Chapter 74: The true form
In the water—
Pie stopped struggling.
Went still.
Alex’s thought pulsed.
Now.
Pie’s body glowed.
Faint.
Then bright.
Started expanding.
Two meters.
Three.
Five.
Mizuchi’s coils loosened.
Can’t hold it.
Too big.
Eight meters.
Ten.
The serpent tried to pull away.
Too late.
Twelve.
THIRTEEN METERS.
BOOM!
Pie’s mass exploded outward.
Mizuchi crushed beneath.
Pressed down.
Flattened against the arena floor.
The water displaced.
Waves crashed.
Flooded over the edges.
Soaking the front rows.
Pie’s weight settled.
Thirteen meters of dense slime.
Tons.
Mizuchi thrashed.
Tail whipping.
Body writhing.
Couldn’t budge.
Pinned.
Completely.
"GULU!"
The sound echoed.
Deep.
Thunderous.
Vibrating through the arena.
Silence.
Complete silence.
Everyone stared.
At the yellow mountain.
At the serpent beneath.
Struggling.
Helpless.
Then—
"WHAT THE FUCK?!"
"THIRTEEN METERS?!"
"THAT’S LEVEL FIVE GIGANTIFICATION?!"
"ON A TENTH-GRADE SLIME?!"
"IMPOSSIBLE!"
Master Feng stood.
Lollipop fell.
Third one today.
"Level five..."
Whispered.
"That takes YEARS."
One official grabbed another.
"I’ve never seen level five!"
"Not even on 8th-grade beasts!"
"HOW?!"
Another voice.
Shaking.
"THE SLIME IS WINNING!"
"MIZUCHI CAN’T MOVE!"
"IT’S PINNED!"
"SS-RANK! PINNED BY A SLIME!"
Rose smiled.
Wide.
Leaned back.
Crossed her arms.
"Told you."
Caelum stared up.
At the massive Slime.
Blocking out light.
Shadow covering him.
Covering everything.
His smile never left.
Just grew bigger.
"YES!"
Screamed it.
"THIS IS IT!"
"THE TRUE FORM!"
Eyes wild.
Fanatic.
"SHOW ME EVERYTHING!"
But his fists clenched.
Mizuchi was losing.
Trapped.
By a Slime, one of the weakest beasts.
No, they are the weakest!
He need to change this!
Now.
Pie looked down.
Through the water.
At the serpent struggling beneath him.
"Gulu."
Calm.
Unbothered.
Just sitting.
Alex stood on the edge.
Arms crossed.
Watching Caelum.
Caelum’s face twisted.
Ecstasy.
Pure ecstasy.
His hands spread wide.
Head thrown back.
"FINALLY!"
Voice cracking.
"SOMEONE WORTHY!"
"SOMEONE WHO PUSHES ME!"
He laughed.
Manic.
Wild.
"THIS IS WHAT I LIVE FOR!"
His eyes snapped down.
Locked on Pie.
On the massive yellow mountain.
"YOU THINK SIZE IS ENOUGH?!"
Grabbed his own shirt.
Ripped it open.
Buttons flying.
"YOU THINK YOU’VE WON?!"
His spiritual energy exploded.
Visible.
Blue aura crackling.
Flooding the arena.
"I’LL SHOW YOU!"
Pointed at Mizuchi.
Trapped beneath.
"NINETY PERCENT!"
His voice shook the air.
"AWAKEN!"
Light burst.
Blinding.
White and blue.
Mizuchi’s body convulsed.
Scales glowing.
Brighter.
Hotter.
The serpent’s form shifted.
Expanding.
Muscles bulging.
Scales darkening.
From sapphire to midnight black.
Veins of pure lightning running through.
Pulsing.
Its eyes changed.
Ice blue to electric white.
Glowing.
Burning.
Horns grew longer.
Sharper.
Crackling with power.
The water around it boiled.
Steam rising.
Mizuchi roared.
Not a hiss.
A roar.
Thunder.
The sound shook the arena.
Cracked the walls.
Its body tensed.
Compressed.
Then—
EXPLODED.
Power erupted.
Shockwave.
Pie lifted.
Thirteen meters of slime.
Thrown up.
Flying.
Mizuchi shot out.
Free.
Transformed.
Twenty-five meters long now.
Body coiled mid-air.
Lightning arcing off every scale.
The air itself charged.
Hair standing on end.
Everyone felt it.
Oppressive.
Suffocating.
Raw power.
Mizuchi descended.
Hovering opposite Pie.
Who landed.
Bounced once.
Stabilized.
Blinked his massive eyes.
"Guluuu!"
Curious.
The two faced each other.
Thirteen-meter Slime.
Twenty-five-meter awakened serpent.
Silence.
Then—
The crowd exploded.
"NINETY PERCENT?!"
"HE’S USING NINETY?!"
"AGAINST A HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT?!"
"THAT’S HIS TOURNAMENT FORM!"
Master Feng stood.
Hands gripping the railing.
"He’s serious."
Voice hollow.
"Actually serious."
One official grabbed another.
Shaking.
"DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!"
"CAELUM ONLY USED EIGHTY PERCENT IN THE school tournament!"
"EIGHTY!"
"HE WON silver WITH EIGHTY!"
Another voice.
Trembling.
"Most Holy Dragon first-years never see this!"
"He crushes them at fifty!"
"Sixty at most!"
The woman stared.
"A seventeen-year-old high school sophomore..."
Whispered.
"Made him go to ninety."
The gray-haired man laughed.
Shocked.
Disbelieving.
"This boy isn’t just talented!"
"HE’S A MONSTER!"
"AN ABSOLUTE MONSTER!"
Another stood.
"FORGET ACCEPTANCE!"
"HOLY DRAGON WILL BEG HIM TO COME!"
"SCHOLARSHIP!"
"FULL RIDE!"
"WHATEVER HE WANTS!"
Rose’s smile was gone.
Replaced by shock.
Then pride.
Then worry.
Ninety percent.
Alex.
Can you handle this?
If you can..
I don’t mind being your lover~
And you will be my only lover.
The shiniest star..
Caelum stood.
Chest heaving.
Sweat dripping.
Grinning.
Fanatic.
"NOW!"
Pointed at Alex.
"SHOW ME YOUR FULL POWER!"
"NO MORE HOLDING BACK!"
"GIVE ME EVERYTHING!"
His voice echoed.
Desperate.
Hungry.
"MAKE ME FEEL ALIVE!"
Mizuchi’s body crackled.
Lightning dancing.
Water spiraling.
Both elements merged.
Perfect harmony.
Power beyond limits.
Pie blinked again.
"Gulu?"
Looked at Alex.
Alex grinned.
Shrugged.
Then shouted.
"FULL POWER?!"
Voice echoing.
"AS YOU WISH!"
Reached into his system bag.
Pulled out the armor.
Two gems glowing.
Threw it up.
High.
Spinning.
The armor flashed.
Expanded.
Growing.
Matching Pie’s size.
Thirteen meters.
The chest piece opened.
Split apart.
Pie’s body rose.
Merged into it.
Armor wrapped around.
Chest plate locked.
Shoulder guards clicked.
Gauntlets sealed.
Leg pieces attached.
The golden cracks glowed.
Energy pulsed through.
Pie’s yellow body visible in gaps.
But covered now.
Protected.
He stood.
Giant armored Slime.
Tank form.
The shoulder plates rounded.
Almost cute.
But huge.
The chest gleamed.
Two gems embedded.
His eyes through the helmet.
Large.
Blinking.
"Gulu~"
The arena shook slightly.
Just from his presence.
Mizuchi looked up.
Twenty-five meters long.
But narrow.
Pie was wider.
Thicker.
Denser.
A mountain.
The crowd went silent.
Caelum’s mouth opened.
"WAIT!"
Pointed.
"THAT’S THE ARMOR!"
"THE BET!"
"YOU CAN’T USE THAT!"
"THAT’S CHEATING!"
Alex spread his hands.
"You can use your bet too."
Pause.
"Oh wait."
Looked at the armor.
"Your gem’s already in here."
Grinned.
"Guess that counts?"
Caelum froze.
His eye twitched.
Face went red.
You—
The crowd erupted.
"SHAMELESS!"
"HE KNEW CAELUM COULDN’T USE HIS!"
"PLAYED HIM!"
One official laughed.
"This kid!"
Another shook his head.
"Completely played."
Master Feng bit through his lollipop.
"My new favorite."
But someone else spoke.
"Still though."
"Even with armor..."
"Ninety percent is different."
"Sixty to ninety."
"That’s five times stronger."
"Maybe more."
Another agreed.
"And the ultimate techniques."
"Thunder Cascade."
"Torrent Spiral."
"Celestial Dive."
"Haven’t seen those yet."
"Can it survive?"
Rose gripped the rail.
Come on Alex.
Caelum breathed.
Deep.
Composed himself.
Looked up at armored Pie.
Smiled.
"Fine."
"You want to play dirty?"
Hand raised.
"MIZUCHI!"
The serpent roared.
Lightning doubled.
Water pressure tripled.
"LET’S END THIS!"
"THUNDER CASCADE!"