Smoke still rose from the mountains when the surviving students returned to the Imperial Beast Awakening Academy.
Medical teams rushed to treat the injured.
Instructors questioned every participant about the collapse of the Mirror Shrine.
Kai's answers were simple.
"We found ancient ruins."
"A guardian tested us."
"The shrine collapsed during our escape."
Everything he said was true.
Just...
Not the whole truth.
The Headmaster watched Kai from a distance.
There was no accusation in his eyes.
Only curiosity.
"This boy keeps finding miracles," Aldric thought.
"Or perhaps... the miracles are finding him."
Three days later...
The Freshman Ranking Tournament resumed.
The Grand Arena was packed.
Nearly ten thousand spectators filled the seats.
Noble families had travelled from across the kingdom to watch the academy's newest talents.
High above the arena floated a massive crystal display.
One by one, the names of the remaining competitors appeared.
Twenty names remained.
Kai Dragonbane.
Lucien Ashcroft.
Elena Frost.
Rowan Ashford.
...and sixteen others.
The crowd immediately erupted.
"The fox boy actually made the Top Twenty!"
"How?"
"He must have been lucky!"
Lucien overheard the whispers and smiled.
"Lucky?"
"We'll see how lucky he is today."
Headmaster Aldric stepped onto the central platform.
"The Survival Trial has concluded."
"From this point forward..."
"There will be no teams."
"No hidden points."
"No second chances."
"The remaining contestants will face one another in direct combat."
A magical bracket appeared above the arena.
Students nervously searched for their names.
Kai found his first opponent.
Round One
Kai Dragonbane
vs
Victor Stone
Class C.
Contract Beast:
Ironback Gorilla
Elite Grade.
The spectators immediately favoured Victor.
"Poor Kai."
"His fox won't survive one punch."
Backstage...
Kai knelt beside his fox.
The little silver fox looked up at him.
"Nervous?"
Kai laughed softly.
"A little."
"Good."
"It means you'll stay careful."
Kai smiled.
"I suppose you're right."
The fox's disguise still concealed its true appearance.
Not even the Headmaster had detected its evolution.
For now...
That secret remained safe.
"Contestants!"
"Enter the arena!"
Kai stepped through the stone gate.
Across from him stood Victor Stone.
Nearly two metres tall, Victor carried a giant battle hammer.
Beside him stood an enormous black-furred gorilla covered in thick iron-like scales.
The beast beat its chest.
BOOM! BOOM!
Victor grinned confidently.
"I've heard about you."
"The weakest student."
Kai nodded politely.
"I've heard you're strong."
Victor smiled.
"Then surrender."
"I don't enjoy hurting people."
Kai shook his head.
"I can't."
The fox quietly jumped onto the arena floor.
The crowd laughed.
"It still looks like a kitten!"
Victor sighed.
"So be it."
The referee raised his hand.
"Three..."
"Two..."
"One..."
"Begin!"
The Ironback Gorilla charged first.
Each step shook the arena floor.
Victor pointed forward.
"Crush them!"
The gorilla raised a massive fist.
Kai didn't move.
The audience gasped.
"Has he frozen?"
Just before the punch landed—
"Now!"
Kai and the fox moved at exactly the same instant.
The world seemed to slow.
The Book of Infinite Beasts shimmered inside Kai's soul.
Beast Resonance Activated.
Kai sidestepped to the left.
The fox darted to the right.
Their movements were perfectly synchronised.
The gorilla's punch struck only empty air.
Victor frowned.
"What?"
The fox sprang onto the gorilla's arm, using its momentum to leap onto its shoulder.
Still...
It didn't attack.
Instead, it whispered into the gorilla's ear.
"You don't want this fight either... do you?"
The gorilla froze.
Its eyes widened.
The newly unlocked Beast Communication had reached beyond Kai.
For a brief moment...
The fox had spoken directly to another beast.
The Ironback Gorilla slowly looked at Kai.
Then at Victor.
A flicker of hesitation crossed its face.
Victor shouted angrily,
"What are you doing?"
"Attack!"
The gorilla obeyed...
But its movements were slower.
Uncertain.
Kai recognised the opening immediately.
"Fox."
"I know."
The fox lightly tapped the gorilla's wrist with Flame Claw.
Not enough to injure.
Only enough to make it release its balance.
Kai stepped in.
Using Victor's own forward momentum, he redirected the gorilla's massive arm.
The enormous beast stumbled.
THUD!
It crashed onto one knee.
The arena fell silent.
No explosion.
No overwhelming attack.
Just flawless teamwork.
Victor stared in disbelief.
"My gorilla..."
"Lost its footing?"
Headmaster Aldric slowly stood from his seat.
His sharp eyes narrowed.
"Impossible..."
"That wasn't luck."
"That was perfect synchronisation."
Above the arena, the hooded observer from the Divine Temple watched silently.
A cold smile spread beneath his hood.
"So..."
"The Ninth Beast Sovereign is beginning to awaken."
He quietly reached into his robe and crushed a black crystal.
Far away, in a hidden temple buried beneath the mountains...
Something ancient opened its eyes.
Something that had been waiting for the return of the Beast Sovereign for ten thousand years.