The night before (3)
Linyin stood on the ring, lowered her head and tightened the bandages one circle at a time.
Winning six matches in a row in such a ridiculous manner was met with boos from some of the Fantasy Beast spectator areas, with some questioning the fairness of the selection process. On-site registration was urgently halted, and the atmosphere became increasingly tense.
And now, she finally has a real opponent.
A tall figure strode onto the stage.
"Han Jiangxue, fourth year student in the Mythical Beast Department. My Mythical Beast is a Mystical-level Clouded Leopard." The girl introduced herself confidently. As her orange ponytail swung, the aroma of some kind of orange soda seemed to waft from her.
"Rinne, first year in the Fighting Department."
"I know you. You're famous." Han Jiangxue's eyes lit up with enthusiasm. "Come on, use the same move you used to break Damian's armor, and try mine!"
………………
"You can also... try this..."
A very thin smoke floated out of the small bottle. Old Hans' eyes were bloodshot as he stared at the man in front of him.
"The treacherous Phantasmal Beast Palace... No, it's only that stinking Flora who's treacherous..."
Hearing Old Hans' increasingly low voice, Lucien's expression hidden under his visor suddenly changed, and he ferociously pulled the armored weapon out of Old Hans' body.
Losing his support, Old Hans fell to his knees. Looking at the last remaining puff of smoke and the still-standing visitors from the Fantasy Beast Hall, he roared in despair, "Don't you understand yet... Anyone loyal to her... anyone who does her dirty work... will not have a good ending..."
The pupils behind the visor trembled.
Lucien suddenly thought of the many people who disappeared silently.
But the next second, he was as cold and hard as before. From the beginning, he didn't do things for her just to get a good ending.
His vision was gradually blurring, and of course he couldn't see the expression behind the mask. Blood gushed out of Old Hans' mouth, "She won't succeed...never..."
The veterinary medicine had no effect on Lucien, but it made him even more drowsy. "My mistress usurped the throne... How long can she be so proud..."
As Old Hans' eyelids fell, the armored weapon in Lucien's hand also fell to the ground with a crisp sound.
………………
"Bang."
The phantom horn she had just borrowed fell to the ground, and Reannabelle stood up excitedly.
It was Wuji Zhenqi! She definitely wouldn't be wrong.
Linyin's golden eyes and the golden halo shining through the bandages on her hands all indicate that she has not only mastered the Wuji Qi, but has also made rapid progress.
That’s great, she’s worthy of being called Rin!
"Hey! Your horn!" After Daomingsi Lian's bubble sound attack failed, he immediately found a location for his younger brother. He diligently picked up the phantom horn on the ground and wanted to hand it to Belle.
"Now it's your turn to shout for her." The girl couldn't wait to run to the ring, "Next it's your responsibility to cheer her on, come on." Then she turned around to face him and made a cheering gesture.
The impact of the energetic beautiful girl was astonishing. Daoming Si Lian raised the speaker in a daze and shouted the first sentence in his life, "Come on! Rinne!"
The power of the phantom speaker was roughly comparable to that of some small to medium-sized theaters. Hearing a deep, unfamiliar male voice cheering her on from the audience, Lin Yin stumbled, only to be supported by Han Jiangxue.
"You are very strong."
After a round of fighting, a dent appeared on Han Jiangxue's silver-white chest armor. The shadow of a clouded leopard emerged and slowly repaired itself.
"You too." Lin Yin wasn't lying. She had used 50% of her Wuji Zhen Qi, which was enough to pierce the rust centipede's shell before. The clouded leopard was known for its agility, but she hadn't expected its phantom beast armor to be quite durable. "Can I ask how much a clouded leopard's phantom beast egg costs?"
Isn't this much better than the so-called panacea fantasy beast, the poor man's exclusive, the Frost Wolf?
"Um... 300 gold coins? I bought it right at the school gate." Han Jiangxue was stunned, but answered her question naturally, "I have to buy it soon, otherwise that shady boss will raise the price."
"Have you been cheated too?"
"Almost. I had just arrived at the academy during the last ladder tournament..."
Seeing two people with unique thinking starting to chat on the stage, the audience started to get agitated again.
Someone rolled his hands into a tube and shouted, "If you don't want to compete, get out!"
However, before his voice reached the arena, it was drowned out by the overwhelming sound waves from the phantom loudspeaker. Daomingsi Lian followed Belle's orders and diligently shouted "Come on, Linyin!" This made Linyin realize that it was not polite to slack off on the field like this. She bowed to Han Jiangxue, and the two of them distanced themselves again.
"My next move is called 'Cloud Shadow Thousand Cracks', be careful!" Han Jiangxue spoke and acted with an air of grace, as if she had stepped out of ancient Chinese civilization. When Lin Yin heard the name of the move, her Infinite Qi circulated at full speed through her eyes.
If nothing unexpected happens, her eyes can restrain all clones, illusions, or tricks to charm the mind.
Han Jiangxue crossed her arms in front of her chest, and mist began to rise from the surface of her phantom beast armor, her aura threatening to obscure the sky and the sun. The next second, her figure suddenly blurred, as if merging into the surrounding air.
Linyin waited for the opportunity, and sure enough, dozens of her phantoms appeared on the ring. Each phantom was like the real her, with swift movements and fierce momentum.
"You're very fast in every one of them." Rinyin praised.
"Of course. My agility is also S."
The phantoms spoke at the same time, and Linyin's impromptu trick did not succeed.
Immediately afterwards, before the words were finished, the phantoms rushed towards Linyin from all directions, punching, clawing, and kicking. Each attack was accompanied by a sharp sound that tore through the air, as if thousands of sharp blades were slashing towards Linyin at the same time.
Seeing her trick wasn't working, Lin Yin obediently channeled her Infinite Qi and immediately discerned the real Han Jiangxue. However, the real her was hidden behind layers of illusions, and she wasn't sure if these illusions were completely harmless, so she couldn't easily break through.
She quickly retreated, creating distance, pretending to escape the circle of phantoms. The phantoms didn't give way, closing in almost as soon as she moved.
Linyin had no choice but to punch and smash the fake shadow that hit her eyes. The fake shadow turned into a thick fog, blocking her vision.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
There were several muffled sounds in succession, and Linyin's shoulders, sides and legs were hit by several phantom attacks. Even though she used her Wuji True Qi to block them in time, she could still feel the powerful impact.
Han Jiangxue's voice echoed from all directions: "How is it? This move is not a simple illusion, every attack is real!"
Lin Yin didn't respond. She closed her eyes, pretending to listen for the sound and determine her location. In reality, she had already determined Han Jiangxue's true position. Wuji Qi shone brightly, and her fist was almost completely dyed golden.
"boom--!"
An illusion was directly shattered by her fist, but this time, the moment the illusion shattered, Han Jiangxue's true form was revealed.
Linyin stopped in time, and her armor barely sustained any new damage. "Amazing! You actually found my true form!"
Linyin smiled, "Do you want to continue?"
To be honest, she couldn't gauge the destructive power of Wuji Zhenqi, so it was best to stop at the right time.
Han Jiangxue shook her head, the scent of oranges wafting towards her. "No need for that. I know you didn't use your full strength, but this is already my strongest move." She panted slightly and gave a thumbs-up. "I'm convinced!"
………………
Song Baiyue sat in the corner of the audience and clapped silently.
“Click.”
Suddenly, a small, round object rolled to his feet. He looked down and saw it was a metal marble, stuck in the gap between the seats.
Frowning, he bent down to pick up the marbles, then stood up. Song Baiyue silently passed through the noisy audience, blending into the shadow of the large silver egg like a shadow.
Outside the stadium, night had quietly fallen, and the air was filled with the smell of dampness. The street lamps, decorated with copper thorn flowers, struggled to shine, but their light seemed unable to reach anyone's eyes.
"If you have something to say, just say it. What's the mission?" He spoke to the air in a calm tone.
"It's not a mission." Lucien stepped out from the shadows, trying to force out his usual smile. "I was just passing by and thought I'd see you."
"It's not a mission, yet you're still playing marbles." Song Baiyue punched him and his tone became relaxed.
"It's called sentiment, do you understand?" Lucien smiled and threw another marble to him.
The two people met when they were still unknown and hadn't seen each other for a long time, but there was a kind of subtle warmth between them.
Song Baiyue took the marble and twirled it lightly with his fingertips. "It's not a mission, but there must be something else."
When he was ten, he was specially approved to join the Shadow Guard Reserves. Initially, he faced a lot of ostracism within the team, but Lucien always looked after him like a brother. Over the years, he came to understand Lucien, just as Lucien understood him.
Lucien's smile faded a bit, or rather, his true emotions were revealed. "Someone reported the information about the Heavenly Beast Contract in the Merian Temple, and the clues point directly to you..."
He looked into Song Baiyue's eyes and asked, "What did you do in Bright Moon Forest? Are you involved in the disappearance of the potion in the laboratory?"
Song Baiyue's eyes darkened and he said nothing.
After years of being brothers, what could Lucian not understand? He took a deep breath and turned his back to him. After a moment, he turned back. "Do you know what you're doing? You forgot all that..."
"I haven't forgotten."
The halo of light from the street lamp cast a faint shadow on Song Baiyue's profile. He looked down at the two marbles in his hand, as if he could see something far away through them.
"I haven't forgotten you yet... The Betrayal Hall is used as experimental subjects. Do you know what the experimental subjects eventually become?"
"I know better than you."
Lucien laughed angrily. "Okay, you know better than me. Then may I ask what has driven you so crazy and insane that you do such a thing? Who are you trying to please?"
"What about you? You just finished a mission, right?" Song Baiyue smelled a faint scent of blood on him. "Don't you never accept these missions? What did you do for them?"
Lucian was speechless.
Song Baiyue wanted to throw the marble back to Lucien, but then he took it back in his hand. "Working for an organization like this, does it really matter which path you choose?" He chuckled self-deprecatingly. "Aren't they all just bloody and full of evil?"
"Don't say that." Lucien evaded the question. "You and I never carry out...those missions."
Song Baiyue looked at him with pity and stopped talking.
"The informant has been dealt with this time. I...I won't tell anyone either." Lucien closed his eyes. "But there won't be a next time."
"Thank you." Song Baiyue thanked him sincerely, but he also felt that something had completely broken between them at this moment. "If one day I become the target of a mission, you can consider carrying it out. If I face you, I will resist gently."
"...You're on your own."
Lucien's back trembled slightly and soon disappeared into the night.
Under the moonlight, Song Baiyue's mint-colored pupils were empty. People like him, born in sorrow and raised in darkness, never had any pursuit or attachment to this world.
He finally found a ray of light, and that became his faith. He was shattered to pieces for his faith. Is that strange?
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