Chapter 174 A Minute

That instant, accompanied by a strange "ping" sound, the Kaka Trident in Gui Xiao's hand was crushed, turning into dozens of pieces of data fragments that scattered on the ground.

Shiva's figure also arrived in front of Gui Xiao at this moment.

In the blink of an eye! Shiva thrust out his left hand, and a gust of wind howled forth...

This palm, full of battle qi, was no ordinary attack, but his powerful [One Slap Two Breaks Palm].

Facing this powerful move, Gui Xiao didn't retreat or yield, but raised his arm to meet it.

Instantly, palm and arm collided.

The force of the palm weighed over a thousand pounds, but the strength of the arm remained as steady as a mountain.

As a result... the two forces were evenly matched. Gui Xiao suffered slight damage, but his posture remained unchanged, and his center of gravity didn't shift.

"What a monster..." In that split second, Shiva couldn't help but exclaim inwardly, "He's already lost the defensive effects provided by skills and equipment, yet he can still withstand my attacking techniques with his pure physical and energy strength..."

Despite his surprise, Shiva's offensive didn't stop; the blocking of his left palm strike didn't prevent his right hand's [Decayed Mist Vanishing Sky] from following up...

Chi Ying—

The sound of wind breaking arose, and the blade had arrived.

This long, curved blade was incomparably sharp. A horizontal slash possessed the power to split mountains and divide peaks, something no flesh and blood body could withstand.

However... Gui Xiao was going to block it, and with his bare hands.

Zheng—

The next second, a sound like fingernails scraping across glass rang out, giving people goosebumps.

And the thing that created this sound... was Gui Xiao's fingers, and the blade of [Decayed Mist Vanishing Sky].

"This is absurd..." The first thought that flashed through Shiva's mind as he looked at the section of the blade that was firmly pinched by his opponent's thumb and index finger was this.

Yes, it was absurd, terrifyingly absurd...

Gui Xiao wasn't using any kind of [Lingxi Finger] technique (if it were [Lingxi Finger], he should be using his index and middle fingers), he was simply relying on the strength in his two fingers to forcibly pinch the blade.

Faced with this kind of outrageous combat power, most people... including many professional experts, would feel despair in a very short time.

However, Shiva hadn't despaired yet...

"Ha!" He immediately shouted violently, using a move called [Tyrant's Furious Strike].

Under the urging of skill power, [Decayed Mist Vanishing Sky] spun and slashed in the opposite direction of the previous strike, successfully extracting itself from Gui Xiao's fingers.

Logically speaking, this skill would cause Shiva's body to quickly rotate backward about 300 degrees in one second, and the blade would then slash horizontally towards Gui Xiao's other side of the waist after rotating a full circle.

But... what actually happened was that—about one millisecond later, Gui Xiao's preemptive kick struck Shiva's back as he was rotating, sending the latter flying...

Don't underestimate this kick, which seemed casual; its power was truly magnificent.

Even though Shiva had used the power of [Sky Control] at the moment of impact to resist the force that was pushing him away, he still flew out dozens of meters at the speed of a cannonball... A gust of wind rose on both sides as he passed, and the surrounding dust and noise screamed.

"Come again." Before Shiva could steady himself, Gui Xiao's voice followed closely.

Hearing this, Shiva touched the ground with the tip of his toes and looked back, finding that his opponent was standing in place, not pursuing.

However... the arrogance and disdain on Gui Xiao's face were becoming even more blatant.

This scene caused Shiva to feel a surge of rage.

The fighter's desire to compete instantly overwhelmed the竞技player's calmness.

The next second, Shiva fully gathered his strength, and his ultimate move burst forth!

With a [Heavenly Tyrant's Horizontal Sky Shattering Strike], Shiva instantly rushed back in front of Gui Xiao. Taking advantage of this charge, he held the blade with both hands and swung it down violently, the blade falling straight towards his opponent's head.

Gui Xiao, on the other hand, was also prepared. When Shiva flew out just now, he had already been gathering battle qi in the dark, collecting the scattered energy outside his body into his chest... At this moment, facing the charging attack, Gui Xiao was completely fearless. His palms first separated and then merged, firmly together, using a "catch a sword with bare hands" to once again stop his opponent's deadly move.

"Heh..." Unexpectedly, Shiva suddenly smiled coldly... and unhesitatingly released his weapon.

This change was both beyond Gui Xiao's expectations and shocking to the audience.

Before people could react, Shiva had used [Light Smoke Swift Passing] to escape Gui Xiao's sight, and instantly appeared behind the latter.

"You asked for this..." As Shiva's voice rose, his killing move landed.

Tzzt tzzt tzzt...

For a time, a sound of rapid movement rang out in the arena.

Shadows of fingers and fists struck Gui Xiao's back like a torrential storm.

This [Sharp Fang Divine Strength Hundred Rends] was a new skill that Shiva had created by combining [Sharp Fang Divine Strength] (an active skill that uses the fingertips to exert force, directly striking the target's nerves through the muscles. Accurate hits can cause the corresponding parts of the enemy to be paralyzed for several minutes) with another set of assassination fist techniques based on acupressure... Its form was roughly equivalent to Feng Bujue using [Nanto Flying Dragon Fist]'s frequency to activate [Lingxi Finger], but its power was even greater.

Caught off guard by the sudden attack, Gui Xiao didn't have time to change his stance and took this barrage of attacks head-on...

This ultimate move, forged from the strongest fingers and the deadliest fists... even Gui Xiao couldn't completely escape unscathed.

As the divine strength penetrated his body, the "paralysis" effect was applied to various parts of Gui Xiao's torso. For at least those few seconds, his upper body was almost completely unable to move.

This was the opportunity Shiva had been waiting for—the chance for his opponent to be temporarily unable to move. He immediately activated his Soul Skill—[Eye of Destruction]. In those two seconds, a crack burst open on his forehead, and a vertical, red eye emerged from the crack.

As the red eye appeared, a red beam of light shot out from it, disappearing in a flash, directly striking the back of Gui Xiao's head.

Chiu—

After a sharp sound, the flame-attribute pure energy ray pierced through Gui Xiao's head.

Shiva, standing behind Gui Xiao, felt his tense nerves relax slightly when he saw the bottle cap-sized bloody hole in the back of his opponent's head.

But...

He only relaxed for two seconds.

Two seconds later, his blood pressure, adrenaline, and scare value all rose rapidly.

Because...

"Why aren't you fighting?"

Gui Xiao... wasn't dead.

Not only was he not dead, but he even turned his face around to speak.

At this moment, Gui Xiao's entire left eye socket had become a bloody hole that was oozing blood. It was in this state that he spoke to Shiva with a grin on his face.

Whoosh—

Without a word, Shiva smashed a [Moon Plucking Flame] towards his opponent's face.

He didn't know if he was using this move based on fear or courage, but his body had taken action before his mind could think.

However, this fiery "spinning rising dragon" of his was interrupted as soon as it started...

With a "smack," Gui Xiao used one hand to grab Shiva's fist, which was already burning with energy fire, and forcibly suppressed Shiva's momentum.

"Here..." Then, Gui Xiao used his other hand to hand Shiva the [Decayed Mist Vanishing Sky] that he had left in his hand, "Take it, you have twenty seconds left."

............

Fear.

That was the most intense emotion Shiva could feel at this moment.

And it wasn't just Shiva...

The scene before their eyes instilled fear in the hearts of countless people.

Whether it was those who were watching the live broadcast of the competition, or those who watched the recording later; whether it was the participants, ordinary players, or the staff of those game studios...

Except for a certain guy who couldn't feel fear, everyone felt... this was too terrifying when they saw this scene.

............

After receiving his weapon, Shiva didn't launch an attack. It wasn't that he didn't want to move, but his right fist was still being gripped by his opponent... making it really difficult to act rashly.

"By the way, let me tell you..." Gui Xiao said as he slowly released his opponent's fist, "Because I have a strong resistance to control skills, so... although a minute hasn't passed yet, your [Pure Land] skill has already lost its effect."

As he said this, white matrix light streams emerged from the wound on his left eye, which was clearly some kind of data-level repair ability.

"You're telling me this..." Shiva replied, "Are you trying to persuade me to just surrender?"

"Whether I tell you or not..." Gui Xiao said, "You're going to surrender in a dozen seconds anyway, aren't you?"

"Hmm..." Shiva muttered, "That makes sense..."

That was indeed logical. No matter what Gui Xiao's situation was, since Shiva had previously said that "if his opponent could still stand after one minute, he would admit defeat," then when that minute arrived, he had to surrender...

Thinking of this, Shiva didn't hesitate any longer. He instantly raised his blade and gathered his strength, his figure advancing rapidly.

The last ten seconds of deathmatch!

Fast, so fast that there was no time to blink.

Fight, fight until the earth cracked and the clouds flew away.

Gui Xiao, who had regained the enhancement of equipment and skills, thought he could calmly deal with the situation, but...

Shiva actually abandoned all defense and retreat, desperately attacking... It was unknown whether he had broken through some kind of bottleneck in this extreme state, but after a few seconds, his speed and attack underwent a qualitative change.

His footwork was strange and unpredictable, like wind and clouds.

His battle qi reignited, and the power of his blade surged again.

Seeing that the one-minute time limit was about to arrive, Shiva seemed to have become a different person, suppressing Gui Xiao.

............

Thirty seconds ago, in Xu Huai Shang's conference room.

At this time, the members of the Inferno Front, who had already finished their match, were watching the live broadcast of the match between [Order] and [Deities] here.

"If there are no surprises, Shiva should use [Annihilation] in the last second, right?" Looking at the situation on the field, Snow said thoughtfully.

"Just let him use it, it won't change anything." Feng Bujue was slumped on the sofa, with an expression of "already seeing through everything."

"Are you so sure that Gui Xiao can win?" Xiao Tan asked with a doubtful look after hearing this.

"Heh..." Brother Jue chuckled, "You guys... haven't you noticed yet..."

"Notice what?" Xiao Tan and Snow asked in unison.

"Gui Xiao has been standing in the same place from the start of the match until now..." Ruo Yu answered this question in place of Brother Jue, "Except for the necessary turns, he hasn't even taken a step to the side."

"Also..." Before Ruo Yu could finish speaking, Xu Huai Shang also said in a deep voice, "All the skills and attacks that Shiva has launched... Gui Xiao has chosen to parry or take head-on, not once has he responded with 'dodge'..."

Some things, if you don't go into detail, it's nothing. But once you explain it thoroughly, it becomes terrifying...

Xiao Tan and Snow hadn't realized these things, but after listening to the explanations of the two heroines, their expressions twitched at that moment.

"Understand now?" Feng Bujue looked at them and said, "As the saying goes, 'the thought of victory, the intent of battle'... For Gui Xiao, it's actually very easy to win the match. Wouldn't he just have to quickly summon a few summons during the thirty seconds of preparation time?" He paused for half a second and shrugged, "He's fighting like this now... it's not just to win, there are other strategic meanings as well."

............

Back to the present, on the battlefield.

The time limit for Shiva's "one-minute declaration" was about to arrive.

As the boss of a first-tier studio and a top professional player in the industry, Shiva could never say at this time... "Brothers, how about we renew it for another minute?"

Maybe Feng Bujue could do that, and after he did, others would think that this wave was very stable and as expected, but Shiva couldn't...

Therefore, in that last second, and as Snow had predicted... Shiva used the ultimate move on Gui Xiao, which was the "annihilation" effect of [Dance of the Celestial Hourglass]—[Annihilation].