Zhang Heng was willing to teach this big man not only because he had a good impression of Terufelos, but also because he was willing to give him some fame. The main reason was that he needed a heavyweight gladiatorial performance to help him ascend to the throne of the champion.
Although Zhang Heng's one-sided battle was enjoyable to watch, he would eventually become bored after a long time. The audience would begin to look forward to the emergence of a challenger that could pose a threat to Zhang Heng. And now, Terufelos was playing this role.
And more importantly, he found that he could not refuse Zhang Heng's challenge. It was not that he was reluctant to give up his reputation, but Zhang Heng had told him frankly that if he chose to admit defeat in an evenly matched situation, he would have to bear the disappointment and anger of the audience. In other words, the audience might demand that he be executed.
So now, Terufelos had no choice but to cooperate with Zhang Heng to complete this wonderful battle.
So the audience in the stands could finally feast their eyes on the duel between the two powerful gladiators. Zhang Heng's combat skills were excellent, and his movements were agile. Although his opponent, the giant Terufelos, could not keep up with Zhang Heng's rhythm, he had an almost god-like combat sense.
No matter how Zhang Heng changed his footwork, he could always complete his defense before the opponent's weapon fell on him. Sometimes, his big shield would reach Terufelos before he could even look at him. The audience was amazed.
Of course, there were also some people who felt strange, such as the owner of the gladiator school behind Terufelos. He was full of doubts.
He knew Terufelos's strength very well. When he saw the giant taking the initiative to challenge Zhang Heng, he was so angry that he slapped his thigh. Since Zhang Heng showed his strength, he no longer expected to win the championship. He just wanted Terufelos to take advantage of this performance to accumulate more popularity so that he could sell more tickets in the future. However, he did not know if the goddess of fate had finally begun to favor him.
Sartonilos and others, who were in the same tier as Terufelos, suddenly had diarrhea. They dropped the ball at the critical moment, and their performance was terrible. Some of them had not even defeated their opponents in the first round. Therefore, Terufelos's owner hoped that Terufelos would not meet Zhang Heng so early. He wanted to defeat a few more opponents and show his strength. This way, he could stand out in the city of Rome.
However, he did not expect the big man to not avoid Zhang Heng like the others.
Terufelos's owner was worried that Terufelos would be defeated by Zhang Heng in just a few moves. If that happened, the popularity he had worked so hard to accumulate would go down the drain, and he would miss this rare opportunity.
Unfortunately, at this point, he had no other choice but to pray that Terufelos would not be defeated so quickly.
He did not expect Terufelos to bring him an unimaginable surprise. The big gladiator was the only one who could fight with Zhang Heng.
But the question was, was this Terufelos still the Terufelos he knew?
He was very familiar with his ace gladiator. From buying Terufelos to finding a teacher for Terufelos, he had spent a lot of time and effort to tap into Terufelos's potential bit by bit.
In other words, he watched Terufelos grow little by little until he reached the height he was today. No one knew Terufelos better than him.
But now, he saw a strange Terufelos in the arena. Every time he thought that he could not block Zhang Heng's attack, Terufelos would always shatter his pessimistic prediction with an outstanding performance. It was as if Terufelos was proving to him what it meant to be impressed.
Could it be that this big man was suddenly enlightened, or had he been hiding his strength all this time? Was he always stronger than he showed? The question was, why did he hide his strength? Wait, was he trying to escape? Or was he planning to give his master a fatal blow?
The more he thought about it, the more horrifying he felt.
Just when Terufelos's owner was worrying about his gains and losses in the stands, the battle below was getting more and more intense.
When the giant gladiator once again blocked Zhang Heng's attack with a flash of inspiration, he finally could not help but gasp for breath. "Is … is this enough? We have been fighting for a long time, and I think the audience should be satisfied by now. "
And the next moment, he finally heard the words that he had been yearning for. Zhang Heng nodded and said, "Well, it's almost time to stop."
Terufelos felt a sense of relief when he heard Zhang Heng's words.
Before this, he had never been so tired from a gladiatorial performance. Although they were evenly matched, he felt that he was no longer a gladiator, but an actor in an opera troupe, holding a script in his hand and performing step by step. It was not easy for him to endure until the end of the performance. Now, he could think about where he could go to relax next.
However, he did not expect that his nightmare was not over yet. After that, he heard Zhang Heng continued, "It's better to be dramatic at the end to leave a lasting impression."
"What … What is dramatic?" Terufelos had now completely transformed into an obedient student. All he wanted was to end this battle of honor as soon as possible.
"Later, I will attack you. You will use your shield to block my attack. About the eleventh strike, an accident will happen. My sword will cut into your shield. At that time, you will have a chance to fight back."
"What? I still have a chance to fight back?" Terufelos almost burst into tears.
"Yes. You have to suppress your desires first."
"Then how should I fight back?" Terufelos humbly asked for advice.
"Just follow your usual fighting habits."
Terufelos wanted to say that he had almost forgotten his usual fighting habits under her guidance. Fortunately, when the words were on the tip of his tongue, he held them back and said, "I know."
"Don't worry. It will be over soon," Zhang Heng comforted him.
"It better be." Terufelos now seriously doubted Zhang Heng's integrity. After all, if Zhang Heng could force him to put on an act, he would not be an honest and trustworthy person.
Fortunately, Zhang Heng did make a move next, and he started the final battle with a beautiful combo of attacks.
Terufelos had to pull himself together and use his big shield to block Zhang Heng's storm-like attacks. At first, he still had some doubts about Zhang Heng's words. However, when he counted to the eleventh strike, Zhang Heng's Persian sword was indeed stuck on his shield. So Terufelos seized this opportunity. Instead of swinging his sword, he directly hit Zhang Heng with his shield.
This was the on-the-spot judgment of a top gladiator. Swinging a sword would take a long time, and the shield was closer to Zhang Heng. So, it would be better to hit Zhang Heng with the shield first to make him lose his balance before swinging his sword.
And that was indeed the case. Zhang Heng staggered after being hit by Terufelos's shield, and there was a burst of worried exclamations from the stands. After that, Zhang Heng let go of the stuck Persian sword and fell to the ground, dodging Terufelos's next strike.
Terufelos reacted quickly, and he immediately hit Zhang Heng on the ground with his shield. Before he hit Zhang Heng, he politely reminded Zhang Heng, "I'm going to hit you."
When he waved the shield in his hand, it was equivalent to opening his arms to Zhang Heng. The next moment, Zhang Heng quickly got up from the ground. Not only did he dodge the shield, but he also got close to Terufelos. This time, Terufelos was really frightened. He subconsciously tried to slash Zhang Heng, but he was still too slow. In the end, when his short sword was a few centimeters away from Zhang Heng's arm, Zhang Heng had already pressed the other Persian sword against Terufelos's chest.
The referee looked at the posture of the two and finally confirmed that Zhang Heng won. A burst of long-suppressed cheers suddenly broke out in the stands. As the loser, Terufelos was not disappointed or sad. Instead, he showed a long-lost smile, as if he was the one who won.
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