Lin Feng presented the key, and the two Grand Priests began to turn the valve, gradually opening the alloy gate.
At this mont, the Grand Priests on either side revealed their weakness and fatigue. The nearly twenty-ton gate was not lifted as smoothly and seamlessly as before.
Lin Feng then raised his hand, placing it underneath.
With his Level 22 evolution, a strength of twenty tons was within his normal upper limit, but with the gate fixed in place, he could easily lift it with one hand.
With Lin Feng lending a hand, the heavy gate was swiftly lifted, saving the two Grand Priests considerable strength, allowing them to preserve their state to guard the entrance.
The two of them threw grateful glances at Lin Feng.
Lin Feng waved his hand and entered.
Inside the control room, with the battle about to comnce, the Great Assistant Priest gazed tensely at the main screen.
Although the Tier Two contestants had yet to formally take the stage, a large audience had already gathered near the chosen arena.
However, compared to the previous Tier One match, there were significantly fewer Deserters present this ti.
The main reason being the Tier One match was held five kiloters in front of Oasis Town, while the Tier Two battle was more than ten kiloters away from the Oasis Battleship.
Few Deserters could reach this far. Even top-tier Deserter squads or Hunter teams wouldn’t easily stray far from Oasis Town.
The desolate, arid wasteland was barren, but that didn’t an it wasn’t without danger.
Aside from combating the harsh heat and exposure, many unknown dangers lood, including hostile peers.
Moreover, battles between Tier Two Evolvers could affect areas several hundred ters away, making it risky even to watch from a distance.
Therefore, many Enhanced People below Tier One did not gather around the arena.
Those who ca were at least at the Early Tier One stage, ranking middle to upper class in Oasis Town.
Thus, the number wasn’t vast, just a few hundred people, far less than the thousands who gathered yesterday.
Among these six or seven hundred people, most were permanent residents from Nongzhuang Village, Dawn Village, and chanical Village.
They ca to cheer, facing the Church staff opposite the arena.
Fortunately, the arena was one kiloter in diater, so both sides were distant and would have no chance for direct contact.
As the main referee, Xu Wanfeng donned a set of Advanced Power Armor, holding a spear weapon crackling with blue arcs, appearing fully ard at the center of the arena.
The official start of the battle was in ten minutes.
Seeing Lin Feng’s arrival, the Great Assistant Priest breathed a sigh of relief and explained:
"It was the Li Family’s request to advance the competition; otherwise, you wouldn’t need to be here at this ti of day."
Lin Feng shook his head indifferently:
"I guess Li Hao was worried about changes and wanted to catch the Church off guard."
"After all, the Desert Wolf Warrior plan required altered mbers so ti to adapt. Advancing the arena fight seed like pushing ducks onto shelves, giving the Li Family’s Rock Horse Warriors more chances of winning."
The Great Assistant Priest nodded, adding:
"And he likely worried that if the fight were held during the day, dragging it to the end might catch the reinforcents from the Holy City by surprise."
"Starting in the late night before dawn allows them to finish early, giving the Li Family half a day to seize control of the Oasis Battleship’s control room and make a final struggle before Holy Spring Day arrives."
Lin Feng nodded, finding the Great Assistant Priest’s analysis more reasonable, realizing Li Hao must have sensed sothing to want to conclude the duel early.
Maybe it was credit to his own intimidation.
Soon, as the countdown reached the final five minutes, Xu Wanfeng announced:
"Please have both contestants enter the arena."
Following this, from among the Li Family crowd, a Rock Horse Armor erged, its driver inside obscured, but its aura certainly of Tier Two strength.
Tier Two Rock Horse Warriors and Rock Horse Armor are most compatible, able to fully utilize the armor’s true power in their hands.
In previous Tier One Late Stage battles, even with full efforts, the Rock Horse Warriors could only push the armor to 100% performance.
Using the Ascension Potion and sacrificing oneself could barely break through the 100% limit.
Yet, in the hands of a Tier Two Rock Horse Warrior, even without the Ascension Potion’s enhancent, their own burst could reach 120% or more.
In this state, injecting the Ascension Potion, stimulating the Rock-Horned Horse cells to full speed, breaking through limits could push the armor’s performance to a terrifying 150% cap.
A Level 23 Rock Horse Armor could effortlessly exhibit Level 25 strength, challenging a Mid-Tier Two opponent.
However, Lin Feng and the others couldn’t sense the participating Rock Horse Warrior’s exact strength through the screen.
The Church’s representative was wearing the standard Church Power Armor.
Being a standard armor, it was easily recognizable; this Tier Two Cultivator’s armor was the sa as the previous Grand Priest’s, a Level 20 standard Undying Holy Armor.
The Oasis Church, due to insufficient ranks and Deputy Bishop Zhang Hui being unfavored in the Holy City, could only procure basic Undying Holy Armor.
There was no provision for more advanced armor.
Nevertheless, Lin Feng knew that the driver of the Undying Holy Armor wasn’t a Tier Two Early Stage Priest but a Grand Priest who had just advanced to a Tier Two Evolver using the Tier Two Desolate Wolf Source Material.
Although his evolution level was slightly lower than the Church Priest, his rich combat experience could make up for it.
As for the superior defenses of the Rock Horse Armor, they stemd from the bloodline suppression of the Desert Wolf Source Material and the Mutated Steel Wolf Claws, enough to contend with early-stage Rock Horse Armor.
The Grand Priest advancing to Tier Two to participate in the Tier Two martial arts competition was one of the Church’s hidden cards, sure to catch the Li Family by surprise when entering a life-and-death struggle.
Li Mingquan’s concern showed clearly that even if Li Hao wanted to incite rebellion, he had to consider whether the Tier Two mbers under his command were willing to sacrifice their Tier Two lives for his cause.
It was a Tier Two body forged through countless hardships, granted with millennia-long lifespans.
Sothing not easily discarded.
Unlike the life-or-death gambles of Late Stage Evolvers, Tier Two Evolvers want to enjoy the fruits of their earlier efforts peacefully.
This is why even as the conflict’s intensity lessens, they wouldn’t rashly follow the Li Family, especially Li Hao, into rebellion against the Church, a risk that could result in execution.
Even if the Rebellion’s outco was successful and they captured the Oasis Battleship before Holy Spring Day, they’d still face a life of running or risk the ultimate penalty if they failed.
Compared to the potential gains, the risks for Three Villages like Nongzhuang Village and chanical Village were insignificant.
For now, even the Li Family seed to have engaged with high-ranking Church officials.
The Lord Bishop had originally agreed to reduce the intensity of the conflict by holding arena fights, providing an opportunity for reneging friendly terms once the battle was over.
This promise proved more tempting than following Li Hao into rebellion against the Church, knowing the risks of such a high-stakes confrontation.
Even if the Holy City provided them with so compensation, perhaps negotiating a piece of territory as an exchange.
Moreover, playing the role of the Church’s enforcer allowed them to exploit the lower slave class, reaping significant benefits.
This way, acting as the dark gloves of the Church enabled them to enjoy the convenience and benefits while harvesting the larger gains, contributing to the promotion of a true Tier Three Bishop in that land.
Yet, no matter what paths they took, the outco of resistance would either an successfully seizing the Oasis Battleship and embarking on a life on the run, or face defeat and imdiate execution.
Especially for places like Dawn Village and chanical Village, the benefits garnered compared to the risks were negligible.
At present, even they had established contact with the higher-ups in the Church.
The Lord Bishop, initially to decrease the conflict’s intensity, opted for arena matches, promising that if leniency was shown during the matches, the conflicts could be written off post-facto.
This promise was valued more highly than following Li Hao, especially as the actions went against the Church and carried life-threatening consequences.
Even if the Holy City had to compensate them by allocating territory, it couldn’t outweigh the risks.
Ultimately, it was easier for the Three Villages to play the role of the Church’s covert enforcers, pressing the lower class into submission, extracting the greatest profits.
This strategy of being the Church’s dark hand not only allowed them to enjoy the perks of being part of the establishnt but also to harvest significant benefits in supporting the elevation of the true Bishop of this land to Tier Three.
Yet, irrespective of the outco, whether the Rebellion succeeded in seizing the Oasis Battleship or not, the Tier Two rebels had to consider the willingness of their warriors to lay down their second-tier lives for the cause.
In the end, the current status was a small window of opportunity for the Li Family to seize control of the Oasis Battleship’s control room ahead of Holy Spring Day, to mount their final struggle.
Thus, at the interval of five minutes left on the countdown, the Tier Two match officially began with both sides simultaneously retreating several hundred ters back from the ring center as shadows.
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