The Gatekeeper Fell

"Tarnished—"

"All right, all right, cut the crap."

Lu Mingfei raised the Storm Knight Greatsword in his hand, interrupting Margit's chant.

"I, Lu Mingfei, the current second-seat knight of the Storm Knights, have come to take your miserable life..."

Margit frowned.

"A remnant of the Storm, yet so arrogant..."

However, Lu Mingfei could not be bothered to listen to him finish. He dashed forward, and an illusory mark formed from dragon blood lit up before him as roaring flames burst forth—

Dragonfire!

The wrinkles on the Fell Omen's already grim face deepened. With a powerful leap backward from his strong legs, he avoided Lu Mingfei's ambush.

Margit, the Fell Omen, was a rare elite foe who had retained his sanity completely. He was unlike any enemy Lu Mingfei had encountered before.

Though his fighting style and techniques remained fixed, he could adapt flexibly and respond with ease. He was no less formidable than the old knight.

In terms of raw strength, the gap between Lu Mingfei and him was anything but small.

But who said he was going to compete with him in raw strength?

Lu Mingfei could continually adapt to his fighting style through repeated deaths, memorizing his habits and movements. But for the Fell Omen, every one of Lu Mingfei's challenges was the first.

Therefore, the Fell Omen's defeat was inevitable.

Though Margit, the Fell Omen, had leaped back to avoid the direct hit, the scorching flames still licked at his fur cloak, filling the air with a burnt smell.

Margit snorted coldly, and the hammer of light in his hand condensed once more. But this time, Lu Mingfei did not give him a chance to charge it up.

Storm Foot!

Lu Mingfei stomped violently upon the ground. A hurricane abruptly erupted around him, forcibly interrupting the Fell Omen's attack.

Propelled by the wind pressure, he shot forward like an arrow, the Storm Knight Greatsword slashing diagonally toward the Fell Omen's neck.

Clang—

Caught off guard, the Fell Omen raised his staff to block. The powerful recoil left Lu Mingfei's arms numb.

"Arrogant fool!"

Margit roared. His knotted muscles suddenly tensed, and his tail swept across like a steel whip.

Lu Mingfei had anticipated it. He ducked low and rolled out of the way.

Yet the Fell Omen was battle-hardened after countless fights. The instant he turned, a golden dagger condensed in his hand and stabbed straight at Lu Mingfei with a shrill whistle!

With no other choice, Lu Mingfei only had time to adjust his posture and narrowly avoid a vital blow—

Squelch!

The dagger formed from incantation pierced deeply into his left shoulder, and the pain made Lu Mingfei falter.

He raised his right hand. The Dragon Communion Mark in his palm shone, and the improved Dragonfire erupted once again, forcing back the Fell Omen's pursuit.

The close-range flames caught the Fell Omen off guard, leaving him scorched and disheveled. His gray-white hair had been burned black.

Lu Mingfei pressed his advantage. His blade turned, and the skill Spinning Slash burst forth once more. The greatsword swept in like a hurricane and viciously cut into the Fell Omen's waist.

Blood sprayed, dyeing the monster's gray-white fur red.

The enraged Fell Omen let out a long howl. His enormous staff hung suspended in the air for several seconds before suddenly accelerating, violently tearing through the surrounding air as it cleaved toward Lu Mingfei.

But Lu Mingfei had already grown accustomed to his bizarre swordsmanship, alternating between sudden speed and sluggishness.

Lu Mingfei swiftly leaped backward, avoiding the blade as the Dragon Communion Incantation activated again.

The phantom dragon head bit down on the Fell Omen's shoulder and slammed him heavily to the ground, his massive body kicking up clouds of dust.

Lu Mingfei leaped into the air, raising his greatsword high. Storms gathered around the blade, forming a nearly visible hurricane.

"Die, damn it!"

Boom—

The blade came down, completely piercing the Fell Omen's chest.

The massive wound drove Margit completely mad. He formed a gigantic hammer in his hand and swung it at Lu Mingfei, smashing a huge crater into the ground. Then, immediately afterward, he swept a golden greatsword toward him with precise speed.

His movements were so swift that Lu Mingfei was dumbfounded.

"His chest has a hole through it and he can still fight like this?!"

The vitality of the powerful beings in the Lands Between utterly convinced Lu Mingfei.

Lu Mingfei rolled away in a sorry state, narrowly avoiding the golden greatsword that almost grazed his scalp. Amid flying stones, he glimpsed the puncture wound in the Fell Omen's chest writhing shut at a visible rate.

Beneath the gray-white fur, flesh tangled and regenerated like living creatures, while faint golden light flickered along the edges of the wound.

"This bastard can regenerate too?!"

Lu Mingfei cursed and took a huge swig from his Flask.

Taking advantage of the instant when the monster's movements slowed from the intense pain, Lu Mingfei gripped his sword in both hands and charged again.

This time, the storm around his blade no longer dispersed. Instead, it condensed into a sharp spiral vortex that stabbed straight into the Fell Omen's not-yet-healed wound.

This was a variation of Storm Blade, said to have been developed by incorporating the skill known as Storm Assault.

Although Storm Assault could only be used with weapons such as halberds and spears, the Storm Knights had improved the technique with their wisdom to better command the storm.

Squelch!

The vortex bored into flesh. Accompanied by a suppressed groan, the monster's pupils abruptly contracted. The hammer of light in his hand suddenly shattered, transforming into several golden daggers that shot forward like arrows!

Lu Mingfei had no time to pull back. His right arm and side were instantly carved open with huge wounds, bright red blood spraying out.

The blood loss made Lu Mingfei dizzy for a moment, but he gritted his teeth and forced the blade another half inch deeper through the pain.

"Utterly ignorant!"

The Fell Omen's roar made Lu Mingfei's eardrums ache. He abruptly raised his left hand, driving a golden dagger viciously toward Lu Mingfei's throat!

At the critical moment, Lu Mingfei released the sword hilt and leaned back. The blade slid past his neck, trailing a string of blood droplets. He kicked the Fell Omen hard in the knee, then used the recoil to flip backward and widen the distance.

If the old knight had seen him abandon his weapon like that, he would surely have given him a severe reprimand. But in the space between life and death, what morality or creed mattered? The old knight would understand.

And Lu Mingfei could not care less about any of that. He only wanted to win!

"You think you're the only one who can throw things?"

Lu Mingfei grinned viciously. In an instant, a storm gathered around the dagger in his hand, and he flung it out.

The blade embedded itself precisely in the Fell Omen's left eye. The burst of blood instantly covered that grotesque face.

The monster staggered back. Lu Mingfei reached into the torn space, drew out the long-unused Lordsworn's Straight Sword once more, and rushed forward.

Square Off!

The blade swept upward like a crescent moon, completely cutting open the monster's chest.

The enormous body finally could no longer hold itself up and slowly collapsed.

"I will remember you, Tarnished. You who are toyed with by the Flame of Ambition... Margit, the Fell Omen, will surely snuff out your flame..."

Panting heavily, Lu Mingfei pulled out his sword and kicked the Fell Omen's body aside. The monster's body gradually dissolved into golden motes of light, leaving behind only that unfinished curse.

"You should go talk to Godrick about insurance benefits and wages first..."

Lu Mingfei shook the blood from his blade and said exactly that.