Ulysses was like a sealed beast barely containing itself as it eyed its prey. His expression was of nonchalance but his aura was that of violence.
'This guy, he wants to take me down in one hit. Scion of light they call him, then maybe they should call me the Patriarch of chill? Nah sounds a bit forced... Either way, I'm about to dish out some punishment to this unfilial scion.'
Will's fourth step was a qualitative change as it sent a blast of frigid mana into the surroundings. A barrier of qi made it such that the immediate radius around Ulysses remained untouched. The periphery around Ulysses was like an unsullied holy ground that the cold could not penetrate. But this did not faze Will. Who continued with his 5th step.
'It doesn't matter how hot your light is.'
This time no energy was released. Instead Will's foot became the epicenter of a whirlpool of energy. As if it was recalling the energy it had just released.
As the energy gathered, Will took his 6th step
'It doesn't matter how much qi you have.'
With his 6th step, the gathered frigid mana shaped into a red ephemeral form of Will. Similar to the bloodline phantom Gianluigi had manifested.
'It doesn't matter how fast your light is either.'
With Will's 7th step, this form somehow gave rise to another form which was blue. Similar in terms of shape but much smaller. It lodged itself in the center of the original phantom.
'At the end of day it's about who laughs last.'
With his 8th step, a third green phantom which was not as big as the red phantom or as small as the blue phantom appeared. The three phantoms superimposed on each other superbly creating an odd visual for the crowd.
'And I feel like giggling today.'
Will's 10th and final step was more like a stomp. It resulted in a magnificent ephemeral palace appearing above his 3 phantoms. Lines appeared from the palace and intersected. They acted like threads that connected the three phantoms together.
As Will took the 10th step, he lost interest in his surroundings and zeroed in on his foe. The crowd disappeared, Hercules' frame faded into nothingness as far as Will was concerned. Now in the universe, only the arena and Ulysses existed.
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Ulysses narrowed his eyes as the frown on his face became more evident.
'Those are his vessels. They are harmonising. Did he go through some sort of evolution?'
Ulysses was proud and aloof, barely showing interest in others. He had a one track mind that didn't linger much on any of his peers. As far as he was concerned he only had one peer, and she was his purpose.
'Peerless is entering Mystic Harmony, and it seems intentional.'
Now someone similar in terms of style to his only peer had appeared before him, performing a feat he had only seen from her. Suffice to say, Ulysses was unpleasantly surprised.
'Entering Mystic Harmony intentionally, the last person I saw do this under level 100 was her. This is going to be annoying. I can't allow him to meet her in the final.'
While the crowd was still digesting what was happening, a wave of force descending from the sky suddenly pushed down on the arena. The World Energy became thick and heavy. The area started to heat up, causing all of the frozen matter to thaw. Within moments, all the liquid in the stadium had started to evaporate.
The World Energy had gone from being frigid and chaotic to being hot, heavy and calm. Ulysses hadn't lifted a finger but he had already seized the initiative.
Before anyone could digest what Will had done, the World Energy had completely changed in nature.
"Peerless harmonised his vessels, but it's useless because Ulysses, that freak. He actually subjugated the World Energy itself!"
"Energy Subjugation, I've heard rumours that if one's affinity with energy was high enough it was possible but this is ridiculous. This tournament is a bit abnormal. Level noobs shouldn't be capable of doing something like this so easily."
"I think Peerless was on the verge of achieving Mystic Harmony, but now Ulysses has stamped himself on the region's mana. It's now useless. No matter how well Peerless harmonises his vessels, it can't match up to Ulysses' affinity for energy."
The crowd was momentarily stunned by Will's display, but Ulysses was not called a scion for no reason. Energy Subjugation was only possible when one's affinity for energy was so high they gained complete control over the ambient World Energy. Ulysses had made Will the enemy of the World Energy from their immediate surroundings.
Ulysses was blessed with an SS+ body, one that had an incredible capacity for energy and had smooth energy pathways. He was capable of absorption, subjugation and control without much effort. This resulted in him having poor control, but he more than made up for it with raw power.
'You can't harmonise when energy is your enemy. It's a simple truth. Harmony can't make up for the difference in talent.'
Ulysses was confident that this match was his, because there was indeed a limit to harmony.
"Ulysses is in for a rude awakening."
A nonchalant figure wearing a hoodie had spoken from within the holographic crowd. The listeners around the hooded figure had little interest in an unknown figure's speculation, but what happened next caused the hooded figure to become a person of interest.
"Youngsters these days like to posture too much. So I will not delay the match any further. What I will say is this, don't blink. Not even for a second. Because you might miss something amusing. Fighters, ready yourselves!"
Hercules' words stirred up the crowd. Those who had leaned back bent on over. Those with heavy eyelids suddenly felt their eyelids lighten. Those with a weak attention span focused like a horse with tunnel vision. No one wanted to miss what was about to transpire.
"Let the match begin in: 20, 19, 18…"
As Hercules slowly counted down, Ulysses gathered a small portion of his energy. For him this was a small portion, but for others this would be a monumental amount capable of destroying their bodies into nothingness.
'I will erase him from existence with a plasma rain. No need to have threats like this exist.'
As Hercules' voice faded from Ulysses' mind, another voice entered his ears.
"Son of Rijkaard. After I defeat you, I will thoroughly crush her till she can't even remember what it was like to draw breath."
Will's words stunned Ulysses and the crowd into silence. Only Hercules could be heard continuing his countdown.
Ulysses was a knight who had sworn himself to protect his princess. She was Isabel Bellingham's rival and a fellow disciple under Everlasting Willow.
She was the only person Ulysses loved in the world. She was his goal, his obsession, and the source of his strength. Everything he did was for her sake. Yet before him stood a man who dared threaten her before him.