His consciousness flickered black for an instant, and Qi Tian reappeared in the Slaughter Space, standing dazed on the grassland.
The destruction around him, caused by the third form of the telekinetic weapon Hundred Flowers Bloom, was also restored in an instant.
"Truly worthy of being a top-tier Tier 3 Telekinetic Weapon."
Qi Tian's consciousness was still immersed in the energy storm from moments ago. He was secretly amazed by the terrifying power of this third form.
The most important thing was how easy this form was to control. It was nothing like other telekinetic weapons, which only got harder to use the further you went.
"Effortless to operate, devastating damage. Not bad, not bad."
Qi Tian looked with satisfaction at the Golden Lotus hovering in his palm, thinking that the money had been well spent.
After practicing for another half a day, Qi Tian left the Slaughter Space and rested in the Slaughter Arena's main hall.
At the same time, his gaze fell on the service counter nearby. The display there showed information about the Battle Space.
Qi Tian found a quiet corner, plopped down on a sofa, and had the Wisdom Futu connect to the Slaughter Arena's network.
Soon, the content on the display changed to a small projection screen that appeared in front of him.
Qi Tian raised a hand and swiped across the screen. A large number of opponents' strength profiles appeared, each with an assessment from the Slaughter Arena based on their dueling ability.
"Would you like to choose the opponent 'Lie Yan'?"
Qi Tian tapped "Yes," and a prompt immediately popped up.
"First challenge. Please set your name."
"Wutian!"
The name "Wutian" was inspired by a character in a TV series he'd watched in his previous life, called The Sequel to Journey to the West.
The main antagonist in the series was called Buddha Wutian.
After he set his name, the challenge was quickly sent to his opponent, Lie Yan. The man had no rating and zero battles, clearly a newcomer.
He was absolutely confident in his own abilities, but most people with star ratings looked down on challengers without one.
Qi Tian didn't want to be rejected over and over, wasting his precious time.
As it happened, a newcomer had appeared on his own opponent list for his first battle. He might as well give the other guy a little shock.
"Bro, this is the first time either of us has entered the Decisive Battle Space. Looks like you drew the short straw."
Everyone shown on the challenge list was waiting on standby in the Slaughter Arena. As soon as a challenge came in, the arena immediately notified the opponent.
"Your challenge has been accepted."
With the system notification, Qi Tian's first challenge was accepted without a hitch. A prompt to be transported to the Decisive Battle Space followed right after.
Decisive Battle Space.
On a vast, boundless grassland stood a black metal arena, roughly ten kilometers long and ten kilometers wide.
At its center sat a black-clad young man with red hair. Fiery energy surged around him, radiating intense heat and warping the air.
Two short horns grew from his head, and dark red scales covered both sides of his face. A long spear rested across his thighs.
"This is my first day in the Slaughter Space, and none of those opponents with nine-star ratings will accept my challenges. Forget it. I'll just waste some time and start from scratch."
"Hm? Wutian? Someone actually challenged me. Looks like you drew the short straw. I'm in a bad mood."
"Accepted."
After the red-haired young man accepted the challenge, a black-haired young man in a white robe appeared not far from the arena, a Golden Lotus floating beside him.
"Hey, he's from the Dragon-Man Race?"
As soon as Qi Tian was transported to the Decisive Battle Space, he saw the red-haired young man sitting near the arena.
The horns on his head and scales on both sides of his face were unmistakable signs of the Dragon-Man Race.
They were a powerful race among humanity. Judging by his appearance, the red-haired young man belonged to the Flame Dragon branch, whose warriors excelled at the Flame Law.
With Qi Tian's arrival, the red-haired Dragon-Man youth, Lie Yan, also stood up, spear in hand. But there was no fighting spirit in his eyes.
More accurately, he couldn't summon any fighting spirit.
In Lie Yan's eyes, an unrated opponent like Qi Tian was simply too weak.
Qi Tian saw the disdain in the other man's eyes, too. There was no need for either of them to bother with a greeting. They could just get started.
Lie Yan struck first. He flicked up his spear with his right hand, bursting into terrifying speed.
His figure blurred like a flash, turning into a streak of fiery light that was almost impossible to see with the naked eye. In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Qi Tian.
Qi Tian hadn't felt much fighting spirit toward Lie Yan, another newcomer. The moment his opponent moved, he had pulled on the Us Gloves with both hands, ready to knock him out with a single punch.
But only when he saw Lie Yan flash into view did he realize that his opponent was no ordinary man.
The dark red spear was right before his eyes. Its sharp point carried spiraling Origin Force, while the surrounding Red Domain twisted with it, forming a massive flaming dragon that writhed as if alive.
Qi Tian instinctively raised his hand and threw a punch.
A golden domain enveloped him, and a ten-meter-tall golden humanoid energy projection formed around him, mimicking his every move.
The humanoid projection, imbued with the unbreakable power of the Gold Domain, slammed a punch into the head of the terrifying, flame-wreathed dragon.
"Boom!"
The collision between the Gold Domain and the Red Domain unleashed a terrifying shockwave that swept across the entire arena.
At that moment, both sides realized that their opponent was stronger than expected.
"Whoosh!"
The next second, the golden humanoid projection and the red flaming dragon vanished.
Two figures, one gold and one red, appeared on the arena, moving at blinding speed and clashing again and again like streaks of Flowing Light.
The metallic clang of fists and spear rang through the Decisive Battle Space. What had begun as a test of strength became a peak battle with both sides giving it their all.
Gradually, the two unrated Universe Level 9 powerhouses stopped relying on pure strength. They no longer unleashed Origin Force in frenzied attacks, but instead focused on a contest of skill.
Qi Tian slowly reined in his wide, forceful fighting style. His fists and palms shifted between offense and defense with the slightest adjustments, meeting Lie Yan's spear.
Lie Yan's spear no longer unleashed surging torrents of scorching Origin Force, either. Instead, it moved like an extension of his arm, dancing like a dragon or serpent as he lashed out and coiled around his opponent.
In the Slaughter Arena's main hall, not far from the service counter,
a pale, bloodless-looking boy lounged on a sofa, turning a toy that looked like a Rubik's Cube in his hands.
The boy looked about twelve or thirteen. He had shoulder-length silver hair, a scale on his forehead, and eyes as black as ink. His appearance was somewhat unsettling.
"Hm? The Decisive Battle Space's observation system is showing a notification?"
The silver-haired, black-eyed boy stopped turning the cube and brought up a screen. It displayed the Decisive Battle Space identification numbers for Qi Tian and the Dragon-Man youth, Lie Yan.
The screen also listed their observed abilities.
[Wutian, Universe Level 9, has mastered the Ninefold Domain and crossed the threshold of the Origin Law of Gold. His mastery of the laws is at a certain level.] [Lie Yan, Universe Level 9, has mastered the Ninefold Domain and crossed the threshold of the Origin Law of Fire. His mastery of the laws is at a certain level.]
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