Fung Ching was the fastest to get ready. He pulled out his longbow and held three arrows in his other hand. He closed his eyes and listened closely to the sounds around him.
He was very familiar with the sound of this beast. In fact, anyone who had stayed overnight in the outermost outskirts of Green Sea Forest would know this bark. He immediately said, “Ironhead mastiffs. Class-two nocturnal magical beasts that hunt in packs. Their strength is around middle to upper, corresponding to intermediate and advanced Martial Mortals. They are vicious and bold creatures. They have skulls as hard as iron and they like to break their enemies bones by running into them with tremendous speed.”
“Moreover, every pack will be lead by a class-three mastiff!”
“Ironhead mastiffs, is it?” said Wun Fan. He saw Hung Yu Fei come out of the tent, so he channelled soul energy and put the tent back into his ring. At the same time, he spoke to Old Lei in his mind, “Old Lei, let me try and fight by myself later. If needed, don’t hesitate to save my life!”
“Mm, very well,” said Old Lei casually. He sounded like he didn’t quite care, but he was in fact very satisfied with Wun Fan’s decision. After all, there was no point in training someone if they relied too much on him and didn’t have the motivation to get stronger by themselves. Wun Fan had never let him down in this respect. In fact, Old Lei had never been worried about him when it came to a fight.
Wun Fan’s mind ran at full capacity, trying to find a strategy to deal with the incoming threat. He turned to Fung Ching and asked, “Fung Ching, how well can you fight in this darkness?”
“Good enough as long as there’s still some moonlight,” said Fung Ching confidently. This ability to fight at night was what gave him the confidence to deal with these beasts!
“Good,” said Wun Fan before turning to speak to Hung Yu Fei. He said carefully, “Girl, what I want you to do is very simple. Do your best to protect Fung Ching. He’s not as strong at close-quarters combat. Prepare your Sky Waters Float Falling Flowers and wait. The moment any magical beast makes it within five steps of the two of you, kill them instantly. There’s no need to hold back.”
“Hung Yu Fei, kill any beast that makes it within five steps; Fung Ching, snipe any beast that remains five steps away,” said Wun Fan as he quickly formulated a strategy with his experience from his past life. He had had to fight outnumbered many times. The three of them quickly got into formation. Wun Fan said firmly, “We are working as a team. Everyone has their own assigned role. Do not forget it!”
“Understood,” said Hung Yu Fei nervously. Her palms were sweating. This was the first time she was fighting in the wild. She was worried she would not perform well. However, she knew how exceptional Wun Fan was and fully trusted him as a strategist. So, she made sure to remember his words and constantly reminded herself, Do not forget my role!
“And you?” asked Fung Ching, realizing that Wun Fan did not mention anything about his own role in combat. He couldn’t help but be curious.
“Me?” said Wun Fan with a villainous smile. Killing intent flickered in his eyes as he said, “I’m going on a rampage.”
Fung Ching couldn’t help but chuckle when he heard this. What a simple plan. He said nothing about it. After all, with Wun Fan’s strange abilities and tricky schemes, the only thing he could do was pity the ironhead mastiffs for running into the wrong enemy.
He had never met a novice Martial Mortal who could fight him on equal grounds, much less defeat him. Moreover, that same Martial Mortal instantly grew two levels in a single day to become an advanced Martial Mortal. If he hadn’t seen how Wun Fan talked to that girl the other day, he would have believed him to be a disciple of evil, someone who indulged in taboo practices to quickly gain power.
“Lethality: Willow-Point Shot,” said Fung Ching. Soul energy surged through his body and green light glowed in his eyes. The moonlight was faint, but it was more than enough for Fung Ching to see five hundred meters into the distance clearly. He saw numerous ironhead mastiffs baring their fangs and claws, as if ready for a feast.
One of the ironhead mastiffs stood tall and proud on top of a rock. Its size, color, aura and even gaze were exceptional compared to the rest of the pack. Fung Ching’s eyes met the mastiffs’ own. He could feel the unending viciousness spilling from the creature’s eyes. It was an uncomfortable feeling.
“Wun Fan, a large pack of ironhead mastiffs is gathering in the northwest, slightly more to the north. There are at least thirty of them, about sixty-five meters away from us. The leader of the pack is standing on top of a rock, but given the distance and its abilities, I’m not sure I can snipe it,” said Fung Ching. He observed his surroundings closely, looking for hiding spots and noticed several things. He continued talking, “There are two to three mastiffs in all the other directions waiting in ambush.”
“Martial soul, descend!” shouted Wun Fan. The black dragon in Wun Fan’s martial heart roared. Waves of soul energy rushed through his limbs. This was his first battle as an advanced Martial Mortal!
“Kill the ones in ambush around us, then focus on reducing the numbers of the pack,” said Wun Fan before stepping into the darkness. He muttered something, “Lethality: Dragon’s Visage, Impenetrable Guise.”
Wun Fan’s soul energy continued circulating rapidly, but his aura was completely contained within his body. He moved through the shadows silently, like an inanimate object. No one would have detected his presence, even if he were to walk right by them.
A martial artist would usually have to slow down their soul energy circulation to suppress their aura. However, this martial technique allowed Wun Fan to do so while remaining at peak condition. This made any sort of assassination incredibly easy. He was the very definition of stealth!
“I will be by your sides in the darkness,” said Wun Fan as his silhouette vanished into the shadows. However, his words echoed in Hung Yu Fei’s ears and in her heart. She felt a little safer and said in return, “Stay safe.”
Wun Fan did not respond. He calmly lifted his index and middle finger and pressed it before against his brow as he chanted, “Lethality: Dragon’s Breath, Counter-Vision.”
A shapeless wave spread out from his brow, like a tiny ripple caused by a water drop falling on a silent pond. Wun Fan’s senses were enhanced greatly in an instant. He could see a perfect three-dimensional image of everything within fifteen meters of him. The darkness around him did not slow him down at all. He was twenty meters away from a group of mastiffs in just a few seconds.
“Goddamn! I’ve become a radar myself,” said Wun Fan. Even though he knew what this ability did the moment Li’l Black bit his soul, he never expected it to be feel so amazing. He could see everything even with his eyes closed.
“Is this what they mean when they said the mind’s eye in my past life?” said Wun Fan, excited by what he was experiencing. This ability would be very useful in his future battles. Even if he was no match for his opponent, this ability would allow him to evade attacks with ease.
Meanwhile, Old Lei was observing everything from inside the ring. He saw how Wun Fan’s aura vanished without a trace as his soul energy became fully contained inside his body. Moreover, Wun Fan’s movements were clearly different than before. He moved easily through the night, like a fish in water, completely unaffected by the darkness. Was he born to be an assassin?
Wun Fan didn’t want to get too close. He leapt onto a tree and waited as he observed the mastiffs.
“This is his martial technique, is it? He’s using it well,” said Old Lei as he nodded to himself. He was quite impressed by Wun Fan’s knack for using his martial techniques.
Meanwhile, Fung Ching was ready to go. The bonfire lit up his face, full of confidence and grace. He kneeled down and pulled the bow fully. Soul energy surged onto the arrowhead. He locked on to the three closest mastiffs to the east and let loose!
Buzz. Buzz.
The three arrows hit their targets perfectly, sinking into their necks and taking away their lives.
The leader of the mastiffs smelled the scent of mastiff blood in the air and realized that the enemy had struck first. It immediately howled several times, breaking the silence of the night. The mastiffs heard its orders and immediately started sprinting forward.
“Lethality: Flowing Tailwind Arrows,” said Fung Ching. His eyes were sharp and his hands were swift. He pulled the bow, drew it fully, shot an arrow and killed a mastiff.
He did it again and again, arrow after arrow, killing at least eight ironhead mastiffs in a matter of seconds. Fung Ching was incredibly accurate, but he couldn’t inflict more damage, as the mastiffs had very hard skulls to begin with. They pressed their heads forward when charging, using it both as a shield and a battering ram.
Fung Ching’s arrows could not break through their skulls, even when they landed perfectly.
Fung Ching could only do his best to aim for the gap in their defenses and shoot them in the neck. This alone was a huge test of his skill. In the blink of an eye, fifteen mastiffs had reached within thirty meters of the two of them.
Hung Yu Fei wasn’t an idiot. She remembered Wun Fan’s words. The moment she heard the barks approach, she sent countless crimson flowers into the air. The sky full of flowers formed a perimeter three meters around them. This was a forbidden zone. Anyone who approached would be mercilessly slaughtered by the falling flowers!
Awooo… Just then, an ironhead mastiff suddenly tripped and fell over.
It wanted to get up, but instead, it could only whimper weakly. There was the sound of breaking bones and ripping flesh. The mastiff stopped breathing instantly. Blood spilled everywhere. The sudden commotion caused the fourteen ironhead mastiffs to be on alert. They stopped in their tracks and turned around to see what had happened.
However, they could only hear a boyish voice floating through the darkness, “Heads of iron, tails of steel, waists of paper. Too frail!”207Please respect copyright.PENANALrpVsp9ShJ