Excelling in Speed?

As the bell signaling the start of the match rang, the Fear on Alisa's face finally peaked.

I'm going to die...

Her legs trembled uncontrollably, barely able to support her frail body.

Just then, someone suddenly patted her shoulder.

Alisa turned and saw the handsome face of that "Monkey Man."

"If you don't want to die, find somewhere to hide. Once the fighting starts, I might not be able to look after you."

"Find somewhere... to hide?"

Alisa's eyes widened as she watched Lu Li walk forward without looking back.

Was this Monkey Man planning to take on two opponents by himself?

Just as Alisa stood there in a daze, the iron gate in the corridor opposite them suddenly opened.

Two towering, heavily built men stepped out, their bodies covered in brown rock.

"T-This is bad! We ran into Stoneskin right from the start..."

Alisa's heart clenched tightly.

She knew the attributes of Stoneskin all too well.

As one of the many races that enslaved the Palu, Stoneskin made up a considerable portion of them.

They generally weren't very intelligent, but they possessed astonishing physical strength.

Their strength and constitution far surpassed those of the Palu.

The brown rock covering their bodies was a natural suit of armor, granting Stoneskin formidable defense.

A single unarmed Stoneskin could easily overpower dozens of Palu.

How could Monkey Man Lu Li possibly win against two of them at once?

"Gulon! Gulon!"

The Stoneskin quickly spotted Lu Li in the arena. Their ugly mouths split wide as they let out strange roars.

Their bloated bodies pitched forward, charging like runaway locomotives!

Alisa sucked in a sharp breath and covered her eyes in terror.

Yet the expected screams did not come the next second.

Instead, two dull thuds of heavy bodies hitting the ground rang out.

Alisa slowly opened her eyes. Through the gaps between her fingers, she saw corpses lying not far away.

They were Stoneskin!

The Stoneskin had actually been killed!

How was that possible?!

The entire venue fell deathly silent. Half a second later, the stands erupted in thunderous cheers.

"Holy shit, am I seeing things? That skinny runt took down two Stoneskin in one move?"

"Hey, hey, did any of you see his movements clearly? He was so fast..."

"Looks like this newcomer named Lu Li specializes in speed..."

"Huh, his weapon seemed to transform directly from his right hand. I thought it was some kind of item at first."

"His talent is Shapeshift? That blade formed from his right hand looks incredibly sharp..."

"I think this kid has some real skill. He might actually win a hundred matches in a row!"

"Tch, it's only just begun. Maybe he just got lucky and happened to find the Stoneskin's weak point."

"That's true. Look at the wounds on the Stoneskin—they're all in areas not protected by rock..."

Despite the waves of cheers growing louder around him, Lu Li's expression remained utterly calm.

With a casual flick, he shook the blood from his blade and secretly activated Soul Devour on the two Stoneskin corpses.

[Devoured Lv.6 Stoneskin Souls ×2, Soul Points +30]

[Plunder Ability—Mountain Shaker (Gold) ×2]

[Detected that the ability "Mountain Shaker" can be advanced. Trigger advancement mission? Yes/No.]

[Detected that "Mountain Shaker" and "Mighty Strength" are both Strength Class abilities. Proceed with enhancement fusion?]

Lu Li raised an eyebrow slightly. Rather than choosing enhancement fusion, he chose to trigger the advancement mission.

There were still ninety-nine matches left. Perhaps he could complete the mission along the way.

[Ding! Ability advancement mission triggered!]

[Mission: Complete 20 kills using only Strength Class abilities!]

[Mission Reward: Challenger's Chest ×5, ability "Mountain Shaker" advances to Platinum Rank!]

[Kill Count: 0/20.]

Above the stands, inside a luxuriously decorated private box.

A woman dressed in lavish clothing lounged lazily against the sofa, watching Lu Li in the center of the Arena with great interest.

After a moment, she plucked a berry from the fruit platter and slowly spoke:

"How many matches do you think this newcomer can win?"

"Madam, I believe he won't last five matches! Ah, no, three!"

A handsome, fair-skinned young man stepped out from behind the sofa and respectfully knelt on the floor.

Most of his body was bare, with only a simple loincloth covering his private parts.

"Tell me why."

The woman held the berry before the young man. He immediately took it and quickly placed it in his mouth.

Then, mouth-to-mouth, he fed it into the woman's large mouth.

"Mm. Judging from that newcomer's first kill, he should be a melee Player who excels in speed."

"And those two Stoneskins excel in strength and constitution, while speed is their greatest weakness."

"That kid only won because he used his strengths to strike at their weaknesses. He merely got lucky."

The woman gave a perfunctory hum as she listened to the fair-skinned young man's analysis, seeming unconvinced.

Soon, another blond man dressed just as revealingly knelt on the floor and said respectfully:

"Madam, I think that newcomer may be able to achieve ten consecutive victories!"

"Oh? Tell me your reasons."

The woman picked up another berry and held it before the blond man.

He took it directly into his mouth, even extending his tongue to teasingly lick the woman's fingertip.

The little gesture seemed to please the woman greatly, making her giggle.

Taking the opportunity, the blond man crawled forward on his knees and delivered the berry in his mouth into hers.

He deliberately sucked a few times as well.

"Madam, if that newcomer merely excelled at speed, there was no way he could have killed two Stoneskins in such a short time!"

"Though Stoneskins lack speed, their defense is above average!"

"That newcomer's ability to kill them in a single strike proves his strength is anything but ordinary!"

As soon as the blond man finished speaking, a disdainful voice suddenly came from the darkness behind the woman:

"Tch. If his strength is anything but ordinary, why do you think he can only win ten in a row? Why not twenty, or even a hundred?"

The moment those words were spoken, the woman's chewing stopped at once.

Inside the private box, the previously lively atmosphere instantly dropped to freezing point!

Something wriggled beneath the woman's skirt, and several tentacles immediately emerged from within, shooting rapidly toward the rear.

Before long, a dark-skinned, muscular man was wrapped up and dragged before the woman.

The woman's large mouth opened slightly, revealing rows of fine teeth.

"Xiao Weiwei, I've told you many times: if you want to be my male pet, you must have some manners!"

"Xiao Erfu hadn't even finished speaking. How could you interrupt him..."

Terror filled the dark-skinned man's eyes as he struggled, wanting to say something.

But the slick tentacles had already covered his mouth first.

"Sigh, for the sake of fairness, I can only interrupt you..."

As the woman spoke, the tentacles binding the dark-skinned man suddenly tightened!

One moment, he had been a powerfully built man; the next, he became two piles of bloody mangled flesh.