Everyone could see that Qin Feng wasn’t joking.
He genuinely intended to fight Zhou Run for the championship title.
And because of this exchange, the betting odds had also shifted subtly.
Qin Feng’s odds had dropped slightly from an initial 1:6.5 to 1:5.8.
This meant that a small portion of the crowd was starting to waver.
They were willing to wager their Imperial Coins on that infinitesimal possibility—betting that the man known as "Qin Beast" could once again create an absurd miracle.
Qin Feng was just too confident!
Besides, a man’s reputation precedes him!
His reputation as a beast was one he had forged in battle!
...
After their brief exchange, the atmosphere in the arena soared to its peak.
The tsunami-like roar of the crowd threatened to tear the very roof off the arena.
Everyone craned their necks, waiting for the official start of this "battle of the century" between the new Lai Zi and the old.
On the final battle platform, the tension had also solidified to its absolute peak.
"BOOM—!!!"
The referee’s bell, like a clap of thunder from the ninth heaven, rang out with a deafening crash!
It announced that the final, decisive battle everyone was waiting for—the one that would determine the champion of this year’s Newcomer’s Cup Fourth Level Division...
Had officially begun!
-----------------
The moment the bell’s chime faded, it was as if time had been paused.
The tsunami-like roar of the entire arena seemed to be sucked away in that instant, and the world fell into an eerie silence.
On the final battle platform, the two men stood a hundred meters apart, motionless, quietly waiting for the match countdown.
The cynical, playful smile on Zhou Run’s face had vanished, replaced by an unprecedented solemnity.
He held his sword in one hand, its tip angled toward the ground. His entire aura was like a volcano on the verge of eruption, silently accumulating enough power to burn the heavens and boil the seas.
He knew that against a confident Qin Feng, even the slightest underestimation would be fatal.
’His confidence must mean his vitality index is very close to mine; the gap can’t be large at all.’
On the other side, Qin Feng was even calmer.
He held his spear with both hands, the shaft held in a subtle parallel with his spine, his posture as straight and tall as a pine tree.
His deep eyes were as placid as an ancient well, betraying no emotional ripples. It was as if he wasn’t about to face a climactic duel for the championship, but was merely engaged in another ordinary day of training.
However, everyone knew what a terrifying storm was hidden beneath that placid exterior.
The countdown ticked slowly.
3—
2—
1—
"Begin!"
The referee roared.
Then, in the next instant—
No probing, no feints, no wasted movements.
Qin Feng’s figure moved!
He stomped his foot hard on the solid alloy platform. The entire massive battle stage let out a dull groan and trembled violently!
A shockwave visible to the naked eye exploded outward from the point of impact, spreading like ripples!
His body, propelled by this unparalleled recoil, transformed into a black arrow shot from a bow. He tore through the air, leaving a long vacuum trail that seemed to warp light itself as he charged fearlessly toward Zhou Run a hundred meters away!
So fast!
So fast that he exceeded the tracking limits of ninety-nine percent of the students’ dynamic vision!
They could only see a blurry black shadow that vanished in a flash.
But Zhou Run, as an expert on the same level as Qin Feng, could see him clearly.
And precisely because he could see, the horror in his heart grew even more intense!
’What terrifying physical explosive power!’
The thought flashed through his mind.
He had anticipated that Qin Feng’s vitality index would be close to his own, but he had never imagined that his opponent’s pure physical strength could reach such an unbelievable level!
This wasn’t the kind of power a Martial Artist of his level should possess. It was more like a Starry Sky Giant Beast in human skin, launching the most primitive and savage of charges!
However, Zhou Run was, after all, the King who had dominated the Fourth Level Division for decades and experienced a thousand battles.
The shock lasted only for a moment.
His rich combat experience allowed him to make the correct judgment in an instant.
’Facing a charge with both power and speed, I absolutely cannot retreat! Once I lose the initiative and get completely suppressed by his momentum, there will be no chance of a comeback!’
"BREAK!"
Zhou Run let out a furious roar!
The Alloy Longsword in his hand let out a clear, sonorous hum.
He didn’t choose to defend. Instead, he also chose to—counter-attack!
He would use his strongest killing move to meet his opponent’s charge head-on—offense against offense, strength against strength!
However, he was fast, but Qin Feng was faster!
Just as Zhou Run mustered all his strength, preparing to unleash his ultimate sword strike, a cold, sharp point of light that seemed capable of freezing the soul itself had already crossed the distance, rapidly magnifying in his pupils!
It was the tip of a spear.
A simple and unadorned spear tip, with no glow of Spiritual Energy to embellish it.
But this single spear tip seemed to have condensed all the sharpness and killing Intent in the world, concentrating all of its power, speed, and Will into one point.
Before it, space itself seemed to lose all meaning, and time froze.
The Perfection-level killing move of the Second-level Spear Technique, *Cold Gleam*—[A Point of Cold Light]!
This was the ultimate killing move that Qin Feng had finally comprehended after half a year of secluded training and over fifty thousand high-intensity battles in the Imperial Arena!
It was a pure, ultimate, and unadorned—thrust!
Zhou Run’s scalp instantly went numb with terror!
A fatal sense of crisis originating from the depths of his soul made every hair on his body stand on end!