and Leah, exchanged looks of disbelief.

  "The Golden Draconian? Gideon King's Beast Totem is actually the legendary Golden Draconian?"

  Gideon King held a steel trident as thick as a rice bowl in his hand. Its appearance and shape were strikingly identical to the weapon held by his Beast Totem, the Golden Draconian. Obviously, this was also a piece of Totem Armament warrior gear made from extraordinary endowment, and it looked even more advanced than Skaar's.

  Indeed, even Skaar could have Totem Armament warrior gear; there was no reason for Gideon King not to forge a better one for himself.

  "Hiss..." Leah sucked in a breath of cold air through her teeth. "The weapon in Contestant Gideon's hand doesn't seem to be an ordinary steel trident either."

  "Look closely at the logo on that trident!" Jude chimed in.

  Leah immediately widened her eyes and looked carefully at the trident. Then, she was shocked to discover that there was a logo of crossed swords printed on it.

  That was the logo of Hyson Industries!

  Rumor had it that the Warrior Gear they forged was the top-tier existence in the country. The deposit alone often reached six figures!

  It was even higher than her annual salary!

  "They really are rich!" Leah couldn't help but sigh with emotion for a moment.

  The Beast Totem was a top-tier Mythical Species, and the Warrior Gear was also top-of-the-line.

  How was Fly supposed to fight this?

  "If the competition venue were normal, Fly could use the terrain to his advantage and might still have a chance. But the Competition Committee temporarily changed the rules, turning the arena that should have been carefully repaired into a flat iron lid."

  Leah clenched her fists, feeling indignant for Fly once again.

  To think that this match might let a guy like Gideon King take the championship!

  She really found it hard to swallow.

  "This is what it means to be wealthy." Jude couldn't help but sigh.

  In his view, the talent Fly displayed was stronger than Gideon King's.

  But the world was just like this: talent might not necessarily lose to hard work, but it would definitely lose to resources.

  What was the use of having strong talent? If it couldn't be stimulated, it would forever remain just potential.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  For a rich person like Gideon King, a single piece of Totem Armament warrior gear in his hand was worth enough to feed an ordinary family of three for nearly ten years!

  "Heh heh heh."

  Seeing Referee Carlos's shocked expression, the corners of Gideon King's mouth rose.

  "Do you see it? Fly."

  "This is the gap between us!"

  In Gideon's view, after witnessing his Beast Totem and Warrior Gear, Fly would inevitably feel a deep sense of disparity.

  Although Fly was the strongest freshman at Star City High, the school couldn't possibly cultivate only him. Even if Star City High had a lot of cultivation resources, there were also many talented students. When these massive resources were distributed among so many gifted students, to be honest, the resources each person received were extremely limited.

  But those with good family backgrounds were different; all the family's resources could be invested in them alone.

  This was the gap!

  In the end, climbing to the peak still depended on one's family background!

  "If you are really so confident in your own strength, then why did you use the excuse of facilitating arena repairs to restrict my usual tactics? When it comes down to it, you lack confidence in your bones." Fly smiled and retorted immediately.

  "What did you say?" Gideon's originally arrogant expression instantly froze.

  After all, Fly had always been known for his speed. Coupled with the clones of The Husks, his movement techniques were elusive and endlessly changing. Moreover, his attack power was extremely strong, with every strike from his black sickle or his signature Skill: Steelbone Blades dealing critical damage.

  No matter how strong Gideon's Golden Draconian was, he might still exhaust his stamina in this endless guerrilla warfare.

  This battle was of great importance, and he dared not take risks. That was why he repeatedly used moves outside the board and psychological tactics, trying to shake Fly and gain as much advantage for himself as possible.

  But in doing so, his own momentum was greatly reduced. A Beast Warrior must fight! What mattered was a pure momentum of pressing forward with indomitable will. Once one started engaging in petty tricks to distract from the martial path, with impure thoughts, their confidence and momentum during the duel would be greatly diminished.

  Just ask, when two strong forces clash, if one is single-minded and focused solely on the enemy, while the other is looking ahead and behind, hoping for a lucky break, then which way will the scales of ultimate victory tip?

  Although he appeared to have the upper hand on the surface, Gideon King was actually feeling a bit hollow inside. Now that Fly had hit his sore spot all of a sudden, it inevitably made him feel like he had lost face.

  "You... hold a death wish!"

  Gideon King clenched his fists tight and charged fiercely at Fly.

  "Afterimage Strike!" Fly didn't hold back either and immediately activated his Skill to counter.

  Fly's figure instantly vanished from the field. On the huge arena, only one blurry afterimage after another was left behind.

  "What kind of Skill is this?" Gideon stopped in his tracks, looking with an exaggerated expression at the constantly changing afterimages surrounding him. He hadn't expected at all that Fly would have such a Skill.

  There were more and more afterimages on the arena, and the encirclement became smaller and smaller, gradually trapping Gideon in the core.

  However...

  Facing the pressing Fly, Gideon showed no panic at all.

  Having practiced martial arts since childhood, he had weathered many storms.

  He slowly closed his eyes, his breathing gradually slowing down, as if he was sensing Fly's aura.

  So-called vision was nothing more than images projected into the eyes by light. Images could deceive people, but aura could not. In the final analysis, did those so-called afterimages breathe?

  In the next second, Gideon spread his arms wide. Bone plates burst through his clothes from his back one by one. The bone plates gradually released a dazzling light. Finally, the light from these countless bone plates converged in one place. Subsequently, a bolt of lightning bloomed from Gideon's body, expanding towards the surroundings.

  In an instant...

  The lightning released by Gideon acted like a protective shield, guarding him in the center.

  Fly's true body also appeared at this moment. Fly gripped the black sickle with both hands, raised it above his head, and slashed ruthlessly towards the back of Gideon's neck.

  With a loud bang, Fly's black sickle and Gideon's lightning barrier collided fiercely.

  Gideon's eyes opened instantly, releasing an even stronger electric current.

  The thunder was deafening. Fly was forcibly blasted away by this powerful current!

  However, the lightning barrier protecting Gideon also dimmed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

  Fly flipped a circle in the air, landed on one knee, and slid seven or eight meters on the arena before barely stopping.

  His skin was a patch of crimson, and wisps of green smoke slowly rose from his body.

  The electric current Gideon released just now had generated a high temperature of hundreds of degrees when applied to Fly's body.

  Thanks to only a moment of contact and Fly's tenacious vitality possessing the cockroach totem, it didn't cause too much damage.

  But even so, that powerful current, strong enough to pierce through flesh and blood, still made Fly feel very uncomfortable.

  Seeing Fly forced back by one move, the corners of Gideon's mouth rose again.

  "How about it, Fly?"

  "Do you understand the gap between you and me now?"

  "My Beast Totem—the Golden Draconian—is of the electric attribute. The bone plates on my back can store electricity, and The Azure-Glow Trident in my hand can maximize the amplification of the electric current I release."

  "The move you just saw was the result of amplification by this Azure-Glow Trident."

  "Your Thunder-Roach can't even get close to me!"

  Gideon's smile gradually became maniacal!

  He kicked off hard with his feet, charging straight towards Fly, The Azure-Glow Trident waving constantly in his hands.

  Every time The Azure-Glow Trident was waved, it would friction out golden electric currents. Its agility was equivalent to Gideon's own hands and feet.

  Facing the menacing Gideon, the already injured Fly couldn't dodge in time. He raised the black sickle in his hand and collided fiercely with The Azure-Glow Trident. With a loud bang, a burst of sparks spewed out from where the two weapons crossed.

  But Gideon's strength was greater. He forcibly pushed Fly backwards.

  Gideon stomped on the ground violently again, using the force of the counterattack to storm towards Fly once more. Waving the trident in his hand, he launched slash after slash at Fly continuously!