Chapter 1177: The Seven Dragon Knights!

Lan Xuanyu’s heart stirred, and he immediately understood Xu Yanmo’s meaning. Bai Xiuxiu smiled slightly and said, “It is actually not much; I am merely an added bonus. The main credit still goes to my sister.”

Xu Yanmo smiled and said, “Miss Xiuxiu need not be modest. We are in the same group, and everyone has seen your strength. With your assistance, Lan’s offensive power will surely reach its peak. However, you cannot use the Divine Dragon Armor for protection, so you still need to be somewhat careful. Alright, I will not delay your rest.”

As he spoke, he made a “please” gesture toward Lan Xuanyu and Bai Xiuxiu, guiding them into the rest area. Lan Xuanyu and Bai Xiuxiu walked into the rest area, feeling the dense dragon energy, and found an open space to sit down.

Although over a hundred god-ranked Dragon Clan powerhouses were watching the matches on the Rising Dragon Platform, it still appeared exceptionally spacious. Behind them, on the immense Rising Dragon Platform, matches would be held one after another, and just thinking about it made one’s blood boil with excitement. Lan Xuanyu calculated silently in his mind: if, among the remaining contestants, the two who possessed mount dragons did not have their mount dragons as finalists, that would mean a total of twenty-nine contestants participated—counting him and Bai Xiuxiu as one unit. In other words, there would be a free win in the elimination rounds. No one knew who that lucky one would be. None of those who had reached the finals were simple opponents; from here on, it would all depend on their respective luck.

Moreover, the specific format and drawing method would be determined by the Dragon Knights who arrived today. According to the news brought by Huang Yuanlang, the format of the finals in each Rising Dragon Competition varied; sometimes, a double-elimination system was even adopted. This time, the decision to adopt the elimination format was only announced after the round-robin stage concluded. Relatively speaking, the double-elimination system was more scientific, allowing everyone to display their strength more fully. The knockout stage would be far more brutal. What Lan Xuanyu did not know was that the final decision to hold the finals in a knockout format was actually related to him. The dragon god energy he had absorbed from the Rising Dragon Platform that day had caused quite a stir among the Dragon Knights. But if the Dragon Knights wanted to attempt it themselves, they would have to wait until after the Rising Dragon Competition ended! Therefore, after deliberations within the Celestial Dragon Alliance, the Dragon Knight lords decided to adopt a knockout format for the finals in order to conclude the Rising Dragon Competition as quickly as possible.

The contestants arrived one after another, and the atmosphere immediately grew even more tense. Although all of them were elites, there were still differences in strength, and no one wanted to encounter the strongest opponent right away in a knockout format. There was also a ranking in the finals of the Rising Dragon Competition, determined by the contestants’ performance in battle. Everyone wanted to achieve a higher rank. Having reached this stage, they would all qualify for the subsequent Dragon Knight selection. Those selected would be called reserve Dragon Knights and would receive special training, with the entire alliance’s resources tilted in their favor. During this process, reserve Dragon Knights were required to obtain a mount dragon compatible with their own attributes. How could they obtain them? Naturally, through strength. The ranking in the Rising Dragon Competition was the best reflection of one’s strength; for example, when introducing themselves to those mount dragons, the reserve Dragon Knight’s ranking in the Rising Dragon Competition was an important reference for the dragons.

There were only two ways to gain a mount dragon’s recognition: either defeat it into submission or be chosen by it. Between the two, being chosen was certainly much easier! Not to mention that the rewards of the Rising Dragon Competition also increased with better rankings. Especially the top three prizes, which had always been extremely generous.

Just then, from within the silver light gate, a tall figure walked out. The Dragon Clan high-ranking members who had been seated atop the dragon energy pillars stood up almost simultaneously. Only a Dragon Knight had the qualification to step out from that light gate at this time. The first Dragon Knight to emerge was someone Lan Xuanyu and Bai Xiuxiu did not recognize; it was their first time seeing him. He appeared to be a young man around twenty years of age. He had an ordinary face and a cold demeanor, dressed in plain grey loose casual wear, looking utterly unremarkable. Yet, when he arrived, every Dragon Clan powerhouse present lowered their noble heads and wore expressions of reverence. This showed just how high his status was among the Dragon Clan.

The second Dragon Knight to walk out after him was one Lan Xuanyu recognized—Darkfiend Dragon Knight Luo Yayuan. Behind him were the sixth-ranked Heaven-Defying Dragon Knight Long Chaoyang, the seventh-ranked Mokong Dragon Knight Luo Lan, and the eleventh-ranked Holy Light Dragon Knight Huang Liangwei. These four had all appeared before. Behind them, two more Dragon Knights emerged, both unfamiliar to Lan Xuanyu, and one of them was a woman. She was a middle-aged woman of striking beauty, wearing a faint smile on her face. She was the last to step out from the light gate. As if drawn by an aura, the moment she emerged, she looked directly toward Lan Xuanyu and Bai Xiuxiu, her smile growing even brighter. A female Dragon Knight. According to Huang Yuanlang, among the eighteen Dragon Knights, only two were female. This should be one of them.

A total of seven Dragon Knights had come to watch the finals of this Rising Dragon Competition. What relieved Lan Xuanyu was that the Celestial Dragon Clan’s Head was not among these seven. That was a great blessing for him. Although he had undergone earth-shaking changes, and the Treasure Seeking Beast had said that even if they met again, the Celestial Dragon Clan’s Head would find it hard to recognize him, the two were still enemies, and the Celestial Dragon Clan’s Head had seen him before. If the Head had come, he would surely have been nervous. That the Celestial Dragon Clan’s Head did not come was naturally for the best.

The arrival of the seven great Dragon Knights immediately made the atmosphere on the Rising Dragon Platform grow fervent. All the contestants stood up and bowed in the direction of the seven Dragon Knights. Beneath the feet of the seven Dragon Knights, light appeared simultaneously, and massive pillars of light propelled their bodies upward into the air.

The Dragon Knight who had emerged first stood at the very center, a faint smile on his face, appearing very approachable. The light pillar beneath him was extraordinarily massive, clearly a third thicker than those of the other Dragon Knights, and it rose at an extremely fast speed. Silver-grey dragon energy burst forth, quickly lifting him to over a hundred meters in the air, making him stand conspicuously above the other Dragon Knights. Seeing this, Lan Xuanyu could not help but draw a sharp breath. Without needing to ask, he could guess that this Dragon Knight was probably second only to the Celestial Dragon Clan’s Head on Celestial Dragon Planet.

The seven enormous dragon energy pillars were so dazzlingly bright on the Rising Dragon Platform. As they rose, the dragon energy across the entire platform grew viscous. Bathed in such dragon energy, even without cultivating, the sub-god-ranked contestants would see their strength improve. The leading Dragon Knight swept his gaze over all the contestants below and smiled, saying, “Your reaching the finals means that you are all the finest talents of our clan. Our future successors will undoubtedly be chosen from among you. In the coming finals, continue to strive and perform well. The finals will be conducted in a knockout format. Now, let the drawing of lots begin. Those with mount dragons, step forward.”

Hearing this, Lan Xuanyu exchanged a glance with Bai Xiuxiu and walked out. Seeing “them” step forward together, the expressions of the other contestants could not help but change. Lan’s performance in the previous round-robin stage had left a deep impression on every contestant. Already formidable in strength, “she” was now joined by Xiuxiu, who had also reached the finals, as her mount dragon. One could only imagine her combat prowess.