CHAPTER 454: CHAPTER 454: FEAR

Swoosh~

The woman only saw a flash before her eyes. Her attack, which seemed destined to strike, missed its mark, leaving her open to a casual upward slash from the young man, which tore across her chest and abdomen, leaving a shallow blood mark.

[Jealousy], Temporary Attribute Plunder, [Dexterity] +5

What happened?!

A strange panic surged in her heart. Despite having superior attributes, she inexplicably felt a sense of impotency.

The figures of both parties intersected and passed. The woman quickly suppressed the panic within her heart, regrouped, and roared as she charged at Zhu Haomiao.

However, the black-clad young man elegantly dodged as if he foresaw her movements. The woman’s claws couldn’t even touch the hem of his clothes, and instead, she gained another sword mark on her body.

Shhhh~

The blood bead carried by the sword blade was swiftly absorbed, and the evil passive authority silently activated, stealing power along the line of cause and effect, and twisted it onto his own body.

[Strength] +5

Swoosh swoosh swoosh~

Two figures darted back and forth in the enclosed underground space, and even the Gang Qi breaking through the air whistled like the horn of a train.

Seizing the opportunity as the two Servants clashed fiercely, Abe Waka tried her best to minimize her presence, cautiously inching toward the exit.

She knew that the fighting level of both sides had far surpassed her capability. Rather than add to the chaos by staying, it was better to go out and gather reinforcements to help Zhu Haomiao surround and eliminate the enemy!

Yet, even amid the intense battle, the woman still noticed Abe Waka lurking around, and her frustration at not being able to land a hit found an outlet at that moment.

Love to hide, do you?

I attack where you must defend, let’s see how you continue to hide!

"Roar!"

Like a wounded beast, the bloodied woman roared fiercely, enduring Zhu Haomiao’s offensive, tearing through the sword curtain, and charged straight at Abe Waka.

On the other side, the terror in Abe Waka’s eyes flashed for a moment before she calmed down, methodically casting her life-saving protective magic.

"Yin-Yang Dao! Ghost Luck~"

She threw out a piece of yellow talisman paper, and the intricate magic patterns on it lit up with a brilliant glow. The talisman paper then combusted spontaneously without fire, turning into mysterious spiritual light and merging into Abe Waka’s body without leaving any residue.

Shizzz~

The next second, ten scythe-like claws shredded Abe Waka into pieces, but the exploded remains had no blood and instead dissolved like a foam.

At the same time, in Zhu Haomiao’s perception, Abe Waka seemed to appear in the outside courtyard with no warning, almost like instant teleportation.

"Who gave you the courage to turn your back to me?"

The woman hadn’t recovered from the failed ambush when a ghostly whisper suddenly reached her ears, causing a chill to rush from her tailbone to the top of her skull.

Oh no!

.........

Swoosh~

Abe Waka’s figure abruptly appeared in the courtyard, immediately brightening the eyes of the retainers preparing to rush into the underground, who swiftly surrounded her.

"Miss!"

"Ugh~"

The powerful backlash from traversing space made Abe Waka fall to her knees, her body uncontrollably spasming and retching.

It took her several seconds to catch her breath. When she finally looked up, she saw the scattered remains of corpses torn into shreds around her.

Recognizing several of her servants among them, Abe Waka gritted her teeth viciously as she sniffed the thick scent of blood in the air.

"Gather the High Rank Mages of the Yin Yang Pavilion. I want that guy torn to pieces!"

"Yes!"

But before the person could leave, a meteoric fireball descended from the sky, blasting a massive crater several meters in diameter in the courtyard.

Boom~

Having dodged in advance before the fireball fell, Abe Waka looked towards the source of the magic technique and saw a figure in a black robe.

The dark dragon pattern on the back of her hand gleamed faintly, resonating with a mystical vibration, making Abe Waka immediately realize the person’s identity.

"Are you that guy’s Master?!"

"Hehe, nice to meet you, Miss of the Abe Family."

Pulling back the hood from his head, a blond young man with a poet’s demeanor appeared before everyone.

In the moonlight, a faint silver glow enveloped the young man, and his smile was gentle as water; without the earlier attack, everyone might think he was a friend coming to greet them.

"This magic power, a Magician of the Secret Cultivation Association?!"

Perceptive of the subtle characteristics in the enemy’s magic power, Abe Waka’s gaze moved as she discreetly drew a few talismans from behind her.

"Hehe, as expected of the next head of the Yin Yang Pavilion, your sensitivity is remarkable."

The young man raised a staff from under his cloak, and the ruby as big as a goose egg at the top of the staff flared with intense red light.

"Dragon Breath!"

Diffuse flames spewed forth, like a dragon’s breath, instantly covering half the courtyard.

In just a few seconds, the elegant and sophisticated Japanese garden turned to scorched earth, with the sand and dirt on the ground melting and crystallizing under the high temperature, showing a bright red hue like molten glass.

Successfully dodging to a corner, Abe Waka looked at the youth with an ugly expression.

Seventh Rank Mage!

And a fully equipped Seventh Rank Mage at that!

The ruby staff in his hand was at least a legendary level treasure!

"Hehe, I know you want to delay for the Yin Yang Pavilion’s assistance, but you might be disappointed, they’re pretty tied up right now."

Saying so, the blond youth turned his head to look afar; following his gaze, Abe Waka saw the sky above the entire city flickering with intense and unstable divine light.

Every flicker of that divine light signified a clash of magic power above the Seventh Rank.

A quick glance showed dozens of battlegrounds across the city!

"It seems everyone is impatient. As soon as the starting signal fired, they couldn’t resist the temptation of the [Crown]..."

Licking his lips, the youth turned back, smiling as he looked at Abe Waka.

"If you command your Servant to cease resisting, I’ll spare your life after I kill him. How about that?"

"..."

Seeing Abe Waka’s silence, the youth continued to persuade.

"Don’t worry, I don’t want a lifelong feud with the Yin Yang Pavilion. If you surrender, I can swear not to harm you in the slightest."

"..."

Noticing what seemed like a slight hesitation in Abe Waka, the blond youth pressed on.

"Maybe you still hold hope for your Servant, but let me tell you, my Servant is special, she’s an invincible existence to current Heroic Spirits!"

"Even if you don’t command your Servant to stop, he won’t last long!"

"So, why resist stubbornly and waste life in vain?"

Upon hearing this, Abe Waka slowly raised her head, staring unblinkingly into the eyes of the blond youth, and scoffed in disdain.

"Haven’t you sensed it?"

"Sensed what?"

"Your Servant’s fear!"

The next second, the youth’s composed smile froze on his face as he quickly turned to look to the side.

Boom!

The solid ground shattered abruptly, and a "fountain" burst upwards from the center, with a bloodied and battered figure mixed with flying debris soaring skyward.