Wang Long stared in disbelief. "He's sick, he—"
Before he could finish, Jiang Lin raised the blade and brought it down toward his own neck.
With one stroke, he plunged it in without hesitation.
Blood splattered, staining Jiang Lin's clothes red. He clutched his wound, raspy chuckles coming from his throat, sounding almost excited. Then he fell silent.
"You... you..." Wang Long's mind went blank, and he completely forgot the many life-saving items he had.
"Your ability doesn't just steal supernatural abilities. It can even control living beings?" he muttered to himself, seeking confirmation over and over. "That's absurd. Your rank must be at least the Condensation Realm. Are you kidding me?!"
Rank? That was another unfamiliar term to Fan Daoyi. Was it how the present world classified the strength of an ability as it grew?
Faced with this fellow muttering to himself, Fan Daoyi felt it was his duty to remind him.
"Why struggle so desperately?" The short blade slipped free of Jiang Lin's neck and spun through the air back into Fan Daoyi's hand.
Fan Daoyi shook the blood from it, and the short blade transformed into a longsword. A glint of cold light flashed as he stood there, holding the sword in one hand behind his back.
"If you don't have any other means, the countdown to the end of your life starts now."
For example, calling out the principal who was wandering around.
Fan Daoyi kept the second half of that sentence to himself. He couldn't make his goal too obvious.
Hearing Fan Daoyi's words, Wang Long's heart tightened. His mind raced as he tried to find a way out.
Seeing that Wang Long still hadn't made a move, Fan Daoyi felt that a person's potential needed to be forced out.
The longsword in his hand traced a fierce arc through the air, grazing past Wang Long's ear. With a faint hum, Wang Long's ear was sliced off, and blood gushed out at once. The severed ear tumbled through the air before dropping limply to the ground.
At the same time, a deep sword mark was left in the wall behind Wang Long, and the impact of the sword qi sent bricks and rubble flying everywhere.
Wang Long's eyes widened. He reached up to touch his wounded ear, and his fingers came away covered in blood. The intense pain and shock made his body tremble slightly.
"Ah—" The pain hit him belatedly, drawing an unprecedented scream from him.
"Ah, it's my first time using a sword. I missed," Fan Daoyi said lightly.
The longsword changed back into a bamboo staff, and Fan Daoyi dragged it as he slowly approached Wang Long. The staff scraped softly against the ground, making Wang Long's heart clench again.
"Just as I thought, this feels better in my hand." Fan Daoyi raised his arm and swung at Wang Long, the bamboo staff whistling down with fierce force.
Wang Long knew full well that he couldn't sit and wait for death. As the bamboo staff came down, he rolled out of the way. At that moment, he had only one thought in his mind—escape.
He struggled to his feet using both hands and ran toward a particular spot. Sweat soaked his clothes, and the pain from his wound nearly made him faint, but he didn't dare let up for an instant.
"Run, run. This is the second round of the chase." Fan Daoyi's words mocked him. His voice echoed in Wang Long's ears like a demon's whisper.
Wang Long gritted his teeth and ran for all he was worth. His vision began to blur, but he didn't dare stop.
Reaching his intended destination, Wang Long stood at the door, spread his arms, and shouted, "Fuck you! I have no grudge or feud with you, so why won't you stop chasing me?!"
"No grudge or feud?" Fan Daoyi looked as though he'd heard a joke. He pulled his lips into a mocking smile. "I was just watching the show, and without a word, you came at me with a killing move. And you say we have no grudge or feud?"
"But you didn't die either. I can give you money, and we can settle this here and now. How about it?" Wang Long gritted his teeth, the anger in his heart hard to quell.
"What did you see?" Fan Daoyi suddenly asked something unrelated to their conversation.
The question left Wang Long dumbfounded. "What?"
Fan Daoyi explained, "You saw me signal the NPCs to kill some players."
Fan Daoyi narrowed his eyes slightly, a dangerous glint flashing in them. "So even if I weren't seeking revenge, wouldn't I still have to silence you?"
Danger!
Those two words appeared in Wang Long's mind.
He finally stopped hesitating, pushed open the door, and turned to rush inside.
Once inside, he shouted out, "You want to kill me? Come in here if you dare!"
His voice echoed through the silent space, full of defiance and fearlessness.
Perhaps others would have wondered where Wang Long got the courage to provoke him like that.
But after Fan Daoyi stepped into the room, he clearly sensed that familiar aura.
The principal had appeared.
"What is it that requires me to come in person? You'll have to pay quite a price for this." The principal's steps were light, her voice heard before she was seen.
As she poked half her head out, she was still preparing to strike an elegant pose.
The moment she looked up and met his eyes, the principal's outstretched leg froze in midair. Her previously relaxed, teasing expression instantly stiffened, replaced by surprise and gravity.
Slowly, she drew back the leg she'd extended halfway and retreated behind the white wall.
At that moment, she had only one thought.
You can't see me, you can't see me!
She regretted showing off a little. She should have come out before speaking; then there might still have been a chance to admit she'd made a mistake and back out.
When the principal, who had come halfway out, retreated again, Wang Long's eyes instantly widened.
Shock mingled with confusion as he said, "Wait, you..."
Forcing down the curses on his tongue, Wang Long took a deep breath and rephrased his words. "The Wang Family will offer enough sacrificial artifacts. Please take action and kill him."
Ptoo, ptoo, ptoo.
The principal spat behind the wall. After a helpless sigh, she braced a hand against it and timidly poked half her head out. "Well, I won't disturb you. Please, carry on, carry on. I'll be going first."
The principal's retreat plunged the scene into an awkward silence.
Wang Long saw the situation clearly. The life-saving straw he'd counted on was actually growing atop a wall, swaying with the situation whenever the wind blew.
"Get out here," Fan Daoyi said.
The principal couldn't refuse those words. While she was still hesitating, vines manifested on the wall and hauled her out. They bound her tightly and forcibly dragged her before Fan Daoyi.
Her eyes were fearful, and she lowered her head, not daring to meet Fan Daoyi's gaze.
"Did you arrange this treatment?" Fan Daoyi demanded.
The principal's body trembled slightly. She didn't know how to answer. She wanted to defend herself, but felt she didn't know where to begin.
"If you're referring to the cooperation with humans..." the principal said timidly.
The bamboo staff pierced through the principal's shoulder blade. She gave a pained grunt, and her face instantly turned deathly pale.
"What I despise is the story you altered on a whim." Fan Daoyi gently twisted the bamboo staff, glancing sideways at the pattern on the wall. "They hate it too."
The vines tugged hard at the principal's limbs, carrying their anger.
The principal was astonished. Fan Daoyi really meant to kill her.
No, this can't happen!
Clutching at straws, she said, "You, you can't do this. I'm one of the Apothecary's people. The right to decide whether I live or die should belong to him—"
With the Origin Source that Fan Daoyi had stripped away, the vines tore the principal's limbs apart with ease.
Fan Daoyi looked down coldly at the principal, who now resembled a human swine. "What? I was only gone for a few decades, and you're already trying to play the 'my vassal's vassal is not my vassal' game in front of me?"
"Oh, that's right." He seemed to have just remembered something. "I think the Apothecary was the one who told me that story."
He found a chair and sat down. The vines sealed off the room, leaving no way to escape.
"Perhaps I should tell you the background to that story again."