Chapter 184: The No. 1 seed team has forfeited.

The text on the light screen had just surfaced,

When the ground beneath their feet began to vibrate.

Fine wisps of white light began to emerge from the cracks in the stone slabs at the center of the plaza.

"What's going on?"

"There's something underground—"

Before the words could fully leave their mouths, the entire plaza suddenly sank.

Over a hundred people stood on the plaza, watching helplessly as the stone slabs slowly rose.

Gravel at the edges fell away with a rustle into the dark void below, with no echo to be heard. Wind poured in from all directions, making clothes flap loudly.

Wang Mengmeng grabbed Li Mengyao's arm, her face pale. "It's... it's flying!"

Zhang Wanyue stumbled slightly, but Shen Qingci steadied her. Shen Qingci's shadow spread out steadily like a black blanket, covering herself and the other girls including Deng Yuxin and Yang Kexin.

The plaza rose higher and higher.

The island below shrank in their field of vision, and the sea spread out further away, a boundless expanse of gray.

The wind grew stronger, making it difficult to keep one's eyes open.

Ahead, thick mist began to churn, receding to both sides to reveal an increasingly clear silhouette behind it.

It was a massive arch bridge, extending from the edge of the plaza beneath their feet.

The other end of the bridge was connected to another plaza.

It was crowded with people. From a distance, one could see those blurry figures; some were whispering, some were looking over here, and some were looking up at the information on the light screen.

"Third Island?!"

The two plazas faced each other across the bridge, and in the very center of their view was a flattened arena.

[First Round Duel: About to Begin]

[Would Seed Team No. 1 of Seventh Island please send out their Vehicle pet]

Chen Yu didn't hesitate: "I forfeit!"

"Huh?!"

Li Mengyao thought she had misheard. "Chen Yu, what did you say?"

Chen Yu nodded. "D-grade pets risk death in the arena. I choose to forfeit."

"..."

Deng Yuxin asked in a small voice, "But, can we really forfeit?"

[Seed Team No. 1 of Seventh Island has forfeited]

[Third Island takes the first victory]

[Would Seed Team No. 2 of Seventh Island please send out their Vehicle pet]

Sun Zhiyuan hadn't reacted yet. "Forfeit? Is he crazy? Teacher Liu, what does Chen Yu mean by this? Forfeiting the first match? How are we supposed to fight later?"

Liu Manqing glanced at him but didn't respond.

But others on the plaza weren't so polite.

"Forfeit?! Are you joking! You don't want the rewards?"

"Forfeiting the very first match?"

"I thought I'd hitched a ride with a pro, but this is it?"

"Even though Zhang Tianlang is B-grade, he'd dare to fight! At least he wouldn't just give up!"

"Exactly, what's wrong with D-grade? Even a D-grade can go up and try! There's a penalty for losing!"

Pei Yuanheng waved his hand. "Everyone, please stay calm. Since this is a Gauntlet Battle, everything is negotiable. Our Lava Guardian Lizard will bring back Victory Points for everyone!"

After speaking, the Lava Guardian Lizard leaped from his shoulder. Upon landing, flames 'whooshed' up, enveloping its entire body!

From the opposite side, a Fire-type Orb stepped out. It was dark red all over with a row of bone spikes protruding from its back. It crouched at the edge of the platform, two streams of black smoke snorting from its nostrils!

The two masses of fire faced off in the middle of the bridge. The heat waves could be felt even from a distance.

People on the plaza stood on their tiptoes to crowd forward, their eyes fixed on those two masses of fire.

Chen Yu took only one look before withdrawing his gaze. "Let's go, time to mine."

Wang Mengmeng was still craning her neck to watch. "Huh? We're not watching?"

"What's there to see."

Chen Yu turned and walked toward the back of the plaza.

Li Mengyao gave Wang Mengmeng a tug, and the group followed Chen Yu toward the back.

At the rear of the plaza, a door had appeared on the back of the light screen, containing a mass of warm white light.

Chen Yu didn't hesitate and stepped right in.

The others followed suit and walked in.

The group disappeared into the light.

On the plaza, the two masses of fire collided.

Captain Zhou Ting looked back at the disappearing silhouettes of Chen Yu and the others, murmuring, "Are they really not curious at all..."

"Captain, the fireball on the other side can't beat Officer Pei's lizard!"

...

...

Seventh Island.

Chen Yu and the others stepped out of the light, landing on a patch of soft soil.

Behind them was an identical door.

It stood lonely in the jungle, where palms, banyans, vines, and ferns were crowded together in layers.

"Brother Yu, what do we do next? Go mining first?"

Chen Yu nodded and glanced deep into the forest. "Let's build a place to stay first. We'll use local materials—Wood, vines—and then talk about other things."

Wang Mengmeng froze for a moment. "A place to stay? We're staying here tonight?"

"Obviously,"

Chen Yu spoke helplessly. "The pet duels will take at least a few days. Do you plan to sleep in the jungle?"

"Oh!"

Wang Mengmeng immediately looked at Yang Kexin—

"Kexin! Make a knife that's convenient for cutting trees! A big one!"

Yang Kexin nodded and closed her eyes, spreading her hands. A silver halo of light surged from her palms, and the silhouette of a knife was faintly visible in the center of the halo...

A few seconds later, the silver light dissipated.

Under the shocked gazes of Sun Zhiyuan and Liu Manqing, a half-meter-long machete appeared in her hand.

"Unfortunately, I can only generate one, so I'll..."

Yang Kexin didn't finish her sentence because a... massive machete suddenly appeared out of thin air in Chen Yu's empty hand.

The blade of that knife was as long as an arm and wide enough to cover an entire palm, with an edge as thick as a mountain axe.

It looked like it weighed at least twenty or thirty pounds.

Wang Mengmeng's eyes went wide. "Where... where did this come from?"

Yang Kexin was also stunned. Doesn't this make me look useless?!

Everyone else looked over curiously...

After all, the backpack space was clearly locked and should be unusable, right?

Under these circumstances, how could he still take things out of thin air?

"Ahem."

Chen Yu cleared his throat. "I borrowed it from the future. Yours isn't quite enough..."

Even he hadn't expected that without a backpack,

The supplies returned by the red luan would manifest directly as physical objects in his hand.

This is ridiculous!

What Chen Yu didn't expect was...

Yang Kexin suddenly lowered her head, her voice muffled. "Okay, Brother Yu, I made you use up more... I'm sorry."

Chen Yu waved his hand. "Don't worry, my life is still tough enough for now."

With that, he tossed the massive knife in his hand toward Sun Zhiyuan!

Sun Zhiyuan froze and instinctively reached out to catch it.

The moment the hilt hit his palm, his arm jerked down violently. He stumbled half a step forward, his waist and knees buckling, his shoulders collapsing until they were almost touching the ground.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!"

He cried out several times, staggering back three or four steps before barely steadying himself!

Sun Zhiyuan panted for a moment. "Wait, what is this for?"

"To cut trees!"

Chen Yu gestured with his chin toward the surrounding forest. "Everyone is counting on you to do your part!"

Sun Zhiyuan's mouth twitched, and he forced a smile, keeping his tone as gentle as possible. "Xiao Yu... Uncle Sun's health isn't very good, and..."

"Is 'Xiao Yu' a name you're allowed to call me?"

Chen Yu interrupted him. "Are we that close?"