"Impossible!"
Andrew exclaimed, unable to believe what he had just seen. He glanced over to Alex, only to see him sit forward with both hands clasped under his chin.
"Pay attention." Alex simply said, focusing on what was happening to his clone.
He couldn't remember the last time he was left surprised by someone of a similar strength stat to him. 'Is this what Drakmor was talking about…?' Alex wasn't sure.
'His records didn't make him out to be that much of a genius. Then again, those who actually know him aren't all that surprised by the move he just pulled. How far will this actually go…?'
Alex was genuinely curious.
"Did you see that move?!" The spectators roared at the top of their lungs. "That's the Young Master for you!"
Alex's clone managed to create a lot of distance between himself and the Young Master. To no one's surprise, Chen did not capitalise on the advantage he had made.
Rising to his feet, Alex pointed his hand towards his spear, making it fly straight into his hand. "Why didn't you follow up on that attack?" he asked, and once more, the arena grew silent.
"Oh, come on." Chen chuckled, swinging his sword around. "They might not have noticed, but I did. Had I pressed on, you would have pulled a surprise of your own."
"..."
Alex was mildly shocked. 'He even saw through that…?' The Young Master finally got his undivided attention. 'There's more to this fella than meets the eye…'
There was nothing else to say. However, the crowd were vividly confused by what they heard. Most could not even follow what transpired earlier. But to think Alex had a counter ready had Chen made a follow-up left them speechless.
The two fighters brandished their weapons once more, taking on their fighting stance. With a burst of speed that left visible cracks on the stage, they closed the distance once more.
CLANG…!
This time, the Young Master clashed with Alex's spear head-on, generating a whirlwind that shook the entire stage, more so than what Alex and Andrew had done earlier.
'There's no way he's more skilled than a fully realised veilwalker.' Alex thought with a frown, separating from the Young Master.
He spun his spear again and closed in with a series of rapid thrusts in quick succession, forcing Chen to distance himself while defending.
Alex's reach was farther than Chen's. However, the Young Master skilfully deflected all his thrusts and countered with strikes on his own, forcing Alex to balance his lunge with defensive spins of his spear's shaft.
Within a second, Alex and Chen had exchanged several high-speed strikes across the arena stage, leaving the spectators wide-mouthed. Each strike dealt rippled through the arena ground, the shockwaves hitting the protective shields in a continuous bombardment.
'This is really a first.' Alex noticed with a serious gaze. 'Even using most of my spear skills isn't enough to overwhelm him. He doesn't even look pressured.'
The Young Master had a confident smirk on his face as he continuously parried Alex's rapid assaults. His sword technique was flawless and minimalised; no movement was wasted.
'Is this what we call a peerless genius?' Alex began to wonder. 'I've never thought about how good a hunter I would have been had I not been a veilwalker…'
There was no way of knowing, and it didn't matter at this point. Things were already what they were; there was no going back.
"Come on, Mr. Alexander." Chen suddenly said in the midst of their rapid exchange. "This can't be everything, right?!"
He was right… Alex may have been taken off guard at the beginning of this fight, but he was no longer distracted.
Acknowledging the words of the Young Master, Alex executed the Serpent Coil technique. With adept mastery, he made a forward lunge, prompting the Young Master to respond.
However, the spear coiled mid-motion, wrapping around Chen's blade with the intention of disarming him. It was a technique the Young Master had no problem countering.
"This can't be—" Chen's words were cut short when Alex did the unexpected.
The moment Chen attempted to make his move, Alex abandoned his spear that was still coiled around the sword and closed in.
Abruptly appearing right in Chen's face, Alex headbutted the Young Master right on the nose, producing a sickening crunch that was heard across the arena.
"Mm!"
Chen groaned at the unexpected assault, his head whipping back from the force. A knee to the ribs, an uppercut to the jaw, and finally, a kick to the gut sent the Young Master rolling across the stage until he came to a stop several meters away.
"..."
The arena went silent as the spectators gawked at the unbelievable sight before them. They looked at the Young Master on the ground, and then at Alex, who remained in his kicking pose, his expression dead serious.
None of them had ever believed the Young Master could be defeated, and while the fight was far from over, seeing him on the ground shattered the invincible image they had of him.
"T-this can't be…"
An elder actually muttered, the sheer disbelief in his eyes nearly making his eyes pop out. But the truth was right in front of him.
"This isn't over, Elder Ren." Another elder assured. "The Young Master hasn't gone all out…"
"Indeed…"
Back on stage, Chen slowly got back to his feet, wiping the trail of blood from his nose. There was no burning hatred or unwillingness in his eyes.
The Young Master rather had a wide grin on his face, his eyes burning with the desire for more. "That was good, Alexander. But I'm afraid it won't be enough!"
As soon as those words left his lips, he exploded with a powerful burst of speed, swiftly arriving before a prepared Alex. Weapons were discarded as this had just turned into a fist fight.
With a series of hand strikes and kicks that forced Alexander back, Chen pressed on as he and Alex exchanged multiple attacks in seconds.
Slap!
Suddenly, Alex took an unexpected strike to the side of his head, taking him by surprise.
Following that attack, Chen executed a combination of moves, delivering a series of blows to the head, the shoulders, the gut and then a leg sweep, exposing Alex to a final blow.
The Young Master did not hesitate and dealt the same strike he received from Alex. However, before that strike landed, Alex managed to cross his arms, defending against the kick.
Even then, the force behind it dealt the intended damage, sending him flying across the stage like a ragdoll.