Free Web NovelChapter 1282: Chapter 97: Heart Flame
Naloi’s words had just fallen when the surrounding members all selectively turned deaf.
"He may not be a Contractor, but he did that kind of thing in the real world. He doesn’t deserve to die?"
Stan lowered his eyelids and no longer looked at Naloi.
"He does deserve to die, but why did you do it yourself? To show your determination to cut off your own arm? You..."
Naloi took a deep breath.
"Don’t bring this up with me again. The team comes first. Also, I’m divorcing you."
"Di...vorce?"
Stan clearly hadn’t reacted yet; he kept feeling it was a bit absurd for two Contractors to get divorced.
"That’s right, divorce."
"Crazy woman."
Stan was actually very helpless too. He knew he couldn’t talk about feelings inside Reincarnation Paradise, but before he entered Reincarnation Paradise he and Naloi were already married. Their interests were completely bound together. In more fashionable terms, the Blood Gate Adventure Group was marital joint property. If the two drew a clear line between them, it would be equivalent to an internal split in Blood Gate.
Right now Stan and Naloi’s relationship was very strange. The two of them could never become enemies; while finding each other an eyesore, they still had to go through life and death together.
Don’t be fooled by how vicious their tones were toward each other. Once an outside enemy appeared, this couple would turn into a male and female twin fiends. As for Umbrella Brother, he’d actually been used by Naloi.
The circle was too messy, which was exactly why Su Xiao didn’t want to get involved in the matter between Blood Gate and Umbrella Brother. This thing was a huge pit. If some Adventure Group tried to take advantage of the gap, what awaited them would absolutely be a head-on, indiscriminate bombardment.
On the other side of the stands, a dog and a bull were also in the audience. These two special spectators naturally drew Blood Gate’s attention.
Noticing the gazes from Blood Gate, Bubu Wang and A Mu simultaneously flipped them the middle finger.
Seeing that dog-and-bull pair flipping them off, the Blood Gate crowd obviously froze for a moment, then quickly returned Bubu Wang and A Mu several dozen middle fingers of their own.
"Woof!"
Bubu Wang let out a low bark, anger flickering in its dog eyes. It looked to the side at A Mu, and A Mu immediately raised a sign at least ten meters in diameter. On it were written the words: "Everyone on the opposite side is a dumbass."
The expressions on Blood Gate’s people were wonderful. Perhaps in all their lives until now, they really had never been despised by a dog before.
"Ignore them."
Stan spoke, and the surrounding members put away their middle fingers.
"It’s a bit childish, but it really is annoying."
Naloi eyed Bubu Wang and A Mu with interest. She’d collected a lot of intel on Su Xiao, including information on that Minotaur, but had collected nothing at all on that "Siberian Husky."
After the two sides "friendly" exchanged on the stands, a countdown appeared above the battlefield, indicating that the fight would begin in 60 seconds.
When the countdown reached five seconds, Su Xiao in the lounge received a prompt.
[Arena match about to begin. This opponent’s ranking: second place.]
[If the Arena Competitor defeats the second place, Glory of Victory (Mark) will be promoted to a Title.]
...
"It’s finally starting."
Su Xiao took a deep breath. Aside from that encounter in the Holy Grail World, this was his first battle against the Blood Gate Adventure Group.
Light and shadow flickered before Su Xiao’s eyes. When his vision cleared, he was already in a swamp. The unique smell of soil entered his nose, faintly mixed with the odor of rotting vegetation.
The ground underfoot felt slightly soft, but with Su Xiao’s Perception Force, there was no way he’d step into the Marsh Area.
Looking into the distance, the edge of the swamp was a layer of Energy Shield. Behind the Energy Shield were Bubu Wang and A Mu. Bubu Wang pointed a dog paw forward, signaling Su Xiao to look to the other side.
Following the direction Bubu Wang pointed, Su Xiao saw the Blood Gate crowd. Stan’s gaze happened to be looking this way as well. Their eyes met—eyes confirming that they were people who were going to kill each other.
The two sides didn’t taunt each other. Never mind being separated by an Energy Shield; even if they met in the trading market, they’d only "greet" each other once and then ignore the other. But if they met in a Derivative World, it would be you die or I die.
Su Xiao no longer looked at those people from Blood Gate. His gaze shifted to the other side of the swamp, where Huang Yan was standing.
Huang Yan was around thirty years old. His looks were nothing special. If not for the terrifying Aura on him, thrown into a crowd he’d just be Background Character A.
Ordinary-looking as he was, Huang Yan had the strength to rank second among the Third tier. Crazy Fox was the strongest of the Third tier—this was recognized by all—and Huang Yan was the Eternal Second.
No one knew that the reason Crazy Fox was stronger than Huang Yan wasn’t because his overall combat effectiveness surpassed Huang Yan’s, but because his Ability countered Huang Yan’s.
Huang Yan’s Ability was very simple: nothing but flame. Yet he wasn’t a Fire Element Mage, nor a Flame-Flame Fruit User. His fire was the Flame of Heart within him. He’d ignited his own Soul; as long as his body could withstand it, the temperature of his Heart Flame had no upper limit.
"Last time in the Holy Grail World, you were one step faster than me. I lost that round."
Huang Yan walked toward Su Xiao from the distance, leaving a flaming footprint with every step he took.
"It was your two subordinates who got greedy."
Su Xiao walked toward Huang Yan as well, slowly drawing the Long Knife at his waist.
"Losing is losing. When you fail, you bear the price."
The distance between the two shrank. When only 30 meters remained between them, a prompt appeared above.
[Arena... start!]
Boom!
The soil beneath Su Xiao’s feet exploded outward as he turned into a blur and charged straight at Huang Yan.
In the stands, Naloi leaned her body forward and said, "That kind of Speed isn’t something a Third-tier contractor can have. No wonder he developed all Four Attributes at once."
Iron Rat shook his head, then asked, "How did this guy get through the newbie phase?"
"Intel says he hacked his way through."
"Makes sense. Normal people aren’t qualified to challenge Huang Yan."
While the two were talking, flames erupted in the Death Swamp. Almost in an instant, the Death Swamp, with a diameter of half a kilometer, filled with flame and became a Flame World.
"He’s done. Brother Huang Yan’s Heart Flame can’t be tanked even by the Fourth Tier."
A Female Contractor stood up, just about to cheer Huang Yan on, when the flames in the swamp suddenly vanished.
The Female Contractor’s pupils gradually constricted, as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
In the swamp, mist rose. Su Xiao stood behind Huang Yan, Dragon Slash in his hand already thrust through the other’s chest.
The Female Contractor in the stands stared, dumbfounded. She was only an official member of Blood Gate and didn’t know Huang Yan all that well.
But Stan, Iron Rat, Naloi, and the others simply watched the scene below with calm faces. They all knew this was Huang Yan’s fighting style.
"Stan, doesn’t it feel like a thorn in your throat? That newbie who was Second Tier is now strong enough to fight Huang Yan."
Naloi smiled. As long as Stan felt bad, she felt great.
"Shut up."
Stan ignored his own wife and kept his focus on the battle below. From the very beginning he’d never underestimated Su Xiao. That one and only chance to hunt him down, he’d sent the team’s second-in-command after him. As for why Huang Yan had failed, he’d never questioned it. Huang Yan had sacrificed a lot for the team; there was no way he’d betray Blood Gate.
On the field, Su Xiao, holding Dragon Slash, stood behind Huang Yan. The Long Knife didn’t feel like it had pierced something Solid; instead, the temperature of the entire blade was rising rapidly.
