After the dust settled, both Mira and the Shadowfang had taken a few steps back and stood there with incredulous looks on their faces. However, the latter was absolutely flabbergasted.
'What the hell?! How is her physical body so strong?!' The Shadowfang inwardly exclaimed, his leg still trembling from the clash. 'That's no damn fox! That's a fucking Dragon! Where'd this monster crawl out from?!'
The beast imagined a scene where Mira had the same cultivation as it and shuddered. He realized that he would've been nothing more than meatpaste if that was the case.
'...I have to kill her.' He concluded as killing intent leaked out of his eyes. 'If she grows up, she'll be unparalleled. There won't be anyone on this continent, nay, the world, that could stop her.'
On the other side, Mira's lips curled up. She waved her hand, encasing the other 12 beasts in ice before they could blink, and put away her scythe.
Pounding her fists together, she casually walked toward her opponent. "Do your best to entertain me, beast," Mira said with a smirk, awakening the Shadowfang.
BOOM!
She burst forward and smashed her fist into its snout, sending it tumbling a few meters.
Sensing danger, it hurriedly fled into the shadows.
An explosion happened just where it was, with Mira stomping on the ground. Cracks spread throughout the arena, only for a small crater to form as she disappeared again.
"You think you can hide from me?!" The Shadowfang shivered, hearing an icy cold voice behind it, followed by a crushing blow to its spine. It roared out in pain before it released a burst of darkness and swept around to face the ten-tailed fox.
"Enough!" It yelled. "You think you can toy with me, woma-"
Mira suddenly appeared beneath it with a swift uppercut, sending it flying.
"Save your breath, worm, or you may lose it for good." Mira chuckled while staring at the beast in contempt. Seeing the rising anger in its eyes, Mira put both hands behind her back and slowly wandered around the arena.
"This isn't interesting." She muttered, though not soft enough for everyone not to hear her. "You're so weak that I could beat you with my hands behind my back. I expected more from a Rank 9 beast, but I guess this is all you amount to."
The beast growled with all the hairs on its back rising. 'She's right. Words are unneeded at this point. All that matters is her death.' Killing intent burst forth as it suddenly sank into the shadows, dashing from one to another before it appeared behind Mira.
'I'll end this in a single strike!' With its body, especially its claws, coated in darkness, it lunged from the ground, aiming for Mira's neck.
However, before it could even he could reach his target, an ice-blue fluffy tail appeared in his way. He sneered and ignored it until that very tail smashed into his face, sending him back to the ground.
A resounding crack resonated through the arena. The audience looked toward the source and saw that the Shadowfang's face was broken in several areas.
"Oh?" Mira's contemptuous voice rang out. She crossed her arms and walked over toward its fallen form. "Did I forget to mention my tails are stronger than my fists?"
"Bitch!" The Shadowfang roared and pumped massive amounts of Qi into its back legs. It disappeared from those weaker than it as it shot forward, but Mira's eyes tracked it calmly. "I'll kill you!" It swiped its claws at Mira's neck, but she raised her guard to block.
However, it wasn't close to done yet. As if it were a street brawl, repeatedly attacked with all its might.
Mira dodged, countered, and blocked as many attacks as she could, but it seemed she had truly enraged the guy as he managed to land quite a few, covering her body in wounds. Most healed within a few seconds, but with how many times he attacked in a second, to the untrained eye, it looked like she was getting more and more injured.
A fine mist of blood hung in the air as they tried to rip each other apart but to no avail. Both their vitalities were abnormally large. Minor injuries didn't bother either one of them.
Then, without warning, the tempo changed.
Mira's movements, which had been deliberately slow, almost teasing, sharpened. Martial Manifestation coated her entire body, even creating a domain around her that put immense pressure on the beast.
"It's time to end this and bring out your friends," Mira muttered, sending shivers down the Shadowfang's spine.
Suddenly, time seemed to slow down for it as a looming, rotting scent permeated throughout the area. It was as if he was transported to a graveyard and was about to be thrown in a ditch.
'...Fuck.' That's the only thought the Shadowfang could have as it felt its imminent demise.
Circulating Qi and Martial Manifestation throughout her entire body, Mira stomped on the ground, tightened all her muscles, and launched a punch releasing all that energy. Her bones and muscles creaked under the pressure, but instantly, a burst of highly condensed energy shot out of her and headed for the beast's chest.
It hardly had a chance to realize what was going on before everything went black, and it fell to the ground with a thud.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A series of explosions followed its death, causing a shower of blood, guts, and dust to fall on the arena. Mira waved her hand, clearing the area to get a good look at her opponent's demise or what was left of it.
All that was left of its body was a chunk of meat with a large hole through it. The rest was scattered around the arena.
The crowd turned silent, not expecting this outcome. Even Aelina and the Elders stood there, rooted to the ground with wide eyes. Nobody could believe what just happened!
It was one thing to kill a Rank 9 beast as a 1st Stage Soul Transformation Realm cultivator, but it was another to do it so fast that the arrays in place couldn't even save it!
The silence was deafening, as if a heavy blanket that smothered the previous cheers and gasps had crushed them.
A few moments later, a slow, hesitant clapping cut through, starting from one corner of the stands, picking up momentum until it cascaded into a thunderous applause. They weren't just clapping for the spectacle of the fight or the sheer power displayed; it was for the birth of a legend—Mira, the fox with the force of a dragon.
Aelina allowed everyone to have their moment, but a sly smirk had crept up on her face.
'Yes! This is exactly what I want! Show off your strength, Mira! Show that there's no better person to be the Sect's Prime Disciple!' was what was going through her mind. This was a monumental moment, not just for the Sect, but for the history of the Western Continent!
Nobody, not even in myths and legends, could cross an entire Realm in strength from Soul Transformation to Mortal Shedding(Rank 9). It was simply unheard of, and Aelina wanted her disciples to etch this scene into their minds.
Not only had Mira fought against one as if they were equals, but she had even killed it!
It took a few minutes, but eventually, the crowd settled down, though they were still much louder than before all the cheering.
Aelina walked forward and waved her hand, silencing everyone. She didn't even bother to address Mira's feat, as her actions spoke louder than any word could describe. "Would you like to move on to the next stage, Mira?"
Mira glanced at the fallen Shadowfang one last time before she looked up at Aelina and nodded.
"Good!" Aelina beamed. "Send in two more Low-Stage Rank 9 Shadowfangs!" She declared, not giving Mira any more of a break.
Hearing that, Mira took out her scythe again and prepared to face them.
Her body might be strong, but she didn't think she could enter a brawl like that with two Rank 9 beasts without facing the consequences. She also got a good feel for her strength and was able to release some of the bottled-up emotions that were plaguing her.
'Mmhm. Nothing's better to soothe the soul than beating a strong opponent to death.' She nodded a few times as the air around her became much calmer, not quite as chaotic.
However, she didn't have much time to revel in this feeling as the dozen beasts she had frozen earlier were released, and two new monstrous auras appeared. The two Shadowfangs walked into the arena, a lot more cautious than their predecessors, before their senses picked up on something.
Their fallen brethren.
Sensing the unmistakable aura of their brother from that mangled corpse, their eyes widened only to be replaced with anger. But they kept their cool. If one of them died, then it meant they could too.
