Deng! The assassin’s knife struck true, but just after nicking the outer fabric layer, it ricocheted off as if it had hit a wall!

  The impact knocked the airborne target forward lightly, but this time, the victim borrowed the momentum to complete a tumble.

  Bouncing up to his feet, Bubai shuffled forward a few steps to stabilize himself while turning to guard against the assassin who had ceased attacking.

  Smiley face had retreated. Now, he’s chewing on a pill while idly flipping a little knife up and down.

  “Sateh... a heart guard. Don’t see those often. More disciples should start wearing those.”

  What’s that supposed to mean? Mockery? Backhanded praise?

  Bubai wasn’t sure.

  He just knew there was now a light dent on the plate he attached to the back of his inner robe!

  Penetration was prevented, but it sure did little to absorb the impact.

  If it wasn’t for his tough body, that shot would’ve broken his bones, perhaps even snapping his spine!

  Any normal Qi refiner in his place would definitely suffer from internal injuries, and there’s even a chance of dying directly!

  That’s some insane throwing power there.

  This was definitely not achievable by plain mortal throwing skill.

  If Bubai had to guess... it was a wind power buff of some sort?

  Bubai couldn’t quite find a match for the skill right off the top of his mind. But one thing was crystal clear...

  “You really want me dead, don’t you?”

  Du Ge tilted his head ever so slightly. “Sah… who knows. But please don’t take it personally. I’m just a man entrusted by someone to test you. By name.”

  “Who?”

  The smiley face toying with a knife chuckled. “I don’t have a habit of selling out my employer. It’s why others can tolerate me to do their dirty work.”

  Bubai understood. Ah, the honor of a mercenary.

  Quite surprising there’s still such honorable fellas in this line of work, especially considering this is a demonic sect.

  Honor in such a place was a fickle coin, flipped as often as it was spent.

  Most wouldn’t hesitate to sell out a client—or anyone else—if the price gleamed brightly enough.

  Money makes the world go round. Everybody has a bottom line.

  But... trying to buy out this guy’s bottom line? Here in front of everyone? A laughable idea.

  Nobody is silly enough to snitch in this situation.

  Even if there was such an idiot, Bubai’s not the type to fancy face-slapping others with spirit stones. At least not at this stage.

  It’s better to use them to improve his own strength to deal with the ones behind the scene.

  As for who had sicced this smiley executioner on him?

  That Jia Shizi nursing a greed for his essence, a certain faction or elder, those stalking his crime tracks, somebody he recently provoked, perhaps a nameless avenger…

  It can be just about anyone.

  Ugh. It’s really troublesome not knowing who’s in the dark. Makes it harder to play the right hand.

  Perhaps he can go find his fairy godmother at midnight to see if she can work her magic?

  But that’s for later.

  Now, there was only one path forward, and that was to deal with this nobody.

  How is the question.

  This smiley assassin… his casting interval is super quick.

  There was only a small delay between each skill burst, leaving him only a small window to dodge every time.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  To make matters worse, every shot was accurate to the tee, all to box him in for the follow-up killers.

  This level of marksmanship… was definitely a league above his own.

  If he just kept spamming shurikens like in his other games, it’ll only put him at a disadvantage!

  Bubai smacked his lips. “Guess I have no choice but play to my strengths.”

  His fingers worked quickly, and a smoke pellet was thrown out- Poof!

  Seeing the thick smoke erupting out towards him, Du Ge backed off.

  "Sah... back to the old tricks? That’s cute."

  His detection skills searched the smokescreen, expecting his target to come charging out any moment.

  One breath passed. Then two.

  Still nothing. The smoke swirled with an almost mocking patience.

  An assassin has his patience, but never lets the rhythm fall into the enemy’s hands.

  Quick steps let the smiley assassin circle around the smokescreen, just in time to see his foe pocketing the last of the throwing knives that he tossed out.

  The smile on Du Ge’s face twitched ever so slightly. “You do know I won’t lack a few knives, right?”

  Bubai’s now gloved hand wagged a finger back like a schoolteacher scolding a student.

  “But you’ll eventually run out, won’t you?”

  Yep, at this stage, what’s the surest tactic to deal with the kiting strat? Just take away their ammo!

  Even if the opponent doesn’t want to engage in close combat, they’ll have no choice once both their ammo and Qi runs dry!

  Since poor Qi refiners have a short supply of both, melee was just a matter of time!

  Of course, Bubai wasn’t about to just be a sitting duck and let the shooter pelt him.

  “Well, you’re a good shot, I’ll admit that. So, let’s increase the difficulty a bit more, shall we?”

  Without waiting for a reply, Bubai rushed forward!

  Reacting immediately, Du Ge fired his knives while backpedaling!

  Like before, the little blades bulleted over, but bobs and weaves was all it took for every single one to go wide!

  It wasn’t that the shooter’s accuracy got worst.

  It’s Bubai finally cranking his gears at “full” power!

  Never be reckless. Only charge when confident! That’s his motto.

  Before, he restrained himself a bit to gather some intel from his foe.

  After all, it’s always the unknown that’s scary. But now…

  Want to hit him? Haha.

  Since he already got a gist of the technicalities behind that throwing skill, boxing him in again was not going to be easy!

  For Bubai, it was now just a leisurely marathon race!

  At times, Bubai even darted backward, opening up some breathing room and conveniently scooping up the discarded knives as well!

  Collecting the trophies from each failed attempt was the best taunt!

  Every time that assassin was taunted a step forward, Bubai happily threatened to close the gap and forced him back again.

  It’s a rather disgusting tactic, but there honestly wasn’t much else Bubai could do.

  His own slippery movement made him hard to hit.

  Vice versa, chasing after that slippery rat was just as annoying.

  This smiley face definitely can’t match his current peak speed, but it wasn’t too far behind.

  In a game of chase, if there is no absolute speed advantage, the initiative is always in the escapee’s hands.

  After all, this rat could zigzag all around as much as he liked.

  To make matters more frustrating, his pattern was unpredictable, and he always left himself a path to life.

  Bloody Merlin. It was like trying to catch an escaping wild rabbit in a large open field.

  And this rabbit even bear fangs!

  With all the poisonous knives as a threat, rushing up head-on wasn’t an option.

  The closer he gets, the less room to maneuver, the higher the risk of being hit.

  Du Ge also knew this. He’s no fool.

  So, once his belt of knives thinned to less than half, the firing rate immediately slowed.

  The deliberate shift in tempo wasn’t a sign of weakness, but an invitation.

  It was an open door daring Bubai to close the gap, increasing the stakes for both sides!

  Bubai, of course, didn’t let this chance slip.

  Since he had an advantage in all the basic stats, he was sure to close the gap bit by bit!

  10 meters… 8 meters… 6 meters…

  A rabbit can run away, but it’s only a matter of time before the hunter closes in.

  It’s just that... who’s the true hunter?

  Though Bubai can’t smell anything, he sensed that there was definitely a killer on the horizon.

  Literally.

  It wasn’t just his paranoia acting up.

  Bubai was never the type to slacken his vigilance.

  Throughout the battle, he’s been dutifully scanning his own body.

  There was nothing at first, but during this chase, he noticed some odorless substance infiltrating him through his airways!

  By now, Bubai kinda guessed the cliché.

  Probably odorless poison of some sort? Perhaps poison through a combination of fragrances?

  Yep, the danger was never the showy knives. The real killer is always hidden!

  Too bad he’s a foundation realm cultivator with internal insight.

  Unless he’s careless, no foreign substance can escape his detection!

  Poison was dangerous if it gets the chance to spread to the roots, but...

  Once discovered early on, purging it was simple even without the utilization of his detoxifying dew.

  The best part? It won’t even draw suspicion since his special physique was a ready-made excuse.

  Alas... poison was carried by breeze and abound in the air wherever he passes.

  It was impossible to purge it all unless he stops breathing.

  But even if he can’t fully purge all the poison from his system, Bubai knew there was no reason to worry.

  Why? Because he should be able to force an end to this battle soon!

  Whoosh! Another razor-sharp knife zipped past.

  This time, Bubai’s gloved hand went to snatch it right out from the air!

  The force almost shredded his leather gloves, but Bubai snuffed it out with the pure strength of his grip.

  Seeing there was only a few meters separating them now, his foot stomped hard on the ground and launched himself forward!

  At the same time, the poisonous knife shot straight back to the heart of his enemy. “Right back at you!”

  Melee was on the horizon, but the smiley face was unphased.

  The last knife held in hand blasted out to knock away the incoming knife, but…

  There was nothing to stop Bubai’s advance!

  The gap closed, and they finally came face to face!

  Out came his poison-smeared dagger.

  But just when Bubai wanted to sink his fangs into his prey, the creepy smile on Du Ge’s face stretched wider for the first time ever.

  The Bubai tingle roared to life!

  Bubai’s pupils contracted into pinpoints, and he barely retreated half a step when that mouth opened wide.

  Arms instinctively went to protect the eyes.

  Then, the air in front exploded right in Bubai’s face!