Matthew Atkinson & Natalie Russell
Third Layer of the Supernatural Realm
There were many rules for the Fighting Tournament.
One of the most important aspects was that participants could surrender during the competition or withdraw from the fight before it even started.
If someone realized they couldn't beat their opponent, they could shout "I surrender" to end the fight and leave the competition stage.
No wonder the professors said that the third layer of the supernatural realm has a relatively high survival rate.
Being able to surrender or withdraw was indeed a very safe option.
Of course, if someone didn't have time to shout "I surrender" and was instantly defeated by their opponent, then they could only blame themselves for not being strong enough.
"Sam."
After reading the tournament rules, Matthew said directly to Sam Harris, "Don't go on stage later, just withdraw from the tournament."
Sam Harris's face was somewhat pale, perhaps due to excessive blood loss.
Upon hearing this, he immediately nodded and said, "Okay, Matthew."
Earlier on the train, if Matthew hadn't stepped forward and stopped that unkillable monster, they would have had a tough time dealing with it.
It was Matthew's correct advice at the beginning that prevented them from disturbing the monster, allowing everyone to survive the first 13 minutes.
Now, Filip Walker and the others believed the rumor entirely.
Matthew did indeed possess an extraordinary mind, capable of foresight and discovering the characteristics of monsters.
"If you find your opponent too strong, you must surrender and forfeit the match in time." Matthew added, "Don't be reckless. It's not worth risking your life here."
The reason they didn't want to withdraw from the beginning was that the final rewards for this layer were based on team rankings.
As a team, the more opponents they defeated, the more points they would earn.
If everyone joined the competitions on the fighting stages and defeated more opponents, the team could earn more points.
Everyone nodded, their eyes filled with gratitude as they looked at Matthew.
Unexpectedly, Matthew turned to Natalie and said, "Natalie, you should also surrender if you need. Don't take risks. Leave the rest to me."
Natalie nodded obediently.
Everyone was a little confused.
What was going on?
Wasn't Natalie the strongest fighter on their team?
If even Natalie surrendered, how could they earn more points?
[Please proceed to your seating area according to your assigned number.]
A prompt appeared in everyone's left eye.
Their team numbers had already been determined when they boarded the train.
Number 96.
Following this number, they quickly found seating area number 96.
The arena's stands were divided into rows of seats.
There were ten seats in each row, which made up one team.
Furthermore, the seats in each row were staggered and spaced apart, ensuring privacy for everyone and preventing conversations from disturbing other groups.
After finding their seats, everyone sat down and waited for the fighting tournament to begin.
Everyone was very relaxed.
Because, according to the rules of the fighting tournament, attacking was prohibited between participants outside the stages.
Whoever made the first move was doomed.
Furthermore, without the team captain's permission, members of other teams were not allowed to step into someone else's seating area.
So, sitting here, they didn't have to be afraid of being attacked from behind.
...
After all the participants had sat down, many people looked surprised.
Because on the other side of the arena, the entire crowd sitting there consisted of monsters.
These monsters were all bizarre and strange-looking. Some looked like octopuses, some like earthworms, and others like reptiles and minotaurs.
Most outrageously, there was a monster so giant that, even when it was sitting there, it looked like a small mountain and was extremely conspicuous.
"What's going on?"
"Could they... be the opponents we're going to face next?"
"So, in this tournament, our real opponent is actually monsters?"
"In our eyes, they are monsters, but in their eyes, aren't we monsters too?"
"That's right. Judging from their orderly arrangement and the fact that they don't bother each other, they clearly possess a high level of intelligence. Perhaps the other side is an unknown biological civilization."
"The Three Race Arena... So that's how it is. Those who come to this arena are all supernatural beings from three different races, right? We, humans, are just one of them."
The crowd was buzzing with discussion.
Matthew agreed with everyone's speculation.
This was also obvious.
Then Matthew noticed a screen standing upright next to their seats.
The screen showed the rankings of the human zone and each team.
At the moment, everyone had 0 points.
Matthew cracked his knuckles, sensing that a tough battle was likely ahead today.
...
The arena stands were divided into three major civilization zones.
Human civilization was just one of them.
The stage section consisted of many fighting rings.
There were over a thousand of them.
Setting up so many fighting stages was definitely to speed up the elimination process.
Otherwise, in an environment with at least several million members from every civilization, how long would it take to organize a fighting tournament in a single stage?
Half an hour passed quickly.
There was no opening ceremony, and nothing fancy or elaborate.
When the time came, the tournament began directly.
Opponents appeared simultaneously in thousands of fighting rings.
They were teleported directly from the seating areas to the fighting rings by the Supernatural Realm.
There were both humans and monsters in the rings.
When they met, they didn't say a word and just started fighting.
Matthew glanced around.
In general, the outcome was decided within one or two moves.
Such close, evenly matched battles were rare.
The first round of the tournament was an elimination phase.
The opponents were also randomly matched by the Supernatural Realm.
If someone were lucky, they would be matched with a weaker opponent.
If they had bad luck and matched with a strong opponent, it could only result in defeat.
Matthew noticed that in less than a minute, there were injuries and fatalities in the rings.
Some participants were instantly killed.
Seeing this, Matthew almost wanted Natalie to withdraw from the tournament.
However, he hadn't said it yet.
Then a reminder popped up in his left eye.
[You are about to enter the stage for a duel. Please decide whether to enter before the countdown ends.]
[If you have not decided by the end of the countdown, it will be considered as a withdrawal.]
[1: Participate]
[2: Withdraw]
The countdown lasted only 15 seconds.
Matthew was taken aback.
He never expected him to be the first person on the team to go on stage.
"It's my turn to go on stage."
As soon as he finished speaking, he chose the first option.
The instant he made his choice, a portal appeared before him, enveloping him within it.
The next moment, Matthew appeared on a fighting ring in the middle area.
His rival also appeared at the same time.
It was a monster that looked like a spider demon.
Upon seeing Matthew, it roared and pounced on him.
Matthew didn't hold back and punched it from a distance.
[Fist Impact]
Although this skill of his was successfully upgraded to "Galaxy Impact" under the effects of Armament Haki, this didn't mean that Matthew could no longer use "Fist Impact".
He could unleash a "Fist Impact" with a casual punch whenever he wanted.
Therefore, when Matthew punched, a fierce hurricane instantly swept across the ring.
-Whoosh
Swept away by the hurricane, the spider monster's massive body was sent flying backward and landed outside the ring.
Matthew won the first round easily.
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Next Chapters' Name:
Ch.88: Natalie Russell: A Formidable Opponent
Ch.89: Not-So-Good Results