"Do you think I will just agree to your terms?" Apollo scoffed at the coward before him. Although Blondy was on the ground, half-kneeling, their heights were still almost the same.
"One thousand gold coins," Blondy said, gritting his teeth.
"Then we have a d—" Apollo's smile turned stiff before a serious expression returned to his face. "Even if it's ten thousand gold coins, I will never agree!"
"Eleven thousand gold coins!" Blondy shouted, his eyes turning red and veins popping out on his forehead. This was the amount of money he had saved up for as long as he could remember. Why? For this exact moment!
Apollo's eyes widened. Eleven thousand?! This guy is f*cking rich!
"Well…" Apollo's voice trailed off as a look of deep thought crossed his face.
Seeing his opponent conflicted, Blondy felt that with one more push, he would finally succeed in coercing this man.
"Come on, that's a great deal. Even to us nobles, that is already a high sum, more so to lowly commoners like you," Blondy said, an arrogant smile appearing on his face. Take it, you fool, before I lose my patience!
Apollo's conflicted expression disappeared, replaced by a determined smile. "You know what? I think I will accept it."
"Hahaha, good, good, as expected from people like you," Blondy laughed, standing up and patting his clothes. "Don't worry, I'll give you the money. So why don't you jump now?"
"In your dreams," Apollo said, raising his hand and gathering the surrounding Qi into his palm, converting it into a raging fire!
Because of their proximity, the heat was so intense that the air distorted. At this distance, even a common technique could be deadly.
"You!" Blondy's eyes widened in disbelief. In my dreams?! "You think I'm a pushover?!"
"Yup, and a coward. Do you need me to repeat myself?" Apollo asked as the fire in his hand grew larger. If his attack landed, who knew what state Blondy would end up in afterward.
The Beggar glanced to the side and noticed the Referee slightly lowering himself, probably preparing to interfere to save Blondy's life. Apollo already knew that the Referee's strength was at least at the Qi Condensation stage, though he wasn't sure of the specific step. But Apollo remained resolute; this guy had been getting on his nerves ever since they first met.
"Don't make me do this, you piece of sh*t!" Blondy shouted through gritted teeth.
"Oh? You have something up your sleeve?" Apollo smiled. "Then show me!"
Without saying another word, the Beggar fired his Fire Blast! At the same time, the Referee instantly appeared beside them, but he was still a step too late as a resounding explosion erupted.
Two figures flew through the air, flipping several times before landing on the stage.
Apollo stared at the cloud of dust that covered almost half the stage. He ignored the Referee, who was glaring at him with deadly eyes.
"If your opponent ends up dead, I will have to disqualify you, and you will be sent to prison for questioning," the Referee said.
"Shh." Apollo raised a finger to his lips, signaling for the Referee to be quiet.
"You—" The Referee's eyes twitched, but he held his tongue and continued to stare at the cloud of smoke. He realized there must be something else he had missed for this small masked man to act so confidently.
And he was right, for as the dust cloud began to settle, a silhouette appeared within it.
However, this time, they felt something different.
"Hehe, the fight isn't over yet," Apollo said, turning to the Referee. "And it seems like he's more than alive and kicking."
The Referee didn't respond and instead stepped back to fulfill his duty. But deep inside, he felt doubt creeping into his heart. Why did that guy use that technique now? And why did he try to buy off his opponent with such a ridiculous amount of money?
The Referee pondered this but didn't take long to arrive at a possible answer. He glanced at the floating platform and saw the Headmaster of the Great Serpent Cultivation School nodding his head at him.
Meanwhile, Apollo stared intently at the dissipating dust cloud. He could sense that something about Blondy had changed. Being at the 3rd Step of the Foundation Building Stage, Blondy could exert a pressure that would make a normal person suffocate, but what he was emanating now was beyond that.
It was a natural feeling of being overwhelmed, something Apollo had only felt when he confronted Yohan, a cultivator at the 4th Step of the Foundation Building Stage. Apollo couldn't do the same, even though he was at the same stage, probably because of his status as a Beggar.
Can the trick up his sleeve increase his cultivation stage by one? Apollo wondered as the dust cloud completely cleared, revealing Blondy. His muscles were bulging, threatening to burst out of his clothes. His blonde hair now resembled a lion's mane, reaching down his back, and his hands had grown sharp, pointy nails.
"I told you not to make me do this!" Blondy said in a hoarse voice, his lion-like teeth on full display.
"Well, too late, you already did it," Apollo shrugged. Then he squinted as he 'saw' the Qi surrounding Blondy was chaotic, swirling around him like it didn't know what to do. As the Beggar cultivated the Revised Simple Breathing Technique, he had become more sensitive to Qi than before.
What's wrong with his Qi? Apollo thought. Even though the Qi was chaotic outside, some of it still managed to enter Blondy's body, enabling him to use his current technique.
"I will make you regret refusing my offer!" Blondy roared. He bent his knees, cracking the floor beneath him. With a powerful push, he propelled himself toward the Beggar!
Seeing this, Apollo raised his hand and unleashed another Fire Blast. With a bang, the fire exploded, but Blondy emerged from it unscathed, reaching Apollo in no time.
Apollo activated his Hydra Mirage, and mist poured out from him, coalescing into ten clones. The lifelike clones immediately swarmed the humanoid lion, kicking and punching him. However, Blondy needed only a single swipe of his hand to make two or three clones disappear into splashes of water.
As the last clone was slashed in half, Blondy looked around but couldn't find his opponent. Suddenly, he sensed a threat from above, and when he looked up, he saw the half-masked man descending on him, covered in a subtle glow with a fist poised to strike his head!
With a roar, Blondy responded with his own punch!