358 Chapter357-The Defense Battle in the Arena


    That left only one possibility — this individual was a neer...


    A neer yer daring to challenge him — regardless of anything else, that courage alone piqued John''s interest in this person...


    John had just received the challenge when it was broadcast across the arena hall''s holographic screen.


    In an instant, the entire hall erupted into a cacophony of noise.


    "Holy smokes, am I seeing this right? Someone''s challenging Galewind?"


    "For real? Which guy''s got the guts?"


    "Loving_Lollipop? That name seems kind of familiar..."


    "Isn''t that the mysterious yer who recently shot up to the 5th rank on the leaderboard? Odd, I''ve never heard of them before, no idea where they sprang up from!"


    "To climb to the 5th rank so swiftly means this guy must be pretty powerful, but to rashly challenge Galewind is, let''s say, admirably courageous..."


    "This name makes me think they''re not that old..."


    "You can tell you''ve never followed the arena''s PvP battles. This Loving_Lollipop is actually a very youngd, and just like Galewind, an independent yer not aligned with any guild..."


    "An independent reaching such heights says a lot about the kid''s gaming talent!"


    "Seems to be a warrior yer, but the few battles I''ve seen, their style ispletely different from other warriors, must havee across some special legacy."


    "Lucky fellow..."


    ...


    John wasn''t privy to the onlookers'' discussions.


    He had already materialized in a virtualndscape, the system having constructed a massive virtual tform specifically for this battle.


    Spanning a vast area and surrounded by thick defensive barriers, John reached out with his divine power, probing casually.


    The barrier responded immediately to his probe, its light flickering as itpletely dissolved the touch of John''s divine power.


    It appeared the defensive capability of this barrier was quite formidable.


    While John waited, somewhat listlessly, a figure slowly materialized directly in front of him.


    "Loving_Lollipop?"


    Upon clearly seeing the figure, John''s expression turned quizzical.


    He had never expected the one challenging him to be such a youngd.


    As he confirmed he had never seen this unfamiliar face before, a suspicion began to form in John''s mind.


    The boy looked quite ordinary, lean with a pair of bright eyes shining with resolute light.


    Sporting a supremely confident smile, his armor gleamed under the light.


    Hearing John''s query, the youth replied, "Yes, I am Loving_Lollipop. Although I''m a neer, I''m not intimidated by your reputation. I''m confident that I can defeat you!"


    John cracked a small smile; such a ''chunibyo'' statement was quite fitting for someone of his age.


    But the boy''s courage and confidence far exceeded his expectations, kindling a sense of anticipation for the uing battle.


    John had already silently unleashed the Eye of Artemis.


    Loving_Lollipop''s attribute information was nowpletely unveiled before him.


    At the sight of Loving_Lollipop''s basic attributes, John''s eyebrows shot up in surprise.


    The boy''s fundamental stats were rmingly high, a rarity not just among independent yers, but evenpared to the guild leaders of top-tier guilds at a lofty level of 113.


    Loving_Lollipop''s base attributes had far surpassed what one at his level should possess.


    It must be rted to his hidden ss.


    "Dragon yer Warrior? What kind of hidden ss is this? It seems quite extraordinary... Could it be that thisd''s entire set of epic gear is exclusive equipment thates with his hidden ss?"


    John murmured cautiously, a flicker of shadowy light crossing his eyes.


    What intrigued John most were the energy nodes coursing through the young yer.


    Remarkably, there were over a hundred.


    Normally, given the current level of yers, the energy nodes within the body should not exceed thirty.


    Over a hundred energy nodes – those were figures expected of someone above level 300.


    The more energy nodes, the more robust the energy storage, tranting to greater HP and MP.


    This young man named Loving_Lollipop, with over a hundred energy nodes circting within, meant that he would have superior endurance and explosive power in battle.


    Interesting indeed…


    "Since you''re so confident, let''s have ourselves a real contest. I ept your challenge!"


    John spoke casually.


    The crowd hushed gradually, all eyes fixated on the impending sh between John and Loving_Lollipop.


    Their gazes locked, the air over the arena thickened instantly with palpable tension.


    The corners of John''s mouth curled up slightly, his right hand flipping gracefully to reveal a pale blue energy sword in his grasp.


    [Divine de (Divine Skill) (Level 7): This skill allows the wielder to craft a weapon out of thin air, based on their divine power. The weapon''s attributes are determined by the skill level, the character''s level, and their divine power. The initial Divine dees with +800,000 points of damage and a 25% critical hit rate.]


    "Come then, let me see if your strength can match the confidence you exude..."


    The Divine de in John''s hand thrummed with energy, its de humming with tiny bursts of sound, as though it could sh through the very fabric of space at any moment.


    He, as before, deliberately suppressed his level to 113, to match that of Loving_Lollipop.


    Even with the boy''s attributes far exceeding those of a typical yer at this level, John had chosen to constrain his own power.


    After all, without doing so, this youth would pose no challenge to him whatsoever.


    Hearing John''s unemotional words, Loving_Lollipop was undaunted, drawing an ordinary-looking sword from his pack.


    He gripped the hilt firmly, his eyes sparking with fearless resolve.


    John''s gaze fell on the longsword, and his eyes widened with astonishment.


    He sensed many familiar essences emanating from Loving_Lollipop''s sword, matching precisely the auras of the dragons he had encountered before.


    Clearly, this longsword had been bathed in the blood of not just one dragon.


    So, this is the origin of the "Dragon yer Warrior" hidden ss?


    Suddenly, John found himself filled with anticipation for what Loving_Lollipop would show next.


    He took a deep breath, and his body burst forth with an impressive aura, the luminance of the Divine de growing ever brighter.


    "Come, if you''ve decided to challenge me, then there''s no need for hesitation, show me your strength!"


    John''s clearughter echoed across the arena.


    Upon witnessing this, Loving_Lollipop''s expression instantly turned grave.


    A bright glow emanated from the hilt of his sword, and a mysterious aura began to radiate from his being.


    Faintly, almost imperceptibly, John thought he could hear the anguished wails of countless dragons.


    Suddenly, Loving_Lollipop moved like lightning, charging towards John with electrifying speed that nearly surpassed the reaction time of the yers.


    John''s gaze sharpened, but a faint smile yed upon his lips as the Divine de in his hand met Loving_Lollipop''s assault in an instant.


    The shing of their swords rang out in a series of collisions, the temperature on the stage climbing rapidly as if mes were roaring to life.


    John pressed forward, the Divine de executing a swift arc, as nimble as an antelope''s horn, and with the force of a thunderous decree, it thrust towards Loving_Lollipop''s body with blinding speed.


    Sparks erupted where Loving_Lollipop''s armor was struck, and he felt an immense force mming into him as if he had been hit head-on by a titanic beast of steel.


    His body was sent flying backward.


    Only then did Loving_Lollipop realize the severity of the hit, looking down in shock to find a fine crack had appeared on his breastte.


    How could this be? His armor, crafted from the hide of dragons, was thought to be impregnable, yet it had been breached so easily?


    "Possessing formidable attributes yet such an inexperienced approach tobat, it''s pitiable, really. I wonder how you even made it to the top 10 of the Arena Leaderboard… If this is all the strength you can muster, then you had no business challenging me today!"


    John''s words were dripping with mockery, yet he didn''t pursue his advantage, instead, he ceased his attack.


    His intention in saying these things was actually to ignite the young man''s fighting spirit, to push him to unleash his potential.


    It is in moments of intense rage that a person can truly surpass their limits.


    True enough, upon hearing John''s taunting, a me of anger was kindled in Loving_Lollipop''s eyes.


    With a roar, he lifted his longsword once more.


    A burst of sword energy suddenly took shape at the tip, manifesting into a majestic dragon, with a wild aura that roared towards John.


    John''s brow quirked ever so slightly at the sight of the dragon formed from sword energy; it was ferocious and not to be underestimated, it seemed the young man did have something to offer.


    However, such a straightforward attack meant nothing to John.


    With a mere lift of his hand and a casual swing of the Divine de, he shattered the roaring dragon.


    "Continue," John said, his demeanor unchanged, voicing just those two words.


    This nonchnt attitude only served to infuriate Loving_Lollipop further.


    The young man''s face turned crimson with rage, not hesitating in the slightest tounch another attack!