Chapter 17 — Blood Against Silver
"BEGIN—!"
The announcer's voice cracked like lightning.
But neither Arin nor Varik moved.
For a heartbeat, the arena felt trapped between two storms—one a cold, silent radiance… the other a pulsing, violent hunger.
Silver aura swirled gently around Arin, smooth and disciplined, rotating in subtle arcs that glimmered with restrained sharpness.
Opposite him, Varik's blood-red Qi seeped outward like smoke—thick, heavy, oppressive, leaving faint crimson lines along the stone tiles wherever it touched. It wasn't just Qi.
It was intent.
Killing intent.
The kind that made the air feel too heavy to breathe.
A disciple in the front row swallowed hard.
"Th-That's the Crimson Fang's aura… It feels like it's tearing at my skin."
Another whispered sharply:
"But Arin… he's not flinching at all."
Indeed—Arin stood calm, breathing slow as a quiet tide. Silver light pulsed faintly from his dantian, rising up through his meridians in steady rhythm. His eyes held a soft glow, pupils tightening and loosening as he read the flow of blood Qi around Varik's body.
He could see everything.
The swirling blood flow in Varik's forearms.
The condensed Qi pooling in his gauntlets.
The faint tremor in his left foot—indicating a coming dash.
And the way Varik's heartbeat thudded… strangely.
Too slow. Too controlled. Too deliberate.
Blood cultivation… Arin thought.
He can alter even that?
Varik broke the silence with a crooked smile.
"Not charging in? Not teleporting?" He tilted his head slowly. "Good. The prey that waits tastes better."
Arin remained still, sword angled slightly downward.
"You're making a mistake if you think I'm prey."
Varik chuckled.
"You bleed. You break. You scream. That's all I need."
Arin's voice was level.
"Your blood Qi… you've shaped it around your nervous system. It's reinforcing your reactions."
Varik blinked, surprised for a moment—then grinned wider.
"Oh? You can see that? Interesting."
He spread his arms slowly, letting the dim crimson mist swirl thicker.
"You can see everything… but can you stop it?"
A murmur rippled through the stands.
Disciples who knew Varik's reputation leaned forward nervously.
"That blood Aura… it's heavier than usual."
"It's like he's been enhancing it secretly between every round."
"Arin needs to be careful. That guy's constitution is monstrous."
High above, the elders watched intently.
Elder Miaro frowned.
"He's suppressing his heart rhythm… forcefully. That technique is dangerous, even for a Blood Cultivator."
Elder Lishen tapped his chin nervously.
"If he miscalculates, he'll rupture his own vessels."
Elder Soren's eyes narrowed sharply.
"No… look closer. His blood Qi is acting as an artificial stabilizer. That's a high-level mutation trait."
The head elder murmured,
"Two mutated constitutions… in the same match. This might shake the sect more than the finals."
Down below, Varik lowered his stance, exhaling through clenched teeth as blood Qi condensed around his feet like a violent pooling storm.
"Arin." Varik's voice dropped into a low growl.
"You think because you beat Drevin you understand strength. But Drevin is a child."
Arin lifted his chin slightly.
"I beat him because he underestimated me."
Varik smirked.
"Oh… I won't make that mistake."
His eyes narrowed, pupils tightening like a beast ready to pounce.
"I never underestimate things I plan to destroy."
Arin didn't react to the threat.
Instead he stepped forward—slowly, but deliberately.
One step.
Two.
The crowd tensed.
Then Varik blurred.
A burst of blood-red Qi shot across the arena like an arrow—Varik's entire body turning into a streak of crimson force.
A disciple screamed:
"He vanished—!!"
Elder Soren shook his head.
"No. He moved."
Arin's mind sharpened instantly.
He felt it—
The shift.
The rush.
The direction.
Varik came from the left.
Arin pivoted just as Varik arrived, the metal gauntlet swinging like a hammer toward his ribs.
Arin's sword rose—
CLAAAANG!!
The impact shook the arena floor.
Arin slid back three steps, boots grinding sparks across the stone.
Varik didn't move an inch.
He tilted his head.
"Not bad."
Arin tightened his grip on the sword.
That strike… it was heavier than a standard Rank 1 Stage 3 hit.
The blood Qi was reinforcing Varik's muscle fibers, tightening them like steel cables.
Varik licked his lips.
"Let me show you what real power looks like."
His blood-red aura spiraled around him.
From his skin, faint crimson threads lifted like living veins.
They wrapped around his arms, fusing with the metal gauntlets until the steel turned dark red.
A disciple in the crowd choked.
"His gauntlets… they're drinking his blood!"
"That's his Blood-Fanged Gauntlet Art!"
"That technique is illegal in several sects!"
Arin raised his sword slightly, eyes narrowing.
Varik blurred again.
This time faster.
Harder.
More violent.
Arin stepped sideways, silver Qi shifting along his legs—
But Varik anticipated it.
He curved mid-charge, twisting his body unnaturally—bones cracking as blood Qi forced his limbs into sharp angles no normal human could replicate.
Arin's eyes widened slightly.
He bent his own knees, sliding under Varik's sweeping strike—
The fist passed above him with a BOOM that shook the stadium seats.
Arin emerged behind him—
But Varik was already turning, blood haze propelling him into a vicious spinning kick.
Arin raised his forearm—
Silver Qi hardened along his skin—
THUD!!
The impact rattled his bones.
Arin skidded back, breath sharp.
Varik landed like a beast, crouched low, scarlet mist curling around his shoulders.
"Heh…" Varik's voice dripped with excitement.
"You survived two of my hits. That's rare."
Arin steadied his breathing.
His heart pulsed with Silver-Light, and each beat sent a ripple of clarity through his vision.
Varik's blood Qi…
It's accelerating his perception too.
This opponent was no Drevin.
No predictable wind user.
Varik's movements were instinctual, animalistic, yet sharpened with unnatural precision.
Arin spoke calmly.
"Your body can't sustain this for long."
Varik laughed—hard, sharp, edged with madness.
"My body doesn't need to last long."
He slammed his fists together.
"Just long enough to break yours."
Then he vanished again.
This time Arin responded instantly—
Silver Qi surged along his spine, through his legs, through every meridian—
Silver Step.
He flickered—
Reappearing five meters away, boots touching down lightly.
But Varik was already behind him.
Arin turned his blade—
CRASH!!
Their blows collided, sending ripples through the air.
Shockwaves rolled across the arena like trapped thunder.
Varik grinned through clenched teeth.
"Teleport… annoying trick."
Arin pushed off, skidding away.
"You call it annoying. I call it survival."
Varik lifted his bloody gauntlet.
"Then survive this."
He slashed the air—
And from his gauntlet, a blade of condensed blood Qi fired outward like a crimson crescent.
A disciple shrieked:
"That's Blood Reaver Slash—!!!"
Arin pivoted, teleporting five meters upward—
The blood slash tore through where his torso had been, carving a clean, horrifying line across the arena floor.
If that hit me…
I'd be torn apart.
Arin landed lightly, sword raised.
But Varik lifted his hand, examining his gauntlet as crimson Qi dripped off the edge.
"Silver… Light…" he muttered.
"Teleportation… enhanced perception… mutated core…"
His grin widened slowly.
"You know, Arin… you and I are more alike than you think."
Arin frowned.
"We are nothing alike."
Varik laughed, loud and shaking.
"Oh, we are."
He tapped his chest.
"My constitution awakens by drinking blood Qi… feeding on it.
Yours awakens by condensing light so dense it tears space.
Both of us are mutants."
Arin didn't respond.
Varik's grin sharpened into something colder.
"The difference is…"
He raised a finger dripping with crimson.
"…you're afraid of your power."
Arin's eyes hardened.
Varik continued:
"You're holding back. I can feel it. Your aura—your core—it's not even close to full output."
Arin raised his sword.
"You speak too much."
"Oh?"
Varik stepped forward, cracking his neck.
"Then I'll make you talk with your screams."
He launched forward again.
But this charge was different.
Quicker. Sharper. LEANING into the Blood Core.
Arin inhaled.
Silver Qi flooded his limbs.
Teleportation reflexes sharpened—
But suddenly—
Arin's senses screamed.
Blood Qi erupted from the ground—
From the tiny droplets Varik had scattered earlier.
Trap—!!
Arin shifted his weight—
But blood tendrils snapped from the tiles like crimson chains, grasping for his ankles.
The crowd erupted in horrified gasps.
"That's Blood Binding Roots—!!"
"He set up that technique from the moment he entered the arena!!"
"Arin didn't notice?!"
Arin twisted instantly—
Silver Light blasting from his legs—
The tendrils tore apart before they could anchor him—
But the delay was enough.
Varik appeared in front of him.
Face-to-face.
Grinning like a demon.
"Got you."
His gauntlet slammed into Arin's abdomen.
THOOOOOM!!!
Arin's body bent around the blow—
Air shot from his lungs—
Silver aura scattered wildly—
The impact hurled him across the arena.
He crashed into the stone wall—
Dust exploding outward—
The entire arena shaking.
Disciples screamed.
"ARIN—!!!"
"He got hit—he actually got hit!"
"That blow could shatter ribs!"
Even the elders stood in alarm.
Elder Miaro's voice cut sharp:
"That was a Blood-Infused Impact… a killing technique!"
Elder Soren clenched the seat rail.
"If Arin didn't reinforce himself with Silver Qi at the last instant… he would have died."
As the dust settled, Arin slid out of the crater—
Body trembling slightly.
Varik laughed from across the field.
"See? You can bleed."
Arin wiped blood from the corner of his mouth.
His abdomen burned—
But deeper than the pain, he felt a stronger pulse.
His Silver-Light reacted.
Strengthening. Hardening. Sharpening.
Arin lifted his head—eyes glowing brighter.
"You hit me," he said quietly.
"Good."
Varik froze mid-step.
Something in Arin's tone shifted.
Something calm.
Something controlled.
Something dangerous.
Arin stepped forward.
The silver aura around him thickened—
Brightening—
Condensing—
Pulling closer to his skin like a protective layer.
Varik narrowed his eyes.
"…You're finally taking me seriously?"
Arin didn't answer.
Instead he raised his sword—
Light bending around its edge—
Silver Qi coiling like flowing mercury.
Varik's blood Qi roared in response.
"You think I'll let you recover momentum?" he growled.
"I'll crush you before you can breathe!"
He launched forward—
Blood swirling madly—
Arin didn't move.
Until the last seconde.
Silver Step activated—
But this time—
Arin didn't teleport away.
He teleported forward.
Straight into Varik's charge.
The arena erupted in chaos.
"HE TELEPORTED INTO THE ATTACK—?!"
"IS HE INSANE?!"
Even Varik's eyes widened.
But Arin was already moving.
Sword raised.
Silver arc shining—
Blood Qi spiraling—
Two mutated elements collided—
SILVER AND BLOOD—
Light and crimson intertwined—
A BOOM split the air—