Titan King: Ascension of the Giant-Chapter 849: Got You!

In the Emerald Dream Realm, at the Marshlight Sanctuary.

A month can pass in the blink of an eye, a transient moment that time cannot hold. Three days ago, after receiving a notice from the Deputy Commander, Leonidas and Orion had gathered together.

"Remember, the duel map is randomly generated. The first thing you do when you enter is group up with everyone else," Leonidas said, his face grim, his usual teasing tone gone. He drilled the advice into Orion relentlessly. "If you can’t group up, then you kill your enemy. Immediately. In the dueling grounds, it’s them or you. Only one can survive."

"..."

In truth, the Deputy Commander had already gone over all of this three days prior.

"It’s time. Let’s go," Leonidas said finally. He and Orion met each other’s gaze and nodded. Leonidas was the first to crush the five-pointed star ticket in his hand.

Orion took a deep breath and crushed his own.

The instant the ticket shattered, a brilliant circle of light ignited at Orion’s feet, completely engulfing his body. The light blazed for three seconds, then vanished. The palace where he and Leonidas had been was now empty, without a single trace or lingering aura. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

In the Crucible of the Gods, the Dueling Space.

When Orion arrived, he was completely enveloped in a beam of pale golden light. The light acted as a barrier, separating him from the dueling space itself, but it did not separate him from his teammates, who appeared nearby.

The Deputy Commander and Arthas were both present as will-projections, their faces blurred and indistinct. Leonidas was in his Void Dragon form, unchanged. Alexander, however, was a surprise. The form he had taken within the barrier was that of a greatsword, its entire blade etched with mystic runes. The aura radiating from the sword was that of a peak-tier Archlord avatar.

So this is my brother’s style, Orion mused. The path of quiet, understated, and elegant power? As I thought. The quiet ones are always the best at hiding their strength.

As his mind wandered, the Deputy Commander’s voice cut through his thoughts.

"Same old rules. Since you’re in the duel, go all out. Either win, or die fighting!"

The Deputy Commander’s voice was placid, but to Orion’s ears, it was like a clap of thunder. There was no losing or surrendering in this duel. Either your avatar died, or you won. It was that simple.

No one spoke. They all shared this mindset; it was the only way.

Just as Orion was about to respond, he saw the figures of the Deputy Commander, Arthas, Leonidas, and Alexander begin to fade and disappear. They were being transported out. A moment later, Orion felt the same pull, and he too was sent away.

In the blink of an eye, he arrived in a dueling arena shaped like a long, single-path canyon. Though it was a single path, the arena was enormous. In the center stood an inactive teleportation array, and upon it stood a massive Flesh Golem, a warhammer chained to its arm, its eyes fixed on Orion with predatory intent. Steel chains were wrapped around its entire body, one end a scythe, the other the warhammer. It was an obviously dangerous foe.

At the far end of the dueling ground, another figure appeared, also shrouded in a pale golden barrier. This was Orion’s opponent.

If the arena itself was a strange sight, what Orion saw when he looked up was truly shocking. The dueling ground he was in was constantly rotating. Above him, four other, similar arenas were also rotating in layered orbits.

For a moment, he felt as though he had entered the inner workings of a giant timepiece, and his arena was but one of its hands. The only difference was that this timepiece had six rotating hands.

"By the rules of the Dueling Space, and in accordance with the contract between the two parties, the duel will commence in ten seconds!" a mechanical, emotionless, and numb voice announced. "Ten, nine, eight, seven..."

In reality, Orion had no mental energy to spare listening to the countdown. The instant the pale golden barrier in front of him vanished, he activated Ghostly Steps, becoming a phantom and vanishing into the void.

The rules here were simple: kill the enemy and the guardian of the central teleporter, and he could transport out and ascend to the uppermost arena. Five combatants would eventually gather there to begin the final, decisive battle.

"Oh, interesting. To think my opponent would be a lower Archlord!"

The voice was like a dusk drum, deep and resonant. Each word seemed to strike Orion’s mind directly. It was a rough voice, yet it felt resilient and magnetic, like ancient, weathered sandstone—old, mysterious, and perfect.

Though he heard the voice, Orion could not sense the speaker’s presence at all. His opponent was also hidden and was trying to bait him out.

Orion moved through the void, constantly changing his position as he formulated a strategy. To kill a hidden enemy, he first had to find him. But his own senses were currently unable to locate his foe. That left only one option: use himself as bait and launch a decisive counterattack.

But his opponent’s offensive came faster than he could have imagined.

"Can’t you smell it?" the voice taunted. "The thick scent of blood on you is so conspicuous... tsk tsk tsk..."

Orion’s heart leaped. Can he sense my position through my blood-qi?

No, he’s bluffing!

To be honest, the opponent’s words had unsettled him, making him doubt his own stealth for a split second. But he recovered quickly. He was currently in his Ghostly Steps state; his blood and life force should be completely concealed.

"Got you!" the voice suddenly shouted.

In the air above the arena, a black, crescent-moon-shaped tooth materialized. The tooth pulsed with a bizarre energy and began to spin wildly, generating a powerful suction force. In his phantom state, Orion found he couldn’t resist the pull. He felt as if his very being was about to be torn apart, to dissolve into a wisp of smoke and be absorbed by the black tooth.

Forced, Orion dropped out of his Ghostly Steps state.

"Die, you ignorant fool!"

An illusory, terrifying scythe blade appeared behind him, slicing him in half at the waist. The attack was too bizarre, too fast. Orion hadn’t even had a chance to defend himself.

Fortunately, a wound like this—being cut in two at the waist—was not yet enough to be fatal.