<h4>Chapter 701: beginning of the quarter finals</h4>


    "BUT seriously, what is up with that Winged Tassel guy?" Luo Jin asked.


    He could understand the dark elf. Luo Yan had exined to him that the other was a student of Guizu Academy and also a childhood friend of Huang Wen. Him being like that was a bit understandable. But how about that Winged Tassel guy?


    "Ah, him? I think he has a crush on Eclipse."


    If Luo Jin was drinking something at that moment, he would have probably choked on it because of what his brother had said. Before he could respond to that, a virtual screen suddenly appeared in front of them with the words;


    [Please,e up to the rink.]


    "It''s finally starting," Luo Yan muttered with an excited grin on his face. He gazed down at his brother. "Let''s go, young master Jin."


    Luo Jin, who still hadn''t gotten over from the other''s earlierment, cringed at what Luo Yan called him. But he still followed the other out of the waiting area.


    The eight participants walked towards the direction of the stage. They were still a few distance away but they could already hear the cheering of the crowd. Once they got out, the huge crowd of the coliseum weed them.


    Seeing everything in broad daylight was definitely differentpared to seeing it during the night. It''s like everything was magnified a couple of times over. From the audience area to the rink itself. Those who were already nervous, became even more nervous. Especially after seeing that most of the royal boxes were upied.


    "They''re here, the eight remaining warriors who would continue to fight in this famous Carnival!" the Duke of Hearts, who was standing at the stage, announced with his usual flourish as they all stepped onto the stage. "And as you already know, I''m this year''s host, the one and only, the ever beautiful, Duke of Hearts!"


    As the duke introduced himself, a shower of heart-shaped red petals rained down on him. These petals disappeared as soon as they touched the ground.


    If this duke was a real person, their personalities would definitely sh. – Luo Yan thought as he watched the other. They would probably even argue on who was more beautiful. Of course, the answer was him.


    "The results of the votes had been tallied and your voices had been heard! The following four matches will be ording to your wishes!"


    At the mention of that, the crowd immediately cheered.


    "And now, for the first match--!" the duke stopped as it to wet the audience''s appetite.


    A huge virtual screen then appeared floating above. There was the word ''vs'' at the very middle. On both sides of it, names were moving simr to a slot machine. After about 10 seconds or so, the moving finally stopped and two names were revealed.


    "Sonata versus Dragnar!"


    Once his name was called, Xia Lei nced at the girl who would be his opponent. He saw the other biting her lower lip. As if she really disliked this result. He scratched the side of his head. He couldn''t understand how the two of them were voted to fight against each other. In fact, he would understand it more if it were Sonata and the other girl – Lovelee.


    Certainly, a fight between two girls had more appealpared to him and Sonata. People loved that kind of thing, right? Two strong girls fighting it out and asserting who was stronger.


    And what the duke said next voiced out his opinion;


    "This lord honestly couldn''t see the appeal in this match-up."


    Luo Yan could though. Or at least he understood why a pairing like this happened. It was because of that bet. Dragnar was the one leading the race. If those who betted on him wanted to secure his win, they would definitely pick a much weaker opponent for him in this quarter finals round. And the unlucky sacrifice was this Sonata.


    He nced at the girl. The expression on her face was clearly saying, ''this is so unfair''.


    Well, maybe indeed it was. But if she wanted to win, she shouldn''t have that kind of mentality. It''s not as if Dragnar was some kind of omnipotent being who couldn''t be defeated. So, what if he''s a dragon? Dragons could be yed too.


    If he was in her position, he would definitely take advantage of the fact that Dragnar seemed to be hesitant in using his dragon traits. Luo Yan would definitely use that against the other, defeating him before he could realize how stupid it was to hold back. Especially in a tournament like this.


    "Since the first pair had already been picked, we, the unneeded ones should go," the duke said.


    The other snapped his fingers and the rest of the participants disappeared from the stage. The only ones remaining were Dragnar and Sonata.


    Luo Yan just blinked and he found himself standing on a floating pagoda together with the other yers and the Duke of Hearts. The pagoda was floating high above the rink. They could see the fight through all the virtual screens floating around. Or they could just look down and watch.


    [Mashter, Mashter, Eclipse can see you from here!] – Eclipse''s voice suddenly sounded in Luo Yan''s mind.


    He quickly turned to the direction of the Yunyue''s royal box. He then saw a seven or eight-year-old boy waving enthusiastically at him. And besides the boy was a handsome white-haired elf who was also waving his hand with as much enthusiasm as he could muster.


    Luo Yan chuckled and waved back at them. He then tapped Luo Jin''s shoulder and pointed to their team''s royal box. Luo Jin, who saw their father waving like a kid high on chocte, could only smile helplessly.


    A countdown appeared on the space between Sonata and Dragnar.


    3… 2… 1!


    The quarter finals finally began.


    Xia Lei took out his sword and was about to attack when he heard a melodious tone. His movements stopped and he just felt his whole body freezing on the spot.