Chapter 1050: Max’s evil plan
Inside the arena, the tension between the two young figures was suffocating. Max stood tall, his eyes calm, unreadable, and steady. His sword rested loosely in his hand, his red aura pulsing faintly. He looked at Zoltan without flinching. "What do you want?"
Zoltan’s lips curved into a smile, but his eyes burned with hostility. "I hate that look in your eyes," he said, his voice deceptively light. "That calm, detached stare. That uncaring coldness. The look of disdain, as though everyone else is beneath you. It irritates me more than you can imagine."
Max’s lips curled into a sneer. "Oh, that? Just admit it. You feel inferior to me, and I will understand. You do not need to search for excuses to pick a fight."
Zoltan’s smile remained fixed, but his body betrayed him. The thick cords of muscle across his frame trembled as the nerves in his body twitched with suppressed anger. His fists clenched tighter, the cracks in his facade beginning to show.
"You have quite a fast tongue, human," he said softly, though his voice carried the weight of threat. "But it will not save you."
His eyes narrowed. "I was entertained by your little battle against Aron and Bron, but it was not enough. I want more. I want you to take a move from me."
Max’s expression darkened at the arrogance in Zoltan’s tone. His grip on his sword tightened slightly, and after a long breath he gave a single nod. "Do it."
Zoltan’s grin widened into laughter, his voice echoing across the arena. "That is what I wanted to hear." He raised his fists, black energy surging violently around them like a storm. His aura twisted, distorting the air, and then he thrust his hands toward the ground.
Almost instantly, the earth beneath Max cracked and split apart. From within the shadows, black serpent-like creatures erupted forth, their bodies long and sinuous, their scales glowing faintly with demonic light. They slithered across the shattered ground with terrifying speed, their maws opening wide to reveal rows of needle-like fangs.
The serpents surged forward, their hissing cries echoing through the air, each one diving toward Max as though intent on swallowing him whole. The ground trembled under their advance, and the runes of the arena flickered faintly from the intensity of Zoltan’s technique.
Max stood at the center, his red eyes narrowing slightly, his aura still calm even as the swarm of serpents closed in around him.
’Time to test the new black flames,’ Max thought, his eyes glowing coldly as he let go of the restraints he had held until now.
Bang!
The air trembled violently as black flames erupted from his body like a raging volcano. They surged outward in an instant, expanding in all directions with devastating force. The flames swallowed the arena whole, spreading like a tide of darkness that consumed everything in its path.
The serpent born from Zoltan’s technique shrieked as the black fire wrapped around its body, its scales sizzling before it was engulfed completely. Even Zoltan himself vanished into the storm of black fire.
The humans watching outside gasped in shock. The barrier surrounding the arena flickered faintly, straining to hold back the terrifying energy. The black flames looked alive, twisting and coiling like an endless sea of burning shadows, blotting out everything from view.
Varian’s eyes narrowed sharply, his voice carrying a note of surprise. "What?" He had not expected Max to unleash such a devastating ability so suddenly. The sheer scale of it made even him uneasy.
But almost immediately, he calmed and sneered. "It does not matter. These black flames will not harm Zoltan. The difference in their power is too vast. If Max were at the Mythic Rank, then perhaps things would be different. But at his current level, this changes nothing." His tone was steady, but his gaze did not leave the burning arena.
Aden stood with his arms crossed, his eyes locked firmly on the battlefield. His expression had grown grave. ’What are you trying to do, Max?’ he thought. The youth’s actions were deliberate. That much was certain. Max was not one to waste energy without purpose.
Inside the inferno, Zoltan’s laughter cut through the roaring flames. His bulky frame stood firm, black energy rippling around him like armor, keeping the destructive fire at bay. His grin widened, his voice mocking. "You think these flames can stop my attack? How naive."
The black serpent, thought to have been consumed, suddenly lashed out. Its massive tail whipped violently, and with one crushing sweep, the infernal creature blew away the surrounding sea of flames. The black fire dispersed with a thunderous roar, scattered like smoke torn apart by a storm.
But as the smoke cleared, Zoltan’s mocking expression shifted. He glanced around, scanning the arena.
Max’s figure was gone.
Zoltan spun across the arena, his crimson eyes darting from one corner to the next, his senses straining to find even the faintest trace of Max. The flames had been blown away, the air cleared, and yet the human had disappeared as though swallowed by nothingness. A shiver ran down his spine.
He was a Divine Rank genius, his perception sharp enough to pierce through illusions and concealments, yet he could not sense a mere Legend Rank youth. For the first time in the battle, unease crept into his heart.
"Max? Are you a coward now?" Zoltan roared, his voice reverberating in the arena. "Come out and face me. You call yourself the strongest genius of the human race, yet you hide like a rat? Reveal yourself!" His sneer stretched across his face, his words dripping with contempt, though in truth they were meant to provoke. Rage was easier to handle than silence.
Just then, a calm voice answered him from behind. "As you say."
Zoltan’s body stiffened instantly. He whipped around, but before he could react fully, Max’s hand was already pressed against his chest, directly over his heart. Zoltan’s eyes widened in horror.
In that single touch, the infernal energy within Max erupted. It surged into Zoltan like a raging tide, flooding his heart and then spreading to every corner of his body. His veins bulged dark red as the corruption raced through him, tainting his blood, twisting his flesh, and clawing at his soul.
Zoltan staggered backward, his muscles seizing violently. "What are you doing?!" His roar turned into a distorted cry, and as he tried to sprint back, the energy had already taken root. It was too late. His entire body was now wrapped in a burning shroud of infernal energy, both inside and out.
He clutched at his chest, eyes wild. "What did you do to me?!" His voice cracked as the corruption deepened. The first wave of agony struck him like fire running through his veins. He felt an uncontrollable rage swell in his heart, so overpowering that he thought his blood vessels would burst at any moment.
His breathing grew ragged, and along with the rage came thousands of other emotions all crashing through his mind at once—hatred, fear, jealousy, despair, anguish, greed. They all screamed inside his head, louder and louder, until he could no longer distinguish his own thoughts.
His knees buckled as he struggled to control himself, but every attempt only fed the corruption. His fists shook, his teeth ground until they cracked, his skin darkened in patches where the infernal energy burned like a brand.
Then, in the midst of this chaos, his gaze snapped to Max. He expected to see the same red-haired, abyssal figure that had stood before him since the beginning of the fight. But what he saw made his mind reel.
Max’s hair was no longer red. It had returned to its natural white, glowing faintly against the darkness of the infernal energy that still swirled around him. His expression was calm, detached, and utterly controlled.
"You... what did you do to me?" Zoltan demanded, his voice breaking with panic. His pride as the strongest demon genius was collapsing under the unbearable storm raging inside him.