Bai Ye frowned slightly. "What's wrong?"
"Transcendent abilities are powered by mental strength. I've overdrawn mine too severely..."
"Get inside first. Leave these two to me." He gripped the dagger in a reverse hold, staring intently at the two gray sparrows climbing up from the ground.
The two gray sparrows shook their heads, then kicked off the ground and instantly became two gray arrows speeding toward them.
Bai Ye did not use Time Stop. With his current physical condition, dealing with two isolated gray sparrows would not be a problem.
Just as he was about to make his move, hurried footsteps suddenly rang out from a rooftop nearby.
Immediately afterward, a crisp sword cry, like a dragon's roar, rang out.
A woman clad in black-and-silver Knight Armor descended from the sky, abruptly entering Bai Ye's sight alongside a fierce, lightning-like streak of sword light!
Clang!
The sword light flashed. The two gray sparrows split in half midair, blood spraying everywhere.
The gray sparrows' corpses and the female knight landed at the same time.
Bai Ye's gaze narrowed. What a fast sword! He had barely seen the afterimage of a sword flash before the two gray sparrows were torn apart.
With his enhanced physical abilities, he could barely make out the trajectory of ordinary handgun bullets, yet he could not see this woman's sword light. That meant her sword was already faster than a bullet!
Who was she? A Transcendent, or a Genetic Modifier?
The female knight slowly turned around. A silver-white mask without facial features was especially eye-catching. There were only two hollow openings where the eyes should be, revealing a pair of clear, mirror-like light brown eyes.
She said nothing, merely gazing calmly at Bai Ye, whose body was covered in blood.
The blazing summer wind swept yellow sand over the gray earth, stirring the woman's long black hair. Bai Ye could even see a playful strand of black hair curving out from her slender waist.
Her fingers hanging at her side tightened around the cross-shaped hilt, and the slim, long silver blade lifted slightly.
Bai Ye narrowed his eyes. He did not know what the woman wanted, but he knew that if she harbored ill intent, then at this distance, he would have to concentrate completely to stop time before she drew her sword.
All his attention was fixed on the sword. It was a Pure Silver Cross Sword, slim and narrow, its slightly raised spine marked with silver patterns flowing like racing clouds.
Suddenly, the woman's sword moved.
But its target was not Bai Ye. It was... a gray sparrow!
At some point, a gray sparrow lurking in the shadows had launched a sneak attack from behind the woman. She did not turn around, merely raising the Pure Silver Cross Sword slightly. The blade passed over her right shoulder.
Splat!
The speeding gray sparrow seemed to deliberately crash into the sword tip, impaling itself straight through. Like candied hawthorn on a skewer, it hung in midair while the woman rested the Pure Silver Cross Sword on her shoulder, her movements clean, sharp, and fluid.
Bai Ye's eyelids twitched at the sight. He almost wanted to curse. Damn it, you looked that cool and still didn't care about your life?
With a casual flick, the woman shook the gray sparrow's corpse and blood from the bright silver blade. Her light brown eyes gave Bai Ye a deep look before she turned and left.
She lightly tapped her toes against the ground, her tall, graceful figure landing on the rooftop like a flying swallow. Then she charged toward the gray sparrows in the skies above the West District.
"It's her!?" Li You cried out as he watched the woman's departing back from the doorway of the brick house.
"You know her?" Bai Ye turned and asked.
Li You shook his head. "No, I don't know her, but I've seen her before. I stayed in Gravel Town for a while. Back then, Gravel Town was attacked by Mutated Beasts too. She suddenly appeared and drove them back!"
Bai Ye frowned slightly. Someone who specifically killed Mutated Beasts? It seemed that person's goal was to protect the people of the wasteland settlements.
Above the West District, that figure in Knight Armor drifted over. The woman leaped up and charged straight into the flock of several hundred gray sparrows. The dense flock that blotted out the sky swooped toward her, the cries of a thousand birds piercing the air.
The next moment, the Pure Silver Cross Sword unleashed a clear dragon's cry that drowned out the cries of a thousand birds. The woman twisted at the waist, spinning fiercely through the air. Her wrist straightened, and her blade instantly traced one dazzling arc after another.
The silver-white mask gleamed alongside the chilling sword edge, while her long black hair danced with the hem of the black skirt beneath her bright silver Knight Armor. In an instant, gray sparrows fell like rain!
The sight stunned Tan Jie, King Snake, and the others hiding inside the houses. Their ammunition had run dry, and many of their people had died. They had already fallen into despair, never expecting the woman to descend like a savior at this critical moment.
Her terrifyingly swift movements and miraculous swordsmanship left no gray sparrow able to withstand a single exchange. Her actions were crisp and elegant, lacking the bloody brutality of slaughter. Instead, it seemed as though she were dancing gracefully among the flock.
Moments later, the gray sparrows that had shrouded Gray Soil Town like dark clouds were completely cleared away. The woman stood amid feathers filling the sky, rotated her wrist, spun the Pure Silver Cross Sword, and then slid it flawlessly into its sheath.
Everyone who witnessed it stood dumbfounded. No one had expected the gray sparrows that had nearly slaughtered Gray Soil Town to last only a few seconds in the woman's hands.
"We... we survived!?" Someone inside a house erupted in a joyous cry of surviving disaster.
After hesitating for a moment, King Snake and the others finally emerged from the house, thanking the woman with flattering, humble expressions.
They knew that before such a powerful person, the houses that could barely fend off gray sparrows were as fragile as paper. Rather than cower in fear, they might as well quickly show their gratitude and respect to the strong.
"Thank you, my lady, for saving our lives. We have no way to repay you." Tan Jie's large face was piled high with a fawning smile.
The woman did not respond. Instead, she stood where she was, seeming to contemplate something.
"May we know your name, my lady?" King Snake asked cautiously. "Please don't misunderstand. We mean nothing else by it. We simply wish to know who our savior is, so that we may repay you someday."
"There's no need to wait until someday. You can repay me now." A cool young woman's voice came from beneath the silver-white mask. As each word flowed out, there was not the slightest ripple of emotion. Her voice was like a lake on a windless morning, clear and still.
King Snake and the others froze. They had not expected the woman beneath the mask to have such a young voice, much less for her to be so direct.
King Snake hurriedly smiled. "As long as there is anything my lady needs from us, just give the word."
Knight Girl extended her hand and said flatly, "Money."
King Snake and Tan Jie looked at each other. After exchanging glances for a moment, they hurriedly told their underlings to fetch the money. They did not know how much would be appropriate, but their years of experience surviving in the wasteland told them one thing: the more, the better.
Money could be earned again, but once a life was gone, everything was gone.
"My lady, it's all here." King Snake carefully handed over a package, not daring to make any physical contact with the girl.
The girl took the package and weighed it in her hand before saying flatly, "Silent Court."
Those four words struck King Snake and Tan Jie like thunder, leaving them rooted to the spot with horrified expressions.
Silent Court!? She was from the Silent Court?
"So my lady is..." King Snake was about to ingratiate himself further when he suddenly realized in astonishment that the girl had not been speaking to him, but rather...
King Snake turned his head and saw Bai Ye in the distance.
Bai Ye raised an eyebrow. Why the hell were you telling me? I didn't ask you?
Before you continue