Chapter 104
"Don't make a sound, I know." The frail-looking boy had been observing what was behind him. He was highly intelligent and quick-witted, and his previous attack had already tested the other party's resistance.
The situation is very challenging, but not without a solution. A new battle plan was designed during the escape.
"You want to kill me first, but a skilled hunter will first disguise himself as the prey."
Kanai suddenly stopped, standing a dozen meters away, which was already within firing range. As for why he chose this idiot as a teammate?
Because fools don't think much, they don't need reminders; they'll seize opportunities when they arise.
He removed his glasses, his eyes turning golden, and gazed at the immobilized enemy who had jumped from the steel cable, fusing his traits with his skills.
The Cross-Level Study has been activated, temporarily elevating the Hypnosis of All Things skill to an excellent level.
A more powerful force emerged within his body, accompanied by a silent whisper:
"And you will pause."
Mental energy will transform into a blade, piercing through the gray mist and pausing the enemy, while the foolish teammate will think nothing but rush in and smash the opponent to death with a hammer.
The battle plan was perfect, but a small mistake occurred in the first step.
Soul energy is released.
Yuki decisively increased his output, Demon Heart released visible energy, making him resemble a rising Crimson Moon.
His mental resistance was even higher, exceeding the Limit of hypnosis. Yuki only felt a little heavier, but it did not hinder him from launching an attack.
'A trump card beyond intelligence, but not enough.'
He twisted the greatsword, merging the released energy into the blade, and unleashed it along with the rapidly spinning chainsaw.
Storm Moon Ring.
The mental attack had no defensive capabilities and continued to strike. The moon ring had already flown out from a distance, quickly filling the boy's field of vision.
Is that a ranged skill? He hasn't even used his full power yet.
Thoughts froze along with the stench of the wind; the moon's ring pierced through the middle of his head and body, leaving a long, narrow trail on the bridge.
"Kanai!" The Tetsuto watched helplessly as his teammate was hit, and saw those golden eyes turn to him, leaving behind his last message in the world:
Run!
The next moment, the thin, bespectacled man was reduced to a pile of minced meat, while the Tetsuto received the message did not get what he wanted.
The purple-haired boy couldn't escape. Being an idiot, he didn't think. As Kanai turned to counterattack, he pounced, only to be killed before his teammate could even unleash his ultimate attack.
In the light white mist, the boy's heart almost stopped. He looked up and saw a Crimson Moon hanging above the bridge.
A piercing scream, a silence, an uncontrollable roar—
Falling towards oneself.
Chapter 18 But I'm Stronger (5K)
The bridge surface has been transformed into a slaughterhouse. To the east, the Kanai has been cut in two, the cuts resembling the golden ratio.
About ten meters away from him, the muscular man died an even more gruesome death, almost torn to pieces, his head glaring open, his eyes filled with confusion.
They were really unlucky. They were just out delivering a message when they stepped into a deadly trap. To be honest, they were quite brave; they not only ran away decisively but also thought of a counterattack at the last moment.
"To have been schemed against by him and me, you deserve to die."
Yuki stood to the side, not particularly surprised.
Players at this level haven't yet developed a fully-fledged combat system. Having one or two special moves is already quite good; victory relies more on teamwork and surprise attacks.
Is player-versus-player combat simply a battle of intelligence?
Yuki to himself silently. This was Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's test, and also his own experiment.
Free from the interference of the instance, they fought with all their might against other players, and after two short but intense battles, they reaped a great harvest.
First, intelligence is extremely important. It was precisely because he obtained information about the enemy in advance that he dared to handle the situation in a simple and crude manner.
Secondly, a player's experience does not equate to combat power. An S-rank dungeon is equivalent to at least two of their missions, so the gap between players will widen over time.
Third, no player should be underestimated. For example, that Tetsuto had trump cards beyond what was known, but unfortunately I prepared extra resources in advance and hadn't had a chance to use them yet.
Fourth, hunting players yields the greatest rewards, especially for me.
"If I'm going to fight a losing battle with someone who's prepared, won't I just become a pig?"
Yuki snorted coldly, glancing around at the light morning mist. He had blocked the bridge, but he hadn't completely won yet.
Random missions have limited time, and if Smoker hides and leaks information, it can be quite troublesome.
"I hope I didn't scare him, otherwise I'll have to spend more time looking for him."
The red light in Yuki's eyes faded. The battle just now was short and intense, and the red energy he released looked like it had been greatly depleted.
Let's rest first, then go find someone. Oh right, we should collect the loot first.
He walked to the center of the Ohashi, where a severed arm was holding a ram's head hammer. This Chaos Item seemed to have limitations; the Tetsuto did not release a single shockwave at the last moment.
"But I haven't seen any obvious side effects, so it should be a pretty good Chaos Item."
Yuki bent down, the information automatically surfaced in his mind the moment he touched the ram's head hammer.
[Chaos Item: Impact Hammer (Chaos Class)]
[The hammer releases a shockwave upon contact with an object; the force varies depending on the swinger's striking power. Uses: 1/10. Cooldown time:...]
Bang!
Before the murmur had even finished, as if eager to experiment, Yuuki, gripping the hammer Yuki, slammed it down.
A noticeable shockwave spread out beneath their feet, dispersing the pervasive white mist, while less than half a meter behind them, a spike made of smoke curled back.
"Looks like I don't need to come looking for you, Smoker." Yuki slowly straightened up, shook his slightly aching hand, and shook his head with a hint of regret. "You should be more aggressive; this kind of attack is still far from enough."
Looking up, the thin morning mist had somehow become so thick that you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. The entire Ohashi was barely visible, and even the steel cables were hidden in the fog.
"So you knew what my abilities were all along."
The mist trembled slightly, as if resonating, and sounds came from all directions.
The Smoker had arrived long ago, but he was a step too late and didn't have time to help the two desperate people. So he chose to observe from a distance and gather information.
Yuki deliberately created an opening, but he wasn't stupid enough to bite the hook immediately.
"Hmm, a very peculiar ability, Smoker Smoker, a demon in the smoke, it can actually split its body into mist." Yuki was somewhat amazed. Sure enough, after passing four dungeons with an A-rank or higher rating, the system of an ordinary player was formed.
He could see Shadow Movement within the fog, like parts of a body; this was the real meal, stronger than the Tyrant in some ways.
A powerful assassin is virtually invincible in the ruins of a city, so the third step of the plan is to pre-plan the battlefield, at least on an open bridge where it will be more advantageous for him.
From the moment I killed the red-haired woman, the plan proceeded with perfect precision, like clockwork: intercepting the boy, forcing out the Smoker, and then the next step was to make him fight me here.
Even though his true form was discovered through the fog, Smoker wasn't nervous. That's why he took the initiative to attack, since he couldn't hide anyway.
"You killed her with those eyes?"
"No, that woman used optical invisibility; I couldn't actually see her." Yuki explained like a villain, then suddenly shrugged. "I just wanted to encounter a player, and that meant we would definitely meet."
Skills related to causality...
The split mouth licked its lips, which answered the Smoker's question; it really wasn't just bad luck.
Not only is Armless, but even the coincidence of the initial meeting between the three parties is due to the law of cause and effect. No wonder everyone is confused. In that case, there is no need to retreat back to the city.
Retreat comes at a price. Since we'll inevitably run into him no matter how we hide, we might as well take advantage of our peak strength and fight to the death.
"You're not a student there at all."
Standing in the fog, Yuki looked up and around, a sinister smile creeping across his lips. Seeing the shadows spinning around him faster, he knew that Smoker had made his choice.
Does my identity matter?
"It doesn't matter, because I'll leave you with a chance to prove yourself later!"
Before the words were even finished, the mist surged, and a greatsword made entirely of white mist slashed down, Yuki tumbling backward in an instant, glancing behind him out of the corner of his eye.
Bang--
It looked light and airy, yet it slashed a half-meter-deep gash in the concrete pavement. Just as I stood up, a slender, sharp spike stabbed at me from behind.
Bite.
Despite being a gas, it sparked brightly as it rubbed against the surface of the Chainsaw Sword. Yuki jumped up, letting the surging mist brush past his feet, and then gripped the sword with both hands.
Physical Enhancement. Slashing power.
Bang!
After the heavy chop, the spikes were shattered, and his scarlet eyes darted around, seeing two more shadows converging on him.
'After the hands come the legs?'
It's just gas after all, so its strength isn't actually that great, but this skill is quite bizarre. It's like creating a bounded field and using different parts of the body to control the mist to attack.
Even among veteran players, this person is considered powerful, certainly more difficult to deal with than the Tyrant.
"But this time, I just want to challenge my Limit."
With a thud, Yuki took off running, a 'whoosh' sound coming from behind as a giant foot made of white mist kicked the bridge surface, instantly twisting the railings on both sides.
In the fog, he moved only slightly slower than me, and he kept his sights locked on me.
Yuki could see the shadows approaching, so he leaped onto the steel cable and climbed upwards as if walking on flat ground, ignoring the mist blades slashing from both sides, and swung his greatsword to the side and upwards.
The outward-radiating scarlet energy formed a thin beam of light that shot out, Yuki saw the small shadow dodge, while the mist blade grazed past his head.
'So it's using split eyes to stare at me, then launching an attack with other parts of its body. That's quite a skill, isn't it?'
Yuki silently counted in his mind and saw five shadows, which he assumed represented his hands, legs, and eyes.
This skill has clearly not been fully developed. If it were to reach a later stage where even a single tooth could control dense fog, even an iron man would be ground to dust.
If that were the case, how could I dare to fight you?
The blades formed from white mist came one after another, while the small shadow hid further away. Yuki, on the steel cable, opened his right hand and drew the Nameless Longsword.
Reinforcement Magecraft. Maximum Load.
This time he didn't dodge; with his sword in hand, he raced upwards along the rope, facing the attack head-on.
Cut!
The longsword clashed with the mist sword, which was also composed of energy. This allowed the Nameless Longsword to effectively cut through energy, and with the enhanced cutting power, its strength exceeded the upper limit that the mist could bear.
Swish swish swish swish.
He swung his sword head-on, shattering the condensed mist. When the mist dispersed, visibility dropped to the point of being pitch black, but Yuki didn't need to observe with his naked eye. He kicked off the ground with both legs.
The slings rattled and vibrated, Yuki flew close to the ground, heading straight for the saddle, where a shadow lay.
Where does this fog come from?
"Of course it comes out of the mouth!"
The released energy formed a crescent moon, slashing forward from a distance of more than ten meters, forcing all shadows to retreat, and the thick white mist resembled a thick wall.
Ugh--
The two energies collided, and the half-moon continuously slowed down. The Smoker's head took the opportunity to retreat, his mouth agape, sensing a bit of trouble.
Those eyes are really annoying; they almost ruined half of my abilities.
No fewer than five players have died at his hands. Even those with skills like Intuition were slowly worn down by him through the thick fog.
An assassin's most crucial element is disguise, but this guy was completely unaffected by the thick fog. What was he seeing? A soul?
'No wonder he dared to start a fight; this ability is quite effective against me, and I can't even break my body into smaller pieces.'
The current Limit is removing the eyes, so the head is moving backward, but it still has a bird's-eye view, making it not so difficult to resist.
Yuki mounted the saddle like a mad dog and chased after him without stopping for a moment. As he chased, he released sword energy, forcing Smoker to constantly control his head to dodge or control his limbs to block.
The brain hasn't been split yet. Even with an overhead view, turning the battle into an RTS game, multitasking gradually becomes a bit overwhelming.
What's worse is that Yuki is faster than him. If it's close combat, the pace is even faster, and how can he possibly keep up?
"No matter what, we must not let him get close."
Yuki saw an even larger shadow flying towards him, and without a doubt, it was the torso of Smoker. His eyes gleamed with intense curiosity.