Currently ranked second in the Sci-Fi category, we absolutely cannot fall! Let me occupy this spot for a little longer; throw votes my way! …… Even Time Stop only managed to slightly slow Evangeline’s movements, indicating that her immunity to time control was quite high. This left Sakuya somewhat vexed. A vampire who couldn't be killed was already troublesome enough, but even time abilities weren't achieving the desired effect, making victory in this match incredibly difficult.

The victory conditions for this match were threefold: one, voluntary surrender; two, being knocked unconscious for ten seconds; or three, being outside the ring for ten seconds.

The first and second were clearly impossible. How could the proud progenitor vampire surrender? That would be a profound insult to her pride. Being unconscious for ten seconds was even more laughable; what kind of injury could fell someone possessing immortality? Thus, only the ten-second boundary outside the ring offered the sole path to victory.

But achieving this was far from easy. Ten seconds was an eternity for beings of their caliber. Unless one could displace the opponent tens or even hundreds of kilometers away, stepping out of the arena for ten seconds was simply out of the question. Yet, the opponent possessed some command over both time and spatial magic... Sakuya felt a headache coming on.

However, despite the trouble, the fight had to continue.

Seeing Evangeline’s attack hurtle toward her, Sakuya no longer hesitated. She instantly used Teleportation to evade, appearing behind her opponent in a flash, and immediately sent five throwing knives flying.

Evangeline squinted. The knives moved both incredibly fast and strangely slow, appearing elusive and untraceable. Without a doubt, her opponent must have manipulated time to warp the space around them; otherwise, such an effect couldn't occur.

Although she had some grasp of time and space magic—otherwise, she couldn't have created something as wondrous as the Time House—she wasn't a primary mage of those two schools. Even if she possessed a degree of personal immunity, she was helpless against alterations to the surrounding environment... In other words, if Sakuya stopped time, time would halt completely, and Evangeline would only be able to move sluggishly within that arrested moment.

Dodging knives like these wasn't difficult, but the issue was that the opponent’s attacks wouldn't necessarily end there. What attacks followed the evasion was what mattered most. True masters focused not on what they currently saw, but on the myriad effects that the present sight might trigger.

As she dodged, the knives swept past her flank, and then Evangeline saw Sakuya’s figure vanish from her sight. Simultaneously, five more throwing knives materialized on her other side. Noticing this, she also realized that the five knives she had already avoided had reappeared before her, incredibly close—less than ten centimeters away.

This opponent’s abilities are quite formidable!

Evangeline thought inwardly, her expression growing increasingly serious.

Sakuya’s silver throwing knives were specifically designed to counter vampires. Beyond causing ordinary physical damage, they also inflicted special anti-vampire damage upon impact. It was common knowledge that standard vampires feared mercury and sunlight; infusing their bodies with silver substances would cause them to instantly turn to ash.

Of course, a Vampire Progenitor was different from a common vampire, especially Evangeline. For her, silver was no different from any ordinary object; even if struck, it would at most draw a little blood. Killing her with silver was pure fantasy. However, a quantitative change could lead to a qualitative one; a large enough quantity might cause some effect.

Evangeline wasn't a masochist; she wasn't foolish enough to invite the knives into her own body. But relying solely on evasion wouldn't suffice, as the opponent could use time to "repeat" previous attacks. If this continued, the assault would become endless.

Therefore, the correct approach was to destroy every single knife.

What has happened cannot be changed; even reversing time is impossible—that is basic magical theory. Unless it involved true temporal reversal and time travel, that power lay beyond this era. Evangeline doubted Sakuya possessed such strength, otherwise, dealing with her would have been easy.

In fact, strictly speaking, the opponent could not rewind time.

The instant her hands moved, light flashed—it was a crimson demonic glow that severed the five knives beside her in an instant. Then, Ice Magic activated, and with a crack, the broken knives immediately shattered into ice shards.

Concurrently, her other hand unleashed Dark Magic, instantly swallowing the five knives before her... or rather, devouring them. Although Devouring Magic couldn't consume physical matter, these knives contained a special energy. By consuming that energy component, what remained was merely ordinary metal, rendering any further quantity useless against her.

“Inscribed upon the Crimson Soul!”

Suddenly, Evangeline heard a deep voice echo from behind her. Unlike the opponent's usual languid ease, this tone was filled with cold resolve and determination. Without turning, she knew the previous barrage had merely been bait; this was the true killing blow.

Evangeline’s heart fluttered, and she instinctively prepared to use Shadow Magic to relocate, but her expression immediately changed. There was no shadow beneath her... Wait! It wasn't that there was no shadow, but that the space itself had blocked out the sunlight.

The entry of sunlight required both time and space. Light arrives when time allows, and reaches where space permits. If time stopped, light would also freeze; if space warped, light would perpetually hover just outside that localized area.

Her magic was restricted—this was bad!

In a split second, Evangeline realized she had fallen into a disadvantage, and this wasn't a minor one. Out of options, she could only resort to Instant Movement to flee.

Then, the moment she sprang out, she saw countless knives slicing through the air behind her in blinding red arcs, spreading out in a fan formation that sealed off all her escape routes. Knives surrounded her from every direction—nowhere left to run.

“Nightfall Blizzard!”

Evangeline exhaled, sending endless chill sweeping through the entire space. Layers of icy curtains manifested simultaneously around her flanks. The knives struck the ice barriers with a crack, but their momentum was undiminished as they continued toward their target.

So troublesome!

Evangeline couldn't help but frown. She had never sparred with someone possessing time abilities before, and she recognized it as a nearly unsolvable power. Aside from the inability to reverse time, the opponent could manipulate time at will—acceleration, deceleration, or freezing. This severe distortion of visual input was wreaking havoc on her senses, leading to flawed judgment and unavoidable consequences.

Overall, Evangeline was currently at a disadvantage.

Of course, this didn't mean she would lose. With her immortality, no matter what attack she faced, even if flooded with silver, she wouldn't die with her current power level—at worst, her body would sustain some impact.

But in a match like this, if her physical form were utterly destroyed, it would be tantamount to defeat.

Time to get serious, then!

At this moment, Evangeline decided to stop holding back. Her hands traced patterns in the air, conjuring swirling black currents of energy. All the knives rushing toward her were instantly knocked away, and those scattered on the ground were all wrapped in an eerie black mist.

Sakuya didn't know what ability this was that could neutralize her attacks in such a short timeframe. However, a dangerous premonition arose in her heart, and without a second thought, she used High-Speed Teleportation to evade.

Almost immediately after her feet left the ground, an arrow formed of black energy shot through the spot where she had just been. The terrifying power contained within it shocked her.

“It’s time I returned what you gave me!”

Suddenly hearing a fierce shout from behind her, Sakuya felt herself fall back under the opponent’s control. Her spatial shifting technique, Shapeshift Echo, should be unusable now. If it were high-speed movement, Sakuya would have already adjusted her time flow and certainly would have detected it. So, when exactly did the opponent get behind her?

Incomprehensible! Completely incomprehensible!

In the domain of time, she shouldn't lose to anyone.

Sakuya took a step, manipulating time and space, and in an instant, she was on the opposite side of the ring. But before she could settle, a hand with brilliant crimson fingernails appeared before her again... Only the hand was visible, the body nowhere in sight!

What was going on?

Sakuya felt baffled. She only knew this was no longer a domain that time could interfere with; it belonged to something else mysterious... a Realm? Destiny? Neither seemed right!

With no time to ponder, several knives shot toward the visible hand. The knives struck the hand, drawing no blood, but they seemed to cause a momentary obstruction. Taking advantage of this opening, Sakuya once more Instant Teleported far away.

The opponent's abilities exceeded her expectations. Unless she grasped the fundamental cause, victory would be difficult.

……

Offstage, the audience looked utterly perplexed. To them, the two figures in the ring were merely walking back and forth without engaging, and strangely, they would suddenly change positions. Evangeline’s previous spot would suddenly hold Sakuya, and where Sakuya had stood, Evangeline would suddenly appear.

It was like reading an ancient, indecipherable text.

Only two people had a slight grasp of the situation on the stage—one was Lin Luo, and the other was...

“It seems little Kitten’s abilities have improved even beyond their peak. How did she manage that?” A white-robed man stood beside Lin Luo; it was Al. Although he had been knocked away earlier, he had returned unscathed when the match began.

According to him, he took the opportunity to enjoy a hot spring bath before returning.

“Why don’t you ask her yourself? I’m not entirely sure either,” Lin Luo replied coolly without glancing at him. Like Al, he could perceive how Evangeline was cornering Sakuya, but even he was somewhat baffled by how Evangeline accomplished such feats.

It wasn't ancient magic, and Al didn't seem to know either, suggesting it wasn't a previously known ability... That made it truly strange.

:The next update will be a bit late. If you aren't staying up all night, don't wait; you can read it tomorrow instead. A