The Quarterfinals and Changes in the Tournament

"Tonight will be an incredible night; all fighters will battle, and we will finally know who will be the winner of the Hidden Dragon tournament. Are you excited to find out the results of this tournament?"

"Ha!"

Outside the combat arena, Dash struck the bags numerous times, working with a bag held by Santiago to warm up his muscles and be ready for his fight.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Dash was too fast with his punches, and there was serenity on his face as if he wasn't tired of training at this speed.

Next to him, Santiago nodded in approval, surprised by the physique Dash had achieved at his young age, and said, "Good, kid, save energy for your opponents and focus on stretching."

Dash smiled and withdrew his fist from Santiago's gloves. It had been about a month since this competition started, and it was certainly a long time considering that a tournament usually ends in a day. But considering that the matches were not scored, and the winner was the one left standing, it was understandable that the organizers gave them more time to recover a bit.

"Do you have information about who I'm going to face?" Dash asked while looking at Santiago, who was very nervous.

Santiago nodded and said, "The lunatic you'll face in these quarterfinals is named Ivan Petrov, outstanding in Sambo. He has dominated the scene with his skill in throws and bone-breaking submissions. His aggressiveness on the ground has earned him a solid 78% victory rate in the last five years."

"How brutish is he in close combat?" Dash asked while tying his long hair and looking towards the platform.

Santiago thought about it and said, "He's tough; you must be careful with his bursts of speed because if he takes you down, you won't be able to get back up."

Dash had seen some replays of how he had won his previous matches and frowned, knowing he would be a tough opponent.

"A damn tank," Santiago muttered, looking at the size of the opponent Dash would face, and pointed, "But just focus on hitting his nerves; you'll finish him off as long as you stay focused."

Dash didn't fully believe this the way Santiago was saying it because Combat Sambo is a hybrid martial art of Russian origin. It encompasses techniques from all combat distances: striking with fists, elbows, knees, legs, and close-quarters combat, throws, projections, strangulations, joint locks, and all kinds of submissions. Considering the size of his opponent, things could get a bit out of control...

"First time I'm excited; I should break his nose, or that guy will end up breaking my bones," Dash thought, looking at the brutal appearance of the man who should be around twenty-four years old.

Santiago smiled on the side and slowly adjusted his voice, murmuring, "Go for his head; hit his forehead well, and he'll go to sleep like a baby on Independence Day."

Dash, wearing his black Kung Fu suit, looked at Santiago and said, "If I fail, he'll crush me. Do you know the takedown force those guys have?"

"They're tanks, but I trust you'll win..." Santiago didn't say much but pulled out a cross from under his shirt and pointed, "The one above protects us; go and hit as much as you want."

"Hale against Petrov!"

On the screen, the first fight appeared, so immediately after hearing his name, Dash jumped quickly into the arena and looked at his opponent in the distance, easily measuring two meters in height.

Under the watchful eyes of the audience, Dash began to take small jumps while analyzing the kind of fight he could develop in the next few seconds.

"Come on, son, don't be ashamed and go for his damn testicles!" Santiago shouted from Dash's corner, who was ecstatic about this fight.

Listening to Santiago's instructions, Dash shook his head on the side while raising his fists.

"The rules are simple; the fight doesn't end until one of you surrenders or is out of combat. Bleed, cry, or have a bone broken; that doesn't matter, just win, understood?" The referee looked at both fighters and shouted, "Fight!"

"Arghhh!"

As soon as the fight started, Petrov launched himself against Dash at an incredibly fast speed, and at that moment, the chances were getting smaller and smaller.

Dash, who was watching, felt nervous, so initially, he jumped and kicked towards Petrov's head, but he took his leg and forcefully threw him into the air.

"Damn!" Dash, who was thrown into the air, covered his head, and feeling his body collide with the ground immediately after, he stood up.