First Bout

"Hello, everyone! The next round of hand-to-hand combat is about to begin!"

The host stood on the platform outside the fighting cage, loudly announcing the start of another bout.

The spectators all around erupted in excited roars, eager to see blood splatter.

"Before the bout begins, allow me to introduce the two fighters."

"In the red corner for this hand-to-hand bout, we have Malaka of the Human Race."

"This veteran strength-type fighter once faded into obscurity, but he has now entered the Fourth Realm."

"He once achieved an impressive eight consecutive victories in the arena, but took a brief break from competition to focus on his cultivation and missed the recent bouts."

"Today marks his first fight back in the arena. Will he fall in defeat, or return to the peak? Let's wait and see!"

The host spoke rapidly, his excited shouts further rousing the gamblers in the stands.

Calls to place and raise bets rang out one after another, and the odds shifted rapidly as money poured in.

"Holy shit, it really is Malaka!" a longtime spectator shouted excitedly.

Someone beside him who had never seen Malaka fight leaned over curiously and asked, "Is this guy that badass?"

The longtime spectator was immediately eager to share. "You bet! His punches hit like a truck. In one match, he blew his opponent's head clean off!"

"Fuck! He's that strong? All right, all right, I've got to bet on him."

The host swept his gaze over the dimly lit stands, where many people had yet to place their bets.

He decided to stoke their excitement a little more and take his own performance up a notch.

"And in the blue corner for this bout, we have a newcomer who is also from the Human Race—Owl."

"Although this Early Third Realm newcomer is competing for the first time, his strength is nothing to scoff at. His Psychic Energy reserves have astonishingly reached the standard of the Fourth Realm. Let's look forward to his performance!"

Lou Shisui was still only in the early Second Realm. He had lied about his realm.

A Ghoul's meticulous control over his body allowed him to use Rc Cells to fake his physical strength.

His Psychic Energy reserves already exceeded the Third Realm, and had even reached the Fifth Realm before his awakening, so he could naturally pass the inspection.

As the host gave his ambiguous introduction, the amount in the betting pool rose higher and higher. Thinking they had spotted an opportunity, the spectators began betting on the red corner.

"Ah, this newcomer must have been screwed over by the house! Who sends someone in the Early Third Realm straight up against an experienced Fourth Realm fighter?"

"Having Fourth Realm Psychic Energy reserves doesn't mean he actually is in the Fourth Realm, just so everyone knows."

"There's a whole major realm between them. Isn't this a free point? Boss, another bet on the red corner!"

Others took the opposite approach and bet directly on the side with the higher odds.

"If he's allowed in the ring, that means he's on the same level. For all we know, this newcomer could be a dark horse!"

"With those odds, a win means a massive payout! All in! I'm going all in!"

"Without further ado, let's bring out the fighters for this hand-to-hand bout!"

At the host's announcement, Lou Shisui, dressed entirely in black, leaped lightly into the cage.

He saw a shirtless middle-aged man appear opposite him at the same time. The man's burly frame and rippling muscles drew cheers from the crowd.

"Holy shit! His biceps are bigger than my head!"

"Bro, take my advice and bet on Malaka. I've seen his previous matches, and he's a total beast!"

"Betting on the one who's more likely to win is no fun! If you're going to gamble, you've got to go for the higher odds!"

"Tch! Why's this newcomer all covered up?"

"He's skinny as a twig. Probably a speed type."

"Malaka! Hit him in the head so I can see what he looks like!"

"Begin!"

"Go, go, go! I want to see blood flow like a river!"

The moment the bout began, cheers burst out, shaking even the cage's iron bars slightly.

The man named Malaka was unaffected by anything outside the cage.

His leg muscles suddenly tensed as he took the initiative and attacked his opponent. The scorching wind from his fist reached Lou Shisui in an instant.

Lou Shisui stepped to the left, letting the fist brush past his shoulder. The rushing air only made his hood sway slightly.

Seeing his attack fail, Malaka instantly stopped his forward charge and used his remaining momentum to sweep his fist across.

The sequence of fluid movements was extremely swift. Lou Shisui could tell that he was nothing like the stereotypical strength-type fighter the host had described.

Not only was he skilled at overpowering his enemies, but he was also extremely fast.

Lou Shisui leaned back to dodge the sweeping fist and followed through with an upward kick, intending to break one of Malaka's arms.

Malaka reacted immediately, striking out with his other palm held upright. As he deflected the kick, he used the counterforce to retreat swiftly and open up some distance.

Shisui used the force to perform a backflip and landed steadily, facing Malaka once more.

Their brief first exchange came to an end. The tension between them was palpable, and both knew this had been no more than a slight probe. The real fight was only beginning.

"Whoa, that exchange was fast! Didn't they say Malaka was a strength type?"

"Looks like Malaka didn't slack off during his break."

"Shit, how did that guy's hood stay on even after a backflip?"

"Quit yapping, they're fighting again!"

After a brief standoff, the two swiftly engaged each other again.

Once again, Malaka attacked first. This time, as though he had found an opening, he struck with the speed of lightning, aiming straight for the vulnerable parts of his opponent's body.

His fist, filled with Psychic Energy, struck like a biting python. Lou Shisui finally became interested and moved to meet his opponent's attack.

He's noticed I'm not very skilled at using Psychic Energy, Lou Shisui thought as he blocked the attack with his right arm.

During that upward kick just now, if he had concentrated his Psychic Energy at the tip of his foot, the power unleashed in that instant would have been very difficult to block.

But Malaka had easily pushed Lou Shisui's counterattack aside with a single palm strike, enough to show that the Psychic Energy in Lou Shisui's foot had merely been spread loosely and evenly throughout it.

Much of the reason for this was that Lou Shisui was not using his usual fighting style.

That was right. He had neither used his Kagune nor intended to call upon the Rc Cells in his body. Instead, he planned to fight using Psychic Energy directly, just like an ordinary member of the Human Race.

Only through extensive real combat could he quickly master a new power.

That was Lou Shisui's belief, so as soon as he realized his opponent was no pushover, he became excited.

An unpredictable flurry of punches came at Lou Shisui. He narrowly dodged most of them, but still took one hit.

"Bang!"

In the next instant, Lou Shisui failed to dodge in time and was struck in the abdomen by the tricky, heavy punch, instantly sending him flying several meters.

Once Malaka realized the punch was sure to land, he concentrated a large amount of Psychic Energy on the surface of his fist, unleashing a powerful attack.

This ability to freely draw Psychic Energy from throughout the body and concentrate it in one place allowed him to focus it in his hands to increase his attack power, or strengthen his legs to burst out with tremendous speed in an instant.

But this technique was difficult to master. Drawing the Psychic Energy away also meant leaving the body undefended for a moment.

The moment he gained strength in one part of his body was also when the rest of it was most vulnerable.

This was the result of Malaka's long and arduous training, and the key to his ability to defeat enemies quickly.

Seeing the fighter in the blue corner sent flying, the spectators began to mutter mockingly.

"Looks like this is about to be decided. That hooded guy's speed seems to be his only saving grace. Against a pure strength type, he might have had a chance to wear him down."

"But against someone like Malaka, who's trained in both strength and speed, he's as good as dead."