Promotion Match

The smile on the fat man's face froze instantly.

Xu Ziming's speed was too fast; it was as if he were the very incarnation of the sword itself.

What fierce attack speed! What a ferocious aura!

He had no time to think, hurriedly raising the long blade in his hands to parry.

Xu Ziming had already reached above him, his long sword raised high, condensing all his strength into a single point, thrusting downward in the simplest of motions toward the fat man's heart.

"Squish!"

The sound of the blade piercing the heart rang out instantly, accompanied by a spray of scalding blood.

"Basic Sword Method?"

The fat man let out a single mournful cry before his entire body dissolved into a cluster of data and vanished from the arena.

One-shot kill!

Xu Ziming sheathed his sword and stood where he was, his martial arts attire fluttering in the wind of the simulation.

[Ranked match won, overall rating S, rank points +100, current rank Black Iron II 0 points, please continue your efforts]

Because of Xu Ziming's near-crushing offensive, the points gained from the first match were naturally high, skipping an entire sub-tier to reach Black Iron II.

However, he did not linger, quickly starting the next match.

In the second match, his opponent was a burly man wielding a staff. His overall strength was far superior to the fat man from before, but he was too cumbersome, revealing countless openings under Xu Ziming's agile assault and being sent away in about two minutes.

This time, however, he only gained 45 points; it seemed that reaching the next stage would require many more battles.

The third match was against a contestant who practiced leg techniques, constantly leaping around the arena with great agility. However, during a clash, Xu Ziming severed his hamstrings, and he naturally fell in defeat.

The ranked points increased by 53.

The fourth match was against another sword user. Halfway through the fight, the opponent's sword actually turned traitor, as if surrendering, and stabbed its own master.

Ranked points increased by 42, officially entering Black Iron I.

[Natural Sword Bone]

was truly formidable; being able to command the swords in others' hands during combat was simply too terrifying.

"It seems I should specialize in practicing various common weapons. Once these traits are permanently solidified, who will be able to defeat me?"

He thought to himself and clicked the button to start matchmaking again.

The fourth match officially began, and the figure of his opponent appeared before him.

Xu Ziming realized with a start that something seemed different.

It was a giant of a man, nine feet tall, with a beard that didn't look like that of a Xia Kingdom native. His entire left arm was a heavy mechanical machine gun.

The heavy machine gun was constantly spewing dark purple flames, and from time to time, its parts rotated with a rhythmic clicking sound.

"Is he cheating? How are there firearms here?"

More importantly, the Life Energy Level above his head no longer started with a 3, but a 4.6.

This was clearly the combat power of the Five Great Spirit Academies, yet he looked like a middle-aged man.

"It seems the weakness of my previous opponents was just due to the low rank. At this rate, I'm afraid I'll need the combat power of a true martial artist to reach the next rank."

"Xia Kingdom person? Hurry up and come at me, watch me blow you to bits with my fiery artillery!"

The big man's face was full of excitement. The language had been automatically translated into Chinese by the system, though his lip movements suggested he was from the Eagle Kingdom.

As soon as the battle started, Xu Ziming rushed out with his long sword, hoping to seize the initiative through speed just like in the previous matches.

Unfortunately, things did not go as planned. The opponent unleashed a hail of bullets almost simultaneously. In reality, one would have to consider ammunition costs, but here, one only needed to consider whether they could hit the target.

Thus, the machine gun fire barely ceased; it spewed purple flames while relentlessly firing at the charging Xu Ziming.

"Clang! Clang!" Xu Ziming continuously swung his sword, weaving forward through the rain of bullets, his speed significantly hampered.

Seeing this, he had to change his tactics. No longer charging head-on, he circled the Eagle Kingdom native like a calm hunter.

The moment the machine gun's firepower was exhausted, before the man could reload, Xu Ziming bared his fangs and lunged out like a lion targeting its prey on the savanna.

His long sword pointed straight at the giant.

As he closed the distance, he thrust the long sword directly toward the man's chest, but just as it was about to pierce him, a massive bomb appeared on the giant's chest.

The Eagle Kingdom native grinned, placing his large hands on the bomb and twisting it gently.

"Boom!"

A massive explosion erupted. Xu Ziming's entire arm was blown to shreds, and he landed dozens of meters away, vomiting blood.

The 100% pain sensation nearly overwhelmed his will; just lying on the ground, he felt as if he were suffocating.

At the center of the explosion, the giant's flesh and blood were completely destroyed, yet a massive mechanical frame still stood in the distance.

"Hahaha, it seems I have won!"

His toothless mouth could still produce sound, yet he failed to notice that a fragment of the sword was embedded right next to his machine gun and his skeletal frame.

"Wrong, you lost."

Xu Ziming exhausted his final ounce of strength, and with a single thought, the shard tore through the Eagle Kingdom man's skin, driving straight into his skull and thoroughly scrambling his brains.

"Arghhh!"

Accompanied by a violent roar, the outcome was finally sealed.

[Victory. Rank points increased by 43. Current rank: Black Iron I (Promotion imminent. Confirm promotion match?)]

"Continue!"

Xu Ziming's body had fully recovered, and riding the momentum of his recent victory, he queued for another ranked match.

However, this time he was defeated—defeated thoroughly!

His opponent's ID was "Angry Haki-mi," and the moment he entered the arena, he could see the Life Energy Level displayed above his head: "4.9."

Behind his Life Energy Level was his rank, and clearly written in the rank column was the word: Silver.

"The requirement for the promotion match is actually to defeat a Silver-ranked player?"

Xu Ziming cursed under his breath before raising his sword to look at his opponent seriously.

"Hmm? Black Iron? This must be your promotion match."

Angry Haki-mi looked at Xu Ziming with interest, the long spear in his hand already raised.

After saying this, he did not attack, instead standing his ground and waiting for Xu Ziming's offensive, as if he didn't need to exert much effort to face a Black Iron player.

No, I must defeat him.

Xu Ziming thought to himself and immediately moved to Angry Haki-mi's side.

However, no matter how superb Xu Ziming's Basic Sword Method was, he could never break through his near-perfect defense; instead, he was caught off guard and sent flying when his strength gave out.

If being knocked away earlier was due to being blindsided by the Eagle Kingdom man, this time it was a genuine loss.

It was a failure in martial technique; the opponent had clearly reached a realm beyond mere martial momentum!

It was precisely this moment of being sent flying that shifted the momentum of the battle. Angry Haki-mi, who had only been defending, brandished his long spear and launched a direct assault, giving him absolutely no chance to catch his breath.

By the time his virtual body was pierced by the long spear, he hadn't managed to land a single effective attack.

"Phew—I can't keep fighting."

He exited the match, and a string of text appeared before his eyes.

[View defeat replay?]