Ren walked onto the field smiling…

It wasn't an arrogant or condescending smile but a genuine expression of anticipation. Because finally, after all the battles he'd fought during this exam, he would face a challenge requiring his complete effort, very probably all three of his combat beasts.

Taro observed him approaching with an expression mixing determination and something that might have been contained excitement. These two had trained together for years, had fought side by side, had developed mutual understanding that came from years sharing living space and pushing each other to improve constantly.

And now they could measure their strength against each other once more.

Ren considered his options quickly in those final seconds before committing. The mantis would be a bad choice against the beetle… that was obvious to anyone with basic understanding of how defense and offense functioned.

The mantis depended on speed and precision, could eliminate all eight lesser team members easily to save the energy of the other two beasts, but the beetle possessed defense the mantis couldn't penetrate easily. It would be a war of attrition that wouldn't favor Ren at all.

The wolverine was his most versatile option…

So Ren went directly to the hydra again, manifesting it in an explosion of blue-green mana that echoed the massive presence of the beetle.

Two enormous beasts, the most advanced in the entire school in terms of raw power and refined cultivation. The beetle had been the first Gold-rank beast in Ren's close circle, a new record for the youngest Gold-rank tamer, that monumental achievement that had opened doors for others to follow the right path.

And the hydra was the second, if you didn't count the light and mana mushroom that nobody except perhaps Ren himself and the mushroom considered a battle beast.

Both creatures observed each other with what could be described as instinctive recognition between apex predators. The hydra with its two heads raised, diamond scales gleaming under the sunlight. The beetle with its golden carapace reflecting that same light, legs planted firmly in position communicating absolute stability.

The air between them seemed to thicken with concentrated mana as both beasts prepared themselves. The audience fell silent, recognizing they were about to witness something special… not just a battle but a clash between two philosophical approaches to power made manifest in physical form.

The beetle represented perfect defense. Immovability. The idea that if you couldn't be moved, couldn't be hurt, you would eventually wear down any opponent through sheer endurance.

The hydra represented the perfect balance between defense and attack. Stability. The idea that if you possessed both attack and defense you'd have more ways to deal with your opponent.

Doubled power meeting an immovable object.

One of them would have to give.

Taro's expression was serious now, all traces of the earlier amusement gone. This wasn't like facing Ron's salamander or any of the other opponents who'd fallen before the beetle. This was Ren Patinder with what could be his most powerful beast.

This would require everything Taro had learned, every technique he'd perfected, every ounce of tactical thinking he'd developed.

And he welcomed it.

Because what was the point of becoming strong if you never tested yourself against someone who could push you to your limits?

Ren's smile faded as well, replaced by focused intensity that made several spectators lean forward unconsciously.

This was the moment they'd all been waiting for.

Master Zhao raised his hand, almost hesitant to interrupt the moment of accumulated tension between two of the academy's finest.

"Begin."

The hydra's first head rose immediately, wasting no more time on posturing or intimidation. Light concentrated in its throat with the usual speed, brilliance increasing to the point where several spectators had to squint against the glare.

The light beam fired with force that made the air vibrate visibly. It crossed the distance between the two beasts in a fraction of a second, the perfect trajectory aimed at the beetle's center mass.

Yet the beetle responded with speed that defied its massive size. It didn't attempt dodging, that would have been admitting the attack was a threat requiring evasion. Instead, it expelled a defense of sand and minerals from its abdomen.

Sand exploded around the beetle, not a simple dune but a solid construction of multiple layers of compacted sand and mineral that pushed outward from the beast.

The light beam struck the flowing mineral and sand with an intense sound. The energy penetrated, piercing through the first layer, then the second, excavating a path by melting through a defense that would have stopped most attacks completely.

But it didn't penetrate all the way through… Didn't even reach the beetle itself.

The defensive layers kept regenerating and absorbed what remained of the beam's energy, dispersing it into heat and mineral fragments that rained harmlessly around.

The beetle remained unharmed behind its holed but not overcome layers of defense. It had received no damage.

Ren smiled seeing his first shot had been completely stopped by the beetle's defenses. It wasn't frustration he felt but something closer to pure satisfaction at seeing his advice and knowledge working so effectively for his friends as well.

"Both heads," he ordered through the bond with the hydra.

Both heads rose simultaneously, light concentrating in both throats. The brilliance intensified rapidly to the point of creating harsh shadows on the field despite the bright sun above them. And then they fired at the same time, two beams converging toward the same point in the beetle's cracked defenses.

Taro responded immediately, not allowing his beast to be caught by surprise by the power increase.

The beetle generated more defense in front of itself, layers multiplying from its frontal section at speed that spoke of their extensive practice. Compacted sand mixing with the yellow living mineral that seemed to ignore physics laws, creating overlapping structures that reinforced each other mutually.

One layer, two, three, five layers appearing in less than five seconds.

The twin beams impacted with doubled the force from the first attack. The energy excavated through the defenses with implacable resolve, destroying layer after layer while penetrating deeper. The sound was deafening now, a continuous beam that made the ground vibrate under everyone's feet on the field.

But even with double the power, it wasn't sufficient...

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