?Chapter 965:


    Pulling off a feat like that took perfect timing and totalmand over her body.


    There was no denying it — Maia fought on a different level.


    At the same time, Ethan and Marisa managed to break free atst, both scrambling upright with unsteady legs.


    A pale look clung to Ethan’s features as he fought to reach his sister. “Maia…” But the words barely left his mouth before shock swept over his face.


    What he saw was that Tyrant, the most formidable force in his eyes, appeared like a nightmare made real. The undisputed powerhouse of the underground ring closed the distance in an instant, swinging a fist almost the size of a sandbag straight for Maia.


    Few could match Tyrant’s strength in that ring, yet he was making his move under the cover of surprise.


    Warnings would never reach Maia in time. That punch tore through the air with deadly intent.


    Maia nced over her shoulder and found herself swallowed up in Tyrant’s looming presence.


    A sudden burst of windshed against Maia’s face as Tyrant’s punch tore through the air.


    Boom!


    Down came his fist, moving so fast that it seemed to leave a trail of shadows. The strike cracked like a whip, slicing clean through the stillness.<fn176a> Readplete version only at find(?)ovel</fn176a>


    All at once, the audience surged to their feet, mouths wide open and hearts hammering in disbelief.


    I@te$t ￠#@pter$ In g@!novel$.c0m


    “That’s it for Maia!”


    “She barely rescued them — and now this? That attack came out of nowhere!”


    “One hit from Tyrant could knock someone out cold!”


    No one dared to move. The tension in the arena was suffocating. Instead of fleeing, Maia jolted her right arm upward.


    A t, heavy sound followed as her hand met the iing blow.


    Gasps turned into stunned silence. She had caught the hit and stopped it t. Tyrant’s momentum, once unstoppable, was frozen mid-swing by her grip alone. Neither Ethan nor Marisa could hide their disbelief at what had just unfolded. Although Maia managed to hold her ground, a dull ache spread through her arm, already mottled with bruises.


    Only a single step backward betrayed the impact before she found her bnce again.


    Her gaze lifted, locking onto her opponent. She silently acknowledged the raw power of the underground ring’s fiercest fighter. Without Zoey’s brutal training sessions during those long four years behind bars — and without wing her way to the top of Geshuania’s ruthless underground circuit — she would’ve crumpled under that strike.


    “You only backed up once after taking that hit,” Tyrant said, letting out a rough breath while curling his hand, which still trembled faintly from the contact. Never had he crossed paths with a woman who could endure one of his power punches.


    That realization shifted something in him — Maia had earned more than his attention. She had earned his respect.


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