198: Chapter 198 He's in seclusion, you're going crazy

Inside the virtual battle arena.

Cong Nanshan was preparing to deliver the final blow to Lu Xingye, bringing this farce to an end.

Suddenly,

Lu Xingye, who was beneath his foot, stopped trembling.

A hand slowly grabbed Cong Nanshan's ankle.

The strength of that grip was astonishingly immense!

“Hmm?”

Cong Nanshan was startled. He tried to pull his leg away, only to find it wouldn't budge an inch.

Lu Xingye slowly raised his head.

In his single exposed eye, the previous vacant look had vanished, replaced by an almost tangible light of chuunibyou!

“Heh... Hehehe...”

Lu Xingye let out a low chuckle. Bleeding all over, he muttered to the empty air in an incredibly deep voice:

“That's right... Jiang You.”

“You really are as naggy as ever.”

“How could I... ever forget?”

“How could I possibly fall here!”

“I am the sovereign of the old world, the flame that incinerates all falsehoods, the man destined to march into the final battle alongside his arch-rival!”

Cong Nanshan: “???”

Cong Nanshan stared at the empty air around them, completely bewildered. “Who are you talking to? Jiang You? Jiang You isn't even here!”

Lu Xingye ignored him completely. He slowly stood up, his aura beginning to skyrocket exponentially!

His S-class Supernatural Ability: Mind-Intent Black Flame!

As long as he believed, the Black Flame held infinite possibilities!

At this moment, fueled by the 'arch-rival flashback' playing in his mind, his conviction reached an unprecedented peak!

“Cong Nanshan!”

Lu Xingye swung his blade violently, pointing the tip straight at the heavens. The Black Flame behind him actually coalesced into a tangible black dragon. Surprisingly, the dragon's gaze bore a striking resemblance to Jiang You's!

“A mortal like you could never understand the meaning of bonds!”

“Jiang You is watching me! Sooner or later, he will be waiting at the end of the world for my descent as king!”

“Therefore...”

“This strike is to answer my arch-rival's call!”

“ [Destiny · Twin Stars · Peerless Black Flame Slash]!!!”

Cong Nanshan completely broke down. Controlling his spiritual manifestation to block, he complained frantically:

“My freaking mind is collapsing here!!”

“When did that guy Jiang You ever say anything like that to you?!”

“Hey, don't just go around tampering with other people's memories, damn it!!”

“That's got to be illegal, for crying out loud!!”

However, complaints aside,

that strike still descended.

Carrying Lu Xingye's boundless delusions about his 'arch-rival' and the peak power of his inner conviction.

*Rumble!!!*

The black blade light instantly swallowed the giant golden ape.

Under this strike, Cong Nanshan's spiritual manifestation shattered piece by piece like fragile glass!

“No!! This makes no scientific sense!!”

Accompanied by Cong Nanshan's desperate roar, he was completely engulfed by the Black Flame, turning into a white light as he was forcibly logged off.

[System Judgment: Red Side, Lu Xingye, wins!]

The real world, the lounge.

With the hissing sound of a pressure valve releasing, the battle cabin door slowly opened.

Lu Xingye stumbled out.

He was drenched in sweat, his face deathly pale. His signature black trench coat was soaked through with cold sweat, clinging tightly to his body.

Though his steps were unsteady, as if he might collapse at any moment, he still stubbornly kept his spine straight.

The first thing he did upon coming out wasn't to look for water or a doctor.

Instead, he snapped his head around. His single exposed eye gleamed with a fanatical light as he locked his gaze onto a figure in the corner of the lounge.

There, Jiang You sat cross-legged on the sofa, eyes tightly shut, with a faint gold steam still rising from his body.

Lu Xingye took a deep breath. Marshaling his remaining strength, he shuffled toward Jiang You step by step with a solemnity that bordered on a holy pilgrimage.

“Jiang You...”

Lu Xingye's voice was hoarse, carrying a sense of exhaustion and satisfaction as if he had lived through a lifetime of hardships:

“This seat has heard your call.”

“Though the process was somewhat convoluted, and though that fellow tried to defile our bond with his mortal understanding...”

Lu Xingye extended a trembling fist, hovering it in front of Jiang You as he waited for the fist-bump ritual between 'arch-rivals':

“But rest assured, I did not lose.”

“This seat has already severed one of the thorns on the path to the throne for you.”

“Next... it is up to you.”

Having finished speaking, Lu Xingye struck a cool pose and quietly waited for Jiang You's response.

In his mind, Jiang You should open his eyes at this moment, flash a wicked, charming smile, and say something like, 'As expected of you.'

However,

one second passed.

Two seconds passed.

Three seconds went by.

Jiang You... remained completely motionless.

He still had his eyes closed, his eyelashes not even twitching. Only the golden steam grew denser, and a faint sizzling sound could even be heard coming from within his body.

The entire room fell dead silent.

Nearby, Gou Fugui, Xiang Batian, and even Cong Nanshan, who had just been carried out, all watched this 'one-man show' with awkward expressions.

Gou Fugui really couldn't bear to watch any longer and whispered a reminder:

“Um... Old Lu.”

“Brother Jiang... seems to be breaking through, and he's at a critical juncture, so he can't hear you...”

“And he didn't seem to watch your battle earlier either...”

Hearing this, Lu Xingye's fist, frozen in midair, stiffened.

Was it embarrassing?

No!

As the ultimate king of delusions, how could Lu Xingye's brain wiring possibly be like that of a mere mortal?

Instead of showing any disappointment, his eyes instantly filled with even greater shock, and an even deeper wave of emotion welled up inside him!

“So that's how it is...”

Lu Xingye slowly withdrew his fist. Looking at Jiang You, who was breaking through with closed eyes, a 'knowing' smile curled the corner of his mouth:

“Are you squeezing your potential to its absolute limits for the sake of our final showdown?”

“Even if the outside world is turned upside down, you still hold fast to your original heart. Not even my victory can shake your state of mind...”

“What incredible composure! What absolute trust!”

“You must have known long ago that I would win, which is why you dared to leave your back to me so confidently while you went to charge toward a higher realm, right?”

Lu Xingye clutched his chest, his eyes welling with tears:

“As expected of my lifelong rival!”

“This seat has received this silent trust!”

With that, he actually sat down cross-legged right on the carpet next to Jiang You, drew his long blade, laid it across his knees, and assumed a protective stance. He coldly snapped at the onlookers around them:

“Everyone, step back!”

“Anyone who dares to disturb his breakthrough will have to answer to this seat's blade first!”

Everyone present: “...”

Gou Fugui pushed up his glasses and sighed helplessly. “He's hopeless. This kid is completely beyond saving.”

Meanwhile, on the other side,

Cong Nanshan, who was being lifted onto a stretcher, happened to witness this entire scene.

His eyes widened as he pointed at Lu Xingye, his lips trembling. In the end, he could only squeeze out a desperate complaint:

“It's all fake...”

“The memories are fake... the bonds are fake...”

“Even the freaking trust is entirely fabricated by his own mind!!”

“I actually lost to a mental patient like this... I don't want to live anymore!!”

Accompanied by Cong Nanshan's grief-stricken wails, this miserable former top student of Class B was carried out of Pool 1's lounge. It was anyone's guess whether he would have enough time to fight his way back from Pool 2.

At this moment,

Jiang You, who was at the center of the storm, was completely oblivious to all this farce happening in the outside world.

His consciousness was currently in an extremely profound state.

Under his forceful control, the blood qi within his body was repeatedly surging and colliding!

“Just a little more...”

“Just one last push!”

“That seal... shatter for me!!!”