Ivan's confidence stemmed from technology and armed evolution!
Although humans could now awaken mechanical pet beasts on a large scale, it was more difficult for these mechanical pet beasts to reach the Overlord level than ordinary pet beasts.
This meant that humans had not yet obtained stable Overlord-level pet beasts.
Even the technologically most advanced Starleaf Kingdom could not achieve this.
As a result, pet beast armed evolution became a hot research direction.
Armed evolution originated from the mechanical modification of pet beasts, aiming to give them more powerful combat capabilities.
The pet beast strengthening machines researched by various countries only allowed pet beasts to be semi-armed or to undergo partial armed evolution of their bodies, and could not achieve complete armed evolution.
However, recently, Starleaf Kingdom had made new breakthroughs in armed evolution, allowing pet beasts to undergo full armed evolution for a short period, gaining the ability to defeat opponents at higher levels.
Simply put, after armed evolution, the pet beast's growth level would temporarily increase, granting it the combat power of a higher level.
Ivan had contracted three Lord-level pet beasts, and after armed evolution, they would all possess the strength of a General-level pet beast.
This was the source of his confidence.
As Li Yang Chuanqi and others decided to modify the competition rules, Ivan also walked onto the arena.
Ivan was tall but thin, with two large dark circles under his eyes, and stood opposite Zheng Dong.
"I apologize for keeping you waiting. You can rest for a while before we start!" Ivan said.
Zheng Dong was not tired.
He felt that this guy Ivan seemed more troublesome than Dao Yuan Chong.
He appeared polite, but was actually a bit pretentious.
Otherwise, this guy wouldn't have suddenly stood up and called out to him earlier.
So, Zheng Dong shook his head.
"No need, let's start the match directly!"
Ivan was just being polite and then summoned his pet beasts: Frost Dragon, Dark Knight, and Desert Treant.
The Frost Dragon belonged to the Western Dragon race, resembling a winged terrifying lizard covered in fine blue and white scales. It looked quite imposing if one were to ride it.
The Dark Knight resembled a centaur, enveloped in black flames, with only two green eyes visible. It wore dark armor and wielded a dark longsword, respectfully guarding Ivan's side.
The Desert Treant was a mobile monster tree. Its four main roots were as flexible as human feet. It had no leaves, only long vine-like branches covered with barbs.
Except for the Frost Dragon, Zheng Dong felt that Ivan's other two pet beasts were strange.
However, he did not underestimate the Dark Knight and the Desert Treant, as their auras were no weaker than the Frost Dragon's.
"Alright, I'm ready. Don't underestimate me, or you'll lose miserably!" Ivan said with a smile.
Zheng Dong did not dare to be careless. Unlike his match against Dao Yuan Chong, he had not figured out Ivan's specific strength or the skills his pet beasts possessed.
The only advantage he could see was that Youyou could counter pet beasts of the Undead, Fire, and Dark elements, like the Dark Knight.
Before Zheng Dong could speak, Xiao Zi waved its paws on his shoulder.
Don't underestimate us; it's not certain who will win or lose.
Youyou also nodded, clenching its small fists.
"Heh, let's begin then!" Zheng Dong said.
This time, he planned to attack first.
As the referee gave the command to start, Youyou, under Zheng Dong's command, unleashed its quasi-divine skill, Samsara Karma Fire.
The endless Samsara Karma Fire, like surging waves, swept towards Ivan and his pet beasts.
Ivan was immediately startled.
He was surprised, completely not expecting Zheng Dong to launch such a fierce attack right from the start.
Shouldn't such a powerful move be used at the end?
He had witnessed the power of Samsara Karma Fire; Eternal Freeze could not freeze it.
His Frost Dragon also couldn't extinguish it.
Therefore, he had no choice but to have his pet beasts undergo armed evolution in advance.
The mechanical bracelets hidden on the Frost Dragon's feet unfolded, and a complete set of mechanical enhancement armor was quickly put on.
With a roar from the Frost Dragon, it evolved into the Frost Tyrant Dragon.
The Frost Tyrant Dragon, with a growth level of General-grade, was nearly twice the size of the original Frost Dragon. Its wings transformed into incredibly sharp blades, and it had a Frost Energy Cannon on its back.
The power of each shot from the Frost Energy Cannon was greater than that of a miniature forbidden bomb, capable of dealing fatal damage to General-level pet beasts.
However, the Frost Tyrant Dragon could only fire the Frost Energy Cannon at most seven times.
Furthermore, it could only maintain this armed evolution state for a maximum of fifteen minutes.
At the same time, the Dark Knight and the Desert Treant also completed their armed evolution.
The Dark Knight evolved into an Armored Knight, with an additional layer of mechanical armor added to its dark armor. It also carried two Dark Energy Cannons capable of tearing through any obstacles in its path.
The Desert Treant evolved into a Savage Treant, with each branch covered in a layer of nano-alloy armor blades. These blades were shaped like fish scales, and when the branches whipped out, they could easily tear through the defenses of General-level pet beasts.
Witnessing this scene, almost everyone was surprised.
What was going on?
They could evolve during a battle?
Three Lord-level pet beasts instantly evolved into three powerful General-level pet beasts, it was like a joke!
Seeing everyone's expressions, Rudolph Chuanqi chuckled proudly.
His face was full of pride, looking at Li Yang Chuanqi and the others as if they were country bumpkins who had never seen the world.
"As you can all see, this is armed evolution, which allows pet beasts to gain combat power at a higher level.
This is the latest scientific achievement of our Starleaf Kingdom and represents the highest technology on Blue Star.
Ivan's beast-taming talent is Mechanical Coordination, which allows him to coordinate the compatibility between pet beasts and machinery. He was one of the earliest beast tamers to participate in armed evolution.
Therefore, his pet beasts can easily undergo armed evolution.
Of course, even if I say all this, you might not understand. Your Yanhuang Kingdom is probably still researching pet beast strengthening machines. To catch up with our Starleaf Kingdom's technology, it will probably take a few more decades!"
This was blatant mockery.
Although Li Yang Chuanqi and the others were not involved in researching mechanical pet beasts, they were all extremely angered.
In the audience, many students who had previously competed couldn't help but glare angrily at Rudolph Chuanqi.
But he didn't care at all, becoming even more smug.
Because this was the real gap, and it was a fact.
He wasn't wrong.
Li Yang Chuanqi's expression turned grim as he stared at the arena.
Zheng Dong, you must not lose!
But he also knew it would be difficult. Zheng Dong was now facing three General-level pet beasts.
Although each of them was not as strong as Dao Yuan Chong's Abyssal Serpent, the three combined were much stronger than the Abyssal Serpent.
Facing the sudden armed evolution, Zheng Dong was also surprised.
He changed his strategy, retreating with Youyou and Xiao Zi.
However, Ivan was relentless and directly ordered the Frost Dragon to attack.
The Frost Energy Cannon spat out blue light, releasing a powerful ultra-low temperature cold current that shot towards Zheng Dong, Youyou, and Xiao Zi.
This ultra-low temperature cold current was different from Eternal Freeze; it would rapidly expand and cause a violent explosion.
Therefore, using Samsara Karma Fire was also difficult to counter.
Fortunately, Zheng Dong had mastered the combined skill Profound Art Earth Vein Leap, and disappeared from his original position with Youyou and Xiao Zi.
They reappeared behind Ivan.
Zheng Dong's target was clear. Although he didn't know how long Ivan's pet beasts could maintain their armed evolution state, he realized that by dealing with Ivan, he could deal with Ivan's pet beasts.
Thus, Zheng Dong had Xiao Zi use Absolute Darkness to blind Ivan's senses, while he used the combined skill Profound Art Earth Vein Rampage, along with Youyou's unleashed Samsara Karma Fire, to attack Ivan.
The ground rolled like waves, surging towards Ivan, accompanied by Youyou's Samsara Karma Fire, and in an instant, it was about to engulf Ivan.
Unfortunately, in the next second, the Savage Treant wrapped Ivan with its branches and fled into the distance, disappearing from Zheng Dong's sight.
Ivan was cautious. His beast-taming talent was Mechanical Coordination, and he knew he needed protection from his pet beasts, so he had always kept the evolved Savage Treant by his side.
When he saw Zheng Dong and his pet beasts disappear from their positions, he sensed trouble.
Just as he was about to search for Zheng Dong and his pet beasts, he lost his senses due to Xiao Zi's Absolute Darkness.
Fortunately, at the last moment, he had the Savage Treant take him to safety.
Although the Savage Treant was a plant-type pet beast, its movement speed was not slow at all.
It wrapped Ivan with its branches, and its four main roots acted like four long legs. Each step it took was comparable to Zheng Dong's Earth Vein Leap.
This was because its own growth level had reached General-grade, and it had unleashed the super-tier skill Ground Transfer.
Ground Transfer was the Savage Treant's racial skill. Even if its senses were blocked, it could still use Ground Transfer to escape quickly, although it couldn't control the direction of escape.
As a result, the Savage Treant, carrying Ivan, almost ran out of the arena.
Upon escaping the range of Absolute Darkness, Ivan regained his senses and immediately ordered the Frost Tyrant Dragon and the Armored Knight to attack Zheng Dong again.
"Classmate Zheng Dong, if you're a man, let's have a head-on battle!" Ivan shouted.
He knew that if Zheng Dong truly intended to evade, his Frost Tyrant Dragon and Armored Knight might not be able to harm Zheng Dong.
Therefore, he tried to provoke Zheng Dong with words.
Zheng Dong ignored him, giving Ivan a contemptuous look.
Do you think I'm stupid?
Facing the attacks of the Frost Tyrant Dragon and the Armored Knight.
Zheng Dong once again used Earth Vein Leap, leaving his original position with Youyou and Xiao Zi.
This caused the Frost Tyrant Dragon and the Armored Knight to miss.
But just as the Frost Tyrant Dragon and the Armored Knight relaxed their guard and searched for Zheng Dong and his pet beasts.
Zheng Dong and Xiao Zi's clones made a surprise return, appearing in the original location.
Immediately, Zheng Dong's clone used the combined skill Profound Art Earth Vein Rampage to attack the Armored Knight.
Xiao Zi's clone used the combined skill Profound Art Spatial Blast to attack the Frost Tyrant Dragon.
Facing the surprise attack, Ivan, the Frost Tyrant Dragon, and the Armored Knight became excited.
Attacks of this magnitude would not cause severe damage to the General-level Frost Tyrant Dragon and Armored Knight. Instead, it gave the Frost Tyrant Dragon and Armored Knight an opportunity to eliminate Zheng Dong.
Instantly, the Frost Tyrant Dragon and the Armored Knight launched their most ferocious attacks.
Ivan also clenched his fists nervously, feeling that victory was imminent.
But then he discovered that they were just clones of Zheng Dong and his pet beasts.
This made Ivan curse.
Unfortunately, it wasn't over yet.
Zheng Dong had created clones to feign a surprise attack to attract Ivan's attention.
At this moment, Zheng Dong, along with Xiao Zi and Youyou, had already approached Ivan.
Then, Zheng Dong had Xiao Zi create numerous clones that emerged from the ground and used the combined skill Profound Art Shadow Chain on the Savage Treant beside Ivan.
Youyou, on the other hand, was responsible for using Samsara Karma Fire to attack the Savage Treant, which was being suppressed by Xiao Zi.
Xiao Zi chirped a few times.
Don't worry, the future King of Treasure Hunting never misses.
Xiao Zi and its many clones emerged from the ground, unleashing the combined skill Profound Art Shadow Chain.
Facing Xiao Zi's surprise attack, the Savage Treant was a bit stunned. By the time it reacted, it was already bound by the Shadow Chain.
However, with its General-level strength, Xiao Zi couldn't suppress it for long.
Youyou also appeared, unleashing the terrifying Samsara Karma Fire.
Besides the Undead, plant-type pet beasts were most afraid of Samsara Karma Fire.
Even the armed evolved Savage Treant feared it greatly.
Seeing the Savage Treant being attacked by Zheng Dong, Ivan panicked. He couldn't help the Savage Treant and could only rely on it.
Just as he was worrying about the Savage Treant, Zheng Dong also emerged from the ground.
"Ivan, if you're a man, let's have a head-on duel!" Zheng Dong looked at Ivan with a half-smile and said.
Ivan's face turned red. What he had said earlier seemed to echo in his ears.
However, he didn't mean it that way.
He didn't want to fight Zheng Dong alone; he didn't possess pet beast skills. He wanted Zheng Dong to clash head-on with his pet beasts.
Seeing this, the crowd erupted in cheers.
"Fight, if you're a man, don't hide!"
"That's right, let's see how manly the men of Starleaf Kingdom are!"
...
Li Yang Chuanqi also showed a smile.
Zheng Dong had indeed not disappointed him.
"Hahaha, no matter how good the technology is, it needs a person to control it. It seems even your Starleaf Kingdom's genius is not enough!"
"Hmph, the competition isn't over yet, who wins or loses is still undecided!" Rudolph Chuanqi's face darkened, and he sneered.
On the arena, Ivan, who had been constantly retreating from Zheng Dong, also stopped.
"Zheng Dong, you're forcing my hand. In that case, Savage Treant, use Mechanical Puppet!"
Instantly, the mechanical armor on the Savage Treant's body began to combine and deform, splitting into a Mechanical Puppet, also of General-grade.
Its aura was only slightly weaker than the Savage Treant's.
The Mechanical Puppet looked exactly like the Savage Treant, serving as a complementary attack method for armed evolution, and was considered Ivan's trump card.
Although called a puppet, it felt more like a special mechanical clone or a split entity. Using the Mechanical Puppet would consume a large amount of energy and mental power from the Savage Treant.
Therefore, after using the Mechanical Puppet, the duration of armed evolution would be reduced. If it could originally last fifteen minutes, it could now only last for five to six minutes at most.
With the assistance of the Mechanical Puppet, the Savage Treant quickly broke free from the combined skill Profound Art Shadow Chain cast by Xiao Zi and its clones and returned to Ivan's side.
Once again, Rudolph Chuanqi chuckled proudly.
"This is the power of science! Ignorant humans cannot comprehend it!"
This angered Li Yang Chuanqi so much that he wished he could fight Rudolph Chuanqi.
Fortunately, Professor Xue Yin quickly pulled him back.
On the arena, Ivan also looked smug.
"Zheng Dong, surrender. You're no match for me! Besides the Savage Treant, the Frost Tyrant Dragon and the Armored Knight have also mastered Mechanical Puppets."
Zheng Dong, however, was not flustered at all, looking at Ivan with interest.
"You mean you can use puppets now!"
"Of course!" Ivan replied.