I am the Clone of a Chapter 214 - 187: The Terror of the Hexagonal Warrior

Chapter 214: Chapter 187: The Terror of the Hexagonal Warrior

The rules for the first round of the individual competition forbade mbers of the sa team from challenging each other. This was to prevent teammates from colluding to exploit loopholes.

For example, by throwing matches to help a teammate advance.

However, Salman had a competitor from the Mu Country challenge him, which was a way of exploiting a loophole while still staying within the rules.

Anyone could see he was doing this specifically to target Su Ze.

"The Dongli Kingdom and the Luofan Country have always been at odds. That Su Ze kid humiliated the Luofan Country during the Adjudication Battle between our nations. This is just blatant revenge from Salman!"

"So what if it’s revenge? He’s backing it up with his own strength, and it’s not against the rules."

"Salman is famous for his ferocious attacks. He can definitely break through Su Ze’s defense!"

"But it’s not just about breaking his defense. Salman went through all this trouble—do you really think he just wants to knock Su Ze off the stage?"

"If I were Su Ze, I’d just surrender. I’d lose a little face, sure, but then I could go challenge soone on another stage and still have a chance to make it to the winner’s bracket."

Pei Wuhua and the other mbers of the Dongli University team looked grim.

If Su Ze surrendered now, Salman would achieve his goal. He just wanted to humiliate Su Ze and, by extension, Dongli.

It might not be too shaful for others to surrender to Salman, but Su Ze was different. He had a history with the Luofan Country, having crushed their top genius in the Adjudication Battle. If he were to surrender now, not only would he lose all the honor he’d earned, he’d suffer an even greater humiliation.

People would say that the genius who once ran rampant in the Luofan Country was now so scared of Luofan’s Salman that he didn’t even dare to fight, surrendering on the spot.

But if Su Ze chose to face Salman head-on, Salman would undoubtedly show no rcy.

In their eyes, Su Ze was caught between a rock and a hard place.

At that mont, countless viewers in the Dongli Kingdom watching the live broadcast were sweating bullets for Su Ze. They hurled curses at Salman while cheering Su Ze on.

What they didn’t know, however, was that Su Ze’s mind was on one thing: ’Should I kill Salman, or just cripple him?’

At the referee’s signal, Su Ze finally made his move.

’I’ve thrown two matches already, and I’m getting sick of it. Finally, I can give soone a proper beating... no, have a proper fight!’

Su Ze executed a Rhino Charge and rushed toward Salman.

A cold glint flashed in Salman’s eyes as he jabbed a finger toward Su Ze.

The move greatly resembled Su Ze’s "Needle Strike" skill. However, while "Needle Strike" was a "pierce," Salman’s finger jab was more like a "peck."

Soone in the crowd below already recognized Salman’s move.

"The ’Wall-breaking Peck’ skill, from a Tier-3, S-rank Iron-beaked Woodpecker!"

"That skill has an Armor Piercing effect! Su Ze is in danger!"

Su Ze paid it no mind and continued charging straight at Salman.

’So bullshit ’peck’? Like that could ever get through my diamond-hard body?’

BANG!

Su Ze took the full force of Salman’s attack. It couldn’t be underestimated after all—it had actually broken his skin.

Salman’s face was a mask of astonishnt. He couldn’t believe his attack had failed to break Su Ze’s defense. The rebound had even sent a shockwave up his arm that felt like it would shatter his bones.

Then, Su Ze slamd into him head-on!

The upgraded Rhino Charge now inflicted Dizziness upon impact. Salman’s expression went slack as he was plunged into a daze, unable to even register the feeling of his bones shattering.

At the sa ti, the imnse force sent him flying.

His trajectory would have sent him flying off the stage, costing him the match, but there was no way Su Ze was going to let him off that easily.

Su Ze raised a hand and shot out a Gravity Chain, yanking Salman back just as he was about to fly off the edge of the stage.

He then stomped on Salman, pinning him to the ground like a stray dog with one foot on his chest.

As Salman recovered from the Dizziness, excruciating pain wracked his body. Before he could even process what had happened, he found himself pinned under Su Ze’s foot.

His eyes were bloodshot. Just as he was about to retaliate, Su Ze pressed down with his foot, and his chest imdiately caved in.

ARGH! Salman let out a blood-curdling scream.

Seeing this, the referee was about to call a stop to the match. But Su Ze, using his Eye of Truth, keenly perceived the referee’s mouth opening and imdiately applied more force with his foot.

CRACK!

All the ribs in Salman’s chest shattered, the broken fragnts piercing his internal organs. Blood gushed from his mouth as his pupils began to dilate.

"The match is decided! It’s over!" the referee finally managed to say.

Su Ze imdiately backed off, ceasing his attack on Salman.

At that mont, healers who were on standby imdiately rushed onto the stage to treat and save Salman.

The massive stadium fell silent for a mont. The spectators in the stands hadn’t yet processed the sudden turn of events.

How did that underdog kid from Dongli suddenly explode with power and instantly defeat the number one seed from Luofan Academy?!

On the stage and off, many people stared wide-eyed or open-mouthed, their faces masks of pure shock.

They all thought Su Ze was a defense-oriented evolver with low attack and high defense. So why was Salman as fragile as paper in front of him?

That was Salman!

The number one seed from Luofan Academy, soone who was considered a lock for the top ten in the individual competition.

Yet he was nearly killed by Su Ze in a single exchange.

This Su Ze... what kind of monster is he?!

He was definitely no low-attack, high-defense tank! What kind of tank can one-shot Salman?!

Moreover, they realized that Su Ze’s defense was far stronger than they had imagined. Salman’s Armor Piercing attack had only managed to graze his skin.

Invincible defense and off-the-charts damage output... How were you supposed to fight that?

Is he really a Cocoon Stage evolver?

In the minds of all the contestants, Su Ze was now placed on the sa level as Yarlin.

In that mont, the geniuses of the six nations witnessed for the first ti the terror of a hexagon warrior.

Amidst the wary gazes all around, only Yarlin, the blond man with a sword on his back, looked at Su Ze with keen interest, like a Hunter who had just spotted his ideal prey.

"Dongli University was hiding an ace like this?" soone muttered, snapping out of their daze. They turned to look at the reaction of the Dongli University team.

But they found that Su Ze’s teammates, including Pei Wuhua, were also completely stunned, looking as if they didn’t even know him.

That look on their faces was definitely not an act!

’They don’t know his true strength either?’

The team leader from the nearby Great Desert Chief University, who knew Pei Wuhua well, teased, "Mr. Pei, you’re a pretty good actor. Don’t tell

you didn’t know the strength of your own student."

Pei Wuhua cursed internally. ’Actor my ass! I really had no fucking idea!’

He originally thought Su Ze’s only strength was his astonishing defense, so he had assigned him the role of the team’s front-line tank. But now, it was clear that their entire strategy should revolve around Su Ze!

Pei Wuhua had a sudden realization... ’With Su Ze on the team, Dongli University is guaranteed a top-three finish in the team competition!’

’If Su Ze’s strength is on par with Yarlin’s, we might even be able to fight for first place!’

’And in the individual competition, Su Ze is basically a lock for a top-three spot, too.’

At this thought, Pei Wuhua’s heart began to race. He realized that in this year’s Six-Nation Academy Exchange Tournant, Dongli University had a chance to achieve its best results in history!

Back in the Dongli Kingdom, in front of televisions in countless hos, the people of Dongli were shouting, cheering, and raising their glasses in celebration.

Most of the common folk didn’t overthink it. They just saw Su Ze take down the number one seed from the Luofan Country in such a clean, decisive fashion and felt an imnse sense of pride and satisfaction. It felt great!

A great fight!

Kill those lizard-spawned bastards!

This was especially true for the young fangirls who had unconditionally believed in Su Ze. They had been convinced from the start that Su Ze was the strongest and would shine in the tournant, only to be rebuked by the self-proclaid "mature and rational" elders in their families:

"How old is Su Ze? How long has he even been at the Cocoon Stage? The Dongli University team will have to rely on Li Yongguan and Gu Yue’er this ti!"

Now, they could puff out their chests and declare proudly to their parents and brothers, "See? I told you my hero was the strongest!"

...

「Inside the competition venue.」

The surrounding competitors from the Luofan Country snapped back to reality and glared daggers at Su Ze, their eyes screaming that they wanted to tear him limb from limb.

The team leader from Luofan Academy roared, "You did that on purpose!"

Su Ze retorted, "Did I break any rules?"

The teacher from Luofan Academy was left speechless.

Anyone could tell Su Ze had done it on purpose, just as they could tell Salman had deliberately targeted Su Ze. But both had acted within the confines of the rules; no fouls had been committed.

After receiving ergency treatnt, Salman’s life was saved, for the ti being.

However, he didn’t possess a powerful Healing Skill. With injuries that severe, he could forget about participating in the upcoming team competition.

With their number one seed absent, it was a foregone conclusion that Luofan Academy wouldn’t perform well in the team competition. They had all but guaranteed themselves a spot in the bottom three.

In the stands, the audience was buzzing with discussion.

"This Su Ze... his strength is one thing, but he’s also incredibly calculating!"

"What do you an?"

"Look at his first two matches. He deliberately held back, making himself look weak just to lure Salman into taking the bait!"

"He had it all planned out. He was just waiting for Salman to challenge him so he could suddenly unleash his true power, critically injure him, and take him out of the running for the team competition."

"Powerful, talented, and smart. A guy like that is terrifying!"

"Devious. Far too devious!"

Regardless of what anyone else was discussing, the competition continued.

Su Ze had defeated two challengers, using up the two tis he could be challenged. No one else could challenge him now.

Of course, even if they could, no one in the loser’s bracket would dare challenge Su Ze now.

Su Ze’s advancent to the second round was now guaranteed. However, he had to wait for the matches on the other stages to conclude, so he could only lean boredly against the side of the stage and watch the other fights.

Challenge matches concluded one after another. People were eliminated, so fought their way back from the loser’s bracket, and others fell from the winner’s bracket into the loser’s.

Seeking revenge, the mbers of Luofan Academy began specifically targeting students from Dongli University.

Of course, they didn’t dare challenge powerhouses like Gu Yue’er and Li Yongguan. Instead, they focused on the other, weaker mbers of the Dongli University team.

The students from the Muguo Royal Academy also covertly coordinated with them.

This targeted approach proved effective. By the ti the challenge round ended, five of the eight Dongli University mbers participating in the individual competition had been eliminated.

Su Ze took it all in, his gaze periodically sweeping over the remaining contestants from the Mu Country and the Luofan Country. ’Just you wait. If I don’t make you all feel the pain, then my na isn’t Su Ze!’