Watts Yournae walked over to meet his opponent. In a fight, to have a strong fighting spirit is equally important to hold an advantage in combat techniques, speed or anything else.

When Kairos slowly approached him, it was a show of confidence, and an unspoken invitation to meet at the center of the ring.

If Watts wished, at that time, he could’ve launched extreme-ranged attacks, and once he made the first move, he will hold the initiative.

However, it is a minor advantage in the grand scheme of things; Instead, it will be as if he was afraid.

Against a junior, and someone five minor stages - or two entire ranks - below him, he wouldn’t know where to hide his face.

As the two parties in this fight strode towards each other, almost leisurely, the junior started unleashing his hidden power.

“Origin infusion already?”

“… enhancement technique on the outset?”

The crowd exclaimed; both Kairos’ friends and other onlookers alike.

Techniques that increase one’s strength are often kept as a trump card, only unleashed when the enemy is unsuspecting.

Uncertain of what Kairos’ plan was, Watts slowed his pace down but otherwise did not retreat.

A few of the audience quickly caught on and explained to those around them, “Facing a superior opponent with your full power at the start is a smart move. Otherwise, by the time you wish to unleash this technique, it will be already too late.”

“Indeed, that makes sense,” an eavesdropping academy staff nodded in agreement, “The difference in levels is far too great, after all.”

Kairos continued his way across the arena without speeding up his pace, and soon he traversed across a quarter of the way.

The amphitheatre is large enough that after so long, he is still a little away from bow range.

Watts carefully scrutinised his opponent. If a direct confrontation is what the other side wants, he will gladly meet the challenge, but if it was a hidden plot, then it will be too terrifying.

For all he knows, he could be walking into a death trap right now. There was hesitation in his every step, thinking that perhaps, it would be better to drag for time and let the other party burn off his enhancement technique.

Since he could not tell what the best response is, Watts decided to probe by shouting across, “Lord Kairos, I’ve long heard about you. A prodigy that would one day shake the world.

How grand, how majestic! But, don’t be conceited, for that day isn’t today. Let me teach you the difference between confidence and arrogance.”

Kairos smiled, and in a soft voice, he said, “Shake the world? Hardly. But, it isn’t something that will happen one day either. I already have enough strength to enter the world stage now.”

His words could only be described to be as loud as a whisper, but despite how far away the audience is, as long as they are in the amphitheatre, they could hear it clearly.

The control of Ki that he has over his voice was masterful, but the young lord of the north was unimpressed.

“Laughable!

When I was protecting your freedom at our northern borders, where are you?

You’re just a junior that had not yet entered the battlefield.”

His title as the commander of the Green Dog Guards was not just for show, and he wore it like a badge.

But Kairos did not speak further in response. He stopped his approach, causing everyone to focus on him.

“What is he planning? This isn’t far enough yet.”

“Except for artillery techniques, even a bow would have a hard time striking someone at this distance.”

“Nah, he is just careful, after all, he is up against someone who killed a barbarian chief before.”

“Are barbarians really that big a deal? It’s probably just an old leader that was about to pass his seat to the next chief.”

“I think you don’t understand something those northern savages. They do not choose their leader by their age, wisdom or intelligence, but pure strength.

The number of warriors a chief could command depends on how many they could take on at the same time and win, so they usually fight against one or two strong guys and fill up the rest of the team with boys that just finished their coming of age ceremony. To be a barbarian chief one would need to have a hundred men at least in their group.”

Those in the conversation nodded their heads.

An S ranker could probably subdue one or two A rankers, and about a hundred C rankers or below. It’s a reasonable number of fighters for a superior practitioner to defeat. Anything more would be tough.

“In that case, any of the top ten combatants in our school could become a chief in their lands. I don’t see anything special about Watts defeating a weaker chief.”

“That’s not true. Even the weakest chief is a respectable fighter. And, that’s because their subordinates must’ve completed the adulthood ceremony,” the person well-versed with the knowledge of the north continued explaining, “The ritual to become an adult are different from our gifts and blessings that we receive from our elders, but a deadly warrior’s rite. Those that want to gain full recognition and all the benefits of an adult needs to brave the snowy wastelands and hunt… practitioners.”

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The heavy snow and monster-filled terrain in the savage lands are well-known to be the cause of thousands of missing adventurers every year. Just treading into the place equals to resigning one’s fate to the heavens. However, it was the last word used to describe the coming of age ceremony that caused all the listeners to pale.

Practitioners.

To become an adult, they need to hunt cultivators!

“Of what… what rank?”

The most important thing about this part is not just the cruelty of taking another human’s life to be deemed as an adult in their tribe, but also how powerful the opponent they need to take down is.

“B rank… They need to defeat someone at least B rank to become an adult, no matter the victim is from their own tribe or an adventurer from our lands. That’s why there are plenty in the north that is not considered adults until they are over fifty. On the other hand, if there is a barbarian that refuse to take the head of another, even if he is already Triple S rank, he cannot be considered an adult in their lands, but such people are rare.”

The young cadets think about how a barbarian chief needs to defeat a hundred guys like that and shuddered. Most of them had not killed another person though they are currently at war while their enemy is unlikely to be squeamish about gore and death.

“One more thing, the one he defeated was also an Entry S ranker. However, Watts is only two stars above his own rank while rumours say that his enemy was at least three, or perhaps even four stars above. Even if it was done because of external factors, like strong equipment or talismans, it is still majorly impressive.”

This revelation caused everyone to be surprised. Even a single star’s advantage is undeniably huge. Few could overturn the absolute difference in power. Somebody had once said it well - a bigger fist could outweigh ten different tricks.

“I’m curious about something; if the chiefs only have a hundred over savages, how would they pose a problem for us?”

The war between the two countries had spanned over thousands of years, yet the military superpower that is Saint Empire, could not subdue its lesser neighbour.

“There are those above the chief-level in the north of course. War Chiefs and the like could defeat a large number of chiefs and lord over them and their men. The rules are simple. You can only challenge those with titles a single tier below yours, so War Chiefs must fight Chiefs or those above and Chiefs fight those that finished their warrior’s rite.

It’s rumoured that the new Great Khan had defeated a thousand Khans, and all of them were Triple S rankers.

The terrain they live in contributed a huge setback to our advances, especially with the great number of monster nests in the savage lands, but it was the barbarians’ cultural value of strength was the main thing that stopped us. It even forced our emperor… our missing monarch, to change the policy of our empire over a thousand years ago to be centred on combat.”

For cadets that are younger than twenty, things that happened over a thousand years ago was as long as forever to them, but they could still understand the severity, and when they look at the fight between Kairos and Watts once more, their feelings had already changed.

Of course, this speaker wasn’t the only with good knowledge on the northern borders. There are plenty of soldiers that had taken leave to come and watch their commander fight, and through them, soon the entire place knows the prestige behind the young lord of the north, commander of the Green Dogs Guard, slayer of barbarian chiefs.

Most that were cheering for Kairos because of his sudden rise to fame now started to side his opponent.

Those that stepped on the battlefield deserves respect over a mere artisan. What the young Earl had done in the Silent Lambs Empire faded in their minds especially when few know of Kairos’ true contributions.

Unfortunately, the grand battle the audiences are awaiting seemed to be delayed as Watts squared up his challenger that is still a distance away.

Kairos continued forward steadily, under his breath he counted softly, “Ten… nine… eight.”

Every number he said, he took another step, and with his powerful Ki infused into his voice, everyone could hear him.

The audience stiffened in anticipation; then they chanted along with him. Their voices combined into one, roaring throughout the amphitheatre. By now, regardless what strategy Kairos has, what he is doing was clearly showmanship, and the crowd loves it.

As his count down reached zero, he entered bow range, and the spectators suddenly burst into cheers. Some were shouting Kairos’ name, but most were for Watts.

They know that fight has finally begun, and Watts is ready for whichever move the young Earl will make.

“Hmph, I have a formation plate that guards against projectiles. Using the time he tries to break through my barrier, I will breach our gap and…”

His thoughts were snipped off when Kairos said three words with a deathly cold voice, “Eternal Empyrean: Burst!”

It was obviously a technique’s name, and his mind reeled from the implications. His opponent is planning a close-range fight, from this distance!

“No,” Watts corrected himself, “it’s probably a movement technique…”

A fraction of a moment later proved his prediction to be correct.

There was an acceleration that could only be described as impossible, and Kairos seemed to disappear from sight like smoke fading in a gentle wind, but the ground he was standing on exploded violently causing dirt to rain down in the amphitheatre.

There was tremendous shaking, and almost everyone in this place felt their hair stand in alarm.

A venomous, almost acidic, sensation of danger struck the crowd. For Watts that faced Kairos directly, it was almost paralysing.

The boy commander that had led the elites of the Green Dog Clan into multiple wars strode through large and small battlefields, suddenly felt his mind turned white with fright.

In a single jump, Kairos traversed across the rest of the arena and flew towards his opponent.

The spectators could only see a blinding white flash with a golden spark charge towards Watts, and the two fighters had turned the anticipated ranged battle into a melee.

There seemed to be a momentary pause, as Kairos slowed down. He glowed like the sun right in front of his opponent, causing the latter to shield his eyes instead of defending against an attack.

Clad in an ethereal white raiment, with wings made of Ki that spanned over ten meters, and a golden crown of light on his head, Kairos seemed to be standing in mid-air above the young lord of the north.

He had activated his Ki barrier, and all glory seemed to be upon him. Truth be told, the Ki barrier was in its basic form, since Kairos had never picked up a martial technique for this ability, but the grand display drew almost everyone’s support over. An aura seemed to burst out from him, causing all to be in awe and trepidation.

The two fighters stared at each other for a single moment, with the one looking up shivering uncontrollably.

It was like a proud general was reminded of his mortality when he met a war god descending onto the battlefield.

After Kairos decelerated significantly, he sent a sandaled foot that struck Watts on his face. A deceptively slow attack it seemed, but the speed of the kick was far beyond what the S ranker could handle.

In a single blow, Kairos’ opponent flew across the field backwards, causing another explosion and the rain of soil that was dwindling became renewed. At the same time, a beautiful firework shot up into the sky, and with a bang, it turned into the glittering words: Match Over!

The spectators were separated into groups of stunned silence and uproar.

It was clear that the victor had overwhelming power over the defeated; otherwise, there will be no need for Kairos to slow down.

If he had not held back his strength, it would not be the arena grounds that exploded, but the head he kicked.

Kairos seemed uninterested in his absolute victory, and then said, “I wish to challenge the ninth rank!”