Swish!
Su Fan directly unleashed a sword qi, laced with lightning and frost, striking the black-faced man's move.
With a boom!
A cloud of dust erupted in the arena, completely engulfing them both.
The black-faced man frowned slightly. Due to the dust, he couldn't see if Su Fan had been killed by him. Although he was confident in his strength, he wouldn't feel at ease without seeing the opponent's corpse.
Within the dust, Su Fan closed his eyes.
The art of Zongheng included a sensing technique. With the augmentation of true qi in reality, Su Fan could sense every blade of grass and tree within thirty meters. In the game, however, it was greatly diminished, though it could still function about seventy to eighty percent.
"Found you!"
Su Fan's eyes snapped open. He had located the black-faced man's position.
Sharpening the knife before battle!
Breaking ten thousand armies with sheer force!
"Zong Style, Cleave Mountains and Sever Seas!"
Su Fan leaped into the air, soaring high above, and slashed down towards the black-faced man within the dust.
By the time the black-faced man spotted Su Fan, it was too late. They were too close; there was no way to dodge.
His blood shield had just been used and couldn't be employed again for a short while. He could only use his saber to block, holding it horizontally above his head.
Boom!
Su Fan's sword descended, and a deafening roar echoed through the arena.
"Ah!"
A scream of agony pierced the air.
The black-faced man stared at his right shoulder in pain.
His great saber had snapped in two. His right arm had been cleanly severed from his shoulder by Su Fan's sword, and blood spurted out without restraint.
"If you hurry to the apothecary now, you might still save your life."
Su Fan spoke softly to the black-faced man.
The black-faced man was a ruthless individual. To save his life, he immediately picked up his severed arm from the ground and bolted towards the apothecary, ignoring the searing pain.
"Arena Three, Seventeen wins!"
Su Fan's match was the first to conclude. As the first victorious contestant, Su Fan walked directly to the viewing platform.
"Money."
Su Fan extended his hand to Xu Fengnian.
Xu Fengnian paid no mind to Su Fan's impudence and waved to the maid behind him. The maid, understanding, brought the money.
Compared to the money, Su Fan's strength was what truly interested him.
"Want to play again next time? I'll set up the odds."
Xu Fengnian asked Su Fan with great interest.
"Play."
Su Fan had no reason to refuse. The next match was the finals, and he had two more opportunities to earn money. If he doubled his winnings each time, he could earn over ten thousand taels, enough for him to spend for a considerable period.
"Good, I'll be waiting for you."
Xu Fengnian's smile widened as Su Fan nodded.
There was nothing left to linger for in the arena. Su Fan left, deciding it was better to use this time to hunt the Nether King and farm for equipment.
He had discovered that the Nether King's drop rate was truly high. He had obtained no less than ten unidentified blue-grade items from the Nether King alone.
Two days later, Su Fan finally managed to farm the last suitable accessory.
Smoky Mist Stone (Pink) +8
Level: 30
Constitution +40 (+110)
Strength +40 (+110)
Intelligence +40 (+110)
Attribute Damage +40%
Pink Stat: Hidden Arrow (When attacking, there is a high chance to shoot arrows from behind the enemy, striking their back.)
Su Fan had already completed the empowerment and reinforcement. Overall, it was decent. The increase wasn't particularly significant, only pushing Su Fan's attribute damage past 300%.
However, the Hidden Arrow stat was quite interesting and might yield unexpected results.
...
The finals began. Su Fan went directly to the viewing platform and found Xu Fengnian.
"Bet on me to win."
Su Fan handed over all the money he had saved recently to Xu Fengnian. The previous four thousand-plus taels, combined with the money from selling boss drops, totaled five thousand taels.
Xu Fengnian hefted the money bag.
"Don't you have silver notes? Isn't it heavy carrying so much silver around?"
Xu Fengnian finally couldn't help but tease Su Fan. Who would carry so much physical silver with them?
"Consider it training."
Su Fan didn't know how to explain and casually replied.
"I see."
Xu Fengnian nodded, thinking to himself, no wonder Su Fan was so strong; he was cultivating all the time, everywhere.
"Brother Xu, why are you so invested in this Su Fan?"
A young master asked Xu Fengnian, looking at Su Fan's retreating back with a hint of curiosity.
"Don't you find it interesting? Watching an ant continuously climb, only to be casually pushed into the abyss. Isn't that an amusing prospect?"
The smile on Xu Fengnian's face grew more uninhibited. The thought alone made him feel gleeful.
Su Fan was unaware of Xu Fengnian's ill intentions and went to the arena to await the start of the match.
Since there were five participants, one person would receive a bye. The eunuch drew a number from a dark box.
"Number 49 receives a bye."
Number 49 calmly stepped aside to wait, while the remaining four were divided into two matches.
This time, his opponent was a one-eyed man, dressed roughly, resembling a bandit. He clearly belonged to the outlaw world.
"Kid, you can still surrender now. It'd be a shame to die so young."
The one-eyed man warned Su Fan with a cold sneer.
Su Fan looked at him speechlessly.
"You're so young, you probably don't even know what cruelty is. I'm not just trying to scare you; I've killed more people than you've eaten salt!"
Seeing Su Fan's lack of reaction, the one-eyed man continued to threaten him ferociously.
"My mouth is quite heavy, are you sure?"
Su Fan raised an eyebrow and asked.
One-eyed man: ...
What the hell, I said I've killed a lot of people, and you're talking about your mouth being heavy?
"I'm a ruthless killer! I've lost count of how many young fellows like you I've killed."
The one-eyed man continued to threaten Su Fan.
"Aren't your eyes dry?"
One-eyed man: ...
The one-eyed man was somewhat speechless. I said I kill without blinking, and you're asking if my eyes are dry?
He finally understood. The person opposite him was mentally unstable and it was best not to talk too much. It was better to just fight.
"Die!"
The one-eyed man immediately launched his attack on Su Fan.
He raised his great saber and charged at Su Fan with large strides.
Su Fan didn't want to waste time. Compared to the troublesome Qian Zhongjun, this one-eyed man was far too weak.
Sharpening the knife before battle!
Thunderous might!
Su Fan used his full strength from the start. As the one-eyed man approached, he unleashed a fierce sword qi.
The one-eyed man's great saber met the sword qi. The sword qi, without obstruction, sliced through the great saber in the one-eyed man's hand and then across his body. The one-eyed man was directly cut in half by the sword qi.
With his damage comprehensively increased, Su Fan's attack neared fifty thousand. It bypassed the one-eyed man's defense, and the armor-piercing damage doubled, reaching the hundred-thousand mark, instantly killing the one-eyed man.
For individuals like this, who lacked defensive skills, Su Fan could now easily kill them instantly.
The one-eyed man was killed by Su Fan before he even had a chance to retaliate.
Su Fan was the fastest to end his match among the four participants, drawing the attention of everyone.
Including the participant who received a bye.
Since there were five people, the first two rounds would each have one person receive a bye.