ATAPOW Chapter 30
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Chapter 30: What sort of situation is this?
“Ahhhh!” Five recruits encircled Morton. They unleashed the strength they accumulated as they brandished their weapons.
The long-ax in Morton’s hand was like a long and powerful arm. Along with a series of metal sparks that emitted from their weapons, the various swords and pikes in the recruits’ hands had all been knocked flying because of his move.
“What-” Before they could react, the long-ax reminiscent of a death god’s sickle suddenly went towards them while raising dirt in its wake.
The axe swung 360 degrees and sent all five of them flying on top of it like barbeque skewers. The five recruits, who had just fainted were pitifully picked up like a big pinwheel, they were eventually flung outwards. Just like salted fish, they crashed against the metal walls of the arena.
‘Alright, I see it now, I finally understand why there’s a need to design built-in metal walls in the arena.’
While he saw the inhumane and one-sided massacre currently happening in front of him, Ji Bai silently interjected in his thoughts.
“Because of cowardice, you have abandoned your allies. The only thing that’s awaiting you is a fight with the enemy alone. Ever since time immemorial, that has never been a wise choice.” A thick and muffled voice interrupted Ji Bai from silently observing from the sidelines. As he abruptly checked his surroundings, he saw that there was only him left in this entire battle-scarred arena… Then, he saw the big tin-can slowly walk towards himself. It was extremely obvious that the words he said earlier were meant for Ji Bai.
“Hmm? I’m the only one left? That was fast.” Ji Bai assessed the bodies of newcomers that were tragically sprawled about the arena. He was now certain of his thoughts. He turned to look at the hourglass and realized that less than half of its content had flowed down.
‘Alright. This match shall end with the new students being unable to even touch a hair on Morton’s body. Full stop.
“I hope you will engrave this lesson onto your heart, new student.” Inside the helmet, Morton shot a meaningful glance at the new student who brought no protective equipment, but instead, carried a rusted and tattered sword.
“Hey! A good show’s about to start!” Above the spectator stand, Lin Tuo wished for nothing but to take out a pack of popcorn right now and sit down to watch this scene with bliss.
“Mister Ji Bai…” With her small claws covering her heart, Ke’er was silently praying for Ji Bai’s safety from the bottom of her heart.
‘Alright, it really looks like there’s only me left.’ Ji Bai thought.
Upon seeing the tin-can knight walking directly towards him, JI Bai held the severely dulled longsword upright. The side of the blade edge pressing against his shoulder blade, he did a proper knight salute.
‘Hmm? This new student knows how to perform a proper knight etiquette? Not bad, although… His courage and skills still have room for improvement.’
In the spirit of belief in the knight’s creed, Morton gripped his ax and laid it against his shoulder, returning the salute with respect.
Ji Bai didn’t waste any time beating around the bush after the salute; With a swing of his arms, he held onto the blade edge of the long sword. “Hm?” Morton felt somewhat puzzled as he saw the teenager’s action following the respectful decorum.
In the middle of the battle, it was a very common move to use the hilt of a longsword to engage in blunt attacks. While its hit-rate and lethality were far inferior as opposed to attacking with a blade’s edge, its usefulness laid in attacking the head of an enemy. By bringing about momentary dizziness after a successful strike, it would give the attackers an edge in battle. However, in a confrontation like this, it was usually done when the enemy had let down his guard.
And yet, this teenager had expressed his intentions to attack in this manner from the beginning. It was an extremely foolish move on his part.
“Youngster, it seems that there’s still a lot you need to learn,” Morton said in a profound manner.
Morton wasn’t going to show any mercy just because of his opponent’s inexperience. If they were going to have real combat, it should have all the elements of one.
Like a sharp sword cutting through a piece of paper, the head of the long ax descended as it sliced through the wind, creating a series of rustling winds in its trajectory. The tall and sturdy fortress-looking knight had shockingly attacked Ji Bai with amazing intent! Like a death reaper pressing someone to its death, the massive steel figure assaulted Ji Bai within the scattered dust, he possessed an amazingly overbearing aura.
When faced with such a sudden and imposing aura, Ji Bai still didn’t have the slightest intentions of dodging and stood steadfastly at his original spot.
‘Did he resign to his fate already? Or is he planning to use pure brute force to resist against my attack? That’s impossible!’ Morton narrowed his eyes. Ji Bai stared emotionlessly at the gloomy and massive piece of iron that was approaching ever more closer towards him, Ji Bai weighed the sword in his hand. Suddenly, he fixed his gaze on a particular area, grabbed the sword and ruthlessly swung it like he was swinging a baseball bat.
‘Pang!’ His motion, which was difficult to detect with the naked eye, seemed to hit something in the air. It caused a metallic collision of sound that was extremely loud, people could swear that even a deaf person could hear it. In the next moment, a massive inverted silhouette flew outwards and firmly left a human-sized hole on the metal wall.
For a moment, a deafening silence enveloped the scene.
The few spectators that were on the scene revealed a blank expression on their faces. They didn’t have a clear look at what happened earlier. How could a large tin object suddenly fly out without any rhyme or reason?
Ji Bai, who stayed unmoved on his spot ever since the beginning then dropped the sword in his hands whose hilt was now severely warped. After doing so, he glanced at the hourglass on the judge’s table.
It wasn’t 3 minutes yet.
The track prints on the ground that could have been made by a tank continued all the way until Ji Bai’s feet, before finally losing its trace.
“I’m afraid I can’t quite control myself if I were to use the edge of my blade.” Ji Bai turned his body away. He wasn’t going to look at the unconscious old man that was deeply embedded into the metal wall.
“The examination is over. I would like to congratulate you on perfectly passing the combat test.” The refined teenager gradually stood up from the judge’s seat. Then, with eyes filled with interest, he assessed this teenager of mysterious origins in front of him.
Although the few audiences in the scene were at a loss at what happened in front of them, he had witnessed it clearly.
“Oh, I passed? In that case, can I come up now?”
“Of course you can. Can I ask what’s your name, student?” The refined man gave an amiable smile.
“Ji Bai.”
“Ji Bai… Alright, Ji Bai, you’re free to leave the arena now.”
…………
“…Holy shit!? What just happened?” On the spectator’s seats, Lin Tuo was incessantly using his spectacle’s cloth to wipe its lenses. He just couldn’t believe his own eyes as he repeatedly ascertained the situation below.
Compared to humans, the eyesight of the Asiatic race was obviously much keener. Ke’er, who had barely made out Ji Bai’s actions, had opened her tiny mouth so wide that one could fit a small apple in it.
“You’re still in a daze? Let’s go, isn’t there still a written exam?” Ji Bai, who had just come up from the arena below, patted Lin Tuo. He had just recovered from the shock of having his world-view collapse.
…………
“This new student is pretty interesting, don’t you think?” The refined man gave a faint smile and shifted his sight towards the side.
“… He’s a knight. At least a lord class.” From the corner of the darkness, a man draped with a mantle and a black iron mask on his face slowly walked out. He proceeded to the front of the refined man.
“Someone with such an ability-grade shouldn’t be a new student.” The man smiled.
“Do you need to send some men to observe him?” “There’s no need. Petty tricks like sneaking around have never been of use against those higher-class knights. Instead, it would only cause unneeded suspicion…” The refined man smiled as he spoke up to this point.
“Speaking of which, phantom. As a fellow lord-class knight, what are your odds of success against him?”
“…50%.” The masked man replied after he murmured with contemplation.