Chapter 1021
Chapter 1021 - 1007: Duel to the Death
1,422 words
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8 min read
He took a deep breath and stepped forward, Lu Ping’an entered the battlefield.
However, the wind that greeted him seemed to be filled with the scent of blood.
What astonished him even more was that this time, he actually experienced the long-forgotten sensation of nervousness.
He opened his eyes, and in the air, what blurred was a silent intent to kill.
The moment Lu Ping’an stepped in, at least four targets had set their sights on him.
But what surprised him remained...
"... I, I’m actually feeling fear?"
Lu Ping’an was somewhat baffled when he noticed his own body, trembling from the hostility and murderous intent.
He touched his chin, trying to find a reason...
Clearly, in the eyes of others, hesitating upon entering the battlefield was either absent-mindedness or charging up a powerful move.
In his moment of hesitation, the Shadow Walk Monk materialized, delivering an upward kick from below.
That Fighter, adept in Shadow Walk, had been lurking until now, finally choosing to attack the "soft persimmon."
When he completed the surprise attack, moving into range, his face showed delight... At such a distance, he was confident he could take down a 2-tier Fighter in one strike.
"... Be quiet!"
His real body, Shadow, and the Shadow Clone were all simultaneously restrained by one hand!
A pull and a tug, the Clone merged back together, followed by a swing and a smash...
The Shadow Walk Monk was pressed down onto the deck, and although the Divinely fortified ship did not break apart, the sound of bones shattering was unmistakably clear.
Obviously, this fellow thought he could pick off a little fish first, only to find he’d encountered a man-eating shark.
"... Really, I told you to keep quiet." This time, Lu Ping’an had no intention of holding back.
Lu Ping’an sat squarely on his opponent’s body, contemplating while also taking advantage of the combat system.
Rule 2, Duelists must engage one-on-one, third parties are not allowed to intervene before the Duel has concluded.
And in every festival, this rule would be exploited.
When all the Beasts are thrown into the Cage, if they possess sufficient wisdom, they would not attack each other immediately, but instead, prioritize self-preservation.
Survive first, ensure one’s own safety, then consider development and the future.
"... If you want to die, then keep struggling."
With Lu Ping’an’s words, the unfortunate Monk dared not move any longer.
In fact, his plan was also to use Rule 2, to forcibly drag Lu Ping’an, the "2-tier martial monk," into a one-on-one Duel, thus as long as he could prolong the match, he would naturally be relatively safe.
But unexpectedly, he turned into a mat for his opponent...
"Interesting..."
Lu Ping’an looked around, some areas had broken into fights, others were still in a standoff, and where Halos converged, the sounds of hacking and explosions were endless.
Listening to the combat noises close by and the explosions transmitted over, Lu Ping’an’s rare excitement once again settled into calmness.
This was still the battlefield, the one he was most familiar with.
So, why did he initially feel nervous? Even a bit of fear and unease?
"... It turns out, Big Cat was right, I did rely too much on heavy armor and the combat system..."
The answer was quite simple, he just needed to admit it. The past, behind layers of thick armor and now, unarmed and facing a violent thug, were completely different matters.
But still, this was just an unimportant external factor...
"... It turns out, I actually have a will to live..."
The fearless are ignorant, and those who don’t care about their own lives can endure all consequences, one such unlucky person wouldn’t know what nervousness or anxiety is.
The more one cares, the shakier the hands become...
Lu Ping’an took a deep breath, without armor and the disguise of Protection, he returned once again to the familiar yet strange battlefield.
Children’s emotions are genuine because they are uncorrupted. The brave may simply not know what fear is. As Lu Ping’an truly experienced the "sweetness" of life, perhaps, he could have more...
"...So, let’s wager our lives against each other."
The somewhat excited emotion once again calmed down, and when Lu Ping’an re-entered battle mode, he seemed to have returned to yesterday, back to being the joyful player who dared to challenge large organizations with only 0-tier and 1-tier Magic Plants.
Life is precious, each of us has only one, so let’s bet everything on it, making this sole occurrence shine more brilliantly, be more valuable...."
Lu Ping’an stood up, he had no intention of harvesting the poor sod beneath him... Meaningless slaughter had no benefit, and since both time and space were on a tight thread, valuable prey was always limited.
The young man calmly walked towards the southwest, where there seemed to be one...
A giant lizard Beastman burst out, with two unfortunate competitors in tow, one each on his right claw and tail.
This was a monster that could go straight into a horror movie without makeup.
The massive body was at least three meters tall, and the snake-like triangular head looked both terrifying and comical.
What was most prominent about them was their size; with their tails, they could well be six or seven meters tall when standing upright.
Their thick scales shimmered with a black, oily sheen, which for Fighters who relied on close combat, was not good news.
Coupled with the scent of a Battle Aura from a Fighter above third-tier, this obvious slaughterer of the battlefield also seemed to be the Strongman of the area.
"Little thing, get lost."
It seemed, however, that his language ability appeared to have significantly degenerated along with the evolution of his Talent Abilities.
Confronted with this beast that could completely obscure his view, Lu Ping’an simply assumed a fighting stance in silence..... He felt something was off, then still reverted to his habitually lazy posture.
He stretched out his right hand, palm facing inwards, with his four fingers continuously retracting, accompanied by a half-smiling expression, rendering words completely unnecessary.
The giant lizard dropped the two useless competitors and lunged at him ferociously.
The massive body left Lu Ping’an no room to retreat, and indeed, the truly deadly move was the venomous tail sweep!
The sound of the high-speed wind was extremely lethal; if you were entirely distracted by the Giant monster in front, then that upwards sweeping tail would skewer you like kebab.
This, perhaps, was a species advantage, after all, it was part of his Body...
Someone was whipped away directly.
He crashed heavily into the wall, causing even the reinforced wall to crack.
He spat out a large mouthful of blood, his face full of disbelief.
".....What, what is this?!"
And Lu Ping’an stroked his chin, seemingly with some helplessness.... The moment he released control, the Vines tentacles that began to spread beneath him were like boundless shadows.
"Ugh, my tentacles? Well, yes, this is my half-body, part of my Body."
The Parasitic Tree’s ability might not be usable, but the "symbiotic Demon Plant" that has permanently transformed Lu Ping’an’s Body, was in fact mature.
Countless Vines spread and twisted around Lu Ping’an’s body. He wasn’t lying; they were part of his body, extensions of his limbs, an "extra armament" that required no consideration for survival or death.
"Try this punch....."
Assuming a casual stance, "Punch Boxing" was ready to erupt.
And at the forefront of his arm, numerous Vines began to coil, that tiny fist expanding at least a hundredfold in that instant!
And when the Flame began to engulf it, still that distinctly supernatural golden blaze, the lizard martial monk shouted out in bewilderment and rage, the very words his opponent had guessed he would shout earlier.
"You, you’re cheating!"
And the Flame-enveloped Heavy-boxing fist, which was larger than a person, had already slammed down hard.
The brute strength tailored for the Giant Beast combined with Holy Flame, this "Flame Punch" strike directly KO’d the opponent on the spot.
"Hey hey hey, why so fragile...."
Lu Ping’an was somewhat disappointed; he hadn’t even tested the limits of this strike before the opponent had already lost consciousness, thus directly conceding defeat.
Lu Ping’an wanted to try his "Tentacle (Martial) Path"...
"Not to worry, aren’t there plenty more targets over there?"
— End of Chapter 1021 —