by Zhuang Bifan
"You don't even have anything valuable?" The coquettish maidservant was trembling with fear having witnessed the bloody scene. She quickly pulled out a few gold coins from her brassiere and placed them properly at the door. However, when she looked up, she found that the two men beside her did not even budge.
Lin Li scratched his head, unsure how to answer the question.
Fortunately, at this time, a member of the Bloodwolves Thieves came to help him get out of this predicament.
"Kneel on the ground and put your hands on your head, didn't you f*cking hear it?" The man came over and saw that there were only a few gold coins at the door; he was about to fly into a rage when he saw that the two men out of the three people did not kneel down, so he gave them a slap in the face on the spot.
"Ah!" Then, there was a scream. Almost half of the Sylvan Inn heard it. The unfortunate fellow was covering his wrist desperately while rolling on the ground in pain. "My hand… My hand…"
"Ah!" The scream was followed by another scream, but it was let out by the coquettish maidservant this time. She had turned pale after seeing the bloody palm on the ground.
After severing the palm of the fool who had wanted to slap him with a wind blade, Lin Li announced with a smile on his face, "Well, now I declare that the robbery is over. Leave what you just robbed and you can go."
"You are… a mage?" the burly scarred face asked with some doubt.
Lin Li was stunned for a moment before he remembered that he had forgotten to put on his Robe of Wrath when he got up to open the door for the coquettish maidservant… It was no wonder that the burly man wasn't able to see his profession with his level-eight strength.
"Mr Mage, one of my men has offended you, and you've already discarded one of his hands. Everyone's even now. As for other things, you seem to be bent on having too much control over them, don't you?" The burly man's triangular eyes revealed a dim ray of menace.
"I repeat, leave the stuff behind and you can go." As a Magic Shooter at the peak of level-twelve, characters below the level-ten were just like ants in Lin Li's eyes. If he had not had other considerations in mind, he would have wiped them out completely at the time they'd told him to kneel down…
"Go!" The chief feature of the ant was that it had no self-awareness. In front of a mage with unknown strength, the burly man with a scar did not choose to retreat, but to fight to death instead. This was probably what "men die for money, while birds die for food" meant. The valuables on the ground made people covetous.
At the command of the scarred man, more than a dozen Bloodwolves Thieves abandoned their targets of robbery and grabbed their weapons, rushing toward Lin Li.
"I'll leave it to you, Sean." However, Lin Li did not release any magic. He handed two bottles of potion to the honest young man and told him, "Drink the yellow one first, then the red one a minute later."
Then, the fellow went into a theater-spectator mode completely.
"Ah?" Before Sean could understand what was going on, a dozen strong men had already pounced on him. Sean could only grasp his double-edged sword tightly and sweep at them in a hurry.
Ddang! Ddang! Ddang…
In an instant, the sound of gold and iron rang out without end. How horrifying was Sean's strange power—the innate strength was almost demon-like, bursting out in an instant. The robbers, who were equally ranked at level-five, all collapsed at the touch. In that moment, they felt as if they had hit an iron plate. Several robbers had no time to respond before they slammed into the wall heavily…
After the sweep had forced the crowd back, Sean opened the bottle of yellow potion and poured it down.
As soon as he drank the yellow potion, Sean felt a warm current growing in his body. And as the warm current flowed rapidly, his skin became rough and hard at once. When he touched it with his hand, it felt like rock…
"Sean, fight well."
"Yes! Mr Felic!"
Although Sean was slightly dim-witted, the change in his body was too obvious. How could he not realize that the potion he drank was definitely not a simple one? After all, Mr Felic was Jarrosus' famous potion master!
Sean was extraordinarily valorous with that layer of rock-hard skin as protection.
In the face of an enemy with numbers ten times his own, Sean did not retreat. He held his double-edged sword high in his hands and rushed forward like a tiger diving into a flock of sheep. In a moment, only a splatter of blood could be seen.
For the Bloodwolves Thieves, this was but a slaughter. The double-edged sword, almost half as tall as a man, was frightening enough. You'd either be chopped to death or crushed to death by it. And look at this monster—his skin was as hard as the scales of a magical beast. No matter what weapons were used against it, only tinkling sounds could be heard; it was impossible to hurt a single hair on his body.
With the addition of his terrifying strength, none of the dozen or so members of the Bloodwolves Thieves could confront him. Every collision of weapons would end with the members of the Bloodwolves Thieves being blown away.
"…" In the blink of an eye, the burly scarred man had lost several of his men. He wanted to throw up blood.
Before deciding to rob the inn, he had already looked clearly into the guests staying tonight, making sure that none of them was above level-eight. He could not understand how such a monster would suddenly appear.
Just look at the terrible strength and the formidable double-edged sword—the seemingly disorganized chops turned out to be so terrifying and acute. He had worked so hard to bring his men up; if he just let them die like this, there would be no one left in the Bloodwolves Thieves…
"Let me do it!" the burly scar-faced man bellowed and jumped forth with a machete in his hand.
The level-eight warrior did have some skills. Although his strength was not yet able to compete with Sean's, his skillful martial arts and rich combat experience were far beyond those of Sean. The machete was like a venomous snake—every strike was aiming for Sean's eyes. The protection of the potion, however powerful, could not protect the exposed eyes. So, Sean had to retreat again and again.
In an instant, there was an exchange of offense and defense. Sean managed to parry the offensive with strike after strike of the sword, but his feet withdrew repeatedly, and soon, he stood in front of Lin Li.
"Drink the other bottle!"
"Oh…" Sean delivered another powerful strike, sending the burly scarred man flying. He had no time to build on this victory; he quickly opened the bottle of the red potion with one hand and downed it.
The previous yellow potion had brought a warm feeling, but this red potion brought on a burning sensation. Sean seemed to sense a strong smell of blood, and in a moment, he felt a gush of vigor rushing straight to his head. His eyes swelled with pain, and even the scenery in front became blurred…
And all this brought about an unprecedented strength.
In that moment, Sean could sense that his whole body was full of explosive power. He seemed to hear the ground cracking with every step he took. He held the heavy double-edged sword firmly in his hand, but it felt as light as a feather. The extreme power filled his body, and it was as if he was going to explode.
"Howl!"
Chapter 101 - Invitation
The burly man with a scar was swept away by the sword, but he was not at all fl.u.s.tered; he had already seen through the fact that the kid was merely a brute and his fighting skills were not worth mentioning. With the double-edged sword in his hand, all he knew from the start was only chopping. Although it looked impressive, it was actually not fatal.
He knew that what he needed was a little patience…
The burly man with a scar had thought it through—as long as there was a chance, he'd order his men to attack the mage.
The corridor was narrow; without the protection of this brute force kid, he might not be able to resist the siege of more than a dozen people even if he was formidable enough. Besides, he should be a mere low-level mage;
otherwise, he would not have exhausted his mana with a single spell. Now he had to rely on this kid with brute force to buy time for him to restore his mana.
What was the difference between killing a mage who had exhausted his mana and killing a chicken? That was what the burly man with a scar thought…
Then…
He heard Sean's howl.
The howl that was full of rage awoke half of the Sylvan Inn. Sean no longer had the simple and honest demeanor at this time; his originally strong body similar to that of a black bear was further thickened at once. His tanned face was frenzied and ferocious; the initially honest youth was full of bloodthirsty aura at that very instant.
The scar on the burly man's face began to distort as he witnessed this astounding scene. Although he held the machete tightly in his hand, he had involuntarily taken a step back. It was a subconscious action—just like wild animals involuntarily taking flight when faced with stronger predators.
All of this was far beyond his comprehension.
From a rookie with mere brute force to a monster emanating a terrifying aura—all had happened in the blink of an eye…
"Go… All of you, go!" In the face of this unprecedented fear, the voice of burly man with a scar had become hoarse.
There was a dead silence in the corridor; only the hoarse holler of the burly man with a scar and Sean's heavy breathing that was like that of a magical beast could be heard. The dozen robbers seemed to be scared dumb—nobody dared to move a step. They just gawked at Sean, watching as the monster approached them step by step.
And then, there was an outright massacre…
How threatening and aggressive the dozen robbers were when they'd rushed into the inn earlier on? However, in just the twinkling of an eye, half of them were wiped out. After the furor, Sean was just like a violent and ferocious magical beast.
It was merely brute force and disorganized chops, but when the brute force was increased to the extreme, the power brought on by it had turned out to be so appalling. Every sweep of the huge double-edged sword in his hands was accompanied by the sound of breaking the air. Every strike contained endless power—there was no struggle and no resistance; it was only the purest of killing and the sound of chopping that would drive anyone mad. In an instant, the blood that was spattered had dyed the Sylvan Inn into a sea of red.
Everyone felt suffocated, having witnessed this horrible scene with their own eyes.
The burly man with a scar was utterly dumbfounded; he could only watch the killing helplessly.
The guests in the inn stared with their mouths agape as they kneeled at the doors, completely forgetting to stand up.
The middle-aged man who claimed to be a Felan aristocrat did not even blink. His mouth, which the gold tooth was knocked out from, was wide open. His chin was covered with blood, but he was too dumbstruck to stretch out his hand to wipe it.
There was an incredulous expression on the coquettish maidservant's face. Looking at Sean who was in a state of rage and then looking back at Lin Li who was nothing but relaxed… was like seeing an elephant getting banged by a mouse.
As the bloodstained sword fell once again, the last survivor fell down at last too. The previously clean corridor was filled with corpses now, most of them still holding onto their incomplete weapons. Blood gushed from the huge wounds and slowly flowed along the corridor and down the stairs…
Only the burly man with a scar was left of the dozen people who had charged to the second floor earlier.
He still could not believe that all of this was real.
He had always been proud of his strength, but in front of this monster holding the double-edged sword, he had turned out to be weak and frail. Boundless fear surged from the bottom of his heart. For the first time, he felt that he was so close to death…
The burly man with a scar broke down thoroughly when Sean began to approach him slowly.
Plop…
Then, everyone saw the imperious robber kneel stiffly on the ground. "Don't kill me… Don't kill me…"
The double-edged sword hung around his neck, but it did not come down heavily on him.
The Rampage Potion only strengthened the physical strength and stimulated the d.e.s.i.r.e to kill in the heart, but it would not blind the mind of the user. Although Sean had killed more than a dozen people, he was still lucid. After he had halted his sword on the neck of the burly man with a scar, Sean cast an inquiring glance at Lin Li once more.
The burly man with a scar was not stupid. Upon seeing the monster's gaze, he suddenly realized that the mage who had been standing at the door was the one who would decide his own life and death, so he quickly turned to Lin Li to beg him for mercy.
Unfortunately, he did not understand what kind of person Lin Li was…
That was the man who killed a level-fourteen Magic Shooter without hesitation.
"Your plea for mercy came too late." After leaving this sentence behind, Lin Li walked down the stairs without even turning back. The Sylvan Inn was uninhabitable—too many people had died overnight, and the smell of blood was too strong. He'd have nightmares staying at such an inn.
"Ah!"
When Lin Li walked to the side of the carriage, another scream rang out from the inn…
After a while, Sean emerged from the inn.
After the previous slaughter, his clothes had been soaked with blood, but Sean had been hunting magical beasts with his father since he was young, so he was used to blood. Moreover, he came from a poor family and couldn't bear to throw them away. Hence, he left the inn wearing the sticky, bloodstained clothes.
"Sean, change into these first." Lin Li searched the Ring of Endless Storm, but could not find clothes suitable for Sean. In the end, he chose a Rune Robe for Sean to make do with it for the time being.
"Oh…" Sean received the Rune Robe meekly and looked at it with some curiosity. Then he quickly pulled off his bloody clothes and put on the large Rune Robe. However, his black bear-like strong figure was very unkind—what was originally a loose Rune Robe looked like a burglar's night tights on him…
"Just make do with it first. I'll get you new clothing in the day." There was nothing that Lin Li could do about it at the moment. The two men's statures were vastly different. Presently, Blackstone Town was unlighted and dark; even if they had the money, they couldn't find a place to buy clothes.
"Mr Felic… The two bottles of potions you gave me…" After Sean had put on the Rune Robe, there was a hesitant look on his face again. He wanted to ask what the two bottles of potions were, but he was afraid to anger Mr Felic once more.
"The yellow one was Stoneskin Potion, which can make your skin tough; the red bottle was Rampage Potion, which can greatly enhance your physical strength and stimulate your inner d.e.s.i.r.e to kill."
"Oh…"
"You know why I made you fight them?"
"I don't know." Sean shook his head frankly. "I only know that anything Mr Felic says is definitely right."
"…" Lin Li chuckled resignedly, and did not continue.
Even Gerian couldn't help admiring the gift of this simple young man. He shouldn't be merely a low-level adventurer.
Although he was hired in name only, Lin Li, either intentionally or unintentionally, was constantly offering Sean opportunities. There was no reason for it, nor did he expect any returns from it; he simply could not bear to see Sean waste his talent. It was just like how Andoine had helped him back in the Sunset Mountains.
Sometimes, the improvement of strength was that simple.
Constantly fighting, and constantly honing.
It was a long night for Lin Li. First, he was tormented by Sean's snoring for most of the night. Then, he was woken up by the knock of the coquettish maidservant at the door. Before he got to return to his room, the members of the Bloodwolves Thieves had come… Lin Li thought it was not far from daybreak, and he was too lazy to find another place. So, he leaned his head on the carriage and intended to spend the night like that
.
"Mr Mage!"
He was just getting a little sleepy when someone tapped on the carriage.
Lin Li poked his head out of the carriage and asked angrily, "What?"
Then, he found out that the fellow who had disturbed his dreams was the fat man who had his gold tooth knocked out. Lin Li recalled that he had called himself a Felan aristocrat earlier on.
The fat aristocrat showed some fear at once when he saw Lin Li's hostile expression. He had witnessed the mage's companion kill more than a dozen people in the twinkling of an eye. He did not want to irritate the two men who could kill without batting an eyelid because of something wrong he'd said, so he carefully considered the words with a pleasant smile on his face before asking, "Hello, respected mage, may I take the liberty to ask if you're going to Alanna?"
"Mhm."
"That's great!" Despite Lin Li's indifferent attitude, his affirmative reply delighted the fat aristocrat. The latter leaned forward mysteriously. "Mr Mage, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Dugar, an aristocrat of the Felan Kingdom."
"What's it got to do with me?"
"Because I'd like to hire you. Of course… your powerful companion too."
"H-hire me?" Lin Li almost choked on his saliva.
"Yes, Mr Mage. I'm willing to hire both of you for a high price. After you've escorted me safely to Alanna, the remuneration will definitely be at least a four-digit sum…"
"…" Lin Li rolled his eyes. A remuneration of at least a four-digit sum? Is that 1,000 or 2,000 gold coins?
"Well, that's a decent reward, isn't it?" The fat aristocrat sounded rather pleased. He thought he couldn't have read it wrong. Although these two men were strong, they had to be quite hard up. Look at the mage—the mage robe he was wearing was so worn and old, and he couldn't even take out a decent wand. Even more so his companion, who was more powerful than a magical beast; the leather armor on him had to be worn for at least ten years. The huge double-edged sword had killed more than a dozen people, but how could the fat man not see that it was entirely due to his strength? He could stab the dozen robbers to death even with a wooden stick.