Chapter 269: No Chance to Admit Defeat

"Do you need something?" Sunan asked flatly.

The person before him was clearly Grus, the challenger wizard from the Pale Mask.

"I've heard of you, the master of the Star Alliance." Grus's eyes behind his mask fixed on Sunan, flickering with an unreadable light.

"To defeat Yuxi, I assumed you must be a Level 3 Crystallization Wizard. I didn't expect you to be merely Level 3 Vaporized."

"When you break through to Level 3 Crystallization, you might become a genius on par with the Robe Wizards."

"But right now, challenging Makaro is sheer arrogance."

Sunan remained unmoved, his expression calm. "Do Pale Mask wizards always meddle in others' affairs?"

"Just a friendly reminder," Grus shrugged.

Tanner and Bryce both rolled their eyes.

A "friendly reminder" from someone of the Pale Mask? That would be a first.

"Pale Mask and the Dark Throne are relatively close," Tanner's voice whispered in Sunan's ear, transmitted through a communication spell. "He might know Yuxi."

Sunan's gaze shifted slightly. "If you defeat Makaro, I won't have the opportunity to challenge him."

Grus was momentarily speechless, then let out a cold snort without further words. He turned and pressed his hand on the stele, quickly entering the duel space.

Lize chuckled softly. "It seems he's not very confident."

"Even if he doesn't admit it, this is Makaro we're talking about. No Level 3 Wizard would dare claim they could definitely defeat him," Bryce said, sneaking a glance at Sunan as he spoke.

From his perspective, Sunan's chances of winning were slim. 

Makaro wouldn't offer the Supreme Automaton design as a wager without confidence in his strength.

Unexpectedly, within less than fifteen minutes, Grus returned from the duel space with a dark expression.

The stele's text remained unchanged, indicating his defeat.

Bryce laughed aloud. "That was quick! Looks like you're the one who bit off more than you could chew."

Grus's face turned even darker. With a snort, he ignored Bryce and moved to stand aside, evidently intending to watch Sunan's challenge.

Sunan paid no mind to Grus and approached the stele.

Perhaps because defeating Grus had been effortless, Makaro didn't take a break and opted to proceed directly to the next challenge.

"Be careful," Lize said softly.

Sunan smiled and nodded. After paying the 500 superior-grade magic stones, he pressed his hand to the stele and disappeared in a flash of light.

Seeing this, Grus let out a faint, disdainful snort.

After facing Makaro himself, Grus had a profound understanding of how terrifying he was. Though they were both Level 3 Crystallization Wizards, Makaro existed on an entirely different level, effortlessly overwhelming him in their battle.

Grus couldn't believe a Level 3 Vaporized Wizard could defeat Makaro.

As Sunan's vision cleared, he found himself standing in a barren wilderness. 

The landscape was desolate, filled with sand and jagged rocks. A biting cold wind howled across the terrain, adding an eerie chill.

"Thin air, low temperatures, and no ecological system. Well, of course, it's just a dimensional space, not a demi-plane."

After briefly assessing his surroundings, Sunan turned his attention to the figure ahead.

A tall, lean man cloaked in black robes stood there, his aura gloomy as he squinted at Sunan.

"Sunan Anest... I've heard of you. The rising master of the Star Alliance who supposedly killed a Robe Wizard candidate from the Dark Throne. Not bad," Makaro said, his voice hoarse with a hint of condescension.

"Too bad you're only Level 3 Vaporized. If you were Level 3 Crystallization, perhaps we could have a real fight. As it stands... you've wasted those 500 superior-grade magic stones."

Sunan smiled faintly. "I'm not so sure."

Makaro sneered. "I've faced many overconfident opponents like you. The last challenger was full of bravado too. Didn't take long before he was fleeing with his tail between his legs."

Sunan shrugged nonchalantly. "Let's find out."

Makaro chuckled coldly but didn't say more. His eyes glimmered with murderous intent.

In every duel, Makaro fought with the intention to kill, regardless of his opponent's strength. 

Because of this, even highly equipped Level 3 Wizards often met their end against him.

Before long, the mechanical voice of the Tower Spirit echoed across the battlefield.

**"The duel is about to begin. Countdown: 5, 4, 3... Duel start!"**

At the voice's conclusion, a wisp of black flame emerged from Makaro's brow and quickly engulfed his entire body.

The flames, cold and eerie, spread rapidly. Rather than raising the surrounding temperature, they caused it to plummet. Frosty air radiated across the thousand-meter radius, chilling everything to the bone.

Simultaneously, strange black patterns emerged from Makaro's body, spreading along the ground in a vast network. 

From a bird's-eye view, it resembled a massive black formation with Makaro at its center. Sunan stood within the formation's range.

Instantly, he felt his stamina and spiritual energy draining rapidly. An invisible force seemed to erode his body, leaving him weaker with each passing moment.

"A control-type talent ability," Sunan mused.

This ability reminded him of his Absolute Forbidden Zone, which also had a wide-range debuff effect. However, Absolute Forbidden Zone was primarily defensive, and its debuff strength was weaker in comparison.

"An advanced talent ability, and that black flame... judging by its intensity, it's likely advanced too."

"If his third talent ability is also advanced, it's no wonder so many Level 3 Crystallization Wizards have lost to him."

Three advanced talent abilities were nearly equivalent to being a prelude to True Spirit Wizards.

Wizards capable of forming three advanced talent crystals often possessed exceptional aptitude, willpower, resources, and connections, making their chances of advancing to True Spirit far greater.

"Looks like I'll need to go all out."

Silver light shimmered as intricate, mysterious patterns surfaced on Sunan's body.

Without hesitation, he activated **Talent Specialization**.

Against Yuxi, Sunan had deliberately held back to test his newly advanced powers, leading to a prolonged battle. 

But this was different. Facing an opponent of this caliber required immediate and decisive action.

Sunan unleashed his strongest attack:

**Falling Star Rain** – at triple strength.

The sky darkened abruptly.

Boundless darkness enveloped the heavens, studded with countless radiant stars emitting a cold silver glow.

"What is this?!"

Makaro's rich combat experience immediately alerted him to the danger. He sent black flames surging toward Sunan and fired a bolt of black lightning from his brow.

But before his attacks could reach Sunan, they were obliterated by the descending stars.

The sky roared as millions of stars streaked down, tracing brilliant arcs through the void and crashing like a torrential storm.

The overwhelming might was enough to crush anything in its path.

Makaro's black flames and lightning disintegrated under the relentless starfall, unable to reach Sunan.

Simultaneously, the barrage of stars engulfed Makaro. 

His protective barriers shattered one by one, and his body was scorched under the relentless onslaught.

"AAAAHHHH!"

Makaro screamed, activating defensive artifacts in desperation, only to see them disintegrate under the celestial bombardment.

Stars continued to descend, seemingly endless.

Feeling the icy grip of death, Makaro opened his mouth to admit defeat and escape. 

But before he could utter a word, an oppressive force weighed down on him, bending his body. His bones cracked under the pressure, and even his soul momentarily froze. 

The words stuck in his throat as a silver light flashed before his eyes.

A needle of pure silver pierced his brow.

Makaro froze, his eyes wide with unwillingness and despair.

In the next instant, his head exploded like a watermelon, blood and brain matter scattering. 

Moments later, the relentless stars obliterated his remains.

Sunan extended his hand, and a simple spatial ring flew into his grasp.

A faint smile tugged at his lips.

Sunan had never liked black wizards. Feeling Makaro's murderous intent, he didn't hesitate to unleash his full power, annihilating him in the duel space.

Had Makaro focused on defense, he might have had time to admit defeat and escape. 

But he underestimated Sunan's strength, paying the ultimate price.

**"The duel is over. The victor is Sunan Anest."**

**"You are now the master of Arena 24 and inherit the corresponding stakes. Do you wish to continue the duel?"**

"Cancel the arena," Sunan replied without hesitation.

He already had what he wanted. Continuing the duel was unnecessary.

**"Arena 24 has been canceled."**

A rift opened in the void, and a thick tome floated out, landing in Sunan's hands.

He flipped through it briefly, satisfaction spreading across his face.

The **Supreme Automaton Design**.

He had anticipated its authenticity, given the Stargazer Tower's notarization process, but seeing it confirmed was gratifying.

In the main hall, near the 24th stele, Lize stared intently at the text displayed.

Tanner and Bryce exchanged subtle glances, clearly communicating through private messaging.

Grus stood apart from the group, smirking beneath his mask as he occasionally glanced at the stele.

Suddenly, a figure materialized before the stele—Sunan.

Everyone froze.

He'd returned in under a minute.

That was impossibly fast.

Grus was the first to react, a sneer spreading across his face. "I thought you might have some skill. Turns out you couldn't even last a minute!" 

From his perspective, Sunan's swift return could only mean one thing: defeat.

Tanner and Bryce exchanged uneasy glances, their thoughts mirroring Grus's assumption.

Only Lize appeared puzzled.

Though she had worried that Sunan might not be able to defeat Makaro, she couldn't believe he would lose so quickly.

Her gaze shifted to the stele behind Sunan, and when she saw it, her eyes widened in astonishment.

The text on the stele had mostly disappeared, leaving only a single line:

"Arena 24, vacant."

The meaning was unmistakable.

Tanner and Bryce, noticing Lize's shocked expression, turned to look at the stele. Their faces quickly mirrored hers, filled with disbelief.

Sunan ignored Grus's mocking remarks, giving Lize a slight nod. "I've got the design. Let's go."

Without sparing Grus a glance, he turned and walked out, Lize following close behind.

Grus's face froze, and he finally sensed something was wrong. Turning to the stele, his eyes widened as he took in the words. He stood rooted to the spot, dumbfounded.

The arena had vanished.

This could only mean the duel was over, yet Makaro hadn't emerged. That left only one explanation—Makaro had died at Sunan's hands.

In less than a minute, Sunan had not only won the duel but also killed Makaro—the same Makaro who had crushed countless Level 3 Crystallization Wizards and was renowned for his terrifying strength.

"How is this possible..." Grus muttered, his voice trembling with disbelief.

For a Level 3 Vaporized Wizard to defeat Makaro was already shocking enough. To kill him outright was beyond comprehension.

That meant Mak

aro hadn't even had the chance to admit defeat and escape before being annihilated.

The gap in their strength was so vast it was unfathomable.

Grus stood there, dazed, feeling as though he were in a surreal dream.

Who was that man, really?