I Sign In, You Bow Down

Ch 13: Arena Battle: Second Match (1)

Emrys was not done yet. He retreated a few steps and stared at the opponent lying in front of him. His eyes were sharp as blades.

Whoosh!

The crowd had barely recovered from the last attack when Emrys jumped into the air with a powerful surge of strength.

The Virtual Arena seemed to hold its breath at this moment. Everyone saw Emrys hovering high above in the air for a fleeting second like a shadow cast by thunderclouds. He pulled back his right arm as Mystic Energy began swirling violently around his clenched fist, forming a whirling aura of pure destruction.

Boom!

And then, with a sonic boom, he descended like a meteor crashing from the sky.

Emrys came down fast and furious. His body was wrapped in momentum and his fist led the charge as he punched out. His energy-charged punch slammed directly into PhantomDragon_2077's already broken chest.

Bang!

The impact shook the arena. A violent shockwave burst outward, cracking the ground beneath PhantomDragon_2077 as his chest caved in completely. The armor on his body offered no resistance to Emrys's attack this time. His body convulsed, and blood sprayed from his lips in an arc.

And just like that, he died. His body shattered into fragments of light before disappearing.

"..."

[Victory! The_Shadow_That_Yawns has defeated PhantomDragon_2077!]

[Bonus awarded: +500 points for first victory bonus.]

[Arena Rank updated: Unranked → Rank #196,807]

Silence fell across the arena for a few moments. It was not until a robotic voice announced the victor did the crowd came back to their senses.

"A newbie just killed a veteran?"

"That wasn’t a fluke, right? That was domination!"

"The_Shadow_That_Yawns… who the hell is he?"

"That battle was awesome. It was intense. I thought The-Shadow_That_Yawns was going down. I never expected him to be a black horse, emerging victorious instead."

Emrys remained standing on the Arena, As he exhaled deeply, his eyes gradually lost their coldness. But he didn't look around or raise his fists to celebrate, nor did he try to leave. Instead, he simply turned and challenged again.

He was not satisfied with this battle. He wanted to fight more. He wanted to experience this thrilling sensation again.

His previous opponent was too weak.

This time, Emrys wanted to fight against a strong person; someone, who could fight him head-on and not go down easily.

[Arena Challenge: Next Opponent Searching...]

[Opponent found. The battle will commence in 10 seconds.]

Very soon, a white light flashed and a figure materialized in front of Emrys. This time, it was a tall woman dressed in black tactical gear. She was his opponent this time.

[Name]: Sally Ovehood

[Cultivation Level]: Fifth-tier War Lord

[Total Battles]: 107

[Wins]: 73

[Losses]: 34

Her record was far better than PhantomDragon_2077's. She had also fought more battles compared to Emrys's previous opponent. She was a seasoned warrior, and clearly not someone to be taken lightly.

Emrys's expression didn't change.

Sally also didn't mock Emrys even after looking at his information. Obviously, she was experienced and knew the earlier battle record of a person on the Arena doesn't represent their strength. It only changes after they've fought a hundred or so battles.

She was the best example. People can accurately judge her strength based on the number of battles she has fought and the number of wins and losses. However, the same was not true for someone like Emrys who had just entered the Battle Arena.

Begin!

Sally moved first. She was fast. Her body turned into a blur, and a rain of dagger-like projectiles flew at Emrys, aimed at his joints and vital points. Her control over Mystic Energy was exquisite and her strength was strong.

But this time, Emrys didn't dodge.

His body blurred as well, stepping forward rather than back. Mystic Energy gathered around his fist as he met with the incoming attacks head-on.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Emrys's fists blurred through the air, shattering each of the incoming projectiles mid-flight. Sparks and Mystic Energy bursts filled the arena with crackling noise and light. His movements were clean and his actions were decisive.

Sally narrowed her eyes. She didn't expect a Fourth-tier War Lord to completely neutralize her Mystic Dagger Rain. Without hesitation, she vanished from her spot, using a high-speed movement technique. She reappeared behind Emrys like a shadow and stabbed a dagger coated with black energy toward his neck.

It was a deadly move, aimed to kill Emrys.

But...

"Clang!"

Emrys moved and twisted his body slightly, just enough for his shoulder to catch the blade. Sparks flew as the dagger collided against his Violet Tempest Battle Armor and slid off it uselessly.

Then, like a shadow turned real, his elbow lashed back.

"Bang!"

He struck Sally’s chest with his elbow, sending her flying back like a broken kite.

She flipped mid-air and landed smoothly, coughing a little. Her lips were immediately stained with blood.

She raised her head and looked at Emrys seriously. Fortunately, she didn't have the habit of looking down on people. Otherwise, she might have already lost had she underestimated Emrys.

Emrys and Sally's eyes met. Both of them locked on each other.

"Looks like I’ll have to get serious."

Sally gritted her teeth and raised both hands. Two curved daggers formed from solid Mystic Energy appeared in her grip. Her aura surged, and a sharp wind started blowing in the arena.

Suddenly, she vanished again. She moved much faster than before and appeared right in front of Emrys. Then she struck him from the left before appearing instantly in his right and attacking again. Moments later, her figure vanished and appeared right above his head, then behind, and then front. Her figure blurred as she struck Emrys from every direction.

"She's too fast!"

Emrys took a deep breath and tried to counter her attacks but was unable to due to how fast Sally was moving.

In the end, trusting his armor, Emrys gave up on blocking the attacks, letting those strikes graze his armor while catching the rhythm of her movements.

Then he stopped moving entirely.