Just then, the old man said, "I''m so sorry, Commander Miller. It''s Wilbur''s mission to get the eighth dragon cauldron, not mine. I can''t battle you this time. But if you defeat Wilbur, that should be enough to prove your power too."


    The old man''s gaze glinted with admiration for Miller. His fearless drive for self- betterment was unlike anything the old man had seen in a while.


    Miller said, "Alright, then. Mister Penn, we''re going to be opponents now."


    Wilbur stared at Miller for a while before saying, "When do we start?"


    "If you want, we can start right away," Miller replied.


    Hagin nced at his watch. "Let me go through the rules. This challenge willst ten minutes. If Wilbur cannot defeat Miller within that time and Miller is still able to get up, Wilbur will be considered to have lost. Of course, if Miller surrenders, the win will go to Wilbur. Alright. I''m going to count to three, and the challenge will begin. One, two, three-begin!"


    The old man and Hagin quickly retreated to the side. Wilbur and Miller channeled their powers at the same time, and Miller was enveloped by a wave of earth energy that activated the earth-type formation beneath the quarters.


    Wilbur released the dragon aura in his body as well.


    Under the protection of his dragon aura, Wilbur could sense the terror that was Miller''s earth-type powers. The entire space was covered in earth-type energy, and it was as if the two of them were standing at the mouth of an earth-type volcano as earth energy surged out and gathered around Miller.


    The earth-type energy condensed into a suit of armor as Miller summoned a spear that he promptly drove into the ground. Arge fissure appeared, rapidly extending toward Wilbur.


    Wilbur soared into the air, avoiding the attack as he controlled his dragon aura to form a dragon.


    Miller was shocked at the sight of the enormous dragon before him. "What? Are you a member of the dragon n?"


    "That''s right. I wouldn''t be here to search for the eighth dragon cauldron otherwise. Surrender while you still can, and hand it over."


    Wilbur might not actually be a member of the dragon n but had a deep connection with them. There was the dragon head mark on his back, the Dragon''s Altar in his demine, as well as the protection of the old dragon that made Wilbur believe that he had to have some kind of connection to them.


    Maybe getting the Nine Dragon Cauldrons would get Senior Fremont to tell Wilbur the secrets of the dragon n, and Wilbur would be able to know where he came from. Either way, the priority at hand was to defeat Miller and retrieve the eighth dragon cauldron.


    Just then, Miller''s earth-type aura suddenly began decreasing. Hagin sensed this and glowered at Miller. "What''s going on here, Miller? Didn''t you say that you were going to protect the pride of the merfolk with everything you had?"


    "But Sir Hagin, Wilbur Penn''s a member of the dragon n. The merfolk has always been under them. How can I make myself an enemy to a member of their n like that?"


    "Take a closer look, he has no dragon scales! He''s just a regr human cultivator who managed to cultivate using methods of the dragon n, don''t be fooled!"


    "That''s right!"


    Miller returned to his senses. "This man might be radiating dragon aura, but it''s far from pure. This is dragon aura that was channeled through cultivation, rather than real dragon aura. You nearly fooled me, and I won''t forgive you for that!"