Zoe put on the hood, as suggested by Li Ang, and she obediently followed through.

The three young girls followed the crowd through the entrance passageway.

The entrance queue, dominated by the sandland merchants, was filled with brute force pushing and shoving, with coarse equipment and sharp edges everywhere. Just walking through the line was fraught with tension.

ALulu held up a shield, her little face tense, prepared to fend off outsiders from reaching Zoe and Dorothy. The half-elf huddled her shoulders, bent down, and clung to the unshakable ALulu to remain steady.

Nearby, someone was discussing the content of the combat skills competition.

"Big brother, I heard that the first round is a selection phase? How was it the last time you came?"

"It's different each time. The time before last was a maze with demons, and last time it was allowed to attack others in a jumping platform challenge."

Their conversation attracted quite a bit of attention.

Dorothy shivered, crossing her arms: "A maze with obstacles again and running? No way."

"Sounds kind of fun." Zoe said, half skipping as she walked.

"What's fun about it?" Dorothy sighed.

"Why are you afraid of everything? You've absorbed Li Ang's nutrients; you should be stronger."

"Ah?" Dorothy was taken aback, then mumbled as she grabbed Zoe's arm.

"Can you stop saying surprising things like that, that... that is..."

Unable to explain in detail, Dorothy covered her face and sighed.

"What's an obstacle challenge?" ALulu asked.

Her little face seemed somewhat nervous.

"I don't know." Zoe replied.

"You don't know and yet you look so eager."

Dorothy, already disinclined to comment further, explained to the horned girl: "It's where obstacles are arranged on narrow and dangerous paths, and there are mechanisms to knock you off the road."

"Then I'm a bit scared." ALulu fretted, "I'm small and can't get over some places."

"You're strong enough, just smash your way through." Zoe said.

"Can I really do that?"

Dorothy shook her head, it seemed like whatever they did would be chaotic.

The dry wind blowing increasingly stronger, and as they exited the passageway, the bright sunlight was somewhat dazzling, the desert's heat already evident in the morning.

The three squinted their eyes, taking a moment to adjust to the brightness outside.

The crowd entered the broad center of the circular arena, with tiers of seats behind approximately seven or eight meters of tall walls. At this moment, the seats were already packed with spectators, the noise was deafening.

In front of them, the opening performance team had just withdrawn, leaving some scattered streamers on the ground.

"Where's Li Ang?" Zoe looked around, hopping left and right, the amber-gold skirt armor with spikes causing people nearby to frown and step aside.

"I'll look too." ALulu scanned the spectator seats.

"How can you see anything in this?" Dorothy's iridescent eyes were vibrant under the sunshine; she tried to look as well but felt overwhelmed by the many stares and hid behind ALulu.

"Seems like he's over there!" Zoe exclaimed with a laugh, waving desperately: "He's smiling."

Dorothy squinted to see: "He really is. How do you have such unbelievable eyesight?"

Even though they could recognize people, they couldn't see anything else clearly.

She sighed: "Oh, too much paperwork, but back when I was a teenager..."

Zoe interacted with Li Ang from a distance for a while, then spotted Andasu in the nearby group.

The White Wolf wore a mask, her presence as steady as an abyss, flanked by the Liger Sisters donned in fang-studded leather outfits, with two other gang members in metal-frame armor.

"It's the Wolf Ears! Argh!"

Zoe glared, biting her lip.

Andasu's gaze was already upon the three of them, seeing Zoe's expression, she calmly averted her eyes, looking up toward where Li Ang was.

The chestnut-haired girl stamped her foot, about to say something when a loud voice rang through the venue.

The speaker held a megaphone, his voice mixed with an electric buzz echoing through the Flowing Silver Arena.

"Welcome to the Flowing Silver Arena! Here, you'll witness the most primitive collisions of strength, bloody battles, and shattered dignity! I am your host—'Huo Zui' Reed!"

The host's entire face looked like it had been burned, his mouth torn at the corner, the wound long healed. He now wore a steel mask protecting his mouth and chin.

He stood on a high platform at the center of the arena, supported by a sturdy column with machinery below, clearly elevated from the ground.

"That guy has been punished multiple times for mocking those who failed in combat." Someone familiar with the combat competition said.

This caught the attention of the three young girls nearby.

"How can they do that, isn't that just lawless?" ALulu said.

"I fear there may be no law to speak of here." Dorothy replied.

Huo Zui Reed shouted: "The annual Combat Competition officially begins. This year's contestants have all entered. Why are you here? I know it all! It must be the millions in prize money and extraordinary equipment! Well, you're in luck, for this year, aside from the usual items, the magnificent Platinum King has added many mysterious gifts!

"For example, the exclusive flying airship of the champion pilot who has won multiple times in the Platinum Racing! With it, your future races will be unstoppable! And also, rare items collected over the years by the Sangrus Clan from defeating various foes!

"Now please welcome our organizer, the great Master of the Desert, King of Combat, wearer of the Platinum Crown, Antorus Sangrus, to deliver the opening speech!"

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