15: Black Market Duel: The Powerful Sonic Mantis

The moment the Supersonic Mantis appeared, the gamblers' exclamations swept through the entire underground space like a tidal wave.

"What a cool Demon Tamers Beast!"

"Supersonic Mantis? I've never heard of this kind of Yao Beast."

"It looks like another unknown Yao Beast species has appeared in the world."

"That's insanely cool! It looks like this newcomer has some skill. Now we've got a show!"

"Even though I bet on the Ice Python to win, being the generous person I am, I don't mind letting the Supersonic Mantis perform a bit."

"Haha~ Start the fight already! Damn it, I'm starting to look forward to this one."

"..."

The scarred man's eyes lit up as he looked at the Supersonic Mantis. He licked his lips and grinned. "Kid, this Demon Tamers Beast of yours is pretty good. Don't say I didn't give you a chance—dissolve the contract and hand it over to me, and I guarantee I'll spare your life."

The black market arena had always been a place for shady dealings, unprotected by the laws of the Huaguo. Similarly, human life was worthless here.

Xie Ning glanced at him, pointed his hand at the Ice Python, and said, "Kill it."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Supersonic Mantis's figure vanished. In the next second, it flew into mid-air, its arms blurring as it unleashed over a dozen blade glows within two seconds, flaying the Ice Python before it could even dodge.

"Damn it! Ice Python, use Frost Breath! Freeze it!"

Hearing the scarred man's command, the Ice Python reared its head, puffed out its cheeks, and exhaled an icy blue breath, but the Supersonic Mantis easily evaded it.

Then, the Supersonic Mantis appeared behind the Ice Python's head, its two blade arms slashing forcefully back and forth.

With a 'clack', the Ice Python's massive head fell to the ground and rolled twice, its breath stopping instantly.

The entire arena fell silent. After a moment, a tsunami of cheers erupted.

At the same time, Xie Ning heard the System notification as he had hoped.

[Ding! Supersonic Mantis successfully killed the Ice Python. Defeated an opponent 3 Ranks higher. Gained 4 evolution values.]

"How... how can this be..." The death of his Demon Tamers Beast caused the scarred man's spirit to suffer a backlash. His face turned pale as he stared at the scene before him in disbelief.

Xie Ning ignored him, patted the Supersonic Mantis first, and then chose to continue the challenge.

The scarred man was quickly dragged away, and the next opponent entered the pit.

This person had clearly learned his lesson. Facing Xie Ning, he didn't dare be the least bit careless as he summoned his own Demon Tamers Beast.

A speed-type Lightning Leopard, at Bronze Rank 6.

Seeing the Lightning Leopard, the Supersonic Mantis also flexed its limbs. The single horn on its forehead emitted waves of energy that enveloped its entire body.

It was finally getting serious.

Rank 5 and Rank 6 were a watershed. Upon reaching Rank 6, a Yao Beast's strength would receive a comprehensive boost. Moreover, this Lightning Leopard was primarily speed-based and even had an elemental advantage over the Supersonic Mantis.

With the signal to start, both the Supersonic Mantis and the Lightning Leopard displayed incredible speed. As the two Demon Tamers Beasts traded blows, blade glows and electrical sparks collided, creating crisp clashing sounds.

In just a few seconds, the two Demon Tamers Beasts exchanged over a dozen moves. Their attacks were fierce and their movements agile. Those standing a bit further away couldn't even see their actions clearly, only catching glimpses of two afterimages darting around, with every collision sparking electricity or blade light.

The Supersonic Mantis had finally met its match. Without using its talent, it was actually unable to take down this Lightning Leopard for the time being.

After concentrating, Xie Ning could not only see attributes but could also briefly enhance his vision when necessary. At this moment, he saw clearly that although the Supersonic Mantis was a speed-type, it was 5 Ranks below the similarly speed-based Lightning Leopard and was on the other side of the Rank 6 watershed. Consequently, it was slightly slower than the Lightning Leopard. In every round of engagement, it was almost giving its all, except for its unused talent.

"What a fast Demon Tamers Beast... to be able to fight a speed-type while being 5 Ranks behind."

"This is the most satisfying match I've seen today. Battles that only use brute force are too crude; this kind of contest of speed feels like a clash of masters."

"Master my ass, I can't even see how they're fighting. Is there any point?"

"Speed-type Yao Beasts are the most disliked by opponents because they are the most troublesome. In this match, two speed-types facing off is truly like a bandit meeting a rogue—they're evenly matched."

"..."

Xie Ning kept a close eye on the battle. At this point, the Supersonic Mantis's disadvantage was particularly obvious. Several times it wanted to use its [Sound Kill] talent, but Xie Ning talked it out of it; he naturally had his own plans.

The world knew that Yao Beasts were categorized by Rank and Grade, but besides those, there was also the concept of potential.

Yao Beasts of the same Rank, Grade, and species still varied in strength; those who had stimulated more of their potential were stronger. Furthermore, if a Yao Beast could wait until its potential was pushed to the limit before each stage of evolution, its new form would inevitably be more powerful than other Yao Beasts of the same Rank.

As long as a speed-type Demon Tamers Beast could break through defenses and was faster than the enemy, it was basically invincible. But because of this, the potential of speed-type Demon Tamers Beasts was the hardest to stimulate.

And right now was the perfect opportunity to stimulate the Supersonic Mantis's potential.

The Supersonic Mantis seemed to understand Xie Ning's intention. It gave up on using its talent and focused on using its two blade arms to fight the Lightning Leopard.

Gradually, the scars on the Supersonic Mantis's body increased. Black smoke rose from the places where it was struck by lightning. Every electric shock made its body tremble, but it used its strength to channel that vibrating force back through its body and strike it back onto the Lightning Leopard.

It was difficult at first, but slowly, the Supersonic Mantis became more and more proficient. Every time it was shocked, it would respond with a Vibration Strike, and the power of these strikes gradually grew stronger.

Finally, after several rounds of collision, the two beasts separated and stared intently at each other.

The Lightning Leopard roared, its entire body covered in electrical arcs. In an instant, lightning flared brilliantly; it was about to unleash its ultimate move.

The Supersonic Mantis, however, strangely relaxed. Its two blade arms hung at its sides, and strange energy surged through its body.

Xie Ning, his opponent, and all the spectators held their breath, waiting for the final collision.

Finally, with a flash of lightning, the two Demon Tamers Beasts crossed paths and stood in each other's previous positions.

Crack~

The Lightning Leopard's body swayed and it crashed to the ground. It wasn't just dead; even its bones were shattered.

"Look! It's Vibration Strike! It really is Vibration Strike!"

"This is clearly a technique that only Martial Dao Demon Tamers Beasts can learn. How can an insect-type Demon Tamers Beast know it too?"

"I've truly seen it all... Could it have been comprehended during the battle just now?"

"Setting everything else aside, just for this Vibration Strike technique, this Demon Tamers Beast's value has definitely skyrocketed by more than tenfold."

Xie Ning didn't know what the 'Vibration Strike' the gamblers were shouting about meant. At that moment, he was watching the changes occurring in the Supersonic Mantis.

Right then, a colorless energy shockwave erupted from the Supersonic Mantis. Its body gradually grew taller, reaching 1.2 meters. Its blade arms became longer and sharper, and the golden horn on its head also grew slightly.

At the final moment, the Supersonic Mantis's potential was finally stimulated, and its Rank broke through to Bronze Rank 2. Its current state appeared extremely excited.

[Ding! Supersonic Mantis successfully killed the Lightning Leopard. Defeated an opponent 5 Ranks higher. Gained 6 evolution values.]

[Ding! Supersonic Mantis stimulated its potential during battle. Reward: intermediate energy potion *2]

Looking at the Supersonic Mantis that flew excitedly in front of him, Xie Ning reached out and rubbed its head, praising it. Feeling the joyful laughter it transmitted through their consciousness, he also began to smile and couldn't help but ask:

"Do you want to continue the challenge?"

The Supersonic Mantis nodded. It slashed the Lightning Leopard's head on the ground, extracted the demon core, and handed it to Xie Ning.

"Very well," Xie Ning took the demon core and looked up toward the area above. "Referee, we continue the challenge!"