As soon as those words were spoken, Kali's legs softened as she fell to her knees. However, before she fell, Valeria caught her in her arms with a smile. "Well done, Kali."
Kali relaxed her entire body, feeling safe and protected.
Then, all the plants and flowers Kali summoned fell down as she severed her control over them.
Still, they wouldn't whither for long after being affected by Kali's many buffs, leaving the entire battlefield strewn with them.
Valeria looked over and waved her hand. Her aura enveloped the battlefield like a wave, and every plant rushed into her body. As if she were made out of water, everything fell into her, showcasing her ability as a spirit of life.
In a few seconds, everything was swallowed by her and disappeared.
Then, Valeria jumped away gracefully, returning to everyone else's side.
Andrea laughed. "What a fight! Seeing that middle-level Epoch Core being swarmed was quite a sight."
Cecile complimented. "That sneak attack at the end looked annoying. Good job."
Kali laughed and thought. 'Cecile's praise is, like always, strange. Does she give her opinion based on how she would do against it?'
"Thank you for the praise, Cecile, Andrea."
Yasenia gathered their attention and commented. "Now, for the 2v2s, Andrea and I will go first. You two can go later and rest."
Andrea asked. "When do they start?"
Yasenia looked around and spotted a sand clock. "When that thing gets empty."
Andrea looked over and nodded. "We have a while to rest. Around 2 hours?"
Yasenia nodded with a smile and threw herself between Andrea and Cecile. "Yep. We have 2 hours to cuddle~."
Both women laughed and turned sideways to hug their cuddly dragoness. Meanwhile, Kali sat on Valeria's lap in a place nearby.
For the following two hours, the girls would speak with each other about everyday matters, not feeling tense about the 2v2 that was around the corner.
Their current score was 3-0, so if they won, they would win the entire match and move on. If, by some miracle, they lost both duels in the five versus five, Eira would step in, tilting the scales to their side, guaranteeing their win.
As Andrea and Yasenia moved toward the arena, the dragoness asked. "Love, do we do that?"
Andrea stopped putting on the helmet, blinked, and looked at her. "Are you sure, love? While we've practiced enough, this would be our first time doing it during a real fight."
Yasenia smiled. "I trust you, Darling."
Andrea laughed and put on her draconic helmet. "If you have confidence in me, then I have nothing to fear. Let's do it!"
They dived into the arena and looked at the other side. The two other Dolurs who had not fought in the first three rounds appeared.
The two Dolurs looked at Yasenia with serious faces. They knew she was stronger than the rest and were ready to give their all after their allies' heavy defeats.
"Do not lose concentration for a second."
"Be careful with her breath attacks; as a dragon, that's one of her strongest weapons."
Then, the judge's voice was heard. "The battle will start in 10…"
"9…"
As soon as the countdown started, their resolve took a heavy hit as Yasenia unleashed her auras, flooding the entire arena with her Empyrean presence.
Both felt like a metal plate hit their chests as Yasenia's existence level was revealed and elevated, with one aura stacking on top of the other.
At her side, Andrea was similarly becoming stronger. However, while Andrea's aura felt "strong," Yasenia's felt "superior."
It was such a simple word, yet the meaning behind it was impactful.
When the countdown reached 3 seconds, turbulent energies rushed toward Yasenia, and soon, her body began to grow in size.
Her skin changed from its usual white to a beautiful blue. Then, her body's shape began changing, and her height grew uncontrollably. Scales appeared along her body, and her dress merged with herself.
Soon, an enormous dragon that dwarfed hills stood before the two Dolurs, imposing like the midday Sun and as beautiful as a starry night.
One of them gulped and spoke. "Can we really fight that?"
The other wanted to answer confidently. He had heard about Yasenia's dragon's form and size before, but he never considered it in his eyes. After all, what was a hill-sized dragon compared to several mountains that he had flattened in the past?
But when the Dragon stood before him, her sky-shrouding wings encompassing a large part of his vision while the creature looked down at them as if they were ants, a hint of fear couldn't help but sprout in his heart.
When one second was left, he noticed something and asked. "Where is the other one?"
The second the countdown hit zero, Yasenia took a deep breath and roared using [Sun Dragon Roar].
ROOAR!
A powerful shockwave spread around, golden light bathing her surroundings and hitting them with enough strength to feel their brains pounding.
"A soul attack!? Be careful!"
The giant dragon rushed forward, and they finally saw where the other enemy was. "Oh, the dragon's head!"
The other had also realized, making them confused.
After all, riding such a large create was nothing but a waste. Attacking from up there, where Andrea stood, was not something that was easy or efficient.
But dragon raiders, or well, beast tamers, existed even in the high-level realms, where Yasenia's current dragon was nothing but a slightly bigger ant compared to the colossal creatures that roamed those places.
The trick was in coordinating the auras with the beast you rode.
If one managed to do so, they would be able to channel their attacks from a distance as long as they were in striking range of the dragon.
Naturally, these attacks placed a heavy strain on the raider, as they needed to coordinate energies and simultaneously use the aura of the being they rode as a channel to cast their skills.
Yasenia quickly rushed forward, lifting one of her frontal legs and stomping down at one of them.
These two had swords as weapons, and without a single moment of hesitation, they slashed back at the pillar-like limb falling on them.
Two extremely powerful sword auras rushed at Yasenia's claw. However, before they arrived, Andrea waved her hand.
Her energy rotated inside her in an instant, and then, it all poured into the dragoness, reappearing from Yasenia's claw.
[Heaven-Born Flame Defense] was unleashed below her claw and blocked the attacks enough for Yasenia's natural defenses to block the rest, forcing the two of them to resist the lowering limb with their bodies.
Naturally, as body cultivators, they had no problem. However, Andrea used her energy again and activated [Sun Molten Pillar] right as Yasenia retreated.
With their senses, they were quick to notice the heating floor, so they jumped backward simultaneously, only to feel another danger signal coming from above them.
Looking up, they saw Yasenia's dark maw wide open, a light glowing at the back of her throat. [Sun Dragon Breath] was released like a giant pillar and almost swallowed them.
Andrea lifted her halberd, striking downwards as if they were right before. A massive phantom halberd appeared and lowered on the two Dolurs right in the middle, forcing them to jump away from each other.
One of them was quick and instantly shot toward Yasenia, knowing what they had planned. Yasenia flapped her right wing, forcing her enormous body to move sideways and dodge the incoming attack swiftly.
Meanwhile, Andrea focused on the other, keeping it at bay as she rode Yasenia.
Dragon and woman began releasing coordinated attacks, efficiently controlling the battlefield. Andrea's lips were arched below her helmet, feeling incredible. 'My love is truly magnificent. Fighting with her like this is exhilarating.'
Of course, Andrea didn't wholly control Yasenia's movements, unlike regular beast riders. While she had the means to guide Yasenia, she usually allowed her to move as she pleased while Andrea attacked and defended.
After trial and error, not stealing Yasenia's movement freedom proved to be the best to ride Yasenia in her dragon form.
Meanwhile, the two Dolurs were feeling helpless. While they could naturally aim and attack the enormous being, some attacks managed to land, but the defenses were sturdy to the point of despair.
Yasenia's scales were already hard, and all her auras then enhanced them. They were already hard enough at this point, but that wasn't all. With Andrea riding her, she could also help her defend with her skills and even use energy to enhance her defenses further.
A Dolur managed to sneak in and punched Yasenia's side.
BOOOM!
A strength that would level an entire mountain struck Yasenia's side, forcing her to take three steps.
The Dolur wasn't happy, though. His eyes focused on the wound he had created, which was a sizeable 3-meter-wide dent. However, compared with the entire creature's size, it felt like nothing.
At this point, Yasenia's maw opened, and she chanted. "[Celestial Assimilation]."
The skill she used to fight the system enveloped her entire being, and her energies went berserk to the point of affecting Andrea, who was standing at the top of her head.
To make sure she didn't fall, Andrea created a makeshift saddle made out of molten material. She wasn't afraid that it would burn Yasenia. Even more so when her dear dragoness was being affected by [Celestial Assimilation].
After a few moments of absorbing energy, the giant dragon extended her wings and roared.
"ROAAAR!"
Andrea used her control over Yasenia and turned her around to block a sneak attack coming that way.
The Dolur that thought he would land a strike suddenly saw a fist the size of a house appearing before his eyes.
BANG!
His body flew like a shooting star as Yasenia roared once more and began unleashing a Celestial Hell.
[Celestial Assimilation] gave her absurd energy regeneration and allowed her to use her skills as she pleased.
Her meridians, reinforced by Celestial Energy, were sturdy to the point of ridiculousness.
After that, it was a complete beatdown.
With Andrea riding her and allowing Yasenia to fight much more freely, Yasenia went on a rampage as her skills flew around.
Stars fell like rain; her tail and claws unleashed [Sunrise], [Sunset], [Crescent Moon], and many other skills; her domains summoned several Sun, Moon, and Star attributes events around her.
From the outside, it felt as if a natural disaster had been unleashed.
A Dolur was sent flying after a tail strike landed on his side, breaking a few of his bones. But the giant dragon didn't let go. She opened her mouth and used [Star Dragon Breath], unleashing a torrent of white death.
BOOM!
Meanwhile, the other Dolur was assaulted by falling stars, and when he was about to escape, Andrea summoned a giant molten wall, blocking his path long enough for her rampaging dragon lover to turn around.
Yasenia rose to her hind legs and lifted her claw, grabbing the sky.
The Dolur looked upward, and his face became pale.
An enormous Sun and Moon surrounded a Galaxy full of stars, and as the dragon roared and made the motion of throwing something, the sky fell.
BOOOOOOOM!!!!!
The judge appeared and shouted. "Yasenia and Andrea win! The Astral Sky Sect will advance to the next round!"
Yasenia and Andrea breathed out simultaneously, stopping their skills.