A shadow ran in a certain direction, its footsteps neither slow nor fast. Clearly, this shadow was in no hurry. It stood like a small mountain, its dark, sleek, shadow-like hair swaying in the wind. Ten long, flowing tails moved as though alive, each one shimmering faintly as if made from the shadows themselves.
Its glowing red eyes pierced through the darkness, and its nose sniffed the air occasionally. After a while, it stopped, staring at a mountain one or two thousand kilometers away.
The creature let out a low, threatening growl, saliva dripping to the ground as its sharp, pointed teeth emerged.
"Human... prey..." the creature muttered, its voice garbled and rough. Suddenly, strange writing appeared in front of it, turning into a cloud of smoke from which images materialized.
Its red eyes focused coldly on a human fighting with someone in the distance. Silently, it moved forward, blending with the shadows.
Apollo barely dodged a fist covered in dark, murky smoke, then countered with a slash from his tree branch weapon. The dark smoke barrier was instantly sliced in half, but his opponent had already leaped back. The Beggar pursued Arke, closing the distance in an instant, and the two exchanged blows once more.
Fist and tree branch clashed, but neither could land a decisive hit.
Hmm, this is harder than I thought, Apollo mused, dodging a fist that sent the air exploding beside him.
He already knew the extent of Arke's strength. Though Arke had a higher cultivation level, Apollo was confident he could win the fight with little to no injuries. However, he had to pretend to struggle in order to execute his plan—to feign a desperate struggle and "accidentally" kill his opponent. But this was easier said than done; he had to make sure his attacks didn't seriously injure Arke.
Apollo also had to pretend he couldn't use his other Techniques and was limited to hand-to-hand combat. Taking damage was part of the plan, to make the act more convincing.
Arke's fist slammed into Apollo's chest, sending him tumbling across the stage. He quickly pushed off with his hands and jumped to his feet. As he landed, he saw Arke charging toward him, cuts covering his body.
Just as Apollo prepared to lunge at his opponent, dizziness hit him, and his chest throbbed. He felt blood rising in his throat, and before he could stop it, he spat out a mouthful.
Seeing the black-red blood on the ground, Apollo realized he'd been poisoned. At the same time, a notification appeared in front of him.
"Ding! You have been poisoned with Nightshade Essence."
Nightshade Essence? Apollo looked up, noticing the cunning smile on Arke's face, and felt a wave of confusion. When did I get poisoned? He hadn't felt a thing.
As his body grew heavy and dizziness clouded his mind, Apollo knew this was bad. Gritting his teeth, he refused to back down and pushed forward.
Swinging his tree branch, he cut through a barrier, but a blur shot past him—Arke had appeared beside him, throwing a punch at his face!
Gritting his teeth, Apollo didn't raise his hands to block it. Instead, he let the punch land!
A loud bang echoed as the Beggar's body flew through the air, crashing to the ground. Dust rose around him as the audience erupted in excitement.
Inside the dust cloud, Apollo grunted in pain. "Argh, this f*cking hurts."
At first, he was just pretending to be weak, staging a scene so that when he completed his mission, no trouble would come for him. However, the poison in his body made the act all too real.
Sitting on the ground, he checked his Alm points before bringing up the System Store. Apollo had saved some of his points just for this kind of situation.
"Show items that can remove the poison in my body and sort them by price, descending order," Apollo commanded. The Store flickered for a moment before displaying the options.
The first item was a tonic costing three Alm points. But according to the description, it would only alleviate the poison, not completely remove it.
He scanned the items until his eyes landed on an elixir: Simple Poison Removal. It cost seven Alm points, taking half of his savings.
Simple Poison Removal: An item that can remove any poison from the user's body, but only simple poisons. Tap to see the list of simple poisons this item can cleanse.
Apollo tapped and quickly saw the poison afflicting him.
This is it! With that in mind, he bought the item and immediately used it. Hidden within the dust cloud, a glass bottle materialized before him, filled with a light blue liquid. Apollo uncorked it and drank it in one gulp.
A refreshing, cooling sensation flowed down his throat and spread through his body. The coolness enveloped him, and his dizziness and pain vanished.
In no time, the poison was completely purged, and his mind cleared.
Still, he acted as though he were gravely injured while the dust cloud began to settle.
Arke stood a few meters in front of him, a mocking smile on his face.
"What? Feeling weak?" Arke asked with a chuckle.
"W-what... did you... do?" Apollo asked, breathing heavily between his words.
"I don't know," Arke shrugged, lowering his body and raising both fists. The temperature around him rose, and his eyes locked onto his opponent coldly. "But I've decided to end this fight now."
Oh? Seeing Arke preparing to lunge, a smile formed on Apollo's lips, though he quickly hid it. He stepped back, worry etched on his face.
"Sh*t! If I'm going to die, I won't die alone!" Apollo shouted, raising his tree branch with both hands, gritting his teeth.
The referee standing nearby broke into a cold sweat when he heard this. It seemed like both fighters were ready to disregard the consequences. His expression grew serious as tension pressed down on him.
He knew he had to stop the fight before one of them was killed. Gathering Qi from the surroundings and reinforcing his stance, he waited for the battle to continue.
"Take this!" Arke yelled, dashing toward his opponent. He was brimming with confidence, certain of victory now that Can Deez had inhaled the poison. Killing intent radiated from him as he focused on ending his opponent.
But in the next moment, Arke saw his opponent appear before him, and suddenly, his vision twisted and spun.
It felt cold. He wanted to move but couldn't. With a thud, he saw a headless figure, and Can Deez stood behind it.