As soon as the match began, several contestants simultaneously moved to attack Peter, aiming to eliminate the greatest threat first.

Various abilities and items rushed at him. Peter was prepared; rubbing his hands together, a circular barrier crackling with electric arcs appeared around his body, defending against the assault.

“Put more power into it, he can’t withstand so many attacks!”

Someone shouted. Some contestants responded by increasing their Mind Power output, while others held back, and a few pretended to attack while watching others.

This was a contest where only one person could survive. Everyone was a rival; there was no guarantee that teamwork to kill Peter would leave everyone else unscathed.

Many preserved their strength, so the combined force was insufficient to break Peter’s lightning barrier in a short time. Peter seized the opportunity to launch a counterattack.

He flicked his right hand, sending out several bolts of lightning. Lightning was fast and devastating; the two contestants closest to him were struck and groaned. Although defensive items saved their lives from instant death, they suffered injuries.

“Damn it, hold them off, I’ll—ugh!!”

One injured contestant tried to pull out a healing item, but a steel spear suddenly stabbed him from behind, piercing his heart.

The contestant holding the steel spear looked at the fallen man with a cold sneer. Seeing this, someone cursed, “Kill Peter first! He’s the strongest, why infight!”

“We’ll remove one rival first.”

“You—”

“Well done!”

A roar of approval erupted from the stands. Some spectators jumped up, pumping their fists and cheering excitedly, while others angrily hurled the food in their hands to the ground, cursing.

“Only one contestant dead, is that necessary…” one spectator asked in confusion. A kind seatmate explained, “Do you even need to ask? They obviously bet on it.”

“Betting? You can bet on this?”

“If it’s a match, of course you can. Several online platforms run bets—like who will be champion, who gets killed first, how long the match lasts… there’s betting on everything.”

“I see!”

The puzzled spectator brightened. Those shouting enthusiastically were surely the winners of bets, while those throwing things and cursing had obviously lost theirs.

“Speaking of which, I placed a bet too, on Peter taking the championship.” Another spectator said, eyes fixed on the arena, “Too many people favor him, so the odds were low… but if it hits, you still make a few dozen coins.”

Meanwhile, in the Twin Stars Bar’s main hall, two to three hundred Ascendants had gathered to watch the live feed on a giant screen.

Besides Suroman locals, foreigners couldn’t easily attend in person and mostly watched the livestream. Streaming was more fun to watch with a crowd.

As a middleman, Black Star, always ready to profit from any opportunity and with wide connections, had opened a small betting pool in the bar.

In a back room of the bar, an Ascendant sat with eyes closed, holding a Mind Power Crystal. After a moment, the crystal glowed faintly.

The Ascendant opened his eyes. “I can’t pump any more in.”

“Then it’s full.” Black Star said. “Trade it.”

“Okay!”

The Ascendant happily traded the crystal to Black Star and received Ascension Coins for selling his Mind Power.

“Brother Black Star, nothing else? I’m going out to watch the match?”

“Nothing for you to worry about, go ahead.”

After the Ascendant left, White Star came in from outside.

“Are today’s takings full?”

“Full, just waiting for him to pick it up.”

“Looks like a lot of people came to watch today, we’ll make a little extra.”

Black Star nodded. “The commissions piled up, plus what we made from that person… we’re almost there.”

White Star fell silent for a moment. “Brother, do you really want to use all our savings on a gamble with an uncertain result? What if… what if they’re lying to us?”

Black Star, usually smiling with a baby-faced look and optimistic demeanor, suddenly appeared unusually gloomy.

“I don’t know. Even if they’re liars, we have to try… we have no other way to save Aaron. He doesn’t have much time left.”

At the name “Aaron,” White Star’s expression darkened. After a brief silence she looked up. “Maybe… we could ask him for help?”

“Him?” Black Star frowned. “You mean ‘Shadow’?”

White Star nodded. “He’s so strong, and he has deep ties with the Administrator. He must have connections in Beixing too. Maybe he can find a way to save Aaron.”

“...We’ll see.” Black Star hesitated. “Even though he seems easy to talk to, in the past few days I’ve gotten information from several sources… there was a lot of bloodshed in the capital. It’s very likely he was involved.”

“You mean Valeri and the others’ downfall? With the mountain of evidence the Administrator released, they deserved it.”

“Anyway, as middlemen we mustn’t speak too freely. Don’t spread Aaron’s matter for now.”

“I understand.”

Just as White Star finished speaking, a burst of screams suddenly came from the front hall.

“Ah!!!!”

What’s happening?!

Black Star and White Star exchanged looks and hurried out to the front hall.

They expected a brawl, but when they arrived, everyone was staring at the television with widened eyes as if something shocking had appeared.

They turned to the large screen. The live Suroma finals broadcast showed thick smoke rising and large areas of fire burning among the spectators. Many people lay prone, some motionless, their lives uncertain.

Black Star grabbed a younger gang member and demanded, “What happened?”

“Brother Black Star, didn’t you see earlier?” the younger man swallowed and said, “The match was intense, then suddenly an explosion! Someone detonated bombs in the stands, a lot of people died!”

Bombs detonated in the spectator stands...

Black Star and White Star exchanged a look and said in unison, “Terrorist attack!”

...

The finals site descended into chaos.

Wails and screams never ceased, accompanied by the blare of alarms and sirens from medical vehicles.

Security personnel tried to maintain order but achieved little.

A venue that could seat tens of thousands and was packed to capacity could not be controlled by just dozens or hundreds of security guards once such massive chaos erupted.

The match was immediately halted after the emergency.

Privileged patrons in VIP boxes left at once under the protection of bodyguards, while other spectators scrambled toward the exits, fearing more attacks if they lagged behind.

The contestants still standing on the stage had their fight interrupted by the sudden incident.

“Let’s get out of here!”

“Wait, we haven’t finished!”

“There could be bombs everywhere in the venue, you still want to fight? I’m not dying with you lunatics!”

A few contestants hurried away. Peter was the last to step down; he glanced at the stands without a word, a faint, inscrutable smile playing at the corner of his mouth before disappearing.

Because the match was broadcast worldwide, the incident instantly became headline news.

Everyone wanted to know why bombs were in the venue, how security failed to detect them, and who was responsible.

Two hours later, the Suroma Empire held an emergency press briefing broadcast globally.

The spokesperson solemnly announced, “All personnel at the venue have been evacuated. Preliminary statistics indicate the death toll exceeds two thousand; exact numbers will be released after a detailed count.

Preliminary investigation into the explosive devices shows: a safety sweep was conducted before the match. Investigators believe that after the match began, someone used a teleportation-type item to convey the explosives into the stands.

We have classified this incident as a terrorist attack. Our government will find anyone related to this event. Whoever is responsible will pay a heavy price.”

Before Suroma’s emergency briefing concluded, a video appeared across major platforms and rapidly rose to the top trending lists.

The video was directly related to the explosion.

On screen stood a group of black-robed figures wearing flame emblems—the attire of the Fire Thief Worship Cult members.

A middle-aged man with his left eye covered by a black cloth appeared among them. A conspicuous red sash was tied at his waist, indicating high standing within the cult.

He spoke gravely, “I am Bishop Hiss of the Fire Thief Worship Cult. I claim responsibility for the explosions at the Suroma Grand Competition. This is not a terrorist attack; it is purification of heretics. You treated the divine’s will as mere entertainment… Ignorant and arrogant Suromans, your final revelry ends today by the hands of our devout believers.”