It took Zac another hour of walking before he finally spotted the Coliseum. In fact, he had seen it long ago, but he had assud it was a mountain range judging by its size. He didnt imdiately head over, but first looked at the building in awe. It was simply massive, far eclipsing the enormous containnt building that held the Dinsional Seed.
It continued for tens of kiloters, a fortress of epic proportions. The majority of the structure was no doubt private sections ant for the inner mbers of the Coliseum and their families, though any stage ant to have Hegemons fighting would have to be pretty huge.
The main gates were not far from where Zac arrived, a hundred-ter-tall entrance with two massive axes forming an arch. Zac started walking toward it, but he soon stopped again as the world shifted. The desolate surroundings were suddenly replaced with a scene even more bustling than the Havenfort Town.
He realized that he was standing on a street over a hundred ters wide, and thousands of warriors were streaming back and forth toward the coliseum. Furthermore, Zac spotted more streets and entrances just like this one further away, making him realize that the traffic in this place was just insane. It wasnt surprising though.
The Bloodwind Planet was simply enormous, and tens of billions of people lived here even with the harsh environnt. Furthermore, it was no doubt the most prosperous planet in its local cluster thanks to the Big Axe Coliseum and a few other notable factions, and the planet was definitely the main hub for all stellar lines traveling the local cluster.
Zac turned around curiously, but the only thing he saw was a blurry desert, though warriors kept appearing one by one. So passed him by and walked into the main building, whereas others headed for a series of side-structures that emitted strong spatial fluctuations. Those were probably the local portals that took the mbers to various hunting grounds of the planet.
Part of Zac wanted to jump into one of the teleporters and start a slaughter of his own, but he ultimately held himself back. First of all, you needed to buy access or beco a mber of the coliseum before you could use the local teleporters. Secondly, he wasnt in a position where he could freely gain a bunch of levels.
There wasnt even any money to be made from heading out, not that he needed it. It had been a big shock to realize that a vast majority of all beast carcasses were mostly worthless. Zac had always equalized hunting beasts with big money after his grind-fests back on Earth, but you could easily buy an early D-grade carcass for 50 million F-grade nexus coins or so.
Only a few extrely rare beasts were worth any real money, for example beasts who had extrely pure bloodlines that made them far stronger than normal beasts of their grade. However, those kinds of beasts were as rare as valuable herbs, and fighting them was like fighting a peak genius cultivator.
It was no wonder the prices were so low though; the Multiverse definitely didnt lack high-grade beasts. There were reportedly millions and millions of D-grade beasts on this planet alone, all of them more powerful than normal because of the unique environnt. Perhaps hed test his ttle against the wilds of this world another ti. But for now, he had a trial to take.
Zac entered the coliseum, and he saw that there were three paths to take, one for each purpose of visiting. The largest gate was for spectators who had co to witness the matches and perhaps do so betting, with the second biggest being for warriors who ca to enter the ring. Fighting against other cultivators or ferocious beasts was a dangerous but effective way to cultivate.
There was never any lack of warriors willing to risk their lives for breakthroughs, especially when it could also an wealth and fa.
The third corridor was for actual mbers of the Big Axe Coliseum, and that was where Zac headed. He was curious about the place, but he figured he could look around after he beca an outer mber. Zac only got fifty ters in before he was stopped by a guard though.
mbers only, buddy, a gruff devil-humanoid with a bulky build said as he glanced at the lapel of Zacs robes.
Ive co to apply, Zac said.
Oh? Outer or inner mber? the attendant asked.
Outer, Zac said and released so of his aura.
High E-grade? Could be a good fight the man thoughtfully muttered and took out a token. Here. The fee is 10,000 E-grade Nexus Coins. Youll get the money back if you pass.
And if I fail? Zac smiled as he transferred the money, surprised at how generous the Coliseum was compared to the two previous spots.
Then youre dead and we keep the money, the man grinned. Fourth door to the right. Dont worry, the Heavens will arrange your enemies, it will be absolutely fair.
Zac soon found himself in a resting room as he waited for the coliseum to set things up. If one fought in the Big Axe Coliseum the normal way, youd have to expose so of your strength to get paired with the right level of opponents, but it was different for the Limited Trial. The System wouldnt allow any cheating since it was handing out Limited Titles, so it teleported beasts into the arena from what Zac had heard.
The Big Axe Coliseum only needed to pay for the activation of the trial and transportation fees.
It was a win-win for the coliseum. If the contender won, theyd gain a new mber. If he or she lost, theyd still make money on the down paynt, tickets, betting, and perhaps salvaging rare beast carcasses. The Trials were especially popular as the beasts teleported here were often ones theyd rarely see. Furthermore, the System essentially guaranteed a satisfying fight.
Normally, Zac would have a huge advantage in this type of trial thanks to his massive pool of Efficiency, but he had read that the System actually based the opponents on true strength in this particular trial since it wanted to test for skills with the axe. That wasnt a detrint in Zacs book through, but rather a boon. After all, it wasnt easy to find opponents matching your strength exactly.
However, Zac imdiately found himself in a conundrum as he pressed his hand against a crystal hovering in the middle of the room. He needed to leave his Spatial Ring behind, along with any hidden weapons. He could only keep his robes and main weapon. Zac hesitated for a bit, but he eventually took out [Veruns Bite] instead of [Rakans Roar]. Staying undercover was important, but completing the trial even more so.
His main axe looked pretty different from the ti he visited the Tower of Eternity, and he didn't even have his more defining skills like [Nature's Punishnt] or [Chop] any longer. It should be enough.
He also needed to choose a na or moniker. He didnt want to use his real na for obvious reasons, but neither was he comfortable giving himself a Dao Na like The Life-Death Primarch or Arcadian Master. He eventually settled on Arcaz, a handle he had used in so online gas back before the integration.
Zac thankfully didnt need to wait for long for his trial to start. The platform flashed to life after just an hour, and Zac found himself standing in the middle of a massive arena a mont later. The roars of tens of thousands of people made the atmosphere rife with bloodlust. Zac couldnt see any specific faces when he looked up at the stands though; it was all a bit of a haze.
He guessed the coliseum used so sort of array to obscure the features for so reason.
Give a warm welco to Arcaz, our latest trial taker. The Heavens tells us his power is at the peak of the E-grade, so we will hopefully have five exciting battles to look forward to! a gruff voice echoed out across the arena, which was t by another wave of roars.
There was no ti for Zac to ponder about the construction of the arena as hundreds of flashing lights illuminated his surroundings. He imdiately realized his first fight was a horde battle, which suited his class perfectly. A mont later the enemy combatants had been teleported in, and Zac saw they were so sort of two-headed devil-rabbits with long rakish claws on their front legs.
Oh! Our prospective mber finds himself faced against 108 [Twinruin Hoppers]. Anyone who has spent so ti in the Twinruin Gorge no doubt has so fond mories of these aggressive bastards! Hard Carapaces, nimble legs, and endless aggression. Will our trial-taker fall at the entrance test like a fool? Will he erge victorious, and if so how quickly?! Place your bets!
Zac wryly smiled at being used to make money this blatantly, but the comntator at least provided so clues. This was just the first trial of five though, and Zac didnt plan on forming so sort of special strategy. If he couldnt simply crush this trial, then he could forget about completing all five battles.
A storm of Cosmic Energy stread into an intricate fractal on his hand, but no fractal edge ford after activating the skill that took the spot where [Chop] once was housed. Instead, a large swirl of erald energies suddenly surrounded [Veruns Bite], and Zac unleashed a swing in the direction of the most concentrated clump of [Twinruin Hoppers].
It was like he unleashed a storm with his swing, but that storm quickly congealed into a dozen two-ter wide leaves that radiated not only an imnse amount of life force, but also an overbearing sharpness. The leaves were long, thin, and slightly curved like the blades of a scimitar, and they swirled around as they shot into the pack of beasts.
A few of the hoppers jumped forward with their sharp legs, both their heads trying to bite into the leaves and rip them apart. Others used the large claws on their front legs o swipe back at them with enough force to make the air scream.
But it was all futile.
Those who bit into the leaves were instantly killed as the upper halves of their heads were lobbed clean off, their bodies crashing down onto the arena floor with wet thuds. One storm of leaves after another shot out, and only a gorefest was left behind a mont later. The so-called hard carapaces couldn't survive a second against Zac's new E-grade skill, though he did empower the leaves with the Fragnt of the Bodhi.
A small pang of danger warned him of an imminent attack from behind, but Zac wasnt worried in the slightest. His free hand shot out as he rapidly turned around, and he caught the last hopper by one of its throats. Zac instantly crushed its throat before he slamd down the stocky beast onto the ground.
The second head yowled in pain and rage, and it desperately clawed at Zac as it tried to get up. But the erald swirl around [Verun's Bite] moved to the front of the axe edge and instantly congealed into a singular thin leaf that looked as real as a physical one. A mont later the whole hopper was sliced in two, its blood disappearing into a deep scar in the ground.
Oh my god! Six seconds to clear the first wave! Haha! A big thank you to our friend Arcaz, you just made us a lot of money! But will he be able to clear the second trial? Lets find out!
Zac sat down and took a breath as the hundred corpses were teleported away. He wasnt exhausted in the slightest, but he rather wanted to go over the result of his new skill [Natures Edge]. He had already tested the skill back on Earth, but these [Twinruin Hoppers] were a lot stronger than the animal packs back ho.
They had all been at upper-middle E-grade in power, yet they were cut apart without providing much resistance at all. This was exactly what Zac had wanted to see, and he was extrely relieved to see that his fusion of [Chop] and [Natures Barrier] to have worked out just as he hoped.
Part of him had hesitated about fusing two of his basic skills, wasting the opportunity. For example, he had considered fusing [Hatchetman's Spirit] with [Forester's Constitution] to form an amazing domain skill, but he ultimately didn't feel that would bring much to the table. [Loamwalker] was a skill he was keen on bringing into the E-grade as well, but he decided that an E-Grade equivalent of [Chop] was of the highest priority.
It was the bread and butter of his class, the very foundation of his fighting style.
He did have [Conformation of Supremacy], but that was ultimately a skill that didnt really conform to his path, and it also worked better as a dium-power attack aid at singular enemies or small packs. anwhile, [Natures Edge] was a perfect fusion between Nature and Axe, using the form of [Natures Barrier] and the function of [Chop].
Losing his only real defensive skill was a bit of a sha, but [Natures Barrier] had long lost its ability to protect him. Besides, the reason he dared to complete this fusion was thanks to creating [Arcadias Judgent]. It had freed up the Skill Slot where [Deforestation] forrly was, which allowed him to learn the defensive skill he had waiting for him in the Dao Repository.
Unfortunately, the battle had been too short to gain any new insight into his skill, but he saw that he would get more opportunities as new golden lights appeared around him.
Oh? 36 [Twinruin Rocklings] this ti? Will all the fights set our challenger against the beasts of the gorge? Would that an we might have a chance to see a fight between a cultivator and a [Twinruin Tyrant] today? And perhaps the true terror of the Twinruin gorge? the announcer mused, which caused a huge ruckus to erupt. Who knows? In either case, place your bets!
The rocklings looked like mottled eight-legged boulders, and he felt they reminded him of those spiderling bots he fought in the Mystic Realm. These guys were a lot stubbier though, and Zac wondered if they were even mobile.
The ground suddenly started to shake as one sharp stalagmite after another sprung up with amazing power, which forced Zac to dance around in an ungraceful manner. Zac considered activating [Hatchetmans Spirit] for a mont, but he eventually decided against it. He wanted to take this opportunity to get acquainted with his new skill. Besides, he didnt want to show too many of his cards in a public setting like this in case soone figured out his identity.
Zac once more activated [Natures Edge] and a cascade of leaves shot out toward the slow-moving targets. However, Zac frowned when the attacks only resulted in shallow scars appearing across the bodies of the golemoid beasts. They had clearly activated so sort of bloodline talent that boosted their defenses trendously, and the skill by itself simply wasnt strong enough to get through.
Another gust of leaves shot out a mont later, but this ti the leaves almost looked like they were made of tal as they had gained a slight silvery sheen. Zac looked on with interest as the leaves cut into the rocklings with their incredible sharpness, and the ground rumbled as the beast collapsed one by one.
Only three of the rocklings managed to survive the onslaught, but Zac flashed forward with [Loamwalker] and cut them to pieces in short order. One of them forcibly exploded upon its death, turning itself into a shrapnel bomb, but Zac had plenty of kill energy to use [Surging Vitality] with, and the shallow wounds started wriggling as they rapidly healed up.
He hadnt had much use for his healing skill over the past years, but it had still moved to Late Mastery thanks to his increased understanding of skills in general. The upgrade mostly improved the skill's ability to heal tougher wounds, such as injuries caused by Dao-empowered attacks.
Of course, the healing capabilities of such wounds were still pretty limited and cost a huge amount of energy, but it was still pretty impressive for a skill that soone like Brazla had managed to get his hands on.
Two rounds down, and we havent been able to see the depths of our challengers prowess! the announcer exclaid. But the Heavens never gives out anything for free, especially not Titles! Lets see what it has planned for our friend Arcaz next!
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