Volume Two: Devil Game, Chapter Twenty-One: One Blade, Absolute Severance

The freezing spell. With a sharp cry, a three-centimeter sheet of ice sealed the guard’s legs and knees at once.

“Captain, we have to pull back.” Though it seemed the guard’s movement had been pinned, Deng Yuqi did not dare relax for a single moment.

“Trying to run?” A burst of white vapor suddenly erupted from the guard’s body, and the ice binding its legs melted away at once.

Ge Wendong’s expression changed drastically. “How can this be? Why does it have another skill now? Who on earth provoked it?”

Against a group like them, the guard naturally showed no mercy. It used its charge skill and shot straight at Deng Yuqi. With the two abilities overlapping, there was no room for her to evade. All she could do was push out with both hands and trigger her equipment’s power.

Ice Shield.

Before Deng Yuqi, shards of ice crystals suddenly appeared, quickly linking together.

Tiger Leap.

At the same moment, Ge Wendong roared as well. A majestic phantom of a tiger rose in the air, then merged into his body.

“Stop holding back. All of us attack together and break free from it.”

As soon as he finished, Ge Wendong charged toward the guard. At the same time, a strange eye pattern appeared on Wang Ge’s face.

Eagle Eye Gaze. Diving Strike.

As he murmured softly, he drew back his bowstring once more. When the string reached full draw, a clear eagle cry rang out through the surroundings. At the same time, a faint phantom of a mighty eagle spread its wings and slowly settled onto the arrow, then merged into it.

The guard’s longsword cut through the ice shield without the slightest pause. After several leaps, Ge Wendong reached Deng Yuqi’s side. He swung his fist and smashed it against the guard’s blade, unleashing a powerful shock of force. A long robe suddenly appeared over Deng Yuqi. The robe shimmered once, then, carried by the force, sent Deng Yuqi drifting backward.

Suspended in the air, Deng Yuqi raised her staff.

Elemental Summons. Ice Wheel Slaughter.

As she lifted the staff, a cold wind wrapped in snow suddenly appeared around her. The fine snow quickly gathered and grew, forming a serrated wheel two meters across. Then the wheel began spinning rapidly at the tip of the staff.

Ge Wendong and the guard each took a step back. After landing, Captain Ge let his arms drop, and two tiger claws instantly appeared.

“Oh?” The guard looked at Ge Wendong with a trace of interest.

Ge Wendong gave a cold laugh. He clenched both hands, and a greatsword appeared in his grip. He suddenly swung it down in a vertical cleave. The blade flashed across the guard’s armor at a speed it had not expected, scattering a spray of dazzling sparks, then knocked its great blade aside and finally struck the guard’s chin.

The unexpected blow sent the guard’s head snapping up, as though it had been struck dumb.

“Good opening.” Wang Ge and Deng Yuqi both thought at once. Wang Ge was the first to release the bowstring. The arrow transformed into a soaring hawk and flew out, then vanished from everyone’s sight. When it appeared again, it was less than half a meter from the guard’s eyes.

Deng Yuqi also shouted and swung her staff. The spinning wheel immediately whirled forward, slicing toward the guard.

Ge Wendong simply put away the greatsword and gathered a ball of light in his fist. As for the other two, who had not awakened any talent, they did not recklessly close in. Instead, they moved to Deng Yuqi’s side.

The audience at the main stage was stunned, and the spectators on site shot to their feet in unison.

“Could they actually score the first kill on a guard in this game?” one demon blurted out, unable to contain his excitement.

“Possible. That combo is several notches stronger than the last time they fought,” exclaimed a red-skinned demon with horns in a low voice.

“I saw them coasting. I saw them crash. I even doubted their strength for a while and thought they were inferior to Lu Yi. But looking at this now, the program’s introduction was right. They are the strongest contestants.” A short green-skinned creature sighed.

“Kill the guard? How is that possible? If they could really kill it, would the remaining time just be left idle for them to do as they please?” another seated demon retorted.

“Kill doesn’t mean destroy. After being killed, the contestants get a period to recover, and then the guard revives and becomes stronger,” the red-skinned demon explained.

“That sounds more like it,” the seated demon muttered.

Meanwhile, in the game, the guard, still somewhat dazed from the beating, suddenly trembled. A ring of crimson ripples spread from both of its eyes.

Struck by those ripples, Ge Wendong, who had been about to attack, suddenly felt his body grow terribly heavy. Even the arrow and the wheel that had already reached the guard now seemed unbearably slow.

“All is mine.” The guard slowly uttered those words. At the same time, it reached out and seized the longsword in midair. An astonishing aura erupted from its body, pressing down so hard that the members of the Gale Pursuit Team could barely stand. “One-Blade Severance.”

Scarlet light flared in the guard’s eyes. Then, gripping the longsword, it brought it down toward Ge Wendong.

The blade struck the ground, and a vast fan-shaped stretch of earth before the guard shattered at once. The arrow, so close moments before, held on for only an instant within the storm before being blown away to who knew where.

As for the ice wheel, it shattered outright. Every member of the Gale Pursuit Team caught in that area was blasted several meters into the air. Blood spurted from their mouths, their equipment manifested all over their bodies, and some of the lower-grade gear even shattered on the spot.

Soon, all of them fell back to the ground amid the settling dust. Though everyone struggled desperately, none could rise.

The guard’s body trembled rhythmically, as though it too were gasping hard after unleashing that strike. It stared at the ground before it, where there was no Ge Wendong—only a few splintered pieces of wood.

At the critical instant, Ge Wendong had used a purple-grade consumable, a substitute wooden stake. The spot where he had stood was replaced by the stake, while he himself had instantly retreated more than ten meters. That was how he managed to save his life.

But even though he had escaped death, he had not fully escaped the guard’s attack range. At this moment, he lay on the ground with his teammates.

“Captain, use it now,” Wang Ge said with effort, reaching out toward Ge Wendong.

Ge Wendong coughed up another mouthful of blood, then closed his eyes. Very soon, a faintly glowing scroll slowly descended. Captain Ge struck the scroll with his palm, and a magic circle automatically began to trace itself on the ground.

“Trying to leave? You... you wish.” The guard forcefully steadied itself and raised the longsword, intending to hurl it. But just then, its body swayed again. Seeing that the formation had already enveloped the Gale Pursuit Team, the guard roared and threw the longsword toward Deng Yuqi.

The blade shot rapidly toward Deng Yuqi, but at that exact moment the formation on the ground burst into light, and the members of the Gale Pursuit Team vanished from before the guard’s eyes.

The longsword plunged into the loose earth. Beneath its tip, not even a shred of cloth remained. Seeing this, the guard threw back its head and let out a furious, unwilling howl.