Chapter 438: Titan’s Power (1/2)
Chapter 438: Titan’s Power
Lan Jue nodded acknowledgement of Bing Yu. The woman known as Absolute Zero said nothing. She left without engaging him further – hostility was a normal reaction before a contest.
The waiting area had undergone another makeover, with even more luxuries than were provided earlier. No expense was spared for their comfort. Lan Jue took up position beside the Pharmacist and faced the field. Although he wasn’t participating in the first fight, he didn’t want to give up his opportunity to watch from the sidelines. It would undoubtedly help him in the games to come, if he got that far.
The Pharmacist smirked as he sat beside her. “Aren’t you the lucky one!”
“So it would appear,” Lan Jue replied. “Maybe Qi Mu will surprise us all.”
The Pharmacist’s brows rose. “Remember that in your next fight. Surprises go both ways. If we do see something this fight, though, it will help you quite a lot.”
He nodded. This was part of the reason why the Accountant had mentioned this pairing as the best situation. His best chance was against the next weakest person, after himself.
Only one person was going to make it through the group phase, and that meant that every fight was a life or death struggle. He had to win to advance, that was the only way. Even one loss would prevent him from getting the points he needed.
Even in the first fight there was no holding back. Especially with how strong Titan was, the Wolf King would need to use every trick up his sleeve to earn victory. Lan Jue was anxious to see how strong Qi Mu was, and how much punishment he could take. He needed to know for his own fight with Qi Mu later.
It was an advantage that didn’t always apply, though. If he had been the first one to fight Qi Mu it would have been him giving it all he had. Later in his fight against Titan, it also wouldn’t matter how well he knew his enemy. Zeus was going to have to dig deep no matter the circumstances.
But he wasn’t interested in riches, titles or reputation. His goal had always been only to better himself. The greatest gains came through the greatest tribulations, he knew, so he would fight his hardest for that reason alone. Progress through conflict. He was no different than the others here, young and talented Adepts who represented the great potential of the future.
His three year lapse in cultivation was not entirely a bad thing, either. It gave him time for the dust to settle, to absorb all that he had experienced. This was like a new start, and his road ahead looked blessed. It motivated his Discipline to keep improving.
Only Titan and Qi Mu remained on the field. The two commanding Adepts slowly separated, each going to one side of the ring. There, they waited for the match to begin. Titan seemed hardly motivated, whereas a sharp and dreadful light blazed in Qi Mu’s eyes.
Pressure was motivation. Qi Mu felt it as clearly as Lan Jue did. The fear and uncertainty had awakened his lust for battle.
Several dozen beams of light sprang to life with an electric buzz, cleaving through the air to meet at a point a hundred meters over the center of the ring. In the place where they met, a brilliant golden light bloomed to form the force field. It filtered down to encompass the battlefield, and only then dimmed in hue. Once it was in place, it could only be faintly seen. The audience could hardly notice it.
For the contestants it was different. All the sounds from inside could be heard by the audience, but for the fighters themselves, they were cut off from everything outside of their bubble. It was like their own world, completely isolated. The shield’s had clearly been upgraded for the quarter-finals, to prevent the chances of having them shatter mid-contest.
Mo Xiao’s voice called all eyes back to the viewing platform. “Your Majesty,” she said, addressing the Terminator, “what are your thoughts on the coming battle?”
The Paragon turned to answer. “Titan has trained in pure force. This has restricted him to a single path – direct. However, if a challenger seeks to win he has to at least meet Titan’s own energy levels and surpass them. Qi Mu is from the Dark Citadel, and is undoubtedly a formidable opponent. His abilities appear more balanced, but in reality he has also specialized more in strength. This is pure force against an impure imitation. The result comes down to simple common sense.”
Mo Xiao was somewhat taken aback. She hadn’t expected such an in-depth answer, nor his matter-of-fact assertion that his disciple would win. However, she was a professional and recovered quickly. “Right to the heart of the matter, Your Majesty! Let’s see what comes.”
The monitors in front of every spectator’s chair lit up with a clock face. The numbers flashed tantalizingly as a digitized voice began the countdown.