Vexed Xia Zhi — Extraordinary

Anastasia narrowed her eyes, her crimson lips curving into a smile as bewitching as a fairy's.

"It seems I didn't come for nothing this time."

Lu Yuan's opponent this round was the eighth-ranked prodigy — a fight prominent enough to draw the attention of the highest-ranked geniuses on the Rankings. Anastasia was clearly one of them, having come solely to observe this human whose name had been rising so quickly.

Hearing her words, several other Nightshade women watching Lu Yuan felt a flicker of curiosity rise in their eyes.

One of them thought of something and glanced over at Xia Zhi with a grin.

"Speaking of which — didn't Xia Zhi encounter that human a while back? So? Haven't you reached out to him yet? A man like that would make an excellent partner, you know."

Soft laughter rippled through the group, even Anastasia's expression edging toward amusement as she looked at Xia Zhi.

Due to the nature of their race, finding a worthy partner was every bit as important to the Nightshade women as improving their own cultivation. No Nightshade woman would shy away from the subject.

Frustration flickered across Xia Zhi's eyes at the laughter. She gave a light laugh and said, "I haven't reached out to him yet."

Through the Nightshade's own channels, Xia Zhi had learned where Lu Yuan was staying. The problem was that he almost never left the Training Hall — and on the rare occasions he did, he appeared to use his spatial ability to depart directly, making a chance encounter impossible. The arena challenges were opportunities, but every single time, he arrived with Yeye.

It left Xia Zhi with no opening whatsoever, and to this day she still hadn't managed to contact him. She'd been quietly seething about it.

She shared the whole situation with the others.

The other Nightshade women raised their brows in surprise, stealing a glance over at Lu Yuan.

"He never leaves the Training Hall to go anywhere else? That boring?"

Xia Zhi thought for a moment, then the corner of her mouth twitched. "He does go out sometimes, but..."

"But what?"

They leaned in, curious.

"Every time he goes out," Xia Zhi said helplessly, "there's a woman with him. A different woman each time."

The group went stiff — Anastasia included, who raised an eyebrow. One of them silently curled her lip, casting a sideways look at Lu Yuan.

"Quite the charmer."

Xia Zhi gave a soft laugh. "Right? That's why I've never found a good moment."

"Hmph. A man like that — no matter how talented he is — isn't fit to be our partner."

"Choose someone else," Anastasia said flatly.

As Nightshade women, they naturally sought exclusive partners — and expected that exclusivity in return. Not every Nightshade followed that principle; some had multiple partners, and some were willing to be one among many for a powerful enough man. But as geniuses with more than enough pride to stand on, they had no intention of settling for less.

The others nodded in agreement. Lu Yuan's talent was exceptional, but that was no longer their concern. Besides — they had the pride of Nightshade women. And was Anastasia herself lacking in talent?

While the Nightshade women conversed, a ship as massive and unyielding as a boulder floated in the sky above another section of the plaza. Inside, seated in a tall chair, a Kaman warrior in purple-gold battle armor rested his chin in one hand, watching Lu Yuan below with a calm gaze.

"So that's Lu Yuan. What do you all think?"

Several other Kaman warriors stood nearby, also watching. They exchanged glances, and one wearing long robes began his analysis.

"Based on Lu Yuan's previous performance, he achieved a decisive victory even against Keli, who was ranked thirteenth at the time, and finished quickly. More telling: across all his battles to date, no one has forced out his real trump cards. He's a formidable opponent. Some intelligence assessments may be accurate — Lu Yuan has likely imprinted an Emperor Grade gene, and the power it holds is extraordinary. That said, My Lord Aimen, you have also imprinted an Emperor Grade gene. In an actual fight, I believe you would have the advantage. After all, Spatial Type Combat Techniques may be a nightmare for most opponents, but for you, they simply aren't an issue."

The others nodded along in agreement.

Aimen remained silent, watching Lu Yuan, battle-hunger stirring in his violet-red eyes.

He smiled. "I hope he climbs fast. I'm already looking forward to our fight. Following his challenge pattern, I should be next after Hong Liao, correct?"

Space warped around Aimen as a crushing aura rolled outward, draining the color from his companions' faces. They lowered their heads slightly and said nothing more.

Exchanges like those between Anastasia and Aimen played out across every section of the plaza. A significant number of the top-ranked prodigies had shown up.

Some felt complicated about it — Lu Yuan had already surpassed their rank, and they were here purely as spectators. Others felt even more conflicted: they still ranked above him. His displayed strength was formidable, and they had little confidence going against him — which was precisely why they came: to size him up.

There was another reason for their unease, too. Lu Yuan had been climbing in five-rank jumps with each challenge. If he won this fight, he'd sit at eighth. And if he then aimed straight for third, the geniuses ranked fourth through seventh would have been passed over entirely — a blatant snub. That sat poorly.

And yet if Lu Yuan actually challenged them, they weren't sure they could win.

Half wanting to be challenged, half hoping to be skipped — the mindset, more than a few of them privately noted, was not unlike a certain kind of romantic anxiety: you dread him not showing up, but you dread him showing up uninvited even more.

Near the stone stele, Lu Yuan had just turned down an invitation from an organization called the Moli Flower Commerce Guild when the combat mark on his hand blazed to life.

His eyes lit up. "It's time."

**ROAR!**

The Battle Roar rang out — louder and more savage than any that had come before it. At the same moment, golden light blazed from the sky and from the Prodigy Rankings stone stele, more brilliant than it had ever shone. High overhead, the vast outline of the Prodigy Arena slowly took shape — and beyond that, a phantom projection of the entire arena materialized, hanging enormous across the sky.

Lu Yuan blinked in surprise. *That's different.* Before, the arena had always formed at ground level.

*Is it because this is a top-ten challenge? Is that why it changed?*

*And that projection is absolutely massive...*

He pressed his fingers to his temple.

Yeye looked at him, her pretty face warm with encouragement. "Do your best."

Beside her, Small White wore a grave expression. "Young Master Lu Yuan, do your best."

Lu Yuan smiled and nodded — then vanished, reappearing on the arena.

At the same moment, his figure appeared in the sky projection above. He glanced up at it, couldn't help but twitch his lips, and quickly looked away.

A figure appeared across from him.

A wolf-man with crimson fur — similar to a Gnoll in appearance, but taller and more lithe, standing nearly three meters high. Hong Liao: the eighth-ranked prodigy on the Prodigy Rankings.

His gaze was sharp, gravity settling into his eyes as he studied Lu Yuan. He knew the name, of course. Lu Yuan had been climbing in five-rank leaps — he'd always known his turn would come. He just hadn't expected it this soon.

Which, he reflected, said everything about the man's strength.

Hong Liao watched from across the arena, and his keen senses picked up something — something inside Lu Yuan like a monster poised to devour everything. His blood ran cold. The hairs along his body nearly stood on end.

*This guy really is a monster.* Those with weaker cultivation probably couldn't sense it — but at his level, he could feel exactly how terrifying Lu Yuan was. It had nearly crushed his will to fight before a single blow was exchanged.

In his dark-crimson leather armor, axes in both hands, Hong Liao drew a deep breath. A red light flashed in his eyes as he threw his head back and roared. Invisible ripples spread outward; dark-red blood mist swirled within his body.

In the next instant, cold killing intent flooded his gaze, and the fear was gone.

He licked the corner of his mouth, bared a grin, and tightened his grip on both axes.

"Come on, then."

The preparation phase ended. Lu Yuan showed his own easy smile and said quietly, "Careful now."

He vanished — and reappeared behind Hong Liao in an instant.

Hong Liao's entire body snapped taut. He spun on instinct, both axes crossing in a block.

**Clang!!**

Metal rang against metal. Using the force of Lu Yuan's strike to his advantage, Hong Liao launched himself backward several steps, widening the gap, eyes sharp with wariness.

*That's fast,* Lu Yuan thought, raising an eyebrow. It was the first time anyone had fully reacted to his spatial movement and had the speed to actually block. More than that — at his current strength, this wolf-kin had stopped him cold. Without taking any damage.

Hong Liao caught the surprise on Lu Yuan's face and bared his teeth, the red light in his eyes burning brighter.

"Don't lump me in with the trash outside the top ten. I'm nothing like them."

His voice carried through the arena projection. Down in the plaza, quite a few faces darkened. They were exactly the people he was talking about.

"Hmph! That Blood Wolf-kin has some nerve!"

"Now I'm actually hoping Lu Yuan beats some humility into him."

"..."

On the arena, Lu Yuan laughed softly.

"I see. Well then, watch yourself — I'll need to put in a little more effort."

Hong Liao's lip curled. The crimson light coating his axes blazed as the blood mist drifting around his surface surged back into his body. Then, lines of blue-white light and golden light erupted across his frame simultaneously.

A terrifying force flooded outward.

The sheer weight of it wiped the color from countless faces in the plaza below.

"...That kind of power — he's really only a Battle Venerable?"

"Even a typical Battle King couldn't handle him, could they?"

"No wonder he's ranked eighth. This won't be so easy for Lu Yuan."

Gasps and commentary spread through the crowd. Fueled by that tremendous power, Hong Liao let out a roar — and vanished. He was moving so fast he blurred the line between running and teleportation, appearing at Lu Yuan's side with a short axe slashing down toward his head.

A faint golden light flickered in Lu Yuan's eyes. Beneath his armor, golden patterns rose across his skin, an arcane energy drifting outward.

Earth Spirit Body — active.

Lu Yuan's power spiked at a terrifying rate. Hong Liao, mid-swing, froze. His pupils snapped to pinpoints, and something close to horror surfaced in his expression.

He didn't dare bring the axe down. He threw himself backward, retreating to the far edge of the arena hundreds of meters away, staring at Lu Yuan with wide, uncertain eyes.

He was certain: if he'd hesitated even a fraction of a second longer, he'd be dead. Even now, the shadow of death still hung over him.

*What kind of monster is this?!*

*Is that an innate Emperor Grade gene?? Or something even beyond that?!*

Cold sweat had soaked through the back of his armor.

The crowd had watched Hong Liao's attack stop dead and then retreat, and most of them were bewildered.

They looked at each other in confusion.

"What's wrong with Hong Liao?? He looks like he's seen a ghost!"

"Seriously — did Lu Yuan do something? What happened?"

"...Don't tell me he's scared? Is he really ranked eighth?"

But those with real strength wore grave expressions — among them several interested Battle Kings, even Battle Sovereigns, as well as Anastasia, Aimen, and others.

Anastasia straightened in her seat, abandoning her languid posture. Her dark-red eyes fixed on Lu Yuan's figure; a smile played at the corner of her lips, though a note of gravity lingered in her gaze.

"Just as I thought. This human is far from ordinary."

Aimen's own power surged, the battle-hunger in his eyes burning hotter than before. He rose from his chair, his enormous frame — nearly five meters tall — standing before the window as he stared down at Lu Yuan.

"Fascinating. I didn't expect this human to possess a Combat Technique that powerful."

On the arena, Lu Yuan watched Hong Liao retreat and raised a slight eyebrow with a faint smile.

"Sharp senses."

He'd already gripped his greatsword tight, ready to meet Hong Liao's charge head-on. At Hong Liao's rate of attack, a direct exchange would have crushed him outright — Lu Yuan was confident of that. He just hadn't expected Hong Liao to pull back like that.

Hong Liao tightened his grip on his axes, drew a long breath, and without a word, hurled them both forward with every ounce of power he had. The instant they left his hands, his aura collapsed to near nothing. The axes blazed with blinding crimson light — he had poured every last shred of his strength into that single throw. Even Lu Yuan felt a genuine thread of danger.

All or nothing.

*Gutsy,* Lu Yuan thought, mildly impressed. *Too bad guts alone won't cut it.*

The axes were blazingly fast, but he vanished before they reached him. He reappeared behind Hong Liao, bringing his sword down a full notch faster than before.

Hong Liao sensed it — but before he could react, the blade swept across his throat. His body went rigid.

Then the life drained from him, and he crumpled slowly to the ground.

A hush settled over the plaza.

Aside from a small number of seasoned observers, most of the crowd stared at Lu Yuan on the arena in stunned silence.

The eighth-ranked Hong Liao had still fallen to a single stroke.