Chapter 27: Giving You a Lesson (Please keep reading)

As the match began, the curly-haired man exerted his strength instantly, lunging forward like a bolt of lightning or a speeding arrow.

He felt exhilarated: "My luck is great today, haha! I actually ran into a newbie. Time to have some fun feeding on a noob again."

*So fast!*

Lin Qi was inwardly startled. As expected of a real person, his movements were agile and swift, devoid of any hesitation—nothing like the stiff, mechanical movements of an AI.

*Whoosh!*

Lin Qi exerted force through his feet, his thigh muscles and blood vitality exploding simultaneously. He swung his massive black spear forward; with a shake of the shaft, the tip traced circles in the air, dancing into a brilliant display of spear flowers.

*Swish, swish!*

The curly-haired man swung his greatsword, shrouded in cold light. Sword shadows surged forward, launching the first attack with the speed of the wind.

*Clang, clang, clang!*

In the center of the arena, the greatsword and the spear collided in an instant. The clash of metal echoed sharply throughout the surroundings.

Cold light and sword shadows filled the air, thick with killing intent.

The curly-haired man unleashed a flurry of sword shadows, attacking from all directions.

Shadow Rising Style!

*So fast!*

Lin Qi was shocked. The man moved like lightning, making it nearly impossible to react before the sword strikes were already upon him.

The sword technique being used already displayed its defining characteristic: speed!

"Too slow, too slow!"

"Brother, if you're this slow, how are you going to make a living in the arena in the future?" the curly-haired man suddenly mocked.

Lin Qi froze momentarily. An AI wouldn't be able to speak.

*Slash!*

A sword thrust out violently. A flash of cold light bypassed the long spear in an instant, appearing right before Lin Qi's face, poised to kill him in the next heartbeat.

"Newbie, welcome to the Red Realm!"

The curly-haired man laughed loudly, but his movements seemed to grow even faster!

*Retreat!*

Lin Qi jolted, his body snapping awake. He exerted force instantly, his arm swinging violently as the spear shaft shifted position in a flash.

*Clang!*

After the collision between the spear and the greatsword, the sword's trajectory was deflected.

*Puff!*

A sharp blade of light grazed Lin Qi's face, leaving a bloody scratch. The pain stimulated his nerves, causing his body to instinctively recoil backward.

Lin Qi frowned. That was too close; the greatsword had almost pierced his eye. He had nearly died.

*A very strong opponent!*

The curly-haired man was quite surprised. "He actually dodged it."

"Kid, you won't be so lucky next time."

With that, his figure blurred, shooting out like an arrow from a bow. He danced his greatsword into a flurry of light, attacking once more with waves of cold radiance.

*Whoosh!*

The battle gave him no room to breathe as the terrifying killing intent swept over him again.

Lin Qi exhaled sharply. His heart pounded violently, his blood surged through his veins, and his eyes grew increasingly bright.

He recognized the opponent's technique: the *Swift Shadow Sword Style*, a Black Iron-grade manual.

Fast as the wind, leaving no trace.

The strikes were lightning-fast, and his mastery of the technique was even higher than Lin Qi's.

"So strong!"

His eyes shone brighter. The large muscle groups throughout his body exerted force simultaneously, his blood vitality surged, and his body exploded with power as the veins in his arms bulged.

His speed surged significantly. He swung the long spear with majestic momentum, unleashing a grand aura.

In his eyes, the curly-haired man's sword thrusts and rapid movements—turning and combining sword strikes with footwork—were as fast as lightning.

Shadow Piercing Style!

But Lin Qi could see it clearly now.

Countermeasures surfaced in his mind.

*To the left!*

He tilted his head and shifted his body, letting the sharp blade graze past his shoulder, then ducked to avoid another strike.

In a single second, he narrowly dodged two consecutive strikes!

The curly-haired man froze in shock.

"Now!"

At the critical moment, Lin Qi seized the man's momentary hesitation. Coordinating his hand and waist, he exerted sudden force, thrusting the massive black spear forward.

*Point Break!*

With a precise thrust, he broke through the opponent's Swift Shadow Sword Style.

In the curly-haired man's eyes, a flash of cold light from the spear tip suddenly appeared, brimming with lethal intent.

*Puff!*

The sharp spearhead pierced through his heart, and blood sprayed wildly!

【Battle ended. "My Greatsword" has died!】

"How...?"

*Thud!*

The curly-haired man collapsed to the ground. All he could see was a figure wearing a black mask looking down at him, a pair of indifferent eyes staring from beneath the dark mask.

"Thank you for the lesson!"

"I..."

The curly-haired man tried to say something, but he had already dissolved into nothingness within the arena.

...

When the curly-haired man opened his eyes again, he was back in his personal space.

"Damn it, I actually died!"

He looked frantic, his face filled with resentment.

"I actually lost to a newbie?"

"Right, I must have been careless. That's the only way he could have won."

The man found an excuse to comfort himself, wanting to match again to reclaim his dignity. He immediately opened the matchmaking interface, anxious to defeat that "Yang Jian" and save face.

Meanwhile, on the other side.

【Battle ended! Congratulations, "Yang Jian" has won. Points +3】 【Record: 1/10】 【Win Rate: 100%】 【Points: 3】

Lin Qi had also returned to his personal space, but his gaze was locked onto his status panel.

【You engaged in a fierce battle with a powerful enemy. Proficiency in "Mountain-Crushing Spear Technique" has increased significantly. Spear Technique +2%】 【You engaged in a fierce battle with a powerful enemy. Proficiency in Movement Technique has increased significantly. Movement Technique +3%】 【Spear Technique: Tier 1 80% → 82%】 【Movement Technique: Tier 1 70% → 73%】 ...

"Phew..."

Looking at the data increase, Lin Qi smiled, though his expression was hidden by the mask.

"That curly-haired guy was indeed very strong. His sword mastery is a level above mine—fast as lightning. I almost lost."

Recalling the battle, Lin Qi felt a lingering sense of dread. That intense, thrilling sensation was something he had never experienced before.

With his mind highly concentrated, victory and defeat hung by a thread; if his spear had been 0.1 seconds slower, he would have lost.

"But after one battle, the improvement is massive. I have a new understanding of the 'Mountain-Crushing Spear Technique'."

"Spear and movement techniques are improving too fast; I can gain progress in every match."

"Again!"

Lin Qi selected matchmaking once more.

Three minutes later, two figures appeared in the arena. This time, Lin Qi's opponent was a beautiful woman wearing a green combat suit and wielding a longsword.

"Newbie, let me teach you a lesson!"

The woman looked at Lin Qi with a malicious smile, like a predator eyeing its prey.

But what met her was a massive black spear.

...

An hour passed quickly.

【Battle ended. Regrettably, "Yang Jian," you have died!】 【Record: 5/10】 【Win Rate: 80%】 【Ranking function unlocked. View? Yes/No】

"Whew..."

In his personal space, Lin Qi's face was somewhat pale.

"The feeling of death really isn't pleasant!"

"Even though the pain of death is reduced to 20%, it's still agonizing."

"The last opponent was too strong. There's a huge gap in our realms; he's likely already above Tier 1 90%."

Lin Qi recalled the combat. After the first match, he had played four more. The opponents were of similar strength, and he became increasingly proficient, winning three matches.

Until the final one, where the opponent was simply too powerful. Even with his keen intuition, he was no match and was cut down in a single strike.

"Ranking function?"

"Yes!"

Lin Qi clicked "Yes," and the panel began to change.

【Red Realm Arena Rankings (Tianhai Branch)】 【Nickname: Yang Jian】 【Points: 12】 【Rank: 328】 ...

Lin Qi was puzzled. Rank 328? Did that mean there were 328 people in the Red Sky Martial Arts Hall stronger than him?

He shook his head; perhaps it was related to points or win rate. Because his points were so low, his rank was naturally low.

【Friendly Reminder: Your trial time is almost up!】

Just as Lin Qi intended to continue exploring, a notification popped up, showing that his trial would end in three minutes.

"An hour passed that quickly?"

Lin Qi shook his head, sighing at how fast time flew. He also felt mentally exhausted.

It was time to log off. Today's gains were already significant enough. He felt grateful to Guo Heng for bringing him here to experience the "Red Realm."

...

(End of Chapter)