From the pitch dark shadows, a tall and slender figure appeared. In the eyes of the many ultimate contenders, this slim figure could not be considered "special".

Nonetheless, his eyes shone with a tranquil light. Perhaps among everyone present, he was the only one with such a calm gaze.

"Leon, you…"

When the Princess Royal heard what Merlin had said, her face trembled as she looked at Merlin with a complicated expression. The relationship between her and Merlin was one of constant enticements.

The Princess Royal had even exploited her "sex appeal" but was later discovered. Through constant enticement, the "sex appeal" she had given up was not of much use. In a dangerous situation like this, Merlin was more likely to leave right away. After all, that would be the right decision.

However, Merlin stayed on.

"Lisa, don't worry. What I've promised you, naturally, I'll help you achieve!"

A smirk gently tugged at the corner of Merlin's lips. Suddenly, he looked toward Farron who was under immense pressure.

Farron took a deep breath and said in a self-mocking tone, "Leon, I've never thought that we'll join forces and fight one day…"

It was true that in Farron's heart, Merlin was someone he must kill. Reconciliation was nearly impossible for them as they represented different interests.

However, faced with a common threat now, both of them joined forces to hold on until the end.

Merlin swept his gaze over before it finally settled on Doomsday. His expression slowly turned icy. "Doomsday, you once hunted me down. Today, I'll return the favor."

"Boom."

Rows of terrifying spurs swiftly appeared over Merlin's body as his body expanded. An incomparably fearsome almighty beast emerged.

This was no longer the appearance of the Blood-eye Dragon but a monster that was "neither fish nor fowl". The ultimate contenders who had shown up here were all widely knowledgeable. They recognized the appearances of almighty beasts very well. They had certainly never seen a creature like Merlin. It was too strange. Moreover, after Merlin had shapeshifted, that terrifying pressure descended upon everyone.

They were all ultimate contenders. It was rather inconceivable that such a frightening pressure would take hold of them.

"What almighty beast is this? Such a terrifying presence, especially its strength. How could it be so overwhelming in just pure strength?"

These ultimate contenders had relied on their Supreme Talents to become "ultimate contenders" so they found it difficult to imagine that someone like Merlin, who, by relying on his almighty beast body and its tyrannical strength, could compare to ultimate contenders.

"Roar…"

After Merlin had shapeshifted, he unleashed a furious cry, then sped toward Doomsday in huge strides.

However, at this point, the Nine-lives Werewolf among the Shadow King's group suddenly leaped out, his eyes fixed upon Merlin's gigantic bulk. His expression shone as he said sinisterly, "Heh heh, not bad, not bad. I've finally encountered an almighty beast who has such powerful strength upon full-shifting. Leave this guy to me then. I've not met such an opponent for a very, very long time…"

The Nine-lives Werewolf's eyes brightened and he appeared very excited.

The Shadow King frowned. Initially, Merlin had been rushing toward Doomsday, which would cause more trouble for Doomsday. Naturally, they were happy to see that but the Nine-lives Werewolf had gotten worked up over the thrill of the hunt and confronted Merlin himself.

"Alright, this person is on the royal family's side after all. Since the Nine-lives Werewolf wants to, let him handle the guy. We'll focus on making the king reveal the whereabouts of the Sacred Lion Beast's head."

The Phantom King said softly. Their target was still the Sacred Lion Beast's head. This was the main factor that had spurred them to come to Holy Dragon City.

"Hehe, come on, come on. I'm too fond of strength-type almighty beasts…"

The Nine-lives Werewolf had shapeshifted too, instantly turning into a colossal black wolf of unparalleled size. It also had a pair of wings, appearing extremely sinister and frightening.

"Bang."

Force met force and the smile on the Nine-lives Werewolf's face was frozen at once. He was an almighty beast of immense formidable strength. It was because of this that the Nine-lives Werewolf was delighted upon seeing Merlin.

However, after an instant of collision, he could no longer smile. That earth-shattering, fearsome power had suffocated him. In just one collision through Merlin's swipe, the Nine-lives Werewolf's chest was ripped through and viciously torn. The Nine-lives Werewolf's almighty beast body was ripped into two.

"The Nine-lives Werewolf had died?"

"He's dead so soon?"

"Haha, Nine-lives Werewolf, you've met your match this time."

Merlin stopped in his tracks. The responses from these ultimate contenders seemed odd. No matter what, the Nine-lives Werewolf was their companion. He had died but there was no trace of sorrow nor any looks of shock.

Therefore, Merlin frowned. At this moment, he sensed something was off. The two halves of the Nine-lives Werewolf on the ground were rapidly fusing. Slowly, the flesh was remolded and another Nine-lives Werewolf appeared.

The Nine-lives Werewolf who had just appeared looked just as he did before. The force on his body had not even changed, only his murderous aura had grown intense.

"Good, very good! For so long I've not met such a meaningful opponent that could make me die once. Still, it'll end now!"

The Nine-lives Werewolf roared and lunged toward Merlin, who could instantly sense the frightening pressure. Now, the Nine-lives Werewolf's strength was much greater than before.

Even so, it was insufficient by far for this bit of strength to threaten Merlin!

"Roar!"

Merlin let out a ferocious snarl. The scary soundwaves caused the Nine-lives Werewolf to shudder until he was dizzy. Thereafter, Merlin gripped his claws into a fist and smashed it ruthlessly into the Nine-lives Werewolf's head.

"Bang."

The Nine-lives Werewolf's fate was the same as the first time. His head exploded under the impact and he died a second time.

This time, everyone in the main foyer fell silent. Everyone was staring at Merlin dreadfully. Someone who could kill the Nine-lives Werewolf twice in a row in a face-to-face attack – a contender like this had not appeared for a long time.

"What terrifying physical attributes and strength. He's more formidable than the Nine-lives Werewolf. Plus, he still hasn't used his Supreme Talent."

"An ultimate contender… It must be another ultimate contender. I've never thought that the royal family is still hiding an ultimate contender like this. He's just right for restraining the Nine-lives Werewolf!"

"This round, the Nine-lives Werewolf is in trouble! He has nine lives and each time he dies, his strength exhibits explosive growth. Who knows how many times he'll die before he can overcome this mysterious contender named Leon."

Doomsday narrowed his eyes slightly. Of course, he could tell that Merlin was different from when he had trapped Merlin. He had grown stronger to the point where even the Nine-lives Werewolf had died twice in a row.

The Nine-lives Werewolf's greatest power was his strength. In a shapeshifted form, without mobilizing one's Supreme Talent, almost no one was a match for the Nine-lives Werewolf.

Of course, an ultimate contender's best asset was their Supreme Talent. The Nine-lives Werewolf had a Supreme Talent too, which was very terrifying. The real reason he was called the Nine-lives Werewolf was that he had nine lives.

His Supreme Talent was having nine lives! If it was just that, the Nine-lives Werewolf could not be called an ultimate contender by far. What was scary about him was that each time he died, the various attributes of his body would increase one time over.

As an example, the Nine-lives Werewolf had now died twice and was resurrected. In that case, his physical attributes were twice improved. He was the strongest in his final form when his physical attributes were enhanced nine times over. This was rather fearsome. No one knew how frightening the Nine-lives Werewolf was when his physique was augmented nine times over because even now, no one had ever forced the Nine-lives Werewolf to such a situation. He had never died more than three times.

This time, the Nine-lives Werewolf knew that he had finally met an opponent who was evenly matched, who could easily kill him twice.

"Buzz."

The Nine-lives Werewolf with his "exploded head" was resurrected once again. His physical attributes were improved twice over, reaching a horrifying level.

"Kill!"

The Nine-lives Werewolf grew berserk. After coming alive, he did not say anything but immediately lunged at Merlin. His vicious force would directly suffocate anyone.

Twice over – the Nine-lives Werewolf's strength was boosted twice over. Even Merlin could detect this massive power. Nonetheless, Merlin was never afraid of strength-type almighty beasts.

"Just the thing I need!"

Merlin breathed in deeply. He did not know how strong he was at this point. In the previous test, no matter how Farron attacked, it was useless. Still, this did not mean that Merlin was invincible. After all, in terms of actual strength, Farron could not compare to the Nine-lives Werewolf physically.

Other than the Nine-lives Werewolf, no one could injure Merlin's almighty beast body. This time, Merlin was also testing his limits.

Merlin roared to the sky and spread his wings, appearing very terrifying. He mobilized his body strength and swung another fist toward the Nine-lives Werewolf.

Likewise, the Nine-lives Werewolf threw a punch, a blow without any tricks. At their level, tricks were no longer of any use.

"Bang."

The ruthless impact of pure power caused a fearsome force to spread out in all directions. One layer of the ground was viciously stripped off, exposing the soil beneath.

Nonetheless, the result was one that shocked everyone once more. The Nine-lives Werewolf had died without any resistance. In terms of strength, he was not of the same league and was killed violently by Merlin at once.

This scene was extremely astounding. As they witnessed the battle between the Nine-lives Werewolf and Merlin, a chill gradually grew in the hearts of these ultimate contenders.