A pitch-black shadow swiftly extended from Thomson's feet toward Farms.
Seeing this, Farms instinctively stepped back, controlling the mist to condense around Thomson.
Just as the water prison was about to form, Thomson smirked and suddenly vanished from his spot!
Farms wasn't surprised by this.
Shadow magic was always mysterious and unpredictable, with an elusive presence. He didn't expect to win, but even if he lost, he had to force as many of the opponent's hidden moves as possible!
"Lost in thought, are we?"
Thomson's voice came from behind him. Without a moment's hesitation, Farms commanded a wave to surge toward his rear, but as expected, it missed again!
After two failed attacks, Farms felt a tinge of anxiety, but there was nothing he could do.
Water mages were like this—until they reached master-tier, their control over water elements lacked the precision needed for fine manipulation. Their large-scale, sweeping attacks were like those of a clumsy titan, easily toyed with by the elusive shadow magic.
To make matters worse, Farms had severe aggression issues.
"Is that all you can do—dodge and evade? Are you planning to drain my mana and force me to surrender?
Attack me! Show me your strength! Stop hiding like a rat in the gutter!"
At these words, the smile on Thomson's face froze.
"What did you call me...?"
"A rat in the gutter..."
Farms didn't get to finish his sentence before he felt a sudden sharp pain in his throat, rendering him speechless. He then realized Thomson had slit his throat!
Although the wound hadn't severed any arteries, the blood flooding his windpipe made Farms cough uncontrollably, his face paling as he spat out more blood!
Seeing this, Owen's expression darkened immediately.
Thomson was clearly trying to kill Farms!
By slitting his throat, Farms wouldn't be able to concede. Trapped in the arena, Thomson could slowly torture him to death!
"Enough! We concede this round!"
"A concession from an outsider doesn't count. Either he jumps off the arena himself or verbally admits defeat. Who do you think you are?"
"Farms, as your leader, I order you to leave the arena now. Don't push yourself!"
"Farms, you're already stronger than any of us. Just surrender!"
Andrew was practically jumping in frustration, but he knew Farms' stubborn nature too well. The more he was pressured, the less likely he was to back down.
If this continued, he'd either choke on his own blood or be tortured to death by Thomson!
"Farms, please come down. Don't die here, okay?"
"G-Glena."
Farms spat out more blood, his expression conflicted as he looked at Glena. After a long silence, just before Thomson's next attack, he transformed into mist and left the arena.
At that moment, the floating light orb announced the match's result.
"Winner, Thomson."
As soon as Farms stepped down, Owen cast holy magic to heal his wounds. After finally stopping the bleeding, Farms knelt on the ground, panting heavily, his voice full of self-reproach.
"I'm sorry, Chief... I lost."
"You did great. You won one match and lightened my load, and that's enough. Leave the rest to me."
Owen exhaled deeply, giving Farms a heavy pat on the shoulder before standing up and heading toward the arena.
Seeing this, Andrew grabbed Owen's sleeve, his tone serious, "Chief, isn't it too early to step in...?"
"It's fine. I'm done with all the formalities. Leave it to me."
Owen smiled and shook his head, gently freeing himself from Andrew's grip, then walked calmly onto the platform.
"I hope you're stronger than that last loser!"
"Who are you calling a loser, little rat?"
"Fuck you!"
The word "rat" clearly struck a nerve with Thomson. His expression darkened as he instantly dissolved into a shadow, attacking Owen from the darkness!
But in the next second!
"Stop hiding and come out!"
[Blood Boil!]
Owen stomped down hard, causing the entire platform to tremble. Thomson felt his mana surge uncontrollably, and his blood began to boil, scorching his skin and veins. Forced to emerge from the shadows, his face twisted in pain.
"Blood... blood magic!"
"Surprised? You overestimated yourself. Demotion magic? I can do that too."
With that, Owen disappeared into the shadows right before Thomson's eyes, reappearing from his shadow, firmly grasping Thomson's neck!
"Try hiding in the shadows again, little rat. Let's see if I can drag you out once more."
Violent mana surged in Owen's hand. Although Thomson hadn't seen Owen chant, the mana waves he emanated were almost on par with master-tier magic!
Meeting Owen's cold gaze, Thomson felt as if he had fallen into an icy abyss!
"I-I surrender!"
"Ha... A rat is just a rat. Can't even last a minute, pathetic."
Owen sneered, casually tossing Thomson off the platform, then turned to face the Ascended Dimension's team.
"Next!"
"He's... so strong."
Looking at Owen's silhouette on the platform, Emily felt her heart flutter.
Perhaps she had always looked at Owen through a biased lens, never truly understanding his strength. But since entering the Tower, Owen's repeated displays of power stirred something in her heart.
If Emily felt that way, then Elaine was even more enthralled. She stared at Owen with wide, starry eyes, a thin line of drool dripping from the corner of her mouth.
"Sluurp... My man is so handsome!"
"Ugh, shameless!"
"Totally shameless!"
"Not at all!"
As the focus shifted from the platform to a childish argument, Andrew rubbed his temples in exasperation.
"Quiet down, all of you. Don't distract the Chief."
After all, this would be the ninth consecutive match.
It would be a lie to say there was no pressure, especially since the next opponent was a lively girl who was clearly also a diamond-tier level 9 prodigy.
Her strength was on par with Owen's, so the outcome was far from certain!
"What's with the arrogance? You're just a lowborn from the Lost Dimension. I'll take you on!"
As her voice rang out, a sharp-tongued girl stepped onto the platform, her eyes full of disdain and mockery toward Owen as she said coolly, "Demotion magic? That won't work on me!"
"You talk too much."
[Hexfiend!]
The summoning circle dimmed as a shadowy figure almost identical in build to Owen appeared. Owen's self-created master-tier magic, the spell machine gun, was back!
No chanting, no casting delay. As long as there was an endless supply of mana, it would never tire!
Almost simultaneously, over ten high-level spells of the four elements erupted from Owen's magic circle, causing the girl's face to suddenly tense!
"How... how is this possible!"
First, holy magic, then demotion, and now four-element magic!
What kind of monster was this man!
But she had already boasted loudly. If she lost now, wouldn't that prove she was inferior to even a lowborn?
With this in mind, the girl clasped her hands together, summoning four portals behind her.
[Summoning: Quadra-Elemental Spirits]
As her words fell, four pure elemental spirits emerged from the portals, floating around her.
A pure fire spirit burning brightly, a gentle water spirit flowing smoothly, a solid earth spirit, and a lively wind spirit.
It was an impressive technique, but unfortunately, she was up against Owen.
In terms of versatility, Owen had never lost!
Even his beautiful teacher couldn't match Owen's breadth of magical knowledge; she only surpassed him in depth.
In terms of the sheer variety of magic he mastered, Owen claimed second, and no one dared claim first!
[Quadra-Elemental Burst]
With a casual wave of his hand, the four basic elements began to converge behind Owen at a terrifying speed, even affecting the four spirits the girl had summoned!
The four elements continued to gather, clash, and blend together, forming a harmonious, peaceful symphony!
Until Owen intervened, tearing the music apart with a violent burst, causing the four elements to riot instantly!