As soon as the Human Emperor Banner came out, I became the Lord of the Old Ones

Chapter 170 This arena is too slippery!
This competition made everyone realize just how terrifying a physically strong, burly, no-card style practitioner can become when they let go of pointless obsessions and break free from the limitations of their style.

So when Xiong Rulong returned to the stage, his opponent became extremely focused, watching his every move intently, determined to strike back from behind.

In yesterday's match, although Xiong Rulong wore a card reader and repeatedly pretended to summon his guardian spirit, it was all a feint. He ultimately lured his opponent into making a fatal mistake and ended the fight with a diving takedown.

Today's opponents have learned their lesson.

Even though Xiong Rulong's movements to summon his guardian spirit were stiff and slow, his opponent still had no intention of taking the opportunity to launch a sneak attack. Instead, he obediently summoned his own guardian spirit and set up an impeccable defense.

Unexpectedly, Xiong Rulong actually summoned a guardian spirit during the match.

It is neither the "Giant Sword" nor the "Great Rock Turtle", and certainly not the defenseless "Illusion Jellyfish".

Instead, it is the Red-eyed Mackerel, a very obscure and extraordinary creature.

In the depths of the vast ocean during the Third Age, the "Red-eyed Mackerel" was a predator at the bottom of the food chain.

The brutal survival game has led it to evolve a unique skill – its body is rich in oil, which allows it to survive in cold waters where there are few top predators. And once it senses danger, it can squeeze out a large amount of oil from between its scales to escape the tentacles and teeth of predators.

According to paleontologists' reconstructions, during the deep-sea hunts of the Tertiary era, there was even an instance where a "red-eyed oil mackerel" was swallowed by a "tyrant blue whale," but managed to escape through its excretory opening by using its incredibly slippery ability to pass through the whale's entire digestive system.

Because it is a marine creature, even if the "red-eyed oil mackerel" manages to leave behind a remnant of its soul, the probability of it being discovered by humans is extremely low.

Even the most knowledgeable spirit masters may not have seen or even heard of such a rare remnant soul from the past.

Furthermore, no combat-type spirit master would summon such a seemingly useless, weak remnant soul in the arena or in actual combat.

The black iron civilian card, which seals the remnant soul of the "Red-Eyed Mackerel", is mostly used in the heavy industry sector.

It is specifically designed for unclogging complex pipes, as well as lubricating large gears and bearings.

Xu Yan also learned about and obtained this very niche card through a pipe cleaner from Liming Heavy Industry during a "re-employment training class".

So when Xiong Rulong manipulated the "Red-Eyed Oil Mackerel" to spray a large amount of oil on the ring, making the ring more slippery than an ice rink, neither his opponent, the commentator, nor the audience realized what he was trying to do.

But the opponent quickly realized that something was wrong.

His opponent was a typical multi-card-based Spirit Master.

This is the legendary "Spirit-Calling Snail".

They focus on spiritual cultivation, resulting in a relatively weak physical body. Their life force is continuously supplied to their guardian spirit, leaving them with virtually no combat ability.

The typical tactic of the "Spirit Snail" is to have the Guardian Spirit charge ahead.

He then hid in a corner in a very shady manner.

If the opponent disregards everything and braves the barrage of attacks from the guardian spirits in an attempt to close the distance between them...

The "Spirit Snail" often uses very skillful movement to dodge and stay close to its opponent.

This tactic is commonly known as "fishing" or "flying a kite".

To execute tactics, the "Spirit Snail" often possesses excellent movement skills.

But even the best footwork relies on the friction between the feet and the ring to generate power. On a ring splattered with grease, the unsuspecting "Spirit Snail" can barely maintain its balance, and its limit is to move cautiously in small steps. How can it possibly perform fancy footwork or maintain a close yet distant stance?
Despite being a practitioner of the cardless style, Xiong Rulong's lower body was ten times more stable than that of the "Spirit Summoning Snail".

His incredibly well-developed leg muscles and toe bones allow his feet to be firmly planted on the ring, as if they were inlaid with climbing pins.

The special training he received these past few days, specifically for the "red-eyed oil mackerel," has made him quite accustomed to the ice rink-like surface.

Before his opponent's guardian spirit could fully unfold, he took three steps at a time and appeared in front of his opponent like a hungry tiger pouncing on a sheep.

In desperation, the opponent tried to speed up and dodge, but slipped and lost his balance instantly.

Once the unbalanced "Spirit Summoning Snail" was affectionately embraced by the over two-meter-tall, steel-boned Wukaliu cultivator, the outcome was no longer in doubt.

Because the ring was too slippery, Xiong Rulong did not attempt a diving takedown.

But the barrage of heavy punches, elbow strikes, and knee strikes was like a barrage of artillery fire, slamming into the hearts of all the spectators.

When the opponent, completely disfigured, collapsed sprawled out, only half a minute had passed in the match!

This match was a complete surprise to everyone.

Especially the upcoming practitioners of the Doka Flow.

They saw up close just how pathetic their fellow human beings were on the incredibly slippery arena.

Thinking about it carefully, if I were caught off guard and encountered such insidious tactics, it seems that I would have a hard time escaping with my life.

No, what's the use of knowing that the opponent is going to summon "Red-Eyed Mackerel"?

Of course, you can wear spiked shoes to increase friction.

The competition does not prohibit players from choosing their own equipment.

The problem is that as spikes are deeply embedded in the ring, they inevitably affect the athlete's agility.

Some guardian spirits can enhance lower body stability or body balance.

However, using an additional sealing card will occupy an additional card slot, waste a bit of summoning time, and consume a bit more life force.

Not all multi-card-based spirit masters possess the talent of "Golden Boy" Carlos, who can activate seven or eight sealing cards at will.

Most multi-card decks used by Spirit Masters typically consist of three to five cards, but in actual combat, only two to three cards are usually active at the same time.

The goal is to force an extra card into an extremely limited deck to maintain balance and improve lower-side stability, and to keep it active throughout the match.

This will greatly affect the tactical choices of multi-card-based Spirit Masters and severely shorten their combat endurance.

Looking at Xiong Rulong on the stage, whose muscles gleamed under the lights because his entire body was covered in grease, he exuded a strong masculine aura.

The relatively weak "Spirit-Calling Snails" had mixed feelings.

Especially those players who are in the same competition zone as Xiong Rulong and are likely to face him head-on in the next round or the round after that, their brows were furrowed and their faces were full of bitterness.

Who would have thought that the Kuangtie team, which was not favored before the competition and was considered a pushover, would produce so many unsportsmanlike sharks?
(End of this chapter)