Zhao Mu looked at his opponent calmly.
His expression remained indifferent as he spoke in a cold, steady voice.
"At a time like this, what's the point of wasting words?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Spiritual Energy surged through his body.
A faint flash of crimson light flickered across his fingertips.
The next moment, the Ember Remains materialized in his hand.
A massive heavenly halberd more than two meters long appeared before everyone's eyes.
The weapon's sudden appearance immediately drew strange looks from the spectators.
"A heavenly halberd?"
Someone couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
"Who actually uses a weapon like that nowadays?"
Meng Kuohai sneered openly.
"Trying to show off?"
"The stranger the weapon, the faster you'll die."
His words drew several nods from the crowd.
The heavenly halberd was famous, but it was also notoriously difficult to master.
Throughout history, very few warriors had been capable of wielding one effectively.
The weapon was exceptionally heavy and required tremendous strength.
More importantly, it demanded extraordinary skill.
Without both, using a heavenly halberd was no different from carrying a giant burden into battle.
Even among Ability Users, very few people chose such a weapon.
Most preferred lighter and more practical options.
Zhao Mu ignored the comments.
Spiritual Energy flowed across his body.
The power gathered around his hands and legs, reinforcing every muscle and tendon.
Across from him, Tang Ziyi smiled arrogantly.
"A Combat Level of only five?"
His lips curled upward.
"Talent Grade E. Combat Level Five."
"This match is practically a free victory."
He shook his head dismissively.
"Honestly, even if I win today, there won't be any sense of accomplishment."
He pointed his saber toward Zhao Mu.
"Forget it."
"Let's not waste everyone's time."
"I'll finish this quickly."
Meng Kuohai burst into laughter.
Looking at Meng Qiuqiu, he no longer saw a rival.
He saw a fool.
How could anyone send such a weak fighter into battle?
Even Old Master Meng frowned slightly.
He couldn't understand what his grandson was thinking.
No matter how he looked at it, Zhao Mu's talent and combat level were far inferior to Tang Ziyi's.
The difference should have been overwhelming.
Yet something felt strange.
Meng Qiuqiu looked calm.
So did Zhuo Yun.
And Lu Yan.
Not one of them appeared worried.
Old Master Meng narrowed his eyes.
His interest gradually increased.
"Could there really be a surprise?"
At that moment, Tang Ziyi moved.
Boom!
His feet slammed against the ground.
The force of the movement launched him forward like an arrow.
Flames swirled around his body.
His speed was astonishing.
The fire surrounding his saber created afterimages that made his movements difficult to track.
At the same time, a powerful aura erupted from his weapon.
The spectators immediately recognized it.
A First-Grade Jinhai Weapon.
Meng Qiuqiu snorted.
"They even prepared Ember Remains for him."
"They really came prepared."
Meanwhile, Zhao Mu remained completely calm.
The moment Tang Ziyi attacked, he moved as well.
The enormous heavenly halberd swung through the air.
There were no fancy techniques.
No complicated feints.
No flashy movements.
Just a simple downward strike.
A brutal, direct attack aimed at Tang Ziyi's head.
Tang Ziyi laughed.
"Going head-on against me?"
"What an idiot."
"Even children know a Combat Level Five fighter can't compete with a Combat Level Eight."
Rather than dodging, he chose to meet the attack directly.
His flaming saber rose upward.
The two weapons collided.
CLANG!!!
The deafening impact echoed across the arena.
The nearby lake rippled from the shockwave.
Meng Kuohai smiled confidently.
Li Hanshan did the same.
They were already imagining Zhao Mu being crushed.
However—
The next second, both men froze.
Their smiles disappeared instantly.
Because the outcome was completely different from what they expected.
Instead of Zhao Mu being overwhelmed—
Tang Ziyi's legs suddenly bent.
THUD!
He dropped to one knee.
The stone floor beneath him exploded into cracks.
Spiderweb-like fissures spread in every direction.
Tang Ziyi's face turned pale.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
The pressure descending from above felt overwhelming.
It wasn't like facing a weapon.
It felt as though an entire mountain had fallen onto his shoulders.
No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't stop himself from kneeling.
"How..."
Tang Ziyi gritted his teeth.
"How can your strength be this terrifying?"
"Aren't you only Combat Level Five?"
Both hands gripped the saber desperately as he fought to support himself.
Zhao Mu smiled coldly.
"I was born with divine strength."
The answer stunned many spectators.
Only Meng Qiuqiu and the others appeared unsurprised.
Competing with Zhao Mu in raw strength?
That was simply asking for humiliation.
This was someone capable of carrying a four-hundred-jin log and running twenty kilometers purely through physical power.
His body was fundamentally different from ordinary Ability Users.
Most people focused entirely on Combat Level.
But Zhao Mu possessed another advantage.
An absurd physical constitution.
Judging his strength solely through Combat Level was a huge mistake.
There was another crucial difference as well.
Both fighters possessed First-Grade Jinhai Weapons.
However, Tang Ziyi's weapon was Low Grade.
Zhao Mu's was Medium Grade.
Even more terrifying was their synchronization rate.
Tang Ziyi's synchronization rate was only fifteen percent.
Zhao Mu's had reached an astonishing fifty percent.
The difference was enormous.
From the very beginning, Tang Ziyi had underestimated his opponent.
And now he was paying the price.
Zhao Mu had no intention of giving him time to recover.
In combat, hesitation could be fatal.
When an opportunity appeared, he intended to end the fight immediately.
Spiritual Energy surged through his body.
The heavenly halberd glowed dark red.
A powerful aura erupted outward.
Hegemon's Formation-Breaking Halberd!
The giant weapon descended again.
Then again.
And again.
Each strike carried enough force to shatter stone.
Tang Ziyi barely managed to defend himself.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
The impacts shook his entire body.
His arms gradually became numb.
The overwhelming strength behind each attack made breathing difficult.
Finally, unable to endure any longer, Tang Ziyi threw himself backward.
He rolled across the ground to escape.
The move looked incredibly embarrassing.
Yet it saved his life.
Old Master Meng's eyes brightened.
"Excellent!"
He nodded repeatedly.
"Innate divine strength."
"The bearing of a true hegemon."
His decades of experience allowed him to see what others couldn't.
This young man possessed extraordinary potential.
Meanwhile, Meng Kuohai's expression had become extremely ugly.
"I underestimated that fat bastard."
His fists clenched tightly.
"He deliberately brought Zhao Mu here to trap me."
Li Hanshan forced himself to remain calm.
"Don't panic."
"Tang Ziyi only suffered because he underestimated his opponent."
"The gap between Combat Level Eight and Combat Level Five still exists."
"He'll recover soon."
On the battlefield, Tang Ziyi finally created some distance.
His breathing became heavier.
His heart filled with humiliation.
Being forced into such a miserable state by someone with Combat Level Five was unacceptable.
At last, he abandoned all arrogance.
His eyes became serious.
"This guy's strength is monstrous."
"But a weapon that heavy must have weaknesses."
His thoughts raced.
"A heavenly halberd can't be as flexible as a saber."
"I'll use speed."
"I'll keep moving."
"Eventually he'll make a mistake."
Once Zhao Mu lost balance or revealed an opening, Tang Ziyi could close the distance.
And in close quarters combat, a long, heavy weapon would lose much of its advantage.
The plan seemed perfect.
Unfortunately—
Zhao Mu never intended to let him rest.
Before Tang Ziyi could even launch another attack, Zhao Mu was already charging forward.
Light Spirit Steps!
His speed exploded.
The giant halberd seemed completely unaffected by its size.
Tang Ziyi's eyes widened.
Too fast!
He immediately channeled Spiritual Energy into his saber.
Rather than confronting the attack directly, he aimed to redirect it.
As long as he could knock the halberd off course, he would gain an opportunity to get close.
Then the advantage would become his.
At least, that was the theory.
Reality proved far different.
The instant his saber touched the halberd—
A terrifying force surged through his arms.
CLANG!
Tang Ziyi was thrown backward several meters.
Before he could regain his footing, Zhao Mu was already upon him.
The heavenly halberd rose high into the air.
A blood-red light covered its blade.
The weapon descended like a falling star.
A killing strike.
Aimed directly at Tang Ziyi's head.
The terrifying momentum made it seem capable of splitting even a mountain in half.
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)