Chapter 134: Conflict
This night was destined to be a sleepless one.
Undercurrents surged among the various factions in Fila City.
The envoy from the Kabu Empire had already lodged a stern protest with Queen Vivian.
Queen Vivian assured them that she would provide a satisfactory explanation.
Many astute individuals could discern the underlying implications of this incident, while most people simply saw it as an ordinary conflict—albeit between parties with particularly notable statuses.
Mai Lun and the head of the Mage Guild held secret discussions throughout the night.
Morning came.
Mai Lun emerged from the Mage Guild, his brow furrowed.
The Tri-Nation Tournament continued as scheduled.
After two days of preliminaries, nearly ten thousand participants had been eliminated.
Next up were the elimination rounds, featuring one-on-one matches.
Han Ming was fortunate enough to draw a slot for the first day of the elimination rounds.
His opponent was a third-tier earth-elemental warrior.
Han Ming and the warrior both leaped onto the arena.
Cheers erupted from the crowd below.
Most of the spectators had come to support Han Ming.
His earlier victory had caused quite a stir in certain circles.
Among the daughters of noble families and the wives of high-ranking officials, a small group of Han Ming''s supporters had emerged.
Many of them were there out of curiosity, wanting to see if the rumors about his prowess were true.
"He''s quite handsome, but is he really as impressive as they say?"
A noblewoman dressed in luxurious attire sat in the stands, holding a magical telescope to observe Han Ming from a distance.
"Begin the match!"
At the referee''s command, the earth-elemental warrior enveloped himself in a layer of yellowish combat aura, his sturdy armor tightly encasing his body.
"Go, Han Ming! Go, Han Ming!"
Hearing the cheers from a group of young girls, Han Ming couldn''t help but smile wryly.
He glanced at Kuro, who stood at the back of the crowd, smiling at him without a hint of jealousy.
"Kid, where are you looking!"
The third-tier warrior, annoyed by Han Ming''s popularity and his own lack of attention, launched a fierce attack.
His massive fist, adorned with sharp spikes, shot toward Han Ming.
Han Ming ducked and countered with a punch to the warrior''s side.
"Wow! So cool!"
"Han Ming is amazing!"
Another wave of cheers rose from the crowd.
The earth-elemental warrior staggered back a few steps, cracks appearing in the armor around his waist.
"Not bad!"
The warrior snorted, his body sprouting countless earth spikes as he charged at Han Ming.
Han Ming kicked out, his foot striking the warrior''s spiked armor. The sharp spikes pierced his leg, drawing blood.
The warrior smirked and followed up with a punch to Han Ming''s shoulder, sending him flying.
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Han Ming managed to stop himself just before tumbling off the edge of the arena. With a strange cry, he charged back into the fray, grappling with the warrior.
The warrior fought methodically, each move precise and steady, while Han Ming appeared increasingly disheveled. Eventually, he resorted to swinging his arms wildly, resembling a street brawler more than a skilled fighter.
The cheers from the crowd gradually died down.
The young girls who had idolized Han Ming were now deeply disappointed.
"Not as impressive as I thought."
The noblewoman in the stands scoffed, lowering her magical telescope.
"Let''s go. There''s nothing worth watching here. Let''s check out Arena 12. There''s a young man there who''s decent-looking and quite skilled."
With that, the noblewoman left without a backward glance.
Kuro watched from the sidelines as Han Ming, disheveled and battered, continued to fight. She smiled, her arms crossed.
"Hmph, not bad acting."
The earth-elemental warrior grew more aggressive, landing punch after punch on Han Ming''s face until it was swollen and bloodied. Any trace of his former handsomeness was gone.
The young girls in the audience, disillusioned, began to leave one by one.
The remaining spectators started cheering for the earth-elemental warrior instead.
Such was the nature of the audience—they only supported the strong. While looks might earn some initial favor, they paled in comparison to true strength.
Seeing that most of the crowd had dispersed, Han Ming knew he had achieved his goal. He chuckled softly.
"What are you laughing at!"
The earth-elemental warrior, now brimming with confidence, gathered his combat aura into his fists and launched a powerful strike at Han Ming''s shoulder. The air cracked with the force of the blow.
Han Ming grinned, adopting a desperate stance. With a wild cry, he swung his arms wildly, pretending to trip. His body tilted, narrowly dodging the warrior''s attack, while his right fist struck the warrior''s groin.
"Oww!!"
The warrior let out a howl of pain, clutching his crotch as he crumpled to the ground, trembling.
Han Ming, as if waking from a dream, smoothed his hair and pouted at the audience.
"Boo..."
The crowd erupted in jeers.
Han Ming proudly raised his head, his face still smeared with blood, and began kicking the downed warrior in the head and face. He even paused occasionally to strike a pose for the remaining spectators.
Overwhelmed by pain, the warrior quickly surrendered.
Han Ming stood triumphantly in the center of the arena, hands on his hips, his bloodied nose held high.
The referee, looking bemused, declared Han Ming the winner.
The crowd booed loudly.
"What kind of fight was that?"
"Seriously, I''ve never seen such a shameless performance."
"I had high hopes for him, but he''s just a thug."
"Yeah, how did someone like him even make it this far?"
"Let''s go. I''m never watching his matches again."
The crowd dispersed.
"Hey, hey, don''t go! Stay!"
Han Ming limped after the departing spectators, who responded with disdainful gestures.
"Heh."
Han Ming walked over to Kuro, wiping his face with his sleeve, smearing the blood and making himself look even more ridiculous.
The few remaining spectators who had held out hope finally shook their heads and left.
Kuro burst out laughing. "That was quite the performance."
Han Ming grinned. "You saw through it, huh?"
"Of course! Let''s go get you cleaned up. You really went all out, letting him beat you up like that."
The two chatted and laughed as they left the arena, heading to a nearby fountain to wash off the blood.
That evening.
After wandering the streets for a while, Han Ming and Kuro decided to head back as it grew late.
On their way, they ran into the earth-elemental warrior from earlier. The man was drinking heavily, clearly dejected, and limping toward them.
Han Ming froze, feeling awkward. He had struck the warrior''s sensitive area during the match and wasn''t sure how serious the injury was.
If he had permanently disabled the man, the guilt would be overwhelming.
Feeling remorseful, Han Ming wanted to apologize, but before he could, a white blur flashed past.
The warrior''s head rolled to the ground, blood spraying everywhere.
Han Ming stared in disbelief at Kuro, who was calmly dusting off her sleeves.
"You... why did you kill him?"
Han Ming asked, stunned.
Kuro looked at him, puzzled. "What? He beat you up like that. What''s wrong with killing him?"
Han Ming''s heart sank. He roared in anger, "I had no grudge against him! I was the one who used him during the match. I should be apologizing to him! How could you just kill him like that? He was a living person!"
This was the first time Kuro had seen Han Ming so furious with her. She retorted, "What''s wrong with you? So what if I killed him? It''s just one life! Why are you yelling at me? I did it for you!"
"Ha, ha," Han Ming laughed bitterly, angered by Kuro''s callousness. "Just one life? A living, breathing person, and to you, it''s just ''one life''?"
Kuro was equally furious, her chest heaving as she glared at Han Ming. "Are you insane? I killed him to avenge you! Why are you taking it out on me? Haven''t you killed people before? Haven''t you? What''s the big deal?"
Han Ming laughed coldly. "Yes, I''m insane. I''m completely insane! I''ve killed people, but they were people who deserved it! People who were my enemies! People I had to kill to survive! Not like you—you kill without a second thought. And you''ve been hiding your strength, haven''t you? A third-tier warrior, and you took him down with a flick of your wrist. How impressive!"
Trembling with anger, Han Ming turned and walked away, ignoring Kuro''s furious stomping behind him.
"Go! If you leave, don''t come back!!"
Tears welled up in Kuro''s eyes as she shouted at Han Ming''s retreating figure.
"Hey, miss, had a fight with your boyfriend? Did you break up? Don''t worry, come with me. I''ll treat you right."
Three men, out late at night, had overheard the argument and approached Kuro, thinking they could take advantage of the situation.
Kuro''s icy gaze fell on the man who had spoken.
He shrank back in fear.
"B-brother! Look over there!"
One of the men pointed at the warrior''s body lying in a pool of blood, his voice trembling.
"Uh... miss, I was just joking. I''ll leave now. I''ll go."
The man stammered, turning to flee.
Kuro moved like a shadow, appearing beside him. She smiled sweetly. "Don''t go. Didn''t you say you wanted to be my boyfriend? Then be my boyfriend."
The man looked at her in terror. "I... I was just kidding."
"No, I''m serious. Don''t be scared. Let''s go have a drink."
Kuro patted the man''s shoulder, giggling as she led the trembling man into the night.