Over the next few days, the tournament raged like a wildfire. Some players won, and naturally, others lost.
The matches remained utterly brutal. The victors received the losers' experience, while the losers went straight back to zero overnight and had to start leveling from scratch.
In an apartment in Infinite City's residential district, Xina had gone an entire day without eating. Like something broken, she crouched in a corner, growing mold.
She had lost.
Yesterday, brimming with confidence, she had entered her first match in the First Martial Arts Tournament. Then her opponent's reckless, life-disregarding fighting style had stunned her. Their strength had clearly been comparable, yet her cowardice had cost her the match.
She would never forget those eyes, which seemed willing to sacrifice everything for victory. What terrifying resolve. What utter horror.
"Players really are the worst. I'm just not cut out to be one."
Xina's stomach growled. She flopped backward weakly, like a turtle flipped onto its shell, clutching her toes and rocking against the floor.
Why did someone that terrifying even exist?
Xina still could not understand yesterday's opponent. Those eyes willing to sacrifice everything-did he really care about nothing anymore?
Love.
Family.
Friendship.
Herself.
Freedom.
Shopping.
Gossip.
There were far, far too many things Xina could not let go of. The world was so wonderful, with more fun things to do every day than she could possibly fit in. How could her opponent go to such extremes?
As a genius, Xina had been the center of everyone's attention since childhood. She had always been the focal point of her class.
She was incredibly gifted, almost like a child favored by the world itself. She could win every fight with ease, readily discerning her opponents' intentions before casually choosing between a frontal attack and a flanking