Chapter 71: Death Battle, Atavism

“This… is a mouse?”

“I have to say, it’s quite good-looking. I’d like to keep one.”

“This You An doesn’t seem all that strong. Looks like the Battle Exemption Privilege is as good as ours, Blue Star.”

“Hahaha, this mouse clearly isn’t as powerful as the previous creatures. I feel like even I could crush it.”

The bullet comments were filled with lighthearted banter. You An’s ordinary size seemed to lack any sense of intimidation, and his striking appearance easily made people overlook his strength. Many even thought this was a gift from the Myriad Realms Ladder to the Human Race of Blue Star.

Only Zou Han in the Dueling Arena wore a grave expression, his eyes fixed unblinkingly on the upright monster before him.

“Why… this feels strange?”

His heart pounded wildly. A pressure he had never felt before struck directly at his soul. Beads of cold sweat formed on his forehead, but he had no time to wipe them away. Even standing there motionless, the opponent exuded an unparalleled sense of oppression—a feeling only those facing You An directly could perceive.

Zou Han dared not be careless. He quickly activated his Talent. Having just Broken Through to the Sixth Rank Dust-Severing, he had mastered the use of Qi to its peak. An invisible layer of cyan scales covered the surface of his body, resembling a thick suit of Black Tortoise Armor.

Sss—

You An uttered a string of incomprehensible words, which, after translation by the Myriad Realms Ladder, reached Zou Han’s ears.

“Die.”

Zou Han’s pupils contracted. A chill ran down his spine. He pushed off with his back foot, leaning his body forward rapidly, narrowly dodging the fatal strike.

“When did he move?”

In that split second, he hadn’t detected any disturbance in the air. You An’s attack left no trace, appearing almost instantaneously behind Zou Han, making it utterly impossible to guard against.

Still without any telltale signs or sound, You An’s silver claws were already suspended above Zou Han’s head.

“Not good!”

Veins bulged on Zou Han’s face as he reacted swiftly, crossing his arms to block.

Ssshhhk—

A Sharp Weapon sliced through flesh, splattering crimson into the air.

“Such a powerful attack. What kind of monster is this?”

Teleportation!

Teleportation!

Endless teleportation!

Spatial turbulence gathered countless After-Images. In a single second, You An teleported at least a hundred times through the air.

Extreme speed, extreme offense!

A dense, impenetrable web of silver claw shadows slashed at Zou Han countless times. Soon, his body began to Shatter, streams of blood seeping from the cuts.

Helpless, Zou Han could only rely on his formidable defense to endure.

He couldn’t touch him. He simply couldn’t touch him.

“Why! Why is this happening!”

Zou Han’s eyes turned bloodshot, blazing with unyielding defiance and stubbornness.

“Ah!”

Zou Han threw a punch, his massive fist carrying an overwhelming force that tore through the air, creating a sonic boom.

You An before him remained expressionless, aloof to the extreme.

Zou Han’s punch hit empty air—he had only struck an After-Image.

“Not good!”

Zou Han quickly retracted his fist to block behind him.

Ssshhhk—

The claws tore effortlessly through flesh, clashing against bone with a metallic clang.

Zou Han spat out a mouthful of blood, staggering forward as his back became a mess of gore.

But this was not a novel or a game. Securing the kill was a skill every contender must possess.

You An teleported before Zou Han once more, swinging his claw without mercy.

Three claw marks ran vertically from the forehead down to the chest, fresh blood spreading along the trails.

You An vanished again in an instant teleport.

Whether at an advantage or disadvantage, You An only struck once with each teleport—a pattern Jiang Yan had keenly observed.

Watching this scene from his dorm room at Divine Capital Martial University, Shang Xingren’s eyes were filled with shock and horror.

“Why… why can its Talent allow infinite teleportation?”

“If my Spatial Talent could achieve what You An’s does, could I also defeat Jiang Yan?”

No one answered him.

“Are you kidding? Is the opponent cheating? How can he teleport infinitely without any cost? Even Spatial Talent shouldn’t allow this!”

“It’s over, Zou Han is about to lose to this You An. Is our Battle Exemption Privilege going to end here?”

“Damn it, where’s the report button? Let’s all report this rat! With strength like this, only ranked ten thousandth? Clearly, our Blue Star has been set up by the powers that be!”

“Worthless Zou Han, why don’t you fight back, damn it!”

“And we trusted you so much—turns out you’re just a weakling, a traitor!”

“Zou Han has fallen. It’s over.”

“Wasting everyone’s time. Get lost already.”

In the Dueling Arena.

Not a single part of Zou Han’s body remained intact. Gritting his teeth, he knelt on the ground, the tendons in his hands and feet mercilessly severed. His powerful Physical Body kept him from dying immediately, instead subjecting him to You An’s relentless torture.

In the Myriad Realms Ladder, one could exit the Dueling Arena simply by shouting surrender aloud.

Yet he did not do so. His eyes bulged wildly, an endless tide of unwillingness flooding his heart.

“I carry the hopes of all Blue Star.”

“I bear the lives and fates of a hundred thousand soldiers.”

“I damn well cannot fall!”

Rip—

Rip—

Flesh and tissue scattered across the ground.

A brilliant cyan light erupted from Zou Han’s body as unprecedented energy converged within him. His eyeballs burst from the strain, muscles convulsed and exploded, bones protruded and shattered, and his height surged by another meter.

[Forbidden: Body-Destruction Curse]

Zou Han stood up, a thick aura of decay emanating from his entire being.

Boom!

Zou Han’s body exploded. This time, the attack covered the entire Dueling Arena. You An, who had been darting through space, was unavoidably struck by the blast and sent flying backward.

However, You An’s flying figure soon vanished mid-air, reappearing moments later as he landed steadily on the ground.

Huff—

You An’s chest heaved noticeably.

Ahead, a four-meter-tall flesh-and-blood giant roared as it charged forward.

Whoosh!

You An teleported again, his sharp claws slashing across Zou Han’s back.

Good news: he broke through the defense.

Bad news: Zou Han’s body was already in tatters, and this injury was merely adding flowers to brocade.

Roar!

Zou Han let out a guttural roar, swinging his hand back in a sweeping strike.

You An swiftly dodged, appearing the next moment on a distant flat area.

The two were now locked in a stalemate.

Zou Han couldn’t touch You An, and You An couldn’t kill Zou Han.

“There’s a chance to win!”

“As long as we can hit that damn rat, we have a chance at victory.”

“Zou Han, go after him! Wear down his stamina and we can win!”

“Holy shit, Zou Han looks terrifying now. Even on the live stream, I can see organs spilling out of him.”

“Fortunately, this is just a game. If such a battle happened in reality, even if Zou Han ultimately won, he probably wouldn’t live much longer.”

The situation on the battlefield grew increasingly unpredictable. Just as everyone thought the two were evenly matched and the outcome would depend on who could hold out longer, the live stream suddenly captured You An making a series of strange sounds from his mouth, as if chanting some kind of incantation.

“Su… su…”

Suddenly, a bullet comment appeared.

“Wait, I just looked up some information. This rodent species is called the Zu Weasel, and this particular one that can teleport is the noblest breed among their weasel clan—

the Void-Splitting Weasel!

Every Void-Splitting Weasel undergoes Atavism when it reaches the fifth tier. After Atavism, its strength increases at least threefold, and its Talent abilities are greatly enhanced. From what we’ve seen so far, this Void-Splitting Weasel doesn’t seem to have ever used its Atavism power!”

In the live stream, the Void-Splitting Weasel levitated into the air, its entire body radiating a dark, corrosive Aura. Its emerald-green pupils were replaced by a pure, profound black, and its once-sharp edges turned to decay. A faint Death Qi rose and spread, and in the blink of an eye, the entire Dueling Arena was shrouded in endless shadows.

“Suo… suo…”

…