Link and Yun Zhe finally got to the grand stage, looking at each other as their enthusiasm leaked out of their eyes. This was one of the moments they'd been waiting for as beast tamers and now it was finally happening.
"Brace yourself, Yun Zhe." Link said as his tamed beast, the Crimson Dagger, appeared out of nowhere, and now it rested on his hands.
"I should be saying that, Link." Yun Zhe muttered to himself as he summoned the Primordial Excalibur. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth— in this case, it's a weapons-type against a weapons-type, not to mention that the tamed beast that accompanied them were both Representatives.
Once again, the wildness of the crowd had gotten even more evident as Link and Yun Zhe stood still on the grand stage. While it was the last match of the quarterfinals, it was also the precursor of the semi-finals, and that made the audience cheer even harder. After all, both Link and Yun Zhe are both unknown in the world of beast tamers and this was the first time they showed up for the Official Beast Tournament. Both of them are really talented, but only one of them is bound to rise to the top and attend the semi-finals which will be happening later that day.
"On one side, we have the rising talent from China, the man the myth and the legend himself called Yun Zhe. He had shown to be a formidable beast tamer, with strength on par with the beast master himself."
"And on the other side, we have yet another talent from who knows where, also a new face in the world of the Official Beast Tournament and yet he had established his presence with his literal crazy skills as a berserker, Link Link! And yes, to those who are wondering what his surname was... it's Link, I'm sorry to disappoint you guys."
"And now, let's hear a couple of words from Luke Skyrunner himself." The commentator suddenly called out to Luke Skyrunner. If one were to remember what his connection was with the two, one should be reminded that he lost to the two of them. (One during the time when Link went on a rampage and he had to stop him in the Beast Dimension, and the second time when Yun Zhe and White Mist defeated him during the third round)
Of course, the commentator had no idea about the first incident, that's why he unintentionally rubbed salt in Luke Skyrunner's wounds when he asked for his opinion regarding the two. Without further ado, Luke Skyrunner cleared his throat as one of the drone cameras focused on him while he spoke.
"Ehrmm, as someone who participated in the Official Beast Tournament this year as well, I have witnessed both of their strengths firsthand. They truly are formidable opponents, and while I hate to see one of them go in this fight, there can only be one winner. Let's give it up for Link and Yun Zhe," Luke Skyrunner averted his gaze from the camera as he boorishly dragged his words while cheering the two of them on.
That didn't affect the way the audience cheered for them though. Even Satoshi, who had seated himself beside the Grey family, started screaming his lungs out as he cheered both of them on with great gusto.
While the spectators showed their support through their cheers, the referee made his way toward the center of the grand stage. Like one of the many tense moments he had, the referee nervously looked Link and Yun Zhe in the eyes before gesturing for them to step forward. 'Why do I even have to do this? I am not paid enough to do this.' He muttered in his mind.
Link and Yun Zhe drowned out the noise of the audience and they approached each other with bloodlust emanating from their very beings. The referee gulped before he spoke. "To officially start this match, I would like the two of you to shake your hands." He muttered, almost slipping in his words. Even though he wasn't the one fighting against them, he could feel the intense pressure that leaked out of them like supernatural powers forcing him to kneel. He choked in their presence.
"Let's have a great match," Link was the first one to speak up, extending his left hand in a futile attempt to assert dominance over Yun Zhe.
As for Yun Zhe, he extended both his hands and shook Link's left hand. There was no way he'd let Link defeat him even during the handshake. "I'm looking forward to defeating you. Let's have a great match."
Surprised by Yun Zhe's response, Link's face contorted to an evil smile before he walked away.
"Both participants at the ready?" The referee didn't even bother looking at them when he raised his hand. "Let the battle begin!"
Before the referee could even get out of the grand stage, Link was already on the move. He summoned one of his tamed beasts which granted him wings made out of leaves and branches (the same tamed beast he used during the second round). He didn't waste any time charging toward Yun Zhe, using his wings to propel himself as he accelerated forward.
While doing so, he hurled the Crimson Dagger toward Yun Zhe. "Extend!" He called out.
Everything went by slowly as Yun Zhe immediately integrated with his Representative, the Primordial Excalibur, and another one of his tamed beasts, the Golden Armored Bug. This time, he became fully armored, wielding a greatsword and a huge shield in his hand. Despite the powerful force that Crimson Dagger outputted, Yun Zhe easily deflected it by pressing his shield against it.
Since the Crimson Dagger wasn't really stopped, it continued flying with its trajectory drastically altered. Simultaneous screams were heard from the audience as the Crimson Dagger bounced on the barrier before falling to the ground.
Yun Zhe wasn't wasting any of his movements. While Link was still charging at him, he extended his hand and pointed the greatsword he was wielding toward his direction. "Dash," He mumbled.
Even though he didn't take any step forward, Yun Zhe's entire body dashed forward at insane speeds, meeting Link halfway. With Yun Zhe's speed, it would have been easy for him to hit Link.
However, Link's speed should not be underestimated either. The moment he met with Yun Zhe, he leaned sideways, barely avoiding the greatsword which grazed his cheek. In that split of a second, he extended his hand and integrated with his beast that granted him hardwood gauntlets.
Scratch!
The attack connected, but it only destroyed Yun Zhe's armor instead of wounding him. Even then, Yun Zhe was surprised that Link could achieve such a high-level attack in a split second. Yun Zhe maliciously grinned. "You almost died back there with your foolish move. You don't fear death, do you?"
"Not really, I fear death just like any other regular person. But then again, I've faced death in the face countless times. That's why I can keep a cool head and move without hesitation. Besides, I let my adrenaline do all the work... sometimes a little too much." Link answered, picking up the Crimson Dagger and playing with it. He was ready for the second attack.
"As expected of someone with a berserker superpower. I guess I don't have to hold back then." Yun Zhe said as he summoned two more tamed beasts in his possession.
The first one looked like a small tapir with a steel halo on its head. It's a steel and ground-type tamed beast that is known for its metal halo that could slice anything, even diamond. No one had seen such a tamed beast before but Yun Zhe named it the Steel Tapir (pretty typical). The second one looked like a flying fairy with metal wings and metallic armor. As usual, this is also the first time people saw such a tamed beast and Yun Zhe named it the Steel Fairy.
"Behold, I reveal to you my most powerful trump card! I call it Exodia the Forbidden One... honestly there are just four of them but you get the point." Yun Zhe shrugged his last sentence since not a lot of people got the reference. Upon saying that, he extended his hands and integrated with his Steel Tapir and his Steel Fairy.
Yun Zhe lit up, and people watched in eager anticipation as they told themselves that they were there the moment history was made. This was the first time they ever noticed someone do a Quad Beast Integration and it made their eyes sparkle. In retrospect, this was also the first Official Beast Tournament where they witnessed a Dual Beast Integration and a Trinity Beast Integration... but these two just paved the way for Quad Beast Integration to happen.
When the brightness diminished, Yun Zhe was now floating in the air. He still wore his gold and white full armor, and he still wielded the greatsword and shield. This time though, gold and white metallic wings now appeared on his back, and a huge halo hovered right behind him. "I hope you can keep up with me, Link." Yun Zhe taunted.
"You bet I can." Link confidently gritted.
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