Volume Two: Demon Game, Chapter Twenty-Four: A Head-On Clash

Lu Yi extended his other hand, winding the rope around it as he said to Shen Yixue, “I’m fine.”

“I Am a Husky: The streamer is really lucky. He actually got saved like that.”

“Black Phosphor: Ah, he’s been saved.”

“Sweetheart Yiyi: That scared me to death.”

“Phoenix: No, it’s still too early to say that.”

Suddenly, a bubble swelled up in the molten iron below. It burst almost at once, and a man rose straight out of the metal. He cupped a scoop of molten iron in both hands and hurled it toward Lu Yi while shouting, “Little thief, come down here with me!”

The molten iron splashed onto the rope. In an instant, the section behind Lu Yi was burned through. With the rope around his waist severed and his support gone, Lu Yi immediately dropped a little farther. If he had not already looped the rope around his hand in advance, he would likely have fallen straight into the molten iron.

He stretched out the hand that had been burned raw, and the moment his palm touched the rope, his face twisted with pain. “Can you hold on, Shen Yixue?” he shouted upward.

“No problem,” Shen Yixue replied at once.

Enduring the pain, Lu Yi wrapped the rope around his right hand, then reached with his left to climb hand over hand. The rope kept rubbing against the wounds on his hands. Blood streamed down from his palms and dripped into the molten iron below, hissing softly.

“Trying to run?” the Warden shouted as he scooped up another handful of molten iron and flung it. Seeing Lu Yi dodge with all his might, the Warden burst into laughter. “Keep dodging. Go on, keep dodging!”

“Black Phosphor: I still feel like the streamer is in terrible danger.”

“Sweetheart Yiyi: Hurry up, streamer!”

“Warmhearted Man: Even if he’s faster, it won’t matter. This is probably where he’ll be buried. Haven’t you noticed? The Warden hasn’t used any blade aura. He’s just toying with the streamer now.”

“Phoenix: True. The streamer may really die here because of his own bad idea.”

“Little thief, you’re pretty good at dodging. Let me see how you avoid this move.”

As he spoke, the Warden reached down and pulled up a long blade coated in molten iron. Blade aura burst forth, and the iron clinging to the blade scattered at once.

Lu Yi naturally sensed the danger below. Frowning, he freed his left hand and pushed something from his arms downward. It was a folder, and as it fell, sheets of paper spilled out in a fluttering shower.

The Warden raised his blade, but he quickly stopped, staring blankly at the pages.

These pages were not talismans with special functions or other useful items. They were the memoir of this very Warden.

Just like the diary of the previous Warden, collecting this one’s memoir and handing it over would earn some reward—at least, that was what the text said.

Lu Yi had only found this by chance while traveling here. But his relationship with the Warden was already irreconcilable; even if he gathered it all and handed it over, the Warden would probably cut him down first and read it later.

By scattering the pages now, Lu Yi was gambling that even a portion of the memoir might still affect the Warden. It seemed he had guessed right.

The fluttering pages eventually fell into the molten iron and burned. Taking advantage of the Warden’s momentary daze, Lu Yi climbed all the way to the top of the factory building.

“Hah, I’m saved. Thank you.” Lu Yi let out a breath and took out a healing talisman, pressing it onto his hand.

“It’s nothing. You didn’t also help draw the Warden away for me before?” Shen Yixue said as she brushed back her hair. Then she looked down. “Can you still move? Let’s get out of here quickly.”

“I’m fine. Let’s go down first.”

The two soon descended from the roof to the ground, but Lu Yi did not move on after that.

Shen Yixue turned back and urged him, “What are you doing? Hurry up and go.”

Lu Yi flexed his already healed hand and smiled at Shen Yixue. “No. I went to a great deal of trouble to lure the Warden here for a reason. I came to do something big. If I leave now, it would be far too unfair to all the effort I spent.”

“Black Phosphor: What? The streamer lured the Warden here for some other purpose?”

“Sweetheart Yiyi: Taking such a huge risk—what exactly does the streamer want to do?”

Shen Yixue looked extremely surprised. She stared at Lu Yi and asked hesitantly, “What exactly do you want to do?”

With a smile, Lu Yi looked at the factory building beside them. “I’m planning to go head-to-head with the Warden.”

“What!?” Shen Yixue shrieked at once. “Have you lost your mind? The Warden can’t be destroyed. What good would fighting him do?”

“I never said I was going to destroy him,” Lu Yi said with an inscrutable smile. “I plan to take away his ability to move. Not destroy him, just make it so he can’t act.”

“You—” Shen Yixue’s eyes went wide.

“Black Phosphor: Is the streamer insane? The whole Windchaser team couldn’t beat the Warden, and he wants to take him on alone?”

“Camel of Gold: Go on, then! Fight him! Don’t be timid.”

The barrage in the livestream was growing rapidly. Soon, the comments supporting Lu Yi’s frontal assault had the upper hand, and the sound of gifts being sent piled up so heavily that Lu Yi could no longer tell who was giving what.

“You—” Lu Yi had just started to speak when his expression suddenly changed. In his eyes, a thin line appeared on the wall of the factory building. The line deepened rapidly and spread outward.

Without another word, Lu Yi lunged forward and tackled Shen Yixue to the ground. At the same time, a dazzling blade light split through the wall of the factory building and slashed out.

The blade light, nearly a hundred meters long, crashed into the ground, instantly kicking up a vast cloud of dust. Even the earth trembled.

Lu Yi got back to his feet. He saw that the blade light had carved a straight ravine nearly a meter deep into the ground, and flames were still rising in clusters around it.

“Little thief, you actually didn’t run.” A bald, muscular man, his whole body red and his muscles knotted tight, walked slowly to the breach carrying a long blade. He flexed his body, and the molten iron that had nearly solidified on him scattered to the ground.

“Why should I run?” Lu Yi turned to face the Warden. “In my view, anything with a shell is food, like shrimp, crabs, snails. And the harder the shell, the more tender the meat beneath.”

At that, a curve appeared at the corner of his mouth. “From the very first glance, I was already thinking about how to strip the shell off you. Now that I’ve done it, of course I have to enjoy the harvest.”

Shen Yixue stared at Lu Yi in utter horror.

“Warmhearted Man: Are you insane? You came here just to melt the Warden’s armor?”

“Camel of Gold: Absolutely mad. He actually wanted to strip the Warden’s armor from the very first glance.”

After hearing Lu Yi’s words, the Warden clearly froze for a moment. Then he gave a cold laugh. “You think that without my armor, you’ll be able to harm me?”

Lu Yi took out a small knife and flipped it in his hand. “Exactly. That’s what I think.”

Looking at the small knife in Lu Yi’s hand, then at the great blade in the Warden’s, Shen Yixue and the viewers in the livestream were all somewhat speechless.

“We’re about to fight. If you don’t want to get caught up in it, stay farther back,” Lu Yi said to Shen Yixue without turning around. At the same time, he slowly lowered his body into a sprinting stance. The six-pointed star in his left eye appeared at that very moment.

“You iron lump,” Lu Yi said with a smile, looking at the burly man across from him. The Warden frowned, clearly displeased with the address, but Lu Yi ignored his attitude and went on, “Without your armor, you’re full of openings everywhere.”

Once he finished speaking, the Windward Pendant around his neck blazed to life. He shot toward the Warden.

Hearing Lu Yi’s words, the Warden froze for a moment, then flew into a towering rage. “You really dared to come? You’re courting death!” He raised his great blade and slashed out a blade glow.

“Camel of Gold: He really went for it! Come on, streamer!”

“I Am a Husky: Awooo.”

With the enhancement of the magic eye, Lu Yi could clearly see the Warden’s movements. The moment the Warden swung his blade, Lu Yi judged the direction of the strike and leapt nimbly. In the blink of an eye, he had arrived beside the Warden’s right arm.

He looked at the Warden with a smile, while the Warden’s expression changed drastically. He immediately reached out with his left hand to grab Lu Yi. Lu Yi ducked low, knife in hand, and slipped past along the Warden’s waist. The blade cut through the Warden’s body without the slightest hindrance, and some black liquid splashed onto Lu Yi’s face.

Reaching the Warden’s back, Lu Yi swiftly lifted the knife and slashed upward across the Warden’s back. Then he kicked the Warden in the rear, using the force to create distance.

The Warden staggered forward several steps, then turned back in fury.

Lu Yi twirled the knife in his hand. “The meat is tender. Not hard at all.”

“Heh heh heh.” The Warden sneered a few times. “You think that just because I’ve lost my armor, there’s nowhere left for me to grow stronger?”

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly lunged forward. His speed was actually several times faster than before.

“Boar charge? Useless!” Lu Yi sneered and charged straight toward him.

“Camel of Gold: The Warden’s speed has increased by more than double without his armor!”

“Black Phosphor: Streamer, don’t be reckless!”

“Sweetheart Yiyi: Move aside, streamer! Are you really going to fight him head-on?”

“Warmhearted Man: He’s crazy! With the Warden’s strength, speed, and the weapon in his hand, one slash means death and one hit means grievous injury.”

“Phoenix: And the streamer’s little knife can’t block the Warden’s weapon at all.”

The two figures crossed in a blur, then each came to a stop on either side.

“Black Phosphor: What! The Warden is actually in a defensive stance!”

“Warmhearted Man: Impossible. Why would the Warden defend himself?”

“Camel of Gold: Did I see that wrong? Facing the streamer, the Warden didn’t attack at all and instead took a defensive posture.”

“Phoenix: That makes no sense. This should be a one-sided advantage. Why would he choose to defend?”

“Wolf in the Poison Miasma Valley: Exactly. The Warden is an immortal being. No matter how badly injured he is, he will revive. What could he possibly fear?”

Lu Yi sighed inwardly. He had not expected the Warden to react so quickly.

Just now, when he rushed over, he had intended to catch the Warden off guard. Halfway there, he had swapped the knife in his hand for Demonhunter.

He had not expected the Warden to sense danger instantly and cross his long blade before him. Lu Yi judged that the gain was less than expected, so he switched his weapon back again.

Though slightly regretful, Lu Yi turned around with an expression of complete nonchalance and said, “I was wondering what you were laughing at. So you’re just a freak.”

At that moment, the Warden had a grave expression as he clutched the wound Lu Yi had just made. Hearing Lu Yi’s words, his body stiffened, then he turned around stiffly to stare at Lu Yi.

Shen Yixue and the viewers in the livestream also looked blankly at Lu Yi. Lu Yi spread his hands. “Am I wrong? Haven’t you just gone from a turtle with its head tucked in to a turtle without a shell?”

“Sweetheart Yiyi: Hee-hee, the streamer is as vicious as ever.”

The Warden frowned. “What was that thing in your hand just now?” Clearly, compared with Lu Yi’s mockery, he cared more about that instant of danger.

Lu Yi flicked the small knife in his hand. “A knife. For eating meat.”

“Little thief, if you don’t want to say, then forget it.” The Warden slowly raised his blade above his head. Lu Yi arched a brow and immediately leapt aside. At the same time, the Warden brought his blade down, and a blade glow more than ten meters long instantly kicked up a cloud of dust.

After landing, Lu Yi surged forward again. The two once more crossed paths, and the Warden gained another wound.

“I already said it: you’ve only become a turtle without a shell. You think that because you’re a little faster, you can touch me?” Lu Yi said with mockery as he spun the knife.

“What’s going on? The streamer isn’t much faster than the Warden, so why is one side repeatedly gaining the upper hand?” asked one viewer.

“Sweetheart Yiyi: I don’t know, but I feel like the streamer is getting stronger and stronger.”

The two exchanged several more blows. Relying on the astonishing dynamic vision granted by the magic eye, Lu Yi could always evade the Warden’s attacks and leave a wound on him each time.

“This is impossible!” The Warden’s face was full of disbelief.

“Phoenix: How pitiful. The Warden probably can’t accept that the sly brat he always thought him to be is actually gaining the upper hand again and again in a direct exchange.”

“Minister of Ink: Indeed. To the Warden, this should count as humiliation.”

The Warden shook his head. “No, this is impossible.”

“This is impossible.” The Warden threw his head back and roared. In an instant, the aura around him surged violently, and a ferocious burst of energy erupted from his body.

Purple flames seemed to whirl around him, but Lu Yi knew those were not flames at all. They were a vast amount of energy.

“Die. Die for me.” The Warden swung his long blade, and a crescent-shaped purple blade glow shot out. Lu Yi had already taken evasive action the moment the Warden moved.

“Die. Die.” The Warden continued slashing again and again.

Seeing this, Shen Yixue’s face darkened at once. No wonder she had felt that the Warden was so strong, even no weaker than the first Warden’s berserk state. It was surely because people like Lu Yi had kept provoking him.

“Black Phosphor: Streamer, what should we do if the Warden keeps getting stronger the more he fights?”

“Sweetheart Yiyi: Streamer, you’re not really going to force this to the end, are you? If it doesn’t work, just forget it. If he keeps getting stronger, I’m afraid no one will be able to control him.”

Lu Yi circled near the Warden, sometimes close, sometimes far. When the chance was right, he would even rush in and leave another wound. Yet his expression grew worse and worse.

There was no helping it. The Warden, exactly as he had planned, had dragged out the chase once more, but even so, there was not much time left before the twenty-minute mark.

At that very moment, the Warden suddenly lashed blade aura again and again toward an empty patch of ground, a wild, insolent smile spreading across his face. Lu Yi, seeing this, was also slightly taken aback.

“Lu Yi.” Hearing Shen Yixue call his name, he turned back to look. Shen Yixue was now emitting a strange, faint glow. Lu Yi immediately understood that she had used her ability.

“Hurry and do it.” Shen Yixue frowned, looking strained.

Lu Yi nodded and charged toward the Warden. Just then, the Warden suddenly turned his head and revealed a ferocious smile at Lu Yi.