Warlord Grok, his face with disbelief scanned his remaining champions. His gaze landed on a winged, harpy-like beast. "Sh'ra! 7th-Level! Take flight! Your speed will overcome their tricks! Bring me victory!"

Sh'ra, a harpy-like beast with sharp talons and powerful leathery wings cackled and leaped into the arena, immediately taking to the air. Her eyes scanned the human champions.

High Mystic Caelia looked to her disciple. "Sylvia, you are next. Thankfully your Azure Wind art counters aerial opponents well. Go." Sylvia simply nodded and walked gracefully into the arena, her pale blue robes a stark contrast to the blood-red sky. Her expression was cold and focused as she looked up at her airborne opponent.

Sh'ra circled high above assessing the human. "A little blue bird," she screeched down. "Pretty, but fragile! I will break you!" She folded her wings and dive-bombed, talons extended and moving at incredible speed.

Sylvia's hand rested on her sword hilt. The moment Sh'ra began her dive, Sylvia acted. "Azure Gale Formless Sword!" She didn't draw her physical blade. Instead, she became the center of a swirling, cutting whirlwind of invisible sword Qi. The wind howled around her, forming a protective sphere.

Sh'ra slammed into the invisible barrier, talons first. K-KRAK! The sound of impact echoed. Sh'ra was thrown back into the air, screeching in pain and surprise with shallow cuts appearing on her talons and legs. She had expected to tear through the human's defenses easily. Sylvia, however, was pale.

A 6th-Level holding off a 7th-Level diving attack, especially one with such momentum was a massive drain on her Qi. Sh'ra, enraged and wary, now refused to get close again. She circled high above, just outside the maximum range of Sylvia's art and began to... sing. It was a high-pitched, grating unnatural sound that seemed to bypass the ears and drill directly into the mind.

Sylvia's expression twisted in pain. Her 'Azure Gale' flickered violently. It was a spiritual sound attack, designed to shatter concentration and destabilize Qi. As Sylvia's defense wavered under the sonic assault, Sh'ra saw her opening and dove again, faster than before. This time, Sylvia couldn't maintain the full whirlwind. She reacted purely on instinct, focusing her entire remaining Qi into a single, needle-thin almost invisible blade of wind which she thrust upwards like a spear, anticipating Sh'ra's trajectory.

SHINK!

The wind-blade met the diving harpy. It pierced Sh'ra's attack, punching clean through her shoulder, tearing tendons. Sh'ra screamed, not just in pain but in shock at the focused power of the counterattack. She tumbled through the air clutching her ruined wing and crashed heavily onto the basalt. She tried to rise, flapping her one good wing uselessly. She glared at Sylvia with pure venom. "I yield!" she spat, before healers dragged her away.

Score: Humans 2 - Beasts 1

Another roar went up from the Human camp. They had taken the lead! Caelia allowed herself a small smile as Sylvia returned, pale but victorious.

The Primal Beasts were now looking grim. They had underestimated the humans' techniques. Warlord Grok snarled and pointed to his strongest remaining champion besides their ace. "Rax! 9th-Level! End this saber-woman quickly!"

Evandra Vane, at the 8th core formation, stepped into the arena with her competitive spirit burning. This was her chance to prove herself against a higher-level opponent. Her opponent, Rax, was a sleek dark-furred primal beast. His movements are sinuous and deadly like a panther.

This was an uphill battle. Rax was faster, using a stealthy pouncing combat style. Evandra was more technical. Rax vanished, using a high-speed movement art. He appeared behind Evandra, his hands shaped like claws aiming for her neck.

Evandra's Martial Spirit, a 'Spectral Ashen Bladeweaver,' erupted behind her with its own saber, meeting the stealth attack with a shower of sparks. The fight became a dizzying blur. Rax was all speed and ruthless physical strikes, weaving in and out like a shadow. Evandra and her spirit were a four-armed vortex of grey saber Qi, her defense impeccable but she was clearly being pushed back.

The difference of one level at this stage was showing. It would seem like Rax’s experience with combat was also at a higher level than hers. Rax landed a blow, his claws tearing a gash on Evandra's side. Evandra winced but smiled. She activated the core principle of the 'Ashen Blade's Requiem.'

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Her saber glowed with a faint chilling gray light. She countered and her blade sliced the beast's arm. Rax roared in surprise and pain. He felt... weak. A wisp of his life force and Qi had been drained by her blade, flowing into Evandra, mending her own minor wound. This changed the fight but not decisively.

Rax was weakened but he was still a level higher. He adapted, avoiding her blade while focusing on overwhelming speed and power. Evandra's 'Requiem' art could drain Qi but it had to make contact. After a long brutal exchange, Evandra was panting. Her Qi reserves were dangerously low.

Rax, though visibly paler and slower than before, saw his chance. He feinted high then dropped low, sweeping Evandra's legs out from under her. As she fell, he brought a savage clawed fist down onto her chest. CRUNCH! Evandra coughed up blood, her eyes wide with pain and she collapsed, unconscious. Rax stood over her, breathing heavily and let out a victorious, if weakened roar.

Score: Humans 2 - Beasts 2

The Human camp fell silent again. The match was tied. It all came down to the final fight. Evandra was carried back, healers rushing to her side. "Damn it!" Korgath growled. "That draining art is powerful but not enough against a higher level."

"The final match," Grok announced, a predatory grin spreading across his face. "Ur-Khan! You will not fail. Crush their last hope!" Their ace. A 9th-Level Core, built like a mountain, covered in thick matted brown fur. He was the epitome of primal strength, a humanoid bear.

He carried no weapon. He stepped into the arena radiating an aura of immovable force. From the Human side, Roric Heavystrike, also at the same stage of cultivation, stepped into the arena. He just stood there with his eyes closed and his aura sinking into the ground.

The tension was unbearable. This single fight would determine who faced the terrifying Demons for the first pick. The match began. Ur-Khan roared and unlike the others he transformed. His body swelled, his muscles visibly expanding, his fur turning as hard as iron plates. 'Primal Bear-King's Physique!' He charged.

His paw, which was the size of Roric's head, cocked back, imbued with the force of an avalanche. Roric summoned his Martial Spirit, a 'Colossal Stone Golem.' He also activated his own art, the 'Stone Binder's Ancestral Scripture.' His skin took on the texture of granite, ancient runes glowing faintly on his arms.

BOOM!

Ur-Khan's fist connected with Roric's crossed arms. A shockwave erupted, cracking the basalt floor for fifty yards around them. Roric... didn't move. He just grunted with his feet sinking maybe an inch into the stone. Ur-Khan was surprised. No one at the same level had ever taken his full-power punch and not moved.

Ur-Khan, in his 'Bear-King' state became a whirlwind of savage mountain-shattering blows. He pummeled Roric. He pummeled Roric's Martial Spirit. Fists, claws, headbutts and body slams. And Roric... endured. His Stone Golem cracked, shattered under the relentless assault but then it reformed, drawing power from the earth.

His own granite-like skin showed hairline fractures that instantly sealed. He was the ultimate immovable object. He was deflecting and parrying where he could but he was not fighting back. After five solid minutes of non-stop full-power attacks, Ur-Khan was panting. His transformation was fading.

His massive arms were shaking. He had punched a mountain with all his might and the mountain had not yielded. Roric, his face straining from the exertion as well, slowly lowered his arms. His Martial Spirit stood behind him, battered but solid.

"My turn." He took one slow step forward. He and his Golem spirit pulled back their fists in perfect, slow-motion unison. Ur-Khan, his energy spent and his transformation failing, tried to raise a desperate block. Roric's fist, empowered by the 'Ancestral Scripture' and seeming to hold the weight of the entire mesa he had studied upon, struck the bear-warrior squarely in the chest.

It was not a loud crack. It was a deep heavy thud that seemed to resonate through the entire arena. Ur-Khan's eyes lost focus. He looked down confusingly at his chest which showed no outward mark but felt... collapsed. He swayed for a moment then fell backward like a felled tree, unconscious before he hit the ground.

Final Score: Humans 3 - Beasts 2

The Human camp erupted in a roar of desperate relief. They had won. They had overcome the Primal Beasts! They would face the Demons for the first pick of the quadrants! The Primal Beasts were furious but they honored the pact, dragging their unconscious champions from the field.

Warlord Grok stared at Roric Heavystrike with grudging respect before turning away. They were aggressive but they also respected strength. Theron, Korgath, and Caelia all let out a visible sigh of relief. The first hurdle was passed. Now, they just had to face the monsters who had dismantled the Cultists in a 3-1 slaughter.

Roric Heavystrike walked back to his spot, closed his eyes and resumed his meditative stance, recovering his strength. Evandra was receiving healing, her eyes already fixed on the Demon platform, analyzing them. Li Yu watched them all with no real expression on his face.

Li Yu was a bit tempted to see if he could pull some qi from the primal beast side but stopped himself. It was not worth risking a war breaking out because it was detected and thought to be some kind of underhanded tactic by the humans.