Chapter 348: A Stunning Debut (Part 2)

Following Rod’s gaze, indeed, shortly after, both Viski and Thayer let out sighs of relief, a faint smile appearing on their faces. If nothing went wrong, Nightingale would have won this match already! They also secretly admired Nightingale—truly the strongest among them.

What seemed like chaotic dodging actually revealed many strategies upon closer inspection. First, her steps were steady, not suggesting she was completely defenseless. At the very least, this showed that Nightingale wasn’t as overwhelmed as she appeared.

Looking at her way of retreating, she had essentially lured Rup into a corner! At the same time, through such agile dodging, she was draining Rup’s stamina.

The most crucial point—what convinced them that Nightingale could win—was that her retreat had inadvertently disrupted Rup’s pace and rhythm, pulling him into her own rhythm. This would make Rup feel inept and overmatched, and that was the key.

Putting it all together, it was obvious to anyone with eyes to see that this was Nightingale’s strategy—a plan set after realizing she couldn’t win in a direct confrontation. Only she had the ability to do this, as a killer with years of honed instincts and the most direct methods to achieve the best results.

There was also a unique trait of killers: no environment or situation could affect them.

The crowd below roared, all waiting for Rup to win, waiting to laugh at Rod. Rod was secretly pleased—Nightingale had improved greatly over the years. Merk frowned, worried, while Dolon sighed deeply, his gaze toward Rod filled with complexity.

“Alright, it’s time to end this!” Rod murmured, seeing that Rup had been lured into that corner by Nightingale.

Realizing it was time to end it, Rod knew that prolonged attacks had greatly depleted Rup’s stamina. That corner was Nightingale’s golden opportunity, her only chance. Failure meant the end of this battle without a doubt.

To win, seizing the best opportunity was of utmost importance.

At that moment, perhaps due to failing to break through after prolonged attacks, Rup unleashed his most fierce move, seemingly realizing something and trying to decide the battle in one strike.

On the surface, things seemed glorious, but Lupu was complaining nonstop. His physical strength and combat energy had dropped significantly, leaving him feeling weak. More importantly, he had noticed a problem: he seemed to have unknowingly been led by Nightingale into a rhythm he found difficult to adapt to, which made him extremely frustrated.

Yet even though he had realized this, he couldn’t change anything. The battle was intensifying, and with all his strength, he finally managed to suppress Nightingale below. In a clash between masters, things could change in an instant. He didn’t have time to adjust his pace or rhythm—because if he slowed down even slightly, the advantage he had hard-earned might be seized by his opponent, who could then counterattack, leaving him without any advantages and even in danger.

Seeing himself cornered, Lupu, being an experienced warrior with years of combat experience, vaguely guessed what was going on. His expression changed slightly as he gave Nightingale a deep look, inwardly admiring him—“The new waves push aside the old.” He had almost fallen for it.

Fortunately, he had realized it; otherwise, the consequences would have been severe… He shuddered at the thought. With little time to adjust, the only thing he could do was use the terrain’s advantages for one last attempt.

This place was unfavorable for him, but it wasn’t much better for his opponent either—it was a double-edged sword, with both advantages and disadvantages.

“Thousand-Layer Slash!” With a roar, the attack came down from above. It surged layer by layer like waves, with each layer increasing in power as it descended, amplifying its force infinitely.

“Oh no!” Seeing this move, Rod grew worried. He hadn’t expected Lupu to see through Nightingale’s plan and still be able to unleash such a powerful attack. Truly worthy of being the successor to the elder. In his forties, he was considered young in such an ancient family. Given a few more years to develop, reaching the later stage of the divine realm wouldn’t be a problem. With a few more years of training, it was hard to imagine how far he could go, but one thing was certain—he would undoubtedly become a formidable warrior.

The Thousand-Layer Slash was indeed a powerful move, capable of exerting the strength of the later divine realm. Could Nightingale withstand such explosive force? Rod’s heart tightened in concern, fearing for Nightingale’s safety. He clenched his fists slightly—should it be necessary, he would intervene, even at the cost of missing this opportunity.

“Thousand-Layer Slash… It’s really the Thousand-Layer Slash…” Hearing Lupu’s roar, excitement spread among those below.

“Did he really master it?” Some people said in disbelief.
Layered Slash wasn’t exactly a secret among the Black Phoenix clan—it was a technique created by an ancestor thousands of years ago. However, its requirements were too stringent, making it impossible for ordinary people to master.
It demanded too much from one’s bones and body, placing immense strain on the body during execution, which could easily lead to injury. Hence, it was a move that often resulted in greater harm to oneself than to the enemy.
It made sense—to unleash power beyond one’s normal level, a cost had to be paid. There’s no such thing as a free lunch in the world.
This technique required a large amount of combat energy as support and placed enormous strain on the body. If forced to use it, it would likely result in mutual destruction—the bones couldn’t withstand such explosive force, let alone the body, which might even explode under the pressure of intense combat energy.
This was why everyone knew this technique was powerful but was reluctant to practice it. Another reason was the astonishing amount of combat energy it required. Under normal circumstances, even if one mastered it, they wouldn’t use it lightly, unless pushed to the brink.
But now, since Lupu clearly had a decisive advantage, why use this technique? That was what everyone didn’t understand.
“Whoosh whoosh whoosh…” The long sword descended, slicing through space with a howling sound as absolute power erupted at that moment. The shrill noise was terrifying.
Worried expressions replaced the earlier excitement. This was the move that would decide the outcome, and everyone watched intently! At the same time, they looked at Nightingale with some pity.
A beautiful woman was pleasing to the eye, and no one minded taking a closer look, even feeling a sense of protection for her. But now, faced with such a domineering technique like Layered Slash… Could this delicate girl, with only beginner-level divine power, withstand it? What would happen to her? If she couldn’t resist, the consequences were obvious—bloodshed was inevitable.
“Snap…” A clear sound came as the Bone Whip swung, stirring the air and producing a muffled explosive noise.
Realizing the danger, Nightingale didn’t care about anything else and tried to break free from the pressure to escape. It was clearly impossible to withstand this move—it required power two levels beyond hers. She wasn’t confident enough yet.
The Bone Whip moved through the air as if alive, full of momentum. A hint of anxiety and tension appeared on Nightingale’s face.

Puff… A deep explosion sound came from below. Looking up, Rup’s sleeves had burst open, revealing his arms with bulging veins that looked terrifying. His combat energy made his arms appear significantly thicker. Rod, with his keen hearing, could even hear the crisp sound of his bones rubbing against each other. Rup’s face was red with pain as he grunted in frustration—his Thousand Layers Slash technique wasn’t yet perfected, making it extremely difficult to use! Worse still, after such heavy consumption of combat energy, his ability to unleash it was weakened. The extremely observant Nightingale remained calm, maintaining her composure as a killer. She kept a close eye on everything, and upon seeing Rup’s expression, a cold smirk appeared on her lips. Seizing something, she took a deep breath. “Tiger Break!” Realizing all her escape routes were blocked and there was nowhere to run, a determined look flashed in Nightingale’s eyes. She knew this time she couldn’t end things easily. As the attack neared her, she took a deep breath and launched her counterattack. Having the advantage in terrain, she pushed off a pillar behind her, using momentum to swing her Bone Whip fiercely toward the long sword. What she had noticed earlier confirmed that this move wouldn’t achieve the expected power—perhaps she still had a chance. Tiger Break was her signature move, refined over years with many unique elements. When executed at the peak of her early divine-level strength, it was comparable to moves used by mid-divine-level fighters. Boom… After a brief pause, the two clashed. The deafening roar and swirling dust kept everyone’s hearts in suspense—no one knew the outcome. If Rup could withstand the backlash of Thousand Layers Slash, he would win. If not… Rod’s palms grew sweaty. At the moment the two clashed, Rod rushed forward like lightning, followed by Dolon at the forefront. They both headed straight for the center. Dust obscured everyone’s vision, but they could sense that after a loud explosion, the area gradually quieted down, followed by a few crisp sounds of impact, then complete silence. It was impossible to see exactly what was happening. More importantly, the involvement of Rod and the Supreme Elder Dolon added even more twists to the situation, gripping everyone’s attention. What would be the outcome? Who would win?

The cold wind blew, and the dust gradually dispersed, revealing the scene to everyone. Doron was standing aside, supporting Lup with blood-covered hands, while Rod stood on the other side, supporting Nightingale, who was gasping for breath and pale. What exactly was going on? Once they saw everything clearly, discussions began—who had won?