The stadium shifted again, the terrain morphing into a corrupted forest laced with both vitality and entropy. The announcement echoed across the realm.
"Match Two: Chaos Humans versus High Elves!"
From the abyssal gates stepped Nyx'tor Vhaal, Champion of the Chaos Humans. Shrouded in entropy and dark matter, his silhouette distorted as if reality itself rejected him. His steps corroded the ground, and the air buzzed with the unstable frequency of the Law of Decay and Madness.
From the opposite side, a gentle wind swept across the arena. Flowers bloomed in her wake as Lirael Sylwyn, Queen of the Verdant Arrow and Champion of the High Elves, entered. Draped in living leaves and adorned with a circlet of spirit crystals, she radiated elegance and calm. Her presence brought balance to the corrupted terrain.
Spectators leaned forward. This was more than a clash of power—this was nature against entropy.
The horn sounded.
Lirael moved first. With a sweep of her arm, a volley of spectral arrows surged toward Nyx'tor, each imbued with the Law of Spirit and Nature. The Chaos Champion raised a single finger, summoning a wave of writhing dark matter that swallowed the arrows whole. The area around him melted into a pool of void.
Roots surged from below to ensnare him, but they decayed instantly. Lirael narrowed her eyes.
Nyx'tor lifted his clawed hand and whispered something unintelligible. A pulse erupted—a psychic wave of Madness. The mental force slammed into Lirael's defenses. Some spectators clutched their heads, crying out.
But Lirael endured. A radiant barrier of binding light enveloped her, resisting the chaos. With a prayer to the forest, she summoned the Eldertree Avatar, a towering construct of ancient spirit wood.
The tree swung.
Nyx'tor allowed it to strike. The impact cracked the arena, but where the blow landed, the Eldertree withered. Decay crawled up its trunk.
Lirael poured her energy into purification. The spirit vines retaliated with a cleansing burst of Nature Law—but it only slowed Nyx'tor for moments.
Then came his final strike. From his hand extended a lance of rotting dark energy, screaming with madness. It pierced the tree—and grazed Lirael's shoulder.
The crowd gasped.
Lirael fell to one knee, spirit essence bleeding from the wound. She looked up at him—not with fear, but respect.
"I yield," she said softly.
Nyx'tor bowed slightly, his distorted voice echoing, "The forest still sings, even in decay."
Winner: Chaos Humans!
The arena trembled.
As the third match of the Tournament Era began, even the celestial dome shielding the battlefield seemed to flicker under the pressure of the two monstrous energies preparing to collide.
On one side:
Ry'Thalor the Skybreaker — the youngest of the Elder Brood. His metal dragon form towered over most structures, scales glinting with lightning. Arrogance shone in his golden eyes, his clawed feet cracking the obsidian tiles as he stepped forward. He didn't shift to human form — he saw no need.
On the other:
Malgrak the Abyssborne — born in the deepest pits of the Netherworld. Black horns curved from his skull, and bone armor layered over his muscular, abyssal form. His obsidian scales pulsed with the Law of Carnage, and shadows danced across his shoulders, forming grotesque clones that snarled in silence.
---
[The Announcer's Voice Roared:]
"Ry'Thalor, Skybreaker of the Elder Brood, bearer of the Lightning Law…
Versus Malgrak the Abyssborne, wielder of Shadow Clones and the Law of Carnage!"
The crowd exploded with anticipation. Even the ancient Emperors seated in the divine balcony leaned forward.
And above them all, hidden behind veils of perception, Kai watched.
He smiled faintly.
"Let the test of war begin."
---
Ry'Thalor struck first — a sonic boom shattered the air as his wings flared open, summoning a storm of charged spears. Lightning howled as they descended like divine javelins.
Malgrak didn't flinch. He raised a single clawed hand, and five shadow clones burst from his body, intercepting the bolts mid-air. Each clone exploded in a sphere of carnage, countering energy with energy.
The moment the smoke cleared, Ry'Thalor lunged — his massive body crashing into the ground as his tail swung like a mountain, aimed at Malgrak's chest.
Malgrak caught the blow.
Crack!
The arena shattered beneath them, sending shards of obsidian flying into the barrier.
He was pushed back, but not defeated.
Snarling, he activated Carnage Pulse — a wave of violent crimson energy erupted from his body, peeling the metal off Ry'Thalor's left flank and drawing blood.
Angered, Ry'Thalor roared, his mouth gathering electricity into a compressed thunder orb.
"SKYBREAKER BREATH."
The beam of pure lightning exploded forth — white-hot, blinding. It tore across the battlefield like the wrath of a god, ripping through stone, clone, and sky alike.
Malgrak vanished.
No — not vanished. Split into ten shadows, each one weaving around the beam. One clone lunged at Ry'Thalor's neck, another slashed at his wing joints. The original appeared beneath him, arms raised in ritual stance.
"Nether Bind: Titan's Grasp."
Chains of bone and darkness shot up from the earth, wrapping Ry'Thalor's wings, dragging him down.
The dragon screamed in fury, crashing like a comet. Dust covered the arena.
For a moment, it looked like Malgrak had won.
Until the sky cracked open.
Ry'Thalor emerged from the crater, now in humanoid dragonform — sleek, armored, and enraged. His eyes burned like twin suns, and his gauntlets crackled with Titanium-Arc Lightning — the Elder Brood's secret fusion of law and bloodline.
"You want war, demon? I'll give you extinction."
His fists moved like storms. Each punch fractured space. Each kick sent aftershocks through the world.
Malgrak matched him blow for blow — barely. Clones detonated around them as the two titans collided in martial chaos. Bone shattered. Scales split. Flesh regrew, only to be torn again.
Ry'Thalor soared up — far, far above the battlefield. For a moment, he hovered at the edge of the divine clouds.
Then he roared.
"Skybreaker Verdict: Wrath of the Elder Blood!"
Lightning poured from the heavens. Not mere bolts, but pillars of judgment, each one drawn by the lineage of his kind.
Malgrak raised his arms — every clone merged back into him, his armor reforming into a beastly shell. Carnage Burst: Abyssal Requiem.
Their attacks met.
The explosion that followed was not seen, but felt.
Mountains outside the arena cracked.
The entire inner universe paused.
Even Kai blinked once.
When the dust settled, two titans stood barely breathing.
Ry'Thalor fell to one knee, blood dripping from his fanged mouth.
Malgrak stood… then collapsed.
The referee — a Sovereign-class announcer — declared:
"Victory to Ry'Thalor the Skybreaker by knockout.
As the crowd roared and factions began murmuring, Kai leaned back in his celestial chair.
"He's strong... but reckless. The demon would've won in a real war."
He glanced toward the scoreboard.
"Still... interesting toys these universes create."