TPA players in the audience seats shook their heads, feeling worried for Wang Tong's situation and even more for his intelligence. Only an irrational fool plays with fire. The Wraith III had a reputation for putting up a nasty fight and, in the past, it had spoiled many TPA players’ fun and forced them to taste defeat.
Unless the opponent had an advanced anti-stealth ability, the wearer of the Wraith III could slip underneath any fighter's senses while he delivered a lethal blow.
Unable to sense his opponent's movement, Wang Tong was struck by an unseen force, and it threw his body into the air before it thudded on the ground. Wang Tong had now tasted the power of the Wraith III.
Crazy Diamond's retaliation was a tit for tat, and it should have also ended the match with a victory that was as cheap as bok choy.
The IPA players instinctively shouted out a wave of cheers, laced with jesting laughter.
Wang Tong picked himself up before the cheers had subsided. He rubbed his chest where he was hit and muttered, "Holy cow, that hurts!" Wang Tong counted himself lucky that this was not in a real battle, in which case, this blow would have been lethal.
Disgruntled about the fact that his strike had not finished the opponent as he had expected, Crazy Diamond attempted another stealthy attack.
Sensing the impending danger, Wang Tong was a half-move ahead of his opponent and dodged out of harm's way just in time.
Wraith III users were the most unscrupulous even by IPA players' standards. Their overpowered ability was a downright bug in the system, which had filled the wearer with over-confidence. When Crazy Diamond saw that his strike had been dodged, his eyes were red with rage, and he attacked again, only to be dodged once more.
Inside the arena, a comical show was on display: Wang Tong fumbled about to avoid the attacks of an unseen enemy as he lurched across the field as if he was mentally unsound.
In the real world, no one could conceal their presence to the degree that the Wraith III did in the game. This METAL suit was made entirely for the sake of entertainment but was at the expense of the TPA players' agony. The dice had been loaded from the beginning of the game.
Every strike had been a near miss for Wang Tong. He could only detect his opponent's movement through the infinitesimally small ripples in the air, which were stirred up by Crazy Diamond's brash blows.
Although these ripples felt like loud and definite warnings, the ensuing attack was so swift that it allowed almost no time for Wang Tong to react.
"Calm down, I must be calm," Wang Tong reminded himself.
Wang Tong attempted to detect his opponent's move using his soul energy, but that had been proven ineffectual. With only the air ripple as his clue, Crazy Diamond's movements were elusive and unpredictable and were always ahead of Wang Tong's.
Despite being trapped in a fairly dire situation, Wang Tong felt hopeful. He might as well figure out an effective countermeasure now, rather than letting it frustrate him in the sleepless nights after the defeat.
"Konnng!"
After a few short bursts of airwaves immediately the same number of blows ensued, each deadlier than the last. With his luck spent, Wang Tong was eventually hit by one of the strikes. Crimson blood gushed out from Wang Tong's right arm that he had lifted to protect his body. Wang Tong immediately countered the assault with a left-hand punch, but the enemy had already moved away.
Pain alerted Wang Tong's mind lighting up a fire in his eyes. A blurred outline of a husky figure appeared out of thin air, and it presented itself in front of Wang Tong.
Crazy Diamond had deduced the incredible power of Wang Tong from the fact that he had survived the fight so long by solely relying on the signals in air ripples. He should have felt satisfied at the thought of injuring such a powerful opponent, but his eyes had betrayed his real feelings.
Sadness, anguish, and indignation, these feelings could not change the wicked reality of having being born into a household that boasted its tradition of METAL fighters; he had to forfeit the honor, for reasons beyond his own grasp.
As Crazy Diamond was mired in his thoughts, his frustration overtook him, and he lashed out toward Wang Tong in fury. "Dodge this!" The sword whizzed in the air as it flew toward Wang Tong.
Crazy Diamond watched as the sword missed Wang Tong before a fist flew toward him. He retreated to safety out of instinct and was again confused about how he had missed Wang Tong.
Wang Tong waved his hand, gesturing for Crazy Diamond to try again, "It seems that you have been training hard. C’mon, you can fight better than this!"
"Buzz off, what do you know about me?"
The Wraith III and its wearer disappeared again. When the attack finally fell toward Wang Tong, he countered the attack with a kick. To the audience, it looked like Wang Tong had kicked the air, but to Crazy Diamond, the sudden counterattack disoriented him as he stumbled about to get out of harm's way. To his surprise, Wang Tong's attack never touched him. Instead, it stopped a mere inch away.
"He is going easy on me. Is he patronizing me?" Crazy Diamond thought.
"It doesn't seem like you will even need the stealth ability, why don't you play a real match with me?" Wang Tong smiled broadly. Wang Tong had felt that the METAL's ability seemed to have taken something away from Crazy Diamond's moves.
Crazy Diamond unshielded himself from the Wraith III, revealing a pale and sullen face. "Do you think I will still be a worthy opponent without my IPA METAL?"
"Yea! Come on now; let’s not waste each other's time," Wang Tong said lightly. He had sensed an unusual power in Crazy Diamond that set him apart from the rest of the IPA players. There must be more than what met the eyes.
"Alright, I will have a fair fight with you!"
The announcement had bewildered the IPA players.
"Has he gone mad?"
"An IPA player challenges a TPA player without using METAL?"
"Who does he think he is?"
"Konnng!"
Crazy Diamond charged up his virtual soul energy. Although it was merely a product of the PA system, Crazy Diamond was willing to give all he had for the opponent that had deemed him worthy.
He abandoned his sword and thrust his bare fist toward Wang Tong. The fist raced forward, ripping open the air with the sound of a roaring tiger.
Wang Tong was shocked at the wave of energy his opponent had released. He wondered why someone with such extraordinary abilities would be stuck playing in the IPA league.
"The Fist of the Racing Tiger!"
Someone in the audience let out a gasp.
General Hu Ben, the Racing Tiger, was one of the top ten generals of the Confederation. His famous coup de grace, the Fist of the Racing Tiger was considered the strongest in the world. It roared like a tiger, sending a deadly and unfaltering punch to the enemies and in most cases; it was a definitive death blow for the latter. It was said that many Zergs would flee upon hearing its distinctive roar in the distance on the battlefield.
However, just recently, news had spread throughout the confederation that General Hu Ben's son, Wang Ben, had failed "opening" his mind.
It had sounded almost preposterous to many. Wang Ben would have an over 99% success rate solely based on genes. He might not become one of the best, but passing the mind opening operation should have been taken for granted.
However, as wicked as fate could be, it had decreed Wang Ben's failure. It was not only a personal loss but also a huge loss to the Confederation.
The intangible world of the PA system had then become Wang Ben's retreat. In here, he could vent his regret and sorrow and only in here could he still use his family's fearsome techniques.
It had been viral news, even Wang Tong had learned about it.