Now that they weren’t in a battle, Lassim was able to get a good look at the two contestants. With them standing side-by-side, he could really see just how similar the two were.
They both sported thin, long hair that extended to their mid-backs. The only major difference is their elements seemed to have affected the hair’s coloring. The ultimate reminder of how much a person changes with each successive stage in the cultivation journey.
The young woman had blonde hair and the young man’s was a deep jet black. Their facial features were extremely similar with them each both having short but pointy noses and cute dimples on their cheeks as they smiled at each other. They were both moderately fair skinned and not overly tan or overly pale, just right in the middle.
They were also wearing a similar white martial attire that had a symbol Lassim recognized, the Myriad Spirit Academy’s symbol! Yet, it was slightly different. It was just a multi-colored gem with the motif of the academy’s symbol engraved on it.
Now that Lassim was aware of the sect system, he realized that the twins must be members of the cultivation sect that his master mentioned. The one the city and academy both feed into, the Myriad Spirit Sect.
He felt a bit of kinship with them, somewhat saddened by the lost potential friendship he might’ve been able to enjoy with them and his friends. But, unfortunately, it was his under his master’s suggestion that he was instead heading to a whole other continent to join a separate sect instead of joining his academy’s.
Back to the action, the twins, #187 and #186, stood face to face in the arena, exchanging banter.
"Whelp, that’s just our luck, isn’t it? If only we were meeting in the finals instead of the first round…" #187 sighed, standing there adjusting her grip on her shimmering chakram.
#186 smirked, a glint of competitive spirit in his eyes. "Unfortunate indeed, but it matters not if it’s now or later. No holding back, little sis! And don’t worry, I’ll let you cry on my shoulder like the good older brother I am after you lose!" he replied, summoning his shadowy elemental spirit from his heart world, a thin, flat, creepy voidling creature that mirrored his own dark aura.
The creature itself was similar to the imps Lassim had spotted in the elemental plane dimension, but only if you had strung it out incredibly thin like flat noodles. It was almost 2D in nature and Lassim felt it was super bizarre to look at. He wondered how it could even move or exist like that.
"Cry?! The only one crying will be you. I’ll buy you some frozen milk cream to snivel over after I beat you!" Replied #187 with slightly reddened cheeks.
Annoyed at her brother’s comment as she hated being treated like a crybaby, #187 wasted no time.
With a command to her elemental spirit, she summoned a shiny white horse from her heart world. As soon as the horse appeared, it released a blinding burst of light towards #186, momentarily dazzling him. At the same time, while her brother was briefly blinded, she threw her chakram towards her brother with deadly precision.
Reacting swiftly to the incoming annoying light, #186’s voidling creature manipulated their intertwined shadows from beneath them. They rose up, forming a shield-like barrier that absorbed the blinding light and deflected the chakram, causing it to bounce away.
The audience, unable to tell if it was part of the strategy or if the barrier had been too thin, burst against the impact. The shield, which had resembled a black hole with how it absorbed the light, released a flood of void-like shadows that spread into the air like a sinister smoke screen.
In this mist of shadowy haze, #186 vanished from sight, utilizing the cover provided by the shadows to fully disappear, unseen by the crowd and his sister.
Meanwhile, #187, realizing the danger, she leaped onto the back of her radiant horse and began synchronizing her mana with her spirit’s. This caused them both to begin to glow and shine brightly. She then caught the chakram that magically flew back to her hand, which even further boosted her ability to radiate a blinding light akin to the sun.
The light pushed back the encroaching shadows that had filled most of the arena at this point, creating a brief reprieve. However, the shadow creature and her brother inside the smog continued to generate more darkness. They sent it billowing towards #187 and obstructed her vision with its dense, creeping tendrils.
With determination in her eyes, she shouted, "Alright Rae, [Light Wave]!"
Her elemental spirit, the shining white horse named Rae, responded by rearing up on her hind legs, hooves glowing with radiant energy.
With a powerful neigh, Rae slammed her front hooves onto the marble flooring, generating and unleashing a massive wave of blinding light that surged forward. It cut through the encroaching shadows and darkness with ease, exposing and revealing the inside.
Amidst the dispersing darkness, #186 and his creature briefly appeared in his sister’s view.
"Found yah!" she exclaimed triumphantly.
Then with a practiced motion, she launched her chakram at a high speed towards her brother.
However, just as her weapon was about to strike, #186 and his creature turned illusory with a smirk, teleporting away and disappearing once again into the shadows.
Under her mastery and control, #187’s chakram spun back through the air towards her, when suddenly a dagger sliced through the shadows and knocked the chakram to the ground.
Reacting swiftly, she used her connection and mana to summon the chakram back into her hand. However, this distraction allowed her brother to push the shadows closer towards her, narrowing her escape route.
Just as the large chakram reappeared in her hand, #186 emerged from the shadows beside her in a sudden teleportation-like move; the same one used during the battle royale fights.
His scary and long void-dagger flashed with an imperceptible slice as he made a swift, precise strike, nearly severing her left arm.
With pain surging through her, #187 roared out, "OH FUCK YOU! [Sun’s Burst]!" Her body ignited with intense sun’s rays and ultraviolet beams, unleashing a burst of searing energy in all directions.
This chapter is updat𝙚d by freeweɓnovel.cøm.
Caught off guard by the sudden explosion of power, and standing entirely way too close, her brother exclaimed, "Oh sh—!" before being engulfed in the blazing rays.
The floor beneath #187 melted and bubbled like a pool of plasma under her and Rae’s hooves as the intense heat radiated around her.
As the chaotic bright flash disappeared and the aftermath settled, a medical team of Spirit Ascension level healers swiftly landed on the stage. Only the young girl was left standing alone on the stage as her brother had been teleported away through the stage’s arrays when the explosion occurred, saving his life.
The team acted quickly with their expertise focused on repairing #187’s severely injured arm and tending to her wounds as she breathed heavily, adrenaline still coursing through her veins. Tears filled her eyes as they worked to restore her arm to what it was before.
Thankfully the team were experts and would be able to fully heal her and leave no scars on such a fresh injury. She wouldn’t have to live with her brother’s recklessness, at least in the sense of a scar, but she’d still have to continue being related to such a psycho that would slice his own sister’s arm off.
One of the Spirit Ascension medical team members with a motherly vibe, gently patted her on the back and gave her a tissue to wipe her tears as they sent their nature mana to reattach the limb.
The crowd cheered as the announcer called out the winner, "There you have it folks! #187 moves on to the next duel! While our team get her back into fighting shape for the Top 5, and prepare the stage for the final two contestants #307 and #69, focus your attention back to stage two with the ongoing fight between #423 and #16!"
Lassim and Hallen, surprised and slightly blinded by the earlier explosion of sun elemental energy, wiped their eyes as they returned their sights towards the other arena.
The fight between #423, a fire crossbow wielder and #16, the girl with the water fans, had been "heating up" to say the least!