Chapter 49: Double Arena (Part 2)

Chapter 49: Double Arena (Part 2)

The pure white arena was now streaked with patches of red, and the previously steady 20-degree temperature had abruptly spiked into a scorching summer.

Yi Moshang and LEE could feel the heat intensifying, as if the air itself was turning into a furnace.

"Be careful, it's most likely a fire-type Spirit Rune."

Yi Moshang, a frequent visitor of forums, naturally guessed that ANKEN, after wind, water, and earth, had a high possibility of drawing a fire-type Spirit Rune.

However, he didn't expect that he would once again be the one directly facing ANKEN's new fire-type Spirit Rune.

Yi Moshang had been defeated by ANKEN's Blade of Wind and had served as a sparring partner for ANKEN before his challenge with Mark Xin, where he first witnessed the water-type Spirit Rune.

This time, he found himself once again facing the mysterious fire-type Spirit Rune in the double arena.

Yi Moshang wasn't sure if he was lucky or unlucky.

"What kind of fire-type Spirit Rune? Can he actually create fire with it?"

LEE asked rhetorically, still disdainful in his heart.

"Just a show-off."

He still didn't believe ANKEN could come up with anything special.

But in the next moment, several fireballs suddenly appeared, burning away his arrogance, confidence, and composure.

The red-hot fireballs materialized around them in an instant, and with the boost from the Flame Domain, the size of the fireballs increased, along with the temperature.

The red light shone on Yi Moshang and LEE's faces, and the intense heat even singed their hair.

Although startled, Yi Moshang and LEE instinctively dodged the fireballs right away.

With a few 'booms,' the fireballs hit the ground, causing violent explosions, destroying half of the arena in an instant.

Flames soared into the sky, and the heat surged.

The audience was stunned. "Wow, this fire show is insane!"

Yi Moshang continuously rolled on the ground to dodge the fireballs.

The red light reflected on his face, revealing his furrowed brows.

The destructive power of ANKEN's new Spirit Rune exceeded his expectations; it was no different from a bomb!

If only there was some water...

Damn it... the Water Runes are also ANKEN's, so there's no way to stop these fireballs right now!

Yi Moshang coughed as he inhaled a large amount of smoke while rolling, his perseverance constantly tested by the sustained high temperature and difficult breathing.

The red all around him resembled a hell on earth, as if it could completely swallow a person the next moment.

"Cough, cough..."

Yi Moshang bitterly said, "Is this really something a human can do?"

But even so, Yi Moshang refused to back down.

On the battlefield, showing fear is deadly. He cannot be afraid; he must... overcome his fear.

Yi Moshang's expression was resolute.

If he couldn't solve the problem, then he would solve the person who raised the problem.

As long as ANKEN lost his combat ability, these fireballs would be useless.

Yi Moshang picked up his gun, intending to shoot, but the fireball chasing him exploded violently, leaving his left arm a bloody mess.

He could no longer hold his gun steadily.

Compared to the Blade of Wind, the fireball's area of destruction was larger. Even a brush with its aftermath would leave a scar.

Pain assaulted his nerves as Yi Moshang breathed heavily.

He lifted his gaze, staring directly at ANKEN, who stood at the other end of the explosion, seemingly still at ease. A sense of frustration filled his heart.

He was an A-rank Awakened, the top freshman of Central University.

He couldn't afford to fail in the same place twice.

It's just fire and explosions, no big deal.

It's just pain, not fatal.

He could overcome it.

Without hesitation, Yi Moshang charged straight into the flames, no longer bothering to dodge.

Fireballs detonated all around him, the relentless heat searing his skin and making him grit his teeth.

Yet, he sprinted forward, ignoring the wounds on his body as if they didn't exist.

His only goal was to take ANKEN down!

Cang Cheng noticed Yi Moshang was no longer dodging, instead charging straight into the fireballs.

"Oh? Looks like he’s finally changing things up."

The fireballs had a wide area of effect, but for a high-level Awakened from the Canglan Star Region, the damage was limited and not fatal.

Yi Moshang clearly realized this and adjusted his strategy.

Cang Cheng continued using the Spirit Runes to control the fireballs, making them explode around Yi Moshang.

Yi Moshang, an A-rank Awakened, moved with incredible speed, and most of the fireball's damage was just superficial.

Though he looked battered, Yi Moshang stood his ground, refusing to back down.

Yi Moshang was drenched in blood, his skin ravaged by the fireball explosions, every inch of him scarred.

But his eyes burned with determination, as if he had been reborn from the flames.

With one last charge through the fire, Yi Moshang finally reached Cang Cheng, his gun raised.

"ANKEN, I've got you."

Yi Moshang gasped for breath, his entire body wracked with pain, his expression twitching in waves from the intensity of it.

But he was happy that he had finally, through his own efforts, gotten close to ANKEN.

The gap between him and ANKEN no longer felt insurmountable.

"You've come a long way."

Cang Cheng neither dodged nor hid, allowing Yi Moshang to point his gun at him.

To be able to face the fireball's damage head-on, Yi Moshang was a real hard-hitter.

Cang Cheng smiled, the corners of his mouth beneath the White Mask curving into a faint smile.

"But don’t forget, this is a duo match."

As soon as Cang Cheng finished speaking, a black blade silently pierced through Yi Moshang's body from behind.

Yi Moshang’s hand shook, and the gun clattered to the ground.

He turned around to see the person wearing the black mask slowly sheathing his sword, the sound of the blade against the scabbard emitting a soft noise.

Hilmeth's amber eyes complemented the backdrop of the sea of flames, seemingly cold yet exuding the most flamboyant colors.

Yi Moshang clutched his wound. "You killed Lee Instructor..."

"I shut him up for yakking too much," Hilmeth said coldly.

Yi Moshang couldn’t hold on any longer and hit the ground with a thud, losing consciousness temporarily.

"Winners, Team AM!

Rank swap! Team AM now stands at 5188."

Colorful virtual ribbons fell from above, and colorful confetti adorned Cang Cheng, adding bright colors to him.

The fire on the challenge arena did not fade, but now the once scorching flames became gentle, the dancing flames becoming part of the celebration, adorning the entire challenge stage with a heated atmosphere.

And the protagonists of this fiery celebration were Cang Cheng and Hilmeth.

Cang Cheng extended his fist toward Hilmeth.

"Thanks for the assist, Mo."

Hilmeth tapped Cang Cheng's fist. "You're welcome."

Before this challenge began, almost no one believed in the ANKEN duo. However, when ANKEN revealed his new Spirit Runes, more people started to support him.

"The flames are so cool! I knew ANKEN wouldn't let us down."

*

"Where can I buy ANKEN's Spirit Runes!!"

"ANKEN, you're my idol!!!"

...

Just a few days ago, we saw ANKEN using earth-based Spirit Runes, and now he's already unveiled a new one—everyone is buzzing with excitement.

Every time someone says ANKEN has run out of ideas, that he can only rely on his old creations and can't produce new Spirit Runes, ANKEN proves them wrong.

And here it is, a massive fire-based Spirit Rune detonated, engulfing half the arena in flames, its fiery hues bathing everything in a brilliant, almost sunset-like glow, casting a vivid and unique hue over the arena.

This Spirit Rune is so beautiful! And it's incredibly destructive too.

Man, I wish I could get my hands on that!

Host: "ANKEN never fails to surprise us. Facing the challenge from Tactical Master Lee, he chose to use a fire-based Spirit Rune! It's truly astonishing!"

"Now let's take a look at the situation with Tactical Master Lee and MO. Oh my! MO is actually using melee weapons against Lee? In all my time hosting, I've never seen such a matchup."

Within the frame, the black-masked figure holding a black longsword took advantage of the explosion from the fireball to close in on Lee unnoticed.

With the sound of metal clashing, Hilmeth's sword had already traded dozens of strikes with Lee.

His movements were swift and carried a sharp, cold beauty.

"Melee weapons? Their range is only a little over a meter, with a short reach. Do you really think using such an unorthodox weapon will trouble me? Young man, don't get too carried away with trying to look cool."

Lee appeared confident, but in the brief exchange, his hand had already been numbed by the impact.

This black-masked figure was no simple opponent.

Lee secretly prepared to activate the gravity rune on his gun.

But before he could, Hilmeth's left-side Spirit Rune concentrated, and a series of Blade of Wind shots were unleashed.

Unlike most runes in the Canglan Star Region that required weapon assistance, Cang Cheng's Spirit Runes could be used anytime, anywhere.

It was like how a regular gun was just a gun, but someone equipped with Cang Cheng's Spirit Runes was carrying a mini arsenal!

What the hell is this?!

How can these just materialize out of thin air?!

The arrogant and overconfident Lee had no understanding of the terror of Nature Spirit Runes. When the blades of wind closed in on him, he could only react instinctively.

With a few slicing sounds, Lee's body was cut with several wounds, bleeding but not fatal.

Thanks to his A-grade Spirit Warrior physique, Lee wasn't seriously hurt by the Grade B Spirit Runes.

But the tearing pain caused him to hesitate for a moment.

And in that instant, Hilmeth swung his sword ruthlessly. The flash of the blade passed by Lee's neck.

Lee was cut down, his body now split into two pieces: L and EE.

"Whoa! This MO is so strong."

"I thought he was just eye candy before… I was so wrong!"

"If you're strong, your partner has to be strong too."

"ANKEN's Spirit Runes combined with firearms are incredibly powerful."

"LEE still calls himself a tactical master. Him?"

……

"An A-grade Awakened duo lost just like that? I feel like I'm dreaming."

"Did you see how ANKEN wasn't afraid at all when he was being held at gunpoint on Molu Road by MO? He was so confident that MO would come to save him."

"The AM duo is totally in sync!"

……

"So the question arises again, how do we buy ANKEN's Spirit Runes?! I'm offering 3 million!"

"5 million!!"

"6 million!!"

"ANKEN, please open up the Spirit Rune authorization! PLEASE."

……

*

The B-level Awakened AM duo had beautifully defeated the A-level Awakened duo, causing a shockwave throughout all Awakened beings in the Canglan Star Region.

They suddenly realized that the Awakened level was not an insurmountable gap.

They also suddenly understood that the application of Nature Spirit Runes in battle could be so diverse—feint attacks, supplementary strikes, unexpected assaults…

The Nature Spirit Runes were truly powerful!

How had they never realized they could be used like this before?

The video of the live battle went viral across the star region and remained the top trending content even a week later.

In the forums, the cries of 'Where can we buy ANKEN's Spirit Runes?' increased, and Simon, as the distributor, had so many private messages that his software lagged and became unresponsive.

The demand for Spirit Runes far exceeded the supply, with only a lucky few able to obtain them.

Seeing this, Cang Cheng thought the time was right and discussed opening up the Spirit Rune copyright with Hilmeth.

Currently, the copyrights for all Nature Spirit Runes were not open, and only Cang Cheng could draw them. This meant Cang Cheng alone had to meet the demands of all Awakened beings in the star region, which was impossible.

Therefore, opening up the Spirit Rune copyrights to other Spirit Rune Masters so they could also draw Nature Spirit Runes was a necessary step.

This would also facilitate the spread of Nature Spirit Runes throughout the Canglan Star Region.

"I plan to start by opening the copyrights for the C-grade Blade of Wind, Wind Wing runes, and Wind Wall rune. What do you think, Hilmeth?"

Hilmeth agreed, "Yes. You have quite a number of Spirit Runes at hand now. Release the copyrights for these three and see how the market responds. Even if it doesn't go well, it won't cause you significant losses."

"Hilmeth, how much do you think we should charge for the copyright?"

"A production fee of 50,000, and 50% for sales royalties."

"Alright, let's do as you say."

Cang Cheng filled in the numbers on the authorization document as instructed.

This means that for every extra Spirit Rune sold, Cang Cheng will receive half of the fee. And for each Spirit Rune completed by a Spirit Rune Master, they will need to pay Cang Cheng a royalty fee of 50,000.

"I wonder if anyone in the Canglan Star Region can even draw Wind Spirit Runes. These runes are not like formula runes, where you can draw them just by learning the formula. You need to have an intuition for nature."

"Why not let me try drawing these three Wind Spirit Runes?"

Hilmeth took out a standard Spirit Runes board and handed it to Cang Cheng. "Would you teach me, Teacher Cang Cheng?"

When Hilmeth said this, his expression was serious, but the word "teacher" was spoken softly, making it sound somewhat flirtatious.

It felt like a feather tickling him.

Cang Cheng was slightly stunned by Hilmeth's "teacher" and only came to his senses after a moment.

"Sure thing."

He took Hilmeth's Spirit Rune board and then extended his hand. "Can I have your hand?"

Hilmeth obediently placed his hand into Cang Cheng's small palm.

Their hands overlapped, his larger one enveloping Cang Cheng's smaller one, almost like they were holding hands.

"Here you are."

Hilmeth said calmly on the surface, but the tip of his tail, which he was trying to hide, was wagging wildly.

Cang Cheng rotated his hand 180 degrees and pressed his index finger against Hilmeth's, gathering a fluorescent blue magic at the fingertips.

"Feel the energy flowing through you..."

Cang Cheng’s entire focus was on teaching Hilmeth how to draw Spirit Runes. His gaze was fixed downward, and his expression was intensely serious.

Unbeknownst to Cang Cheng, Hilmeth’s attention was mostly on the side of Cang Cheng’s face.

While Cang Cheng was fully engrossed in teaching, Hilmeth couldn’t help but stare at him.

Time seemed to stand still, but someone’s heart raced.

*

"ANKEN has just authorized the Wind Spirit Runes? Hurry and get the Spirit Rune Masters to learn it right away! Whoever can craft these runes will get a 100,000 reward from me!"

"Who’s selling the Wind Spirit Runes? I’ll buy them! Can’t get the ones made by ANKEN? I’ll take a copy, alright?"

"I’ll pay 500,000 for a Blade of Wind Spirit Runic Plate!"

"600,000!"

"700,000!"

"1,000,000! Deliver it by the end of the day, or it’s off the table."

The Awakened had been coveting ANKEN’s Spirit Runes for a long time, but until now, only ANKEN himself could craft them, as he hadn’t granted authorization to others.

With the authorization now open, all Spirit Rune Masters could begin crafting the Wind Spirit Runes, which had taken the summer by storm. How could the Awakened not be excited?

Suddenly, the once-overlooked Spirit Rune Masters found themselves under the intense scrutiny of countless pairs of eager eyes, glowing like spotlights.

This is your moment to shine, Spirit Rune Masters—don’t let them down!

Hurry up and draw the Wind Spirit Runes!

Melanie was an ordinary Grade B Spirit Rune Master. After joining the mercenary group, she barely made a dent, often going unnoticed. Every day, she churned out the same old auxiliary Spirit Runes, never getting much attention.

However, on this day, just as Melanie was about to make another auxiliary Spirit Rune as she did every day, the captain rushed in and said solemnly:

“Spirit Rune Master Melanie, we need you to research and draw ANKEN’s Wind Spirit Runes right now. For now, focus solely on learning how to draw the Wind Spirit Runes. You don’t need to worry about any other runes.”

Melanie had never been so valued by the captain before. She was flustered and surprised.

She was just a small Spirit Rune Master, why would the captain come to her?

“Me?”

“Yes, you. These Wind Spirit Runes have significant strategic importance to us. I hope you can draw them as soon as possible.”

“Sure, I’ll do my best.”

Melanie opened her lightbrain and browsed the information about these runes.

The creator was ANKEN? Seemed like a newcomer.

The inspiration came from the natural wind—such a unique and unexpected source.

The formula for this rune didn’t follow a standard formula?

Melanie blinked twice in disbelief.

This rune wasn’t a formula rune? The pattern looked like wind claw marks?

How innovative!

Melanie became very curious about this rune, so she tried to draw the new pattern following the design on the rune plate.

With a loud ‘BOOM,’ the Spirit Runes plate exploded—just as expected.

Melanie concentrated and continued to draw, then another ‘BOOM’ echoed as the rune plate exploded again.

Undeterred, she tried again, but another ‘BOOM’ echoed as the plate exploded yet again.

“Wow, this actually has some difficulty. Let’s see how many rune plates this rune will make me explode.”

In this way, Melanie spent the entire night exploding rune plates, and she became utterly exhausted.

She rubbed her eyes, planning to go out for a break and clear her mind, when a morning breeze lifted her long hair.

Melanie looked at her hair.

Wind…

Wind!

Free wind.

Suddenly, it clicked—she understood the essence of the wind, its freedom, its unpredictability.

Melanie hurried back and drew the Blade of Wind rune plate again. This time, the plate remained intact, and the rune took shape perfectly.

“Hahahaha, I succeeded in drawing it!!”

Melanie, after she finished laughing, picked up the Spirit Runes tablet and was ready to test it out.

After inputting her spiritual energy into the Spirit Runes tablet, a small, weak Blade of Wind about 5 cm long formed in front of her, scratching the ground lightly.

?

What happened to the 30 cm-wide Blade of Wind from the video?

The one that could slice through iron like butter?

Why is it so much weaker now?

Melanie tried again, but the Wind Blade runes she created still didn’t match the video’s results.

Even when using the same Spirit Runes, the effects varied depending on the creator.

In the past, Spirit Rune Masters mostly focused on creating support runes, so this gap wasn’t very noticeable, but when it came to a brand new offensive Spirit Rune, the differences in performance were huge.

Melanie’s eyes were resolute.

She must draw a Spirit Rune that had the same effect as the one in the video!

Melanie, who had grown numb to drawing Spirit Runes, rediscovered her passion.

And on this day, many Spirit Rune Masters also found their direction for effort again, no longer producing Spirit Runes with the same effects day after day in a dull manner.

Cang Cheng's Spirit Runes were beginning to change the Spirit Runes world, altering the perceptions of the Awakened.