Xenon took a step forward with the intention of closing the distance between him and Ryan, but then he immediately stopped himself.
'No. If I get any closer, I will have less reaction time to defend myself against Ryan's attack. I mustn't move as there is about thirty meters between us.
'Even with his insane speed, he shouldn't be able to attack me without me noticing!'
That's what he truly believed.
When he was watching Ryan's matches, his opponents were always rather close. A mere distance of ten to fifteen meters was a piece of cake for Ryan to close in an instant.
However, now the distance was twice as big!
'That might be the wrong move on your part, Ryan!' Xenon steeled his body. 'You were desperate to increase the distance between us so you could do your Super moves, but you forgot about a very important part: the distance is now too big!'
'It doesn't matter whether he will do Super Acceleration or Super Jump. I will still see through his moves!'
Within Ryan's legs, his muscles strained as if they were run by engines. His thighs were swelling with muscles, the veins on them bulging out in response to the pressure.
"Argh!" Ryan gritted his teeth with warm sweat rolling down his face.
It felt like his entire body was on fire!
The martial soul slowly peeled, as if an old lady was slowly peeling an apple.
The pain was excruciating, but Ryan refused to give up.
It was because he knew what was happening.
The next threshold of strength that he'd been craving so much!
'Give it to me!' Ryan screamed inwardly. 'STRENGTH!'
At last, the martial soul finished peeling, and another layer of strength appeared below. A new wave of strength swept across Ryan's body like a tidal wave.
A few people managed to sense the change inside his body.
Xenon was not one of them.
"This is bad!" Ambrossa High's coach screamed. "Xenon, watch out!"
"Advancement? Here?" Kasimir raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Interesting."
"Ryan…" Jin whispered to himself before blooming into a smile. "You did it!"
'I can tell that something is different with him.' Kiernan wondered. 'Did he also advance?'
"Come on, bring it on!" Xenon hopped on his toes, taunting Ryan.
Because of all the roaring crowd, he couldn't really hear his coach's words of caution. To him, Ryan was still that weak Martial Soldier.
"Be careful what you wish for…"
Ryan whispered coldly, and with the ground cracking under the weight of his legs, he exploded off the ground and vanished from everyone's eyes.
'Where?' Xenon opened his eyes wide. 'I can't see him anywh—'
All his thoughts came to a halt as a fist landed on his face.
Xenon's head got thrown backwards, his vision turned black immediately, and the rest of his body crumbled to the ground.
The referee jumped into the ring and shouted. "One!"
"Whoo!" Ryan, still in his punching motion, looked silently at Xenon before standing back straight.
He glanced at his legs and saw that they were bleeding. It almost looked like his veins had ruptured based on how his legs were bleeding.
His thighs were purple, bruised heavily. It was already a miracle that he could stand straight!
"Two!" The referee kept doing the countdown.
Yet, Xenon wasn't moving an inch; his eyes were closed, and his mouth was slightly open with his tongue sticking out slightly.
Ambrossa High's supporters were as quiet as a cemetery.
On the other hand, Karuza High's supporters were cheering so loud that the chairs under them were shaking.
Timothy and Klaus were standing, cheering in excitement.
"What do you think, Kiernan?" Jin asked. "Can you defend against that speed?"
"Hah…" Kiernan scratched the back of his head. "Once I've unlocked the True Iron Style, then yes."
'True Iron Style?' Jin frowned. 'What is that?'
"Three!" The referee looked at the unconscious young man and checked his pulse to be sure.
It almost looked like he was dead because he wasn't moving an inch!
However, the pulse was still there.
"Whew…" the referee let out a sigh of relief. "Four!"
Ryan slowly moved back to his corner, rubbing his aching legs, and tried to catch his breath even slightly.
"Come on, Xenon!" Ambrossa High's coach shouted. "Stand up!"
"Yawn~" Kasimir let out a yawn and looked at the young man beside him. "Wieland, get ready."
"Oh, I am." Wieland, a faded-haired young man, finished wrapping the black tape around his knuckles.
Ambrossa High's supporters looked bleached as if they had lost all blood from their faces.
Karuza High's supporters were all smiles.
With that, the referee blew into the whistle.
"The winner of the second match is Ryan Lee!"
"Yes!" Timothy and Klaus clenched their hands into fists.
'One obstacle is down…' Jin nodded his head. 'However…'
When he looked towards Ryan, the state of his legs was worrying. They were shaking, bleeding, and bruised like they had been through hell and back.
The medical staff came with a stretcher and took Xenon away.
Before the referee could say another word, Ambrossa High's next fighter, Wieland, jumped into the ring, his body feeling light as feathers.
Wieland had a faded haircut with hazel brown eyes and a square-shaped face. Including his tall, lanky body with long limbs, he was clearly not a strength-type fighter.
"The third match is between Ryan Lee and Wieland Reed!"
The referee looked back and forth between the two young men.
"Are both of you ready?!"
"Of course!" Wieland smiled with his white teeth.
"Yeah…" Ryan breathed heavily and lowered his stance slightly to reduce the pressure on his legs.
It was already hard for him to stand straight, let alone move!
The referee swung his arm down and then jumped off the ring.
Wieland slowly approached Ryan, his hands open in front of him in an open-palm stance. It looked like his stance was from karate.
'All I need to do is injure him to help Kiernan!' Ryan gritted his teeth, did a step forward, and launched his punch.
Without any warning, Wieland grabbed the punch, pressing his fingers against Ryan's fist.
"?!" Ryan's eyes widened.
"Reed Aikido, Weight of the World."
Ryan's eyes widened as it felt like a sudden weight fell over his shoulders, and he crashed down on his knees without him being able to do anything.
It was like he wasn't in control of his body, but Wieland was!
"Reed Aikido, Fist of the Southern Point!"
With his free hand, Wieland slammed his fist repeatedly at Ryan's face. It was so many punches that it sounded like a drum solo.
"Cough!" Ryan coughed out blood, and slowly his eyes rolled back to his skull.
With that, he collapsed on the ground and didn't move another inch.
"Your turn." Wieland pointed straight at Kiernan. "Come up."