Please be my partner.

Seeing this, Mellen broke the silence and said again, "That's right, you heard me correctly. You find a way to lure it out, any way will do, and then I'll deal with it."

"Did I not speak clearly enough?"

Thomas said, "You're asking for it! The beetle is not something that can be dealt with by a single person!"

Mellen waved his hand and said, "You don't need to worry about that. Leave the rest to me after the beetle appears."

Thomas didn't speak, but stared intently at Mellen.

This time it was Mellen's turn to scoff: "What, do you think I'm crazy? Stupid? Idiot? Or do you think I'm tired of living and want to commit suicide?"

In this world, there are fewer truly foolish people than truly intelligent people. Since Mellen said that, Thomas certainly understood that he must have something to rely on.

Regardless of the circumstances, this proposal is beneficial to Thomas. If Mellen succeeds, all will be well. Conversely, even if he fails and dies, the absence of Mellen as a key figure allows Thomas to conveniently end the mission and prevent his subordinates from sacrificing themselves in vain.

Thomas said, "Okay!"

“It’s easy to lure the beetle out. Just make a little noise in the ruined city. However, the beetle and the mutated plant are symbiotic. If anything happens around the latter, the beetle will immediately sense it and come to its aid. Moreover, because there is a peculiar mental field around the mutated plant, it will almost certainly be discovered if it gets close. The beetle will not stray too far from the mutated plant, which creates a vicious cycle.”

"Our original plan was to lure the beetle into a pre-prepared ambush to buy you as much time as possible, but if we just need to lure the beetle out, then we don't need to go through all that trouble."

Having said that, he didn't give Mellen a chance to back out and immediately began to deploy troops.

Rolanda's eyes showed worry, and she whispered, "Mr. Mellen, you..."

Mellen laughed and said, "It's alright. If you don't show some real skills, your Greenwood family probably won't work for me wholeheartedly. But then again, if you still want to try to take advantage of me after today, don't blame me for turning my back on you without mercy."

Rolanda was stunned for a moment, and just as she was about to explain something, a loud rumbling sound and vibration suddenly came from outside.

"Ha! They're quick," said Mellen.

Then, to Rolanda's astonishment, Mellen's figure slowly disappeared.

This time, not only Rolanda, but also Thomas and the other officers showed expressions of horror.

They hurriedly left the military tent and saw that in the distant ruins of the city, with a ripple in the ground, a giant insect covered in carapace suddenly shot into the sky. Its serrated teeth spun and tore, instantly crushing an abandoned steel building.

Just as the crustacean was wreaking havoc, a terrifying fluctuation suddenly emanated from a tall building not far away.

This distance was clearly beyond their line of sight; at most, they could only see some blurry black dots. But when they looked up at the tall building, for some reason, they could clearly see that it was Mellen, and Mellen's every move.

Then they saw that an invisible energy that distorted space was gathering on the fist that was held at the waist of Mellen.

The beetle seemed to sense the approaching danger and twisted its body to burrow back into the ground.

But it was too late.

Mellen unleashed a punch, and large, twisted lines flashed across the crustacean worm.

The beetle shuddered, its body swaying a distance due to inertia, before its upper third exploded with a bang, scattering countless viscous liquids like rain across half of the ruined city. The remaining body fell to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Those who witnessed this scene, from Thomas and Rolanda to ordinary soldiers, were all stunned, as if in a dream.

Mellen slowly withdrew his fist. The shelled worm was indeed powerful, but in terms of the essence of life, it had not yet undergone a metamorphosis to become a legend. It could only be said that due to its race, its size far exceeded that of a human martial saint. In addition, with the regenerative ability of its mutated flesh and blood, as well as various mutated organs, its actual combat performance was far superior to that of a martial saint.

But for Mellen, it was an easy problem to solve. However, Mellen was still a little short of the power to fully integrate the 'other self' of the steampunk world. He didn't want to cause any unnecessary trouble at this time, so he killed the beetle worm by getting closer to this world.

Looking at the carcass's corpse, Mellen suddenly beckoned slightly.

Sparkling light suddenly rose from the crustacean and converged towards Mellen.

Once the radiance had fully converged, the ball of light in Mellen's hand faintly condensed into a mysterious, almost imperceptible symbol.

However, the mysterious symbols ultimately failed to take shape, and even with Mellen's constraints, they continued to crumble and disintegrate.

Mellen shook his head with some regret. This mysterious symbol was actually a solidified legendary quality similar to that of the Wudang Holy Body. Although it could not help martial artists break through their limits and advance to the legendary level, it was still quite useful for legendary experts.

For example, one could directly integrate it into oneself to enhance one's strength; or one could disassemble it and use it as resources to strengthen one's own legendary traits.

Of course, the former method of use usually only occurs among those who have just entered the legendary realm. After all, the more legendary traits you have, the better. What's important is that they are compatible with each other.

In general, any solidified legendary trait is worth the same as a high-level legendary treasure.

pity……

Mellen clenched his fist, and the illusory runes dissipated, turning into strands of light that merged into the legendary trait related to the Little Red Lotus within his body.

It improved by about two or three percent, which is better than nothing.

The carcass of the beetle should have some value, but it didn't matter to Mellen.

Mellen walked in the direction of the mutated plant he sensed, and soon arrived at the center of the ruined city, where there was a huge banyan tree that covered thousands of meters.

But after Mellen carefully sensed it, he realized he was mistaken; it was not a banyan tree, but some kind of mutated root.

Indeed, whether it's the huge canopy above ground, the hanging aerial roots, or the vast network of veins below ground, they all originate from a tangled mass of roots.

This rooted plant is grayish-white in color, segmented, and looks like it is made up of countless dead bones connected together.

Countless corpses lay buried in the ground beneath the tree canopy, some mutated creatures, others human. As Mellen approached, these corpses rose and attacked him.

Mellen could sense that a huge field surrounded the mutated roots. Any life that entered this field would be constantly influenced and slowly manipulated by the mutated roots, eventually becoming its puppet. While alive, it would contribute its life energy, and even after death, it would be at its mercy.

However, this rudimentary application of spiritual power was riddled with flaws in Mellen's eyes. His spiritual power transformed into a sharp spike and suddenly exerted force, puncturing the spiritual field of the mutated roots as if popping a balloon.

The mutated roots let out a roar that was hard to tell whether it was anger or pain, and its body shook violently. The corpses that were launching an attack on Melen also lost control due to the shattering of the mental field and fell to the ground.

Less than half an hour later, Thomas cautiously arrived in the vicinity with an elite team.

Mellen casually tossed aside the roots he had cut off from different parts of the mutated root for study and said, "This mutated root will form a special field within a radius of 2,300 meters that can be manipulated mentally. Unless you are a person with a strong will, you will be affected and eroded."

"I have temporarily destroyed its mental field, but it will only last for a day at most before it recovers. Do what you want to do as soon as possible."

After speaking, amidst the respectful and awe-inspiring gazes of the group, Mellen turned and left.

At the temporary camp, Rolanda looked at Mellen as he returned, hesitant to speak.

Mellen laughed and said, "Alright, the mission is complete, and everything that needed to be explained has been explained. Let's go back."

Rolanda's eyes widened in shock. Although she had expected this outcome, she was still incredibly stunned by the answer from Mellen.

To fight against a powerful mutated life form like a beetle with a human body, and to kill it with a single blow, is something that only happens in legends.

Compared to Rolanda and the others' shock, Mellen was excited. If one thing leads to another, there must be many more mutated life forms in the world stronger than the shelled worm. This means that they may possess the complete solidified legendary traits.

Mellen has made up his mind that after completing the World Martial Arts Tournament and leaving a legendary mark, he will take some time to sweep through this world, and perhaps he can gain some good results.

The day after returning to Nora, Rolanda visited again, but this time, in addition to herself and her housekeeper, she was accompanied by a whole team of professionals who had come to tailor a publicity plan for Mellen.

As a series of professional solutions were presented to Mellen, he affirmed the professional competence of these individuals.

In the following period, various soft and hard promotions of Mellen appeared online and in real life, and a large number of true fans emerged.

But along with it come haters and negative stories.

Of course, after a 'hard-fought' debate and struggle, true fans can always refute the haters until they are speechless, proving that those accusations are completely fabricated and made up out of thin air, with the purpose of smearing their own 'geigei'!

These repeated 'battles' and 'victories' not only rapidly expanded the number of true fans, but also made them identify with Mellen even more.

According to professionals, their guidance provided high-level emotional value to their loyal fans.

During this process, Mellen could clearly feel that the speed at which the legendary traces condensed increased by tens or even hundreds of times.

However, legends must ultimately be based on real history and cannot be fabricated out of thin air. Therefore, Mellen still needs to win the World Martial Arts Tournament to gain enough rewards.

Chapter 662 Champion

"Wow, that's Holy Martial City? It feels completely different from Nora City!"

The airship streaked across the sky, and through the windows, one could see the Holy Martial City, which was still more than ten miles away.

The airship was provided by Holy Martial City and was originally intended to transport personnel responsible for the World's Number One Martial Arts Tournament to various cities. After these personnel finished their work, Mellen and the other ten contestants who had qualified for the official tournament, along with some accompanying staff, came along.

Because the airships are the city's own aircraft, they can land directly inside the city without needing to dock at checkpoints outside the city.

After disembarking, Mellen and his companions were able to better appreciate the differences in the city.

Saint Martial City has the World's Number One Martial Arts Tournament as a regular event, so the martial arts atmosphere is extremely strong. Various martial arts schools are lined up everywhere, and five or six out of ten pedestrians on the street are dressed as martial artists.

In some small squares or commercial centers, you can see public arenas where martial artists can step onto the stage at any time for any reason to have a match. Occasionally, some businesses will also use various prizes as a gimmick to organize a small-scale competition to attract more customers.

The street sculptures are mostly of famous martial artists, and their legendary deeds are recorded on them.

In the very center of the city stands a colossal statue of Zhong Chenyang, the founder of Holy Martial City, the initiator of the World's Number One Martial Arts Tournament, and the champion of the first World's Number One Martial Arts Tournament!

Holy Martial City is a city of martial arts!

Following the staff, Mellen and his group quickly completed the registration and then arrived at the Martial Arts Village located in the center of Holy Martial City. This is a rest area built specifically for the participants of the World's Number One Martial Arts Tournament, which can accommodate up to 10,000 people.

Of course, although the number of participants varies each time, it generally stays around 300 to 500 people. Including the participants' accompanying staff, the total number of people is no more than 2000. The majority of people in the martial arts village are event staff.

Take Mellen's accommodations as an example. Not only does he have a separate room, but he also has a small quiet room attached. Mellen and Eugene Dong also have their own rooms. The martial arts village is equipped with public training halls, arenas, restaurants, and so on.

After throwing her luggage into the room, Lian Mei, her face flushed, said somewhat incoherently, "So amazing! Really amazing!! This is the first time I've ever seen so many martial arts masters! Did you see those contestants? I'm afraid many of them are martial arts grandmasters, and even if the others aren't, they're probably powerful martial artists who can fight against them."

Lian Mei usually acts very mature, but in the end she is just a little girl. Now that she has come to the sacred place in her heart, she is not able to calm down.

Her grandfather was injured and unable to attend the last World's Number One Martial Arts Tournament. Before that, Lian Mei was only twelve or thirteen years old. Even if she wanted to come, her grandfather would not agree. Therefore, this is Lian Mei's first time in Shengwu City.

Ignoring the excitement of Liam and Eugene, Mellen went to the window of the room and looked at the scenery outside, his eyes seemingly unfathomable.

Even if the World Martial Arts Tournament wanted to extend the time as much as possible, it would be impossible to hold each person's match individually, so there would usually be a group free-for-all.

In other words, depending on the number of participants in each year, all contestants are divided into 32 groups for a free-for-all, with two contestants emerging from each group to advance to the next round of the tournament.

In this year's competition, there are about 400 contestants, which means that each group has at least twelve people, and some have thirteen.

There's a big difference between twelve and thirteen people. One less person not only means one less competitor, but also reduces the possibility of having more skilled players in the group.

However, each grouping is random, and for martial artists, luck is often necessary. Moreover, the chaotic battle itself involves many uncertainties, so this method has continued.

Over the next few days, Mellen stayed comfortably in the martial arts village. It's worth mentioning that the food there was excellent, bringing together flavors from various cities, which made him reluctant to leave.

During this period, the organizers were not idle. In addition to drawing lots to form groups, they continued to promote the various players, especially those star players who already had considerable fame.

Mellen was naturally one of the beneficiaries as well. His cooperation with the Greenwood family was deepening, after all, Mellen's previous performance was too amazing. He not only took down the mutated root, but also killed the shell worm. The latter's corpse was left to the Greenwood family, bringing them huge profits.

On the day the competition officially started, the stadium, which could hold hundreds of thousands of people, was packed to capacity.

The group stage lasted four days, with eight groups each day. Mellen was assigned to the eleventh group, which was the second day.

In a way, the group battles are quite entertaining, with all sorts of intrigue, temporary alliances and sudden betrayals, the clamor of the strong and the forbearance of the weak. Each battle is a different experience, and the audience is thoroughly enjoying it.

When it came to the group battle the next day, because he and another star player were both there, some of the other players suggested taking them out first.

Then the situation turned into 2 vs 10, and in just a few minutes, all ten players were swept away by Mellen and his partner like autumn leaves in the wind.

The muscular young man in a white sleeveless martial arts uniform said, "Not bad. My name is Kent. It's nice to meet you."

Mellen also gave a brief self-introduction.

Mellen naturally knew Kent, a traditional martial arts practitioner who looked to be around twenty years old and had reached the Martial Saint level. However, this was not surprising, given that the biotechnology in this world was extremely advanced; a single injection of a strengthening potion could save several years of hard work.

The four-day group battles were in full swing, and soon sixty-four contestants were selected for the ring battle.

Mellen also took a brief look at his opponents. They were all quite good, but compared to him, they were somewhat lacking, since he was already exceptional.

There's not much to say about the following battles, given the vast difference in skill. Mellen consistently displayed overwhelming strength, easily defeating his opponents.

As the World Martial Arts Tournament championship draws near, Mellen can clearly feel the Legendary Traces deepening into this world, and thanks to the Greenwood family's efforts, the power reflected by the Legendary Traces is growing stronger.

More than ten days later, the highly anticipated final began. Mellen's opponent was somewhat unexpected; it was Kent, with whom he had briefly worked during the group stage.

Only after carefully sensing it did Mellen notice something different.

Kent looked at Mellen with a solemn expression and his eyes filled with fervent fighting spirit, and said, "Mr. Mellen, I have never missed watching your battles, and I admire your strength."

"If I may be so bold as to ask, have you already surpassed the Martial Arts Grandmaster level?!"

Mellen could feel countless burning gazes falling on him as Kent asked his question. He smiled slightly and said, "You can feel it for yourself."

Kent took a deep breath, and a sudden surge of heat rose around him, distorting the air: "Mr. Mellen, I have no choice but to give it my all against you!"

"Lava Battle Body, Scorching Hell... Activate!"

"Boom!~"

Kent's body suddenly shone with bright red veins, as if molten lava was surging within him. The temperature around him rose further, and even the ground beneath his feet showed traces of cracking and melting.

This is clearly a lava-based superpower, and it has been developed to a fairly advanced level.

Ordinary martial artists would be burned by the heatwave even if they just got close to Kent, let alone fight him. If they actually made contact, the temperature on Kent's fist would probably exceed 1000°!

Kent's voice also became hoarse and heavy: "Merlen, let me see your true strength!"

Like a volcanic eruption, Kent charged with immense force, making the super-martial artists that Mellen had seen before seem like mere children in comparison.