I regressed and became the Sword Ice King

The fire crackled and danced in a crimson hue as he clenched his fists into a tight ball. His mind was made up a long time ago, and all he had to do now was strengthen his resolve. "8th step of the–"

His voice wavered when Raph suddenly appeared in front of him like a ghost. He didn't even hear him disappear or feel his energy fluctuate... it was like he just appeared? Was that speed? He thought, but his mind was busy comprehending something else.

He felt a chill that crept up his body, and it was a terribly cold chill that the fire couldn't burn away. It felt like he was naked and thrown into a snowstorm, only to find a match that burnt relentlessly in that storm as his only source of light. The cause of such coldness was peerless white eyes.

It was like staring at two moons that exuded a malevolent hue, a color so invisible that one would most likely miss it. It was ethereal and magnificent, leaving an imprint on his heart.

Raph's eyes were so white that Jang could see his reflection clearly, but the deeper he stared, the colder he became, and the more an unknown darkness crept into his heart.

That darkness seized control of everything, forcing him to a standstill. He could not move, he could not blink; in fact, his senses became meaningless at this point, but only his ears remained unphased. As if it was done purposely so he could hear the next statement.

"Everything is Ice." Raph stretched forth his hand, through the burning flames, and tapped the boy's shoulders, a mischievous smile playing on his lips. "Cold Zero."

A cold chill swept the Arena as everything was covered in the beauty of snow and ice. The ground of the Arena had been turned into a crystalline structure of ice, starting with Jang, who was frozen in place. The flames had been put off by the cold, and his body had been reduced to a dormant state as snowflakes descended from the skies.

Raph stood up straight, his lips quivering slightly as his hand remained fixed on the boy, absorbing the ice that covered his body. The rules of the Battle were not to kill your opponents, but nobody said anything about putting them in a dormant state. He needed to at least get rid of the Ice, just in case the Patriarchs decided to be petty about the results.

The ice had been absorbed fully, leaving a half-naked Jang to the brunt of the cold. His orifice was dark blue, and his skin had a hint of light blue. He was breathing slowly, but it seemed like it would take a while for him to awaken from that slumber.

"He should be fine... the Martial Artists have ways of treating such... situations." Raph muttered under his breath as he laid the boy's unconscious body on the ground. 'Better.'

With that, the Rankings Battle had come to its end. Whether the Audience or Patriarchs were satisfied with the results, though, was entirely their problem.

The Stand was filled with silence until one individual clapped his hands loudly, and this caused a chain effect throughout the Stadium. Their gazes were a mix of emotions, and some even had pent-up frustration.

This day could be referred to as the day people became millionaires or the day people became extremely broke.

The Patriarchs, especially, were more than just surprised, but what could they have done? The battle had flowed exactly as the winner had wanted it to occur. The last ability he used, Cold Zero, was a powerful freezing ability that affected both the environment and the target, but it wouldn't have worked if Jang was at full strength.

A rather... lukewarm result, to say the least, but it was a win. Raph could imagine all the things they could be thinking at that moment as his gaze scanned through the Stadium. He decided to get a good look at their expressions, and as expected, the unprecedented loss of the Martial Son, Jang Kang Lin, had left many begging for an explanation.

Why had he not showcased this sort of strength from the very beginning? Questions worthy of answers, but who would have the time to give them? He sighed, turning his cold gaze away from the crowd and looked up towards the Patriarch stands, locking it on his father. They exchanged a look of affirmation.

Michaelo was rather satisfied with the results; who wouldn't be excited about the strength of their son... even though some were unexpected?

"Then, I better go end the Tournament." He said with a sigh as he attempted to warp to the Arena. His body froze, and his eyes slowly narrowed. Rachael, noticing his sudden reaction, raised a brow, and their daughter's gazes of curiosity locked on their Father.

"Michaelo?" Rachael called, a solemn tension building within when she recognized that expression. His brows furrowed deeply, and his right finger began to tap the railings.

"Something is wrong," He replied, his tone drifting off as he scanned through the Stadium. All Patriarchs present seemed to have been staring at him the whole time, perhaps questioning why he had still not gone to the Arena to end the tournament. Some even thought it was his own way of being petty after all this time. But soon enough, they began to grow wary.

"Michaelo Jun?!" Chun Kang Lin spoke out loud and clear, catching all of their attention. He pointed at the Arena, his anger evident at his prolonged act, but then it turned into visible confusion. It seemed he had attempted to warp to the Arena as well, but... something was wrong.

An uncomfortable tension began to build within the twelve great families as each attempted to warp or teleport towards the Arena, but no, to no avail, something stopped them. Raph had noticed this... occurrence the moment he found his father's confused expression. He had attempted to leave the Arena as well, but something blocked him, preventing him from moving out of the Arena.

'Interesting.' He walked back to the middle of the Arena, his actions unphased by the current situation.

'It seems someone doesn't want us to leave just yet but…who?' He sighed, sitting down next to the unconscious body of Jang, and folded his hands.

'Well, I can at least wait.'

The Audience was rather startled by his action. The commentator needed to come and end the tournament so they could leave, but that didn't mean they would have to wait. It seemed they had decided to do something else, but that would be their problem. And some of them had already decided to leave, but at that moment, someone from the audience fell to the ground.

This caught the others' attention, and some began to approach out of curiosity. One in particular bent down to try and shake the man who fell back to his feet.

"Hey, bro, just because you lost your life savings doesn't mean you get to put on a show here." The gruffy-bearded man said with a hint of worry in his tone.

"Just leave him there; next time, he wouldn't doubt the strength of the Juns." The men around him laughed out loud, and the gruffy-bearded man couldn't help but join in. He had warned his best friend not to vote for Jang, but he protested, saying things like

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"Never underestimate the strength of martial arts" and whatnot. But the end result just happened to not be in his favor, and he was a gambling addict.

The gruffy-bearded man decided to leave his friend to his fate when he noticed a crimson color on the palm of his hands. He stared at it in confusion, his brows raising into an arch. His gaze then shifted to his friend's body, and that was when he noticed it. Amber blood oozed out of the man's body like a tap, and it was then it dawned on him.

"Aaargh! Blood! Blood!" His voice sent a chill of panic through the others' hearts as he backed away frantically in a world of horror.

His eyes widened in shock when a female scream echoed within the Arena. "Kyaaaa!!" Tears streamed down her eyes as her dead daughter lay limply in her arms, blood oozing down to the seat of the Colosseum. Then another scream, followed by another, and then another, continuously, as more and more people's bodies began to drop dead, their blood oozing out from a wide cut.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Panic became evident in the hearts of the people as their cries echoed in the Arena. This wasn't a cry of excitement but horror and chaos. They began to rush towards the exit, slamming on the invisible dome that caged them like rats.

And still, more people dropped dead, blood oozing out and flowing down the Colosseum in large amounts. This didn't stop them in the least; instead, it urged them to find a way to save themselves from whatever it was that killed the others. Their fear was evident, and the chaos had escalated so quickly that the patriarchs had not gotten the chance to realize what was going on.

Michaelo was in a state of summoning his weapon when something took his attention away from the screaming audience. It was a murky, malevolent aura, thick and vicious, and it erupted out of the middle of the Arena, opposite of Raph.

His body tensed on recognizing the aura. "Miasma?!" His voice was etched with confusion, and his next move had been made up before he could even act.

But just then, something shook the Colosseum to its foundations, erupting from the miasma, a vicious jackal face smashed through, its teeth an ebony black, and its eyes a crimson red. It shook the Arena as two massive hands protruded out of the ground, and a massive, teeth-clenching roar echoed through the Stadium.

"ROOOOOAAAAAARRRR!!"