Chapter 846: Murder Versus a.s.sa.s.sination
Xia Fei was very careful. As an expert of the a.s.sa.s.sin lineage, Xia Fei knew that an enemy who could conceal their aura to such a subtle level was very powerful.
After all, this was the Law Realm. While killers used essentially the same methods of concealment, approaching the target, and killing, they could not be taken lightly.
Xia Fei’s Breath Control and Crafty Approach had both been modified by himself and were many times stronger compared to the initial techniques that had been pa.s.sed down to him by the a.s.sa.s.sin Sect. However, Xia Fei did not know if these skills could overcome an expert murderer of the Law Realm.
The plan was very simple. Since he was dealing with a murderer, Xia Fei would return the favor. It was time to see who had the better cultivation, had the better strategy, and was the more restrained.
Like an agile ape, Xia Fei attached himself to an unremarkable tree. This area needed to be pa.s.sed through to reach the planet’s center, and if this other party was looking for him, they would have to come through here.
His mental senses spread around him in chain after chain of defenses. Xia Fei nervously and patiently waited.
“Just use the same old plan. Lure the enemy out and then kill them. What are you waiting for?” Oro questioned.
Someone who had not learned the methods of a killer would find it very hard to understand the importance of the ambush, but Xia Fei understood the mentality of a killer far too well. Without a cautious att.i.tude and sufficient focus, one would never be able to become an outstanding killer.
A standard killer would not be deceived by false appearances, for they needed to kill with one blow!
Unless they were absolutely confident, a good killer would rather miss the chance to kill than act recklessly. In this profession, mentality determined success or failure.
Only the most cunning and most patient killer could live the longest.
Besides that, Oro was too confident in Xia Fei’s strategies. Yes, in the past, Xia Fei liked conceiving plans, having trapped and killed countless experts with those, but these all depended on the kind of person he was dealing with. For cold and experienced killers, the risk of luring out the enemy with a trap was far greater than staking out the area for an ambush. Besides, Xia Fei did not even know who his enemy was.
Danger was always presented by unknown enemies. Xia Fei understood this. His innocent appearance had deceived countless enemies, and all of these enemies had become ghosts under Xia Fei’s knife.
Frowning, Xia Fei ignored Oro and continued with his plan. His stubbornness on this point would make others cry for mercy. Once he was set on something, not even nine oxen pulling at once could bring him back.
The minutes continued to pa.s.s, and his opponent’s methods verified Xia Fei’s judgment. That unknown killer prowled around the perimeter but refused to appear in front of Xia Fei.
It was clear that the enemy was a veteran and was also extremely patient. Xia Fei used 120% of his focus, preparing to keep up this struggle until the end.
‘Trying to compete with me in terms of patience? I started out in this profession!’ Xia Fei clenched his death and mentally declared.
…
The perimeter of the Core Planet.
The Baynes twins felt very sullen, for they had found that Xia Fei was far less crazy than Secludeless described. It had already been two hours, and though Xia Fei had clearly noticed the presence of the Golden Puppet of Weeping Blood, he still had not done anything. He had simply vanished, and no matter how the Baynes twins searched for him, they could find no trace.
Such a difficult stalemate should have been impossible, unless Xia Fei was a very experienced killer!
Sein slowly opened his eyes, temporarily handing over control of the Golden Puppet of Weeping Blood to Dein alone.
“Are you certain that this person is a warrior and not a killer?” Sein asked.
Secludeless was startled. He had not expected this sort of question.
“I’m sure. He’s not just a warrior, the extremely crazy sort! After all, all the Skywings are unreasonable madmen!” replied Secludeless through clenched teeth, his voice dripping with hatred. He always got angry whenever the Skywings were mentioned.
“That’s strange then. Why do I feel like I’ve run into another professional, and a very experienced one at that?” Sein frowned as he muttered.
They had no idea that Xia Fei had finished playing around with killing techniques long ago!
He was like a venomous snake coiled around a tree branch. Even if the Baynes twins searched for one hundred years, Xia Fei would not move a muscle. He was not just a killer but also a professional killer possessing an unbreakable will!
“You sure that he’s only a Great Law Emperor?” Sein asked.
“Yes! I saw him attack with my own eyes! He’s a level 7 Great Law Emperor at most!” Secludeless nodded.
Having confirmed all this, Sein went back to controlling the puppet as he mentally communicated with his twin.
“What do you think?” asked Sein.
“He shouldn’t be in the same trade. The Skywings are all people who kill out in the open. I’ve never heard of any of them learning the ways of killing in the darkness. It doesn’t match with their crazy style. This person is probably just very cunning and patient, deciding to hide after realizing that something is wrong,” Dein replied. “The longer we drag things out, the more vigilant the target will be. The Skywings specialize in speed. If he decides to flee the Core Planet, we’ll never be able to catch up.”
“There’s an ambush waiting outside. We don’t have to worry about him running,” Sein replied.
“Even if Secludeless kills him, that won’t be due to our efforts, so we’ll lose our dignity,” Dein answered mentally.
Sein paused and started to hesitate.
Dein added, “The opponent is merely a level 7 Great Law Emperor; there’s no need to worry about any tricks. Let’s just show ourselves. If he strikes back, we can deal with him there and then. In any case, no one will dare to use law power inside the Core Planet. When it comes down a contest of might, I’m absolutely confident in our chances.”
“Okay! Let’s show the Skywings the essence of the lineage of murderers then! They’d better not think that it’s fine if they’re fast enough! Committing murder is the universe’s most challenging act!”
As expected, the brothers were of one mind. Sein quickly put aside his hesitation, determined to use their killing arts to give Xia Fei a harsh lesson!
…
The Core Planet.
Xia Fei remained calm and composed, his heart maintaining a steady beat as he melded with the natural world.
Suddenly—
A figure appeared across from Xia Fei. It moved lightly and nimbly, but its body was upright and seemed completely off guard.
‘A chance! He’s trying to lure me out!’ Xia Fei mentally yelled.
The Baynes twins, who were not taking Xia Fei seriously, tried luring him out, not having any idea that Xia Fei was an expert when it came to the art of a.s.sa.s.sination! Luring out the enemy was exactly the tactic Xia Fei had judged to be very risky to employ!
They took Xia Fei as prey, and the same was true for Xia Fei!
*Whoosh~*
Xia Fei shot out from the side like a bolt of lightning, not making a single sound, like a ghost descending!
*Ya!*
The Baynes twins had never imagined that Xia Fei would charge out from their side!
It had to be understood that they had already been watching the sides of the road for ages and had found nothing of interest. Thus, they had conjectured that Xia Fei was probably hiding near the Ark fragment. After all, the topography there was the most complicated, making it an ideal hiding place.
While the trees on the side were rather shady, they were not the best hiding spots.
Yes, the side of the road was not the safest place to hide, but who said a killer needed to hide themselves in the best hiding spot?
Xia Fei had a deep understanding of how to conceal himself. The true ideal hiding spot was not the most complicated terrain, for the experienced enemy would always be more wary of dark corners, thereby making it more likely that one would be exposed.
The true ideal hiding spots were those that were not too concealed, for they were easy to neglect!
A crafty smile on his lips, Xia Fei took out the Blood Crystal and thrust it into the Golden Puppet of Weeping Blood’s neck!
The dark red edge howled through the air!
However, the Golden Puppet of Weeping Blood had been a Nighthawk Superior Law Overlord in life. His feet suddenly changed directions as he s.h.i.+fted, barely avoiding Xia Fei’s attack! The Blood Crystal’s edge had been less than one centimeter away from his neck!
Xia Fei was startled, partially because he could now see the fiendish appearance of the Golden Puppet of Weeping Blood and because the footwork the enemy had shown was like his Crafty Approach, using different means to achieve the same effect!
The lineage of murderers versus the lineage of a.s.sa.s.sins!
Victory was decided the s.p.a.ce of a few seconds when both sides collided!
Xia Fei used Crafty Approach as he prepared to battle his foe. At this time, Oro realized with a start that this was a human-shaped puppet and one made from the body of a Nighthawk expert!
After some thought, Oro decided not to tell Xia Fei this astonis.h.i.+ng news. This was because Xia Fei had already started his barrage of attacks and would not care about anything Oro said.
In addition, there simply was not any time to tell Xia Fei about the Demon Race’s Ghost Night Blade.
Whether this was a blessing or a curse, Xia Fei would have to fight without this information!
*Whoosh whoosh whoos.h.!.+*
In a display of dazzling footwork, Xia Fei and the Golden Puppet of Weeping Blood engaged in a fierce battle within these narrow confines!
This was a pure contest of footwork!
The Ark fragment was nearby, after all; using any kind of law force was liable to set off a ma.s.sive explosion that no one could think of surviving!
Even Furball and Peac.o.c.k Blue could not help but be cautious. The fast tempo of attacks meant that no one else could interfere!
“He has the power of a peak Great Law Emperor!” the Baynes twins said in unison as they sensed Xia Fei’s true cultivation.
‘That d*mn Secludeless! He said that this guy is a level 7 Great Law Emperor!’ the Baynes twins mentally grumbled, believing that Secludeless had deceived them.
The gap between peak Great Law Emperor and level 7 Law Emperor was huge. The latter was in the middle of the pack among Great Law Emperors, while the former meant that one was just a step away from crossing the heavenly threshold of Law Overlord!
Little did the Baynes twins know that Xia Fei had truly been a level 7 Great Law Emperor a day ago and had only reached peak Great Law Emperor one hour before this hunt started!
Before this, no one had ever been able to use the Ark fragment to get promoted. On the contrary, everyone was afraid of the fragment, for the energy within it was too frenzied and unstable.
Xia Fei had not just been able to advance using the Ark fragment but advance at light speed, too!
Before they knew it, the Baynes twins had been busy just trying to keep up. Xia Fei’s rank was way higher than Secludeless described, and his methods left the brothers feeling shocked and startled!
This was because Xia Fei knew things about a.s.sa.s.sination!
Cleave! Stab! Hide! Seek! Flay! Every move was lethal!
Crafty Approach, Breath Control, and a.s.sa.s.sination—Xia Fei had modified all three of these major skills, making them far stronger than the original!
All of his cultivation was unleashed! Xia Fei had the Golden Puppet of Weeping Blood completely suppressed! The Baynes twins could hardly breathe!
Even without the Law of Primal Chaos, Holy Beast Shatterstar, and Immemorial Mystical Armament, Xia Fei was still a formidable opponent, who could not be underestimated!
It was true that the Skywings were more skilled in group attacks, but the Baynes twins were dealing with the lone wolf of that clan’s wolfpack formation!
They wanted Xia Fei to taste the power of the lineage of murderers?
Dream on!