As Phainon spoke, he casually grabbed what looked like the most handy and heaviest wooden sword from the nearby weapon rack, even making a show of weighing it in his hand a couple of times.
Phaethon's gaze fell on the wooden sword that clearly exceeded the scope of a "referee's prop." His lip twitched, while his eyes filled with a sarcastic look that screamed, *"Do I look like an idiot to you?"*
"A referee... needs such a 'handy' weapon?"
Phainon acted as if he hadn't heard his brother's question, or perhaps he simply had no intention of concealing his plan from the start. He suddenly let out a booming laugh, his eyes instantly turning dangerous and excited as he took a fierce step forward, pointing the wooden sword straight at Phaethon. "The referee says—the match starts now!!"
Before the words had fully faded, he was already shooting forward like an arrow from a bow, a gust of wind in his wake, charging straight at Phaethon!
Mydei, almost at the same moment, let out a low roar, closing in from the flank in coordination. Two waves of battle intent instantly locked Phaethon at the center.
Seeing the two of them charging at him from front and side with imposing force, Phaethon didn't panic. Instead, he let out a snort of laughter, a sound brimming with absurdity and helplessness at his brother's "shamelessness."
"I say, Phainon," his figure blurred, disappearing as if melting into the air, and the next instant he appeared on the farthest diagonal corner of the arena, his voice carrying clearly with a teasing note, "How come you, the 'fair and just' referee, are joining the fight yourself? Is that in the referee's rulebook?"
But before his words could settle, Mydei's fist—the size of a sand pot—carrying a sharp gust of wind pressure, tore through the air and smashed into the spot where he had just been standing!
Phaethon's eyes narrowed. His right hand traced an arc in front of him, a barely perceptible spatial ripple spreading out—Infinity Gate!
Mydei only saw a blur before his eye as the violent force of his punch landed heavily on another patch of empty ground, kicking up a cloud of dirt and dust. He himself staggered from the excessive force.
"Hahaha!" Phainon's wild laughter rang out from within the dust cloud. Far from showing any shame, he doubled down. He drove the heavy wooden sword into the ground like a shovel and viciously flung it upward!
"Who told you to always beat us in such 'dishonorable' ways?" A large curtain of pebble mixed with dirt instantly obscured most of Phaethon's forward vision, also concealing the figures of Phainon and Mydei.
"Tsk..." Phaethon frowned slightly. Obstructed vision was a major limitation for him, who relied on precise spatial teleportation.
From within the dust, a wooden sword stabbed silently yet swift as a viper toward his ribs! It was Phainon!
Relying on astonishing combat instinct and physical reaction, Phaethon twisted his body to barely avoid. The cold tip of the wooden sword grazed past his clothing, bringing a chilling breeze—it was a narrow escape!
"It seems..." Phaethon steadied himself, his eyes turning completely cold. "This mixed doubles match of 'brotherly love' plus 'challenge and revenge'... I have no choice but to accept it?"
"Of course!" Mydei's roar was like a thunderclap. Seizing the moment when Phaethon adjusted his Center of gravity after dodging Phainon's strike, he charged forward again like a wild bull. His massive frame almost filled Phaethon's blind spot!
"Phaethon! You can't use those weird tricks inside the city, can you? Face the two of us head-on, like a true warrior!"
The frenzied and fierce punches compressed the air, making Phaethon's clothes flutter and snap loudly.
Phaethon activated Infinity Gate again. His figure blurred and vanished the instant the fist was about to connect, reappearing several meters away. But his landing was noticeably unsteady, and much more disheveled than before.
Phainin and Mydei exchanged a glance from a distance, their eyes bursting with excitement—it worked! Suppressing his vision, forcing him to use his abilities hastily, it really created opportunities for close combat!
"Deliverer, that last punch was less than half a *Castrum Kremnos Dictionary* thick from his skin!" Mydei roared excitedly, his fists clenched so tight they creaked. "A few more times! One mistake, and I'll grab him!"
"Face the two of you like a warrior?" Phaethon straightened up, a thread of mockery in his tone, his gaze like needles piercing toward Mydei. "Mydeimos, what happened to the warrior's honor you pride yourself on? When did it fall to needing to team up with someone else to ambush your own opponent?"
"Phaethon! Enough with the empty talk!" Phainon immediately cut in loudly, afraid that Mydei was swayed. He yelled at the top of his lungs, "Phaethon, we won't bully you either! The loser just has to eat a pound of fresh Droma Red Clay! How about it? Dare to bet? Don't you dare weasel out if you lose!"
Phaethon's gaze swept over the two of them, charging at him once again, like two volcanoes about to erupt—Mydei delivered a powerful punch with no fancy moves, the air itself exploding as he concentrated all his strength; Phainon followed closely behind, his wooden sword blocking all possible escape routes.
Looking at this inescapable, deadly situation, all traces of the feigned embarrassment and helplessness vanished from Phaethon's face, replaced by a... extremely smug, triumphant smile, as if a scheme had succeeded.
(Phaethon: *Brother, you really are a little glutton...*)
"You mean it? Then—it's a deal!"
The moment Mydei's fist was less than half a foot from his chest, the wind pressure from the punch almost tearing his clothes, the dormant aura around Phaethon erupted like a volcano suppressed for millennia!
Phaethon caught Mydei's punch with utter ease.
"Phainon, you didn't really think... I'm still the same as a few days ago, did you?"
(Phaethon: *I am no longer what I was before! I have become stronger and more powerful!*
Mydei: *Children? What can I say? Is this right?*)
And then!
An indescribable, vast and mighty power originating from the earth spread out from him as the center. The entire arena ground seemed to shudder faintly!
"Geokinesis! Suppress Them!"
An invisible, substantial pressure like mountains instantly descended upon Phainon and Mydei!
Phainon's charge came to an abrupt halt as if he had fallen into an invisible bog. His movements became incredibly sluggish and heavy, even his breathing turned labored, his face filled with disbelief and horror!
And there's more.
"I Decree! 'In this place, all those bearing the Golden Lineage are forbidden to move!!!'"
The instant the Law was established, an indescribable force of "Rule" acted precisely upon Phainon and Mydei, completely immobilizing them.
Phainon, Mydei: Σ(ŎдŎ|||)ﾉﾉ! Not good! Our stomachs! We really have to eat the Red Clay!
Droma: ∑(°口°๑)!! Not good! My dinner!
...
"Phaethon... what the... hell is this..." The invincible Deliverer—Phainon—had now fallen.
But his finger, symbolizing an unyielding will, rose with the stubborn persistence of a candle flame in the wind, trembling yet unwavering, pointing straight at the culprit behind all this—Phaethon.