Lind recovered from his training session while the large demon and Qing discussed the rules. This would be the first time Lind used the arena. He had observed a few duels and group battles, but they were usually for fun or due to a conflict. No one died, at least not that he knew of in the arena.
He had confidence in his control of his staff, but despite looking like a weapon, he had confirmed it was not really meant to be used at one. It was more a tool or artifact than a true weapon. It was not easily hurt during training, but now Lind would push it to its limits.
There were various aura but Lind was stunned by the World Realm aether child woman. She was clearly a warrior and his World Eyes revealed she was in the Sand Tier. It was interesting to see air, earth, and darkness flow around her so smoothly. He could almost see something in her dantian but he did not strain himself.
Lind was pushing himself hard since his recovery, but his 2 heart demons had stagnated in their recovery. Qing had told him this happens, but it was good that he had come as far as he had. She had approved of this moment as Lind had to face danger once more. They had to know if he could fight without losing himself.
The challenge came at the perfect time as it was no longer a predictable environment like the training sessions.
"Very well! We have settled on the rules." Lind noticed that the tri-elemental aether child was now pouting while her companions smiled and laughed around her. What happened? "There will be no killing. I repeat, there will be no killing."
Lind noticed it was not him being stared at but the half dozen or so demons across from him. He finally realized the 4 people were leading them but were not of the same group. He carefully scanned them and finally saw a few familiar faces. He would never forget the demons that had swept Cyntilla away without even a polite greeting.
Any goodwill Lind may have held for innocents dragged in had evaporated. He knew who these particular demons worked for. A spark of emerald appeared in his eyes but no one would notice it even with Soul Eyes.
"Further, as most of our challengers are in the 7th tier, these will be duels. It will continue until Lind Frey concedes or he runs out of challengers. Pills are forbidden. Formation plates are limited to single use items. Lastly, no weapons or armors with lethal inscriptions can be infused with Qi." The large demon, Gorn, seemed to be enjoying seeing the other demons squirm at his restrictions.
Lind noticed none of them affected him. Unless he got a lucky strike in, even with his recent breakthroughs, he could only produce ⅔ the strength of a comparable cultivator. He was now fighting cultivators at least 1 minor realm stronger than him. This would not be an easy fight normally but with these restrictions, he stood a chance.
Lind stood up and assumed his position at one side of the arena. The 8 demons were having a conference to decide their order and finally seemed to work it out. A female demon with a glaive stepped up. She was only wearing normal leather armor to Lind's Eyes, but he did assume something might be hidden given the rules.
"You have been trouble to my Lord, you will be punished for that." Her bright yellow eyes looked like they would kill if they could. Lind saw she was tier 8 in the Soul Realm and had blue fire with acid for her elements. It would be tricky if he did not know that.
Lind did not speak, his staff extended and an emerald flame flashed before disappearing inside it. He was beyond speaking to those not interested in listening to him. Qing had helped him focus, but he would not know if he truly accepted her guidance until now.
The demoness pulled out a massive broadsword. It was entwined with her blue flame but the ice was only debilitating, not lethal. Lind could see she had trouble with her acid element trying to come out as well but the technique took care of it so far.
"Begin!" The large demon started the battle and Lind felt like he was back in the Tri-Clan Tournament facing cultivators far stronger than him. Lind smiled and infused his body with much more powerful elements in combination to make his body faster and more resilient.
The sword flew easily as the demon was far stronger than a human naturally, but to Lind she seemed to stand still. She was underestimating him. She assumed he was so much weaker that she only needed 1 technique to finish him, but Lind used his agility to dive under the first swing.
It reminded him of the limbo game when he was a kid on Earth. Lind, however, had to keep moving as the demoness did not lose sight of him, she only had to avoid his stab with his staff by using the broadsword to move her out of the way.
The first exchange was simple dodges, but Lind was a 6th tier while she was an 8th. His response was far beyond their expectation. The demoness did not lose her cool and adapted. She could not increase her speed, but her natural skills should far exceed a human 2 tiers lower than her.
Lind saw the flow of Qi and adapted. His staff channeled light and fire into a flash bang. He could not spare himself entirely, but it achieved the result of disorienting his opponent who only expected lightning.
Lind did not miss this chance as his own senses were partially protected by his reinforcement. His staff whipped to her feet and sent her sprawling as he whacked the broadsword out of her hands and across the arena.
He stood over her with the staff pointed at her neck with no chance to dodge or block it as her yellow eyes finally focused back at him in rage, but unable to respond.
"Winner: Lind Frey!" Gorn called the fight but his eyes were staring at Lind in respect. Demons respect strength in all its forms, so victory was a good beginning.
No respite was given as a massive male demon hopped up on the arena with a battle axe in his hands. Lind saw it was another tier 8, near the peak of the tier. Based on his Eyes, this was the strongest of the bunch. What was important to Lind, was this was the same half of a pair of demons that had escorted Cyntilla away after the Ruins were completed.
"You should know your place, human." The charcoal eyes were cold to Lind but he did not care. He felt an elation in his heart he could not explain, but did not restrain in any way as a smile spread on his face.
"Let's see if I can find that place." The staff twirled but Lind felt resistance from what he tried to do. Irritation at the limit of assistance from the staff was kept in Lind's head, but he changed tactics within the 3 elements he was allowed.
The 2 of them charged once the battle began and Lind deflected the swings from the axe while the demon kept trying to catch Lind with a formation plate of some kind, but Lind was too fast. The time it took to infuse Qi into formation plates and doing it in battle was not easy.
Lind was not much better as this demon had shadow, metal, and blue fire to use against him. Unlike a normal cultivator, Lind could not counter these elements. He could only avoid and deflect as he pushed his body but the smile never left his face.
****
"Strange. This human seems to be enjoying this battle." Volt was sitting next to Crusher while she was pouting. She had wanted to fight a junior so badly because something piqued her interest. It was not the first time and he doubted it would be the last. Shuri was simply looking bored but Volt noticed Crusher was now focused.
"Something is wrong." Her words drew Shuri out of her boredom as the 3 of them looked more closely at the battle. Compared to anything they had done, it was child's play, but the tier 6 human was surprisingly hanging on. Normally a tier 8 should be able to toy with a tier 6, but it seemed to be a stalemate.
"The human does not seem able to do more than 3 elements at a time despite having all 6 and there is a pause between techniques." Shuri had Soul Eyes so they trusted her judgment in this matter. It was a rare enough talent, but it was thanks to that very talent that she could escape earlier in her life.
"The demon is underestimating him, but he is also restricted by the rules. Gorn will kill him if he crosses them." Volt put forth his own analysis. Axe wielders were notorious for quick and sharp killing blows with the blade or the pike if their weapon had one. Normally they were also very agile to adapt to changing situations, but this one held back.
If he gave in to his instincts, the human would die.
"You are both wrong. Look at the human's face." Crusher was unusually serious so the other 2 looked and slowly became stunned at what they saw. The demon was sweating profusely as the fight went on, but the human showed no sign of exhaustion. He was tiring out a tier 8?!
"How is this possible?" Shuri had first had experience in being the disadvantaged party, but even at her worst day there was only a number issue, not a tier issue. Volt was curious as well and looked at Crusher but she remained silent.
"The demon is overconfident and uses all his strength. Conversely, the human is minimizing his movements while conserving his Qi. He uses the 3 elements not currently reinforcing his body unless he has to switch at need." Gorn's voice made them all jump while Shuri looked again.
She nodded slowly as she now understood why the boy was pausing at times. He had to switch from internal use to channeling through his staff. It was a lethal weakness in true battle, but under these restrictions, he had the leeway to pull it off.
"His weapon limits him, but he does not rely on it to win." Crusher spoke at last and even Gorn looked at her oddly. His evaluation was rising with this human but Ryu would crush him in one move. None of them doubted that for a moment.
A sudden splash of water drew their attention back to see the tier 8 slip one leg out too far and literally fall to the ground as his legs split down the middle. While a cultivator could be very flexible, the heavily muscled demon was clearly an exception with his legs.
Both Volt and Gorn flinched as the demon in the arena howled in pain. The staff twirled until it stopped just short of a skull hit. Rage surged, but a glance at Gorn stopped the idiot from making a fatal mistake.
"Winner: Lind Frey. Continue!" Gorn did not relent as the next demon took the stage.
****
Lind was heaving heavily and using his staff to stay upright as the final demon laid out on the stone of the arena. He had been forced to use up nearly all his Qi to keep his body moving faster than his opponents. Some were simple attackers, but more of them were crafty.
The most dangerous moment had been when a peak tier 7 had used her metal and poison in combination. The elements should counter each other a bit, but she had clearly turned a weakness into a trump card. Lind had nearly succumbed to the poison laced needles she created.
"Pathetic! You call yourself proud members of the Fang Clan but cannot even defeat a tier 6 human!" Gorn's scathing words ripped into the defeated demons but they did not look resigned to just accept them.
"The restrictions held us back! We could easily kill him!" This was not a lie entirely but Gorn sneered down at them. He hopped down and stood before Lind.
"Then if I kept the restrictions and told you to fight me, could you win?" Blood drained from all their faces. None of them had even the remote thought to challenge Gorn in battle at all. His aura alone already suppressed them. "What of you, Lind Frey, would you still fight?"
The arena became silent as Lind looked carefully at Gorn. What was the demon playing at, but Lind could not figure it out. He steadied himself and then put his staff at his side, ready to attack. It was his answer.
The 3 in the stands that were with Gorn nodded in approval.
"That is how a cultivator should be. We are defying the Heavens to forge our own path. If you retreat from what you think is certain defeat, you will never reach higher realms in cultivation." Gorn patted Lind gently on the shoulder and returned to the stands. Lind nearly collapsed but barely kept himself upright. That demon was strong!
"Thank you for indulging us, Lind Frey. Crown Prince Ryu will be calling on you later." The 4 bowed and took the injured demons away. Lind stayed put as Qing quietly came up to him. The once empty stands were full of cheering students who had enjoyed the show. Their Academy had proven effective if a tier 6 could overcome tier 7 and 8 cultivators in their minds.
"Let's go home." Qing carefully helped Lind walk away as he was barely standing. If there had been one more demon, Lind would have fallen for sure.