Chapter 5: A Swat

Right now, that blood-red snake glistened like a jewel, its huge mouth parted to reveal twin fangs sharp as tiny daggers.

Things happened in a split second: with one flicker of movement, Chen Tutu and that snake were already up close to the Dark Practitioner. I heard a sizzling crack, and a bolt of golden lightning shot from the snake’s mouth straight at the Dark Practitioner’s forehead.

My heart leaped into my throat. At that distance, it should’ve been a one-shot kill, like when a client’s about to finalize a deal and pay right away—pure excitement. But apparently, this Dark Practitioner wasn’t some amateur. With a sudden twist, he shifted his left leg to Chen Tutu’s left side in one stride, turning his back on Chen Tutu in the process.

Then he formed a claw with his right hand. His skin was dry and rough, nails pitch-black and at least an inch long, sharp as needles shimmering with black light—like a giant eagle’s talons.

In the blink of an eye, he flipped around with his back to Chen Tutu and swiped backward, aiming those claws at Chen Tutu’s neck. If that blow landed, I doubted his neck would survive. But hey, you can’t forget I had a phoenix on standby.

You think my phoenix was just for show?

The moment that old bastard swung to Chen Tutu’s left, my phoenix spat out a protective talisman that wrapped around Chen Tutu. Then, like a falling flame, it dove straight at the old creep.

All of that took place in a single heartbeat. While the talisman shield saved Chen Tutu, he also dodged by swinging his left leg back, just barely ducking those claws. At the same time, the crimson snake sparked with electricity and sank its fangs into the old bastard’s arm.

Sparks crackled across his entire body, and that reek of scorched flesh spread instantly.

By then, my phoenix was also in range. This strike ought to vaporize that geezer for good—except in that same moment, a wave of crushing cold shot toward me, so chilling it made my hair stand on end.

No time to think. With a quick flick of my pen, I sent the phoenix crashing into that frigid aura instead of finishing off the old man, then jumped back. I was about to warn Chen Tutu, but he seemed calm enough, and in a flash, a small black dagger appeared in his right hand. It was only a couple inches long—didn’t look like metal, more like wood, but so dark I had no idea what kind of wood it was.

Chen Tutu’s right hand moved like lightning. Out of nowhere, he plunged that little dagger toward the Dark Practitioner’s heart. The man’s face twisted. He summoned a ghost minion with a quick hand seal, sending it forward to block. But that dagger stabbed through the spirit like it was paper, barely slowing down, and sank straight into the old creep’s chest.

The entire exchange took under a second. Before I could even shout a warning, Chen Tutu had already leapt away. My phoenix, meanwhile, slammed into that freezing aura, causing it to pause for a moment before surging forward again. But that brief delay let Chen Tutu race back to my side.

The two of us ended up together, turning to see that the source of that deadly cold was the woman in red. Like a queen inspecting her soldiers, she clicked forward in bright crimson heels, radiating icy authority. She strode over to where the old bastard lay rolling on the ground, clutching his chest in agony. She didn’t even glance in our direction.

Her presence was overwhelming. Staring at this woman, I felt a sense of utter helplessness. Despite the calm mask on Chen Tutu’s face, a bead of sweat on his temple told me he was just as nervous.

“Dude, if you’re scared, just admit it. Who’re you trying to impress?” I thought to myself, still gripping the Judge’s Brush for dear life, preparing for a final showdown if it came to that.

Neither of us spoke or moved, just watched the woman. She gracefully brushed aside part of her skirt, then crouched and grabbed the old bastard by the collar, yanking him up like he was nothing.

“Huh? Isn’t that old creep supposed to be her master?” I was caught off guard—ghost servants normally serve their master, but I’d never heard of a ghost just grabbing its master by the neck. Of course, I didn’t say it out loud, just kept my shock to myself and kept my eyes locked on her.

She hauled him closer, then her right hand glowed with a grayish aura of yin energy as she pulled out the small dagger still lodged in his chest. She examined it briefly with a curious tilt of her head, then tossed it aside like garbage. Next, she dusted off her hands, got to her feet, and stood there quietly, watching the old geezer lying on the ground, barely clinging to life.

Chen Tutu and I exchanged a look, each seeing the uncertainty in the other’s eyes. I mouthed, “What—do—we—do—now?”

He cast a furtive glance at her. She still wasn’t paying us any attention. I could see his reluctance, but he remained silent. He must’ve realized her power was way above ours, and that as soon as the old man either died or recovered, she might decide to come for us next. There was no telling.

We couldn’t run—the murderer of our fathers was right there, badly wounded. Walking away would be worse than dying. But going for it might just lead to a double kill for her. So all we could do was stand off and wait for a better shot.

We stood that way for about fifteen minutes, a nerve-racking quarter of an hour, like a blade hovering over our heads, ready to drop at any second. Eventually, the old bastard twitched a bit. His limbs jerked around, then he went still again.

Each spasm of his made my heart jolt in turn. Another two or three minutes passed, and finally, like some undead thing, the old creep sat bolt upright, dark energy swirling around him. He stayed there, then slowly opened his eyes.

“Heh heh heh heh heh… didn’t see that coming, did you, brats? I’m still alive.”

“Screw you…” I began, but Chen Tutu cut me off calmly before I could let rip. “So what if you’re still alive? You’re half-dead and barely clinging on. With that shallow skill of yours, what have you got left?”

The old man’s face went even uglier—no easy feat. “Hmph! Little Chen whelp, I might not have died here, but there are plenty who’ll finish you off. Wan Qing Zunzhe, let’s go…”

“Hell no. I never leave a low-blood boss alive.” I flicked my Judge’s Brush and manifested a chain of talismans. Charging ahead, I launched myself at him. But Chen Tutu was even faster, those legs of his practically superhuman. He flashed forward, the two of us closing in on the old bastard, the look on his face shifting to terror.

That was finally when the woman in red, who’d been basically spectating, decided to act. She barely glanced at us from the corner of her eye and swatted with her palm.

A colossal wave of yin energy crashed down, like a towering wall of water. I felt I’d been slammed by a tidal surge. We were flung back like tiny boats in a storm. Luckily, I’d already bound us together with the talisman chain, so neither of us got hurt, but by the time we landed and steadied ourselves, they were gone.

As I glanced around, drenched in sweat, I saw Chen Tutu too was soaked in cold sweat. We exchanged a weary look, both shaken to the core.