NOVPUBHowever, this "showing weakness" move seemed to fuel the arrogance of those few people even more. After all, there weren't many cities left behind Blackwater City, so if they didn't show off now, there wouldn't be any more opportunities.
"Another worthless city. The fact that people from such cities don't even have an ounce of guts—why bother coming to the competition?"
"Exactly! When they lose, will they run home crying? Fighting these kids is just boring. Even if these cowards somehow win the competition, I wouldn't respect it!"
"..." Bai E froze for a moment.
He suddenly thought the other party's words actually made quite a bit of sense.
Indeed.
The essence of this world is still survival of the fittest, especially for the people and cities that have managed to endure in this era of chaos.
These people are untamable by nature, sneering at anything weak or timid.
Just like those two boasters said, if there were cities holding such beliefs in Bai E's domain, then even if he won openly in the competition, it would likely be difficult to mobilize resources from those cities under any agreements.
Winning a competition doesn't necessarily mean having strength. The courage to step forward at any time is... at least in the eyes of these people, perhaps it's more important.
Since that's the case...
Bai E lowered the car window and cast a casual glance at the two men.
"Bang!" The force of Spiritual Energy materialized into a shockwave, slamming into the two men's chests like a heavy hammer.
The burly figures were instantly sent flying backward, landing on the compacted dirt ground more than ten meters away, rolling around like tumbling gourds before finally stopping.
The actual damage wasn't significant, but the humiliation of such an incident clearly pushed the two strong men who had initially been hit into full-blown fury.
Quickly scrambling back to their feet, the burly men stared directly at the source of the force.
However, just before they stepped forward, their minds finally grasped what had just happened—
The opponent hadn't physically attacked.
It was merely the sheer impact of Spiritual Energy that sent them flying instantly.
Although their lack of defense played a role, the ability to achieve such a feat—just how overwhelmingly powerful must their opponent be?
As their minds gradually cleared, they noticed the car window slowly rising again. Behind it was a face devoid of emotion.
A cautious realization finally crept into their hearts.
'This opponent isn't some pushover.'
They had simply chosen not to bother with them.
The jeering voices from the surrounding crowd also seemed to fall silent in the wake of this hammer-like blow.
To unleash an impact of this magnitude using only Spiritual Energy—this newcomer city's player certainly seemed like someone better avoided...
Then, people began asking questions: "Which city are these newcomers from?"
"Yeah, which area? Wouldn't want them assigned to the same district as ours later on."
"The districts haven't been fully finalized yet. Who could know something like that right now?"
"They probably aren't in our vicinity. We haven't seen much of these people before."
"If they arrived this late, they're probably from one of the farthest batch of cities... Makes sense we wouldn't have crossed paths."
"Hey! Another group of tough characters showing up. This competition already has several fierce players... No idea whose home ground this will end up being." Others were simply here for the drama. "Anyway, there's no harm near our city, so we're just planning to freeload in the alliance. Sticking to powerhouses sure beats fighting the grind on our own!"
"Impressive! Respect!" Someone gave a thumbs-up from afar toward the convoy. For strong cities, making a good impression in advance always seemed like the smart play.
["Lucky Strike" has gained +50 charge.]
Within the convoy, the messenger squad that had been nervously watching Blackwater City's team ever since the provocations began finally let out a sigh of relief as they saw the incident resolve so easily.
However, the female team member in the vehicle glanced through the rearview mirror at Mr. Bai seated in the passenger seat of a transport vehicle from Blackwater City. Her eyes were filled with disbelief: "The power of Mr. Bai is simply mind-boggling! I can't help but wonder how he'd fare against our War God—who's truly the unrivaled force here?"
Before encountering Blackwater City's Bai E—who was now Mr. Bai—they had always regarded their War God as the supreme combatant of this world.
The entire Empire Capitol revered him as a source of pride, and some fanatics had even attempted to bestow upon him the title of "god!" 𝘯𝑜𝘷𝘱𝘶𝘣.𝘤𝘰𝑚
This renown was universally acknowledged, extending even beyond the Capitol into nearly every other city, where tales of the War God were widely circulated.
Yet, the instant they saw Bai E, all of this faith seemed to crumble in a single moment.
Because no matter how formidable the War God might be, he couldn't singlehandedly destroy an insect nest.
Even if Bai E had achieved this feat with the aid of a mecha—a powerful amplifier of strength—it aligned perfectly with the competition's core philosophy: that a city's technological equipment is equally considered part of a soldier's overall capability. Bai E's ability to harness mecha's power ultimately reflected his own strength.
He could penetrate an insect nest solo. The War God couldn't. That... was the difference!
"I wonder if he'll compete. If he does... wouldn't that guarantee absolute victory in the solo matches, and possibly in the team competitions too, regardless of who the opponent is?"
