The First Peak of the Force

by Yuri Ajin

  The last battle began swiftly. Shin Sei didn’t want to waste time and Lei Wang planned to use everything he got in order to win. After all, in the years after his exile, he trained for only one thing — to reach the finals and prove to the family that had exiled him that he wasn’t a useless wimp as they thought.

  Being on the same stage as Lei Shen, Lei Wang’s achievements were already great and numerous. And even though there had been talk that he’d become an apprentice and that his name would be put back on the family tree, he wasn’t going to stop halfway. He intended to win, no matter what it took.

  However, since he had been forced to show all he was capable of in the previous battles, Shin Sei had the advantage of knowing what to expect from his opponent.

  Or so he thought.

  Lei Wang managed to surprise him when he effectively dealt with the Fire Cover and Flaming Claws. He even managed to dodge the powerful Salamander’s Breath. It was clear that Lei Wang had prepared properly for this battle, which infuriated his opponent.

  Shin Sei finally revealed the last ace that was up his sleeve — the Starburst Technique that manifested itself in the form of a dozen fire spheres. In the beginning, it looked similar to ordinary fireballs, but activating them changed everything.

  Although he had studied it in advance, Lei Wang wasn’t ready for this.

  As soon as Shin Sei so pleased, the spheres would explode, releasing not only a destructive flame but also a powerful shockwave that’d sweep away everything in its path.

  It only took three explosions to make Lei Wang drop to the ground. But he refused to give up. Shocking the audience, he kept getting up over and over again.

  “I… can’t… lose…” he wheezed. He was staggering, but he never dropped his weapon.

  “Oh, will you give it a rest already!” Shin Sei hissed, throwing another fire sphere at him.

  It exploded right at Lei Wang’s feet and threw him backward, making him roll over in mid-air. The fire scorched him again, almost completely destroying his Sky Guard Armor.

  But he still refused to give up.

  “You get up again, and again, and again... You’re pissing me off!” Shin Sei growled, preparing three spheres.

  In the beginning, everyone expected Shin Sei’s quick victory, but seeing just how determined Lei Wang was, they gradually began to root for him. Everyone loved stories about underdogs bringing down the undefeated champions. Except for the Salamanders, everyone else was now openly supporting Lei Wang, which only made him more determined to win.

  “Can you stop the fight?” a Thunder Serpent Clan representative, who had just been contacted by one of the high elders, anxiously asked the judge.

  “Unfortunately, I can’t do that.”

  Everyone had prepared to see Lei Wang fall down for good after the next attack, but he managed to surprise them yet again.

  “Awakening of the Body,” he whispered under his breath. A wave of electricity passed through him, making him arch his body in pain. The next moment, he got up as if nothing was wrong with him.

  Lightning was raging through his body, causing him severe pain, but at the same time activating hidden power reserves. He forced himself to move. He had to end the fight before the technique ended.

  He approached the surprised Shin Sei and used a combination of the two techniques to attack him. The first was his blade’s ability, which formed a dome of lightning around the Salamander. The second was called the Seven Thunder Spheres, which could be used in a variety of ways. Summoning it directly into the dome, Lei Wang detonated all seven spheres at once, releasing a large amount of power.

  The dome flashed with bright blue light and released several electric discharges.

  Lei Wang dropped to one knee, breathing heavily. He had to lean onto his blade so that he wouldn’t fall. The effect of the Awakening was coming to an end, but he had done it.

  There was an explosion. The top of the dome suddenly cracked and a stream of violent flames burst from it. In the next moment, the barrier was destroyed. From the fire and smoke, emerged Shin Sei. He was covered in blood but he stood firmly on his feet while the Fire Cover slowly healed him.

  Lei Wang couldn’t believe his eyes. He had put almost forty percent of his strength into the last attack and he was convinced that it would bring him victory.

  Struggling to get up, he watched as Shin Sei approached him. The Salamander grabbed him by the hair and jerked his head back. There was a wild grin on his face.

  “So you won’t surrender… You know, I finally remembered where I saw this technique before… It was you who helped the bastard Kai escape! You’ll pay for that…”

  Lei Wang frowned and swung his blade instead of replying.

  Blood stained the ground of the arena.

  With a quiet thud, Lei Wang’s head fell to the floor, followed by his body, still clutching the sword.

  Even in death, he wouldn’t give up.

  Chapter 33

  THE SEMIFINALS

  After the quarterfinals, there was a five-day break during which the eliminated fighters were given a chance to fight among each other for the right to earn their spot among the first one hundred. As for the quarter-finalists, they would fight each other again for the fifth, sixth, and seventh place.

  There weren’t a lot of people watching the additional fights for the first four days. But on the fifth, the stands were again filled as the first match of the semifinals was supposed to take place right after the last group of eight warriors, among which was Lily, was done with their fights. She defeated five opponents, securing herself the tenth place in the Tournament.

  The entrance to the arena was full of people way before dawn. A couple of hours before the fight itself, there wasn’t a single free seat to be found even though many people were still waiting outside the arena. Although they hadn’t managed to purchase tickets in advance, they still hoped that they’d get to watch the fight. Those that had bought the tickets but still didn’t have where to sit, were directed to special tents near the arena, where the fights would be broadcasted to them through Memory Crystals.

  Dressed in a long, black cloak, Fang Bao was the first to enter the arena. He wasn’t greeted with cheers or boos, but silence. Many believed that he owed his victory to Shacks surrendering and nothing else. Little did they know that Fan Bao couldn’t care less about what they, or anyone else, thought of him. To him, the only thing that mattered was that he had managed to get this far.

  Ivsim, who came out a minute later, was greeted with support and cheers. In the audience’s opinion, he had proved himself in his fight against Lei Shen.

  “I must remind you,” the judge began, “that the fight will go on until one of you surrenders or is unable to continue to fight. I can’t believe that I have to say this, but, please, do NOT kill your opponent. Better give up if you find yourself losing. Life is the most valuable prize, after all.”

  Lei Wang’s death shocked everyone. People’s anger wasn’t directed just at Shin Sei and his clan but also at the organizers who had let a young man die instead of stopping the fight. The judges couldn’t have intervened even if they wanted to, however, since they were bound by honor to follow the rules drawn up by their ancestors. Breaking the honor code would’ve given the other clans a reason to unite against and put pressure on the Blades. And no one wanted that.

  But ordinary folk cared for entertainment, not clan politics, so they were quick to point fingers.

  “With that being said, fighters, you may begin!” the judge said and left the protective dome.

  Ivsim pulled his swords from his Ring and assumed a battle stance. Fang Bao was already holding his two-handed sword in his hands.

  “You can go first,” he said, looking at his opponent.

  Ivsim shrugged and got ready to dash toward him.

  “Destructive Step.”

  Fang Bao reacted at the last moment by blocking the attack with the whole width of his blade. Steel met steel with a shower of
sparks and a deafening clang. Thin cracks appeared on Fang Bao’s blade, but he didn’t seem to care. Instead of fighting back with techniques so that he didn’t risk breaking his weapon, he continued to swing his sword.

  Ivsim wasn’t sure what his opponent was planning but he still made it his mission to destroy his weapon as that’d make him less dangerous. Or so he hoped, at least. For all he knew, him destroying the sword might’ve been Fang Bao’s plan from the very beginning. Still, it was worth the risk.

  “You’re without a blade,” Ivsim said, stepping back after a powerful hit that left Fang Bao with just a handle. “Do you still plan to continue?”

  Fang Bao looked at the shattered blade in his hands, chuckled, and threw it away.

  “Oh, don’t stop now,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

  Ivsim narrowed his eyes in suspicion. No cultivator or swordsman should treat their weapon like that.

  Increasing the amount of the Force of Sound that lay resting in his blades, he attacked again. Coming closer, he crossed the swords and swung them downward.

  A smile tugged at the corner of Fang Bao’s lips. Uncrossing his arms, he grabbed both swords by the blades. A couple of sparks escaped from them and tore his cloak into shreds.

  Ivsim froze and arched his head back in disbelief. Fang Bao towered over him, patterns of some sort of a tattoo visible through the holes in his cloak and robes. There were barely any wounds on him.

  Coming to his senses, Ivsim jerked his swords free of the steel grip and backed away. Fang Bao followed him with his gaze, cracking his neck and knuckles.

  “Well, now the real fight can start.” He grinned. Spreading his legs, he lowered into a half-crouch and put his fists in front of himself. “Come on, let me see what you’ve got.”

  “You’re not a swordsman,” Ivsim said, crossing his blades again.

  “Never said that I was,” Fang Bao grunted and dashed forward, shattering the tiles upon which he stood. His speed had sharply increased, forcing Ivsim to step up his game.

  Although he was still faster than Fang Bao and even managed to get behind him, his attack still failed. As if he had eyes on the back of his head, Fang Bao instantly counterattacked, kicking Ivsim away from himself. The latter was forced to dodge quickly, knowing that he’d lose a couple of bones and end up with internal bleeding had Fang Bao’s attack reached him.

  Seems I’ll have to use that technique after all, Ivsim thought, leaping away from the fight. “Wave of Destruction!” he shouted. The air sort of shimmered, but nothing seemed to have happened.

  Fang Bao turned around just in time to notice the faint stirring of the air. He didn’t have much time to react, so he just shielded his face with his hands and activated a technique.

  “Stone Body: Granite.”

  His skin darkened for a moment, assuming the characteristics of stone. Ivsim’s attack hit him, sending him crashing into the protective dome. Regaining his balance, he shook his head and, once again, assumed a fighting stance.

  There was not so much as a bruise on him.

  How the hell did Shacks defeat him with only one arrow?! Both Ivsim and the audience wondered. Everyone knew how strong Sound was so just how powerful had Shacks’s shot had to have been to wound Fang Bao?

  “All right, now it’s my turn. Ghost Fist!”

  Grinning, Fang Bao swung with his fist. The attack was followed by four large, pale green copies of his hand. Ivsim managed to avoid only three, receiving the fourth one into his right shoulder. The strength of the blow sent him spinning to the aside. Getting off the ground, he was glad to realize that he was still clutching his weapons. However, his right hand felt much weaker and the hilt was threatening to slip from his grip.

  His speed and the destructive power of his Sound techniques were unmatched, but Ivsim had one serious weakness — his defense skills. His element was simply not suitable for defense, so he all could was rely on hitting before he got hit first and running away when things got too tough to handle.

  The Ghost Fist seemed like a technique that had been made specifically to confront Ivsim. The pale copies were small in their appearance and moved with great speed, making any attempt of dodging extremely difficult.

  Regaining his balance, Ivsim landed on his feet only to find Fang Bao already standing next to him. Gritting his teeth, he imbued the Destructive Step with more ki and accelerated even more, dodging another barrage of fists just in time.

  By now, he had an idea what kind of element and techniques Fang Bao was using. His body was very strong on its own, but he still used defensive techniques. In addition to strength, he also had a lot of stamina. As his primary weapon wasn’t a blade, but his own body, Fang Bao had to learn a lot of rare techniques following the Path of the Body. On top of that, he possessed a set of high-speed attack techniques needed to distract and stun his opponents so that he could get close to them. After all, close combat was his area of expertise.

  Ivsim knew that he had made a mistake by allowing Fang Bao to approach him as all he could do now was dodge as he fought back with one blade. As his right hand was far too wounded for him to continue using it, he returned his other sword into the Ring.

  He circled around Fang Bao without stopping, avoiding serious attacks while striking back. But all his attacks bounced off. It was like he was hitting a rock with a blade of grass. The only damage he could do were shallow cuts.

  It would’ve probably continued like this for a couple of more minutes if Fang Bao had not become angry. He seemed to be playing cat and mouse with Ivsim, but the mouse was simply too fast for him.

  “Enough!” he shouted and then stomped the ground, making it tremble, interrupting Ivsim’s attack.

  Losing his balance, the silver-haired young man fell back, leaving himself open for an attack. Fang Bao focused for a moment. The tattoo suddenly glowed red and his muscles began to swell.

  As soon as Ivsim felt the ground tremble under him, he immediately rolled to the side, avoiding the attack at the last moment.

  “You can’t escape!” Fang Bao shouted, clenching his fists and stretching them out toward his opponent. “Stone Trap!”

  Ivsim felt the Force of Intent fill the air between them. As this Force belonged to the Stone element, to which Fang Bao was directly connected via the ground he was standing on, the technique formed much faster than usual.

  The ground began to tremble once more. Chunks of rock and earth rose into the air around Ivsim.

  “Not on my watch! Wave of Destruction!”

  One of the stones exploded, turning into a rain of pebbles and sand. He had just gotten out of the trap when he had to dodge another kick. Fang Bao had no intention of letting his opponent back away again, locking him into close combat.

  For the first couple of minutes, Ivsim was trying to break away but all of his attempts failed. It became much more difficult for him to dodge. Despite his best attempts, he couldn’t avoid all of the attacks and eventually suffered significant damage. Unwilling to give up, he continued to attack with Sound. And although he eventually managed to wound Fang Bao enough to draw blood, all of the injuries were superficial. His sword just couldn’t cut deeper.

  It was time for plan B.

  Dodging another combo, Ivsim aimed his sword at Fang Bao’s face. Certain that he’d aim for his eyes, Fang Bao covered his head with his hands.

  You fool! Ivsim jerked the blade downward, aiming for the right lung. Fang Bao didn’t have time to defend himself or dodge but he was sure that his hardened skin would deal with whatever attack his opponent was trying to pull.

  Certain that he had weakened Fang Bao’s defense with all the hits he had managed to inflict so far, Ivsim aimed for the spot he had hit the most times. It was impossible to hit the rib, as bone was much stronger than the skin so the blade ended up sinking between the ribs.