The victor is not the d-long, nor is it True Ancestor Cat, but rather... (Extra chapter unlocked with 150 votes) : Keep the Moon Tickets coming, brothers who still have some, please continue to smash them in!

Sakuya controls time itself, not just mere moments. In essence, time and space are inseparable; to control time is to control space, and conversely, controlling space can similarly affect time.

However, those capable of controlling time or space are exceedingly rare. Even feats such as long-distance teleportation or instant movement achieved through magic or superpowers do not constitute true control.

Even the Chrono Machine of Chosuzune or Cassiopeia, which allows one to return to the past, does not fall under this category of control. What "control" truly means, in simple terms, is absolute freedom and manipulation—forcefully interfering with time and space, making them bend to one's will.

As of now, among the people Lin Luo has encountered or knows, only Sakuya possesses this capability; only she can arbitrarily toy with time and space. While individuals like Chosuzune, Shirai Kuroko, Mashiro Tenshi, and even the Old Man of Gems possess abilities in this area to varying degrees, their powers do not cause any actual influence over time or space.

Even someone of the Old Man of Gems' caliber merely opens a pathway in space—it is traversing, not controlling! They only affect individuals, not the fabric of time and space itself.

Therefore, Sakuya's ability is undoubtedly immensely powerful, but that formidable power carries a significant flaw. First, she cannot reverse time—though this is perhaps understandable, as reversing time is likely an ability even mightier than Realm Transformation, reserved only for the divine.

So, the first point can be dismissed as negligible. The most fatal blow to Sakuya, however, is her second defect: while she can alter time and space within a localized area relative to herself, she cannot affect individuals who are comparatively stronger.

For example, with Evangeline, she can only exert a certain level of influence, but cannot exert control. Thus, Sakuya’s ability, while seemingly powerful, is in reality conditional.

Against those weaker than her, she wouldn't even need to control time; a single strike would suffice. But against those stronger than her, control is useless because it cannot affect them.

It is precisely this relativity that prevents her combat power from truly ascending; in the entirety of Gensokyo, she can only be ranked in the second tier. Of course, to ordinary people, her ability is akin to godhood.

In the fight against Evangeline, although Sakuya initially held the upper hand, this was only because Evangeline was unfamiliar with such an ability. Once Evangeline fully grasped the nature of Sakuya's power, defeating her would not be difficult.

Logically, as long as Evangeline remained within the time and space controlled by Sakuya, whatever she did would be transparent to Sakuya, who could then find a solution through temporal and spatial manipulation. But what if...

Evangeline ceased to exist within that frame? Indeed, what Evangeline did was to detach herself from Sakuya’s space and time.

To put it more plainly, two mutually overlapping spaces appeared on this stage: one belonging to Sakuya, and one belonging to Evangeline, like the front and back sides of a mirror. Sakuya was on the front, while Evangeline was on the reverse.

Sakuya’s control only altered the front side and could not affect the back. This is why Sakuya only saw a hand suddenly emerge when Evangeline appeared—it was reaching out from the reverse side; the rest of her body was not in this space.

No matter where Sakuya moved or how she manipulated time, Evangeline remained on the opposite side, the distance between them eternally separated by only a thin membrane. Under these circumstances, Sakuya could naturally not escape.

In truth, given Sakuya’s abilities and experience, discerning this point should not have been difficult. But as the saying goes, those in the thick of it are often blind, while observers see clearly.

The sudden turn of events shocked her so much that she failed to notice this detail, while Lin Luo and Al, who were less adept in time and space manipulation, saw the situation with perfect clarity. Of course, while they could see it, they couldn't comprehend how Evangeline managed it.

Creating a parallel space was an act bordering on defiance of heaven, and Evangeline was not a spatial mage. Finally, Sakuya had nowhere left to run.

Two hands appeared before and behind her, closing in as if to embrace her... "It's over," Al murmured upon seeing this scene.

There was no more suspense. Having fought to this point without grasping the true nature of Evangeline’s power, Sakuya’s defeat was sealed.

Lin Luo nodded. It seemed his own battle with Sakuya would have to wait.

In her current state, even if she understood Evangeline's trick, she probably wouldn't devise a counter. However, contrary to what both expected, an impossible accident occurred at that very moment.

Just as Evangeline's hands were about to touch Sakuya, something suddenly appeared in Sakuya's hand and was swiftly passed into Evangeline's grip. Evangeline’s movement instantly froze.

"Aaaaah!!!!" A piercing shriek suddenly tore through the space—it was Evangeline, her voice thick with panic and terror. Creating a parallel space requires not only immense power but also incredibly delicate control; one slight misstep could lead to spatial collapse with incalculable consequences.

The moment Evangeline's hand contacted that object, she lost her composure and, simultaneously, her control over the reverse space. Sakuya merely gave a gentle tug and immediately yanked her out of that reverse dimension.

Then, using her ability, she instantly projected Evangeline out of bounds, simultaneously tossing out a multitude of objects identical to the first one, instantly burying Evangeline’s body beneath them. With a crash upon landing, Evangeline immediately scrambled up from the ground, frantically batting at her body, trying to shake off the things clinging to her.

But when she realized there were even more around her, her expression completely crumbled. She utterly lost the dignity of a True Vampire Ancestor, cowering like a timid little girl, her face etched with fear.

"Ten seconds out of bounds time expired. The winner is Sakuya Izayoi." When Asakura Kazumi announced the result of the match, Lin Luo and Al were utterly dumbfounded.

They never imagined Evangeline would lose, and even less that Sakuya would resort to such a method. The reversal was almost absurd.

"No matter what, let's pull the little cat out first, or she’ll go mad," Al said to Lin Luo, barely suppressing a smile. Lin Luo also wanted to laugh, but as Al rightly noted, it was better to rescue Evangeline immediately, lest they face unimaginable consequences.

Activating Instant Movement, Lin Luo flashed to Evangeline's side in a second, pulling the terrified woman out of the pile of objects. Instinctively, she leaped onto him.

Only then did Evangeline's pale complexion begin to regain color, but her trembling body still betrayed her shock, a mix of fear and anger. "You despicable thing!

To use such a method against me, I..." Evangeline ground her teeth, glaring at Sakuya on the stage, furious to the point of madness. "I had no choice; who told you I couldn't beat you fairly?

I had to resort to this," Sakuya spread her hands with a look of helplessness, then pulled out another object from her person and tossed it toward Evangeline. "This is the last one." "Whoa!" Evangeline shrieked and immediately darted behind Lin Luo.

Lin Luo was speechless with amusement. He extended his hand and cleanly caught the item Sakuya had thrown.

What exactly was that object? Surely, no one would fail to recognize it.

It was a food item, no, perhaps better described as a common household seasoning—one that could technically be eaten, but which few actually consumed, at least not Lin Luo... Garlic!

Yes, it was garlic. Both the item Sakuya first passed to Evangeline and the entire pile she subsequently threw were garlic.

As a True Vampire Ancestor, Evangeline was immune to most powers feared by lesser vampires: sunlight, mercury, crucifixes—these things were like mere decorations to her, utterly useless. But there was one thing she genuinely feared: garlic.

Over a decade ago, Evangeline was defeated by Nagisa and cursed with the Hell of School Days, leading to her sealing, precisely because she was hit by Nagisa's garlic attack, which completely stripped her of her ability to resist. Otherwise, with Evangeline’s immortality, even if she couldn't defeat Nagisa, escaping would have been trivially easy.

Once afflicted by the garlic attack, Evangeline was like a newborn kitten—forget fighting, she wouldn't even have the strength to stand. It had to be admitted: Sakuya’s move was utterly despicable.

Even Lin Luo hadn't expected the elegant Sakuya to be so cunning and employ such a shameless tactic... but it was undeniably effective.

What use was immortality, reverse space, or dark magic? None of it mattered...

find the right moment, and one clove of garlic is enough to deal with Evangeline! Glancing at the furious, red-faced Evangeline biting her lip behind him, then at the ground littered with garlic, and finally at the d-long on the stage who wore a look of helplessness but whose eyes held a suppressed smile, Lin Luo was internally roaring with laughter.

The dignified Vampire True Ancestor, possessing immortality such that she couldn't die even if ground to dust, the apex battle power of this world, was defeated by a single clove of garlic. And the powerful Vampire Hunter, the flawless and graceful Maid Leader, possessing the heaven-defying ability to control time, used a basketful of garlic against her enemy...

There could be nothing more amusing. What does "being screwed over" mean?

This is what it means!