"Go."
Those were the last words Zhao Jie spoke.
Or rather, his last word.
After another great mouthful of blood poured from him, he died and left this world.
His eyes remained open, facing his first friend in this world.
Duan Ming's hand began to tremble slightly around his saber.
His eyes turned bloodshot in an instant.
He wasn't frightened in the slightest by the Human-Faced Spider in front of him.
His eyes remained fixed on Zhao Jie's corpse, lying in a pool of blood.
"You killed my friend."
Suddenly, Duan Ming raised his head and looked straight at the Human-Faced Spider before him.
There was not a trace of fear in his eyes, nor could any anger be seen.
But his tone could have frozen the air!
Two white Divine Marks lit up in the dim alley.
One on each of Duan Ming's wrists.
Whoosh-!
The Human-Faced Spider raised a sharp leg and stabbed it at him.
Evade.
Duan Ming shifted his body slightly to the side.
Just as in his dream, he skillfully dodged the fatal strike.
At the same time, he raised the long saber in his hand high, its blade enveloped in Qi.
Images of him swinging his saber in the dream flashed through his mind, one after another.
Before the Human-Faced Spider could pull its leg back-
His hand rose, and his saber fell!
Swish-!
Puchi-!
Green liquid sprayed across the wall.
Along with it came a hoarse scream from deep in the monster's throat.
Shrill and chilling.
This was his first time using a saber.
But in his dreams, he had swung it millions of times!
That move thoroughly enraged the Human-Faced Spider.
It raised two sharp legs and stabbed at Duan Ming repeatedly.
Dodge.
Evade.
Duck.
After several perfect evasions in succession, Duan Ming raised his long saber once more and severed two of the Human-Faced Spider's legs with a single slash.
An even shriller, more chilling scream rang out, seemingly accompanied by a slight tremble.
He had killed monsters like this a thousand times in his dreams!
His body was enveloped in Qi.
So was the saber in his hand.
Empowered by Qi, this ordinary saber was ordinary no longer!
Duan Ming took a step forward.
The Human-Faced Spider began to retreat.
It was afraid!
Just moments ago, it had been taking a life.
Now, it had to pay with its own.
Duan Ming pressed forward, step by step, and grabbed the webbing the Human-Faced Spider spat from the silk glands in its mouth.
He gripped the rope-thick, slimy webbing and pulled hard.
Before the Human-Faced Spider could sever the strand, its body was dragged in front of the young man.
His hand rose, and his saber fell!
With one slash, he sliced away most of the Human-Faced Spider's head.
For a moment, two streams of liquid, one green and one white, mingled and gushed onto the ground.
The tenacious creature bit through the webbing and dragged its broken body away, fleeing for its life.
Duan Ming watched quietly as the Human-Faced Spider fled with three legs and half its head severed.
He walked briskly.
Though he could have caught up with it at once, he did not.
It was as though he wanted the monster to experience the terror of fleeing for its life.
"Hey, you there, what are you doing?"
A man's voice rang out behind him.
They were members of Group E, Second Squad of the City Protection Bureau.
The man who had spoken was their group leader.
Several people stood beside Zhao Jie's corpse, looking down at the spider legs scattered around them and the green liquid sprayed across the ground and walls.
"Leader, look!"
The three men and two women raised their heads and looked at Duan Ming ahead of them.
"What a fast saber technique!"
"Who's that kid? A student at the Divine Power Academy?"
"Judging by his looks, even if he's a student, he can't be any higher than second year."
"Impossible. Never mind a second-year-even a fourth-year couldn't move that fast!"
"No, even we might not be able to move that fast!"
"I've practiced saber techniques for eight years, and I'm not even half as fast as him!"
"Wait! Look at his hands! He actually has two white Divine Marks!"
"Two Divine Marks! What's going on?!"
They all wore expressions of disbelief.
The sight overturned everything they knew.
Both the young man's saber technique and the Dual Divine Marks on his wrists shook them to the core.
They stayed where they were and did not approach.
Given the young man's strength, there was no need for them to go over at all.
The young man's saber technique was so fast it dazzled the eye.
"He could clearly kill the Human-Faced Arachnid in one strike, but he hasn't. It looks like he's torturing it!"
Duan Ming stood quietly beside the Human-Faced Arachnid's corpse.
He was splattered with a great deal of the Human-Faced Arachnid's blood, and the monster's severed limbs lay scattered at his feet.
"So you're afraid of death too."
Duan Ming withdrew his gaze and looked at the City Protection Bureau members not far away.
In an instant, the five Divine Power Masters from the City Protection Bureau felt a chill wash over them.
When they saw Duan Ming walking toward them with his saber in hand,
Their expressions immediately grew tense.
"Don't be nervous. He probably isn't an enemy."
"City Protection Bureau?"
Duan Ming walked up to them.
"Yes. I'm Zhang You, leader of Group E, the special operations unit of the City Protection Bureau's Second Squad."
As he spoke, he glanced at both of Duan Ming's wrists.
A white Divine Mark glowed on each wrist.
"Mm."
Duan Ming looked at Zhao Jie's corpse on the ground, his feelings tangled.
This had been his first friend at the Divine Power Academy.
A friend he had known for less than half an hour.
He had only wanted to shorten his journey a little, never imagining it would be his final stretch of road.
Although he and Zhao Jie had not yet grown close enough to be true friends,
His heart was now filled with guilt and self-reproach.
"You're a student at the Divine Power School, right?"
"Mm."
Duan Ming was in a very heavy mood and didn't much feel like talking.
"Was he your classmate?"
"My friend."
"Are there any other monsters nearby?"
"I don't know."
"I know you must be feeling terrible right now, but get some rest first. Leave the rest to us."
Before long, the First Squad arrived.
A little later, Lin Qiao, who had been notified, arrived as well.
Duan Ming could only watch as Zhao Jie's corpse was covered with a white cloth and carried away.
"Duan Ming."
Lin Qiao came up to Duan Ming, looking deeply guilty. "This was your teacher's fault. If I'd told the truth, this might not have happened."
Lin Qiao, too, was full of deep self-reproach.
If she hadn't concealed it then and had told them the truth instead,
Perhaps Zhao Jie could have been a little more careful on his way home.
Or she could have driven them home.
Looking at the blood-soaked long saber in Duan Ming's hand, Lin Qiao fell silent.
Over there, the City Protection Bureau personnel were cleaning up the aftermath in an orderly manner.
Not far away, Du Qinggang, who was talking with Zhang You, the leader of Group E, looked over at Duan Ming.
"His saber technique was fast, so fast even I couldn't see it clearly."
He nodded and walked over to Duan Ming.
Standing before Duan Ming, he said in a booming voice:
"Good lad, avenging your friend with your own hands! You're a real man! Just like I was back then!"
Duan Ming looked at the middle-aged man before him.
For some reason, the man's words made him feel unusually calm.
Had he been through something like this before too?
Would I end up like him someday?
"Duan Ming, Duan Ming, you little brat!"
Third Uncle's booming voice drew closer and closer.