Chapter 42: A Fatal Strike
Chapter 42: A Fatal Strike
Ren Mian was perplexed.
Ji Xinghuo was indeed a Magnetic Maniac, but his tier was too low. His most powerful offensive ability was still the bow and arrow, which he had inexplicably abandoned in favor of close-quarters combat.
This was sheer recklessness, bordering on overconfidence.
"Sister Ren, hold him off," Ji Xinghuo's voice sounded in her mind. Despite her doubts about Ji Xinghuo's strength, Ren Mian gave her all to comply.
Multitasking, she manipulated the remaining Qingluo Dragons on the ground to come back to life, surging like a tide toward the Patrol-Forest Chief's four legs and frenziedly entangling them. Simultaneously, she leaped high, her fists glowing as she slammed them down toward the chief's head.
Boom!
The light exploded, but the Patrol-Forest Chief, accustomed to this move, kept his eyes closed. Nonetheless, his battle blade found its mark, clashing with Ren Mian's fist.
Ren Mian's body flew backward, crashing into a large tree.
While she emerged unscathed, the tree trunk itself snapped from the impact.
The Patrol-Forest Chief raised his head, his gaze falling on the hidden archer. Seeing Ji Xinghuo reveal himself, a look of disdain and coldness crossed his face.
Ji Xinghuo hovered in midair, his posture relaxed.
Holding the bow in his left hand, he drew the bowstring with his right, which still gripped the Leichi battle blade. An electric capacitor arrow was already nocked on the compound bow. With a flip, he aimed the arrow at the enemy below.
He had only one arrow and one chance!
Wanxiang Senlu was activated.
In an instant, the world seemed to press pause for Ji Xinghuo, as everything within a few hundred meters was mirrored in his mind.
He saw every flickering blood flame on the enemy's body;
He saw every wriggling, growing, and contracting Qingluo Dragon on the ground, along with every thorn on the brambles;
He saw every tree, every leaf, and every drop of rainwater within hundreds of meters;
All things, large and small, were within his sight!
At the same time, the world in Ji Xinghuo's eyes began to distort and change, with countless lights and shadows flowing and illusions overlapping. He saw every possible future outcome.
Previously, he had tried and failed to find a way to defeat the enemy.
But this time, he succeeded!
In a fleeting moment, all the illusory lights and shadows froze, and Ji Xinghuo saw a clear result—a way to defeat his foe.
The rotating magnetic field had already reached its limit, amplifying the lethality of the electric capacitor arrow by more than three times. The currents dancing on the arrow were visible to the naked eye, even condensing into plasma and reaching the upper limit of what the arrow material could withstand.
Ji Xinghuo released the arrow.
A flash of electric light.
Like a thunderbolt, the arrow struck, and a glint of wariness flashed in the Patrol-Forest Chief's eyes. He wanted to dodge, but his legs were entangled by the Qingluo Dragons, preventing him from evading in time.
He could only turn his head away from the vital spot.
However, this evasive maneuver played right into Ji Xinghuo's plan. Ji Xinghuo had never intended to aim for his head; his true target was the arm.
Zap!
With a peal of thunder, blood splattered.
The electric capacitor arrow pierced through the Patrol-Forest Chief's right arm. The arrowhead lodged in the muscle, unable to penetrate further. High-voltage electricity coursed through his entire arm, numbing it. Though the battle blade was still in his grip, he had lost his most powerful means of counterattack.
The Patrol-Forest Chief had never anticipated this outcome.
Ji Xinghuo tossed aside his compound bow, both hands tightly clutching Leichi. The rotating magnetic field spun wildly, sending out electric lights from the silver-blue blade as his body descended, carving a dazzling trail of light through the pitch-black rainy night.
"Roar!"
The Patrol-Forest Chief, sensing the impending danger, let out a furious roar. The blood flames on his body surged as he swung his intact left fist toward Ji Xinghuo above him.
At the last moment, Ji Xinghuo's silhouette flipped once more, turning upside down.
With a step on the Whirlwind Battle Boots in midair, he accelerated further.
This unexpected change caused the Patrol-Forest Chief's punch to miss, and Ji Xinghuo gently pressed down on his raised arm, using the force to redirect himself. His body righted once more, skillfully avoiding the enemy's charging head. Strangely, Ji Xinghuo didn't strike with his blade during this exchange.
Until the next moment.
Ji Xinghuo had descended to the Patrol-Forest Chief's chest, leaving his enemy's defenses wide open.
Finally, Leichi lashed out, plunging ruthlessly into the heart's position!
There was already a wound at that spot, inflicted by the previously shot electric capacitor arrow. It had penetrated flesh and blood but missed the heart. The arrow had been removed, leaving a bloody hole.
The tip of Leichi was geometrically shaped and extremely sharp.
Ji Xinghuo, as if he had practiced this move a thousand times, drove the blade with pinpoint accuracy into the wound. With a burst of force from both hands, the three "electric arc ring cuts" on the blade were activated, adding to the sharp tip's penetration, finally piercing through the Patrol-Forest Chief's chest and into his heart!
Without checking the outcome, Ji Xinghuo discarded his blade and, upon landing, rolled down the slope, catching the compound bow he had thrown earlier.
The Patrol-Forest Chief's body stiffened, and he stood motionless. The blood flames on his body extinguished.
He lowered his head to look at the battle blade embedded in his chest, his eyes reflecting disbelief. He raised his head to gaze at Ji Xinghuo on the slope below and let out an angry roar.
An electric capacitor arrow was his answer.
Zap!
The arrow streaked like lightning into his mouth, piercing through his oral cavity and exiting from the back of his head.
Without the protection of the blood flames, he wasn't so formidable anymore.
The Patrol-Forest Chief's body crashed to the ground. Only then did blood spurt from his chest like a crimson fountain, reaching several meters high.
[Spiritual Source Energy +313]
"Finally..."
Ji Xinghuo heaved a sigh of relief, only now feeling the pain all over his body.
"Xinghuo!"
Ren Mian quickly rushed over and asked with concern, "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." Ji Xinghuo shook his head and struggled to stand up, offering her a smile. "I'm just a bit exhausted. I'll be fine after some rest."
"Let me treat you."
Ren Mian took out a peach blossom petal and placed it on Ji Xinghuo's body.
Instantly, Ji Xinghuo felt a surge of vitality emanating from the petal. His burns healed at a visible rate, his spirits lifted, the pain in his head eased, his starlight increased, and his stamina recovered swiftly, far surpassing the effects of the Millennium Green.
"This is..." Ji Xinghuo's face was filled with surprise.
Earlier, Sister Ren had used this same type of peach blossom petal to treat Jiang Nancai and Chi Zhonglin. Not only could it stop bleeding and heal wounds, but it could also restore starlight and stamina, combining the effects of various plant samples.
He glanced at the peach blossom mark between Ren Mian's eyebrows.
"Evergreen Peach Blossom Spring," Ren Mian explained. "This is my unique plant witchcraft. There's only one of its kind in the world. No matter how severe the injury, as long as there's a breath of life left, I can save them."
Ji Xinghuo's eyes widened at her words.
"Ugh..."
A painful groan came from below the slope.
Chi Zhonglin staggered up the slope, a wound stretching from his shoulder to his abdomen, but it had already healed, leaving his face pale.
"Sister."
"Caiyi."
Ren Mian quickly went over to Jiang Nancai, and the Green Lock Dragons protecting her dispersed, revealing her body. After a quick inspection, Ren Mian breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "Your physical injuries have mostly healed, but your mind has suffered a trauma. You'll be fine after a few days of rest."
She took out a small white flower and placed it on Jiang Nancai's forehead. "This is the Silver Flower that can heal mental trauma and alleviate your headache."
The pain on Jiang Nancai's face quickly faded, and her complexion returned to a healthy hue.
She stood up and looked at the corpse of the Patrol-Forest Chief.
It was only then that everyone came back to their senses. Chi Zhonglin exclaimed in disbelief, "Xinghuo, you actually killed him! How did you do it?"
They had all witnessed the process, but they couldn't understand it, and they were deeply shaken.
Ji Xinghuo's actions had been ordinary, neither showcasing extraordinary archery skills nor indicating a high level of martial arts cultivation. Yet, somehow, they had been incredibly effective. Each change in direction and rhythm, each variation in timing, had been perfectly executed, ultimately resulting in a thrust that pierced the enemy's heart!
And that final arrow that exploded through the mouth was even more baffling.
It was as if the Patrol-Forest Chief had intentionally cooperated, allowing Ji Xinghuo to shoot and kill him, ultimately losing the chance to go berserk in his dying moments.
Ji Xinghuo laughed heartily, "I just gave it a desperate try, and luckily, I succeeded. I didn't expect to actually kill him with my recklessness."
"Can this be explained by luck as well?" Chi Zhonglin scratched his head, filled with confusion.
Jiang Nancai's eyes, too, were full of doubt.
Ren Mian looked thoughtful, then suddenly smiled, "There's no need to be so surprised. Xinghuo's combat intuition is the best I've ever seen; no one can compare to him. Don't underestimate those seemingly ordinary moves—each variation contains profound meaning. To seize the best opportunity in the ever-changing flow of battle is a talent that may only be found in one out of several billion people."
"That's amazing!"
Chi Zhonglin's face was filled with envy. He sighed, "To be able to kill a fourth-rank Patrol-Forest Chief, a Bloodthirsty Warrior no less, as a mere Elementary Anomaly—it's just outrageous. No one would believe it if you told them. If we were on Earth, you could even climb the Heavenly Ladder with this achievement!"
"Everyone contributed," Ji Xinghuo humbly said, "If it weren't for Sister Ren holding him off directly, I wouldn't have had the chance."
He was telling the truth.
If he had faced the Patrol-Forest Chief alone, there would have been no way to survive.
"I was careless this time," Ren Mian said with lingering fear, "I didn't expect there to be a Bloodthirsty Warrior among them. Thankfully we had Xinghuo, or else the consequences would have been unthinkable."
"Sister Ren, don't blame yourself. We all agreed to take action together," Ji Xinghuo consoled her.
"Yes."
"If it weren't for Sister Ren saving us, we would have died."
Ren Mian shook her head, no longer dwelling on it, and looked around at the ravaged slope, littered with corpses, devoid of anything valuable.
The Patrol-Forest Chief's innate ability, "Language of the Forest," could be sold for a good price.
It could serve as the core ability for plant witchcraft, allowing control and rapid growth of plants. However, the majority of plant witches preferred the "Green Lotus Heart Root," as it offered better ability effects and a higher fusion success rate.
At that moment, the rain stopped.
Ji Xinghuo walked up to the Patrol-Forest Chief's corpse and pulled out Leichi and the electric capacitor arrow lodged in his arm. The previous arrow had been damaged.
The Wanxiang Star Pupil interface popped up.
【Race: Patrol-Forest Tribe】
【Rank: Fourth-Rank】
【Variants: Language of the Forest, Spirit Scent, Bloodthirsty Frenzy, Toughness, Hawk Eye, Intuitive Reflex, Muscle Memory】
On the right side of the interface was a virtual image of the Patrol-Forest Chief, showing the locations of his variants.
Ji Xinghuo's eyes lit up. This was a windfall!
(End of Chapter)
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