Chapter 219: Chapter 218 Bloodline Seed Chapter 219: Chapter 218 Bloodline Seed Seeing the startling change in Tuo Tie’s body, Richard’s eyes slightly narrowed, and he swiftly retreated, dodging the attack.
With a loud “bang,” the broadsword struck the ground, sending soil flying like bullets in all directions, and raising a massive cloud of dust, resembling a yellow dragon soaring into the sky.
In the swirling dust, Tuo Tie lifted his broadsword without rushing to pursue, simply taking deep breaths, adjusting his physical state, and gazing at Richard with a solemn look.
“I did not want to use this move,” Tuo Tie hummed, “I had planned to save it for the final as a safeguard, but you forced my hand.”
“What is this?” Richard, maintaining a distance of about ten meters from Tuo Tie, squinted and asked.
“You mean my current state?” Tuo Tie was not very secretive, saying, “I call it Bloodline Power, bestowed upon me by my ancestors. It makes me faster, stronger, and of course, it can kill you.”
“Bloodline Power?” Richard’s eyes flickered, murmuring low, “A genetic mutation? Similar to a massive secretion of adrenaline, thus acting as a stimulant?”
“This power of yours must have its limits,” Richard speculated suspiciously, looking at Tuo Tie, “Such as not being able to sustain it for a long time, otherwise you would have used it earlier. And there must be some negative side effects, otherwise, you wouldn’t be so cautious.”
“Indeed, that’s true,” Tuo Tie freely admitted, “You guessed right, but even so, it’s enough to kill you.”
At the entrance, Macbeth’s lips pursed slightly, and after a long while, he spoke, “So it’s a Bloodline Seed then, not very common on ‘Lisben’ Island. It looks like it hasn’t fully matured yet, but even so, it’s quite powerful.”
“Bloodline Seed?” Nancy asked confusedly, “Lord Macbeth, what is that?”
“It is…” Macbeth was about to explain, but suddenly thinking of something, said, “Let’s wait until after the competition, I’ll explain it to you and Richard together, so I don’t have to explain it twice.”
“So…” Nancy caught the hidden meaning in Macbeth’s words, “So, Lord Macbeth, do you believe that even with this power, that person named Tuo Tie cannot defeat Richard?”
“Ha, don’t underestimate Richard,” Macbeth’s eyes gleamed, “In the recent fight, he clearly held back. You could say it’s his caution, but also, his swordsmanship is superior. Even with Tuo Tie using the power of the Bloodline Seed, he might not be able to handle it.
I am now suspecting that perhaps Richard possesses the same Bloodline Seed power, and it might be of a higher level than Tuo Tie’s, just not fully activated yet. That would explain why his swordsmanship is so strong.”
“Uh…” Nancy responded, thinking to herself: Lord Macbeth, it seems you haven’t forgotten your allegiance.
“Let’s watch the competition,” Macbeth said, pulling Nancy, who was inwardly cynical, back to the ongoing action.
Tuo Tie continued to breathe deeply, adjusting his state. Clearly, the Bloodline Power could enhance his abilities, but could not instantly restore him to full capacity. After all, no matter how potent the stimulant, it couldn’t make a paralyzed patient jump out of bed, nor could it resurrect the dead—power bursts also made sense and had their limits.
Richard understood this well, thus he was not overly concerned, calmly watching Tuo Tie as he took a brief rest, quickly adjusted his condition, and then roared as he attacked.
Faster in speed, greater in strength.
The heavy broadsword continuously smashed into the ground, sending the soil flying and turning the well-leveled ground pockmarked again.
Dust gradually filled the arena, the spectators continued to stare wide-eyed, retreating upwards. The host on the platform had prepared early, taking out a gray cloak to wear over his clothes. A black bowler hat donned, and a white handkerchief taken out, he covered his mouth and nose. As the dust-wave surged like a tempest, he stood immovable as a rock in the sea.
Tuo Tie attacked, and Richard dodged.
Tuo Tie attacked with all his might, and Richard dodged.
Tuo Tie gritted his teeth as he attacked, while Richard dodged.
Tuo Tie tried his hardest to attack, but Richard… well, Richard didn’t need to dodge anymore. After a while, Tuo Tie, having exhausted his Bloodline Power, collapsed to the ground with a “thud.”
Staring wide-eyed at Richard, Tuo Tie felt both helpless and furious, unable to help saying, “You… You’re despicable.”
“I… I’m saying you’re despicable!”
Tuo Tie sat on the ground, his body trembling as he glared at Richard. He knew he had lost— not in strength, but because he wasn’t despicable enough.
Richard stepped closer, gave Tuo Tie a push, and Tuo Tie, gritting his teeth, used up his last bit of strength to counterattack, swinging his Broadsword at Richard. But the Broadsword only swung halfway before it fell to the ground.
Richard’s Longsword pierced through Tuo Tie’s chest and protruded from his back.
“You!” Tuo Tie’s eyes were about to pop out of their sockets.
“Me,” Richard said indifferently. “I’m very despicable, so I’m not giving you the chance to surrender or seek revenge later. Though we probably won’t meet again, someone with special abilities like you might cause trouble if we do. Besides, even though I’m not close to Raymond, you killed him. Me killing you shouldn’t be a problem then.”
“Gurgle…” As the sword pierced his heart and left lung, Tuo Tie spat out a mouthful of blood and continued to stare wide-eyed at Richard, already too weak to say anything else. Eventually, as Richard drew out his sword, Tuo Tie’s body swayed and fell backward, stirring up the last cloud of dust in the arena.
“Clang,” the host in the high stand got up, took off his hat, threw aside his cloak, and declared in a cold voice, “Richard wins!”
Richard flicked the fresh blood off his blade and walked emotionlessly toward the exit. Behind him, the excited crowd rose to their feet and shouted in unison.
Richard now enjoyed the acclaim once reserved for Tuo Tie.
To the audience, this match was truly spectacular. Leaving aside the mostly boring processes, at least there was fierce fighting, a twist, and finally, a death. That was enough; it was well worth the ticket. It was much better than watching a turtle or a statue.
Of course, they were even more looking forward to the fight in tomorrow’s final.
“There might not be the final fight they’re hoping for, but rather something else might happen.”
Richard thought to himself as he walked back to the entrance.