Chapter 58: Battle (2)
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Garen knew that the vibration was taking effect. The lady standing across from him must have had her insides injured by the power of vibration. His version of the second level of the Explosive Fists Art was unlike that of others. The lady might even have internal bleeding from it. Garen was confident in his actual strength and, if he were to use his it, he might even surpa.s.s his third senior brother. A simple gun would not pose any threat to him now. Originally, he planned to sneak out once he had finished searching for the antiques, but he had not expected this purple-eyed lady to discover her henchmen’s corpses.
Everything was smooth up until this point. Garen had not expected his opponent to be so vicious. The lady did not hold back on him using guns, fists, and even poison.
"I have to leave here now!" He felt that the numbness in his back had intensified.
Garen sneered and then closed his mouth. He focused on the upper bracket of the attribute panel.
The potential bracket was already at 233%, so he still had two attribute points remaining.
"Physique influences the recovery rate. It might prove to be useful now against poisonous effects."
In this emergency situation, Garen was running out of ideas. He needed to recover and escape to prevent unforeseen accidents from happening. The enemy body count of men from the Golden Hoop was no joke.
He fixated his attention and added one skill point to his Physique attribute .
The Physique attribute increased from 1.57 to 1.87.
The moment the point was applied to his Physique, Garen felt nothing but tingling all over his body. It only took one second for him to return to normal. He felt the numbness around his back and his lower abdomen start to fade away. He even recovered enough strength to stand up.
"Effective indeed!"
He was pleased by what happened.
"It is not worth becoming like this for a cursed antique! I even started a feud with one of the masters of the Golden Hoop. If I don’t take care of it now, I’ll be in even more trouble in the future!"
He was determined to finish his opponent to prevent any inconvenience in the future.
He stood up and began slowly walking toward the purple-eyed lady.
"How can you still stand?!" The purple-eyed lady covered her right eye with on of her hands. The remaining eye stared at Garen in shock. "How can you still move after taking hits from the Roman Flower King’s poison?!"
Her whole body was deadened and without strength due to blood loss. Though she could still aim her gun, her effort seemed meaningless against her opponent. She could not even reload and shoot in time due to the short distance from her opponent.
"This is the end!" An ugly smile could be seen on Garen’s face. He felt his body recovering rapidly. The 0.3 increase to his Physique attribute that he applied earlier had really helped his body. He sensed the numbness almost disappearing from his back and the feeling of pain returned from the injuries to his abdomen area.
"Hurry! Master has been waiting for a while now!" Hurried steps were heard coming from the outside.
Garen’s facial expression changed and he had one last look at the lady before deciding to escape. He jumped out from the same window he had snuck in from, turned the corner, and disappeared into the rain.
The lady had her head down and only let out her breath after confirming that Garen had left the hall. Blood and tears seeped through the fingers of the hand she held over her eye and dripped onto the black tile floor.
She picked up the clothing that she threw on the floor from earlier and covered her naked chest . Her body began slowly shrinking down, like a deflating balloon. In no time, she returned to her original form – a pretty lady with a pet.i.te figure.
The living room door swung open widely. A man and a woman dressed in suits swiftly came through the door. They were startled by the mess that was left behind and the purple-eyed lady who sat on the floor.
"Boss! Are you okay!" The tall man rushed over and bowed beside the lady on the floor.
"Go away!" Thump!
A m.u.f.fled sound was heard. The man stumbled backward with his face looking pale. His eyes stared at the sword marks left on his chest. A line was neatly cut across his s.h.i.+rt, with his skin almost injured.
The woman in a black suit, who was smaller in size than the man, stood aside and laughed at what the man had been through.
The purple-eyed lady sat up on the floor.
"Any updates on the tasks I’ve ordered you to complete?"
"Master, I’ve been to Dale Quicksilver’s house and some of the White Eagle’s hiding spots. Both of them are nowhere to be found. We suspect that they’ve been hiding in some new place ." The woman in the suit bowed before answering.
The man’s eyes focused on the purple-eyed lady as she wrapped up the injuries to her eye region. He tidied his suit before speaking respectively.
"I, on the other hand, found both of them! Unfortunately, White Eagle’s friend Black Panther showed up unexpectedly during the search and took both of them with him."
"A bunch of useless p.r.i.c.ks!" the purple-eyed lady roared while rising from the floor. Her right eye had stopped bleeding with the bandage wrapped around it. "You can’t even capture one little White Eagle! I think it’s time for me to ask for new henchmen to a.s.sist me. After I finish recovering I, will take care of the White Eagle on my own!"
She subconsciously glared at where Garen had stood. With hatred in her eyes, she said,
"If this skilled fighter had not shown up and weakened me, I’m certain that tomorrow would be the death of Lily!"
"Master 10" The tiny women spoke softly, "your plan is to force Lily into a corner and take care of her. However, Lily’s personal disciple, the White Eagle, was able to escape from Canary’s hands in the previous encounters. This has proven to be a hindrance to the organization’s plan. I personally think that things couldn’t be so coincidental every time. What if…"
"Are you implying that…" The expression of the purple-eyed lady dimmed. She glanced over toward the man in black suit. "Canary, do you have anything to say?"
"Are you suspecting that I let them go intentionally?" the man replied in disbelief. "I have no reason to do so!"
"I will see things through. Dale Quicksilver and the White Eagle are just secondary. Either of you can go to take care of them. The main mission now is to take care of Lily. She has been an obstacle for the organization for years now. Everything will be easier once we get rid of that old lady. Without her, the puny detective won’t dare to stand against us." Number 10 of the Golden Hoop said coldly, "Be gone now you two! Have the brothers outside take care of the corpses. We leave now!"
The two did not dare say a word and left the living room immediately.
Standing in the rain, the man named Canary stared at the sword mark on his chest in dismay. He was not affected by the fact that he was suspected by the woman in the black suit.
"Lola, Master 10’s Body Hardening Technique has reached the point that not even a bullet can pierce through. What monster did she meet that can be on par with her level?"
"Who knows?" The tiny woman seemed to be chewing something in her mouth. She answered half- heartedly, "Senior Sister 10 hasn’t been in a situation this bad for a few years now. Things are getting more and more interesting."
A group of henchmen in black suits moved rapidly toward where the duo were standing. The woman walked forward and started a.s.signing them their tasks. Those who went in the lobby to move the corpses lying on the ground each wore a golden ring on their ear. Their movements were swift and tidy, yet silent.
*********************
Garen jogged slowly under the rain. The mist from the rain only allowed him to see within a range of 10 meters of his surroundings.
He followed the shortcut in the forest that led directly toward Canoe Town. He felt the numbness fading away, yet there was still some left in his body that he could not seem to cleanse.
Raindrops kept falling on his body. The atmosphere was oddly cold and quiet. The air that he breathed in slowly reduced the heat within his body.
Vapors emerged from his body, signifying that his body temperature was overheating.
He wiped his face and smeared makeup all over his hand.
"The makeup is gone and I did not get the antique either. I should just go straight to the dojo and clean up before heading home."
He left a note for Dale Quicksilver and the White Eagle before leaving. He decided to head back first and then return to the Silversilk Castle with them tomorrow. This decision proved to be useful in the long run.
"Lying with the note will definitely raise Dale’s suspicion." Garen jogged while formulating a plan in his mind. "Screw worrying, he will discover my ident.i.ty sooner or later. Still, who is that lady that I’ve just met? If it wasn’t for the remaining attribute points, I’m afraid I would be crawling my way home now. I can’t believe that there is such a vicious lady within the Golden Hoop. How did the White Eagle face off against them previously?"
He suddenly recalled the Bronze Cross Emblem he had left in the room on the second floor.
"Hopefully the Golden Hoop will have a taste of the Silversilk Castle. Hehe." he sneered, before holding his hand over the abdominal injuries and coughing vigorously.
Ever since he began training, his body strength had been growing more potent. Simultaneously, he perceived that the desire residing in his body was building up like a volcano. It felt as if he could erupt at anytime. The effort put in training combined with his extraordinary ability had provided him tremendous power, yet this power had never got the chance to show itself. It was as if there was a time-bomb planted inside Garen’s heart, waiting to explode.
Though the injuries he had suffered this battle were unlike any before, it helped to relieve the suppressed force within Garen’s body.
"I will definitely defeat you the next time I meet you!" Garen shrugged when he recalled the purple-eyed lady. He clearly understood his current condition and was plainly not relieved.
The moment he tried to laugh he felt the pain surging through his abdomen, killing his mood.
"d.a.m.n it!" He punched the tree beside him to release his anger.
Crack!
A tree large enough for a person to hug now had a hole in its body. The insides could be seen covered in whitish-yellow tree sap. Some of it gushed out from the trunk, but was immediately washed away by the rain.
Garen did not waste his time looking at the tree. Instead he sped up his pace and ran toward Canoe Town.
After this battle, he could measure his current Potential level.
With his total strength, he should be on par with the purple-eyed lady, stronger than Third Senior Brother, but far weaker than Second Senior Brother and First Senior Sister. As for the Grandmaster, his strength should not exceed First Senior Sister since he had aged and his power should be waning.
Garen was excited to find out how his strength would be ranked according to the standard criteria. He decided that he would take the ranking exam to see which rank he can reach after concluding the Silversilk Castle exploration with Dale and the White Eagle.l.
"E"
[First Senior Sister and Grandmaster are said to be at Rank E. Anyone who reaches a letter rank is above the normal standard. Judging by this, I think I can be ranked by the amateur standard? I suppose I am not even at lowest letter rank.]
Garen had some doubt in his heart. He had the impression that First Senior Sister and Grandmaster were beyond what they showed on the surface. They should be at a higher level.