Devour and Grow Stronger

"So," Sebastian crossed his arms and looked around, "Anyone here willing to volunteer?"

A moment of silence fell over the common lounge in M Country: everyone always said that the Werewolf Victor was the weakest, but they didn't know that Victor also had a "Werewolf 12" state.

Honestly, what are their chances of winning against Victor in "Werewolf 12"? And even with the five seconds of transformation time Xiao He gave him, Victor didn't last a full minute on the field. How long can they last?

In the entire common lounge, among the more than twenty level 4 or higher Mutant, not a single one spoke.

"A bunch of useless bastards," Sebastian scoffed. "I'll do it myself. You can't count on them..."

"How can that be? You're our last secret weapon. If Ruiwen Raven up and laughed. "Sigh, there's no other way. I'll go up and give it a try. I'm not very confident, but at least I won't lose as badly as the others."

"Hmph, at least he has some backbone." Sebastian's expression softened slightly.

"If I weaken that guy, you can expect to play," Ruiwen said, patting Sebastian on the shoulder. "But if you don't think you have a chance of beating him even if you play... then I suggest you wait until the finals."

"I don't need those little tricks," Sebastian said calmly. "Even without you guys wearing him down, I can beat him in a one-on-one fight."

"Yes, yes—" Ruiwen rolled his eyes and chuckled, muttering under his breath, "Perfect Mister."

Then, Ruiwen entered the elevator and came onto the field, still cursing. "Damn it, what kind of bullshit Balance Man? Logically speaking, shouldn't that guy go up first to weaken him, then let me defeat him so I can Plunder his power? He's always bragging that he can take down Yinglong by himself, I don't know if he's really telling the truth..."

The elevator doors opened, Ruiwen, looking at Xiao He before him, felt a chill run down his spine. He rubbed the goosebumps on his hands and sneered, "Hiss... How many years has it been since I felt this way? Damn, I really don't want to face Yinglong in this state right now. If it were during the group stage, I might have had a chance..."

"What are you babbling about? You keep muttering to yourself." Xiao He asked coldly.

"Ah, I'm sorry, Yinglong, I'm a little nervous facing you." Ruiwen grinned. "After all, it's been four or five years since I've encountered someone exuding this kind of dangerous aura. The last time was when I was being chased by a jaguar in the Amazon Jungle."

"Oh... it must be so cute. I'd love to see it sometime..." Xiao He said with a smile.

Ruiwen stretched his limbs and laughed, "Believe me, you don't want to go there. Unless you like spiders the size of dogs and centipedes half a meter long."

"..." Xiao He immediately dismissed the idea: Wouldn't it be more enjoyable to go to a nice place?

"Alright, that's enough of the pleasantries..." Ruiwen said, cracking his neck. "Thank you for the warm-up time, Yinglong."

Xiao He simply shrugged and waited for Ruiwen to step forward.

Xiao He had witnessed Ruiwen's performance in the group stage; he was a truly capable man.

"After all, he's the leader of the Raven," Xiao He thought to himself, not letting his guard down, and got into position to wait. The arrogant aura on Ruiwen's body also disappeared instantly, and he became calm and composed, and the arena fell silent for a moment.

Neither of them rushed forward. Xiao He didn't quite understand what the other was waiting for, so he decided to attack first.

"Hmph..." Xiao He grunted and threw a jab straight at Ruiwen's face.

He wanted to learn something from this man, so he decided to fight him hand-to-hand first.

After Xiao He was behind Ruiwen, the other person suddenly disappeared. Xiao He was stunned for a moment before he realized that Ruiwen hadn't moved, but had quickly lowered himself and cut towards him at an extremely low angle, grabbing his right ankle with his left hand and pushing his chin up with his right hand. The next moment, Xiao He felt his feet lighten and the scenery in his eyes rapidly changed.

With a deafening roar, a large section of the ground caved in, and Xiao He was slammed to the ground. Ruiwen immediately rolled over and pinned him down, throwing a punch. Xiao He raised his arm to protect his face, and a sharp pain shot through his hand.

In fact, Xiao He was currently maintaining the "Kinetic Energy Absorption" Superpower triggered by Qin Weize.

It was only in that instant that he realized that Kinetic Energy Absorption could be active or passive. When absorbing energy actively, he could absorb the impact until it exceeded his body's tolerance limit, just like during Earthquake.

However, passive absorption only absorbs a portion of the kinetic energy, and the remaining kinetic energy is transferred to him. It's just that the enemies in the past were too weak, and his physique was too strong. After this portion of the kinetic energy was absorbed, the remaining attacks that hit him were no different from being lightly patted.

But today's enemy is different. His physique should be around LV6, so even if Ruiwen's Kinetic Energy Absorption absorbs some of the damage, the remaining impact is enough to hurt him.

Xiao He raised his arms to protect his face, blocking Ruiwen's fist. He had recovered from the previous attack and took advantage of the gap in Raven's punch to counterattack. Ruiwen nimbly dodged the punch, grabbed Xiao He's wrist, wrapped his left foot around Xiao He's elbow, and used his right foot to stabilize Xiao He's shoulder, causing him to fall backward.

Xiao He immediately realized something was wrong: it was Armbar!

Physically, Xiao He is currently about the same as Ruiwen, but with Kinetic Energy Absorption, his strength is slightly superior. Therefore, if it were Armbar contest, Xiao He is confident that he can suppress his opponent. However, Ruiwen's Armbar somewhat different. He uses the process of falling down to exert force with his body, forcefully pressing Xiao He's arm towards his own leg.

A tearing pain shot through Xiao He's elbow, causing him to gasp in pain. He quickly unleashed a shockwave at Ruiwen, forcing him back, before standing up from the ground.

"?" Xiao He looked at Ruiwen in front of him, slightly astonished: this was the first time someone had "forced" him into hand-to-hand combat.

But what really puzzled Xiao He was not Ruiwen's Physical Strength, but his fighting style.

The opponent's fighting style is somewhat similar to Judo, including the technique that initially threw him to the ground and the subsequent Armbar, but there are also obvious differences: Judo has no striking techniques, relying solely on throws and locks to defeat the enemy, but Ruiwen's striking techniques and ground control were very fluid, clearly a unified technique.

Moreover, even the Armbar is strange. Judo's Armbar actually relies on soft force, emphasizing the gradual application of pressure to the joint after the Armbar is formed.

But Ruiwen's Armbar... is full of power. Its purpose is not to put pressure on the joint, but to break the opponent's elbow in the instant it is formed. This technique is completely opposite to the "softness" of Judo. It is a "hard" fighting technique.

"It's Sambo," Cui Man explained into Xiao He's earpiece. "It's a fighting style originating in Russia. Besides throws and locks, it also includes grappling, striking, takedowns, and ground techniques. It's a fighting style that emphasizes practicality in combat. Although it looks a bit like Judo, it's actually a technique completely opposite to Judo. Like Systema, it's a combat style that even the M Country Marine Corps learns."

"I see..." Xiao He responded, a smile appearing on his lips. "How interesting."

Judo has a fatal flaw in actual combat: it lacks the ability to determine the outcome of a fight.

Therefore, in Judo matches, there are specific rules for determining defeat. However, in actual combat, these rules are useless; the rule is to hit the opponent so hard that they can't get up.

This is precisely why techniques like Sambo exist, which are primarily designed for practical application.

Even with Xiao He's martial arts training, he could still discern some clues about Ruiwen's fighting style.

"Let me devour you, and then become stronger..." Xiao He said through gritted teeth.

"Oh dear, that's a scary way to put it," Ruiwen chuckled, then lunged at Xiao He.

Xiao He carefully observed Ruiwen's movements. The opponent quickly lowered his body, and judging from the movements, it was a grappling move. He probably wanted to grab his legs and throw him to the ground, then fight on the ground and decide the outcome with a submission hold.

"I won't let you succeed..." Xiao He thought to himself, lowering his center of gravity, stepping back with his left foot, and tensing his right leg, preparing to hug the other person's waist.

But at that moment, Ruiwen suddenly braked briefly, adjusted his movements, grabbed his arm, turned around and used his back to push against his chest, throwing him away with a Shoulder Throw.

Xiao He felt dizzy and disoriented, and the next moment a heavy impact came from behind him.

"That feeling again!" Xiao He thought to himself, "The opponent's Shoulder Throw is completely different from the Shoulder Throw in Judo. In order to pursue the power of the throw, the opponent grabs his wrist and throws him."

After throwing Xiao He away, Ruiwen immediately rolled over and pinned him down, throwing a punch at Xiao He's face. But Xiao He had been training for quite some time and had learned many techniques from his enemies, so he dodged the punch by turning his head to the side, grabbed the opponent's wrist, then locked the opponent's neck with his right foot, and passed his left foot under the opponent's armpit, hooking his ankle to complete a Triangle Choke.

The Triangle Choke is a technique that uses the strength of the legs to apply pressure to the opponent's shoulders and neck, causing them to suffocate.

However, Xiao He realized one thing: not all techniques are suitable for Mutant, because Mutant are not ordinary people.

For example, the Triangle Choke relies on a specific angle and the user's own weight to suppress the enemy.

However... the Mutant's strength had increased significantly, but his weight hadn't changed, so relying on weight to overpower him wasn't a wise choice. With a little effort, Ruiwen lifted him off the ground and threw him away.

Xiao He adjusted his body in mid-air and landed on the ground. He had just stood still when Ruiwen was already in front of him and threw a punch.

Normally, if someone throws a hook punch as their first move, Xiao He would think the opponent is an amateur, but Ruiwen is different.

Ruiwen's hook punch wasn't an ordinary hook punch; it had a smaller range of motion and was faster, but its power was by no means weak.

Before Xiao He could defend himself, he was punched in the face. Then Ruiwen followed up with a left straight punch and an uppercut, the continuous attacks forcing Xiao He to stagger back several steps and fall to the ground.

"Drink!" Ruiwen roared, leaping into the air and lunging at Xiao He, unleashing a Superman Heavy Punch.

Xiao He raised his arms to protect his head, but the powerful impact hit him head-on, sending him flying backward and sliding a short distance on the ground before coming to a stop.

This was after absorbing some of the kinetic energy; if one had taken that punch directly, they would probably have been completely stunned.

Xiao He did a somersault backward halfway to his feet, but he did not continue his attack.

He was thinking, carefully digesting the techniques he had just seen.

Not all joints are suitable for use on Mutant, but Ruiwen did it very well. Sambo's joints are different from Judo; they are more forceful. Joints are a technique that uses pain to force an enemy to surrender, but Sambo, in pursuit of practicality, doesn't use them for pain, but rather to break the enemy's arm the instant they are formed.

"I see, I understand now..." Xiao He pondered, "But that punch... why was it so fast?"

Upon careful reflection, Xiao He realized: the difference lay in the point of exertion.

"Let's take another look," Xiao He thought to himself, as he readjusted his stance.

"A tough guy..." Ruiwen sighed, then took a step forward to close the distance and threw a hook punch.

This time, Xiao He's attack was more targeted, so he saw it more clearly: the posture was indeed different. The opponent's hook punch did not involve twisting the waist and hips, but was delivered using the shoulder and back! Therefore, the range of motion was smaller and more difficult to defend against!

"Ah... the charm of martial arts." Xiao He sighed inwardly, but this time he reacted in time and raised his arms to block the opponent's punch. But then Ruiwen suddenly lowered his body, keeping at Xiao He's waist height, and threw a more accurate and powerful swing punch with his right hand.

This punch pierced through Xiao He's arm defenses and struck his face directly; the Kinetic Energy Absorption could not fully absorb the impact of this blow.

With a "whoosh!", Xiao He's mind went blank for a moment. He took two steps back and felt the world shaking slightly. At this moment, Ruiwen caught up with him and launched a flying kick.

However, the next moment Xiao He's figure suddenly blurred, and Ruiwen's kick passed right through Xiao He's body. After landing and stabilizing, she turned around and saw Xiao He's fist coming straight at her.

"!?" Ruiwen was somewhat astonished. The punch landed squarely on his face, sending him spinning twice on the spot. He barely managed to regain his footing when Xiao He's second punch came flying. He hurriedly raised his arms to defend, but he was sent flying and crashed into the wall of the arena.

With a muffled "Boom!", Ruiwen's body embedded itself in the arena wall. He pressed his hand against the wall, then landed on the ground, glaring at Xiao He and gritting his teeth, "Arrogant brat..."

Xiao He's two punches just now were imitations of the two swing punches he had just thrown.

"Huh? This seems a little different," Xiao He thought to himself, looking at his fist. Then he fixed his gaze on Ruiwen. "Show me again."

"Tsk, devouring enemies stronger than oneself, and then becoming even stronger..." Ruiwen chuckled self-deprecatingly, "Who exactly is the Raven?"