CHAPTER 110: INSANE CONTESTANTS

Chapter 110

Pink Portal Zone — Somewhere Within

A chaotic scene unfolded in the pink portal zone. Dozens of participants stood scattered across the battlefield — some clad in heroic gear, others in martial arts uniforms, while a few looked like they didn’t belong in any combat category at all.

They were drenched in sweat, faces swollen, and expressions filled with panic. Strangely, they weren’t fighting one another. Instead, they were flailing at empty air, dodging invisible strikes with growing desperation.

A loud thud echoed as one of them was suddenly punched in the face — by nothing. The force of the blow sent him crashing to the ground, unconscious.

"How the hell are we supposed to fight someone we can’t even see?!" one of the fighters shouted in alarm.

The nightmare had gone on for several minutes now, and things were only getting worse. With the newest man down, only thirteen remained standing — barely. The rest lay scattered across the zone, groaning or completely unconscious.

Every one of the survivors knew the truth in their bones — this wasn’t a battle anymore. It was a massacre. They’d been unlucky enough to catch the attention of one of the A6.

A few more moments of hopeless struggle passed before the final contestant collapsed with a dull thud, knocked out cold.

Then — finally — the source of the chaos revealed himself.

A tiny figure, no larger than an ant, sat perched on the chest of a fallen fighter. Slowly, his body began to grow, expanding inch by inch until he reached normal human size. Clad in a green uniform, with neatly combed black hair and a faintly smug expression, his identity was unmistakable.

Little One.

Class A Rank 4. Member of the elite A6.

He casually examined several pink shards in his hand — the remnants of his opponents’ shattered tokens — then crushed them with a simple clench, the sound of grinding crystal echoing around him.

Little One sighed. He was confident about one thing — aside from Class S heroes, only two individuals had ever managed to counter his annoying, almost unfair ability.

The first was Stealth King, whose own stealth techniques were sharp and dangerous enough to match his, and whose cunning helped him secure a rare victory.

The second — and far more terrifying — was Elexa.

Her fight with him had lasted less than ten minutes. Ten minutes of pure, relentless electricity frying him until he questioned every life decision he had ever made. If there was one regret burned into his memory, it was picking a fight with her.

"Well," he muttered, cracking his knuckles. "The tournament should be wrapping up soon. Let’s see if there are more stragglers left."

With that, he shrank back into his micro-form and darted away like a green blur, his presence completely undetectable once more.

The terrifying thing about Little One’s ability wasn’t just his size reduction — it was that his speed, strength, and reaction time remained entirely the same, if not enhanced. Combined with his specialized equipment, he was an invisible nightmare.

As the selection tournament neared its end, one question loomed larger and larger:

Who would be the unlucky few to fall next — and who would emerge in the top sixteen?

_ _ _ _

Red Portal Zone

Screams echoed through the zone. Panic spread like wildfire as people scattered, their faces etched with terror, running from a blazing figure at the center of the chaos.

They had come expecting a trial of strength, strategy, maybe even honor.

But what they got... was Blazer.

"He’s supposed to be a hero! Why is he acting like a maniac?" was the question screaming in every survivor’s mind.

Unfortunately for them, there was no escape. Blazer was too fast, too brutal. With every blow, he unleashed flames so intense they burned through defenses and sent shockwaves that shattered participants’ shards, eliminating them instantly.

But for those he defeated, the burns weren’t the worst part.

It was the question.

"Where is the Fire God?"

Again and again, he asked the same question, standing over fallen bodies or lifting terrified opponents by the throat.

The victims never had an answer.

By now, Blazer had overwhelmed close to a thousand contestants, yet not once did he acknowledge them as worthy opponents. They were collateral — mere stepping stones in his obsessive quest.

That black-and-white-haired bastard, calling himself the "Fire God" — Blazer burned with rage just thinking about it. How dare anyone claim that title?

"I’ll find him," he muttered under his breath, gripping a trembling teenager by the neck. "And when I do—"

"So you’re the flaming lunatic everyone’s talking about."

A calm voice broke through the blaze.

Blazer’s head snapped to the side.

There he was — the boy with black and white hair, standing casually with a hand in his pocket, that same condescending look on his face. The one that mocked him without saying a word.

Han.

Blazer’s flames roared to life, crackling violently around him as rage twisted his features. "Finally," he growled, dropping the boy in his grip. "I’ve been waiting to put you in your place."

Han’s eyes glowed icy blue, his expression calm and unimpressed.

"You’re welcome to try," he replied.

_ _ _ _

Blue Portal Zone

Of all four portal zones, the Blue Zone held the fastest elimination rate.

Not because the combatants were weak — far from it. Many were powerful warriors, respected heroes, and top-tier martial artists. But their opponents were either overwhelmingly strong or came at them in brutal waves that no strategy could withstand.

Yet somehow... Almighty was still in the game.

He hadn’t thrown a single punch.

Not one.

And still, he had survived.

"Maybe I can actually make it through this hellish Selection Exam," he thought, standing near the edge of a ruined battlefield. He watched from a safe distance as superhuman clashes reduced the terrain to rubble.

"Note to self: never, ever fight on the same wavelength as those monsters."

BOOM!

A thunderous impact tore through the ground nearby. Almighty snapped his head toward the sound.

Three figures had just landed — or rather, crashed — creating a massive crater that was rapidly expanding with every passing second.

At first, he didn’t understand what was causing the disturbance... until the shockwave hit him.

Hard.

He was blasted off his feet, sent sliding several meters before he finally stopped, coughing and groaning as pain throbbed through his ribs.

What... the hell was that?

Only one thought pulsed through his mind:

"Run. Run far away from whatever freaks those are."

He staggered to his feet, preparing to bolt.

But then he heard it — footsteps.

Getting closer.

Heavy. Slow. Casual.

He froze, heart pounding.

Don’t turn around. Don’t turn around...

But curiosity (and survival instinct) won. He glanced back — and saw a blond-haired guy, battered but grinning like he’d just won the lottery.

"Great. Another battle junkie." Almighty groaned internally.

"Hey, you’re Almighty, right?" the blonde guy asked, his tone friendly... though the blood covering him didn’t help the image.

"Y-Y-Yeah..." Almighty stammered, deciding honesty might be his only chance.

The blonde’s smile grew wider.

Back when Han had first mentioned Almighty, he’d only said, "It’s complicated." So Aiden assumed he must be some hidden powerhouse. At first, the selection match had bored him — too many weaklings. But now that only the strong remained, he’d finally been enjoying himself.

And now, maybe... he had another good fight ahead.

"I’m done fighting," Almighty said flatly, raising both hands in surrender. "Seriously. Don’t even try to challenge me."

Aiden tilted his head. "What? The match isn’t over."

"I... I’m out of energy," Almighty said, forcing the most exhausted-looking smile he could manage. "Been in too many fights. You’d be wasting your time — I’m not even at half strength right now."

That was a total lie. Almighty hadn’t fought anyone since the match began.

But Aiden didn’t seem disappointed. In fact, he looked relieved.

"Perfect," Aiden said, stretching his arms. "I’m almost out of energy too. We’ll just brawl. No skills. Straight fists."

Almighty nearly cried.

What part of "No" don’t you understand!?

Aiden began cracking his knuckles, preparing to charge.

But before he could, a bolt of lightning screamed down from above, searing the ground where he stood just a second earlier.

Aiden flipped backward, narrowly dodging.

Almighty’s wide eyes followed the trail of smoke — and there, floating mid-air, was a girl with long blue hair, crackling with wild electricity.

She wore the grin of someone who’d set the world on fire just to watch it burn.

"Why are all the people in this tournament completely insane?" Almighty thought, his heart racing.

Thankfully, she wasn’t looking at him.

She was staring straight at Aiden.

"You’re that Fire God’s underling, right?" she asked, voice buzzing with energy.

Aiden raised a brow. "Ally," he corrected. Then nodded. "Yeah."

"Good," the girl — Elexa — said, lightning dancing in her palm. "Then I’ll take you out first."

Aiden scoffed, eyes narrowing. "In your dreams."

He clenched his fists, and a strange glow shimmered around his body.

"Morph."

---

To Be Continued...