Countless grenades land all around Darius. Alex deliberately avoids throwing them directly at his opponent, ensuring Darius can’t just knock them away with a swing of his massive hammer. He also staggers his throws, forcing Darius to deal with each grenade individually rather than deflecting them all with a single shockwave.

The grenades explode in chaotic bursts. Some flash with blinding light, others unleash fire, smoke, or small concussive explosions.

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt 0 damage to Darius

…

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt no damage to Darius

Darius activates Ken, his aura flaring as he blocks almost the entire barrage of explosions. Despite the chaos, he remains unfazed, taking next to no damage.

BOOM

But Alex grins. Hidden within the smoke and confusion are three more grenades—cloaked with In, making them invisible to the naked eye.

Darius, overconfident with his defense and fully relying on Ken, fails to use Gyo to spot the hidden explosives. The grenades detonate right next to him. The explosions are far more dangerous than the previous ones, their fire and shrapnel slamming into him with full force.

Alex gleefully watches as the damage numbers finally climb.

You have dealt 14 damage to Darius

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt 18 damage to Darius

You have dealt 15 damage to Darius

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt 16 damage to Darius

You have dealt 12 damage to Darius

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt 17 damage to Darius

The fire damage lands true, while the shrapnel and main explosions deal relatively low damage thanks to Darius’s Ken. Still, the sudden hit was enough to rattle him slightly, and Alex doesn’t let up.

Seeing Darius emerging from the smoke, Alex immediately castsBlizzard lvl 3. A freezing burst of frost surrounds Darius, slowing his movement.

You have dealt 21 damage to Darius

You have slowed Darius

Nimbus Cloak effect activates - Increasing Evasion by 5%, and Movement speed by 40%

With his[Nimbus Cloak]boosting his speed, Alex focuses his aura under his feet and leaps to the side, dodging Darius’s incoming charge with ease. His evasion and agility, combined with Menchi’s training and his Aura manipulation, hopelessly outpace Darius’s brute force.

“Too slow, big guy!” Alex taunts as he lands effortlessly.

Darius doesn’t flinch. Gritting his teeth, he strikes the ground with his warhammer, sending a shockwave toward Alex. The ground erupts, the force tearing through the floor tiles in a straight line toward him.

The sight reminds Alex of the Tauren Chieftain from Warcraft 3 or the Barbarian from Diablo. But he stays calm.

Alex times his next move perfectly. As the shockwave approaches, he gathers all his Aura once again under his feet and jumps straight into the air.

While airborne, he activatesSealion’s Icewing Embrace lvl 3, the frosty aura surrounding him like a protective cocoon, slowly forming a thick frozen armor. He immediately cloaks it with In.

“CRITICAL HIT! 2-0 for Alex Kerber!” the referee screams as Alex floats mid-air.

Mina, the moderator, drops her usual bimbo persona for a moment and riles up the crowd, her voice booming through the arena: “Did you see that??? Alex is leading 2-0 already! GRENADES! EXPLOSIONS OUT OF THIN AIR! And then he used some sort of freezing ability on Darius! But Darius tanked it all like a monster, countering with a charge followed by a shockwave! Still, Alex avoided him flawlessly. Despite the lack of visible damage, the referee has declared a critical hit! I can’t believe it, but Alex is flying inside the arena now! How is that possible? Does he have invisible wings or something like that? Look at that—he just flew to the stands! What is he doing now?”

Alex glides toward a group of spectators seated high up, lands briefly, then executes another powerful Nen jump, propelling himself even higher into the air.

From this height, Alex pulls out[Mr. 5’s .44 Caliber 6-Shot Revolver], the weapon glowing faintly with the icy aura ofSealion’s Icewing Embrace lvl 3. The frost-infused rounds give the firearm enough punch to bypass Darius’s Ken defense and deal steady, small amounts of damage—especially with Alex’sNen Prodigy lvl 3andGenius Conjurer lvl 3enhancing the strength of his conjurations.

While normal firearms barely scratch someone with Darius’s mastery of enhancement, the freezing effect of Alex’s attacks begins to add up, draining Darius’s Aura as he struggles to maintain his Ken.

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt 6 damage to Darius

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt 5 damage to Darius

[Mr. 5’s .44 Caliber 6-Shot Revolver]effect activates: Explosive ammunition!

You have dealt 3 damage to Darius

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt 4 damage to Darius

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt 7 damage to Darius

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt 6 damage to Darius

You have dealt 1 damage to Darius

You have dealt 5 damage to Darius

[Mr. 5’s .44 Caliber 6-Shot Revolver]effect activates: Explosive ammunition!

You have dealt 4 damage to Darius

The combination of cold damage and the small explosive impacts begins to wear Darius down. Another explosion beneath his feet finally causes him to stumble as the weakened ground gives in slightly.

“CLEAN HIT AND DOWN! 4-0 for Alex Kerber! Floor Master Darius, can you continue fighting?” the referee calls out.

The crowd erupts in a mix of cheers and gasps as Darius struggles to regain his footing.

Mina’s excited voice echoes through the arena. “Is this it for Darius? I can’t believe what I’m seeing! Challenger Alex apparently has the ability to FLY! I don’t know how he’s doing it, but there’s this strange fog surrounding him—it’s like he’s gliding through the air with invisible wings!”

Alex lands gracefully on the opposite side of the arena. Using the visitor stands as a platform, he executes yet another Nen-powered jump, regaining his height as he reloads his revolver.

From above, Alex looks down at Darius—still standing in the center of the ring, his face a mix of annoyance and confusion.

Not letting up for even a second, Alex continues his assault. In addition to firing his revolver, he begins droppingAnnihilation Grenades lvl 3, mixing them seamlessly with numerous fake grenades to further disguise his true ability.

The air is filled with the sound of explosions and icy blasts, leaving Darius to navigate through the chaos while the crowd watches in stunned silence, unsure of how the Floor Master will turn the tide.

Alex can only sneer inside his mind.Is that all, Darius? Is this how it ends? I’m disappointed. I didn’t think such a simple approach would be enough to threaten you this much.

Alex observes with satisfaction as his continuous assaults chip away at Darius’s defenses. Seeing how effective his strategy has been so far, he decides to burn through his MP, which he only uses for casting hisBlack Magicspells. With a total of 180 MP and steady regeneration, Alex calculates he can cast at least 20 spells while keeping up his pace.

He goes all out.Fire lvl 3, Thunder lvl 3, Blizzard lvl 3.

The spells hit their mark, slamming into Darius with bursts of fire, lightning, and ice. Each spell deals around 20 damage, hitting harder than Darius’s Ken can fully nullify. The momentum from his spellcasting also speeds Alex up because of his[Nimbus Cloak], making him fly even faster and more nimbly from one side of the arena to the other. He zips across the ring like an unstoppable force, raining destruction with each movement.

The referee, seeing Alex’s relentless and precise assault, awards him three more clean hits. The crowd grows restless as the scoreboard shows the lopsided result: 7-0.

Alex Kerber: Lvl 3

HP: 220/220, MP: 91/180 AURA: 97/150

Alex keeps his focus sharp as he unleashes another wave of bullets, spells, and grenades. Suddenly, a thunderous roar echoes through the arena as Darius screams wildly, his Aura spiking to an intense, overwhelming level.

Finally… you’re getting serious,Alex thinks, watching the surge of energy. But he remains calm.He only has two abilities. One is an AoE shockwave—dangerous-looking, but it deals minor damage at best and won’t pose much of a threat from this distance. The other is a shockwave that travels through the ground. As long as I keep up my assault and stay airborne, I’ll be fine.

But then, something unexpected happens.

Alex’s eyes widen as Darius, his warhammer glowing fiercely with his flaring Aura, unleashes a focused, emission-based strike straight from his weapon. The attack hurtles toward Alex with blistering speed, far faster and more dangerous than anything Alex has seen so far.

What the hell? This is like Gon’s Paper, but coming from a warhammer—and it looks way more deadly!

Alex feels a sudden chill of danger as the massive strike closes in on him. For the first time in the fight, he realizes he might have underestimated the Floor Master.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com