Catching Blade Barehanded

Back against a thick tree trunk, he observed the commotion behind him with the corner of his eye. After a burst of branches swaying in the forest, a stocky figure charged out, letting out a mournful howl at the sight of the scorched earth before him.

A hideous face, sharp claws, a stunted torso, and tattered leather armor—it was the classic image of a gnoll.

After losing its beloved pet, this gnoll, already sporting crimson pupils, had its eyes turn even bloodier.

The moment his peripheral vision caught the creature bursting from the woods, a stream of data automatically surfaced in Xuan Ye's mind.

"Strength and speed are both above mine, especially strength—nearly fifty percent higher, close to a Two-Star Ranger's level. That must be from the gnoll's physique and racial traits. But the bow and arrows are still at the gnolls' crude crafting level; I have the advantage in weaponry..."

Seizing this brief pause, Xuan Ye quickly analyzed the situation in his mind. He had his own strengths to leverage, and knowing both himself and his enemy was key to maximizing his chances of victory.

"Huh, why isn't it moving? 'Ambush'? At this distance, even with the gnoll's mediocre stealth talent, it can't fool me. Dragging things out only hurts it—what's it planning?"

Since Xuan Ye was only tracking it with his peripheral vision, after its mournful cries, it slipped out of his sight, blocked by the thick tree trunk at his back. He could only guess its approximate position.

When something's off, there's a reason. After being screwed over by Ye Man a few times, Xuan Ye had developed a shadow of paranoia, instinctively sensing trouble.

It was this vigilance that, upon feeling a slight tremor in the massive tree behind him, made him immediately roll away from the spot. A sharp arrow instantly pierced through the trunk, sending a spray of wood chips flying!

"What the hell, that's cheating! What kind of force is that? How could that crappy bow shoot such a powerful attack?"

With a scratch on his cheek from the flying splinters, Xuan Ye quickly moved in erratic patterns, vanishing into the foliage, cursing inwardly as he went.

He had chosen to hide behind that trunk after weighing its defensive capability, confident that even his own full-strength arrow would only bury itself halfway in. Even with the creature's greater strength, that broken bow and arrow shouldn't have achieved this effect!

But the facts slapped him in the face. Yet, as he started moving and caught sight of the gnoll through the gaps in the trees, his expression shifted.

The gnoll's right arm, which had drawn the bow, was now covered in a thick layer of horn-like substance, like armor! It exuded an ominous, evil aura, and a faint smell of sulfur hung in the air.

"What is this? Gnolls are ancient, but they have no primordial bloodline! This horny mutation, this sinister aura... Demonization?"

Having already qualified as a Magic Apprentice, Xuan Ye had fully integrated the knowledge he absorbed during his time in Stanrose. Leveraging the innate advantage of his Database, his grasp of knowledge surpassed that of an ordinary apprentice. After only a moment's hesitation, he tentatively reached a conclusion.

The Hell Abyss was the world ruled by the 'Destruction' Main God among the Seven Great Main Gods—the Lord of Hell, Diros. It teemed with demons and chaotic beings, serving as the primary source of faith for the Destruction pantheon.

The Undead Overlord, who once triggered the Calamity Undead that toppled humanity from its pedestal, had now defected to the Lord of Hell, becoming his subordinate god and one of Reizel's guardian deities. How ironic.

The natural cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death was an indispensable part of Reizel's self-sustaining operation, and the divine duties of the Destruction pantheon were equally irreplaceable. But what couldn't be replaced were only the gods' roles—the chaotic beings of the Hell Abyss were unequivocally the mortal enemies of intelligent life, representing chaos and endless destruction.

And this gnoll, through some unknown means, had struck a deal with an Abyssal Demon, acquiring this arm's Demonization!

"An arrow with that kind of power—if it even grazes me, it's game over! Tch~"

With a grim expression, Xuan Ye sped through the forest alongside his foe, nocking another arrow for a counterattack.

"But..."

He set the arrow to the string, sidestepping a whistling, explosive shot.

"As long as it can't hit me, it's useless!"

Whoosh~

Xuan Ye's counter-arrow struck the opponent's leading shot mid-air, both deflecting in opposite directions!

The gnoll hunter's arrow flew off into the unknown, but Xuan Ye's deflected arrow curved perfectly to seal off the gnoll's next movement path!

Forcing it to abruptly shift its momentum, Xuan Ye seized the gap to fire three tricky shots in succession.

Each arrow was more insidious than the last, each more ruthless. Every shot forced the opponent to dodge according to his script, each expanding his gains!

Like a snowball rolling downhill, he accumulated his advantage, then launched a silent, lethal arrow!

Cornered by the previous shots, with its momentum spent, options exhausted, and even its balance unsteady, the gnoll hunter had no way to evade this final strike!

This was Xuan Ye's specialty—Scripted Shot. Given enough time, he could use his unique ability to write the perfect script!

Tap~

But just as the killing arrow was about to pierce its throat, a thick, horned demonic arm firmly caught the shaft!

Though the force dragged it back, and the arrowhead had already nicked the throat's skin, drawing a trickle of blood, it was undeniably blocked! Neutralized!

"FUCK!"

After executing his full combo, each arrow precisely controlled in force, nearly pushing the limits of his sustained endurance, Xuan Ye's right arm ached unbearably. He couldn't immediately fire another arrow with enough killing power.

Now, he could only watch helplessly as that cheating gnoll readjusted its stance and recovered its momentum.

Catching an arrow barehanded?! Why not just go for Catching Blade Barehanded, you bastard!

Can't we just have a fair shootout?!

Bang~

The Demon Claw clenched, crushing Xuan Ye's high-quality armor-piercing arrow into dust. The gnoll's already hideous face twisted into a cruel, savage grin. Then, it dropped to all fours, bow still on its back, and charged straight at Xuan Ye!

It had realized it couldn't win at ranged combat and was closing the distance while Xuan Ye recovered his breath.

"Just a lousy gnoll! You think I'm afraid of close combat? Bastard!"

Judging the closing speed and the terrain, Xuan Ye abandoned any idea of hindering or intercepting it.

This was jungle terrain, full of cover. The opponent was also a hunter skilled with a bow. Seizing an opportunity was tough, and if he fired a shot that didn't pay off while his right arm was still recovering, he'd be in a passive spot once it got close!

So, he might as well go all-in on close combat! Both at One-Star rank, with his superior gear and his own traits, why should he fear it?

This was the best standard Short Sword money could buy—paid for with shiny Gold Coins. Take this, you bastard!

'Clang~'

Seeing his precious short sword blade firmly caught in the opponent's Demon Claw, Xuan Ye's mouth twitched.

You're really going for Catching Blade Barehanded, boss!

I was just joking earlier, don't take it so seriously!

One claw gripping Xuan Ye's short sword, the Gnoll's face twisted into an ugly, cruel grin. Its other ordinary claw swiped toward Xuan Ye's body—even without a weapon, its natural claws were enough to tear this hateful human to shreds!

It would eat every last piece of his flesh, bite by bite!

"Another expense. Fighting always costs money."

A flicker of helplessness and reluctance crossed Xuan Ye's face, but no fear. His free left hand pinched three small Magic Crystals between his fingers, held horizontally before his chest.

"Крич!"

A roar like a dragon's cry erupted unnaturally from Xuan Ye's slender frame. The single, short, guttural syllable rapidly formed a spell model before him—extremely simple, yet radiating a wild, untamed aura!

It swiftly drained the violent magic from the crystals in his hand, effortlessly shredding the Gnoll's incoming ordinary claw into pieces!

The massive impact sent the creature flying backward!

Unranked Dragon Language Magic—Dragon Roar Spell!

No time to wonder why the power far exceeded the records, Xuan Ye gritted his teeth against the searing backlash of wild magic coursing through his body. He released the short sword, yanked a dagger from his boot, and lunged forward, plunging it into the Gnoll's skull with a twist.

The beast, caught off guard by the spell and heavily wounded, didn't even manage a stifled howl before its brain was churned to pulp. In its final moment, it was filled with nothing but resentment.

What was wrong with this world? How could there be such an absurd Ranger...

Confirming the thing was dead beyond dead, Xuan Ye sighed in relief and collapsed to the ground. As his tense nerves relaxed, the full weight of his aching body hit him, making him twitch uncontrollably.

An Apprentice casting beyond their rank—the emptiness in his Spiritual Power split his head with pain.

Fortunately, the Essence dispersing from the Gnoll's death was passively absorbed, restoring him somewhat. Now that he had stepped into the Professional Rank, the boost was far less noticeable than before, but it still helped with recovery.

Dragon Language Magic truly lived up to its reputation of 'simple and violent.' Even with his physical body at the Professional Rank, forcing out a single cast came with considerable backlash. His Eighth-Grade Apprentice-level Spiritual Power was drained completely—inefficient and uneconomical.

Still, it was better than the aftereffects of using his Bloodline Power. At least he could follow up without delay.

"Huff~ huff~"

Taking a few deep breaths, letting the absorbed Essence ease the soreness, Xuan Ye grew puzzled. Dragon Roar Spell was the most common and practical Dragon Language Magic—one of the very few humans could use.

It was unranked, but its power scaled with the magic and spirit invested, making it usable at any stage.

However, due to massive mana waste, while it cast nearly instantly if the body could handle it, its efficiency in both spirit and magic was abysmal—far weaker than other spells of equivalent cost.

Xuan Ye's original plan was to use this surprise attack to break the Gnoll's balance, then finish it with his dagger and Eyes of Lawbreaking—going all in at once.

But unexpectedly, the Dragon Roar Spell's power was exceptional. He didn't even need his Bloodline Power—he killed it outright.

Sure, it was an Advanced Apprentice. Dean could unleash a Chain Fireball strong enough to wipe out a Professional Rank when going all out. But this was Dragon Roar Spell! An Apprentice's spirit fueling a high-waste Dragon Roar Spell had very limited lethal power against a Professional Rank.

It was meant as a tactical disruption spell, used at the right moment. So why did his blast cripple the enemy so thoroughly?

Even catching it off guard, with the fool reaching out its claw, it shouldn't have been this effective. The power was at least double the theoretical value! While still not matching other spells of equal consumption, the casting speed made its cost-performance absurdly high—nothing like the bad reputation of Dragon Language Magic.

"Could it be... this thing?"

Stretching out his left hand, staring at the faint, crude rune on the back, a glimmer of understanding dawned on Xuan Ye. Maybe this 'Dragon Envoy' wasn't as bad as he'd thought...

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Thanks to readers Jianfeng Zhanjin Wulai, Tianxing Chu, and Siyue Liushang for their tips. Only one chapter today, but it's a big one—close to two chapters' worth.

New week, begging for all kinds of support~