Ave Xia Rem Y

~~~

"Bei Hong of the Eternal Flame Clan vs. Chen Guo of the Infinite Mountain Sect!"

The cheers tell the whole story. One can barely hear Bei Hong's name while Chen Guo's is chanted without end. It would be normal for such a large disparity to make one nervous, yet Bei Hong stands in the ring with his head held high. The people in the audience are all irrelevant to him.

Only Chen Guo matters.

The man looks down at him, not out of disrespect but purely due to physical limitations. Someone as tall as Chen Guo cannot meet his eyes in any other way. His powerful Qi has already spread throughout the ring. Unlike the aura of other cultivators, Chen Guo's Qi does not blaze like a bright flame. It simply hovers in the space around him, unmoving and almost solid in appearance.

Earth Realm, Level Nine.

Bei Hong smirks and allows his own aura to flow out. The act should be as natural as breathing, yet Chen Guo's Qi is so unbelievably dense that Bei Hong needs to push it away before his aura can have any space. It is the first time in his life something quite like this has happened, and it only heightens the anticipation in his Qi.

Earth Realm, Level Six.

"You are strong," Chen Guo says. A simple statement. One that might ring false considering Chen Guo's power, but his words are too heavy to be anything but the truth.

"You are not going to ask me to surrender?" Bei Hong asks.

"Perhaps I would have before," Chen Guo says, noticing how Bei Hong's aura pushes against his own. "However, I will not insult you by doing something so inane. You stand here, so you understand the risks. No more words are needed between us."

Bei Hong agrees.

In the blink of an eye, both fighters meet in the center of the ring, their fists drawn back. Bei Hong's body has turned gold. Chen Guo's eyes are grey like stone.

Their fists ram into each other.

The ensuing shockwave slams into the barrier with immense force, accompanied by a sound not unlike the ringing of a bell. Multiple people in the audience feel the force wash over them, leaving their ears ringing. The arena trembles in the middle of the sky, and the city below them shakes without end, kicking up a wave of dust all over the city.

Bei Hong is blown away.

His back hits the ring three consecutive times, leaving a deep crack each time. Only the barrier stops him from tumbling out. Bei Hong's whole body heaves as he stands up.

His fist is crushed.

His fingers. His hand. His bones. All of it is nothing more than a flat stump where his wrist ends now. That is the result of getting into a contest of pure power with Chen Guo. A lesser person would be screaming in pain, but Bei Hong holds it in. The taller fighter says nothing, but Bei Hong can feel the question in the weight of his stare.

"You knew it would end like that, so why do it?"

It is a good question. One many people in the audience are wondering about, and one that is causing Lu Mei's palm to meet her face because she already knows the answer. Bei Hong grins through the pain and waves his stump around to get used to it. He lightly bounces on his feet. Once. Twice. Thrice.

He accelerates into a golden comet.

Chen Guo dashes to meet him. The number of steps he needs to take to reach Bei Hong is somehow shorter than it should be, but it doesn't matter. Bei Hong is still faster. He ducks under Chen Guo's fist, feeling the immense force behind it despite Chen Guo failing to even graze him.

[Golden End]

The technique explodes in Chen Guo's chest, but just as Brother Huang warned him about, it is Bei Hong who feels pain as his remaining fist makes contact. Punching Chen Guo feels like making contact with something far larger than the cultivator's already impressive frame. Bigger than the arena and perhaps even bigger than the entire city.

It doesn't matter.

Before Chen Guo can even react, Bei Hong adjusts his stance and unleashes another [Golden End]. His fist protests, yet it does not break. Chen Guo finally moves, swinging his arm in a wild arc. Bei Hong leans back and dodges by inches, then raises his fist in an uppercut that knocks Chen Guo's arm off course.

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It leaves the disciple of the Infinite Mountain Sect wide open.

[Golden End]

[Golden End]

[Golden End]

Even though Chen Guo's aura is so dense that moving close to him feels like trying to push through honey, Bei Hong is still the faster one of the two. The elixir made by the Eternal Flame Clan guarantees that. His body becomes a golden blur as he lands blow after blow on Chen Guo.

And yet, Chen Guo remains standing. He brings both his fists up and slams them against the ring.

It shatters.

The shockwave threatens to blow Bei Hong off his feet, forcing him to anchor himself to the ring using his Qi. This becomes increasingly harder as the ring cracks and breaks into hundreds of pieces. The power of Chen Guo's blow is so strong that some people in the audience fall off their seats.

Amazing.

Absolutely amazing.

Bei Hong's grin is so big and wide that every single one of his golden teeth is visible. He can only be thankful to Qing Jin for this opportunity. Someone as strong as Chen Guo would usually rely on the pure advantage provided by his superior cultivation for most of the fight. That would lead to a long, probably satisfying brawl that would, nevertheless, fail to provide what Bei Hong truly wants. Not anymore. Thanks to Qing Jin, the stakes have changed. Chen Guo will not leave anything to chance.

Bei Hong can feel it. The vibration in the air. The slight sense of vertigo that threatens to assault him as the world feels as though it were tilting on its axis. The way Chen Guo feels bigger and more real than before. This is what he has waited for. This is the mountain he's meant to topple.

Finally, this is a real battle.

Chen Guo punches.

Bei Hong is not nearly within range of that fist, yet he feels as though his whole body has been struck by something massive. His legs dig trenches into the remains of the ring as the force of the impact knocks him back several yards and leaves his ears ringing. Blood flows from Bei Hong's mouth, yet his eyes shine with excitement.

He leaps forward.

Bei Hong feels his bones groan in protest, yet he pays them no mind. How can the whines of his body compare to the rumblings of his soul? His aura blazes around him, pushing away Chen Guo's dense Qi through sheer grit. His foe's fist is already moving, unleashing a series of quick jabs that each deliver a massive wave of force despite Bei Hong being nowhere near them. The smart thing to do would be to dodge.

Bei Hong rams into them.

Later that day, some people would theorize that, considering the range of Chen Guo's seemingly invisible punches, there is no guarantee Bei Hong could have dodged if he tried. Capitalizing on his superior speed by running in a straight line gave Chen Guo less time to attack.

All those people would be wrong.

Bei Hong feels each impact wash over his golden body, yet he endures them. Each time, he is a step closer to his goal. There are no tricks. There is no deceit. Why doesn't he dodge?

He will simply not tarnish his way of life.

Going in any other direction than forward is unthinkable.

[Golden End]

The impact knocks back Chen Guo a few feet and leaves a crack on his skin. His grey eyes meet Bei Hong. A whole conversation passes in the single instant Bei Hong's fist hits him. A nod is given in acknowledgment and understanding.

Chen Guo stomps.

His leg strikes the ring, yet Bei Hong reflexively brings his hands up just in time to catch the massive invisible weight that threatens to crush him. His muscles bulge. His Qi roars even as the ground craters under him. With a guttural growl, Bei Hong pushes the force away, letting it strike the barrier with such strength that the whole of the arena is left trembling for minutes, and all the clouds in the skies are cleared.

The reward for his effort is Chen Guo appearing right in front of him. Superior speed lets Bei Hong dodge his incoming fist, yet the impact still washes over his body. Enduring it, he slams his golden fist into the man's stomach.

He is rewarded by a crack. Not of his fist but of Chen Guo's chest. Grinning, Bei Hong renews his offensive even as his bones protest. His fist shines gold as he keeps hitting Chen Guo's body.

Always striking the same spot he has been aiming at since the beginning of the match.

Crack.

Crack.

Crack.

Another impact washes over Bei Hong's body. Another one of his bones breaks. Another one of his muscles tears. It does not matter. Even if he's broken, he will remain untarnished. His golden body shines as he throws himself at Chen Guo again in a dance of fists, determined to take down the mountain boulder by boulder.

Chen Guo smiles.

Bei Hong's instincts scream at him to flee.

He ignores them and keeps dashing forward.

Two fists are drawn back. An entire city trembles. Bei Hong steps forward to dodge Chen Guo's attack by a hair's breadth. It will still hurt, but his attack should hurt more.

He feels it, then.

A pull. A weight. A force that cannot be denied.

Gravity.

There is a single incredulous moment in which Bei Hong realizes what is happening. The pull of the Earth Realm. The force the elixir has allowed him to fight. But it's not his pull. It's Chen Guo's. The force a cultivator is subjected to on the Ninth Level Earth Realm weaponized against him.

Pulling him to Chen Guo's fist with no way to escape.

Is he meant to panic? Surrender? No, such unworthy thoughts never once enter his mind.

He is Bei Hong.

He is Untarnished.

His Qi blazing gold, Bei Hong slams his lone fist against Chen Guo's.

"The Winner! Chen Guo of the Infinite Mountain Sect!"

~~~