Chapter 188: Karma Backlash! Marionette!
The next morning, the Harbor Dome was filled with thunderous cheers.
The fervent audience screamed the names of their favorite contestants, almost tearing off the dome.
Yet, the two individuals at the center of this vortex felt no warmth within their hearts.
Tatara Yui, dressed in a face-covering protective suit, clicked her tongue in displeasure, gazing at Arthur, who appeared completely unperturbed.
She picked up her Ground-Scuttling Centipede, yanked the starter cord, and the chainsaw roared to life with an ear-splitting clamor.
"I'll make you cry like a baby, pretty boy!"
Arthur drew durandal, its blade reflecting his indifferent face, completely disregarding the pure killing intent that rushed towards him.
"They say an Intrinsic Device reflects the essence of a person's soul. Your Device is truly not commendable."
"Tch! The Ground-Scuttling Centipede and I are perfectly in sync!"
The whistle blew!
Tatara Yui instantly moved, dragging the wailing chainsaw behind her, tearing up the hard ground of the arena, sending up gravel and dust in a violent assault!
Arthur easily dodged her wide, sweeping slashes, his movements as graceful as a stroll through the woods.
His opponent's attacks were disorganized, relying solely on brute force, full of openings.
With only minimal footwork, he kept her running ragged, unable to land a single hit.
"As a Blazer who controls reflection, even if you're trying to bait me, you shouldn't be making such a spectacle of yourself, should you?"
Tatara Yui, hot on his heels, heard the taunt and pulled the cord again, the chainsaw's RPM soaring. She sneered,
"Who would do something so boring! I genuinely want to cut you down!"
Arthur's brow twitched slightly, and he tentatively flicked his sword, sending several gusts of Steel Gale whistling out.
"Then why do you hate me so much? Like Shinomiya Amane, out of jealousy?"
"Hmph! Because it's my job!"
Tatara Yui met the overwhelming wind pressure with disdain, activating her complete reflection ability, redirecting all the gales back, tearing through the air!
The wind howled fiercely. Arthur transformed into a bolt of lightning, ghosting through the reflected storm, his longsword precisely parrying the buzzing chainsaw!
Tatara Yui, who prided herself on unparalleled dynamic vision, her pupils contracted sharply as an iron fist, its wind like thunder, rapidly enlarged before her eyes!
Killing intent overflowed from her fierce eyes, shadowed by heavy dark circles, and she shrieked furiously,
"Idiot!"
The moment the iron fist landed, she swung her chainsaw, powered by brute force, in a diagonal cut, and her reflection burst forth!
Tatara Yui's body bounced several times within the arena like a rubber ball, eventually losing control and tumbling out of bounds!
She crashed into the concrete structure beneath the spectator stands with a tremendous thud, sending up dust and debris!
Arthur, on the other hand, having absorbed the force equivalent to his own punch, merely swayed slightly, standing firmly in place.
He opened and closed his palm, confirming the essence of her ability, and disappointment flickered in his eyes.
In all fairness, the reflection ability was similar to the One-Armed Sword Saint's "Friction," both being powers capable of ranking among the strong.
However, compared to conceptual abilities like "Absolute Vow" and "Causality Manipulation," it still lacked a certain finesse.
"It seems you're not much help to me."
Arthur made his assessment, looking up at the pile of rubble outside the arena. If she didn't get up within the ten-second countdown, she might just save her life.
At the side of the arena, the chief referee diligently timed with his stopwatch. The next moment, an unexpected change occurred.
Boom—!
Amidst a deafening roar, the heavy pile of stones was inexplicably reflected by an invisible force, flying back into the arena!
Tatara Yui, her clothes tattered, emerged from the ruins, her dark hair wildly dancing, her body lowered like a viper, approaching step by step!
Arthur's sword moved like a curtain, shattering the wildly shooting stones, and he instantly noticed her difference.
At this moment, her stamina, magic, and even willpower were burning at a level beyond their limits.
"How did you, someone without any martial arts, manage to squeeze out such explosive potential?"
"Who would tell you that!"
Tatara Yui, having consumed "Angel's Dust," made the ground beneath her feet explode. Her body transformed into a fierce light, charging forward, her chainsaw sweeping horizontally without any fancy moves!
Arthur's footwork shifted, four afterimages skillfully dodged the chainsaw, and elemental slashes roared, striking simultaneously!
An inexplicable force field surged in all directions, and the elemental downpour immediately bounced away, leaving only four silver arcs to cut through flesh and muscle, bringing forth sprays of blood!
Tatara Yui, whose life was completely burning, felt no pain, but her riddled body couldn't stop its decline, and foul blood even overflowed from her nose and mouth.
Witnessing this, Arthur's eyes flickered, and he had a guess about the reason for his enemy's sudden outburst.
"On drugs?"
Tatara Yui casually wiped away the foul blood from the corner of her mouth, her sneer growing more exaggerated as she immediately admitted,
"What, are you going to raise your hand like a school kid and tell on me to the chief referee?"
This feeble provocation made Arthur completely lose interest. He merely observed his opponent, whose life flame was already dim.
"Seeing as you're so full of killing intent towards everyone, I won't bother with platitudes about the preciousness of life. I'll just send you on your way early."
Tatara Yui, covered in blood, propped up her Ground-Scuttling Centipede, muttering to herself,
"What foolishness are you talking about? Is your sword meant for killing chickens?"
She spun her blade, creating a continuous wail, and charged again with her head down, just as mindlessly as at the beginning!
Arthur shook his head indifferently. The wind pressure condensed on his sword stagnated, and he then unleashed a Vacuum Hammer, causing the surrounding air to shriek piercingly!
Tatara Yui, relying on complete reflection, did not dodge or evade, continuously overdrawing her depleted body, not stopping for a single step!
Arthur gazed at his opponent, who had carved a bloody path before him. His originally raised sword blade casually dropped, easily parrying her weak, dying counterattack.
The banned drug was still working, but her body, due to excessive blood loss, finally reached its limit. Tatara Yui collapsed before him.
But in her eyes, overflowing with pure killing intent, there was no trace of surrender.
Arthur, seeing this, couldn't help but shake his head: "I've changed my mind about you. You really are in sync with your Intrinsic Device."
Tatara Yui, collapsed on the ground, her limbs trembling, mocked him breathlessly.
"Cough, cough… Did you… really think… I… would fight you to the death without a plan… and just take all your attacks?"
"Blazer Skill: Karma!"
In an instant, the crisp sound of shattering glass appeared out of nowhere, only lingering in their ears!
The previously dying Tatara Yui actually recovered completely, climbing up from the ground with an expression of wild joy!
She had reflected all the damage she had previously sustained, or rather, she had reflected the fate of "being severely wounded" entirely onto her opponent!
Twisting causality with the reflection ability—this was more than just one level higher than pure physical reflection; it was the most terrifying ultimate move!
"Hmm—I take back what I said. You're a great help to me."
Tatara Yui, who thought victory was assured, her smile froze, and she suddenly looked up.
She saw Arthur rubbing a few shallow red scratches on his cheek, and in his eyes was the astonished look of a hunter discovering rare prey.
"Unlike innate causality interference types, to touch causality with a reflection ability… your talent is not shallow."
At this moment, Tatara Yui read a trace of deadly pale brilliance in his eyes!
Following the allure of a voice deep in her mind, she hysterically plunged the chainsaw blade into the ground, violently tearing off the engine pull cord!
"Blazer Forbidden Skill: Star Hammer!"
A pure white flash streaked across the Harbor Dome, and an explosion beyond the limits of hearing transformed into a shockwave, brutally tormenting everyone's eardrums!
But contrary to this earth-shattering power, its destructive range was surprisingly small.
This forbidden skill only pulverized the one-meter area where Tatara Yui stood, leaving behind a pitch-black, hardened steel crater.
Arthur stood at the edge of the crater, the pale brilliance that had been building in his pupils receding, and he shook his head helplessly.
"To actually try and use the power of the planet's rotation against me, you chose the wrong target."
As he spoke, a wisp of clear breeze spontaneously swirled before him, carrying a few fragments of transparent threads, shattered into dust, from within the crater into his palm.
He rubbed these almost imperceptible threads, deep in thought.
'Even the elites of the Rebel Army are controlled by something like this… That so-called 'Clown' is far more cunning than imagined.'