Ambushed and Gravely Wounded

A violent burst of flames spewed from his mouth, striking Alili directly in the chest and sending him flying.

"Cough cough..."

Alili coughed up a mouthful of blood, his chest charred black, but he was quite formidable, managing to withstand the Fire Dragon Flame Bullet head-on.

Is that all the skill you've got?

He grinned, then ripped open his shirt, revealing his muscular physique and the gruesome scars on it.

The magic around him surged, Chiba was not far away, felt a deep sense of oppression.

He moved, as fast as lightning!

"Bang!"

He kicked Chiba in the chest, sending the latter flying far away. The boy's body slammed into the tree trunk like a cannonball. The high-temperature lava set the entire tree ablaze.

Where Alili had originally stood, his figure slowly disappeared, leaving only a few afterimages in mid-air.

This is...

The Shadow Thirty-Six Forms!

"Bang bang!"

Alili's attacks rained down relentlessly on Chiba's chest, each kick faster and stronger than the last, until finally, he managed to crack Chiba's Lava Armor.

Chiba suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood and slowly collapsed.

Chiba!

"Brother Chiba!"

Ultear and Wendy called out at the same time. Wendy's little face turned pale, and tears even fell down her cheeks.

Ultear gritted her teeth, her beautiful eyes filled with anger. She said to Alili, "I don't know what grudge you and this guy have against each other, but... you used to be friends, right? Why did you have to go this far?"

Alili gave him a cold look, seemingly mocking. "Ultear, I really doubt whether you're a mage from Grimoire Heart. Friend? Shouldn't you just be a pawn to someone like you?"

Ultear snorted, but didn't rush forward immediately.

Wendy was right there beside her; unlike her, no one else could seize this opportunity to grab Wendy.

Moreover, she didn't believe that Chiba would be defeated by Alili so easily.

"Hey, hey, hey, you're already no match for opponents like this? You're too weak!"

"Inside my body, "Feiyin said with a hint of disgust.

"Rambling on and on..."

Chiba slowly stood up.

"I'll return the words to you..."

Is that all the skill you've got?

Chiba looked at Alili in front of him and said with a mocking expression.

"Your Shadow Thirty-Six Forms surprised me, but it's still a little short."

"Let me show you what the real Shadow Thirty-Six Forms are like."

Alili's face was somewhat gloomy.

Chiba's center sank slightly, and she moved her legs apart.

Alili struck the same pose.

"Whoosh!"

The two figures rushed towards each other like lightning, leaving several afterimages in the air.

"Bang! Bang!"

Legs collided repeatedly in the air, producing a series of dull thuds. The afterimages of the two figures filled the surroundings, dazzling the onlookers.

The Shadow Thirty-Six Forms Techniques quickly came to a conclusion. Chiba, with his Sharingan, was clearly superior to Alili in terms of technique. The latter was kicked directly onto the grass.

Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!

Chiba quickly formed hand seals, and a clay dragon head appeared on the ground. The dragon head opened its mouth and sprayed mud. The force of the mud caused Alili to spit out blood repeatedly. In the end, the mud buried him.

"Lava Release, Earth Lava!"

Chiba spread his five fingers and covered the ground with one hand. Chakra rapidly flowed into the earth, and suddenly his gaze turned cold. Then, the earth shone with a dazzling red light.

"Boom!!"

The earth cracked, accompanied by a violent tremor. Blazing lava erupted beneath the feet of Alili and the two Shadow Skull mages, like a volcanic eruption. The ground beneath their feet instantly transformed into a lava hell.

"Ahh!"

The two mages let out ferocious roars; they had no idea that Chiba would suddenly attack them.

Chiba removed his Lava Armor, panting heavily.

At this moment, the Earth Lava disappeared. A huge crater appeared in the ground ahead, and three people were lying in the crater.

"In that case... then..."

"Chiba, watch out!"

"Pfft..."

A flash of cold light disappeared in an instant, and the blade pierced through Chiba's left chest from behind.

Chiba slowly opened his eyes wide, blood flowing from his mouth.

"Ahh!"

He conjured Lava Armor on his arm, then swept it away with one hand.

"Bang!"

Chiba felt as if he had hit something and repelled it.

However, the sword blade still hung over his chest, extremely close to his heart.

Fortunately, Feiyin reminded him of something at the time. Although he didn't realize it immediately, his body subconsciously shifted slightly, preventing the sword from piercing his heart.

"Tsk, as expected of the boy who defeated the envoy, such reaction speed is astonishing."

A slightly unexpected voice sounded behind Chiba. Chiba turned around abruptly and saw a tall, middle-aged man praising him.

"Who are you?" Chiba asked through gritted teeth.

The middle-aged man chuckled, "My Qilin, the president of the Frog in the Pond Association."

Chiba's pupils contracted sharply, a sense of unease welling up inside him.

"Come out, all of you," Qilin said with a slight smile.

As his words fell, more than a dozen mages emerged from the surrounding bushes. Chiba could sense that many of them were A-Class mages.

"The envoy is truly amazing. We couldn't find these three mice no matter how hard we looked, but they found them on the first try."

"Hey... but this kid's strength isn't bad either. He was able to defeat the envoy, so he's probably not much different from the guild master."

"What a pity, such a genius, ultimately dying at our hands. It's actually kind of exciting to think about."

"Ha ha!"

The mages surrounded the three of them, laughing unrestrainedly.

"Don't be careless, you fools. Who knows what other tricks this kid has up his sleeve?" Qilin frowned and said.

"You call him the Envoy... does that mean the Frog in the Pond are already a subordinate guild of the Shadow Skull?" Chiba said coldly.

"Little guy, you can't say that. Don't you have someone from the Dark Guild with you? But are you one of them?" Qilin shook his head and said.

He suddenly grinned. "But now, if I say you are, then you are."

Chiba's expression was rather unpleasant.

"Alright, capture them, and take the envoy with you as well." Qilin waved his hand, signaling his men to step forward.

Ultear and Wendy ran to Chiba's side. Wendy's eyes were filled with tears as she choked out, "Chiba- nii, are you... are you alright?"

"It's alright, Wendy, don't worry too much." Chiba forced a smile. He wanted to reach out and touch Wendy's head, but found his hands were covered in blood, so he lowered them.

"Ultear, help me pull out the sword," Chiba said.

Ultear's pretty face was full of worry. She then walked behind him and drew her sword.

He held Ultear's hand in one hand and Wendy's hand in the other, and looked around.

"What is this kid trying to do?!"

"Quick! Stop him!"

These mages were quite clever; they rushed over quickly.

Sharingan!

Chiba suddenly opened his eyes wide, his gaze sweeping over his surroundings. Those who met his eyes all stopped in their tracks.

It's Sharingan Genjutsu!

"I will remember this grudge."

Chiba gave Qilin a deep look, and then the three of them vanished in a flash, leaving only a piece of wood behind.

Substitution Technique.