The man before him knew him.
Qin Ran was quite certain of that.
Yet he had no memory of the man.
Qin Ran had great confidence in his memory.
He might have met countless natives, but one missing the thumb and index finger of his right hand would have left a lasting impression.
After all, in a world of cold weapons, someone like that was practically crippled.
Yet this man displayed an effortless mastery of his own, wielding his remaining three fingers with greater power than ordinary people with all five intact.
If Qin Ran had met someone like that, he certainly would not have forgotten him.
"Evil Fiend!"
"Severed Finger" growled.
An almost tangible terror swiftly shattered his reason.
Then...
The curved saber in "Severed Finger's" hand swept straight across his own neck.
Spurt!
Qin Ran dodged the spraying blood and stared in surprise at "Severed Finger," who had killed himself. Then his gaze shifted to the soul emerging from the corpse.
"Steppe People?!"
The vaguely familiar sight prompted Qin Ran to kick without hesitation.
Although this went against his original intention of controlling the man with [Mesli's Ring] to uncover more secrets, Qin Ran had no good way to deal with secret arts involving souls.
Other than killing their user.
After Qin Ran's left leg lashed through it, "Severed Finger's" soul shuddered and dissolved into ash.
Yet despite dispatching his opponent so easily, Qin Ran frowned deeply.
What had happened before him was somewhat beyond his expectations.
Qin Ran was surprised that the man had detected him in advance.
He had considerable confidence in his [Stealth], which had surpassed Transcendent.
Therefore, Qin Ran did not believe the man had detected him through Perception.
That left only one possibility!
*"Besides possessing a soul-related secret art, 'Severed Finger' could also