His heart skipped a beat. Something must have happened to Brother Feng! Reason dictated that Brother Feng would never miss a battle like this, especially one against a top player like Desert Storm.

As the countdown to the battle steadily wound to its close, a ripple of conversations commenced to swell among the increasingly restless crowd. Desert Storm's absence was one thing—after all, the opponent was Revenge Shadow Rider, who had known defeat. For someone at that level, wasn't the true purpose of attending the event to fight persistently regardless of past losses?

Yet Revenge Shadow Rider also did not appear at the moment he was supposed to. It should be noted that many foreign visitors had crossed distant galaxies just to witness Revenge Shadow Rider's might in person, a no-show that left many unable to comprehend the scenario.

"He really didn't show up, huh..." Kexiao muttered under his breath, seemingly indifferent to the outcome.

"Kexiao, it's almost as if you predicted this," Xia Mu, sitting in his wheelchair, remarked curiously as he watched Kexiao's composed face.

"We don't need to concern ourselves with him. Let's just watch the next fight as usual."

Kexiao's response was indifferent, as though he had foreseen this outcome. The relationship between the two men was extraordinary. Add to that the fact that Desert Storm was severely injured and unable to fight, agreeing with Feng Yi's personality, there was no need for him to make the trip for nothing. This was in line with Revenge Shadow Rider's modus operandi—a battle with no suspense did not warrant his participation.

Indeed, during the period before the match, the nations also took this into account. After all, an unpredictable character like Revenge Shadow Rider was capable of anything. Without a doubt, Desert Storm did not fight because he was unable to, while the reason for Revenge Shadow Rider's absence was disdain to win in such a manner.

Given the peculiar nature of Revenge Shadow Rider, after over ten minutes of discussion by the organizers, it was finally decided to exempt Revenge Shadow Rider from the fight and proceed to the next one.

In truth, as soon as Desert Storm failed to appear, the Bounty Tribe, represented by free agents, had already submitted a forfeiture request to the organizers; but it was promptly rejected. Since Desert Storm was not yet out of danger, the Bounty Tribe had made the forfeiture request without the player's consent, which was a unilateral decision the organizers had initially refused to endorse. Only after Revenge Shadow Rider also failed to appear did they consider the forfeiture option.

Of course, none of this affected the timing of the upcoming battles. Dovir's fight with Revenant No.3 was still scheduled for the afternoon. For contestants, being in peak personal condition was crucial. Getting ready to simulate the next fight according to their resting routines was fundamentally essential. Any changes in timing by the organizers would give the losing side a reason to complain, hence the organizers had no leverage to alter the schedule.

Once the organizers announced the forfeiture of Desert Storm, the disappointed crowd, having no other option, trickled out of the arena in small groups, anticipating the afternoon's combat.

By the afternoon, the throng had lessened somewhat, but the arena remained packed to capacity, albeit not with the frenzied intensity that a fighter like Revenge Shadow Rider usually brought.

The timely clash between Revenant No.3 and the Federation's super soldier Dovir commenced. As the buzzer sounded, Dovir, piloting the Six-winged Angel, could still sense the familiar presence of Revenant No.3, an inexplicably intimate feeling, especially when facing off against an opponent.

It was very reminiscent of Brother Mu. Even Revenant No.3's customary retrograde movements and initial actions were strikingly similar.

To probe further, Dovir had already determined his next move in the midst of his contemplation. He piloted his mech through a series of Z-shaped dashes towards Revenant No.3. Just as Revenant No.3 was about to raise its sniper cannon to block Six-winged Gundam's path, Dovir suddenly made a bold, linear advance, charging head-on without dodging.

The abrupt change of trajectory caught Revenant No.3 off guard, prompting a reflexive effort not to maintain the suppressive fire but to power up and try to create a greater distance for a long-range stranglehold.

Dovir's brain buzzed. Normally, a sniper would continue the blockade under such a surprise assault, further restricting the opponent's movements. But Brother Mu was different—it was one of his bad habits that paradoxically resulted from a conditioned reflex.

It was a bad habit because a straight-line escape didn't truly shake off an adversary; yet, it was good because if the pursuer engages in a direct chase, they might fall victim to a lethal counterstrike from the escaping sniper.

In the midst of these habitual maneuvers, Dovir vividly remembered how Brother Mu would typically take around three seconds to adjust to the optimal state, tilting the mech slightly to the right before making a sudden, unexpected turnaround shot. Those three seconds were Brother Mu's calculated timing for assessing the opponent's distance, predicting the shooting angle, and making his own adjustments.

Dovir's speculation was validated as, precisely at the three-second mark, Revenant No.3 abruptly turned and fired a high-energy death ray.

The red beam, like a blood-stained sword, shot straight towards the Six-winged Angel. However, Dovir didn't even bother to raise the Light Shield, for he had somewhat deduced the opponent's firing path; thus, he had preemptively performed evasive maneuvers to dodge the strike even as Revenant No.3 made its move.

At this point, Dovir could almost confirm that his opponent, the so-called Revenant No.3, was in fact Brother Mu, who had supposedly died in the chaos of war.

In this world, three people held the utmost respect from him: Brother Mu, Revenge Shadow Rider, and Hugo—formidable mentors to Dovir. However, this was the battlefield, and Dovir was no longer the naive youth he once was. While he continued to suppress Brother Mu to ensure his own safety, he also attempted to connect with Revenant No.3 through the communicator, hoping to engage in a conversation.

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