The Highest Bounty

Gu Ding was quickly transmitted to the ring. His opponent, who had been standing on the ring for a long time, was a tall and thin man with the ID of NotMyFaultI’mTall.

 “Kiddo, why have you come and sniped me all the way from the eighty-thousandth rank?” Tall Guy did not understand as he had sniped newcomers once or twice before. Most of the time, however, the newcomer had racked up too many consecutive wins and accumulated too many points. Therefore, when he saw that Gu Ding, who only had ten consecutive wins, he was a bit curious about whether Gu Ding had accidentally offended some top official in the arena.

 Players ranked at least ten-thousandth were basically Gene Level 3 adults. Not only have they awakened their abilities, but some of them have had also strengthened their abilities for the second time. Moreover, some had even awakened two abilities.

 Tall guy’s ability was called Iron Block. It was not particularly a special ability, but it allowed his body’s defense to increase several fold when it was activated, which made his muscles as hard as iron blocks. He ranked around ten-thousandth mostly because he tied a lot instead of losing. Most of the time, he tied because his opponents could not break his defense whilst he could not beat his enemy.

 After Tall Guy activated Iron Block, his defense was akin to a Gene Level 4 adult. The Cell Index of a junior-level arena was typically limited to 100 points, but his defense was comparable to that of a person with a Cell Index of nearly 300 points. This was why there were not many people who could break through his defense.

 “This guy’s defense is extremely powerful. He has a special ability called Iron Block. Once activated, his body will become as hard as an iron block,” Neptune quickly checked the opponent’s information. He had to remind Gu Ding that the opponent in front of him was extremely powerful. Although it took just a few seconds, it was enough for Neptune to read all the information surrounding Tall Guy, which included information from the videos. “He has participated in more than five thousand battles, losing less than two hundred battles and tying over a thousand times. His total points aren’t high because of the draws.”

 “Strong defense?” Gu Ding grinned after he heard what Neptune said. “That’s good. I’ll be sure to show him my moves.”

 Gu Ding used Silent Step as his avatar flashed multiple times before it charged toward his opponent.

 “He’s fast!” Tall Guy was shocked when he saw Gu Ding’s movements. Immediately, his view on Gu Ding changed as he activated his ability—Iron Block. “My ability can easily withstand close-range attacks from powerhouses of the same level. I don’t believe that a fifteen-year-old tween can break through.”

 2At that moment, Gu Ding’s Steel Fist struck his opponent’s chest. The chest was one of the most protected parts of the body defense because it was surrounded by the ribs. The main reason Gu Ding chose to attack this part was because he wanted to see how strong his opponent’s defense really was.

 

Clang! Suddenly, the metallic sound of gold and iron clashing was heard, as if a giant hammer had struck a large bell. Gu Ding’s fist felt like it had punched a hard iron block. Not only did it feel indestructible, but he could also feel a force repelling him backward.

 His avatar retreated hurriedly as his right hand shook slightly from the force.

 “Stop struggling. You’ll never be able to break through my defense,” Tall Guy shouted at Gu Ding as he charged toward him. However, he was secretly a little shocked. When Gu Ding threw his punch just now, he could clearly feel the strength of the blow. Although Gu Ding failed to break Tall Guy’s defense, the part he attacked, his chest, was his strongest point. If not for the fact that his Iron Block ability increased his body weight, he would probably have been sent flying from the punch. Moreover, there was a dull feeling in his chest which indicated that the attack by his opponent was not ineffective. If an opponent hit one’s vital position, they were likely to be injured.

 Gu Ding was quiet. His opponent’s unbeatable defense made things difficult for him. That punch he tried to test the waters showed him how hard it would be to break his opponent’s defense. Furthermore, his opponent would not just stand there while he did his thing.

 On the viewing platform, someone finally recognized Tall Guy.

 “This guy’s defense is as tough as sh*t. I’ve seen his matches before.”

 “Me too. One time, he stood there motionless while his opponent bombarded him with punches for three hours. In the end, his opponent admitted defeat due to insufficient spirit.”

 “This killer is just a kid? He still looks like a minor to me. Why is the arena bullying him? How could they match a rank eighty-thousand with a rank ten-thousand?” Some of them who had not seen Gu Ding’s previous games cried out at how unfair the match was for him.

 1“You haven’t watched his previous games, but don’t underestimate his size. He basically wiped out his opponents within a split-second in his previous battles,” A person who had watched Gu Ding’s previous game explained.

 In the ring, Gu Ding activated another move. He used Ultimate Arts Level 3 Steel Fist with all his might. After a long pause as he weighed his options, he decided to go ahead and try crack his opponent’s defense himself. Since the power of his Ultimate Arts Level 3 attack was not enough to break his opponent’s defense, he figured he would try his best to breakthrough to Level 4. Although it was a little difficult to do so with a Cell Index of a hundred points, it was not impossible. A short-term strenuous feat on his body should not be too big a problem for his body at this time.

 Tall Guy saw how fiercely his opponent had charged at him and decided that he was not going to let him attack him willy-nilly anymore. Thus, Tall Guy proceeded to charge toward Gu Ding.

 Fist to fist!

 

Clang! The two of them took a few steps back.

 With full force, Gu Ding engaged both his legs and charged toward him once more.

 Tall Guy felt a little bitter. His fighting technique was merely considered proficient. If he faced proper fighting masters, the only person getting hit would be himself. Although his opponent was young, it seemed that his combat skills were quite astounding.

 As one could imagine, Gu Ding bombarded him with all sorts of moves, basically pinning Tall Guy back. Most of the time, Tall Guy used his arms to protect his vital parts whilst throwing the occasional ineffective jab at Gu Ding.

 “That kid is fierce!” Someone exclaimed from the stands.

 In the monitoring room, it seemed that the woman with the short hair from last time had now dyed her hair red. Her leather jacket was unzipped so that it exposed a plain black bra. She wore a black short leather skirt that showed her slender thighs, and long black leather boots underneath. With a lollipop in her mouth, she sat on a swivel chair and watched Gu Ding’s battle live stream.

 “That tall man is going to lose,” The short-haired woman immediately proclaimed. “Get someone around rank five thousand, preferably one with a special ability such as stealth or something. We’ll see how he handles it.”

 “Missy, if you want him to lose, it’ll be much easier to get someone in the Natural Stream,” A big man in a black suit beside her suggested.

 “Who said I wanted him to lose? I just want to see how far he can push his strange technique. Meanwhile, I want to also see if I’m able to mimic any of them,” The short-haired woman smiled smugly. “I’ve secretly watched my dad practice the Ultimate Arts before. It seems like the kid’s moves are similar to my dad’s. Still, there’s a lot of differences between them. I’m guessing it may be another version of the Ultimate Arts.”

 “Missy, the Ultimate Arts cannot be practiced,” The big man frowned slightly.

 1“I’m just studying it. What’s it to you?” The short-haired woman pouted. “Don’t forget that I’m still an Interstellar Pirate. If I meet a Hunter from the Federation Government, I must have some knowledge of the Ultimate Arts in order to save myself.”

 “Missy, Master used to be the captain of the Hunters. They have enough respect for Master to not lay a finger on you,” The big man dissuaded.

 “That’s in Dragon Soar Cosmic Nation. Dragon Soar Cosmic Nation is merely a two-star cosmic nation. Dad has said before that any Hunter from a four-star grade cosmic nation is as strong as him, let alone a five-star cosmic nation. I can’t hide under my dad’s protection forever. His name can only shield me so long, especially if I leave one day. Therefore, I want to make a name for myself so that one day in the future, I’ll be able to protect my dad too,” The words of the short-haired woman silenced the big man.

 2