Chapter 182 Chapter 182-Who's The Next?
The sudden proposal from the woman with the eight-eyed devil mask left the surrounding awakened momentarily stunned.
Their gazes shifted between Howard and her, their faces filled with amusement.
Although the Solomon Sacred Assembly was not a top-tier power, it was still formidable, ranking among the best beneath the four major forces.
As the Holy Maiden of the Solomon Sacred Assembly, the woman held a prestigious position, and her forward proposition naturally aroused the curiosity of the many awakened.
It was only because of Howard's striking appearance that they didn't suspect any ulterior motives.
Howard was equally taken aback but quickly recovered, declining, "Sorry, I can't accept such a request."
"You're actually... rejecting me?" The tone of the woman with the eight-eyed devil mask grew serious. "Are you sure you won't agree?"
"A man's word is his bond," Howard replied with a light laugh. "I'm open to a challenge, but not to that kind of request!"
"How interesting!"
The woman did not press further but nodded in acknowledgment: "Then let's forget I ever said that." With that, she gracefully descended from the arena.
Howard didn't dwell on her departure.
His gaze swept across the many awakened below the platform and he spoke firmly, "Who dares to challenge me?"
Not many knew the specifics of Howard's capabilities.
Unaware of his actual combat strength, several awakened rubbed their hands in anticipation, eager to try.
It couldn't be helped.
Although they had seen Howard fight his way out of the crowd, he had mostly relied on his Blink skill at that time and hadn't displayed his true combat abilities, which naturally didn't deter the group of awakened.
Before Howard could finish speaking, a slender young man wielding two short daggers had already leaped onto the arena.
A hiss escaped from the crowd. "The challenger, he seems to be the holy son of the Shadow Temple - Kuural Samo. It's said his skills in assassination and piercing attacks are particularly terrifying."
"The Shadow Temple? Weren't they annihilated by Black Tortoise City?"
"That's old news. Successors have revived the Shadow Temple, but its power has greatly diminished, hardly even a second-rate force now."
"Yet this holy son is quite formidable. Despite the decline of the Shadow Temple, he has managed to reach level fifty at such a young age."
"Pity, though, he's up against a student from the Holy Abyss Academy."
"That Howard is from the Holy Abyss Academy? No wonder his ability to escape was so impressive earlier!"
Murmurs and chatter broke out among the awakened as they recognized the identity of Kuural Samo.
Discussions buzzed, revealing the previously unknown identity of Howard, to the astonishment of many.
Those who had witnessed Howard's previous bet with Pallor Swift were the ones to expose his background.
While the awakened were busy discussing, the fight on the arena was about to erupt.
In an instant, Kuural Samo scattered a handful of luminescent powder.
As the glittering dust settled, his figure, too, vanished from the sight of the onlookers.
However, what astonished everyone was that Howard, previously perceived as a mere magus, had also managed to conceal his body into the void.
"What the hell?!"
"What the fuck? Isn't Howard a magus? How can he use an Invisibility-like skill too?"
"This... If both of them are invisible, how are we supposed to watch the fight?"
The crowd of awakened looked at each other, completely dumbfounded. They had never seen such a situation before!
Unbeknownst to them, Kuural Samo was even more shocked.
He had chosen to challenge Howard precisely because assassins are typically a bane to magi.
The previous victorious challengers were mostly warriors, archers, or fighters with various weapons.
Lacking absolute confidence against them, he hadn't dared to challenge recklessly.
Who would have thought that upon finally encountering a magus, he'd encounter one who could also use invisibility skills!
Unlike archers, he didn't possess skills like Illumination Arrow.
Moreover, assassin skills are primarily focused on single targets.
Without being able to see his opponent, he couldn't even deploy his skills to probe for Howard's location.
For a moment, Kuural Samo felt a sense of despair, unsure of what to do.
Typical assassin invisibility has its limitations, with a duration that isn't very long.
If he waited until he reappeared, wouldn't he just be bombarded by Howard's skills off the stage?
After much hesitation, Kuural Samo decided to exit his invisibility state.
He was going to risk it all for a chance of survival.
He believed that once he revealed himself, Howard would undoubtedly take the chance to attack.
If he could dodge the first skill and Howard revealed himself in the process of attacking, there would be an opportunity for a counterattack!
Success or failure would hinge on that single moment!
As the holy son of a significant power, Kuural Samo had a strong resolve and was not one to waver indecisively.
Once he made up his mind, he promptly deactivated his invisibility state.
Seeing Kuural Samo reappear, Howard understood his psychology.
Unfortunately for Kuural Samo, dodging Howard's skills was next to impossible.
Typically, magus skills have noticeable casting times, and even instantaneous skills need a second or two to travel and hit the target at a distance.
Kuural Samo hoped to exploit this delay for a counterattack, but he overlooked the fact that Howard, due to his strong physique, had also learned skills like Death Six-Step Throw.
Moreover, when Howard used Death Six-Step Throw to defeat Pallor Swift earlier, Kuural Samo was not in that area and thus unaware of this fact.
Therefore, Kuural Samo didn't anticipate that Howard would approach him. He kept his gaze fixed on the distance, trying to sense any magical fluctuations.
It was only when Howard suddenly grabbed his shoulder that Kuural Samo realized Howard was right beside him.
However, before Kuural Samo had a chance to react, he felt a tremendous force lifting him into the air.
His body spun in a circle before crashing heavily to the ground, his head striking the stone pavement, leaving him dazed and disoriented.
Bang, bang, bang!
The sound of impacts resonated continuously.
Howard, like a war god, grasped Kuural Samo's arm and repeatedly slammed him to the ground, then swung him back up, continuing the relentless assault.
With each strike, Kuural Samo's head was brutally smashed against the ground, leaving him bruised and battered.
Assassins indeed have a slightly stronger Defense Value and Constitution than magi, but only to a limited extent.
Even Pallor Swift, a level 70 fighter, couldn't withstand Howard's Death Six-Step Throw, let alone Kuural Samo, who was just over level 50.
After the sixth throw, Kuural Samo lay unconscious on the ground.
Seeing this, even Pallor Swift couldn't help but close his eyes, his mouth twitching slightly as if he were reliving the moment Howard had thrown him.
This illustrated just how much psychological damage Howard's move had inflicted on Pallor Swift!
The many spectating awakened, apart from those who had already witnessed Howard overpower Pallor Swift, were astounded and stood agape.
"Howard wins!" Glutton announced with a smile. "Anyone else up for the challenge?"
As he spoke, a breeze fluttered with the movement of his robe, gently carrying the unconscious Kuural Samo off the platform.
However, no one dared to step forward anymore.
They were somewhat puzzled about what exactly Howard specialized in.
Just the fact that he could become invisible was enough to deter most fragile-class awakened from daring to challenge Howard on the platform.
As expected, after a long wait, a warrior clad in Chain Armor and wielding a long spear finally stepped onto the arena.
He had a well-conceived plan. Regardless of whether Howard used invisibility or not, he intended to maintain a defensive stance throughout.
His strategy was to outlast Howard until all of Howard's MP was depleted, securing his victory.
Moreover, he was confident that he wouldn't be thrown around by Howard's signature move.
"What a joke," he thought. His Chain Armor boasted impressive Defense Value, and his own physical constitution was strong.
What kind of attributes would be needed to continuously throw him around?
If Howard really had such strength, then he would accept defeat gracefully. After all, being utterly outmatched in attributes left no room for victory.
Unfortunately, while his imagination was grand, Howard had other plans.
Seeing him raise his shield in defense as soon as he stepped onto the platform, Howard quickly figured out his tactic.
Instead, what awaited the warrior was a relentless bombardment of various elemental skills.
Fireball, Frost Arrow Spell, Flash Lightning Spell, Wind Blade Spell...
A barrage of different forces continuously bombarded his armor.
The terrifying power of magic pierced through the armor and struck his body directly.
In an instant, the warrior was blasted off the platform by the skill onslaught, spewing mouthfuls of blood.
"Who's the next?"
Howard's challenge was bold, yet it left many of the awakened shaken.
The crowd around the arena exchanged puzzled and astonished glances.
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