The dagger's cold gleam traced an omen of death across the dim plaza, but just as it was about to touch Lin Yi's back, the situation changed abruptly.
As though he had foreseen it, Lin Yi suddenly turned around.
He flashed Wu Renxin a brilliant smile.
Lin Yi's right hand shot out like a phantom, seizing Wu Renxin by the throat with lightning speed and lifting his entire body off the ground.
At the same time, his left hand gripped Wu Renxin's dagger-wielding right hand.
With a gentle twist, the dagger made from a bear's fang fell to the ground.
It landed with a crisp clatter.
Wu Renxin's expression instantly shifted from shock to a flushed red. His left hand clawed incessantly at the large hand around his neck, while his legs kept kicking Lin Yi.
Ignoring the blows that were no more forceful than playful taps, Lin Yi held him suspended in the air and murmured:
"Too amateurish!"
"Your methods are just too amateurish!"
"Aren't you being a little impatient, making your move so soon?"
Lin Yi's voice was filled with mockery and disdain:
"You know I'm Return to Zero, don't you?"
"And you still went out of your way to invite me to explore with you?"
"It's been four days. You should know there's a party function, right?"
"You even put on that clueless act to make me lower my guard, didn't you?"
Lin Yi's gaze was like a blade, dissecting Wu Renxin's thoughts inch by inch:
"Your hair is unkempt, and your eyes are bloodshot."
"You probably came to the Endless Ant Nest before this but couldn't find the boss, right?"
"You knew I'd come here, so you waited for me in that locust area, didn't you?"
His right hand slowly tightened. Wu Renxin's face grew even redder, his breathing became increasingly labored, and his eyes began to roll back.
Yet Lin Yi showed no intention of stopping and continued to taunt him:
"Actually, I wouldn't have cared even if you'd taken some of the boss rewards."
"I wouldn't even have cared if you'd soloed this [Endless Ant Queen] and unlocked the Eastern Pole teleportation array!"
"You only have your own impatience to blame. Otherwise, I'd planned to play with you a little longer. What a shame!"
"Just look at you! You had to bring everything out into the open!"
"Two good friends who care about each other-wasn't that a nice script?"
Deep regret seeped through Lin Yi's words, as though he were lamenting a genius on the verge of falling.
He looked at Wu Renxin, a trace of complicated emotion flashing through his eyes, and said in a low voice:
"Getting stronger doesn't happen overnight."
"Look at yourself. A moment of anger and greed went to your head. How foolish is that?"
Wu Renxin's struggles grew weaker and weaker, and his consciousness began to blur.
Looking at Wu Renxin in his grasp, Lin Yi spoke again:
"When you thought my combat power wasn't high, you were completely wrong..."
"The reason I was willing to follow you all the way to this final destination definitely wasn't some clever mind!"
"It was..."
"Overwhelming combat power that can crush every scheme and trick!"
Lin Yi spun around, and Wu Renxin, held in his right hand, turned with him.
A powerhouse with two million combat power was now like a prop to be toyed with at will.
Lin Yi looked at the distant [Endless Ant Queen], his eyes widening slightly, a trace of intense excitement mingling with his tone:
"Despair! Fear! Suffer!"
"Brother Renxin!"
"You must remember this moment forever!"
"You lost to me not because I'm more ruthless or smarter than you."
"But because..."
"I'm stronger than you!"
"Every disadvantage in this world is caused by the inadequacy of those involved!"
"Still..."
"If you can forget this little unpleasantness between us, we can still have a heart-to-heart the next time we meet."
"Goodbye, Brother Renxin!"
"My... good friend!"
Crack!
Lin Yi tightened his right hand, and the dying Wu Renxin dissolved into motes of light, vanishing into the air.
Then...
System notifications and the clatter of dropped equipment rang out beside Lin Yi's ears.
Wu Renxin was worth more than a major boss. His equipment drops were downright luxurious.
[Ding! Player [Renxin Envoy] killed. Gained 83 years of lifespan.]
Wu Renxin's original lifespan of 428 years was reduced, and all his equipment dropped!
[Bear Fang Blade (S)], [Demonic Cicada Wings (N)], [Chirping Talisman (L)], [One-Glance Detection (J)] ×2, [Blazing Long Staff (H)]
In addition, Lin Yi had gained 83 years of his lifespan.
As for why he had let Wu Renxin lead the way?
That was because...
Ruthlessly snatching away an opportunity that originally belonged to Wu Renxin right before his eyes gave Lin Yi an intense thrill!
Was that twisted?
No!
It was merely a little seasoning on Lin Yi's otherwise rather bland path of leveling up!
As for the basis of his assessment of Wu Renxin's mindset, it was naturally more than just what Lin Yi had said.
It was that Lin Yi could see his equipment and skills!
The [Bear Fang Blade (S)] was an S-rank dagger, yet he hadn't seen Wu Renxin use it even once.
One could say they had only encountered insect monsters along the way, so there had been no need for a dagger.
But he hadn't used either of his skills, [Backstab Smash (K)] and [Merciless Combo (H)], even once, either.
Since he didn't want to use them, he could use them in his next life!
Besides, from what Lin Yi knew of him in his previous life, Wu Renxin was not someone willing to share good things with others!
Unless...
He couldn't get those good things himself!
On top of that, before they reached this Eastern Pole, Wu Renxin had been walking in front the whole time, barely straying off course.
So Lin Yi concluded that he had been to the [Endless Ant Nest] before!
As for how Lin Yi knew his identity had been exposed?
There were three main reasons...
First, the game had a party function.
Once they formed a party, they could see each other's names and could no longer attack one another.
Yet Wu Renxin had proposed traveling with Lin Yi without mentioning forming a party at all, which showed he was up to something.
It just wasn't much of a scheme.
Second, he had killed some small fry earlier, so his appearance should already have been leaked.
As a powerhouse seeking to seize the Eastern Pole's opportunity, Wu Renxin could have learned what he looked like with just a little effort.
Third, when Wu Renxin first saw him, a flash of delighted surprise had appeared in his eyes.
That delighted expression hadn't meant, [How come it's you?], but rather, [You're finally here!]
There had been plenty of monsters along the way, but little to gain from them, so there was no harm in playing along with him.
Lin Yi shook his head and gave a self-deprecating smile:
"But there was one thing I didn't lie about!"
"What I hate most... is a handout given with contempt!"
Lin Yi bent down and picked up the equipment Wu Renxin had dropped.
Then he slowly raised his head, looked toward the distant [Endless Ant Queen], and said with a faint smile:
"Do it yourself, and you'll have plenty!"