Chapter 70: Arena Ends (Fourth Update)
The Wind Prince's target was never Su Xiao, because from start to finish, he never intended to fight Su Xiao to the death. He had learned about the abilities of Law Destroyers from ancient records, and he knew clearly that once eroded by Azure Steel Shadow energy, he was basically dead—that energy would devour his brain.
When the Wind Prince first appeared, he began rallying others. This wasn't about joining forces to kill Su Xiao, but rather to reduce the number of contestants.
Initially, Su Xiao didn't notice this. But when the Wind Prince attacked him with Ultra-Pure Water, he vaguely sensed something was off. The Wind Prince attacked him with two drops of Ultra-Pure Water, seemingly shattering the rest with energy blades, but that wasn't the case. Beneath the sand, there were still five drops of Ultra-Pure Water. Iron Man had been sold out by the Wind Prince.
Realizing this, Su Xiao took the opportunity to kill Iron Man. After that, the Red Scorpion vaguely sensed something wrong. From the angle of her attack on Su Xiao, this could actually be seen—she only attacked Su Xiao while he was blocking the Wind Prince. At that time, the Red Scorpion couldn't yet confirm the Wind Prince's betrayal. Speaking out rashly would only cause this small group to fall apart.
The Wind Prince's Wind Rider Spear was practically a divine assist. After sensing that Wind Rider Spear, Su Xiao immediately confirmed one thing: the Wind Prince was off. Because when that Wind Rider Spear approached him, it emitted a subtle fluctuation. That fluctuation indicated that this thing could explode.
This divine assist caused the Red Scorpion's Mad Scorpion Tail Whip to pull its strength at a critical moment, not fully kicking Su Xiao. Not only that, but this Wind Rider Spear also caused the Red Scorpion to completely lose combat ability. When the Red Scorpion forfeited, she said this: 'Those two bastards.'
Logically, it should have been 'that bastard,' a curse aimed at Su Xiao. But the Red Scorpion said 'those two bastards.' Who the other 'bastard' was went without saying.
After that, the Wind Prince began to sway the Stone Man. The originally low-intelligence Stone Man was his collaborator. However, Fatty and Banke were locked in battle, which made the Wind Prince change his mind. He started charging up a big move.
Initially, Su Xiao couldn't figure out why the Wind Prince was betraying his teammates. But when he thought about the second-place reward, his thoughts suddenly cleared.
Unlike most contestants, the Wind Prince had a family, so he wasn't too desperate for the Reborn Dragon's Essence. What he truly desired was the High-Vibration Steel Mine.
From the very beginning, the Wind Prince's goal was the High-Vibration Steel Mine—that was the second-place reward. So he needed a 'collaborator.' This 'collaborator' had to be strong enough, without a family or major power backing, and not too eager for the High-Vibration Steel. And who was more suitable for this role?
Su Xiao thought through these factors, so he fully understood the reason for the Wind Prince's betrayal.
A ten-man free-for-all tested not only combat ability but also intelligence.
Boom!
The energy pillar between the Wind Prince's palms blasted toward Fatty and Banke. The two were currently locked in a fierce fight.
"Damn it!"
Fatty was startled. He suddenly vanished from the spot, using some unknown ability to slip away. The remaining Banke was left in a tough spot, blasted into a spiraling ascent.
With a thud, Banke hit the ground. The Wind Prince aimed the energy mass in his hand at him, ready for a second shot. Banke twitched a few times, raised his number plate, and snapped it in half with a crack.
At the same time, Su Xiao stood on the Stone Man. The Stone Man's skin surface was ashen gray. All his buff effects had long faded, and he was now under a debuff.
"I surren..."
A long blade stabbed down, directly piercing through the Stone Man's head. With a flick of the blade, the Stone Man's skull was split open.
Being honest and simple was fine, but if you were honest and simple, don't try to play mind games—especially among a group of old schemers. If you did, you'd be sold out and still counting the money for them.
The situation on the field took a dramatic turn. Five minutes into the battle, only three contestants remained.
The Wind Prince aimed his energy ball at Fatty. Fatty tossed a beef cube into his mouth, threw his number plate card to the ground, and stomped it to pieces.
"Only two contestants remain on the field!"
Hark roared, his eyes bloodshot with excitement.
Su Xiao pulled back the Realm Severing Thread, which retracted into the spool. His relationship with the Wind Prince wasn't cooperation but mutual exploitation. There were no eternal enemies, only eternal interests. Right and wrong were things only children cared about.
"If we meet again in the future, we might be enemies to the death."
The Wind Prince dispelled the energy ball in his hand and began coughing up blood heavily. After a moment, blood was flowing from all seven of his orifices, making him look like a vengeful spirit. This was the backlash from using the Wind King's Roar. The Wind King's Roar was his father's ultimate technique, and the Wind Prince used it with great difficulty. His internal injuries were now even worse than Su Xiao's had been. Just standing was already impressive.
Su Xiao didn't speak. He simply raised his blade and walked toward the Wind Prince. His goal was the Reborn Dragon's Essence. As for the High-Vibration Steel Mine, he had no use for it. He was about to return to Reincarnation Paradise and had no time to mine it. Selling it involved too much risk. It was more reliable to take the Reborn Dragon's Essence and leave.
"Forget it. If you cut me once, I'm probably dead. Going home to study elements is the real life."
The Wind Prince took out his number plate card and snapped it in half with a crack. This line, 'going home to study elements,' revealed his shut-in personality. With a personality like the Wind Prince's, once he entered a mage tower, it was normal for him not to come out for centuries. Perhaps the two would never meet again.
"I declare that the first place winner of this competition is..."
Before Hark could finish his words, a cyan metal thread coiled in front of the commentary platform. Hark's eyes widened.
"You can't attack the commentator. Hey hey hey, someone, help!"
Hark's survival instinct was extremely strong. However, Su Xiao wasn't there to cut him down.
Using the pulling force of the Realm Severing Thread, Su Xiao leaped onto the commentary platform.
"The essence."
Su Xiao extended his hand.
"Eh~"
Hark shrank his shoulders and stepped back. This devil wasn't good at fighting. What he was best at was getting intimate with girls of various races.
"This isn't good~"
Hark wanted to stall Su Xiao first, as there was still the award ceremony.
Su Xiao's eyes narrowed.
"Take it. This is your reward. Well-deserved."
Hark shamelessly handed over the Reborn Dragon's Essence. Su Xiao took the essence, and space-time power surged around him. He was about to return to the first floor of Demon Castle, a transfer point. After obtaining the Game Winner's Badge, he would return to Reincarnation Paradise.
Su Xiao strode away, leaving behind a dumbfounded audience, the Wind Prince, Hark, and the arena organizers.
"How about you give me that thing now? I'm a bit pressed for time."
The Wind Prince was lifted by elemental power and floated onto the commentary platform. This super shut-in was in a hurry to go home. He still had 154,760 elemental studies to complete.
"Huh?"
Hark's mouth hung wide open. After hesitating for a moment, he handed the High-Vibration Steel Mine approval document to the Wind Prince. The Wind Prince slowly floated away. Perhaps even his father couldn't have imagined that this super shut-in son would return so quickly.
Hark leaned on the railing of the commentary platform, looking at Fatty with hopeful eyes. That gaze said: "Big brother, please, stay for the award ceremony. If you leave, there'll be no one left."
Fatty raised an eyebrow.
"Meals provided?"
"Feast!"
"Deal."
The Void Arena ended so 'pleasantly.' However, the first and second places on the award podium were empty. The first place was the blood-aura-covered Law Destroyer, and the second place was the super shut-in mage.
PS: (Update slightly late. Four chapters to show sincerity.)