Who are you calling a stable boy?!

"Please speak."

Long then replied to Zheng Jing.

"Who do you find more attractive, him or me?"

Pointing to the giant snake, then to himself, Zheng Jing shouted.

This question not only stumped Long, but also left everyone present speechless.

"Sorry... I don't quite understand?"

"Whoa!"

Zheng Jingyi waved his hand.

The next moment, he suddenly appeared on the stage, covered his mouth with his hand, and whispered in Long's ear, "Master Long, let's make a deal. Let me have him, and we can arrange another match afterward, how about it?"

Upon hearing this, Long turned his face and stared at Zheng Jing for a few seconds.

Then, his serious expression softened.

"My energy expenditure wasn't actually that high, but compared to him, I really hope to have a proper match with you, Zheng Jing."

He raised his hand and patted Zheng Jing on the shoulder.

"You decide the time and place; I'm really looking forward to it."

After saying this, Long raised his right hand, which had just patted Zheng Jing on the shoulder.

"Referee, I forfeit."

The big-nosed referee seemed to have just come to his senses from Zheng Jing's question.

After confirming once again that Ryu had indeed forfeited, he was about to announce the winner of the match—

"Oh! There's one more thing!"

Zheng Jing shouted again.

This time, he picked at his ear, as if adjusting the antenna of a closed-circuit television, and turned his head with a grin towards the golden sky.

"Hey, organizer with the nice voice, can I, Lao Zheng, discuss something with you?"

[Oh? Little monkey, what do you want to say?]

"Hehe! It's nothing, I just wanted to offer some suggestions regarding our schedule."

【suggestion?】

"Look at this kid, so brimming with excitement, he can't wait! What a coincidence! I, Old Zheng, am itching to get started too. As the old saying goes, there's no time like the present..."

Zheng Jing pointed to a large snake.

"Why don't we start fighting right now?"

Chapter 243: I'll beat you until your soul and spirit are gone!

"Little monkey, that depends on your opponent's willingness."

"Did you hear me? I'm talking to you."

Slightly narrowing his eyes, Zheng Jing looked at the giant snake, a hint of mockery in his smile.

"After all those grand pronouncements, are you going to fall silent the moment you see me, Old Zheng?"

【......I do not understand.】

The giant snake stared at Zheng Jing.

What made you choose to protect humanity?

"Hey, are you... still half asleep?"

Zheng Jing chuckled and pointed his thumb down towards the area below the arena.

"Let me ask you, you say you want to destroy humanity, doesn't that mean you want to mess with everyone in the audience? Every single one of them is a friend that I, Old Zheng, have personally acknowledged! You want to mess with my friends, Old Zheng? Hmph!"

The smile vanished from Zheng Jing's face, and his eyes widened.

"You old snake! Do you think I, Old Zheng, am made of clay?!"

【friend?】

The giant snake shifted its gaze.

He looked around at everyone present, a hint of confusion appearing on his cold and handsome face.

【......I see.】

Then, he seemed to have figured something out.

I respect your interests; these humans can stay, it doesn't matter.

Upon hearing this, Zheng Jing suddenly burst out laughing.

They still burst into laughter.

"Hey! Hey! I say, old snake, with all your talent, why are you still trying to exterminate humanity? Why don't you just go tell jokes? You're sure to make Gaia laugh!"

Taking a breath, Zheng Jing smiled, raised his head, and looked down at the giant snake, but only a cold golden aura surged in his eyes.

"Oh, they're my friends, Old Zheng's friends, and you dare not touch them. But do you know that all the good, kind, and wonderful people in this world, whether we've met by chance or never met before, are my friends? If you want to kill those bad, wicked, and rotten people, I won't stop you. But if you dare to lay a finger on a hair on my friends' heads, hehe! Don't blame me for using my heavy stick then—"

He looked at the giant snake, and this time even his smile revealed a chill.

I'll beat you until your soul leaves your body and your spirit is shattered!

The giant snake remained silent.

But those below the arena could clearly feel that the cold, piercing aura emanating from him was becoming stronger and more profound!

[...You have no intention of negotiating at all.]

The giant serpent slowly raised its right hand, and terrifying soul energy gathered at its fingertips, causing tiny cracks to appear in the space around them.

Then let's fight. If you want to protect humanity, let your strength speak for itself.

"Hey! You old snake, I, Old Zheng, have treated you with sincerity, and you dare to spout nonsense! This is outrageous!"

Zheng Jing bared his teeth, pointed at the giant snake, and shouted to the sky, "Did you hear that? He's agreed!"

The voice that came from the sky chuckled softly.

[I heard you, I heard you. Fine, then so be it. Go ahead and fight.]

"Hey!"

Before the big-nosed referee could speak, Zheng Jing had already pulled out the golden cudgel from behind his ear. With a sway of his body, he revealed his six-armed form to the astonished gazes of the crowd. His body was radiating golden light, and he shouted as he jumped toward the giant snake, aiming the cudgel at the snake's crown.

"Take this from Old Zheng!"

Seeing this, the giant snake did not hesitate. The soul energy that had been gathered in its fingertips exploded, distorting space, and struck Zheng Jing.

In an instant, this bloodbath began!

It is:

The malevolent serpent is called the Great Serpent, while the true spirit is called the Lesser Saint.

This person said, "You're ungrateful and deserve a beating!"

The one said, "If you're determined to fight, shut up!"

One condemned the filth of the world as deserving to be eradicated, while the other vehemently criticized the inability to distinguish between good and evil.

When these two meet, the world is turned upside down.

The iron rod is as powerful as a flying dragon, and the sharp blade is as graceful as a dancing phoenix.

He holds wind, fire, thunder, and lightning in his palm, capturing souls, taking lives, and killing without mercy.

With six arms outstretched, it could overturn mountains and seas; with its Ruyi Jingu Bang, it could settle the world.

The two of them were quick-witted and their interactions were seamless.

Even if you use all your skills, you can't harm or damage the body; even if you use the golden hoop to strike the body, you can't kill it.

Whose life is slow and whose fate is sealed?

There was a difference in the score!

The two fought for over a hundred rounds in less than two minutes. How could the tens of meters high arena bear such a heavy burden? They had already fought their way into the sky, their figures flashing back and forth in the sky, charging left and right, coming from the front and back, neither gaining the upper hand.

"Ha! You're such an unkillable mudfish, what are you hiding for? Take another hit from Old Zheng!"

Zheng Jing laughed loudly and chased after the giant snake, swinging his club.

He hasn't encountered such a resilient opponent in a long time.

The Heavenly Kingdom's Immortal Body truly has its secrets; even if struck in the waist and reduced to a cloud of blood mist, it can recover completely in the blink of an eye, comparable to time reversal.

He doesn't even need to worry about the arena. Just as the voice said, he can truly unleash his full potential here!

But the giant snake simply couldn't laugh like Zheng Jing.

He used almost every trick in the book against Zheng Jing, but no matter how he attacked, there wasn't a single mark on Zheng Jing's indestructible body!

Is it because this body, which serves as the medium, is too weak to exert enough power?

No.

While it may not be perfect, it is still the body of one of the Four Heavenly Kings, so how bad could it be?

The Great Serpent had to admit that Zheng Jing's strength truly exceeded his expectations.

Besides that, there's also that stick.

While dodging using teleportation, the giant snake kept its eyes fixed on the golden cudgel in Zheng Jing's hand.

All his defensive measures were useless against this staff; they couldn't block it at all, and he could only dodge it by relying on his speed and teleportation ability.

In other words, he is no match for Zheng Jing in either offense or defense at this moment.

I thought at most...

Setting aside useless thoughts, Orochi understood that this battle, though seemingly evenly matched, was, for him, losing meant losing.

That person never changed the rule that there's a time limit in the competition.

If they continue like this, and the time limit is up, if the two sides draw, they will both be eliminated.

What's more troublesome is that the inheritors of the Three Sacred Treasures will become champions—champions who can make a wish upon the one they wish upon.

The serpent knew very well that, just as the ancient creators wouldn't care if he wished to exterminate humanity, if humanity wanted to ensure he could never rise again, the ancient creators would simply smile and agree.

If you can't win, you lose!

Thinking of this, the giant snake's figure suddenly flashed.

When they reappeared, they were already back on the arena below.

Staring at Zheng Jing, who immediately followed, the giant snake mustered its strength and crossed its arms in front of its body.

Using Chris's body as a medium, Orochi judged that he could only use this strongest move once at most, after which he might be forced to leave Chris's body.

But as long as he can defeat Zheng Jing, he can immediately have Yashiro and Shermie sacrifice themselves to force him to stay in the material plane.

The effects of doing this, of course, won't last long.

But it's more than enough time to hold out until we kill all the inheritors of the three divine artifacts and seize the opportunity to make a wish!

With its crossed hands raised high above its head, the serpent's voice, along with the all-consuming light, surged towards every audience member present.

Let everything return to nothingness!

Chapter 244: Come at me all at once!

"What the hell?!"

A magic staff, opening up a path of light and brilliance.

In an instant, Zheng Jing was radiant with golden light. He unleashed his full power and delivered a powerful blow to the giant snake's head!

"boom!!"

The deafening roar and the monstrous waves created by the clash of the two intense lights instantly engulfed the entire island.

Fortunately, protected by the power of that voice, the island, the arena, and the contestants watching from below the stage were all unharmed.