John stared at Dylan with cold eyes as he watched him walk off the stage. Dylan noticed John's gaze, and gave him a smug smirk in response.
"Goddamnit, I hate Dylan just as much as Jason. If I don't kick both of their asses in the pocket realm, remind me to cripple myself." Miko was livid at the arrogance and lack of respect that Dylan showcased.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of Dylan today, and you can take care of Jason in the pocket realm." John was equally livid, and was determined to pay Dylan back for everything he had done today.
John hopped off his seat and walked to his fighting stage. He hopped onto it, and noticed that Ella was standing there already. John was slightly surprised to see that she held no weapon in her hand.
Ella noticed his gaze and smiled. "I know I can't beat you, and I wanted to have a good, fun fight. But that Dylan really has gone overboard, and you'll need all the strength you have to fight him...so I concede."
Ella decided to make the difficult decision and concede in order to save John's energy for the fight against Dylan. Although Ella was not from the Fenix Clan, the two clans were close allies, and Ella was good friends with John. After what Dylan had done to two of the Fenix Clan members, even Ella was angered and wanted to see him lose.
John was quite surprised by Ella's concession. "Are you sure? I should still be able to beat him even if we fight." John could tell that Ella wanted to fight, but was giving up to give John the best chance at winning, since she herself knew that she was absolutely no match for Dylan.
"I'm sure" Ella smiled before turning to the referee. "I concede." She immediately turned around and walked off the stage to return to her seat in the stands.
"What? She conceded just like that?"
The crowd was confused at Ella's reaction, but both the Fenix Clan and Varis Clan elders knew the real reason for her concession, and most agreed with her decision. They could tell that John was the only one with a chance against Dylan, and so improving his odds in his fight to come was important.
"The winner by forfeit, John Fenix." The referee loudly announced the results to the crowd as John hopped off the stage and returned to his seat next to Miko and Ryan.
"What happened, why did my sister give up?" Miko was unable to understand his sister's decision. His entire life revolved around cultivation and fighting, and he couldn't understand ever giving up when a good fight was available.
"She did it to give me the best chance I could have against Dylan. Your sister is incredibly selfless." John had nothing but praise to say about Ella.
Waylon Varis once again stepped up on the main stage and announced the next fights. "There will be a thirty minute break, at which point the semi-finals will begin. The match-ups are...Dylan vs Dalton, and Joy vs John."
"You're pretty lucky Fenix boy, you've managed to dodge me in the last two rounds. Don't lose in this round. I want the personal satisfaction of stomping you into the ground." Dylan couldn't help but spew fighting words to John at the announcement of the matchups.
John stared at Dylan with an unconcerned look before looking away.
"Do you think I'll be an easy opponent?" Dalton was quite upset by Dylan acting like he had won already, and had some words to say of his own.
"Hmph, you may be strong, but it still isn't enough." Dylan did acknowledge that Dalton was quite strong, but was still confident in his win.
Time flew by, and soon the thirty minutes of waiting had passed by.
Both Dylan and Dalton hopped on the stage, and the crowd started roaring in anticipation of the exciting fight to come. Unlike his opponents before, Dalton was not afraid of Dylan. On the contrary, he was looking forward to an intense fight.
Although Dalton had to admit that Dylan was terrifying, he was not about to concede like all the others had. He had his own pride as the number one genius of the Flowing River Sect, and was ready to put his life on the line for his sect.
The referee signaled the start of the fight, and both fighters instantly attacked with powerful moves.
Boom!
The two techniques collided in midair, and a large explosion radiated outwards above the arena. Immediately after, both fighters collided in the center of the stage, and exchanged dozens of moves in quick succession. The crowd watched in rapt attention as the two fighters battled it out for some time, each showcasing shockingly powerful moves and demonstrating why they had made it this far in the tournament.
After nearly ten minutes of intense fighting, the two fighters separated and stared at each other. Dylan was staring at Dalton while panting ever so slightly, while Dalton seemed like he was almost out of energy. He was breathing heavily, and several wounds were opened up on his arms and legs, making him look quite miserable.
Although he was wounded and out of breath, Dalton still had a resolved look in his eyes, and once more charged towards Dylan.
"Unfortunately for you, I need to end this here." Dylan suddenly spoke up as he watched Dalton approach. Although Dylan was extremely arrogant, even he knew that reserving enough Qi for the final was important, and so while he had enjoyed his fight with Dalton, it was time to end it.
Dylan instantly struck out with a powerful Qi attack, and followed up behind it with a movement technique. Dalton stopped his approach and quickly raised his sword to block the attack. While he successfully blocked the first attack, Dalton was not ready for Dylan to instantly follow it up with a melee attack. He was at the end of his Qi reserves, and barely raised his sword in time to block.
Peng!
Swords collided and Dalton was sent flying backwards like a bullet. His momentum carried him far beyond the edge of the stage, at which point he crashed quite violently into the stone stands.
After a few seconds of lying there, Dalton slowly started to stand up. He struggled for some time, but was able to finally stand on his feet. Blood was flowing from the several wounds on his body as he stared defiantly at Dylan, and Dylan stared back. After a few seconds of staring, Dalton turned around and started walking towards his clan in the stands.
"The winner of this fight, Dylan." The referee announced.
The crowd was holding their breath up to that last exchange, but suddenly exploded out in applause at the fight they had just witnessed. Although many were not fond of Dylan, they couldn't help but admit that the fight was incredible.
John stared at Dylan with narrowed eyes as he watched him leave the fighting platform.
'I can tell even in that fight he still held back.' A smile broke out on John's face at the thought of the fight to come. Although he knew Dylan was incredibly strong, his desire for battle against a strong opponent only excited John further.
"Well, I'm up. I'll be back soon." John hopped off his seat and started walking towards the fighting stage. The crowd was roaring in anticipation for the fight to come as he hopped on the arena and was soon face to face with Joy Ronan, one of the top three scorers in the Qi test and one of the most powerful juniors from the five powers.
The referee walked in between them before announcing, "Let the fight begin."