Chapter 200 - Bifang vs. Panther (1/2)

Boom! Boom! Boom!

As he walked down the open corridor that separated him from the fighting stage, He Fen's footsteps resounded loud as if something hard was being slammed against the floor. His heart was racing, but the nervousness of before had dissolved to make room for his fighting spirit and his desire for victory.

Meanwhile, Bao Jong-Su, the young man from the Bao Family, was already standing on the stage with a concentrated but not worried face. He, as for Sean Fisher, was part of the group of new students. However, his status was higher than the former's. Bao Jong-Su was part of the Bao Family, owner of the Black Panther Bloodline, specialized in the Lightning Law. His attacks contained both incredible speed and impressive destructive power. He certainly wouldn't be an easy opponent for He Fen.

”Begin!” Song Yazhu started the fight as soon as He Fen got on stage and took up his fighting stance.

As soon as that order was issued, He Fen immediately pulled out his Wind and Fire Wheels, holding them with both hands. His circular weapons had a non-cutting part that allowed the user to grasp the two wheels for close combat, as well as the possibility of throwing them. Bao Jong-Su instead didn't draw any weapons; he stood there, motionless, in the center of the stage. However, his eyes and position alluded that he had no intention of remaining passive.

Whoosh!

Bao Jong-Su sprinted forward using his speed technique. His body had begun to release his spirit power, which took on a flickering dark blue tinge.

”Panther Palm!” Bao Jong-Su shouted as he threw a vigorous palm against He Fen.

”Wheel of Wind! Vortex Shield!”

He Fen let go of his Wind Wheel. The circular weapon stopped in mid-air and immediately afterward began to rotate clockwise as it created strong wind streams in front of He Fen like a shield of sharp drafts.

Slash! Zap!

Bao Jong-Su's palm stopped a few inches from He Fen's Wind Wheel. From that palm, a strong electric discharge was poured out, which crashed against the wind shield. The lightning bolts created by the technique were being cut into small pieces in front of the public's eyes.

'As I imagined, it wasn't an attack that needed to touch the body.' He Fen thought as he kept spinning his Wheel of Wind.

In this regard, He Fen could have simply used his circular weapons to meet his opponent's palm. After all, in the event of contact, it would have been He Fen to get the better of the confrontation. But, in the same way, he was aware of it, Bao Jong-Su should have been too. There was no way the latter would attack so lightly unless he was a user of the Metal Law, and He Fen knew he wasn't.

”Wheel of Fire, Jet of Fire!”

He Fen stopped his wind shield technique and started to rotate his second weapon, the Wheel of Fire. The metal circle turned red, and the next instant fired a jet of fire at Bao Jong-Su. The latter had lost the momentum gained from his run-up, and even the lightning on his palm had vanished. Therefore, he was now in great vulnerability.

”Flying Claw, Black Panther Palm!”

Crash!

Suddenly, something dark moved from Bao Jong-Su's back and crashed into He Fen's jet of fire. The flames of the jet were therefore divided into smaller streams and, since their trajectories were deflected, they missed their target.

”Hmm!?” He Fen made a surprised cry when he realized that the thing responsible for deflecting his jet of fire was a kind of metallic animal claw. This claw was connected by a metal rope, twisted along Bao Jong-Su's arm, and continued over the shoulder to his back. Initially, both the claw and the rope were hidden by the young man's clothes but were now fully visible.

”Do you like my Flying Claw? Then you will undoubtedly adore the other!” Bao Jong-Su said with a wild smile as his robes began to move again.

Slash!

A second metal claw flew from Bao Jong-Su's sleeve to head at full speed against He Fen's neck. The latter didn't expect Bao Jong-Su to possess such a weapon or that he had two of them. Without hesitation, he emitted a jet of fire from his Wheel of Fire to push his body away from the trajectory of the claw.

”It's not over here!” Bao Jong-Su shouted as he waved his hands. The two ropes twisted on his body began to loosen up as they increased the range of action of the two claws and, therefore, the range in which he could attack while standing still.

'Shit, I can't dodge. If so …' He Fen thought before saying aloud, ”Intent of the Wheels of Wind and Fire! Wind Rotating Discs!”

He Fen's circular weapons rotated even more intensely than before, generating strong gusts of wind as they met Bao Jong-Su's lightning-covered metal claws.

Whoosh! Rumble!

The two pairs of weapons crashed loudly against each other. The flying claws, driven by the previously gained momentum, were trying to make their way between the gusts of wind generated by the Wheels of Wind and Fire. However, the power behind used by He Fen was higher and was currently gaining the upper hand.

”Intent of the Flying Claws, Black Panther Bloodline, Black Panther Claws!”

As soon as Bao Jong-Su said this, the spirit power he was sharply emanating increased and went back to his flying claws. The sparks emitted by the metal claws became more intense and were accompanied by rumbling noises as if he were creating a miniature storm within his particular pair of weapons.

”Bifang Bird Bloodline, Activation! Law of Fire, Bifang Flames! ”

When his opponent resorted to his bloodline, He Fen did the same. Within an instant, the wind generated by his wheels ceased to be replaced by chaotic greenish-red flames accompanied by a bird cry.

Lightning Law vs. Fire Law! Flying Claws vs. Wheels of Wind and Fire! Black Panther Bloodline vs. Bifang Bird Bloodline!

As the clash gained became heated, a man, dressed in red and green clothes, was sitting in the VIP seats and was carefully watching the match. He was one of the elders of the He Family and was the only emissary sent to observe He Fen's results. His name was He Lim, and at the time, he was looking incredulously at the young representative of his own family to whom no one had given importance.

'Is he really He Fen? Initially, everyone, including myself, thought it was an error the invitation we received. He Fen had qualified for the main phase of the tournament? No way. But after verifying its authenticity, we simply thought he had been lucky. Yet now, the reality before my eyes is very different. He Fen is fighting on par with the Bao Family representative. Did he manage to improve so much in less than a year? What if he was given more time? Would he be able to succeed in the challenge assigned to him?'

The Elder He Lim was baffled, which was also quite reasonable. He Fen's talent was okay and possessed a pure bloodline. However, it wasn't enough to match the top members of the younger generation of the He Family, not to mention the other bloodline families or the Eight Big Families. It was already quite incredible that He Fen had managed to enroll in one of the Four Royal War Academies. Still, other young martial artists from the He Family had managed to do it, so there was nothing special about it in the end.