Isaac didn't miss opportunities, especially not ones as obvious as this. His blade slashed towards Lukas' neck the moment he tumbled over, and the referee had to react quickly to save Lukas' life.
*Bang*
Isaac's sword clattered off the thin but firm layer of ice which covered Lukas. Immediately afterwards, the ice disappeared and the referee announced,
"Isaac Dahl wins the fight with a fatal blow!"
The crowd erupted. Nobody had expected Isaac to pull of this shocking comeback and his dark-horse victory had made him an instant fan favourite. He was also one of the only contestants to come over and interact with the crowd in a positive way, encouraging them to cheer. This also won the audience's approval.
Tens of thousands cheered Isaac on as he stepped out of the ring and headed back to his seat with a broad smile. They even began to chant his name,
"I–saac! I–saac! I–saac! I–saac!"
Isaac heard the chants and waved to the crowd. Having a good public opinion should benefit his next plans.
He walked back to his seat, waving to the audience along the way. When he sat down, he began meticulously applying cream to his injuries.
Meanwhile, Lukas was still lying on the stage in a daze; he hadn't even got up yet.
'I'm a genius! I'm a 1st class talent who reached Rank 2 in under 3 months. I'm the star of a generation! What just happened? I can't have lost, surely. No! He must've cheated! He must've used some strange method to make my Qi run out faster! Yes, yes, that's right! I have Rank 2 Qi. It wouldn't run out so quickly when I was only using Rank 1 Anima!'
Lukas suddenly stirred into life. He picked himself up and sprinted over to the referee to complain vehemently.
Back in the stands, Isaac chuckled to himself. Of course he hadn't cheated – how could he, under the watchful eyes of the Rank 3 referee?! Even if the referee didn't spot something, there was still the Rank 4 elder in her private box at the top of the stadium.
Isaac hadn't cheated, he had just recognised a simple truth: Lukas' strongest point was also his weakest.
Reaching Rank 2 had given Lukas formidable strength, but it had also reset his cultivation. That was to say, his Qi Core had gone from being 100% full of Rank 1 Qi to being 0.1% full of Rank 2 Qi after his breakthrough, and he would have to work his way up again.
Isaac knew that, even with his 1st class talent, Lukas must've taken more than 2 months to reach Rank 2; he should've broken through recently. That would only give him a short time to strengthen his Qi Core and increase the amount of Qi it could hold. By Isaac's estimations, Lukas' Qi Core should be about 5% full if he continuously cultivated with basic Qi Pills. Whatever he did, it absolutely shouldn't exceed 10% full – this was also due to the significantly slower cultivation speed at Rank 2.
Isaac had already thought about this! He had planned to exhaust Lukas' Qi from the beginning! After all, even if they were Rank 1 Anima, he had forced Lukas to use them continuously and without restraint. Even if it was Rank 2 Qi, this heavy usage would consume a few percent after 2 minutes. Unfortunately for Lukas, 'a few percent' was everything he had! In comparison, the first 2 minutes of fighting had cost Isaac nearly 30%! And he didn't even use his Anima as often as Lukas!
In the end, though, everything had worked out. The referee dismissed Lukas' absurd claims and harshly banished him from the stadium. A mixture of jeers and sympathetic shouts could be heard as Lukas walked away. As he walked, his eyes never left Isaac. He was staring at him ferociously.
Isaac didn't care. His gaze turned towards the ring, where the next battle was just about to begin. Erik Baldur vs Nora Hoen! Erik was widely tipped to win, but everyone had just witnessed Isaac's surprise victory – the crowd wondered whether Nora could pull off an upset too.
The pair stood face-to-face in the ring as the referee announced,
"On your marks. Begin!"
Erik sprinted forwards, while Nora closed her eyes momentarily. When she opened them, Erik flinched and jolted in pain. Nora's Anima had created a mental shockwave which directly attacked his will; he had no way to dodge or block.
However, he endured the attack and kept rushing forwards. A steady tide of attacks washed over him as Nora activated her Anima repeatedly. Erik slowed down slightly and his mouth twisted into a grimace. His will was suffering significant damage and his movements were becoming sluggish. His consciousness slowly became hazy...
But he had a remarkably strong will! He pushed onwards, unwilling and unable to be stopped.
Nora showed slight surprise when she saw this. A faint azure glow, about 2 inches thick, covered her body. Meanwhile, purple metal gauntlets appeared on Erik's fists. They were inlaid with gold decorations, looking regal and powerful.
Both gauntlets crashed towards Nora. One aimed for her face, while the other struck towards her torso. Nora dodged backwards but was still clipped along the torso. Although it was just a glancing blow, the astonishing force made her wince slightly.
Nora continued to activate her Anima and attack Erik's will, but he struck forwards regardless. He was relentless in his attacks, pummelling the blue aura which protected Nora.
Soon, the aura began to flicker and dim. In fact, she was fortunate the Soft Aura Veil Anima specialised in dealing with blunt force attacks, otherwise it wouldn't have lasted until now.
While she was on the brink, so was Erik. Beads of sweat rolled down his furrowed brows, and his face had warped into a horrifying scowl. The attacks to his will were taking their toll, and he was in an immense amount of pain.
His movements slowed and his attacks grew weaker. Just as if it looked like he was falling into a disadvantage...
*Bang*
A sudden uppercut struck! It was not at all sluggish or weak – it was filled with absolute power!
This rapid change of pace surprised Nora. She didn't react it time and the blow caught her square on the chin. The blue light dimmed, flickered intensely, then disappeared entirely as she was lifted off her feet and flung backwards.
She crashed down outside the ring, unconscious. The referee immediately went to check on her.
Snowflakes began to sprinkle down over her body as the referee activated a healing Anima, but she still didn't wake up. Even after a minute of continuous healing, she still didn't move. The referee tentatively extended a hand towards her wrist. It was cold! There was no pulse!
The referee recoiled with a look of shock and horror on his face. The loss of life didn't bother him – what mattered was the impending loss of his job! He'd failed his duty to protect the contestants. Erik's sudden attack had even come as a surprise to him.
When the crowd saw the referee give up and step away, they were shocked. They quickly realised Nora had died, and a great commotion rose up: this had not happened in the newcomers' tournament for many, many years. After all, these were Rank 3 referees with superior reflexes and battle talent. They should be able to read fatal attacks and block them accordingly!
Of course, this referee had shown a severe lapse in his judgement, and most of the audience mocked him for it.
The referee seemed to shrink under these criticisms and showed an expression like a wilted flower. Then, without warning, all the jeers and chants ceased. The referee looked around in surprise but still didn't notice the elder floating overhead until she spoke,
"That was truly an unfortunate ending to the duel – referee Einar Magnússon will be relieved of his position immediately and his punishments shall be decided by the disciplinary hall."
The elder's tone was grave at first but quickly brightened,
"However, we all walk upon the Blood Path: we are more intimately familiar with death than anyone else. Therefore this duel is not a true tragedy, but instead an example of survival of the fittest. The weak die while the strong succeed; that is the moral of our path! It should not discourage us: it should motivate us to drive forwards, so that we are not the weak. It should motivate us to become strong, so we are not the ones who fall in battle! I truly look forwards to the finals tomorrow... whoever will fall and whoever will stand, I look forwards to your performance Isaac Dahl and Erik Baldur."
The elder cast a glance at Isaac in the stands, then turned her gaze to Erik who was at the side of the stage. While her expression was calm, she was rather angry in her heart,
'I tried to put a positive spin on it, but we actually just lost a promising talent! What an incompetent referee – this will reflect badly on me as well, since I'm overseeing this year's tournament!'
These thoughts remained deeply concealed as she activated her Anima to make her float up and away.
*************************
The next day, a heavy air of anticipation covered the entire sect. The newcomers' tournament finals! Dueling tournaments were a cultivator's equivalent of the sports tournaments mortals sometimes held. The bi-annual newcomers' tournament was something like a world cup, but with one key difference: almost all cultivators were interested in fighting! It wasn't like sports which only appealed to certain groups of people, so everybody who could afford a ticket was pouring into the stadium for this major event. Many people even turned up hours early to enjoy the atmosphere.
Isaac was not one of them. Despite being one of today's main characters, he was barely on time. After all, he had various preparations and warm-up routines to go through before he arrived.
Erik was the same; he turned up only moments after Isaac. The two exchanged a calm glance but they both sensed the determination in their opponent's eyes.
Soon, the official at his announcer's table called out,
"Isaac Dahl and Erik Baldur, please come down to the stage. We're about to begin the final!"