"Hm?"
For the first time, a sound of surprise escaped Kro’s mouth.
He clearly hadn’t expected this seemingly unremarkable opponent to execute such a refined counter in an instant.
It was already too late for him to retract his giant axe.
SQUELCH!
The spear’s edge landed squarely on his wrist.
The rotting flesh was instantly sliced open.
Dark green ooze sprayed out.
However, after slicing through the flesh, the spear’s edge was stopped by his tough, mutated bone.
It only left a wound deep enough to see bone but failed to sever his wrist.
"A little... interesting..."
Instead of being alarmed, Kro grew enraged. The mining drill on his other arm let out a piercing shriek as it shot viciously toward Qin Feng’s head.
His strike not being a complete success, Qin Feng didn’t press his advantage.
He tapped his toes hard against the ground and used the momentum to retreat rapidly. In an instant, he had put a dozen meters between them, returning to a safe distance.
The first exchange was a draw.
A glimmer of hope was rekindled in the eyes of all the spectating students.
’Qin Feng... He can actually hurt that monster!’
Kro glanced at the wound on his wrist. Countless tiny tendrils of flesh were already squirming and growing at a visible rate, attempting to heal the gash.
"Your spear work... is quite good..."
he rasped, his voice tinged with cruel excitement.
"Then... let’s see... how many of my attacks... you can withstand!"
BOOM!
Kro’s massive body charged forward once more.
This time, there was no more contempt in his attack. He brandished his giant axe and drill simultaneously, creating an impenetrable storm of deadly steel that swept frenziedly toward Qin Feng.
Qin Feng’s gaze was more focused than ever before.
Amidst the furious onslaught, his figure was like a lone skiff on a stormy sea.
He no longer chose to meet the attacks head-on, instead pushing his Body Technique to its absolute limit.
Qin Feng’s footwork became unpredictable.
At times he moved forward, at times backward, now left, now right.
Every step was perfectly placed, every dodge exquisitely timed.
He was like a master dancer, performing a dance of death on a razor’s edge.
The Long Spear in his hands transformed into a thousand phantoms.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The dense, staccato sounds of metal striking metal merged into a continuous roar, like a torrential downpour.
He used the tip of his spear to repeatedly strike the trajectories of the axe and drill, each tap a precise deflection, using his own strength to parry and divert his opponent’s furious attacks.
Using skill to overcome raw power!
He was actually managing to block Kro’s storm of attacks, relying entirely on his god-like spear work and footwork!
Everyone on the battlefield was stunned.
They couldn’t imagine a person’s skill with a spear could reach such a level.
’And isn’t Qin Feng’s life force index a little too high?’
’It’s only been a month, yet his speed and strength are already enough to go toe-to-toe with a monster like Kro.’
"ROAR...!"
Kro roared with insane fury.
His attacks became faster and more ferocious.
Gradually, the pressure on Qin Feng began to mount.
His room to maneuver was shrinking by the second.
The power armor’s energy readings were also dropping rapidly.
CLANG!
Another violent collision.
The impact sent Qin Feng sliding back several meters before he could regain his footing.
His arm, holding the Long Spear, had already started to tremble slightly.
The power armor’s Amplification, after all, had its limits.
In the face of such a disparity in raw strength, all technique seemed to pale in comparison.
"DIE!"
Kro seized the fleeting opportunity.
He raised his giant axe high. Its blade, wreathed in a dark green, decay-scented energy, came crashing down on Qin Feng with world-splitting momentum!
This strike cut off all of Qin Feng’s escape routes.
It was a guaranteed killing blow!
Everyone’s heart leaped into their throats.
In that instant between life and death.
The look in Qin Feng’s eyes, which had remained perfectly calm until now, suddenly changed.
In that instant, his world seemed to stand still.
In his eyes, the descending giant axe became unbelievably slow.
Kro’s savage expression, the swirling dust, the terrified eyes of his teammates in the distance—all of it faded into a motionless backdrop.
His mind became a clear, empty void.
A cool, vast Intent poured into his sea of consciousness from some unseen place.
The hundreds of battles he had fought in the Imperial Arena over the past month; the insights into Body Technique gained from sparring with Zhou Yu; every piece of guidance from Professor Gu Yue; and the life-or-death crisis he now faced...
At this moment, all his insights, all his experience, and all his skills fused into a single, perfect whole.
His body reacted faster than his mind could think.
He made no attempt to dodge.
Instead, he met the descending axe by taking half a step forward.
He abruptly retracted his Long Spear, then thrust it out again with an unprecedented, ultimate speed.
This thrust had no brilliant light, no impressive momentum.
There was only pure, unadulterated speed that surpassed all limits.
So fast it seemed it could outpace light itself.
So fast a shadow would not have time to react.
His killing move—Flowing Light Chasing Shadow!
PFFT—
The nearly inaudible sound of a blade piercing flesh.
In the final instant before the giant axe could land on Qin Feng’s head.
The iron-gray Long Spear, though launched second, struck first. It precisely pierced through Kro’s gaping eye socket and exited from the back of his skull.
Time seemed to freeze at that moment.
Kro’s massive body froze in place.
The giant axe, held high and less than ten centimeters from Qin Feng’s head, also froze in mid-air.
The frenzied, savage expression on his face froze.
A hint of disbelief, a hint of relief, and a hint of bewilderment appeared on his rotten face.
He slowly lowered his head to look at the straight-backed Steel Warrior before him, Long Spear in hand.
"Such... a fast... spear..."
he rasped, using the last of his strength to utter those few words.
Then, the last glimmer of light in his eyes faded completely.
Expressionless, Qin Feng twisted his wrist and withdrew his Long Spear.
BOOM—
Kro’s mountain of a body, now without support, crashed backward. It slammed heavily onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust and debris.
The battle was over.
Qin Feng, holding his Alloy Long Spear, backed away from Kro’s fallen body. He panted heavily, his eyes still fixed on Kro.
Nagash Followers had extremely strong life forces, and Qin Feng suspected Kro might be feigning death.
After waiting cautiously for over three minutes, Qin Feng delivered one more strike to the body just to be sure, then finally let out a sigh of relief.