Sign-In System: Starting With Invincible Physique-Chapter 15: Defeating Brennan

Chapter 15: Defeating Brennan

Brennan lay on the hard stone of the arena, his mind ringing.

He had been defeated.

By an outer sect disciple.

In the view of two hundred outer disciples.

He could feel two hundred pairs of eyes looking at him, like sharp blades.

Utter humiliation filled his heart, rising up to flush his face a deep, furious red.

An inner disciple who lost to an outer disciple in a direct clash would become the laughingstock of the entire sect.

The humiliation would follow him everywhere he goes.

He couldn’t allow that.

If he couldn’t get back his dignity today, he would never be able to show his face in the sect again.

Gritting his teeth, Brennan forced himself to his feet.

When he looked at Rhain’s face again, his eyes burned with hatred and he wished he could kill Rhain with his eyes.

"Don’t get arrogant, Rhain," Brennan spat, his voice trembling with suppressed rage.

"I only used seventy percent of my full strength. I held back, afraid that a single strike would kill you."

It was a pathetic excuse.

But most of the outer disciples believed it, revealing an expression as if the truth had suddenly dawned on them.

It was the only explanation they were ready to accept.

Rhain didn’t even blink.

"Is that right?" His lips curled into a faint, cold sneer, "That’s intresting."

"Because I only used ten percent of mine. I was afraid for accidentally killing an Inner disciple and then being punished for that."

Brennan’s face contorted into an ugly snarl.

He turned sharply to look at Maren.

"Instructor Maren!" he shouted. "I request permission to use my full strength, including my martial arts!" 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Maren’s brows furrowed deeply.

Normally, such a request would be instantly denied.

Outer sect disciples did not have access to martial arts.

Allowing an inner disciple to use formal techniques against one was fundamentally unfair.

But Maren was conflicted.

The direct clash had shocked her to her core.

When Rhain used his strength this time, she finally could see a fraction of Rhain’s strength.

It allowed her to clearly understand why Rhain could easily defeat every outer disciple with just one move.

It was because Rhain’s strength was simply not at the same level as that of the outer disciples.

Despite that, Maren felt that she still had not seen Rhain’s full strength.

The strike just now was still very casual, not like Rhain was serious at all.

She wanted to see the depths of Rhain’s true strength.

She turned her sharp gaze to the Rhain standing calmly at the center of the ring.

"Rhain," Maren asked sharply. "Do you agree to these terms? You are not obligated to accept."

Rhain gave a slow, indifferent shrug.

"I don’t care," he said flatly.

He looked at Brennan, then back to Maren.

"But if he brings martial arts into this, I’ll be forced to use my full strength to defend myself."

His expression remained completely unreadable, but a sudden suffocating aura was released from his body.

"If he gets crippled in the process, it won’t be my fault."

Disciples in the viewing seat shivered.

Cripple.

When they heard this one word, an image automatically appeared in their mind.

Gaelen.

If same happened to Brennan as well...

No, they didn’t dare to image further.

Brennan’s face darkened. The veins in his temples pulsed visibly.

"Save your breath," Brennan snarled.

Maren looked between them.

The duel had already escalated beyond anything she had anticipated when she’d begun the morning’s sparring.

Her eyes also showed her hesitation for a fraction of a second, then nodded.

"Both parties have agreed to the expanded terms." She announced, "the restriction is lifted."

"Inner Disciple Brennan is permitted to use martial techniques. Outer Disciple Rhain is permitted to use his full strength to defend himself."

"Begin."

Brennan didn’t waste a single heartbeat.

His aura detonated.

Golden Essence erupted from his body in a violent torrent, far denser and more refined than anything he had displayed before.

It flowed through specific meridians, condensing and twisting into a blinding, concentrated force around his arms.

An Uncommon-Grade martial art.

Tiger Fist.

The golden essence took the faint shape of a roaring tiger as Brennan lunged forward.

The sheer pressure of the technique made the nearby outer disciples pale, their breath catching in their throats.

Rhain watched it come.

His posture was still completely relaxed, not moving at all.

He simply pulled his right fist back.

No flashy technique.

Just the raw, unadulterated violence of the Abyssal Sovereign Physique’s dark essence enhancing his attack.

He punched.

The two forces collided again.

CRACK!

The sound of shattering bone echoed as clear as morning bell.

Brennan’s Uncommon-Grade martial art was torn apart instantly, his golden essence shredding like paper against the overwhelming, terrifying power of Rhain’s strike.

Rhain’s fist didn’t stop.

It drove straight through the collapsing defense, completely crushing Brennan’s arm, before slamming vigorously onto the center of his chest.

CRACK. CRACK. CRACK.

Three ribs shattered on the left side. Two more on the right. The sternum fractured down its centerline with a sound like a tree trunk splitting in a storm.

Brennan’s eyes bulged, as he was launched into the air, flying backward with horrifying speed until he crashed heavily into the stone boundary wall.

The wall cracked.

Brennan slid down, leaving a smear of blood on the fractured stone, and crumpled to the ground like a broken toy.

The arena was shrouded into an eerie silence.

Maren’s heart skipped a beat.

She blurred into motion, darting across the platform and dropping to her knees beside Brennan’s motionless body.

Her fingers pressed frantically against his neck.

Inner disciples were not just students; they were the future pillars of the Azure Cloud Sect.

The sect housed two hundred outer disciples, but only twenty inner disciples.

They were heavily invested in, nurtured with resources the outer sect could only dream of.

Losing even one was a monumental blow.

Maren exhaled a sharp breath.

He was alive.

But his condition was disastrous. His arm was pulverized, his sternum caved in, and his internal organs were heavily damaged by the sheer concussive force of the blow.

If he didn’t receive immediate, high-level treatment, he would die before sunset.

"Medics!" Maren roared, her voice laced with urgent essence. "Carry him for the treatment immediately."

Several attendants scrambled into the ring, their faces pale with panic, and carefully lifted Brennan before rushing him away.

Maren slowly stood up.

She turned to look at Rhain.

He was looking at Brennan indifferently as he was carried away.

There was no remorse, no satisfaction, no triumph.

Maren felt a chill run down her spine.

Is this guy a human or a demon?

She had never seen anything like Rhain Voss.

This was no longer a simple sparring dispute.

An outer disciple had just nearly beaten a Level 8 inner disciple to death in a direct, sanctioned duel.

The magnitude of the situation had far surpassed her authority.

"The duel is over," Maren announced, her voice echoing heavily over the stunned crowd.

She stared deeply at Rhain.

"This matter is now beyond my jurisdiction. I will report today’s events directly to the Sect Master. You may be summoned."

Rhain nodded his head slightly.

Without another word, Maren turned her back and strode out of the arena.

Her steps were panicked and hurried.

It was completely different from her earlier dignified appearance.