Chapter 55: Fierce Battle

Ding Longyun was full of confusion. Ni Jianrong, who had been thrown back, quickly scrambled to his feet. Fang You, whose chest had been sliced by Su Li’s “Gluttony Fangs,” let out a muffled scream. His chest was opened by four cuts nearly ten centimeters deep, almost severing his torso. Blood, mixed with internal organs, erupted like a geyser, unstoppable. His body swayed, he fell backward, convulsing. This was a fatal injury; he was clearly not going to survive.

His face contorted. He could feel life draining away, and his eyes were filled with disbelief.

Su Li, like Ding Longyun, had shown no caution toward them. Their ambush attack should have been flawlessly successful.

But how could Su Li have known beforehand? Not only did he avoid the attack, but he also launched a counter-kill.

Carelessness.

He suddenly understood. All of Su Li’s actions were meant to deceive him. Su Li must have been wary of them all along. How ridiculous that he thought Su Li was unguarded and hadn’t anticipated that Su Li would suddenly counterattack. This moment of carelessness had cost him his life.

“Together! Kill him first!” Ni Jianrong saw Fang You lying on the ground, dying. His face darkened. He crouched slightly and lunged toward Su Li.

Wang Kaikang, who had just grabbed Xu Xuehui, immediately pushed her away violently upon hearing Ni Jianrong’s words. He then grabbed the weapon wrapped in cloth on his back, shaking the cloth open to reveal a finely crafted machete.

Gripping the machete, he charged at Su Li from the other side, following Ni Jianrong.

Xu Xuehui was considered no threat. Ding Longyun, whose chest was pierced by the bone spur, was severely wounded. Although Ni Jianrong hadn’t disemboweled him, he was sitting on the side. He couldn’t even stand up, let alone fight.

The only person who could threaten them now was Su Li. They planned to combine forces to eliminate Su Li first, which would give them complete control of the situation.

Ni Jianrong’s bone spur grew out of the flesh of his right hand. This was no ordinary weapon, but a special ability, similar to Su Li’s “Gluttony Fangs.”

Su Li had just dodged the bone spur attack when Wang Kaikang’s two-handed swing of the machete whistled through the air, coming from behind.

Su Li pulled the dagger from his waistband.

With a “clang,” Su Li blocked Wang Kaikang’s machete with the dagger. Su Li felt his strength was slightly greater than Wang Kaikang’s. He used the dagger to deflect the incoming machete and, with a quick movement, threw the dagger forward with his right hand.

With a “whoosh,” the dagger plunged into Wang Kaikang’s chest, sinking in up to the hilt.

“Damn it…” Wang Kaikang’s face immediately lost all color. He gripped the machete in his hand and stumbled backward, staring at the hilt of the dagger protruding from his chest with a look of utterly bewildered astonishment.

He had never seen this kind of fighting style or tactic before; he hadn’t even considered it. No one could have predicted that after using the dagger to block his machete, Su Li would instantly throw the dagger like a projectile. At such short range and in the blink of an eye, Wang Kaikang had no chance to dodge. He was instantly hit.

Fighting two men was difficult. In Su Li’s estimation, both Ni Jianrong and Wang Kaikang were at least Level 3 Spiritual Source Wielders, possibly even Level 4 like Ding Longyun. In a frontal confrontation, they would likely gang up and kill him. Therefore, he had to win through surprise.

Su Li’s attack was successful. On the other side, the foot-long bone spur that grew from the flesh of Ni Jianrong’s right arm was already lunging toward him. Su Li pushed off with both feet, darting diagonally forward the moment he threw the dagger.

Ni Jianrong’s bone spur missed. He roared in frustration, “Are you truly only Level 3?” A hint of fear was audible in his voice, but he had committed himself to the fight and had no choice but to charge forward.

Wang Kaikang, with a dagger plunged into his chest, did not immediately fall. Instead, he turned, gritted his teeth, and, gripping the machete with both hands, lunged at the swiftly moving Su Li alongside Ni Jianrong.

As a Level 3 Spiritual Source Wielder, his body was several times stronger than an ordinary person’s. Although the dagger wound was serious, it wouldn’t kill him instantly. He could still fight for a while.

His face, which had earlier seemed shy, was now twisted into a savage expression, fueled by pure rage toward Su Li.

Su Li sprinted toward the balcony railing, where his iron rod was waiting.

He grabbed the iron rod with his right hand and immediately swung it back.

With a “clang,” the iron rod blocked the bone spur lunging from Ni Jianrong. The “Gluttony Fangs” on the back of his left hand extended, ready to attack, but Wang Kaikang’s machete came down instantly.

From his current position, with the balcony railing right behind him, Su Li had no room to dodge the machete. He had to raise his “Gluttony Fangs” to block the attack.

Using the ten-centimeter-long “Gluttony Fangs” to parry a machete required incredibly precise control. Although Su Li possessed a certain level of combat experience, he had no absolute confidence and had to concentrate entirely on the maneuver.

He raised his left hand horizontally. The “Gluttony Fangs” accurately blocked the descending machete. Su Li’s control was perfect.

Ni Jianrong leaped up and delivered a powerful kick to Su Li’s abdomen.

Su Li was using his right hand and iron rod to fend off Ni Jianrong’s bone spur and was concentrating all his focus on using the Gluttony Fangs in his left hand to parry the machete. He couldn’t dodge or block Ni Jianrong’s kick.

With a muffled groan, the kick landed squarely on his abdomen. The force was so immense that Su Li felt his internal organs lurch.

A cruel smile appeared on Ni Jianrong’s face. He retracted the bone spur, which disappeared back into the flesh of his right hand. He then swung his right arm low, bypassing the iron rod, and slammed his hand hard into Su Li’s chest. The bone spur instantly re-emerged from his palm, aiming for Su Li’s heart.

Wang Kaikang simultaneously brought his machete down. He and Ni Jianrong had cornered Su Li on the balcony, intending to kill him.

Suddenly, Wang Kaikang felt a sharp pain in his back. A cold shock went straight to his heart.

Xu Xuehui, whom he had pushed away, had somehow rushed back. Gripping a dagger tightly with both hands, she plunged it into Wang Kaikang’s back, right up to the hilt.

Xu Xuehui was just a child, and they hadn’t paid her any attention. Wang Kaikang had been completely unprepared for her sudden attack from behind.

Struck by another dagger, the intense pain fully contorted Wang Kaikang’s face. He let out a shriek, violently twisted his body, abandoning his attack on Su Li, and brought his machete down toward Xu Xuehui.

Xu Xuehui slightly raised her head, her pale face showing a look of terror.

(End of Chapter)