Chapter 285: A Different Person
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
"Just one or two good fighters wouldn't be enough to defeat the Kaedeians, since the average skill of the Kaedeians is well above that of the Earthlings. Ever since last time they were defeated by Wannabe, they had become more cautious. So, I wager they would send out their best fighters for this tournament." Flash said.
Capth didn't draft Flash into the Norton campaign, so while Wang Tong was toiling in the war, Flash had trained hard and had since become more skillful than Wang Tong in fleet combat. Flash had also studied Wang Tong's Art of the Iron Wall, and with diligent practice, his execution of the Art of the Iron had become even more potent than Wang Tong.
The practice exercise served a reminder to Wang Tong that unlike the "Talented Three" from Capth, he was not prepared for the tournament.
"It's a good thing to have found out where your problems are. The training would be broken down into two sections. You guys can train on your own in the morning and the evening, while the afternoon will be used exclusively for fleet combat." Zhou Sisi said. Although she wasn't the leader of the S club, since she handled everything within, she had become the de facto leader. Therefore, everyone agreed to her arrangement.
Ever since Karl defeated Kal, he had also been working diligently to improve his skills. He had been victorious in all of his recent competitions, and made a name for himself. To differentiate the two, people called Kal the little K and Karl the Big K.
Karl was more well known than Kal, thanks to his unique fighting style. Kal, on the other hand, was younger and less experienced. However, his skills had combined the best of Flash and Bisu, and therefore, he had more potential than Karl.
"It has just started, don't feel sad for one loss." It had been a while since Wang Tong had tasted defeat. During the simulation, his rhythm was off slightly, and created an opening for a fraction of a second. However, that was all it took for his opponent to penetrate his defense. Wang Tong registered that Flash's APM had improved substantially, and he marveled at how much one would enhance his skills when under pressure.
The confidence that flashed in the eyes of the "Talented Three" was the unmistakable sign that they had earned their confidence through hard work and patience.
Kale and Kal had reached a stalemate. Unlike Wang Tong who had been fighting in the war, Karl had been focusing on improving his Fleet battle skills while he was on the Norton mission. Karl understood that he could no longer rely on his unique fighting style, since most people would have already gotten used to it or devised countermeasures. Although the strategies were set in stone, the execution of the strategy still played a significant role in fleet combat. Karl was exceptionally good at his performances, taking advantage of his opponent whenever he could, and was able to quickly evaluate the cost and benefit of every move and make adjustments.
However, even with a good strategy and perfect execution, Karl still lost a few matches to Kal due to a few minor slip-ups.
"Well done everyone. Looks like it was a good decision to come to Ayrlarng!" Harmon applauded at the student's performance. Everyone had been focusing on the fighting, and therefore, no one had noticed that Harmon was in the room as well.
"Principal!" All students from Capth stood up in unison, their voices filled with respect.
Harmon waved his hand, willing them to sit down, "Don't call me principal here; I am your fan. I am very pleased to have seen your ardent efforts in improving yourself. I am confident that you will be victorious in the fight against the Kaedeians."
Harmon was a master motivation speaker, as he had secured the students' confidence with only a few words. Harmon understood that encouragement was the best tool to motivate the students to become stronger.
"Wang Tong, your performance seemed to be lacking. As the star fighter of the Ayrlarng, you should learn to compromise between fleet combat and METAL combat. If you don't have the time to focus on both, you will have to make a decision." Harmon said sincerely.
Wang Tong nodded and then said, "Thank you, Principal Harmon."
Wang Tong was very confident with his ability in both fleet combat and the METAL combat. Ever since his training in the crystal space, he had been feeling much more vigorous and energetic, and this newfound energy had motivated him to become the strongest in both areas. He knew that what he needed most right then was to adjust the fleet combat skill to his new soul energy, and he thought that practicing with the Capth visitors would be an excellent opportunity to do just that.
Unlike Metal combat skills which could take years of training to improve, improving fleet combat skills would take a much shorter time when the conditions were right. Wang Tong had an unmatched soul energy as well as a solid foundation in micro controls. Therefore his skills would improve very swiftly.
Wang Tong didn't argue with Harmon, thinking that his intention was good after all.
Li Ruoer was getting bored. She wanted to focus on getting close to Wang Tong. However, he was always busy with her schoolmates, training in the gym. Her classmates' devotion in the tournament also seemed to have made her, and her little game, irrelevant.
Li Ruoer found Flash and his friends were the most boring, since they only cared about their dreams and ambitions. Porten was far more interesting than the rest, but his materialistic mindset was a big turn off.
Li Ruoer had been observing her target quietly, and she was shocked to found out how much Wang Tong had changed over the course of a few days.
Thanks to her Enchantress ability, Li Ruoer was able to observe Wang Tong's flow of energy clearly. She found the difference between the current energy in Wang Tong right then as compared to a couple of days ago was huge. It was as if Wang Tong was a completely different person.
To seek the answer to her newfound question, Li Ruoer joined the METAL combat exercises. Hu Yangxuan's face lit up with glee as soon as he saw Li Ruoer joining them. He took the opportunity to talk to the beautiful girl, despite the ire of Porton towards his actions.
Hu Yangxuan didn't like Porten either, but both had acted gallantly in front of the girl they both liked.
Unknown to Hu Yangxuan, he had helped Wang Tong by keeping Li Ruoer entertained. Wang Tong stepped into the gravity room and cranked up the gravity to 10g.
Only the 10g environment would be able to stimulate the immense power inside of Wang Tong, the power that was given by Einherjar Wannabe.
Wang Tong's practice followed a set of straightforward moves. He never liked the rigid and long forms; instead, he liked simpler moves, since it gave him more freedom to improvise different combinations during a real battle. What he had learned in the PA system had told him that an adaptable set of moves was much more powerful than a long and rigid one.
However, the rigid set-moves wasn't useless either, as they could be extremely effective when used at the right moment. Even the Einherjar had their own set of combo moves, such as the devastating Vayu's Vengeance used by Li Zhedao.
Sometimes, Wang Tong felt that he held the trigger for a floodgate that, once opened, would unleash a flood of events into the world. The sense of his importance to the world made Wang Tong feel satisfied. He knew that there were many secrets in him, and he had been holding them back as much he could. But what for?
For survival?
He conceded that no harm would come to him, even if he let the world know that he was the heir of the Blade Warrior then and there.
Wang Tong adjusted his soul energy as he conditioned his body. Although he had gained considerable power inside the crystal space, the dream-like nature of the crystal space required Wang Tong to take some effort to blend his newfound power with the real world. His opponent was going to be Lie Jian, one of the strongest fighters. So, Wang Tong had to be at his peak condition.
Suddenly Wang Tong's eyes glinted, and he slowed down his tactics as he saw Li Ruoer walk into the room.
"Wang Tong, you are full of surprises." Li Ruoer found it hard to believe that Wang Tong was training in the 10g environment. Looking at the determination flashing across Wang Tong's face, Li Ruoer finally started to wonder if she had created a monster for House of Li.
Chapter 286: The Upper-Class Elite
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
However, Li Ruoer couldn't afford to doubt herself. She needed to believe in herself, since that was the number one rule in cultivating the Tactics of the Enchantress.
Li Ruoer believed that if she wanted to accomplish great deeds as General Zhou Zhi did, she needed to have an unwavering faith in herself. Without the determination and confidence, General Zhou Zhi would never have been able to pin Li Feng under her thumb and become the only person who had power over the legendary general.
"Oh nice, we have met again. Why am I not surprised?" Wang Tong said sarcastically. He made a mental note to come to the gym earlier next time.
Despite the rancor in Wang Tong's words, his voice had betrayed some measure of compromise. After all, Li Ruoer had led him to Ma Xiaoru and earned him a chance to prove himself to Ma Dutian.
Li Ruoer smiled alluringly; even Wang Tong had to admit that her beauty was unmatched among the prettiest girls he had seen. In addition to her beauty, she carried a certain air around her that could charm any man to kneel in front of her and call her a queen.
"Well, I am pleased to see you again, and I like your silliness. I like you, you know?"
Wang Tong's face remained placid. He had prepared his mind for far worse than Li Ruoer telling him she had a crush on him.
"You are funny. I would be surprised if we ever meet again, much less dating." Wang Tong said honestly. He was convinced that nothing good would come out of befriending this devious enchantress.
"Well, yet we have met again, right here. I think we are meant for each other." Li Ruoer insisted.
Wang Tong decided to give up and simply ignore her from then on. He looked away and started training by himself, hoping that Li Ruoer would leave him alone if he stopped talking to her.
"I just thought that I had never fought you before. Don't you get bored training by yourself? You know better than me that I am the most competent fighter here in Ayrlarng. So, what do you say if we spar together, and... Let me help you, eh?" Li Ruoer said as he gazed at Wang Tong, waiting for Wang Tong 's reply.
"No." Wang Tong didn't want to have anything to do with the spoiled princess.
"Oh really? You are not afraid that I will tell people that you have taken advantage of me?" Li Ruoer put on a seductive smile and then asked.
"Don't be ridiculous! What advantage?"
"Don't be so mean. Even if you didn't take advantage of me, do you think your friends out there would believe you?" Li Ruoer threatened Wang Tong.
Wang Tong narrowed his eyes and flashed a wicked smile, "Do you really want to have an affair with me that bad? Well, so be it! I don't care."
"Really? You are not afraid that the rumors about our affair might spread to your lover's ears?" Li Ruoer pressed Wang Tong with more questions.
"She would know that those are only rumors." Wang Tong said seriously, thinking that Li Ruoer had underestimated their relationship and Ma Xiaoru's wits.
Out of words and vexed, several different expressions flashed across Li Ruoer's face until she decided to settle on a seemingly sweet smile, "Very good, Wang Tong. Laugh all you want right now. But let me remind you that I have lots of time. We will see who would be laughing in the end." Li Ruoer turned on her heels as soon as she finished her words. Wang Tong could tell that she was pissed.
After a year of fighting the evilest person in the world: Pirate King Zachery, Wang Tong had gained not only strength but also wits. The experience of dealing with the shrewd old ghost had lent Wang Tong the ability to see through Li Ruoer's little game, as if it were a child's play.
Unknown to Wang Tong, his body and mind were slowly adapting to the new self that was reborn in the crystal space, and therefore the confidence and the ability to predict the Enchantress's intention even caught Wang Tong off guard. Slowly but surely, the two Wang Tong: the one in the real world and the other in the crystal space, were merging, complimenting each other's power.
After making sure that Li Ruoer had left the gym, Wang Tong cranked the gravity dial even higher, trying to push himself to the limit.
As soon as Li Ruoer walked out of the gravity gym, she saw Hu Yangxuan and Porten arguing about something. Contempt was written all over their faces. Suddenly, Li Ruoer sensed a tremor inside the gravity gym. Wang Tong had maxed out the gravity setting and quickly realized that his soul energy would echo the gravity force and end up being destructive to his environment. So, Wang Tong quickly turned the gravity setting off, fearing that he had to pay for any damaged equipment. To Wang Tong, a fine was more terrible than Li Ruoer.
Wang Tong walked out of the gravity gym and walked away without sparing Porten a glance. Wang Tong was aware of his special background, and knew that although he made apparent efforts to mingle with average students, contempt towards students like Wang Tong was firmly rooted in his mind. Wang Tong conceded that once Porten graduated from the Academy, he would be promoted directly to the top position, where every decision of his would determine the lives of thousands of soldiers. It made Wang Tong feel sick to see that the promise of special treatment had given Porten a sense of superiority over other students, and the fact that he was reveling in it.
Porten had considered his importance to the world on the same level as that of Li Ruoer, one more reason for him to be so determined to win the princess' heart. If Ma Xiaoru married Li Shiming, and he married Li Ruoer, Porten reasoned that the three families would form the strongest alliance the Earthlings had ever seen.
"As for who would lead the alliance," Porten continued his plot, "…it defiantly won't be Li Shiming." The alliance of the two strongest families ought to strike fear into the hearts of their competitors, say, the council. Therefore, Porten wagered that the confederation would definitely rely on someone who they could trust to keep their power in check, and Porten would be the best candidate for that position.
Porten had already planned out his moves for the next twenty years. He despised Li Shiming for being a simple-minded brute, lacking the precision and finesse when it came down to the battle of wits. Li Shiming's problem, Porten had thought, was his reliance on his strength. After all, only a person who can't even lift a knife would kill using ploys.
Porten was also aware of Li Ruoer's thoughts, but he didn't mind her scornful look. When the time was right, he would make a proper woman out of her, despite the fact that she was the Einherjar's little princess.
Li Ruoer followed Wang Tong out of the gym, and Porten grimaced at Hu Yangxuan, giving him an expression that read, 'If you want her, you better get used to being ignored.'
Compare to Porten, Hu Yangxuan was much less infatuated with the Enchantress, since he had seen a much better one: Ma Xiaoru. In addition to the sheer boredom that had driven him to join the ranks of Li Ruoer's admirers, Hu Yangxuan also thought that he could distract Li Ruoer for Wang Tong.
So, In the name of helping his bro, Hu Yangxuan put on a warm smile and set out on the quest for Li Ruoer's heart.
After the physical training, Wang Tong went straight to the simulation room. Once he got there, he found the place was already packed with students. Cao Yi and Best were also among the group of students, discussing a certain technique with each other. Since the two shared a common enemy—Kaedeians, they seemed to get along much better.
Flash had shown everyone a stunning display of skills and unmatched control of the fleet. He had thoroughly studied Wang Tong's Art of Iron Wall, and made a few adjustments to fit better with his commanding style. Using the Art of Iron Wall, Fash was able to make his opponent yield, without even firing a single blast.
It occurred to Wang Tong that his last victory over Flash had wakened up a powerful opponent. Flash had hoped to further improve his skills by practicing with Wang Tong during his visit. However, he was slightly disappointed to find out that Wang Tong had already fallen behind him. That being said, his trip to Ayrlarng was not entirely without benefits, for he was impressed by the vigor and positive influence of the S club, so much so, it had turned around his opinion on A class academies.
There was no guaranteed winner in the field of fleet combat, due to the ever-changing scenarios. Subjective interpretation also played an important role in the execution of techniques, and therefore, fully understanding the opponent was also an essential part of winning a battle.
The members of the S club could feel the improvement they were making every day while practicing with the best of the best in the Confederation.
Wang Tong knew he couldn't rush it in order to catch up with his friends, since real improvements were made slowly, one match at a time. He was confident, nonetheless, that he would eventually be able to become much stronger, because he didn't lose the solid foundation in fleet combat, and had just gained a powerful soul energy.
Despite being defeated numerous times by Flash and Bisu, Wang Tong's enthusiasm intensified after each defeat, and both Wang Tong and his opponents could feel the small but tangible improvements in his skills after every match
By the end of the day, Flash was pleasantly surprised by how quickly Wang Tong had caught up with him. Earthlings needed more than just one or two reliable combatants to stand against Kaedeians and Ivantians.
The gene modification programs had given the Ivantians an edge in doing almost everything. Despite the difficulties in the earlier years of the program, Ivantian scientist eventually discovered the gene that would select the best genes for the next generation. At that point, they figured that they could finally stop tinkering the genes manually and let nature do its job to create the perfect humans.
Unlike their neighbors, the Kaedeians, the Martians were notorious for their horrible fleet combat skills. No matter how hard they tired, they would not be able to catch up with Kaedeians, and therefore, the Martians had given up the practice altogether.
Chapter 287: Motivated
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
"Good morning everyone. I have news for you." Simon walked into the room. He had been promoted to the position of Dean. "The school had just heard the Templar say that the top one hundred students would be able to visit the Hall of Valhalla."
"Fat Simon, are you sure? I thought that was only for the top ten students." Karl jumped out of his chair and asked incredulously.
Simon smiled and then said, "You are correct, It was only the top ten that could train with the Templar, but they are opening up the hall for more people. It has been a hundred years since anyone from outside of the Templar's court has stepped inside of the hall of Valhalla."
"So, you mean the competition would be fierce?" Karl pouted.
"Not really. But definitely more people would attend the tournament, that's for sure." Simon answered.
Since no one had ever been to the Hall of Valhalla, it remained as an elusive and mysterious place to most people. Some students who had insisted that the Hall never existed were convinced that it was only a ruse played out by the Templar to increase the number of participants of the tournament.
Upon hearing the news, Wang Tong smiled, cherishing his incredible luck. He was determined to go to the Templar's court, and was ready to search every corner of the court to find the Hall of Valhalla. Yet, he found his ticket to the Valhalla was already set on a plate for him by the Templar.
On the distant Norton, the Confederation alliance had joined forces and was hammering a devastating blow to the Zergs. Although the military expenses piled up high like a hill, weighing on the shoulders of the alliance, it was still a much cheaper option than destroying the planet and losing all the investments.
The news reported one victory after another, without telling the public that there were more human troops on the ground then Zergs.
However, planet Norton was almost hollowed out a few thousand meters underneath the ground, where the humans could not gain access. A few hundred thousand Encephalon and Queens gathered around, and among them stood a humanoid shadow.
A circle of fleshy balls whose surface pulsed as if it were alive surrounded the shadow. The humanoid creature screamed, commanding the Queens to lay more balls. The balls started to undulate and creep towards the humanoid shadow, until a few dozen balls had completely covered it up.
Wrapped in the balls, the shadow started to evolve.
…
Wang Tong sneaked out of campus after his weekend training. He had been looking forward to the fight with Jie Jian.
When he arrived at the virtual cafe, he saw a crowd of people was already at the gate, waiting to get in. Wang Tong started to worry if he would be able to get a machine.
The receptionist recognized Wang Tong and led him into the café, "Don't worry about it the crowd; we had reserved your VIP room. Quality of the service is our guarantee."
Wang Tong arrived at the familiar VIP room, logged onto the terminal and then signed in as Einherjar Wannabe.
The DREAM had prepared an isolated arena for the fight. Although DREAM had signed the agreement to carry out the fight behind closed doors, they had allowed the public to loiter outside of the arena.
When Wang Tong arrived at the arena, thousands of people were already waiting for him at the gate. Sensing that Einherjar wannabe had arrived, DREAM cracked opened the eastern gate. A golden carpet immediately appeared under Einherjar Wannabe's feet, guiding his way to the gate.
The PA players boiled over at the sight of their hero, the players eager to see him win the fight. Lie Jian had looked down on the IPA player and made a few rude comments before, blatantly calling them amateurs.
Although it was a blatant verbal abuse in the eyes of the earthlings, to the Martians, Lie Jian's comment was not only true, but also gave him a manly and no-nonsense character.
A few hundred thousand people rushed towards Einherjar Wannabe. Thanks to the energy barrier, he was spared from being crushed by his own fans.
Wang Tong was unruffled by the wave of feverish fans; he had seen much worse than fans.
"Einherjar! Send that little b*stard home!"
"Knock his f*cking head off!"
"Kill, kill, kill!"
The cheers of the public were deafening. They had wanted to see this fight for too long, and right then, all that suppressed anticipation exploded into a mindless thirst for violence.
Suddenly, the western, northern and the southern gates also opened up, and three golden carpets found their way to Lie Jian, Michaux, and Patroclus.
The volume of the cheers reached a new height, as the public were taken over by their excitement on seeing so many legendary fighters at once.
Despite their young age, all three fighters remained calm at the sight of the turbulent sea of people.
The four proceeded into the arena as the gate shut behind them.
All news outlets started their "broadcasting". It was barely a broadcast since no one knew what was going on inside the arena, and all the public could do was watch a few experts arguing about their speculations based on the change of soul energy they had sensed.
Doubts towards Einherjar Wannabe had never been uncommon, as many people called him a cheater and a coward. However, all the doubts were washed away after his appearance at the arena.
As soon as the four young men walked into the arena, they found the loud cheers disappear. The four looked at one another for a while, until the three of them decided to settle their gaze on Einherjar Wannabe.
Einherjar Wannabe cracked a smile, "Thank you for coming. I knew all of you have the same question, and I promise that you will get the answer you seek today."
Einherjar Wannabe's words had hit the mark. The mysterious Einherjar Wannabe had held many secrets: his identity, tactics, age, etc. Each answer was more irresistible to the Great Houses than the one before.
"Great! I like your attitude!" Patroclus praised, then he turned to Lie Jian, "Lie Jian, I wonder if you are willing to let me fight on your behalf?"
Unlike Lie Jian and Mi Xiu, who were still wondering about Einherjar Wannabe's real identity, Patroclus had already seen through the cover, because just at the first sight, his tactics of the Deva King had reacted the only way it would in front of an heir of the Blade Warrior.
The legend had returned, and the Dower had been waiting for him for three hundred years.
Patroclus could not hide the anxiousness inside him, and even Lie Jian and Michaux found Patroclus out of his character.
"Patroclus, this is our fight, not yours. You are a witness, so do just that." There was no way that Lie Jian would let Patroclus fight in his stead.
A smile found the corner of Michaux's lips as he unfurled his soul energy and spread it across the arena like a web. The presence of Michaux's soul energy seemed to have soothed Patroclus's mind and evaporated his eagerness to fight "Ah... of course. That was rather...untoward of me. "
"Alright then, let's do it!" Lie Jian announced.
Lie Jian licked his lips, revealing a row of teeth. He wondered what had made Patroclus act out of character, and he conceded that the only way to find out the answer was to fight.
Without even moving a muscle, Patroclus and Michaux pushed back about 20 meters. If there were audiences around, they would be stunned by the two witness' moves.
Lie Jian extended his right hand, and the soul energy that had taken the form of fire burnt brightly on his skin. Lie Wushuang's soul fire paled under the comparison of Lie Jian's much brighter and more intense blaze.
These were the real Tactics of the Blaze.
Chapter 288: Layered Fist of Tong
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
Lie Jian's soul energy reached two hundred and thirty. If it were anyone else, the amount of soul energy at display would be considered significant, but it was relatively unimpressive compared to Lie Jian's real power.
The unusual tension in the air told Wang Tong that Lie Jian's power was beyond the simple soul energy and the GN force. After all, the five major tactics were at par with the Tactics of the Blade. Within Lie Jian's seemingly normal soul energy, Wang Tong could sense something lurking behind, something more powerful and sinister.
Both Michaux and Patroclus had sensed the strong energy behind Lie Jian's facade, but neither of them seemed to be surprised by it. They knew what they had felt; it was the power of the double GN force.
By then, Wang Tong had also realized that his opponent had double GN force at his disposal, so he cherished the intense training he had endured in the crystal that had brought his skill to the next level. Otherwise, Wang Tong concluded, he would be defeated in an instant.
As soon as Wang Tong initiated his tactics and opened up his soul energy, the other three's faces turned black.
They had sensed a fifth level soul energy in the Einherjar Wannabe's start-up phase, which meant that Einherjar Wannabe's real soul energy ought to be even higher. This was not the power they had been expecting from the mysterious fighter.
Wang Tong cranked his soul energy to just above two hundred, and felt that it should be enough to counter the belligerent pressure emanated from his opponent.
Einherjar Wannabe's display of strength had finally satisfied Patroclus's curiosity; all of his questions were answered by then. Patroclus no longer wanted to watch the battle, so he went up to the audience section, found a seat and sat down with his eyes closed, savoring this blissful moment.
"Good evening everyone, this is the live broadcast of the fight between Einherjar Wannabe and Lie Jian. Although, we cannot see what is going on inside the arena, we can still feel it with our soul energy. As we know, this is a fight of the century, and both combatants had invited —Oh! We have noticed that Einherjar Wannabe's soul energy has reached the fifth level. This will be the first time Einherjar Wannabe ever reached the fifth level. If I recall correctly, he was able to defeat a fifth level warrior while he was only at the fourth level. It really makes one wonder what would happen today behind those closed doors!"
The people outside of the arena shouted in excitement, despite the very little data they had about the situation inside.
Lie Jian felt exhilarated by his opponent's level of strength. He knew that Einherjar Wannabe had been hiding his real power, but he didn't expect the mysterious fighter to be so powerful.
With a blaring sound, Lie Jian dashed forward. There was only one word in his combat vocabulary: attack.
The blazing GN force quickly spread throughout Lie Jian's body, turning him into a weapon. Despite the fact that the Martians were masters of modern military style combat, Lie Jian knew how to use all kinds of ancient weapon, and was also a master of fist and palm strikes techniques. Lie Jian knew that the Martians were a relatively new civilization, and therefore, they needed to learn from their more ancient counterparts. Lie Jian had spent a lot of time and money, seeking masters of martial arts from earth and moon, and invited them over to Mars as guests. Due to the restriction of their soul energy, these martial artists might not be deadly on the battlefield. However, the new techniques they had brought to the Martians were invaluable. Lie Jian had then improved his own techniques by merging the essence of the old masters' techniques with his.
The Li were the masters of the sword, and the Dower were the masters of the spears, but Lie Jian was the master of everything, and he didn't even need a weapon.
Lie Jian's attack was powerful, direct and came with strong intent. As the cultivator of the Tactics of the Blaze, Lie Jian was able to unleash any technique's full damage potential.
In addition to the Tactics of the Blaze, which had given the attack a unique elemental attribute, the technique was an improved version of an ancient martial art called the Zhong Zheng Fist. It was an old technique that focused on the attack with wide open forms, to achieve maximum damage. It had become doubly deadly, with the added effect of the Tactics of the Blaze.
So far, Lie Jian had only met one person who had countered this move, and it was Li Shiming.
What would Einherjar Wannabe do?
Michaux's expression remained calm; he knew exactly how powerful Lie Jian's attack was. However, he reasoned that if Einherjar Wannabe couldn't even counter Lie Jian's first move, he would not deserve this stage.
Facing such a deadly attack, Wang Tong didn't even flinch. He arched his back into a defensive posture as lights flashed in his eyes.
Wang Tong attacked at Lie Jian with a knuckle-whitening fist, as he roared out his battle cry.
Wang Tong moved so fast that even his shadow could not catch up with him.
The two fists collided, and Lie Jian stumbled back a step. The power carried by the fist told Lie Jian that this was going to be a much tougher fight than he had expected.
"Fantastic technique! Its power was definitely above that of the Fist of the Racing Tiger. Do you have a name for it?" Lie Jian's knuckle ached at the impact. Einherjar Wannabe countered his unswerving attack with ease. Looking at his opponent, Lie Jian registered that Einherjar Wannabe's defense had dissolved even the effect of the poison fire.
Lie Jian registered that not only Einherjar Wannabe possessed exceptional tactics, he must have also learned his techniques from a great master.
"Layered Fist of Tong!"
"Good name! You have opened my eyes today. But I think our fight will end here!"
Lie Jian brought his fists back and set it about his waist while he charged them with more GN force. Lie Jian conceded that the GN force in his previous attack wasn't enough to penetrate his opponent's defense, and therefore, he decided to pump more GN force into his second attack.
Should Einherjar Wannabe be able to counter his second attack, Lie Jian reasoned he would be able to reveal his real power to the mysterious fighter finally. The first two attacks were merely probes. Lie Jian also hoped that Einherjar Wannabe would be able to pass this test, because the martian was eager to study his ability to control double elemental attributes.
Lie Jian's fists turned red, and he was about to use the Zhong Zheng fist again. When combined with the Tactics of the Blaze, the Zhong Zheng fist was almost invincible. It was also difficult to master compared to other fist techniques, as it focused a lot on projecting fear into opponents' hearts, similar to the Fist of the Racing Tiger. That being said, with the discovery of the GN force, the Zhong Zheng fist would become useless without being complemented with powerful tactics such as the Tactics of the Blaze.
Lie Jian didn't invest too much GN force in his first attack, since he was not sure about his opponent's strength. However, after sensing that his opponent's skill was on the same level as him, if not better, Lie Jian had increased the effect of the Tactics of the Blade in his second attack. Lie Jian reckoned that his opponent's strike was very similar to the Firmament Palm Strike from the Ivantians. However, Einherjar Wannabe's execution seemed to give the technique a more sinister undertone. Luckily, the Zhong Zheng fist was well known for its ability to ward off sinister and devious tricks, so it allowed Lie Jian to attack with abandon.
A tremor shot through Wang Tong's body, not because of terror, but excitement. A million words of appreciation rushed through his mind that he wanted to say to Mr. Wannabe. Without him, Wang Tong would never be able to stand against such a powerful opponent and enjoy such a thrilling fight.
Two lightning bolts suddenly appeared in Wang Tong's hands, and he rushed forward to meet his opponent's charge head on.
Michaux's face finally betrayed a hint of surprise; he had never seen a lightning attribute before.
For the longest time, the Lie's fire attribute was considered the most aggressive attribute. Although the fire and ice were technically adversarial elements, overall, the fire element had always been the more aggressive one. Despite the fact that Wang Tong's ice attribute was rare, its rarity did not amount to its dominance.
The lightning attribute, however, was not only never seen before, but also seemed more aggressive and powerful than the fire.
In a blink, the two fighters exchanged a dozen round of punches. Despite the crazed looked in Lie Jian's eyes, his attack was meticulously woven into each other, without leaving any loose ends.
Wang Tong's move, on the other hand, had some rough edges, but he carried out his seemingly random attacks with confidence and with apparent ease.
Lie Jian had to be watchful of Wang Tong's lightning element, as it crackled and sputtered, eager to lick its opponent's flesh.
Lie Jian's patience was wearing thin, so he cranked up the intensity of his attacks. He found it hard to believe that Einherjar Wannabe was able to counter his attacks with a much lower soul energy than his.
While the two were in the heat of the battle, Lie Jian suddenly changed his techniques from fist to palm. Lie Jian was famous for his unique palm technique, that was deadly despite its rather slow and mellow method of delivering. It was living proof that most people's stereotype of the Lie's blunt and aggressive nature was wrong.
Once the Tactics of the Blaze had transitioned to its higher form, it became much deadlier despite the change in its method of delivery. The abrupt change in the flow of the battle would also throw opponents off balance.
While Lie Jian was switching forms, Wang Tong seized the opportunity and attacked Lie Jian with Ice Finger Strike. The transition from lightning to ice was so fluid and flawless that no one else would have been able to do it.
Michaux had finally witnessed Einherjar Wannabe's ability to command two attributes, and he found that there was no need to watch the fight any longer. Wang Tong's perfect transition between the two elements made the young master believe that this young boy would be able to dominate the whole world, as long as he wanted to.
Michaux threw a glance at Patroclus and their eyes locked onto each other.
They both knew that the dominance of the five major tactics would finally come to an end after three hundred years.
Chapter 289: Goals Achieved
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
Facing Einherjar Wannabe's Ice Finger, Lie Jian only hesitated for a very brief second, then continued his attack. Lie Jian knew that the shift in his flow of movements would open up a tiny gap, but he didn't expect his opponent to be able to change his GN force attribute immediately and take advantage of the small opening. Lie Jian didn't falter; instead, he cranked up the intensity of the flame and bore down his fist on Einherjar Wannabe.
As soon as Wang Tong's finger jabbed at the center pressure point of the Lie Jian's palm, his brow furrowed. The force Wang Tong had encountered in Lie Jian's palm was not an offensive one, but defensive.
Lie Jian twisted his face into a laugh as he clenched his fingers into a fist, holding firmly onto Wang Tong's finger, he was about to twist the finger off of his opponent's hand. However, Wang Tong reacted before he could do that as he jabbed the clenched fist with two of his other fingers and broke its hold. The two fighters broke off the engagement and retreated at lightning speed.
Lie Jian rubbed his hand as it was still painful after being jabbed by Wang Tong's icy finger. Wang Tong had also become more alert, realizing that his opponent was not only agile, but also very cunning.
Wang Tong conceded that he had never met an opponent like Lie Jian in the PA system.
Wang Tong's performance also exceeded Lie Jian's expectation. He had thought to use this fight as a practice, but it was evident that not only was Einherjar Wannabe powerful, he was also smart and experienced.
Wang Tong struck again, his fist roaring like the Fist of the Racing Tiger did. Despite the similarity in Wang Tong's Layered Fist of Tong and the Fist of the Racing Tiger, Wang Tong preferred his technique due to its unique hidden ability to break his opponent's defense. After weeks of practice, Wang Tong felt that he had already mastered the technique, and therefore, was eager to see how Lie Jian was able to defend against it.
Lie Jian threw his fist at Wang Tong's—fist against fist.
The two fighters both focused heavily on offense, and they were equally experienced and possessed equally deadly tactics. Therefore, a reckless fight with no regard for technical finesse was inevitable. It was almost impossible to defeat their opponent using superior techniques alone, because both of them were too busy countering each other's attacks to think of any meaningful strategies on the spot.
The fight had quickly turned into a competition of more GN force and damage output. Wang Tong could feel that his opponent had already doubled his GN output. However, the Poison Fire was not able to harm Wang Tong's tactics of the Blade even the slightest. Wang Tong's lightning force started to gain intensity, and after a few dozen punches, Wang Tong seemed to have gained a slight edge over Lie Jian. This development had turned everyone's expectation around as both witnesses, and Lie Jian himself had expected Lie Jian to be the one who would control the flow of the combat.
Michaux was caught off guard to see that although the power in Einherjar Wannabe's attacks was greater than that of Lie Jian, he had consumed less soul energy than his martian counterpart.
Patroclus closed his eyes, but his observation was even sharper than Michaux. He had noticed that the most significant difference between the two players was in their fighting tempo.
It was evident to Patroclus that both fighters were trying to control the flow of the combat, and so far, the odds were against Lie Jian.
Patroclus believed that Einherjar Wannabe, as the heir of the Blade Warrior, would eventually win the fight.
The Dower's always believed that only the heir of the Blade Warrior would be deemed a worthy opponent. Therefore, the Dower had kept quiet for centuries, waiting for their real opponent to appear.
The aloofness of the Dower had given them the reputation of being unambitious. However, that was far from the truth, because House Dower had devoted themselves to making the human world a better place. They were concerned by the corruption on earth and the recklessness of the Martians, and they considered the two factions hidden dangers to the integrity of human civilization. House of Dower was convinced that if they could become the head of the three factions, and replace the earth and martian bureaucrats with Ivantians, the world would be a much better place. However, all of those dreams were simply that, dreams. Dowers knew that as soon as the Blade Warrior returned, he would have the ability to shatter the perfect world they had created, and he would for sure. The Blade Warrior was a firm believer that it was the imperfections that defined the human race.
Wang Tong's marled personality seemed to be a living proof of Blade Warrior's unswerving faith in imperfection.
Patroclus could feel the heavy weight on his shoulder, but he was also confident in his ability. So, he doubted if Einherjar Wannabe could truly stop him.
In the arena, Lie Jian held his ground firmly and started to gradually increase his soul energy to counter Wang Tong's deadly attacks. Every attack delivered by Wang Tong meant death, and every move carried the thirst for blood. Wang Tong's extremely violent and reckless fighting style seemed to make the Martian's attack pale under comparison in terms of aggressiveness.
Despite the minimal edge he held over his opponent, Wang Tong conceded that it would be difficult for him to dominate the arena completely. Wang Tong sensed that Lie Jian had concealed his real power in front of Patroclus, unwilling to reveal the coup de grace to his ultimate rival.
In contrast to the empty and quiet arena, the outside area was packed with excited audience. Thousands of pairs of eyes glued to the display board showing the comparison of the two fighter's current soul energy readings. Looking at the insurmountable numbers, most academy students felt both admiration and despair. Among these students, many were even from the S-Class Academies.
What really sounded impossible was the fact that Einherjar Wannabe was able to reach the same level of defense and offense ability as his opponent, but with less soul energy.
Was this really possible?
Was he one of the Dowers?
If that were the case, at least it would offer some sensible explanation to the mysterious fighter's power, since Dower was also one of the five Great Houses.
Was he a genius?
Not likely. There had always been a ceiling as to how much inborn talent could improve one's overall power, and Einherjar Wannabe's ability was well above that upper limit.
In addition, no genius would be able to achieve such high degree of accomplishment in all aspects of being a fighter, but Einherjar Wannabe had done just that. He had perfect tactics, techniques, skills as well as control. It was impossible!
The fight had gone on for ten minutes, and Lie Jian still wasn't able to gain the upper hand after changing half a dozen techniques. On the other hand, Wang Tong's attack seemed to come with a greater frequency and vigor. Lie Jian could sense that his opponent had also reserved his strength and concealed his real power.
Lie Jian started to wish that Patroclus was not present.
The two fighter's fists collided, releasing a shock wave that jolted both fighters. Wang Tong took a dozen steps back and quickly gathered himself, but Lie Jian stumbled back and wasn't able to regain his balance until a few seconds later. It was a clear sign that Wang Tong's power was superior to Lie Jian, and it vexed the Martian to have lost his face in front of the spectators. Lie Jian finally decided to unleash his real power regardless of the presence of Patroclus.
Suddenly, Patroclus appeared in the arena.
"I felt like this fight had turned into a waste of time. Perhaps you two could rearrange another fight and just call it off for the day?"
"I agree. It really isn't my thing to fight in the PA anyways. It felt weird." Lie Jian agreed.
The other three looked at Einherjar Wannabe, waiting for his reply.
Wang Tong knew they had finally risen to his bait. "Alright, see you all at the pan-solar system tournament! You will find what you are looking for there!"
"I will be there!" Patroclus had been waiting for the invitation ever since he walked into the arena. He was eager to re-enact the scene of that epic battle centuries ago, and he yearned to rewrite the history. As a powerful fighter, nothing would intrigue him more than changing the course of history using his fighting abilities.
Lie Jian and Michaux looked at each other for a while and then Lie Jian broke the silence, "Very well, I will be there too."
Michaux still looked calm. Although he wanted to accept the offer, it was against the doctrines of his sect. Wang Tong threw Michaux a side-glance and then said, "Michaux, have you heard of something called spiritual essence? "
A shock came over Michaux as lights flashed in his eyes, "What do you know about the spiritual essence?"
"Come to the tournament, and I will tell you." Einherjar Wannabe cracked a wry smile. He had since learned that Mr. Wannabe had existed in the form of spiritual essence, instead of soul energy.
"I will be there for sure." Michaux agreed to Wang Tong's request without any hesitation. It was the first time that he had ever heard of the word "spiritual essence" coming from someone other than a divine master
Wang Tong nodded in satisfaction. He had reached his goal and made the tournament into an even more exciting event.
Wang Tong knew that the more powerful fighters were involved in the tournament, the larger its impact would be, and he hoped that he could eventually make a large enough impact to drive the real culprit behind his serious of unfortunate events out of the shades.
Einherjar Wannabe signed off.
Chapter 290: The Future of The Kaedeians
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
Einherjar Wannabe left the battlefield, leaving the rest three in the arena.
Looking at the effeminate features of the young Ivantian prince, Lie Jian asked, "Dower, have you figured out who this so-called Einherjar Wannabe is? "
"Just an old family friend." A faint smiled appeared on Patroclus's face. "On another note, it looks like you are going to reach a new level in your cultivation. Congratulations."
Shocked by having his levels revealed, Lie Jian improvised a calm expression, "I wish we could arrange a fight one day. I'd be looking forward to that. "
"Brother Dower, haven't you already reached the sixth level in your cultivation? Your pure and natural energy that is untainted by the worldliness is rather admirable. Should you choose to forsake the world and embark on the journey of seeking out the divine path, you would achieve a higher state of existence than any of our divine masters. " Michaux said.
"You have thought too highly of my ability. I am nobody but an ordinary human." Before Patroclus's voice slipped away, his image started to fade. Patroclus signed off as well.
Lie Jian and Michaux both looked at each other with knowing eyes before they also signed off. This fight had already revealed more than what they had expected.
"Where did they go?" Thousands of audiences outside of the arena held the same question.
Who won? Was it a draw?
Where did they go?
The public boiled over to the sudden halt of the match. Since all the four fighters inside the arena had already signed off, even DREAM had no clue what had happened.
The audiences found it would be impossible to get any information from Einherjar Wannabe and Lie Jian, much less the elusive Patroclus and the self-abnegating young master Michaux. However, the more forbidding the information had appeared, the more eager people were in wanting to know the details about the fight.
Wang Tong walked out of the clamorous cafe with joy written all over his face. Although he had taken the risk of blowing his cover, he found the thrill of living on the edge refreshing.
He was not Li Feng, and therefore, he would accept any kind of challenge people threw at him. He was still single, so he had nothing to worry about.
Wang Tong figured that it was about time that Old Fart would show up after causing him so much trouble. The first thing he was going to do after he met Old Fart was to ask him for the money that he had got by selling him to Norton.
Wang Tong carried a tune with him as he padded home. He had finally found his own way of doing things, and no longer cared about what the other three in the arena would think about him. He would gladly accept the reality should they discover his true identity.
The next day, everything seemed normal.
The only person who had seen through Einherjar Wannabe's disguise was Patroclus. However, he intentionally kept the secret to himself, so that his scared battle with the heir of the Blade Warrior would not be tainted by the profane and twisted views of the world.
The silence of the four participants did not amount to the silence of the internet community, where numerous speculations flourished. Even the usually loud-mouthed Lie Jian who liked to brag about how awesome he was after every fight had kept quiet.
However, the seemingly calm spell was broken in the afternoon by a flood of breaking news.
Lie Jian was the first one that had announced that he would partake in the upcoming pan-solar system tournament. However, he didn't care to explain what had given him the motivation.
The fight had made Lie Jian realize that he still had a lot to do in order to prepare for the tournament. He was annoyed because not only he wasn't able to win the fight as he had expected, he had also let Patroclus discover his exact level of power.
Although the media was excited about Lie Jian's announcement, they felt that it was not a surprise. However, their jaw almost dropped when Lie Jian said he was also announcing on behalf of Michaux Odin.
What had made the young master to make such an unprecedented decision? Didn't he know that none of the masters of the sect had ever partaken in a tournament?
One news bade another. A few minutes later, Patroclus had announced that he would also join the tournament.
The second news shocked even the council members. It was evident that something had instigated the three to decide to partake in the tournament. But neither the councilors nor any journalists knew what exactly it was.
Right around the afternoon, even Li Shiming could no longer keep his silence and announced that he, too, would join the tournament. Although Li Shiming was not sure what had happened during the PA fight, he was confident the strange development had something to do with Einherjar Wannabe. He conceded that if he remained silent, he could be perceived as being weak and irrelevant in others eyes. Luckily, Li Shiming had already obtained a list of names that could belong to the real Einherjar Wannabe. Soon, this list would be reduced down to less than a hundred, and by that time, the real Einherjar Wannabe would no longer be able to hide away from him.
This would be the first time in history that all the "Four Princes" met in the same tournament. Arguments about who would come out as the champion spread across the internet like wildfire.
Wang Tong was delighted at the outcome, as his goal had finally been achieved.
"Old Fart! I don't believe that you would still pretend to ignore me when I'm on that big a stage!" Wang Tong thought to himself.
Ma Xiaoru was watching the news on TV when she heard the TV hosts' debate regarding what had happened during the fight between Einherjar Wannabe and Lie Jian.
She wondered who Einherjar Wannabe was for a brief minute, and then started to think about Wang Tong again. She had heard from Li Ruoer that Wang Tong had been fully recovered and was strong as a bull.
Ma Xiaoru hoped that her recovery could pick up speed as well. She wished to attend the tournament to cheer for Wang Tong. She was practically living in jail right now, partly because her treatment prohibited excessive outdoor activities, and partly because her parents' fear of losing her again.
Ma Xiaoru wanted to find Wang Tong, yet, she needed to consider her parents' feelings as well.
Meanwhile on Mars, in the city of Morattis—the capital city of the Kaedeians, a strange atmosphere permeated in the air.
It was time for the Kaedeians to be reborn.
"High Priestess, are you sure he was the prophesied one?"
Inside the Kaedeian palace, beautiful women walked about and not a single man could be seen. The powerful men on Mars had tried many times to conquer this group of women warriors, but failed. The Kaedeians believed that only one man had ever almost won their hearts, and it was General Li Feng.
Inside a small but cozy boudoir sat a dozen Kaedeians. Even after a few centuries, the Kaedeians were still governed by women, much like the human society that was still dominated by men.
After the soul energy had been discovered, the Kaedeians had also adopted the new form of combat and changed their fighting styles. Soon, they found that the Kaedeian warriors were born for battles using soul energy, thanks to their innate ability to pick up subtle changes in the soul energy.
They had also divided their warriors into two categories: combat, and noncombat.
The noncombat category included the priestess. They served only the queen, and were ready to die for her at any moment.
The human scientist had already decreed the unpredictable nature of the known universe. To make a prediction or prophecy, one would need to break down all the variables at the quantum level, forming an initial state. Then, through emulation of future scenarios, one could reassemble all the initial variables into a tangible form that human could observe, hence completing a prediction. However, the scientific law stated that human observation would directly alter the quantum state, and therefore, the above-described approach would never work.
Putting it simply, since the human activity was constantly reshaping the world, the future was unpredictable.
However, Kaedeians had defied the scientific law, by mastering their soul energy.
Despite the Kaedeians' inborn ability to channel the soul energy, only a handful of Kaedians could become priestess. Although they couldn't fight like a warrior, they made prophecies that had played a vital role in the Kaedeian's history.
The priestess believed that the accuracy of their prediction was dependant on their level of soul energy. The higher the soul energy, the more focused they would be while connecting the threads of the material world against the flow of time.
To the pragmatic earthlings, the function of the priestess seemed to be merely for religious purposes.
Sitting right in front of Heidi was a girl of similar age. They two both had exceptional beauty; however, the head priestess was blind.
To see into the future, one would have to give up the view of the present.
"My lady, my ability is limited. But I saw that there... will be clashes of many great souls. Our fate will be altered."
Silence fell into the room as everyone waited for Heidi to respond to the head priestess' vision. The head priestess held a calm expression, as if she saw something comforting in her vision.
Chapter 291: Ruthless
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
Even the council was shocked when Heidi announced her decision of partaking in this year's tournament. It would be the first time in history that all of the elites of the younger generation had gathered in one event.
The most powerful three of the five were Patroclus, Li Shiming, and Lie Jian. Each one of them possessed one of the most potent tactics, and their talents and experience had made them even deadlier.
The sect of the divine masters had always kept things to themselves, so no one knew exactly how powerful their young master Michaux Odin would be. Nevertheless, his mysteriousness had stirred up great interest among the public.
The most puzzling participant of all was Heidi. The Kaedeians wouldn't participate in such a tournament for no reason. So, everyone wondered what had motivated her to be part of the competition.
Was she here to test her power?
Nonetheless, the stage was set for an exciting show to take place. Unlike the last tournament, there were much more elite warriors this year, and even last year's participants such as Li Shiming and Lie Jian had since improved their skills significantly. The number of elite fighters seemed to suggest that there wouldn't be any room for unknown warriors at the podium.
The Templars had already agreed to open the Hall of Valhalla to visitors who had entered the top hundred. However, it was well known that the hall of Valhalla was never open to any Kaedeians. Therefore, people wondered what the Templar would choose in between their tradition and their promise to the tournament participants.
The earthlings had fought alongside the Kaedeians for centuries. Not only had the earthlings gotten used to the Kaedeian's existence, they also started to appreciate their power and beauty. The Confederation had adopted multiculturalism and promoted the idea that all human races belonged to the same family. Therefore, should the Templars decide to block the Kaedeians warriors out of the Hall of Valhalla when they had earned the rights to enter, it would be considered rude and untoward even from an earthling's point of view.
The recruiting committee of the tournament felt relieved as they were struggling to come up with a method to make the tournament more appealing to the prince and princesses. But right then, it looked like they didn't have to worry about it after all.
Such as fire was the only way to test the authenticity of gold; the ability of a real fighter could only be tested in the fiercest competition. Despite their rare appearance in public, the five major tactics always had been at the center of public's attention. It was very rare to see the five major tactics at the display. Only on the rare occasions could one catch a glimpse of its power, and even then, the power at display was only a fraction of the real ability. However, things would be different at the tournament, since it would be hard for the elite fighters to hide any of their secrets while fighting equally potent opponents.
The Sky Arena, the legendary stage, would soon welcome another legendary fight. The Ivantians were confident that they would be a good host for this tournament. The moon not only had advanced planetary transportation, but also five space cities, enough to accommodate the crowd of visitors from all over the space.
Since all other forms of sports had already died out a thousand years ago, no other sports events could compete with the tournament for the public's attention.
Thanks to the participation of many elite fighters, this tournament had attracted the focus of the entire confederation before it had started. Everyone guessed as to who would take home the title of champion, but none of them were certain of their predictions.
Affected by the elites' enthusiasm, the Templar had also unprecedentedly decided to send four of their disciples to the game. These disciples were carefully chosen among those so-called "Inner Court Disciples". They were the disciples deemed worthy to stay at the court, waiting to be groomed into future Templar after their training had completed,
Everyone knew about the Inner Court Disciples, and the fact that only a very few of the disciples would eventually make their way into the inner court. Therefore, although people practically knew nothing about these four combatants from the inner court, they believed in their strength unequivocally.
All the elite figures welcomed the four disciples with joy. They knew that without Rilangalos, there wouldn't be a General Li Feng, and therefore, a stronger opponent meant a stronger self.
Ma Dutian's lips curled into a smile as he read the news about the tournament.
"What's making you so jolly?" Wu Xin asked her gleeful husband curiously. Her husband had been troubled by an unresolved technical difficulty of the new battery technology. He had hoped to solve the technical problem at the science conference in Aurora City. However, the conference was fruitless due to the influence from the Li.
"This kid is ballsy! Look what he had done!" Ma Dutian extended his arm and a projection of the new paper unfurled in front of his wife.
Wu Xin glanced over the new paper and found out that her husband was referring to Wang Tong, "You do like this boy a lot! I want to make it clear, if he fails to prove his competency, I would never talk to him, much less letting him go near our daughter!"
"He is still young. But don't you feel anything unusual about this boy? "
"Don't distract the topic! We are talking about his strength and abilities. It means nothing even if he is the heir of the Blade Warrior. The Blade Warrior is dead." Despite her disapproving tone, Wu Xin not only believed in her husband's choice, she also could sense Ma Xiaoru's feeling toward the boy.
"It's his luck!"
"Luck?"
"That's right! Every hero needed luck. Without luck, House of Ma wouldn't be as powerful as it is today. It was luck that made him into the heir of the Blade Warrior, and it was luck again that had made him get acquainted with Xiaoru, and thereby gain a protector, me."
After Ma Dutian had confirmed Wang Tong's secret identity, he had made up his mind to protect the kid if he had to.
"Are you suspecting that he is the Einherjar Wannabe?"
"I am not just suspecting, I am very sure of it. I had told him that I would only consider him worthy of Xiaoru if he could win the title of champion at the tournament. He knew exactly what I meant, and had tried to lure Li Shiming out using Lie Jian." So far, Ma Dutian had been delighted with the results of Wang Tong's actions.
Ma Dutian had taken an interest in Wang Tong not only because he had discovered that Wang Tong was the heir of the Blade Warrior, but also because Wang Tong possessed something he really wanted.
After thorough research, Ma Dutian learned that Wang Tong was an orphan raised up by a stepfather whose only intention was to milk money from Wang Tong. After selling Wang Tong to Norton, his stepfather had sold the house and ran away, leaving Wang Tong, a 16 years old boy, to survive by himself.
"I see. Do you think the Dower's kid has also noticed anything? He had been acting strangely lately. "
"Very likely! It only makes the matter more interesting, don't you think? I say, what about being a bit nicer to the poor lad?"
"Don't even think about bringing him here before Xiaoru has fully recovered!"
"Yes, yes, my love. But what I meant was that maybe it wasn't a bad thing to let the two talk to each other from time to time. It might even be beneficial to Xiaoru's recovery." Ma Dutian's words finally stroke a chord with his wife.
Ma Dutian smiled knowingly, and watched as his wife scuttle to check on Ma Xiaoru. Although he was impressed by Wang Tong's bravery and sharp-wit, as one of the most influential men on earth, no one—including his wife— knew what his real intent was.
At the Lustre Academy on the moon, the students were shocked to see Patroclus at the gravity gym. He had started to take his training more seriously ever since he had announced to join the tournament. Many students wanted to spar with the Ivantian prince who almost never showed up in the gym. However, it would be considered uncouth in the Ivantian culture to interrupt someone's training uninvited. Therefore, Patroclus's classmates merely watched his training from a distance, and left him undisturbed.
This tournament meant a great deal to all of the heirs of the great houses. Once they had inherited the glory of the family, so did they inherit the burden.
However, all Ivantians were confident in the power of their prince, thinking that not even the Blade Warrior had stopped the rise of Ivantians, much less a few students. This tournament would be the best stage for Patroclus to show the world the power of the Ivantians.
Patroclus smiled away other people's hope for him. He had never felt happier before, and he thanked the gods every day for giving him an opportunity to fight with Einherjar Wannabe.
Inside the gravity gym, Patroclus reflected on the years that had been wasted due to the bottleneck in his cultivation. The insurgence of Einherjar Wannabe provided him an opponent strong enough to help him breach his bottleneck and change the history.
In the private gym of House of Li, Li Shiming also started his preparation for the tournament. The competitive character of House of Li decreed that it would not accept failure. If Li Shiming wanted to push the influence of House of Li to a new height, he knew that he had to win the hearts of the masses by winning the title of champion.
Inside the gym, Li Shiming collapsed on the ground, and towering in front of him stood his father, Einherjar Li Zhidao.
Holding a cold expression on his face, Li Zhidao bawled out, "Get up!"
Wham!
The Einherjar kicked his son in the side.
"Get up!"
Another kick landed on Li Shiming's body.
"GET UP!"
Only echo answered the Einherjar's infuriated voice.
"He has come, but you are far from being prepared."
Li Zhedao turned on his heel and left the room, leaving Li Shiming crawling on the ground in agonizing pain.
To achieve great deeds, one must be ruthless.
Chapter 292: It's a Trap!
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
On Mars, Lie Jian was cultivating the Tactics of the Blaze with the unique method that had been passed down for generations.
He sat inside a giant cauldron that had turned red hot as it was engulfed by the soul energy from ten other cultivators surrounding the cauldron.
Lie Jian's face was contorted as he endured the unbearable heat. He couldn't forgive himself for the slip up that had caused him to lose his balance while fighting Einherjar Wannabe. The humiliation made him understand that he was still too weak to compete against either him or Li Shiming.
Only more painful cultivation could make him stronger and redeem his lost pride.
The average people always seemed to be jealous of the great houses' display of strength, but forgot to look into the excruciating process that the members of the great houses would have to endure to maintain the appearance. The members of the great houses valued the honor of the family more than their own lives.
A painful howling came out of the cauldron, but the ten red robed trainers didn't stop their flames.
In the fire, a new warrior would be reborn.
On the tallest mountain peak of Mars was set the tallest building on Mars— the Tower of the Divine Master—whose height was forbidden to be surpassed.
Michaux Odin sat quietly by himself while cultivating the tactics that required the most extreme form of asceticism. He was not allowed to drink, eat, or move his limbs while sitting for days on end. To the members of the sect, Michaux was communicating with the divines. However, to a regular person, it was a form of torture.
Michaux's face was eerily calm and devoid of any sign of life.
The internet had quieted down a lot after all the elite warriors had announced their decision to join the tournament. There was no point in arguing the outcome of the fight, since the tournament will start pretty soon. No one doubted that these elites would be able to make their way to the finals. The participation of the elite fighters did not deter the average student's motivations; instead, it made the students more determined to perform the best they could during the tournament. Therefore, everyone in Ayrlarng trained with greater intensity, as no one would like to fail on that legendary stage.
Wang Tong enjoyed watching the scene of intense training in the gym. Although, after having endured the practice in the crystal space, he could no longer take any training in the real world too seriously.
However, Wang Tong knew that he couldn't lower his guard, since winning a duel was no less difficult than winning a real-life battle, as certain moves were prohibited, and there were no environmental elements to take advantage of.
Unlike Wang Tong, who was confident in his power, Zhou Sisi was anxious for him. She noticed that Wang Tong had no time to spend on METAL training, since he had the classes during the day and had to partake in the fleet combat training in the afternoon all the way till evening.
Everyone else was focusing on their METAL training since that was the meat of the tournament. However, Wong Tong seemed to fail to see what was really important, and spent most of his time training with Flash and Bisu.
No time to train? Wrong! Wang Tong had more than enough time.
Since he had already mastered the method of entering the crystal space, he could spend time training in the crystal space. Not only time flew much slower in the crystal space, but Wang Tong could also change its gravity at will.
Five hours of training was equivalent to one hour of time in real life. So, Wang Tong had more than enough to spend on his METAL training.
Somewhere on earth…
"Young master, we seemed to have attracted too much attention this time. Shall we cool the situation down a little bit?"
"Hehe, No. We need to have patience. It is normal for an extraordinary person to do extraordinary things. "
"We only have got one shot at this, and we risk blowing our cover. Don't you think it was a bit too early to reveal....and you had just started your cultivation."
"It's not up to us. The moment he inherited the Blade Warrior's power, the situation had already been out of our hands."
"Young master, our life is a little bit... destitute. Would you like me to change that for you?"
"Hardship makes one stronger. I am fine."
…
"One more fight!" Hu Yangxuan was infuriated by the increasing gap in power between him and Wang Tong.
Cao Yi grinned wryly after seeing the combat strategy that he had devised for Hu Yangxuan crumble under Wang Tong attacks. Cao Yi was also caught off guard by Wang Tong's huge improvement that appeared so suddenly.
Wang Tong had spent most of his time in fleet combat, and had barely any time to spare on METAL combat. Yet, his skills and power were greatly improved. No matter how aggressive Hu Yangxuan's attacks were, Wang Tong countered it with ease.
Li Ruoer applauded Wang Tong's display of skills. She was told by Wang Tong to not visit the S club's training room, by masking his sparring as a private event, but she came anyway.
Wang Tong's bigger problem was the fact that Li Ruoer had joined the S club and become one of the official members. Due to her influence and the special background as a visiting student, Wand Tong found a lack of legitimate reasons to refuse her applications.
"Wang Tong, when are we going to fight like that?" Li Ruoer smiled and then asked.
Wang Tong's mind raced at the question. He thought that it could be an excellent opportunity to teach her a lesson before she got too confident and caused him more trouble. Also, Wang Tong was very interested in getting to know the power of her Tactics of the Enchantress.
"It's time for fleet combat. Perhaps we could do it on another day, eh?" Wang Tong asked as he put a smile on his face. He was determined to do away with his problems this time once for all.
Li Ruoer was surprised how quickly Wang Tong had agreed to her request, since she didn't expect him to do so. Li Ruoer was slightly flustered at the fact that Wang Tong had always acted against her expectation.
Li Ruoer nodded and then said, "You can pick the time." She had been observing Wang Tong for a really long time, and all signs had pointed to the same conclusion: Wang Tong had been hiding his real power. Therefore, Li Ruoer was not too confident about her fight with Wang Tong.
Watching Wang Tong swaggering off the arena, Li Ruoer felt a sense of regret for accepting the fight. She reckoned that her recent breakthrough in her soul energy had somehow made her irrational.
Porten had been busy as well. To make him look less desperate, he had decided to leave his love interest along for a few days, and instead, he focused on investigating the real identity of Einherjar Wannabe. He wagered that it was not a coincident that everyone that had acquainted the mysterious fighter had decided to join the tournament.
Porten had always despised these members of the Great Houses, as he considered them simple-minded brutes. He believed that in this post-modern society, wits and cunning would trump brute force. The success of General Li Feng was only an isolated case during a time when the human race was faced with extinction.
Nevertheless, he conceded that Li Shiming was the only one among his great house counterparts who was smart enough to use his brain. However, Porten had outsmarted him and turned Li Shiming into one of his pawns. The thought of using other people to his advantage made a smug look appear on Porten's face.
The list of names had been reduced to thirty. Soon, he would learn the true identity of Einherjar Wannabe.
He had made a list based on the fact that Einherjar Wannabe had disappeared during the period of the Confederation's Norton campaign. Once Porten located the mysterious fighter, he would try to recruit his talent. However, in the case of failing his recruiting attempt, Porten conceded that he would have to do away with the fighter before anyone else found him.
Porten was convinced that Einherjar Wannabe was a student from one of the S-class academies, with a prestigious family background. Therefore, Wang Tong's name was quickly dropped from the list.
There were five who were under Porten's radar, all of them from families that owned business in the information warfare industry, and therefore, had the capability of blocking off any tracing signals.
The feet combat skills in Ayrlarng had quickly become famous among other academies. Representing the highest level of achievement in feet battle at Bernabeu, Cao Yi, and Best were also sent to Ayrlarng by Martyrus to further their training.
Flash, Bisu, Best, Karl, Kal and Wang Tong had formed an all-star training group. They had formulated specific training routines, each aimed towards one of their needs.
It was apparent that Capth had a more detailed and advanced training method than the other two academies, since it focused on the all aspects of fleet combat, such as physical conditioning, micro control, as well as soul energy manipulations.
Chapter 293: Fully Recovered
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
It was hard for anyone to deny the talent of Wang Tong, since he had caught up with his friends in a very short period.
Once Wang Tong got going, there was really nothing that could stop him. As he continued his improvement, he knew that he was about to break through a bottleneck.
Flash had also felt the vast improvements in Wang Tong's performance, and therefore suggested to have a final fight with him. The visiting students were about to return to Capth soon to prepare for the upcoming tournament. Despite the fact that Kal and Karl were still trying to best each other, Flash felt that they had reached their goal of the visit.
News about the final fight had spread like wildfire; Everyone was excited about the fight, as everyone thought that the competition would be exciting enough, as long as each opponent displayed just eighty percent of their skills.
At the beginning of the first round of the match, the audiences saw both contestants use the Art of Iron Wall as their starting formation. It was a formation that was well known for its wretchedness, as it would ruthlessly rattle the attacker's confidence until it crumbled.
Both contestants had focused heavily on their defense. The defense focused strategy had changed quite a lot ever since Wang Tong had first invented it. Everyone marveled at Flash's perfect macro management that was complemented by his flawless micro controls. He was able to make quick and accurate predictions about his opponent's moves based on the current status of the battle, and make effective adjustments based on his predictions.
The defense was the ultimate strategy, since once the attacker got frustrated with failure, he would eventually slip up and make a mistake. Meanwhile, the defender would be able to continually adjust his fleet position until they were at the most advantageous position to strike a blow at enemy ships. This strategy was the essence of the insights Flash had gained during his stay in Ayrlarng.
Wang Tong's lightning micromanagement had also allowed him to hold his ground firmly. There was no apparent winner after a few bouts of harassment and skirmishes.
However, despite the fact that Flash seemed to have gained a slight advantage regarding the number of fleets, people who knew the two fighters well started to feel worried for Flash. They knew that Wang Tong possessed the incredible ability in micro control, and despite Flash's better fleet composition and ship stats, micro control would become the determining factor at the later stage of the battle.
Lo and behold, Wang Tong finally decimated Flash's entire fleet and won the battle by relying on his unmatched skill in micro control.
Seeing that Wang Tong had fully recovered his full power, the students from Capth conceded that they would never cross path with Wang Tong during the finals of the tournament.
The only person that might be able to rival Wang Tong's micro skill was Bisu. However, Bisu could not accurately read opponent's motivations, so it was not likely that he would be able to survive until the later stage of the battle. Certain talents were innate and unteachable. For example, even if both Bisu and Wang Tong observed the same battle formations, their interpretation would be drastically different, which would then lead them to choose drastically different actions.
All aspects of the battle were difficult to improve when the fleet commander had reached a high level. However, the most difficult of all was the ability to make the right decision.
The members of the S clubs were shocked after the first match was over. The micro control skills they had just witnessed were the best of what they had seen. Despite his defeat, Flash's incredible skills had given the members of the S club a chance to see the real power of Wang Tong. Although Wang Tong had his own fighting style, the Confederation never named his style after him, since they understood that to achieve Wang Tong's fighting style required near perfect judgment, which was almost impossible to achieve. So, they found it was pointless to name anything that could not be repeated.
As a matter of fact, Wang Tong's fighting style was the most effective when deployed in the later stage of the battle. Despite its huge draw on the user's soul energy, it was the best way to secure a victory and crush the opponent's confidence.
Zhou Sisi and Cao Yi were both observing the battle quietly. They could tell that even after spending a considerable amount of mind power and soul energy, Wang Tong didn't seem to be tired. On the other hand, Flash appeared to be exhausted after the fierce battle.
Both Zhou Sisi and Cao Yi came to the same conclusion that Wang Tong's physical condition and soul energy were unparalleled.
With a brief rest, the two fighters started the second round. Wang Tong's starting formation had caught everyone off guard; it was the Art of the Soaring Heaven.
Wang Tong wanted to test his ability to combine the defense and offense, since he knew that when faced with the most potent fighters from outside the earth, defense might not be a wise option. So, he decided to sharpen his offensive skills as well.
The Art of Soaring Haven had gained huge popularity over the time largely due to its effectiveness. However, the entire plan of attack was hinged on the fact that the commander was able to elude his moves from his opponent. After all, once enemy scouts discovered the main fleet's position during the early stage of the battle, the defenseless fleet would be met with a catastrophic defeat.
Everyone was shocked by Wang Tong's choice as they thought the Art of Souring Heaven would be extremely risky to use against Flash, who had an acute sense of enemy's intentions.
The audiences soon realized that their worry was not unfounded, and they watched as Wang Tong's forces were discovered and crushed by Flash in an instant. Flash thereby won the second round and set the score to 1 to 1.
No one paid much attention to the scoreboard since it was just practice, and both fighters were there to learn. Flash furrowed his brow as he reflected on the last fight. Despite his victory, he conceded that the Art of the Soaring Heaven was much more potent than he had thought. Flash had once considered adopting the Art of Soaring Heaven, but eventually gave up due to its almost impossible requirements on the commander's AMP micro control abilities.
Flash reckoned that if Wang Tong would able to combine the two fighting styles, he might make the tournament even more entertaining to watch.
During the third round, Wang Tong repeated his last strategy and used the Art of Soaring Heaven as the opening formation. However, he was more careful in concealing his forces this time. After a few rounds of harassment and skirmish, both fleets broke their initial formations and forced the two commanders to deploy incredible skills in improvising plans on the spot under a chaotic situation. After a few minutes, seeing no one was gaining an edge as the battle turned into a stalemate, the two commanders ended the battle with a draw.
The three rounds of competition lasted over two hours, and both participants felt that not only they had a great time, but they had also learned a great deal from each other.
Flash was aware that Wang Tong was trying out new fighting strategies during the match. He conceded that Wang Tong had a more creative mind than him, since all he had done was improve upon others' techniques, but Wang Tong had continuously invented new ones. It was not easy to reinvent a new fighting style, since it required a perfect sense of timing in terms of when to attack or defend. Any smallest changes to the opening formation would make the entire strategy ineffective.
The two students looked at each other, and for a second, they both thought they were looking into a mirror. They shook hands cordially. "Wang Tong, I will see you at the tournament!"
"You bet! I look forward to fighting alongside with you!"
The two smiled at each other knowingly. They knew that they had both become the strongest fleet commander among their circle of friends. However, they both conceded that there would be much stronger opponents waiting for them at the tournament.
The audiences were pleased to have recorded their fleet battle. The recording would serve as their study material for a while before they fully grasped the strategies that had been deployed. The other members of the S club had since given up the hope of surpassing the two; they only wanted to improve their own abilities.
Wang Tong checked his skynet and noticed that Li Ruoer had been sending him messages persistently. She asked Wang Tong out for dinner together before the promised duel. Wang Tong checked the clock and realized that he had ample time for a dinner, so he replied and confirmed Li Ruoer's request.
"Is everything alright?" Zhou Sisi asked.
"Yea. She asked me out for dinner. If she was really up to something, it's better to deal with it sooner than later. Plus, she is paying." Wang Tong cracked a smile.
"Don't lower your guards. Remember that the tournament is coming up, and you can't afford to have anything bad happen to you right now. I know you would do well in the tournament, so don't let her stop you." Zhou Sisi was confident that Wang Tong would be victorious at the tournament.
"Thank you! You have worked hard as well, so I believe that you would do as well as me."
"You think too much of me." Zhou Sisi's face lit up with glee. "But, as long as you and your elite friends are not my opponents, I should be able to handle myself."
"I am sure you would!" Wang Tong patted on Zhou Sisi's shoulder. The two's relationship had deepened significantly over time.
With a clear goal in mind, Wang Tong had become determined in his course of actions, and was convinced that Ma Xiaoru would be fine under her parent's wings of protection.
Zhou Sisi felt a warm and fussy feeling rise inside her as she watched the disappearing image of Wang Tong. She had come to terms with being Wang Tong's friend, and was content with the way her first love had concluded. She reminded herself to focus on her study and learn from Samantha to be a confident and successful woman.
With the newfound motivation, Zhou Sisi walked back to the simulation room and started to study the recording of the fight between Wang Tong and Flash.
After arriving at his dorm, Wang Tong took a shower and spruced himself up. He was determined to put an end to whatever Li Ruoer was scheming, so that he could finally focus on his training.