The Orc King raised its head.

Its dark yellow eyes settled on Ethan and Laira. A heavy aura immediately spread out, making a series of small cracks appear on the surrounding gray slabs.

Roar!

A low, deep roar echoed across the arena.

The ground trembled.

The air was like it was being squeezed tight by an invisible hand.

The Orc King raised its battle-axe.

The dark yellow energy armor covering its body immediately grew thicker. Hazy veins appeared outside its blue-gray skin, rippling continuously in rhythm with its heartbeat.

Laira slowly stepped in front of Ethan.

Her dragon wings spread open behind her back.

Red flame began to spread around her body.

"Stand behind me."

Her voice was still as calm as before.

But Ethan didn’t answer right away.

His gaze was still focused on the Orc King.

The small red point that had just appeared before his eyes wasn’t fixed in one position. It kept shifting along the flow of energy moving beneath the Gold armor, appearing near the chest at times, sliding down to the abdomen, then vanishing behind the left shoulder.

He couldn’t attack carelessly.

He had to wait for the right moment.

Ethan narrowed his eyes slightly.

A sharp pain shot through both pupils, like hundreds of tiny needles continuously piercing deep into his eyeballs. But he still didn’t stop.

The Orc King had made its move.

Boom!

It stamped down hard on the ground.

Its body, nearly four meters tall, immediately charged forward at a speed completely disproportionate to its colossal frame. The stone floor beneath its feet burst apart. A wave of compressed air swept across the arena, sweeping up countless small fragments of stone.

In the blink of an eye, the Orc King had appeared before Laira.

The colossal battle-axe chopped down.

Whoosh!

The air gave off an ear-piercing screech.

Laira raised her hand.

A layer of blazing red flame immediately condensed into a shield before her.

Boom!

The battle-axe slammed hard into the flame.

The entire arena shook violently.

The shockwave shot out in all directions, making the slabs more than ten meters away all crack apart. Laira was pushed back half a step. The heel of her shoe plowed across the stone floor, leaving a long scorch mark.

In the main hall of Aurora Academy, hundreds of students drew in a sharp breath all at once.

Since entering the Abyss Tower, this was the first time Laira had been pushed back.

Rowan looked at the screen, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly.

"That’s the difference."

The old man pressed his metal staff against the floor, his gaze turning cold.

"Silver and Gold aren’t on the same tier."

Lionel Hart also chuckled softly.

"That Crimson Dragon is stronger than monsters of the same tier."

"But she’s sealed."

"To go head-on against a Gold tier 1 Orc King, she can’t rely on bloodline alone."

Vanessa was still silent.

Her pale violet eyes rested on Ethan.

From beginning to end, she didn’t look at Laira for too long.

Because Ethan was the one who made her feel puzzled.

While everyone else was paying attention to the terrifying collision between the two Gold creatures, he still stood motionless behind Laira. His gaze was so focused he almost didn’t blink.

Like he was waiting for something.

Inside the arena, the Orc King raised its battle-axe again.

Laira didn’t give it the chance to keep attacking.

She spread her wings wide.

Six fire arrows immediately appeared behind her back, then shot off all at once.

Whoosh!

Streaks of blazing red tore across the darkness.

The six flame arrows struck the Orc King’s chest, shoulder, neck, and abdomen one after another.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

The flames exploded in succession.

Smoke and dust quickly covered the entire area in front.

But just a few seconds later, a colossal figure had stepped out of the sea of fire.

The yellow energy armor on the Orc King’s body rippled violently, faint fractures appearing on its surface. However, the skin beneath was almost unharmed.

It roared.

The battle-axe in its hand swept across.

A stream of yellow energy immediately turned into a semicircular wave blade, shooting straight at Laira.

Laira tilted her body slightly.

Her dragon wings closed in, covering Ethan behind her.

Boom!

The energy wave blade slammed hard into the dragon wings.

Red flame and yellow halo exploded at the same time.

Laira retreated two steps.

The black chains coiling around her wrists gave off a dry sound.

Clang.

Clang.

Ethan saw it very clearly.

Each time Laira forcibly released more power, the hazy chains tightened further. A few black symbols on the surface of the chains began to glow, like they were actively suppressing the energy within her body.

Lionel was right about one thing.

Laira couldn’t carelessly break the seal.

At the very least, she couldn’t keep using her power in a wasteful way.

"Laira."

Ethan suddenly spoke up.

She didn’t turn her head.

"Yeah?"

"Don’t attack the armor head-on."

Laira looked at the Orc King preparing to charge again, then curved the corner of her mouth slightly.

"You’ve seen something, haven’t you?"

"Yeah."

Ethan drew a deep breath.

The pain in his eyes was growing more and more intense.

But the red point before his eyes was also gradually becoming clearer.

"Keep your distance."

"Force it to keep swinging the battle-axe."

"I need to confirm one more time."

Laira didn’t ask why.

"Alright."

The Orc King roared, its body charging forward once more.

This time, Laira didn’t go head-on.

Her dragon wings beat hard.

Her body immediately shot up high, just enough to avoid the battle-axe sweeping across the ground.

Boom!

The axe blade chopped into the stone pillar behind.

The entire pillar immediately blew apart.

Laira spun in midair.

Three small fireballs appeared around her palm, then shot down all at once.

Whoosh!

The Orc King raised its left arm to shield its face.

Boom!

The flame exploded.

It wasn’t hurt.

But its roar grew more furious.

The Orc King stamped down hard on the ground, its colossal body springing up high. The battle-axe swung up from below, dragging a stream of dark yellow energy tearing across the air.

Laira immediately retreated.

The axe blade was less than half a meter from her waist.

The wind pressure was so strong the hem of her white dress flew backward.

A few students in the main hall unconsciously held their breath.

Ryan gripped the armrest of his seat tightly, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

"She can’t hold it off."

He looked at the screen, his voice unable to hide its delight.

"She’s dodging."

"As long as it keeps going like this, sooner or later her power will run dry."

Selene didn’t answer.

But the tension on her face had eased a great deal.

Rowan nodded too.

"The Orc King has higher stamina."

"That Crimson Dragon is trying to drag out the time."

"But that’s the wrong choice."

Vanessa still said nothing.

Her gaze rested on Ethan.

Because in the moment the Orc King sprang up off the ground, his expression had changed.

Not fear.

But like he had finally confirmed what he was looking for.

Inside the arena, Ethan stared fixedly at the Orc King.

When the monster swung its battle-axe, the energy in the Gold armor all surged toward its right arm, shoulder, and chest to enhance its strength.

In a very brief moment, a gap appeared in the area below the left ribs.

The red point immediately lit up.

That was the death point.

But it existed for less than half a second.

Too short.

Ethan couldn’t afford to delay.

"Laira!"

The call rang out across the arena.

The Crimson Dragon hovering in midair immediately turned her head.

"The left side."

"Below the ribs."

"There’s only one chance."

Laira looked at him for a brief moment.

Then smiled.

"That’s enough."

She closed her wings.

Her body immediately dropped straight down toward the ground.

The Orc King had just landed after its missed axe swing. When it saw Laira charging in, it immediately roared, both hands gripping the battle-axe tight.

The dark yellow energy around its body all exploded at once.

It swung the axe.

Whoosh!

The colossal battle-axe swept across.

But right before the axe blade reached her body, Laira suddenly spun.

Her long red hair traced a blazing arc in midair.

Her dragon wings closed in for an instant, allowing her body to change trajectory at an almost unbelievable speed.

The axe blade swept past behind her back.

Only a few centimeters away.

Right after, Laira appeared at the Orc King’s left flank.

Her right hand lifted.

No six fire arrows.

No colossal pillar of light.

No flame covering the entire arena.

Only a small dark red spark gathered at her fingertip.

But all the energy was compressed within it.

Not a single bit wasted.

Laira said softly:

"Found you."

Her finger touched the area below the Orc King’s left ribs.

Exactly the spot Ethan had just pointed out.

Pft!

The sound was very faint.

But the Orc King’s body immediately froze, time seeming to still at this moment.

A red dot of light appeared on the yellow energy armor.

Then, the first crack spread out.

Crack.

Crack.

Crack.

The cracks quickly covered the Orc King’s entire body.

The dark red flame poured inside through the tiny gap, running along the flow of energy moving beneath the armor.

The Orc King’s eyes opened wide.

It tried to raise its battle-axe.

But it was too late.

Boom!

A low, deep explosion rang out from inside its body.

Flame burst up through each crack on the energy armor. The colossal battle-axe fell to the ground. The Orc King’s body, nearly four meters tall, staggered for a few seconds, then knelt down.

Crash!

The ground trembled.

The yellow energy armor disintegrated into countless particles of light.

The Orc King still tried to raise its head.

But the flame had already completely incinerated its body from within.

A few seconds later, the colossal figure collapsed onto the stone floor.

No more movement.

The main hall of Aurora Academy fell completely silent.

No one could say a word.

No one had time to react.

Everyone just stared fixedly at the Orc King’s corpse smoldering on the screen.

Lionel Hart leaned forward slightly.

The composure on his face had completely vanished.

Rowan gripped his metal staff tightly.

His slightly clouded eyes opened wide.

Vanessa Crowe slowly let out a breath.

The corner of her mouth curled into a very faint smile.

"Just as I thought."

Ryan sat motionless in his seat.

His face deathly pale.

"No way..."

He muttered.

"Just one blow?"

"How could it possibly take just one blow?"

On the top floor, the gray-haired woman looked at the data displaying on the screen, her voice turning dry.

"It wasn’t relying on overwhelming power."

"She struck the one point not fully protected by the Gold armor."

The man in the military uniform frowned slightly.

"A coincidence?"

Headmaster Cole didn’t answer right away.

His gaze rested on Ethan.

The young man still stood in the middle of the arena, his expression calm as if that result had been within expectations all along.

It was a long while before the Headmaster slowly said:

"It wasn’t a coincidence."

Inside the Abyss Tower, Laira turned back.

Her long red hair stirred behind her back.

She walked up before Ethan, then bent down to look at him.

"How was that?"

Ethan curved the corner of his mouth slightly.

"Very precise."

Laira broke into a satisfied smile.

"Of course."

She looked at the small streak of blood that had just trickled down from the corner of Ethan’s left eye, and the smile on her lips immediately faded.

"But your eyes are bleeding."

"It’s not serious."

"You said that last time too."

Laira reached out to wipe the streak of blood on his cheek. The motion was very gentle, completely different from the terrifying power she had just used to destroy the Orc King.

Then, she frowned slightly.

"Don’t push yourself too hard next time."

Ethan looked at her.

"I’ll be careful."

Laira narrowed her eyes.

Clearly she didn’t entirely believe that answer.

But before she could say anything more, the cold voice of the System rang out across the arena.

[Special guardian of the fifth floor defeated.]

[Orc King — Gold tier 1.]

[Completion time: 47.6 seconds.]

[Rating: Perfect.]

[Congratulations on clearing 5 floors of the Abyss Tower, you have received one Blind Box opening.]

[Note: Because you achieved a Perfect rating on all 5 floors of the Abyss Tower, the Blind Box you open is guaranteed to be rank S or higher.]