5: Challenge Luo Jin

With the absorption of four divinity fragments,

Zhou Xing's strength successfully rose to the "peak of the late tong yuan stage."

Slowly opening his eyes, Zhou Xing also felt his aura was more solid than before,

and the power he could exert had increased by more than several times.

He picked up the tablet next to him and scanned the profiles of the three people.

Each even had quite a few combat videos, including ability analyses.

Without hesitation, Zhou Xing directly chose to challenge "Luo Jin."

Three hours later, after the receptionist from before arrived, they immediately reported the news that Zhou Xing was initiating a challenge against Luo Jin.

"Hello, are you sure you've thought this through? Your opponent has the strength of the late tong yuan stage and has previously achieved a record of 15 consecutive victories.

Meanwhile, your strength is only at the Mid Tong Yuan Stage..."

After reporting, the person asked Zhou Xing once more as a reminder.

"Arrange it. Don't worry about anything else; only one of us will leave alive."

Saying this, Zhou Xing stood up and headed for the preparation area.

One hour later,

At the location of the Crucible's largest Arena No. 1.

As Zhou Xing's figure stepped onto the arena once more, the lights of the entire venue suddenly went out, leaving only a single spotlight covering the center of the stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" The announcer's voice sounded very excited. "Tonight, we will witness a magnificent battle of Awakened Ones!"

"The challenger is our 'Night Crow'! Many of our esteemed guests must have seen his matches before; that's right, he achieved a record of five consecutive victories today."

"Next, let us welcome the defender—"

"He, who established the proud achievement of 15 consecutive wins;"

"He, whose every battle is hailed as a textbook of slaughter;"

"He, who has long been the Top 1 ranked fighter in our arena;"

"He is the 'King of Combat'—Luo Jin!!!"

The audience stands instantly erupted as countless people stood up, shouting frantically.

On the other end of the arena, the scar-faced Luo Jin slowly walked out.

A black military coat hung loosely open, revealing a tight dark green tactical vest underneath.

As he casually stretched his neck, a scar resembling a healed surgical incision was exposed on the back of his neck.

Clearly, he was an inferior Awakened One who had forcibly fused divinity fragments through surgery.

"The odds are 1.2 to 8.5."

The referee quietly approached Zhou Xing at this moment. "Do you need me to help you place a bet?"

Zhou Xing shook his head; before heading to the arena, he had already asked the receptionist to bet four million on his own victory.

At this moment, Zhou Xing's gaze locked onto the military knife at Luo Jin's waist—it was engraved with the designation "7th Special Operations Brigade."

"Contestants, take your positions!"

The referee's voice rang out.

At this point, Luo Jin drew the military knife from his waist and casually stabbed it into the alloy floor nearby.

This contemptuous and even insulting gesture drew bursts of whistling and shouting from the stands.

Clearly, he had read Zhou Xing's profile.

Although the perfect compatibility of the dual ice and fire attributes was quite good, the opponent's strength was only at the Mid Tong Yuan Stage, which posed no threat to him.

This was his confidence as a "god of war" Awakened One, even if it was obtained through forced fusion.

Zhou Xing didn't care about Luo Jin's contempt.

In his eyes, Luo Jin was already a dead man.

What he was thinking about now was making the other party experience an extreme, agonizing despair.

As the countdown hit zero, Zhou Xing struck first.

He slammed his left hand onto the ground, and Frost Power rapidly spread out with him as the center.

However, just as it was about to reach Luo Jin's feet, the entire arena suddenly shook violently.

"Battle Domain: Steel Thorn Dungeon!"

With a low murmur from Luo Jin, countless sharp iron spikes suddenly erupted from the ground.

Zhou Xing dodged like lightning, but to make the opponent lower his guard, he intentionally let an iron spike graze his thigh.

At the same time, his own Frost Power was actually being controlled by the opponent.

However, Zhou Xing was not surprised; as a god of war with top-tier combat power, the focus was on being well-rounded.

Within the War Domain, all of the enemy's weapons and even their means of attack could be dominated.

In an instant, Luo Jin actually condensed a large number of ice spikes, which shot toward Zhou Xing like a torrential rain.

He immediately constructed a triple ice shield in front of him, while fire power surged from his right hand, throwing out one compressed fireball after another.

*Boom!*

A series of explosions rang out, and the surroundings were instantly filled with smoke.

But just then, Zhou Xing felt a chill.

Without him noticing, Luo Jin had already lunged behind him, his military knife held against Zhou Xing's throat.

"Is this all you've got? I really don't know how you got your five-win streak. It's over."

Warm breath came from behind his ear, and the blade of the knife slashed down abruptly under the other's control.

However, at that moment, Zhou Xing suddenly ducked and delivered a back kick that landed squarely on Luo Jin's wrist.

The military knife vibrated and went flying.

Zhou Xing also took the opportunity to flash away, widening the distance between them.

He appeared somewhat disheveled.

Luo Jin flexed his wrist and gave a cruel smile. "Such familiar techniques. Are you from the military too?"

As he spoke, Luo Jin suddenly tore open his tactical vest, revealing a hexagonal metal plate embedded in his chest.

Then, a blue light lit up, and the metal floor of the arena actually began to melt.

Ultimately, it formed hundreds of floating, sharp metal fragments.

"Taste this move."

The fragments covered Zhou Xing directly like a swarm of bees.

As Zhou Xing dodged, Frost Power continuously condensed in front of him, and scorching flames erupted from his palms, surging forward.

The Ice-Fire Power formed a barrier.

The many metal fragments were first covered by the Frost Power, and then cracks began to appear under the burning of the flames.

Eventually, they shattered completely.

This made even Luo Jin feel very surprised.

"I really underestimated you, but I was just playing with you earlier. This farce should come to an end."

With those words, Luo Jin suddenly vanished from the spot.

"Battle Domain: Strangle!"

In the next second, the metal ground where Zhou Xing stood twisted directly, and countless sharp iron spikes thrust upward.

Zhou Xing jumped with force, Frost Power continuously condensing into ice shields beneath his feet, allowing him to step on them to dodge.

However, as if anticipating his movements, Luo Jin's figure emerged from the ground like a ghost directly in front of where he was dodging.

The military knife in his hand, carrying immense force, slashed violently toward the back of his neck.

*Bang!*

Zhou Xing hastily condensed an ice shield to block, but the power of this strike was extremely formidable.

The ice shield shattered instantly, and Zhou Xing was sent flying, crashing heavily into the edge of the arena.

The sudden turn of events made the surrounding audience hold their breath one by one.

As if he felt he had already secured victory, Luo Jin stood in place, looking at Zhou Xing with a cold sneer.

"Your Ice-Fire Power is nothing more than this."

He slowly raised his hand, and the Frost Power around the arena actually began to gather toward his palm.

"You will never understand the power of the Battle Domain."

Zhou Xing slowly stood up at this moment, the corners of his mouth under the mask curling up slightly.

"Is that so?"

He suddenly raised his hand, and flames surged from his palm.

But this time,

the flames did not attack Luo Jin; instead, under Zhou Xing's control, they blasted directly into the ground.

*Boom!*

The terrifyingly high temperature caused the metal floor of the arena to melt bit by bit.

Immediately after, Frost Power surged forth instantly.

The clash of extreme cold and extreme heat caused the entire arena to begin collapsing bit by bit...