Chapter 163: Pyrrhic Victory
Duane fought through the discomfort in his body and quickly scanned his surroundings, searching for any trace of the two men.
By now, his hearing had returned, and the distinct sound of footsteps echoed from both sides.
At the same time, a piercing killing intent shot toward him from the left.
He instinctively rolled to the right.
BOOM!
A searing blast of Fighting Qi detonated right where he had been standing. If he had been a second slower, he would have been critically wounded.
Sensing someone charging from behind, Duane quickly spun around, using his nimble footwork to dodge a lunging Longsword.
"Let go!"
He abruptly seized his opponent’s wrist, twisting it with enough force to snap the bone.
Simultaneously, he balled his left hand into a fist. Fighting Qi surged violently, stimulating the muscles in his wrist until his arm seemed to have swollen in size.
"Die!"
He slammed his fist into the man’s forehead, caving in the iron mask that covered his face. Mangled features and shredded flesh burst from the impact.
The man collapsed limply, clearly dead.
But just before he died—or more accurately, from the moment he had charged forward—he had already activated the Spell Scroll hidden in his chest.
KABOOM!
The assassin’s body was blown in two. Duane’s pupils contracted violently as he witnessed the scene.
Almost subconsciously, he kicked off the ground and leaped away, simultaneously drawing out all the Fighting Qi in his body to form a defensive layer of Armor.
The explosion made the forest floor tremble violently. A shockwave, even more powerful than the last, slammed into Duane, sending him flying like a cannonball.
The last assassin’s lips curled into a cruel smile. He anticipated Duane’s trajectory and flashed into position to intercept him mid-air.
Even an Earth Tier Warrior couldn’t change their path in mid-air with no leverage.
Moreover, Duane had been blown senseless by the blast; it was a miracle he could even react at all.
The assassin raised his Longsword, a bright Sword Aura dancing on the blade.
"It’s over!"
As Duane was sent flying, he was overcome with intense vertigo. A constant ringing filled his ears, and his body felt as if it were about to be torn apart.
’He knows the last assassin won’t miss this chance,’ he thought. ’This is the most dangerous moment!’
Though he couldn’t change his trajectory, he managed to force his body to twist around, allowing him to see the assassin who already had his Longsword raised.
"Die!" the man said coldly, swinging his Longsword in a direct Thrust.
Duane gritted his teeth. He had no Sword, no Shield—only the upper half of the corpse he was still clutching.
"Shield of Defense!"
At a time like this, he couldn’t afford to be picky. He threw the half-corpse in front of him like a Shield and, at the same time, circulated the last of his Fighting Qi to cast Shield of Defense.
CLANG!
When the Longsword struck the torso of the man’s dead companion, it rang out with the sound of metal on metal.
"You!"
The assassin’s eyes widened. He had been certain his Sword would pierce his companion’s corpse and then run straight through Duane’s head.
He never imagined that his target, on the verge of death, would still have such a powerful defensive Combat Technique.
In that brief stalemate, although the Longsword broke through the Shield of Defense, the momentary external force allowed Duane to shift his body just enough to avoid the Longsword aimed at his head.
"Die!"
Duane let out a low roar and lunged forward. His hands locked onto his opponent’s head like a vise and, with a brutal twist...
CRACK!
The man’s neck was nearly twisted into a knot, and he died on the spot.
The assassin must have been certain his final strike would succeed, so he hadn’t been prepared to die and, unlike the others, hadn’t detonated the Spell Scroll on his body.
This, in turn, gave Duane the opening he needed. Otherwise, he would have had to endure yet another blast.
Duane collapsed to the ground, his chest heaving as he gasped for air.
In all his time since transmigrating, Duane had never experienced a moment so dangerous. He had come perilously close to meeting his end right here.
’Six Death Warriors—two Human Tier and four Advanced Warriors, all carrying explosives. Whoever is behind this really wants me dead!’
Now that the battle was over, his adrenaline levels plummeted, and a wave of exhaustion and pain washed over him.
He hadn’t suffered any Sword wounds, but he was severely injured by the multiple explosions.
Although his Fighting Qi Armor and the Light Armor he wore had absorbed some of the impact, a significant portion of the force had still slammed into his body.
Now, he was covered in a dense network of small cuts, and his muscles were already beginning to bruise.
’I can’t stay here. This place isn’t safe. I have to leave, now!’
Gritting his teeth, he struggled to sit up.
He looked around. Besides the corpses, there were chunks of flesh scattered everywhere, creating a horrifying, bloody scene.
A wave of delayed fear washed over Duane, but with it came a sliver of relief.
’If even one of those six had been an Earth Tier Warrior, I doubt I’d be in any condition to move right now.’
He staggered to his feet and, swaying, picked up a Longsword, intending to find his horse and leave.
But just then, the distinct sound of hoofbeats came from behind the hill.
Duane’s heart tightened. ’Just one horse. A passerby, or are they sending in a finisher?’
He was in terrible shape, and his Fighting Qi was nearly depleted.
If this assassination attempt wasn’t over, if there was a follow-up, he was in deep trouble.
’I have to hide!’
Duane frantically looked around but found that the earlier shockwaves had toppled the surrounding trees, and any potential hiding spots had been blasted clear by the force of the wind.
Besides, it seemed too late to hide anyway.
The horse had already crested the hill and entered Duane’s line of sight.
’It’s him!’
Recognizing the rider, Duane was instantly on high alert, as if facing a formidable foe.
It was none other than Manny, the man with whom Duane had clashed just yesterday.
As it happened, when Duane was trying to guess who had sent the six Death Warriors, Manny and the Holy Radiance Court had been prime suspects.
While Duane was on guard, however, Manny was completely stunned by the scene at the bottom of the hill.
What should have been a wide, forested road was now a mess of craters.
But what horrified Manny most was the splattered blood and the dismembered limbs scattered everywhere.
’What in the world? What happened here?’
This was the West Suburb of the Royal Capital, a place normally patrolled by Guards. How could such a horrific attack have occurred here today?
Suddenly, Manny’s gaze locked onto a figure. ’Is that... Baron Duane?’
He quickly spurred his horse down the hill. "Baron, what’s happened to you?"
"Halt!"
Duane raised his Longsword and pointed it directly at him.
Those six assassins were Death Warriors, and the Church Court was known for producing fanatics.
Given that suspicion, Duane couldn’t possibly let the man approach him easily.
"Baron, it’s me, Manny Haydon!"
He reined in his horse and dismounted. "Are you injured?"
Duane narrowed his eyes.
He noticed that Manny hadn’t drawn a weapon when he dismounted, and the look of shock on his face didn’t seem fake.
’Could it be that he and the Holy Radiance Court have nothing to do with this?’
Duane remained on guard. There was no hiding what had happened, so he might as well admit it.
"I was ambushed by assassins."
HISS!
Manny sucked in a sharp breath. "How is that possible?"
Even if the Baron’s Territory was poor, he was still a genuine Baron, not to mention a recent person of interest. Who would take such a massive risk to assassinate someone like him?
At the same time, he understood why Duane had a Sword pointed at him.
"Baron, you’ve misunderstood! I’m not an assassin, and I don’t have men this powerful under my command!"
Manny explained, "I just came from Count Kais’s manor. They said you were at the horse farm over here, so I came to find you."
"Looking for me?"
Duane was skeptical. "What for?"
"The Lord Bishop heard that my rashness yesterday disturbed your peace of mind, so he sent me to invite you to be a guest at Lakefront Manor this evening."
Duane’s guard lowered a little more. He glanced toward the woods in the distance and asked probingly:
"My horse ran off over there. Would you mind helping me find it?"