This battle was still in its infancy.
It was a free-for-all. Nobody knew what their opponents' strengths were, so they were not only probing each other, but also trying to eliminate those who were most threatening.
However, this was not a battle where those unworthy could slip by because they managed to eliminate those who were meant to pass.
No, in a place like this, only the worthy could achieve victory, no matter what they faced.
The crowd was already roaring. There were many individual fights taking place that were more than worth watching. Their attention went from place to place, seeing everything there was to see. It really gave them no time at all to feel bored.
Most of those battles were far away from August. His location was both lucky and unlucky in that there were really only people below his level around him.
Even those he saw as a threat were only seen as such because of the environment. If it was just him against them, he'd be able to take them down without a problem.
But perhaps that was a good thing.
It hadn't been mentioned yet because August never put much thought into it, but he wasn't that strong.
He was still at the peak of 3rd class, and while that was monstrous for someone who only recently turned ten, this was a competition for everyone under a hundred years old.
There were several geniuses here who'd already passed the 4th class boundary. And, when it came to the nobles, all of them were at that level.
August had yet to completely become someone who could deal with them, so for him to spawn in an area where he could first develop his skills was actually more of a boon than anything else.
When August hit 4th class, he would be an unstoppable force. Reaching that level was one of his main priorities after this round ended.
Nevertheless, Jason's transformation attracted quite a lot of attention. He was part of the first wave to do so, and in his area, he was the only one.
It was up to August to take him down and move on to more challenging fights, but compared to others, his job was easy.
On the complete opposite side of the arena, there were three specific geniuses who made it into the qualification round before anyone else.
When they arrived at their testing facilities, they set precedents that others couldn't hope to match.
Of those who had passed the qualification exam, they were some of only ten who were above the 4th class level.
And that…
…surprisingly wasn't as scary to their competitors as they expected.
On August's side, everyone was fighting small battles apart from each other. For them, on the other hand, it was more than that.
There were at least twenty people attacking each of them, all of whom were in their dragon forms.
They didn't reveal their own true forms quite yet, and though they were under quite a lot of stress, they didn't plan to do so any time soon.
Boom!
One explosion knocked ten dragons back. All of them were covered in blood as their scales were pierced, but none of them gave up.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
It was all fire released from the girl who caused the damage, yet, her fire seemed to take physical form.
Every time she swept her claws, shards of pure heat compressed into projectiles that seemed like they were made of metal.
And when they struck, people were harmed. If she wasn't holding back, it was almost guaranteed that her enemies would have already died.
Nearby, there was a similar scene taking place in an icier environment. It was a man this time, somewhere in his late twenties.
He was surrounded by sculptures. The dragons who charged at
him found their bodies intruded by cold. Their scales did
nothing to protect them and merely froze along with
everything else. Even when they were eventually melted and
resuscitated, they'd sustain injuries that would need a long
time to heal.
The two of them were obviously eyeing each other, but now
wasn't the time for them to fight.
Rather, they were united in their goal.
This stage could only be passed by those who had the ability.
The rules said fifty people would make it to the heir wars, but
they didn't see fifty people who were worthy of that privilege.
Yes, they were also commoners. Yes, they understood the
struggles of their peers and the motivation that kept them
fighting.
But the heir wars weren't a thing so they could prove
themselves or gain opportunities.
No. This was a place from where the future Dragon Emperor
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})would be born. Rabble couldn't be allowed into the competition,
no matter how compelling or heartbreaking their stories were.
These two, along with their 4th class fellows, had made it their
mission to eliminate ninety percent of the arena at the very
least.
And since they were almost done cleaning out their side…
…people like August, who were focused on their own battles,
would soon be enveloped in the storm.
Whether they liked it or not.
***
At this point, one could begin to wonder.
Where was Melania?
She had also been transported to the arena, and she was also
fighting, but August hadn't seen her, nor had she been involved
in the clash of 4th-class dragons.
Melania was also fortunate in her own way.
Just like August, she spawned in a place that mostly had others
on a similar level as her, and, since the fighting style she
developed was quite…unique, she'd managed to evade the
attention of those who were too strong for a very long time.
Melania could be best described as a trapper.
It was a rare battle style even among humans and barely
existed among dragons. Those who used it were usually sages
and scholars who focused more on gaining knowledge than
battling.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})Melania wasn't a scholar. She wouldn't consider herself smart
by any means.
But, she knew her limits. She understood that talent could only
get her so far, especially since she wasn't as good as a lot of the
others who were competing against her.
A style that allowed her to continue fighting even when she
was outclassed, a style that perfectly fit her needs until her
hard work could pay off and match the talent of others…
That was the style she chose, and so far, it was working out as
she'd hoped.
Everywhere she went, she laid traps with her mana that would
activate when other people either stepped on them or
triggered them with their rampant auras.
Four people had already fallen for her tricks. They were trapped
and suffocated, left as open targets for her to pick off one by
one.
Nobody even knew what she was doing because of the chaos.
Still, her main goal was to be seen, to be recognized by others.
Eventually, she'd have to start fighting seriously, using power
with abandon and putting herself on the line for success.
And that time was approaching fast.
Due to the antics of the more powerful geniuses in the arena,
the number of competitors was being cut down quickly.
It would soon become a battle of only those who stood above
others.
For Melania, especially…
…it really was uncertain if she could survive through it all.
