The moment Arnold turned around, he saw the other kids, aside from Vincent and Ana, standing together, their talents fully charged and ready to be unleashed at him.
Loy Mesins, wielding his Nature Affinity talent, had crafted a 3-meter-tall hand made of thick tree branches.
Michael Archons, who had been silent all this time, clutching his spear glowing with an azure light, now stood prepared.
Franco Bullocks, one eye closed, had his rifle raised, looking through the scope, ready to fire.
Luke Collins had summoned a massive spike of earth with his Earth Affinity talent.
Dmitri Volkov, his bulging arms straining, had dug into the ground and lifted a large chunk of it.
Sara Chen clenched her steel club, glowing with a pale emerald light, while Elric Baelius had grown almost three feet taller, his form shifting further into that of a Flaming Python.
With a loud bellow, Elric gave the command that echoed through the air.
"Attack!"
Excited responses rang out at his signal.
"I've been waiting for this!"
"Go, beat the crap out of him!"
Whirlwinds formed behind Arnold as the students' combined attacks rushed towards him. His lips curled into a wide smile, excitement dancing in his eyes at the unfolding scene.
After a brief laugh, Arnold muttered, "Good, good. This is exactly what I've been waiting for. Now, let me show you the real difference between talent ranks and experience!"
"Haaa!"
With a loud grunt, Arnold's werewolf form began to bulge, his fangs extending, his eyes sharpening, until he fully transformed into a 3-meter-tall werewolf with nearly black skin.
Roar!
Letting out a bone-chilling roar, he dodged the incoming whirlwinds from behind and rushed toward Elric and the others.
Growling like a beast, Arnold balled his fist and met the giant wooden hand Loy had summoned with a deafening 'bam', shockwaves rippling through the air from the impact.
Instead of being pushed back, Arnold overpowered the massive tree-hand, forcing it backward before whipping around, kicking the large chunk of earth Dmitri had hurled at him, shattering it into pieces.
Tilting his body slightly, he caught the glowing spear thrown by Michael and hurled it into the giant earth spike Luke had summoned, causing an explosion of dust and debris that filled the air.
Franco, fully locked in with his Sharpshooter Talent, saw his moment. His Talent gave him a holographic crosshair in his vision. He squeezed the trigger of his rifle, unleashing a blinding azure energy beam that shot straight at Arnold.
With no space or time to evade, Arnold growled, his arms emanating a dark, ominous aura as he slashed at the energy beam, cutting through it with a loud 'boom' that echoed across the battlefield. The explosion cleared the whirlwinds that had been pursuing him.
Loy and the others, whose attacks had either failed or been deflected, couldn't contain their shock.
"What?!"
"Is he even human?!"
"That's impossible!"
Despite their disbelief, Elric didn't falter. He rushed forward with Sara, both determined to take down the fully transformed Alpha—Arnold Mazels.
Elric, his right arm brimming with flame energy, threw his strongest punch at Arnold, who seemed to possess limitless Origin Energy and stamina.
For the first time, an attack landed. Elric's punch connected with Arnold's chest, and the crowd, along with Elric's comrades, cheered in unison.
"Yes! A direct hit—!"
But before they could celebrate, Arnold's cold, detached voice shattered their joy.
"Is that all you've got? Pathetic."
Elric's eyes widened in disbelief. He, too, had awakened an A-rank talent, yet the gap in strength was unimaginable.
While he questioned himself, Sara's voice broke through his thoughts.
"Take this, old man!"
Appearing behind Arnold, she swung her glowing steel club with all her might.
But before the blow could connect, Arnold swatted her away like a fly with a flash of his werewolf arm.
"Ugh!"
Sara let out a groan as she tumbled across the ground before falling unconscious.
"Sara!" Elric called out in alarm, his voice filled with worry.
Seeing his childhood friend struck down so easily, rage ignited within him. The flames of his innate Flaming Python ability began to spread over his entire body.
Clenching his hands together, he gathered pure fire energy, forming a ball of flames between his palms. This was his ultimate move, one that would drain all his remaining Origin Energy. It was a risky move, one he had hoped to avoid using, as it could damage his potential.
But seeing Sara in such a state filled his mind with fury. All he wanted now was revenge.
At point-blank range, he thrust his hands forward, releasing the beam of fire energy with a shout.
"Fiery Beam!"
Boom!
A deafening explosion followed as the fiery beam engulfed Arnold, and thick smoke filled the air.
Loy, Dmitri, and the others watched anxiously. Loy, unable to control his curiosity, asked, "Did it work?"
But before anyone could answer, that familiar, prideful voice echoed through the battlefield.
"Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to defeat me."
Gasps filled the crowd as the thick smoke cleared, revealing Arnold, completely unscathed, standing behind Elric's unconscious form.
"No way… even Senior Elric's ultimate attack didn't work?!"
One of the students in the crowd couldn't believe it.
Loy and the others stared, dumbfounded, unable to comprehend the massive difference in power between themselves and Arnold, the Alpha.
As though the battle was over, an ominous purple crescent of energy suddenly flew toward Arnold. He recognized the attack immediately.
With a furious roar, his werewolf arms, now cloaked in black mist, countered with a powerful punch.
Bam!
Another attack followed, whirlwinds surging toward him. Arnold's claws tore through the whirlwinds as though they were nothing but paper, dispersing them into gentle breezes.
"He… broke a whirlwind with his bare hands?! That's impossible!"
Someone in the crowd exclaimed, their voice full of disbelief.
At that moment, Vincent's figure vanished, reappearing behind Arnold with his Duskedge Blade in hand. Activating his Origin Power Enhancement talent, he boosted his strength by 30%. Simultaneously, he unleashed his newly upgraded Flowing Origin Technique, increasing his attack power by an additional 25%.
With his blade glowing a deep purple, Vincent slashed at Arnold with his Venomstrike Lash and Duskedge Slash combination.
This time, Arnold had no chance to dodge at such close range.
Boom!
Vincent felt it—his attack had pierced through Arnold's defense.
The crowd watched in stunned silence as a deep wound appeared on Arnold's shoulder, extending down his back.
Even Dean Thorne, seated with the other guests, looked surprised.
"He managed to injure that mad dog?" Dean Thorne thought to himself.
Verno, initially bored, revealed a slight reaction, surprised that Arnold had been wounded.
"Did he let that kid hit him?" Verno mused.
Back on the stage, Arnold, bleeding from his shoulder to his back, was stunned.
"I-I got injured… again?! And by that damn kid?!" he thought, disbelief clouding his mind.
Even though he had fully transformed, unleashed his Talent, and restricted his cultivation, someone had still managed to wound him.
"Am I really being beaten by these kids?!"
With rage boiling inside him, Arnold's expression darkened.
"I won't accept this!"
Arnold's roar was followed by a burst of overwhelming pressure that flooded the entire arena, affecting both the audience and the participants on the stage.
Vincent and the others, closest to the source of the pressure, collapsed to their knees, struggling to breathe.
Instinctively, Vincent summoned his chaos energy to shield himself from the crushing force. He took several deep breaths as the protection took effect.
Arnold, noticing the ominous energy surrounding Vincent, widened his eyes in shock.
"H-How do you possess that aura?" Arnold muttered, his voice tinged with disbelief.
Dean Thorne and the other guests, equally shocked, quickly took action.
"That mad dog's lost it again! Someone stop him!" a weaker guest cried out.
Without hesitation, Dean Thorne leapt from the podium and landed on the stage. "Mister Mazels, cease this immediately!"
He released his own aura, shielding the crowd from Arnold's oppressive pressure.
But his attention quickly shifted to the dark energy surrounding Vincent.
"That aura…" Dean Thorne murmured, his voice trailing off.