Chapter 8: Ambushed

A nimble mercenary seized the initiative, charging at Rayan first, his hammer spiked with a fierce blow aimed at Rayan's forehead. The hammer, enhanced with the vibrations of fourth-order Battle Qi, unleashed a whirlwind-like destructive force, causing even the surrounding trees to shake.

Rayan sidestepped just enough to dodge the vicious attack of the hammer, while the Twilight Blade in his hand unceremoniously stabbed towards the opponent's heart.

The mercenary, unable to stop his momentum, rolled on the ground in desperation, rolling over a dozen times before awkwardly stabilizing himself.

Rayan wanted to pursue his victory, but more mercenaries swarmed in like a chaotic flock of flies, forcing him to let the previous mercenary go and instead use the Twilight Blade to block weapons coming from other directions.

An effeminate mercenary's Advanced longsword slashed from the side, which Rayan deftly blocked. Their strengths were equal, and their swordsmanship was evenly matched.

However, after several exchanges, the effeminate man and the other dozen mercenaries not only failed to take advantage of their numbers but were caught off guard by the Twilight Blade.

The effeminate man concentrated all his Battle Qi into his Advanced longsword, pressing down on Rayan from above with such force that even the thick makeup on his face started to fall off.

But the Advanced longsword was no match for the Twilight Blade. The harder he pressed, the quicker the longsword snapped in two. The broken tip of the sword flew past his cheek, causing the effeminate man to scream in fright and quickly retreat from the battle.

Rayan concentrated all his Battle Qi into the Twilight Blade. Seizing the moment of shock among the Bandit mercenaries, a simple sweep of his blade immediately felled three burly men, killing them on the spot. Their Battle Qi was continuously absorbed by the Twilight Blade, instantly converted into Rayan's attacking power.

Although the absorption was temporary, and the effect of the absorbed Battle Qi was only a tenth of the original, once this snowball effect began, there was no end unless the battle concluded. The psychological impact it had on the other mercenaries caused panic and regret. The motley crew, already cautious, were now filled with unease and remorse.

With consecutive kills, the Twilight Blade's blade flickered with a dazzling light, its body becoming as hot as the blazing sun, making it difficult for the mercenaries to breathe, drenched in sweat. Seeing Rayan growing stronger and their numbers dwindling, the tide had turned, and the remaining mercenaries wanted nothing more than to throw down their weapons and flee.

Rayan had no intention of letting any of them go. If the news of the Twilight Blade was leaked, he would not just face ordinary Bandit mercenaries in the future but potentially Hero Level enemies—a level he was not equipped to survive against.

Moreover, these Bandit mercenaries were all blood-stained, none of them innocent. Considering it justice for the girl who had hung from a tree, they all deserved to die.

The Twilight Blade sliced through the air sharply, and in an instant, several red flashes passed, and those attempting to flee were beheaded. The forest path was littered with corpses, blood flowing into rivers, making the already muddy path even more difficult to navigate.

After a moment, only two were left standing: Rayan, holding the Twilight Blade, and the astonished effeminate man.

His Advanced sword broken by his own brute force Battle Qi, he had planned to wait for someone to die and then pick up a suitable weapon to rejoin the fight. But in just a short wait, the situation had completely reversed—from a planned ambush by the Bandit mercenaries to a one-sided massacre by Rayan.

The sight of this delicate and handsome boy wielding the Twilight Blade without a hint of hesitation in his black eyes, a killing intent that even a Hall of Fame Hero would fear three parts, was terrifying to contemplate if he were to grow further.

Rayan approached the effeminate man, who snapped out of his reverie. Dropping his broken sword, he knelt in the blood-soaked mud, trembling and begging for mercy, "Brother! I helped you kill Thorn, you can't repay kindness with enmity!"

"Birds of a feather."

Rayan unmercifully placed the Twilight Blade against the trembling neck of the effeminate man, "You are just like them, coming for my Twilight Blade."

The hot blade caused the skin and muscles on the effeminate man's neck to split open. He screamed and rolled out of Rayan's attack range in an unseemly manner, then quickly took out a purple potion from his close-fitting pack.

"Brother, this is a potent potion in my hand. Just by drinking it, I can temporarily increase my Battle Qi level! Don't force me into a corner where we both lose!" He knew the potion's enhancement couldn't compare to the Twilight Blade, but if he could just hold on a little longer, there might be a turn of events.

"A potent potion?"

Rayan frowned slightly, "Bought from Duke?"

The effeminate man gave a cold laugh, "I knew you might be tough to deal with, so I spent all my money to buy this sole potent potion from Shadowcrest Ridge!"

Hearing the word "sole," Rayan couldn't help but exhale deeply, saying pityingly, "I bet every one of these mercenaries has a bottle of blue potion on them, and some have already drunk it ahead of time."

"That's impossible!" the effeminate man shrieked. "How precious is the potent potion! It's hard to find even in the big pharmacies of the main city. The old crow just happened to have one; how could everyone have one? Hmph, you'll see the consequences when I drink it!" With that, he tilted his head back and gulped down the entire potion.

Rayan put down the Twilight Blade, looking amusedly at the effeminate man, "How is it?"

"Uh..."

The effeminate man smacked his lips, "It tastes strange, a bit like Royal Grin wine diluted with water—" He clenched his fist, feeling no increase in his Battle Qi.

"Damn that swindler!" The effeminate man finally realized, hurling the bottle to the ground and stomping on it furiously.

A faint smile spread across Rayan's lips. The antidote Duke sold him, although not tasty, was real, but the potent potion sold to the Bandit mercenaries was utterly fake. He couldn't help wondering whether that cunning old man was aiming for profit, or was secretly aiding him.

"Big sister—"

Rayan slowly raised the Twilight Blade overhead, "You have one chance to plead your case."

The effeminate man's body shook, and he quickly stammered, "I, I don't want to die!"

"Your plea is invalid."

Rayan was about to execute him when suddenly, the sound of bowstrings being drawn tight echoed from deep within the dense forest. Immediately after, a volley of arrows infused with fourth-order Battle Qi rained down on him. He quickly retracted the Twilight Blade and deflected the incoming long arrows to the ground with the back of his hand.

"Ha ha ha!"

The effeminate man who had escaped death laughed wildly, "Brother, you didn't expect this, did you? In fact, we had already set up an ambush. Lady Crimson Thorn—"

Before he could finish, a deep blue ice-tipped dart instantly pierced through the effeminate man's chest.

Frozen in place, the effeminate man's eyes widened as he stared blankly into the distance, murmuring, "Lady Crimson Thorn, you..."

Another dart flew, shattering the ice-encased effeminate man into pieces.

Rayan gasped, following the direction from which the dart had come.

Several Bandit mercenaries with longbows were ambushed in the trees a hundred meters away, just beyond the limit of his fourth-order Battle Qi's detection range.

A graceful figure slowly emerged from the dense forest, cloaked in a robe embroidered with the red Crimson Thistle pattern, her face covered with a triangular mask extending from her prominent nose to behind her ears, hiding most of her features. Her eyes were like moons, her eyebrows like paintings, but her expression was full of murderous intent.

She carried a peculiar black blunt sword on her back, its wide blade jet-black and shiny. From a distance, the giant sword made her figure appear especially slender. Yet, her steps were as light as a dance, each one bringing a pleasing aesthetic.

However, what was truly terrifying was the thick red Battle Qi enveloping her, with edges faintly showing orange light. From afar, she resembled a burning flame.

Before reaching level ten, Battle Qi existed only in red. Once it broke through to orange, it signified a promotion to Hero Level. Clearly, this woman's strength had reached the tenth order, and she was on the verge of breaking through to become an Apprentice Hero.

"Crimson Thorn..."

The name flowed from Rayan's lips as he gripped the Twilight Blade tighter.

Crimson Thorn stepped out of the dense forest, her icy gaze sweeping over the corpses at Rayan's feet. "Rayan..."

Rayan was slightly taken aback, not expecting such a terrifying woman to speak with a voice as soothing as a spring flowing through one's heart. Judging by her voice, Crimson Thorn's age couldn't be much different from his.

"You've killed many of my men," said Crimson Thorn.

Rayan replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "One was killed by yourself."

Crimson Thorn chuckled, "I killed the effeminate man because I didn't want your Twilight Blade to absorb any more Battle Qi."

Rayan then realized that with Crimson Thorn's near Apprentice Hero strength, why she had gone to such lengths to ambush him, a mere fourth-order Fighter. She had arranged for the effeminate man and a portion of the mercenaries to act as bait, simply to observe the power and effects of the Twilight Blade. If Rayan could be defeated by the effeminate man, then all would be well. If not, she could tailor her strategy against the unique properties of the Twilight Blade that were revealed.

Rayan shook his head, sighing, "To observe the effects of the Twilight Blade, you were willing to watch your men die. You truly are as ruthless as the legends say."

Crimson Thorn calmly stated, "To achieve great success, sacrifices are inevitable. Besides, as you yourself have said, villains, robbers, criminals, they all deserve death."