"The master plays by his own rules," Kenneth said. "And those who humiliate him will receive no mercy."
Jacob scowled at Alex. "Clearly you have a death wish."
Jacob's cloud began to whirl as though it had picked up on his mood, and power pulsed from it. Then, with a flick of his wrist, he adapted its shape to a whip, which flew right at Alex.
This wasn't the first time the crowd had seen Jacob make such a move, and they were sure Alex would be torn to pieces by it. Some of them covered their eyes, unable to watch.
"Jacob is angry," Kenneth said, almost vibrating with excitement. He was sure Alex wouldn't be able to evade this attack, and he was looking forward to watching his downfall.
Marie was speaking into her phone, but when she hung up, she saw Alex move, and she yelled out a warning to Jacob. "Master, be careful! He's invoking the power of the Moon Palace!"
"What?" Jacob was stunned, sure he must have misheard her.
Alex stepped forward, raised his hand, gently clenched it into a fist, and then infused it with his inner power. A white light glowed from within his fist, sending out bursts of power.
A beam of light struck Jacob's cloud, causing it to burst apart, forming several smaller clouds which hovered menacingly above Jacob's head.
"No! That's not possible!" Jacob exclaimed, losing his cool. He tipped his head back to stare at the clouds, and then he raised his arms, sending out power. The clouds scattered and dissipated, but before he could even sigh with relief, a bolt of power shot toward him, hitting him so hard he was nearly knocked off his feet.
He gathered his inner power, condensing it into a shield thick enough to stop Alex's attack. Despite having used such a technique before, on this occasion, he couldn't maintain it, and the blow landed, causing him to stagger. Unable to withstand it, he retreated, trying to save himself.
The crowd gasped at the sight of Jacob giving way.
He continued to step back, but no matter how fast he moved, the power was even faster, refusing to allow him to escape.
As everyone watched, the bolt of power struck Jacob's face, pushing him back, and throwing him through the door to land sprawled in a heap.
The entire arena was silent, and everyone stood still, looking around at each other in a daze.
Kenneth's jaw dropped, unable to believe what had happened, and Hugo stared at the door, not knowing what to do.
Jacob staggered back through the door and fell to the ground, gaping at Alex in horror.
Alex grinned at him. "Did you think you were the only master here?"
All eyes were on Alex as the onlookers tried to make sense of it all. A master was invincible, and nobody could stand against one without using weapons. Except, a master could be defeated by another master.
Everyone started speaking at once, shocked to realize they were looking at a young master from the Moon Palace. No one could believe such a young man had achieved the level of master, but it was undeniable.
Some of them wondered if this was the same Alex whose exploits had been whispered about for some time, but they had never seen his face before now.
Jacob climbed slowly to his feet, flushing with anger and humiliation at being defeated by Alex in front of so many people.
"You don't seem convinced yet," Alex said, smirking at him. "So I guess we'll have to keep fighting."
With that, Alex rushed forward, closing the distance between them in record time. He raised his fist, and then punched out at Jacob, using a great deal of force.
Jacob was prepared, and he summoned his inner power, once again forming a cloud. Then he adjusted it, turning it into the shape of a sword, and held it up to block Alex's attack.
The opposing powers collided, and Jacob took a few steps backward.
That was a lot of power, he thought, shaken by the impact and trying to stop his hands from trembling. How did he get so strong? He might actually be a divine master!
He was stunned. Divine masters were almost unheard of, and in the last few hundred years, there had only been one such master recorded.
But he didn't have time to think about it because Alex was already approaching again.
He realized a change in plan was needed. Meeting Alex with brute force wasn't working, so he would have to be more subtle. He waved his hands, the movements swift and graceful, as he formed his inner power into silken threads which fell like rain.
Within moments, Alex was surrounded by countless threads, which continued to wind around him. Each strand was easy to break, but then it simply reformed as though it had never been broken.
"How is he going to deal with that?" someone asked, watching carefully.
Everyone's attention was focused firmly on Alex, waiting to see what he would do.
Alex smiled, and then he spread his arms wide like a bird opening its wings, snapping many of the strands.
Then he pulled out two sharp knives and slashed at the silken threads, his movements fast and furious. His hands were in constant motion as he turned, cutting through the strands.
"He's breaking free!" someone called excitedly.
Before long, countless tiny strands fluttered down, each so small that it was harmless. They floated in the breeze, getting fainter and fainter, until they simply faded away.
"What kind of martial arts was that?" Jacob muttered, scowling as he retreated once again.
His previous defeat had been shameful enough, but this confrontation had seriously knocked his confidence.
He wiped the sweat from his forehead, realizing how easily Alex could have turned those blades on him. If he hadn't stepped back, Alex might have destroyed him already.
It was clear Alex commanded an immense amount of inner power, and Jacob was no longer so sure he would win this fight. He had never seen anyone wield their power so skillfully, and he suspected Alex was capable of much more than anyone realized.
"Let's go again!" Alex called, laughing. Jacob had been holding his own against him, and that made him a worthy opponent.