Chapter 168: Sun Li, Crushed

"How could this be?" Yang Piaopiao could barely believe her eyes. She had just activated a superior-grade stealth-type soulshard, and her opponent should have been unable to pinpoint her location.

However, Sun Mengmeng had somehow dashed forward and taken her down before she could vanish completely! Wasn't this woman supposed to be a long-ranged attacker? Why did she have such superlative close-range abilities as well?

Against her, Yang Piaopiao hadn't even survived three blows! Just what sort of monsters were hiding in Team Zenith?!

"Your soulshard's ability isn't bad, but it takes too long to activate. Furthermore, you're not the only one with a soulshard," Sun Mengmeng pointed out, noticing how perplexed her opponent seemed to be. "As long as you're still alive, as long as your body's giving off heat, I'll be able to find you in an instant."

The spectators below couldn't help but stare at Sun Mengmeng. They realized then that Zhang Lie wasn't the only strong hunter in Team Zenith, and that Sun Mengmeng was also an opponent to be wary of.

After the end of the match, she and Yang Piaopiao bowed to each other before returning to the stands.

"Sis, you're way too strong!"

"Right, you managed to grab that woman after just two or three blows!"

Sun Xiaowu, Yang Ze, and the others swarmed her after the fight, asking about her experience.

Sun Mengmeng shook her head; she wasn't completely pleased with her own performance, and there were quite a few errors that she had realized after reviewing the fight in her head.

For quite a while afterwards, no hunter from Team Zenith was called to the stage. Instead, quite a few hunters from the major clans stepped forward, and many of them advanced successfully to the next round.

In the blink of an eye, as morning turned to noon, the seventh batch of competitors was finally called to the stage, Fang Yi from Team Zenith among them.

"On stage fragment #9, Fang Yi VS Sun Li!"

The appearance of Fang Yi and Sun Li, from the Heaven's Flame Dojo, on screen caused a commotion to erupt from the stands down below.

𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

"It's your turn, Fang Yi!" Zhang Lie announced, clapping him on the shoulder. His relaxed tone left Fang Yi surprisingly at ease.

In truth, Sun Li was likely the hardest opponent that any member of Team Zenith would face this round. He was the first-ranked hunter in the Tianzhou settlement, as well as a core disciple of the Heaven's Flame Dojo, with strength comparable to one of the young clan heads from the major clans of the capital.

The Heaven's Flame dojo leader frowned at the matchup, but ultimately sighed in relief.

Sun Li was one of the strongest disciples he had trained in recent years, and he was expecting a good showing from him during the Void Cup—though necessarily one that would be diminished by the unexpected presence of Zhang Lie.

"Go, Sun Li! Let those hunters of Ning realize that the Zenith Dojo isn't the only dojo around!" the Heaven's Flame dojo leader commanded, a hint of indignance in his tone.

The opening of the Zenith Dojo had marked disaster for the other dojos in Ning, but those dojo leaders didn't dare do anything to Zhang Lie, the hunter who had discovered the existence of limit fragments. He was backed by the Chinese military itself, and they feared the retribution they would receive if they dared do anything to him.

However, the Void Cup would be an excellent opportunity to diminish the Zenith Dojo's reputation. If Sun Li could defeat Fang Yi, it would show that the Zenith Dojo was inferior to the Heaven's Flame Dojo.

Nevertheless, recalling Sun Mengmeng's performance from earlier, the Heaven's Flame dojo leader hastily added to Sun Li, "Don't look down on your opponent too much. Ensure victory at all cost!"

Sun Li inhaled deeply. He recalled Yang Piaopiao's fight; he would give this match his all. "Don't worry, Dojo Leader. I'll make sure everyone's talking about the Heaven's Flame dojo!"

Sun Li stepped into the beam of light and appeared on stage fragment #9.

On another part of the stands, Zhang Lie casually told Fang Yi, "Go on, Fang Yi! That hunter's no match for you."

He didn't lower his voice, and the hunters gathered nearby all looked toward him curiously. It was clear just how confident Zhang Lie was in Fang Yi's strength.

Fang Yi nodded, his confidence significantly boosted by Zhang Lie's words, as he stepped toward the beam of light and was teleported to stage fragment #9.

The two competitors glanced at each other, and the atmosphere became suddenly tense.

The Heaven's Flame dojo leader clenched a fist. Based on Sun Mengmeng's performance just now, he knew that the members of Team Zenith would be a force to be reckoned with. Despite Sun Li's talent, he was still a little worried.

On the other hand, neither Zhang Lie nor the rest of his team seemed at all worried about the outcome of the fight. Fang Yi had always taken on the role of an attacker during Team Zenith's coordinated fights. In terms of pure strength, he was comparable to Sun Mengmeng and superior to the other members.

Fang Yi, his obsidian spear in his palm, bowed to his opponent as he analyzed him.

Even before they had exchanged any blows, Sun Li's heart was already starting to quail.

Fang Yi, who stood immobile, seemed like a bolt of lightning hiding amidst the dark clouds of a thunderstorm. The moment he moved, he would strike fast, true, and hard, and it felt as though nothing Sun Li did would deter him.

What sort of pressure was this? He was Sun Li, favored disciple of the Heaven's Flame Dojo! How could he be feeling such intense pressure from a hunter from the same generation? No, he had to be mistaken!

"Sun Li, from the Heaven's Flame Dojo!" Sun Li forced himself to remain calm as he introduced himself and stared alertly at Fang Yi.

He was so overwhelmed by Fang Yi's aura that he didn't dare make the first move. Sensing his opponent's hesitation, Fang Yi stepped forward. His eyes glowed golden, snakes of lightning crackled over his skin, and a gale of wind suddenly seized the arena. "Take this! [Rondo of Wind and Storm]!"

"A dual wind and lightning attunement?" Sun Li cried out in shock. His skin turned a flaming red as he darted toward the edge of the arena, moving so quickly he left afterimages in his wake.

Fang Yi strode forward, wrapped up in a maelstrom of wind and thunder, thrusting forward with his spear. The wind howled; lightning crackled; the green glow of light forming the stage shook and fizzled.

The entire stage fragment was overwhelmed by the storm, and Sun Li felt like a leaf caught in its midst. He had no choice but to flee, but though he was fast, Fang Yi's spear was faster. Sun Li's body crashed to the ground. The moment right before his attack landed, Fang Yi's eyes widened, and he forcibly tried to blunt his attack, but Sun Li still spat out a mouthful of blood in midair.

The moment he landed, with Fang Yi's spear pointing at his throat, Sun Li cried out, "I surrender!"

Fang Yi stowed his spear. "Thank you for the fight."

Everything seemed to happen in a blink of an eye; by the time the spectating hunters watching the fight realized what was going on, the fight was already over!

"What?! What did I just see? ?Sun Li was defeated in an instant, just like that!"

"I saw it too—we aren't dreaming, are we?"

"Is every member of Team Zenith like that? If even Sun Li fell so quickly, is there any chance left for us?"

The outcome of the fight caused a huge commotion. The spectators had expected a long, drawn-out fight between the two parties, and most of them even favored Sun Li. Who would have expected that Fang Yi would defeat Sun Li in a single, devastating blow?

The Heaven's Flame dojo leader's face turned dark: Sun Li was a core disciple of the dojo, and his loss was the dojo's loss. Furthermore, Sun Li hadn't lost to Zhang Lie, but rather to one of his teammates! The dojo leader felt as though he had been slapped in the face with uncommon force.

Overseeing the fights, Wang Han grimaced. Zhang Lie was bad enough, but would he have to worry about Team Zenith as well? Just what sort of team was this? None of the hunters in it were famous, but all of them seemed unusually strong. How had Zhang Lie managed to assemble such a team? The stronger Zhang Lie and his team was, the more dire the situation would be for the younger generation of the Wang clan!

"The winner of stage fragment #9—Fang Yi!"

Sun Li's face was pale white, and he was still panting somewhat from exertion. He had felt death looking him in the eye during Fang Yi's attack; if Fang Yi hadn't reduced the strength of his blow in time, Sun Li would likely have died.

Sun Li knew that he had lost, well and truly. In control over the battlefield, in the accumulation of genetic energy, in the masterful use of his techniques—Fang Yi was superior to Sun Li in all these areas. Against Fang Yi's devastating blow, he didn't even have a chance to show off his strength.

He struggled to stand up. "Thank you for your mercy."

Glancing at the stage, the dojo leader of the Heaven's Flame Dojo spat out, "Trash, useless piece of trash!" As an experienced hunter in his own right, he could sense that Fang Yi's attack was more bluster than anything else, but that alone was sufficient for Sun Li's mental defenses to crumble. If Sun Li had attacked, he might still have lost, but the fight certainly wouldn't have been so one-sided.

His aura once again restrained, Fang Yi returned to his unassuming, reserved self, but none of the hunters who had watched the fight could forget how he had looked in battle.

Sun Li bowed, then returned to the stands without a word.

The seventh batch of competitors was the last batch to be called up that morning. After Fang Yi returned to the stands, Elder Bai announced a break. The tournament would resume at 2 PM.

The hunters gathered at the stands slowly left the plaza, some heading to a hotel or their residence to rest, and others searching for a secluded location to prepare themselves for the fights that lay ahead.