In the darkness, a cold wind blew. Xiao Man stood blankly where she was, with no one around her. Many Card Adepts were approaching, and she could clearly hear the whistle of their high-speed flight.
The air was thick with the smell of smoke and dust left by the explosion. If that smell had not been there to remind her, she would surely have wondered whether everything that had just happened was only a dream.
Where was that man?
Even now, Xiao Man did not understand what had happened, or why he had suddenly chosen to leave at the very last moment. His hand had already closed around her neck. One slight twist, and her neck bones would have been crushed, just like those of her dead companion. They had examined that companion's injuries. The killer possessed astonishing strength in his hands.
He had no reason whatsoever to spare her. She still remembered the bone-deep chill in his eyes as he rushed toward her. That coldness spoke not only of his determination to defeat her, but also of someone who could not easily be swayed.
She would not have been surprised to be killed or captured. But he had pulled away without the slightest warning and left without a backward glance. It left her stunned. No one suddenly walked away on the verge of victory, least of all an expert with such unwavering resolve!
Why? She still could not understand.
Looking around and finding no trace of him, Xiao Man finally relaxed. The fight had been brief, but its ferocity and danger surpassed anything she had experienced in her life. From beginning to end, she had been at a disadvantage, suppressed so thoroughly that she could hardly breathe.
His techniques and tactics alike had been bizarre and unpredictable. In those