Chapter 385: The Eight Quarter Finalists (2/2)
”I see, you want to make the announcement.” Wang Tong smiled.
”Of course! I want them to let them know that we belong to each other from now on.”
”Ok, let's go.”
The crowd cheered as the two appeared in front of them hand in hand. The sudden change of House of Ma's attitude had also surprised everyone. The group went straight to a restaurant to celebrate the lovers' reunion.
A few days had passed, and the seeding ceremony for the quarter-finals was about to start. There were over ten thousand media journalist that had applied to enter the arena. However, only a few were granted the pass.
All eyes were on the seeding process, as it would play a significant role in shaping the outcome of the remaining fights.
Suddenly, a streaky flash of light appeared on the stage as Zhang Buyu walked out of the backstage. The light came from his long glinting blade. He folded his hands and bowed to the audiences, polite as ever.
After the MC announced his name, the backdrop on the stage showed a projection of highlights from Zhang Buyu's previous fights.
When the images finally faded, a lightning flash zapped across the stage, and with the din of a blaring thunder, Lee Xin sauntered onto the stage with his legendary Thunder Blade. His dramatic entry won him lots of teenage girls' screams.
Before the screams had died down, the lights on the stage changed from blinding lightning flashes to dream like soft shades, as the only female contestant—Kaedeian Princess Heidi—appeared in front of everyone.
After the MC announced Heidi's name, the projector projected the image of Planet Mars onto the stage backdrop. As the camera panned closer to the red planet, Mars turned into a ball of fire, and Michaux slowly walked out of the flames.
Suddenly, the flame burned with more intensity, as another Martian walked out of the blazing fire. He was Lie Jian, the Martian prince.
The flame waned after Lie Jian's entrance, and the stage was slowly swallowed by darkness. Despite the darkness, audiences could vaguely discern an even darker outline of a human figure. As the mysterious fighter stepped into the light, everyone found out that he was Wang Tong, the dark horse of this year's tournament.
Suddenly, a blaring clap shot through the entire arena, and thousand trumpets followed with a few powerful high notes, as the two most popular fighters stepped onto the stage at the same time.
They were the heir of House of Li, Li Shiming, and the perfect human, Patroclus. All the audiences held the same question in their mind, ”Will they re-enact their ancestor's legendary fight a few centuries ago?”
The eight fighters stood under the stage light. They represented the ultimate power of their generation. The most anticipated moment was about to arrive, as the names of the eight players rolled on the screen.
”Ding-a-ling!”
The first group: Li Shiming vs. Lee Xin.
It would be not only a confrontation between two young swordmasters, but also a fight between ”Vayu” and the ”Thunder Blade.”
Lee Xin was very pleased with his position, since his opponent was not Patroclus, and he always believed that he would be able to defeat Li Shiming.
The second group: Michaux vs. Wang Tong.
The announcement had unnerved all earthlings, as they doubted that Wang Tong would be able to defeat the young master. To everyone's surprise, they both looked at each other and smiled knowingly, as if they were both pleased by the seeding result.
The third group: Patroclus vs. Heidi. It would be a fight between two hotties.
The fourth group: Lie Jian vs. Zhang Buyu.
After the final announcement, the seeding ceremony finally lowered its curtain. The next day, stage lights lit up again as the real battle of the tournament started.
The MC shouted the names of the combatants, but the feverish cheers of the audiences drowned his voice. This would be the first official fight between ”Vayu” and ”Thunder Blade.”
Both fighters stepped onto the stage amidst waves of cheers of their supporters.