Five Seconds (4k)

"Splatter!"

Thick leather boots stained with blood stomped hard onto the soft, damp meadow, kicking up scattered flecks of mud.

"Damn it... How are there Professionals here?!"

The vicious-looking Crewcut Man panted harshly, his arms swinging violently back and forth like pendulums as the dense bushes on either side rushed behind him.

"Fucking hell, I never should've trusted that old man. This Business Deal nearly got me killed!"

"Big brother, what do we do now?"

Running alongside the vicious man was a burly man with somewhat dull features.

But aside from that dullness, his face was now filled with profound terror.

"What do we do? Why don't you look at what we're doing right now?"

"Run!"

"That kid's background isn't simple. River Valley Town... no, I'm afraid we can't stay in any of the towns near Newm."

Buzz—

A rapidly spinning arrow tore through the air and plunged into the mud beside the man's feet.

From the shadows of the forest not far away came the terrifying sound of something moving swiftly.

Both men jolted in fright, their already frantic steps becoming even more disorderly, as though some horrifying monster that devoured people stood behind them.

"Crack!"

Grass clippings and fallen leaves swirled through the air.

The vicious man suddenly felt the resistance of the irritating, seemingly ever-present bushes before him vanish in an instant;

Sunlight that should have been blocked by the canopy overhead suddenly blazed down.

The view before him opened up.

A clearing?!

"Big brother, it's an ambush!"

The dull-looking man cried out beside him, his voice tinged with terror.

Following his gaze, the vicious man saw a sharp-featured Black-haired Youth.

Though he vaguely found the youth familiar, he had no time to care about that now.

His blood surged, his eyes gleamed, and the tumultuous emotions at the boundary between life and death made him reach a decision in an instant.

"Fuck, there's only one of him. Kill him! Even if I die, I'm taking someone down with me!"

Xia Nan suddenly heard two hurried sets of Footsteps coming from the woods nearby.

He stood up and turned his head.

Two bedraggled men covered in leaves and grass clippings burst out in an instant.

At that moment, time seemed to have been paused.

The slightly fishy, pungent scent of Firefly Garlic Vine flooded his nostrils with every breath, while the rustling of swaying branches filled his ears.

His mind raced.

[0.1 seconds]

The first thought that flashed through Xia Nan's mind upon seeing the two men was—

Run.

A clearing that had suddenly appeared in the dense forest, deliberately conspicuous expensive plants, a search that had revealed no abnormalities, and even the timing—he had just finished harvesting the Firefly Garlic Vine.

Everything told him that these two men had deliberately waited here to ambush him.

But he immediately realized that if he wanted to flee, he would have to abandon the heavy Backpack filled with Firefly Garlic Vine, worth more than thirty Gold Coins.

Profit and risk were like an invisible scale in his heart, steadily piling weight onto both sides.

[0.2 seconds]

"Is it possible to avoid a fight?"

The thought flashed through his mind.

"Persuade them with words, or give up part of the profit?"

No, that wouldn't work!

He was alone, while they truly had two people.

Before demonstrating a certain amount of strength, he had no room to bargain at all.

And judging by the desperate way these two were acting, they did not look like people who could negotiate.

Therefore...

[0.3 seconds]

The blade dragged sluggishly against its sheath as he drew it.

The heavy Backpack worth dozens of Gold Coins, which he had treasured just moments ago, was now ruthlessly tossed aside.

Fighting intent surged within him.

At that moment, Xia Nan had made his decision.

[0.5 seconds]

Xia Nan stood still as the two men before him rapidly split apart.

They seemed to be planning to flank him from both sides and attack together?

Reality was not a game.

Getting cut by a blade would not merely cost him a chunk of health.

If his limbs were severed, he would be crippled for the rest of his life;

If his throat was pierced, he would truly die.

Even Healing Potions could not regrow severed limbs or restore flesh to White Bone.

Xia Nan did not know what exactly he was facing.

Driven only by his survival instincts, he pushed his mind to its limits, analyzing the situation for the battle about to begin.

Two fists could not beat four hands.

Since ancient times, anyone capable of blocking or even counterattacking attacks from several directions at once in a group fight had been a master-level expert in combat techniques.

When facing multiple opponents, even in those rather fantastical martial arts films from his Previous Life, the protagonist usually divided the battlefield and defeated them one by one.

In an instant, Xia Nan had formed a preliminary battle plan.

He would turn one versus two into two one-on-ones.

[0.7 seconds]

His sharp gaze swept over them.

The vicious Crewcut Man on the left held an Iron Sword. His expression was focused and his movements swift; one look was enough to tell he was experienced.

The man on the right was more powerfully built, but his movements were noticeably half a beat slower. His face was flushed and dull, and he dragged a heavy two-handed hammer in his hand.

His target was set.

[1 second]

The sword tip rose slightly, and the Sword Hilt felt icy and cool in his palm.

Xia Nan took his first step forward.

One against two, with both sides wielding deadly weapons capable of killing the other in a single strike.

He had to take down the first enemy as quickly as possible.

He took another three steps.

The distance between him and the dull-looking man instantly shrank.

The iron-gray blade flashed in the corner of his eye.

"He's already within the longsword's range."

His right foot slammed down, the sole instantly sinking into the mud.

"Whirlwind Slash!"

Power seemingly rose from the earth through the soles of his feet in an instant, gathering the strength of his entire body like a surging river tide before flowing through his fingertips into the Sword Hilt.

Buzz—

The sharp, cold gleam of the iron-gray blade carved a crescent arc through the air.

"Slicing Master" +5% Slashing Damage, "Beheading Longsword" +5% Decapitation Damage, and Strength that had reached "6" after the Attribute Point bonuses.

Xia Nan swung the fastest sword strike he had made since coming to this world.

"Slash!"

The heavy two-handed Iron Hammer had only risen halfway when the dull-looking man's head was already spinning through the air, severed from his shoulders.

[3.5 seconds]

Blinding blood erupted like a fountain from the empty neck, and several drops even splashed onto Xia Nan's face.

But he did not feel the slightest nausea.

Because he had already sensed the fierce wind coming from behind him.

There was no time to withdraw his sword!

Almost using the momentum left by Whirlwind Slash, Xia Nan pulled the blade back in front of himself while turning half a circle.

Then—

"Clang!"

Sparks flew!

A silver-white blade smashed fiercely against the iron-gray blade of the Beheading Longsword.

More than two seconds was enough time for the other enemy to close in on him.

Thud.

Behind him came the dull sound of a corpse being Knocked Down.

The four-foot sword that Xia Nan had treasured just hours earlier, wiping away even the tiniest stain with gauze, was now held carelessly across his chest as he blocked the enemy's attack.

The sword tip glinted coldly through the air.

At that moment, he could even clearly see the vicious man's pupils trembling faintly at his teammate's death, the taut facial muscles as he gritted his teeth and exerted force, and even the scattered flecks of foam at the corners of his mouth.

[4 seconds]

Their strength collided through the blades.

Xia Nan had exhausted his old momentum, while new strength had yet to arise, leaving him in a rigid state.

The other man, clearly affected by the force transmitted through the blades, also had numb, aching arms and found it difficult to exert strength.

The battle seemed to fall into a momentary stalemate.

Under such circumstances, the 1 point of Agility granted by maxing out Whirlwind Slash took effect.

Xia Nan regained his balance first.

Then he kicked hard!

The vicious man clutched his abdomen in pain, the strength draining from his hand.

Xia Nan took two quick steps back, opening up half a body's distance between them.

Then...

[Whirlwind Slash]

The iron-gray arc of sword light vanished in a flash.

Mixed with sticky red-and-white fluid,

Half a head with a smooth cross-section

Spun through the air and fell.

Green leaves drifted and slowly settled to the ground beside him.

From the moment the two men appeared to the end of the battle,

A total of 5.25 seconds had passed.

"Huff... huff..."

Xia Nan panted, the lining beneath his Leather Armor soaked through with sweat.

Five seconds—barely enough time for one deep breath.

Yet it had been enough for an encounter battle to begin and end.

His heart pounded violently, and his head felt faintly dizzy.

The intense focus he had maintained during the battle returned to reality.

He even felt that the tight, high-pressure battle just now had been no less dangerous than facing the Bear Goblin before.

The slightest error in judgment or movement would have meant crippling injury or even severe wounds.

And it was also thanks to the former owner of this body's relentless persistence that Xia Nan had been able to max out [Whirlwind Slash] as soon as he arrived in this world, gain its reward, and raise his overall strength to its current level.

The thick Blood Scent in the air flowed into his chest with every breath.

Standing where he was, Xia Nan looked at the two corpses lying to his left and right, feeling strangely moved.

Who would have thought that just over ten days ago, he had merely been a miserable office worker who sat in an office all day and had never even killed a chicken?

Now, he had become a "ruthless guy" capable of cutting down two adventurers in the span of a single breath.

Maybe he really did have some so-called "talent for battle"?

Drip.

Warm, viscous blood dripped from the sword tip onto the ground, staining several blades of broken grass red.

Xia Nan suddenly seemed to remember something.

He hurriedly raised the Beheading Longsword in his hand, pulled out gauze from his clothes, and wiped the blood from its surface clean. Then he inspected the blade closely, paying special attention to the spot that had blocked the enemy's strike.

Only then did he sigh in relief.

The 50% durability bonus on the Attribute Panel was no joke.

That strike had sent sparks flying, yet when it landed on the blade, it left only a tiny, barely noticeable scratch on the surface. Once he returned to town, a careful round of maintenance would remove it.

"Good, good."

Though it still pained him a little, Xia Nan accepted the outcome.

Then he happily began cleaning up the battlefield.

"Hmm... these secondhand Leather Armors can only be sold for half price to begin with, and they're heavy. They're not even high-end goods. I'd probably be unable to walk with them on my back, so forget it."

"The Iron Swords are decent, though. They seem to have been maintained regularly, and with this warhammer included, they're probably worth around 15 Gold Coins?"

"No need to take the food supplies. I brought enough myself. The compass doesn't take up much space, so I'll take it. Why are there even two shovels..."

"Huh?"

As Xia Nan searched the corpses with a mixture of disgust and delight, his brow suddenly rose.

He had already pulled a bulging money pouch from the Sinister Man's waist.

He opened it and looked inside—

"Tsk, tsk."

It was a dazzling sea of gold.

"This is even heavier than the pouch I got when I claimed that bounty at the Association. There must be at least 50 Gold Coins in here." Xia Nan weighed the slightly hefty cloth pouch in his hand and muttered to himself.

"That's strange. Did these two carry their entire fortunes on them?"

Of course, now that they were corpses, they could not answer his question.

Xia Nan himself did not care about such minor details.

After searching the bodies again and making sure he had missed nothing,

he slung the Backpack full of Firefly Garlic Vine over his shoulders again, intending to leave as quickly as possible.

The Blood Scent could easily draw danger. That was something he had learned in the Stinky Fish Rotten Shrimp squad.

"One gathering mission, and I made a small profit of 80 Gold Coins."

"At this rate, if I save up a little more, I should be able to buy a decent set of Medium Armor soon."

"Leather Armor is pretty good too, but its defensive capabilities are still a little lacking."

Just as Xia Nan hoisted his Backpack and was about to leave,

urgent Footsteps rang out once more from the direction the two men had emerged from earlier, not far to his side.

Xia Nan's heart immediately skipped a beat.

"No way, there's more?"

Yet he had already made his decision.

He had just gone through a fierce battle. Although he had not suffered any real injuries, using Whirlwind Slash twice in a row had left both his arms faintly sore.

His combat strength had declined.

Under such circumstances, he might be a little reckless at times, but he was not greedy enough to risk his life for money.

If he found that the situation was bad, he would immediately throw away the Backpack and the two weapons he had picked up, then turn and run.

After all, more than fifty Gold Coins taken from the corpses were still tied around his waist. Even if he brought back not a single cluster of Firefly Garlic Vine, he would not lose out at all.

At the same time, several figures rapidly approaching through the bushes appeared before Xia Nan.

Bang!

Branches and leaves scattered everywhere.

A plump figure stumbled out of the brush in a sorry state.

Only then did he notice the sudden open clearing, crouching down and comically striking a fighting stance.

Close behind him came Hai An, the Half-Elf holding a Longbow and wearing a wary expression;

as well as the Blonde Girl, her face pale, her panic obvious.

Oh, and there was also Wood, the "suspected Professional" with almost no presence, who remained beside the Half-Elf like a shadow.

Silver-white strands of hair drifted in the wind. Hai An gripped the bow with one hand while the other rested behind him on his quiver, maintaining a stance from which he could draw and fire at any moment.

His silver-grey eyes narrowed slightly against the glaring sunlight as his gaze swept across the clearing before him.

The next second, he spotted the two corpses on the ground, gradually growing cold.

His pupils widened slightly.

He could not help looking at Xia Nan, the only person still standing in the clearing, his expression guarded.

"You..."