Eternal Freedom's Ascension-Chapter 128: A dog that bites

The Instructor’s voice had barely dropped when Apollo moved. He lowered his body and closed the distance quickly.

Arriving before Logan, his sword cut straight at the red-eyed boy’s torso.

’Fuck you.’

Logan cursed inwardly, leaning back to avoid the strike. The blade barely missed him, leaving a trail of crackling energy in the air.

As if anticipating this, Apollo pressed forward, his strikes decisive and ruthless.

Logan felt pressured as he desperately tried to avoid Apollo’s attacks. He was immediately forced into a defensive position, unable to retaliate. Being forced like that—he hated it.

"Piss off!"

With a burst of renewed vigor, Logan grabbed Apollo’s sword. The blade scratched against his gauntlet, unable to cut through cleanly.

Without wasting any motion, Logan threw a punch with his other hand.

Apollo wasn’t dismayed. Instead, he grinned and threw his own fist covered in dark purple lightning.

Boom!

Their fists collided midair—a violent burst of power. Logan retreated three steps while Apollo simply skidded to a stop.

"You’re strong, I commend that. However, you are far too green."

The Class-C leader laughed, staring at Logan in disdain.

Without waiting for a reply, he swooped in again with a simple, inevitable stab.

Logan’s eyes widened, and he immediately grabbed the sword with both hands. His muscles strained, as Apollo was pushing with great force.

The two became locked in a stalemate and contest of strength. At least they were until lightning erupted from the blade. Like a curse, it crawled onto Logan’s arms biting into his skin viciously.

"Arrgghhh!"

The boy let out a startled scream, but didn’t let go of the weapon. His eyes were filled with determination as he endured the agony.

Seeing as he still continued to struggle, Apollo changed tactics. He released an arm from the sword, using that opportunity to attack Logan.

His punch landed squarely on the boy’s cheek, sending him tumbling to the ground. Holding the longsword in his hand, he slowly walked towards him.

Logan braced his hands against the ground. He could feel the metallic taste of blood in his mouth.

’Damn it. He’s strong. Stronger than I am. I need to catch him off guard.’

Just as he raised his head, a heavy kick struck his head.

Bang!

His face was slammed into the ground fiercely, making the audience wince in his stead.

Iruca gasped, covering her mouth. "That’s... that’s too ruthless."

The students from Class-E all showed pained expressions, glaring at Apollo in anger.

Ariel quietly nodded. ’He’s really ruthless. No wonder he was able to subdue his entire class in under a week.’

Apollo wasn’t just chaos. He was a controlled chaos that knew when to strike. His methods of dealing with opposition weren’t straightforward, and he was always ready to use psychological pressure against any opponent.

’Making his opponent lose face... rude but a good emotional trigger.’

President Anthony noted, calmly spectating the duel.

He had also predicted the result of this fight to end in a crushing defeat for Logan. However, he was still interested in watching the process.

Logan struggled to get up, his nose cracked and bleeding profusely. Before he could fully rise, Apollo kicked his head to the ground again.

The impact thundered through the arena, even startling a few students. Logan’s arms buckled as he struggled to stand. His lips had burst and were already bleeding, his eyes bulging with veins.

Scowling, Apollo raised his leg again. "Did I tell you to stand?!"

Another kick forced the Class-E boy to the ground again. At this point, someone couldn’t watch the cruelty continue and turned to Instructor Myke to end the duel.

The man remained relaxed. "As I said, only until one party surrenders or is completely unconscious, will the duel end. And looks like your classmate isn’t ready to surrender too."

When they turned back to the ring, Logan was already trying to stand up again. Apollo glared at him coldly, a cruel smile on his lips.

"What? How many times can you rise, huh?!"

He threw another kick with a vicious grin, pushing the boy’s head further into the cracked ground. He even thought he heard the sound of Logan’s skull cracking.

’Hm?’

Just as he was about to remove his foot from the boy’s head, he felt something latch onto his ankles. He looked down, seeing Logan gripping his leg with both hands.

Without hesitation, he slashed at Logan’s wrists with his sword.

"Heck!" Jose shouted, startled.

Thankfully, the gauntlets protected his hand, preventing any injury. Apollo grew annoyed since the boy wouldn’t release his leg, leaving him in an awkward position.

Logan slowly raised his head, keeping his grip around Apollo’s leg. His face was bloodied and swollen, but his gaze remained sharp and defiant.

"I won’t... I won’t submit this easily. I’ll be a dog... that bites."

Saying this, he suddenly shot upward with a burst of energy.

Soft silver light coated his gauntlets and he delivered an uppercut with both fists.

Apollo’s head jerked upward, blood and spittle escaping his mouth. Everyone was surprised by Logan’s comeback, especially the students of Class-C.

Apollo stumbled back, his expression darkening.

’Where the hell did that come from?!’

Stabilizing himself, he hunched slightly. A hoarse laugh escaped his throat—rough and grating to the ears.

"You’re really a delinquent. Wild and primal. I’ll enjoy crushing you, Logan."

He straightened himself, then wiped the blood from his lips. His jaws hurt badly, but he suppressed the pain.

Discarding his sword, he raised his fists, ready to change the fight into a brawl.

Logan shook his head, his vision blurred red by blood. Still, his sharp eyes remained fixated on Apollo’s figure.

’Don’t underestimate me, Apollo. I’ll crush you.’

They both charged at each other, Logan rushing with a flurry of sharp blows. Apollo calmly dodged or blocked each blow, then abruptly struck as soon as he saw an opening.

The punch landed on Logan’s ribs, pushing him a step back. He winced but held in the pain, his hands raised in a boxing stance.

Right then, Apollo charged in. His own attacks were fast and precise—each one hard to dodge or counter.

Several blows slipped past Logan’s defense and landed cleanly, forcing the boy to bear the pain.

’He knows how to fight, very experienced. I can’t keep up.’

Logan’s eyes dilated as he was forced back repeatedly. A punch to the gut made him double over, forcing the air out of his lungs.

’Damnit. What do I do?!’

As his vision swam, he felt desperate. Was he really going to lose and become a reason his class would be mocked?

Seizing that brief lull, Apollo delivered a sharp kick that smacked Logan’s entire body to the ground.

"Kuk-!"

The boy groaned in pain, his body aching and screaming with exhaustion. Still, his determination didn’t waver, he gritted his teeth and internally bellowed.

’GET UP, LOGAN! GET THE HELL UP!’

At that moment, he heard a mechanical sound in his mind.

[Ding! Your bloodline has awakened]