CHAPTER 98: IMPRESSIVE ADAPTATION.

A few minutes later...

CRASH! WHOOSH!

Mirabella brought her ice blade to rest against Elena’s throat.

"I yield," Elena managed through chattering teeth.

Roar!

The arena erupted as Mirabella immediately released her technique, helping Elena stay standing. Both fighters were completely exhausted.

As they bowed with mutual respect, Ren observed with intense analytical focus, cataloguing every detail that might prove crucial.

Mirabella’s ice weaves operated on three sophistication levels—basic attacks were energy-efficient, environmental manipulation gave her tactical control, and legacy enhancement provided overwhelming but resource-intensive power.

Her Stage 3 projectile control was limited by her vision and required concentration that left her vulnerable to unexpected vectors.

Most importantly, her absolute zero field was devastating but unsustainable. Extended battles would force reliance on basic techniques, creating opportunities for opponents who could survive her initial assault.

Elena’s spatial magic showed remarkable versatility, but mental strain limitations were clearly observable.

She could maintain approximately seven portal connections before concentration degraded. Her Phoenix Vision was most effective during opening combat phases, becoming less reliable as ambient energy chaos increased.

Her partial legacy armor only enhanced visual capabilities—suggesting incomplete bloodline development compared to Mirabella’s comprehensive enhancement.

Both fighters had revealed ultimate techniques—Mirabella’s absolute zero field and Elena’s thermal-anchored portals—along with their energy costs and operational limitations.

Every technique, limitation, and tactical preference had been catalogued. When Ren faced either opponent—or anyone fighting at their level—he would be prepared with strategies that exploited demonstrated weaknesses while accounting for their capabilities.

The tournament was becoming an intelligence operation where information was as valuable as raw power.

And Ren intended to use every advantage he could gather.

As the echoes of applause from Mirabella’s victory began to fade, the arena atmosphere grew more intense with each passing moment.

The remaining candidates understood that every subsequent battle would be against opponents who had already proven themselves capable of extraordinary magical combat.

"Ren of Block B," the witch announced with obvious anticipation, "versus Cassandra of Block A."

Ren stepped forward with measured composure, his mind already processing what he knew about his opponent.

Cassandra was known for her lightning affinity and her unique combat style that had earned her advancement through every previous trial.

Cassandra approached the arena center with electric confidence, literally and figuratively.

Small sparks danced between her fingers as she connected to the loom, and her entire demeanor radiated the barely-controlled energy that characterized elite lightning weavers.

In her hands, she carried twin curved swords that crackled with electrical energy. But what made Cassandra truly dangerous wasn’t just her raw magical power, it was her fighting style.

She had developed a combat style based on electrical enhancement, using lightning magic to supercharge her own physical capabilities while electrifying her weapons to devastating effect.

"Begin!"

The moment combat commenced, Cassandra demonstrated why conventional defensive approaches were insufficient against her unique methodology.

Bang!

She launched herself forward with lightning-enhanced speed, her twin swords trailing electrical arcs as she closed distance with supernatural velocity.

Her opening strike was a diagonal slash enhanced with compressed lightning that could punch through most magical defenses.

The electrical charge in her blade made it nearly impossible to block with conventional weapons since the lightning would conduct through any metal contact and electrocute her opponent.

CLANG!

But Ren’s kusarigama technique was far from conventional. Instead of blocking her electrified sword directly, he used his chain to catch the blade’s flat side at the perfect angle, redirecting her strike just enough to send the electrical discharge past his position while the momentum of her lightning-enhanced attack flowed into his weapon.

The moment her sword’s trajectory shifted, Ren activated his momentum transfer ability, absorbing the tremendous kinetic energy from her lightning-fast strike. The electrical discharge crackled harmlessly through the air beside him while his kusarigama captured all the physical force of her enhanced attack.

Cassandra’s eyes widened as her devastating strike was neutralized through pure weapon technique rather than magical defense.

Her blade had been redirected with such precision that the lightning missed entirely while her attack’s momentum was turned against her, leaving her slightly off-balance from the unexpected deflection.

She immediately adapted, shifting to rapid combination strikes that utilized her enhanced speed to attack from multiple angles simultaneously.

CLANG! CLANG! WHOOSH!

Ren’s response showcased why the kusarigama was such a formidable weapon in skilled hands.

Swish! Swish!

He used the chain’s flexibility to deflect her strikes while the weighted end created unpredictable attack patterns that forced Cassandra to constantly adjust her positioning.

But Cassandra’s electrical enhancement allowed her to react to threats with inhuman speed.

When Ren’s weighted chain swung toward her blind spot, she spun with lightning-fast reflexes and caught it between her crossed swords, trapping his weapon while positioning for a devastating electrical discharge.

SPARK! BANG!

Lightning erupted along the chain toward Ren’s position, but his spatial magic was already activating.

A space lock materialized around the electrical energy itself, containing the lightning within a dimensional pocket while leaving the physical chain unaffected.

The technique was so unexpected that Cassandra hesitated for a crucial moment, giving Ren the opening he needed to retrieve his weapon and create tactical distance.

"Impressive adaptation," Cassandra acknowledged, her swords crackling with increasing electrical intensity. "But let’s see how you handle this!"

She activated her stage 2 carved rune, and electrical energy began coursing through her entire body.

Her movement speed doubled, her reaction time became supernatural, and her swords gained the ability to discharge concentrated lightning bolts at range.

WHOOSH!

Cassandra launched a lightning bolt directly at Ren’s position while simultaneously charging forward with enhanced speed.

The dual attack was designed to overwhelm defensive options—dodge the ranged attack and face her enhanced melee capabilities, or defend against the lightning and be vulnerable to her physical assault.

Ren’s solution demonstrated tactical brilliance. Elena’s usage of space had given him some ideas he was more than eager enough to test.

He used his space magic to create a small spatial distortion that redirected the lightning bolt into the arena floor, then activated his momentum charge ability to rapidly produce an insane amount of momentum.

When Cassandra arrived for her enhanced melee attack, he released all that accumulated energy into a devastating kusarigama strike.

BANG!