Gu Ya collapsed onto the bed as soon as he returned to the lounge from the arena.
His hands trembled uncontrollably, his mind too starved to think.
A wave of joy washed over him, and tears immediately filled his eyes.
Gu Ya quickly wiped away his tears and gradually calmed himself.
"I won. If not for the three months of brutal training, I couldn't have lasted this long. The upcoming matches will be even tougher. I must get enough rest, so first, I'll deal with this hunger."
...
Early morning. Sunlight streamed into the room through the thin red curtains.
Wang Shang Meng sat up in bed, glancing at Fang Fei.
Last night, after returning to their guest room from the tarmac, they had poured their hearts out to each other for half the night. After understanding each other's hearts, they had transformed boundless love into the storm of passion that consumed the small bed.
Holding the familiar yet strange Fang Fei, Wang Shang Meng finally recaptured the feeling of days gone by.
But a wanderer is still a wanderer, especially when he is the God of War of the Xian Xia Kingdom. He could not linger.
"I'm leaving," Wang Shang Meng said softly. "This time, I'm going to Mekagong with eleven brothers to eradicate an extremist terrorist organization."
Fang Fei opened her eyes. She knew Wang Shang Meng wouldn't stay, and a complex mix of emotions welled up again.
"Don't worry," Wang Shang Meng said gently. "I won't betray you again. Wait for me to come back."
Fang Fei sat up and hugged Wang Shang Meng from behind, murmuring, "Can we do it one more time? I'm afraid..."
Wang Shang Meng slowly turned and gently pressed Fang Fei down.
...
Three days later,
Gu Ya arrived at the new arena as scheduled.
His opponent was already waiting.
None of the contestants knew how the judges evaluated strength. Now, two contestants had already been selected as Gods of War, and they had only fought one match.
As for how many contestants remained, no one was sure.
It was rumored that there were initially sixteen participants. After one round of elimination, there were at most six contestants left, or even fewer, given the possibility of mutual destruction.
Six people, competing for two spots, with an uncertain scoring standard.
In the fastest scenario, after this round, at least one pair of contestants would be eliminated regardless of the outcome. In the slowest scenario, the few winners would engage in several more rounds of combat, perhaps a best-of-three, with the ultimate winner being crowned the God of War.
For Gu Ya, it didn't matter whether he became the God of War or not. Even if he were selected, he would request to relinquish the spot. In Gu Ya's heart, improving his own strength was always paramount. As for fame and titles, they were all fleeting.
Therefore, on his way here, and even after meeting his opponent, his heart remained unmoved. He even felt that winning or losing this battle was unimportant; what mattered was to fight heartily and to his satisfaction.
An orange-red mecha stood firmly on the ground. Beneath its feet stood several lean men of average height.
"You are the young man who defeated Bao Yan," the man asked.
Gu Ya nodded.
They shook hands briefly. The man said, "I'm also from Caihua City. Lu Bu."
Hearing the name, Gu Ya's heart skipped a beat. The very name seemed to carry the meaning of God of War.
Lu Bu stared into Gu Ya's eyes and said seriously yet calmly, "Bao Yan said you are stronger than expected, and that you haven't used your ultimate technique yet. I'm not a person with much ambition. The title of God of War doesn't matter much to me. My only expectation is to witness the ultimate killing moves of the Gods of War."
"Let's discuss this. Continuous combat is truly meaningless; it wastes time and energy. Why not do something more meaningful?"
Gu Ya asked coldly, "What do you want to say?"
Lu Bu smiled slightly and said indifferently, "We start with a simple exchange of punches, get our scores, and then simultaneously unleash our ultimate techniques. It saves time and effort. What do you say?"
"That's malicious point farming," Gu Ya stated calmly.
Lu Bu smiled faintly again and said softly, "Then I'll stand still and let you hit me."
Gu Ya found the man incomprehensible. How could someone so devoid of desire enter the second round of combat?
Time passed quickly.
After a brief introduction to the combat rules, both parties activated their mechas simultaneously.
However, the rules had been slightly modified this time, with the addition of a clause prohibiting passive combat.
This rule was a direct strike against Lu Bu.
"Begin!" came the system's announcement.
Ying Yue, as usual, pushed her throttle to the maximum and charged forward.
Lu Bu's orange-red mecha was model "Chì Tù" (Blazing Rabbit). The first time Gu Ya heard the name, he was surprised again. He thought the man was also a transmigrator.
Chì Tù quickly reached behind him, drew out two iron rods, and charged forward.
Ying Yue, holding her sword, slashed rapidly. Chì Tù blocked left and right with his rods. After an exchange of blows, both sides had a general understanding of each other's strength.
This man is stronger than Bao Yan, Gu Ya thought to himself. Beneath his seemingly indifferent tone and calm demeanor hid absolute confidence and a serious attitude.
His suggestion for Gu Ya to use his ultimate technique was likely a ploy. When Gu Ya actually used his ultimate technique, Lu Bu would surely have a countermeasure.
Deceiving the opponent and exploiting their complacency to defeat them – that was his strategy.
If that's the case...
Gu Ya suddenly relaxed his mood. "He said it himself. Wouldn't it be more interesting if he lost without understanding why?"
Ying Yue wielded dual swords and simultaneously activated the arm blades, knee-mounted light blades, and shoulder-mounted light sabers. The mecha's aura appeared incredibly sharp, its entire body a terrifying array of blades.
"Ooh! Such a sharp stance. I'm finally getting a little excited," Lu Bu said with a smile.
Ying Yue rocketed into the air, leaped in front of Chì Tù, and engaged in combat.
Ying Yue's body was covered in blades. The combination of combat mecha movements was equivalent to four or five beam swords attacking the opponent simultaneously.
Chì Tù, appearing very casual, quickly parried with his twin rods, showing no intention of attacking.
The two exchanged blows for hundreds of rounds.
Chì Tù suddenly changed his strategy. His fierce rod techniques not only parried Ying Yue's blade attacks but also found openings for counterattacks amidst the defense.
The more they fought, the more Gu Ya felt something was wrong. What was happening? Why was he even more formidable than before?
Gradually, the amplitude of Chì Tù's rod swings became smaller, but the mecha's killing move frequency and speed increased.
Gu Ya finally understood that the opponent was actually a very slow-starting individual.
Although he seemed indifferent, even resistant to this type of combat, once he entered a battle state, he would fully commit to winning, and then return to his unmotivated state.
No wonder he appeared so nonchalant at first but was now actively attacking!
Having figured out the opponent's personality, Gu Ya's mind was set. This was good. Since the opponent was serious now, there was no need to hold back!
Focus all your mental energy!
In Gu Ya's vision, his opponent's movements instantly slowed down.
Activating full mental concentration was like a master practicing martial arts, shedding a ton of protective gear, freeing his hands and feet.
Gu Ya's finger control speed increased significantly, his reaction time and crisis response capability returned to the state he was in during the battle with Bao Yan, and his movements were even sharper than before.
"Oh! You've finally gotten serious too," Lu Bu said with a chuckle.
He always seemed to wear a calm smile, as if nothing could faze him.
Chì Tù's movements also quickened accordingly.
The blue beam swords in Ying Yue's hands slashed through the air. Due to the extreme speed of the swings, a blue light shield formed, encircling Chì Tù.
Chì Tù's rods counterattacked with the same speed, like needles piercing the light shield.
After hundreds more rounds of back-and-forth, Ying Yue suddenly retreated two steps.
"What? Not fighting anymore?" Lu Bu asked with a smile.
Gu Ya reminded him, "The score is enough."
Suddenly, the system's voice announced: "Gu Ya! 450 points! Lu Bu 450 points!"
Lu Bu said with a grin, "Ah, I was too excited fighting just now and forgot to check the score. You are truly strong, especially when you circled around from below to my rear while simultaneously managing my forward and backward rod attacks..."
This Lu Bu, with his seemingly casual words, was actually showcasing his strength!
High-level humble bragging is often hidden in a few words!
Gu Ya had no intention of wasting more words on him. Since the score was sufficient, he would now execute his plan.
"You're going to use your ultimate technique, aren't you? I'm looking forward to it!" Lu Bu whispered with a smile.