Chapter 86: A Trap (Part-3)

In the next instant, a surge of white light burst from the Pterosaur, and it shuddered violently before its legs folded beneath its body as if the strength had been ripped away.

In a matter of seconds, it lost its consciousness and collapsed to the ground while an invisible mass of energy entered its master.

In a flicker of thought, he recalled Tempest into the pet inventory and raised his hands. As twin daggers materialized in Lin Fang’s hands, mana flew into them, giving off a thick and sharp blue layer over the edges of the blades.

The masked man’s eyes narrowed at the sight of Pterosaur’s disappearance. “First, that direwolf, then, mana, and now this… This target is surprising me again and again…”

He stepped back half a pace, injecting more mana into his sword. “I don’t know what’s going on, but let’s complicate it by overthinking. Let’s finish this job and return.”

Turning into a blur, he charged forward.

At the same time, Lin Fang moved, too.

A blur of blue light streaked across the pier—so fast the attacker barely caught the motion.

CLANG!

The icy daggers met the violet blade, fanning out sparks and scattering like fireflies into the dark.

Lin Fang twisted, freeing his left hand, and then slashed toward the man’s exposed abdomen.

The attacker jerked back at the last instant, letting the dagger’s edge graze only air, but the shock in his stance betrayed him.

Lin Fang continued to press forward, charging like a streak of light and swinging the twin daggers at his chest.

The masked attacker barely raised his blade in time—clang! Sparks sprayed as they clashed; the force of the impact sent a tremor through his arms.

Not intending to give him time for a counterattack, Lin Fang followed it up by spinning low with knees skimming the dirt, and slashed for the man’s ankles. The attacker leapt back, but the second dagger was already whipping upward toward his ribs. Ting! Steel rang again, his sword catching the strike by a hair’s breadth once again.

Lin Fang was no longer even thinking.

Step. Flick. Thrust. Every heartbeat, Lin Fang changed rhythm, purely by instinct, developed over the past few weeks of training with Li Chengfeng and Adam. Before he even thinks about how he should move, his body is already moved by launching an overhead slash, which then turns into a feint, and a lunge becomes a spin. The masked fighter found himself retreating in a tight circle as he got pushed back again and again.

However, even after an entire minute, Lin Fang has yet to deal damage to his enemy, who eventually started counterattacking.

A flicker of violet mana lit the attacker’s blade as he tried a counter-cut, but Lin Fang flowed past it, and his dagger scraped along the sword’s edge with a motion of his arm, forcing it aside. A swift kick to the chest followed, although still blocked by the enemy. The masked man hissed behind the cloth, his grip tightening.

A frustrated Lin Fang pressed harder.

In response to a savage overhead chop from the masked man, Lin Fang parried with both blades crossed and then drove a knee toward the attacker’s stomach before pushing forth the dagger. However, the assailant spun away, making the dagger miss his heart, but his shoulder was scraped by its blade, leaving a cut.

“Die…” “Die…” “Die…”

Lin Fang’s eyes burned with a faint azure glow as the rage took over his mind. His speed had doubled as he vanished into a blur, reappearing behind his enemy with a slash meant for the neck. As he was about to succeed, the masked fighter’s arm twisted unnaturally to the back and barely caught the second dagger before giving a kick to his chest.

Lin Fang blasted away a few meters, crashing on the floor.

“Damn it…” He gritted his anger, tightening his grip on the daggers. But just as he was about to get to his feet…

Right then…

*Ding!

[Combat Merge has ended.]

Followed by the notification, the borrowed power from Tempest suddenly thinned. Lin Fang felt it instantly, the loss of his strength. His mana reserves were also almost down to less than half.

The masked attacker sensed it too. His stance shifted, from defense to readiness to attack. Curling his lips behind the clown mask, he pointed the blade at him. ”

But Lin Fang only wiped the blood from his chin, and with a grim smile, bit down on his lip. Refusing to back down, he lunged again—slower now, but his eyes remained fierce.

However, with no longer carrying the same physique as earlier, the masked attacker captured his movements as clear as a sniper’s scope. Lin Fang’s movements, which troubled him a bit, now looked like a joke.

With a sharp hiss of mana, the man’s violet blade moved in a crescent motion at him. Lin Fang reacted to it, but he twisted his body too late.

*Gah*

A painful groan escaped him as the edge grazed across his side, tearing through cloth and skin. Warm blood slicked his ribs. He gritted his teeth, raising both daggers in defiance.

“Whatever I have, I need to put it into this next attack,” he rasped, biting the inside of his cheek.

The air around him shimmered with a deep blue light as he pushed back to gain distance before charging forward with his Twin daggers crossed in an X.

“Activate Skill—Twin Fang Slash!”

A massive cross-shaped arc of energy erupted from his daggers, whistling across the clearing.

Boom!

It struck the attacker square in the torso. The impact hurled him backward; a harsh grunt escaped as his cloak tore and blood sprayed onto the ground. He hit the ground with a heavy thud, clutching a deep gash across his abdomen.

Meanwhile, Lin Fang staggered after him, just two steps, but then his knees buckled. The world tilted, and his vision blurred once again. As the daggers slowly started slipping from trembling fingers, Lin Fang tried to steady his balance but lost it and fell to the ground with his face planted down.

The masked assailant groaned, pushing himself up on one elbow. He dragged his sword free of the dirt and rose. Step by step, he approached the fallen summoner, who seemed not to be moving from his spot after the fall.

Reaching him, he raised his sword, which turned vertical, its blade pointing at Lin Fang’s neck.

“No wonder they offered me a million credits,” he muttered in a cold voice behind the mask. “You really are troublesome. But you still have to die…”

He angled the sword for the killing thrust, adding almost lazily, “And those daggers of yours… very interesting. In the clash, even my sword’s blade seemed to have been slightly damaged, but your daggers looked perfectly fine. I will claim them as my war loot. After all, I was only told to send your body intact; your daggers are not a part of the deal.”

The masked assassin gripped the hilt and drove the blade down to kill Lin Fang in one motion…

But, just as he almost pierces the neck, his sword tip was almost touching Lin Fang, but his entire arm froze mid-motion.

An unseen force crushed the air like the weight of a collapsing mountain. His muscles locked. Breath caught in his throat. Even the violet glow around his sword flickered and died.

A pair of polished black shoes touched the harbor concrete with the faintest click.

“Who…”

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