Chapter 127: Peak 1
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Bang!
This time it was Charlotte who opened fire.
A cluster of sparks created a small pit on the ground beside Yoda, and gravel was blast into the air, forcing him to dodge the gravel with a somersault.
Charlotte was holding a magenta handgun, but it was larger than an average pistol by one size; smoke was coming out of the muzzle.
Missing her shot, she stored her handgun and disappeared from the spot in a flash.
Two more gunshots were heard. Two small pits instantly appeared where she had just left.
Yoda was sweating from his forehead, but he didn't dare to wipe it.
He had some information on Charlotte. Once part of the four Royal Generals, her most prominent characteristics were her strong intuition and agility. Her flexible body was capable of making various incredible attacks and evasions.
But this wasn't the most troublesome issue.
The most troublesome issue was Charlotte's Secret Martial Art, Ten Fingers Flying Needles.
This was a hidden weapon method which used fine needles as hidden weapons, where a layer of compound toxin had been deftly coated on the needles.
Once a person was abraded by the needle, they would definitely die of poisoning. Even Charlotte didn't have the antidote.
Additionally, the special structure of the flying needles was such that they were silent when thrown.
"Looks like we've really suffered miserably this time…" Yoda murmured in a hushed tone. He tugged on a thread; eight sniper guns gave a slight jerk, and let out subtle clicking sounds, as if something was being adjusted.
This was the true mystery that Yoda, the Dragon King had never revealed. No one alive knew about his true secret. But now he didn't intend to hide anymore.
At the same time, Charlotte, who was standing at the edge of the roof, suddenly felt a numbing sensation on her scalp. Without any time to wonder, she leaned backwards and fell towards the ground.
Wham!
***************
Garen stopped in his tracks and looked into the estate in the distance where the sound had come from.
The gunfire over the estate was gradually dying down. It was obvious that the fighting was coming to an end.
This dull gunshot was entirely different from previous ones; it gave one a strange sense of unease.
Garen scanned his surroundings. On the ground, there were bullet holes and blood everywhere, and the bodies of soldiers and assassins were scattered all over. Some buildings and houses were burning; the fire burned the wooden material within, and let out constant blasts.
The entire elegant estate had now been reduced to a dead zone. The stench of gunpowder and blood filled the air.
Garen stepped over two bodies which had died intertwined in a fight. He frowned slightly.
Although he had experienced many killings and had fresh blood on his hands, he still felt a faint disassociation from reality when he saw this tragic small battlefield.
In his past life, he was merely an ordinary youth, an office worker. Since he arrived in this world, he started pursuing martial arts but had unwittingly reached this juncture.
He was a strong Grandmaster of Combat spawned from special abilities. He was already ranked at the peak level in the martial arts of this world. From an ordinary person to a Grandmaster of Combat capable of killing someone by lifting a finger, this huge leap was something he could never have imagined in the beginning.
Walking in the estate which was quieting down, he could only hear gunshots from time to time in the distance.
Suddenly, Garen saw a body which was severed at the waist by machine gunshots. It was a male soldier. His eyes were wide open as if he had not even figured out what happened.
This type of machine gun was the heavy duty type of machine gun mounted to the ground. Garen scanned the bullet holes on the ground and made a rough estimate.
"If five heavy duty machine guns fired at me all at once, the impact would probably impede me from going forward. Such is the power of firearms…"
He sighed and jogged towards the lawn in the middle of the estate. That was the agreed final meet-up point: Aris, Su Lin, the Dragon King and the others would run there to gather.
It was because the Commissioner of the Special Agent Bureau, Su Lin's father and all the most powerful people were all gathered here.
Not long into his run, he casually handled a few surviving green-shirt assassins along the way. Soon, he arrived at the lawn in the middle.
A large area on the lawn looked like it was dug up by an excavator: the green grass had been replaced by black soil, and the ground was full of traces of explosions.
Garen walked to the edge of the area which had been dug up, crouched down and examined the soil.
"What a fierce fight!" he murmured.
"It is inconceivable for a 50-60 year-old expert from the previous generation to have such a powerful explosive force." He was himself a Grandmaster of Combat. Naturally he could make out traces of the fight from these residual markings. "Compared to that Royal General, they are two different people!"
Clap!
A clapping sound came from the distance.
Without hesitation, Garen stood up and dashed towards the direction of the sound. There was a small isolated chapel with a silver cross on top of its white spire.
He banged the chapel door open. Garen stopped in his tracks; his expression turned.
The large domed hall within the chapel was a mess.
Su Lin's father, Lieutenant Crohn, and a bald man with a big beard, were half-lying in two corners respectively. Both were bloodied, and there were human limbs and organs on the floor everywhere around them.
The red carpet turned a darker shade of blood red.
Apart from the two of them, Aris and a few guards with a terrified expression on their faces were standing guard in front of the two generals. Their hands holding the guns were trembling as they stared fixedly at a black-cloaked figure crouched in the center of the red carpet.
"Someone is here again?"
The black-cloaked figure stood up, his voice hoarse. Some blood slowly dripped from the black leather boots at his feet; apparently, he was injured too.
Garen squinted and was about to speak when suddenly, by the side of a wall not far from him in the chapel, the ground started to open up and three people appeared: it was Su Lin, Yoda, the Dragon King, and the Colonel.
"Duskdune Shura!" Yoda, the Dragon King noticed the black-cloaked figure in the center as soon as he appeared. After taking in his surroundings, his expression turned.
"Yoda, long time no see." Duskdune Shura looked towards the Dragon King; his tone was passive and composed. "What a pity. In the end, you are still standing opposite me."
"After all these years, you should have killed me long ago," the Dragon King curbed his expression and replied coldly. "Too bad you didn't."
"Where's Charlotte?" Duskdune Shura asked all of a sudden.
"She fled after being injured by me. She won't return to support you anytime soon. Yoda gave a tug, and eight heavy duty sniper rifles spread out into the shape of a fan and aimed at Duskdune Shura and his surrounding area.
"At this point in the battle, the outcome has been determined." Duskdune Shura shifted his gaze to Lieutenant Crohn who was leaning on a corner wall. "Hand it to me, Lieutenant Crohn."
"I didn't expect your gun skills to be as terrifying as your martial arts skills. You truly live up to being the leader of the strongest assassin organization," Crohn sneered. "You can have it, but it's not here. It's somewhere else a distance away from here."
"My martial arts has reached a maximum limit," Duskdune Shura calmly said. "No martial arts expert in the world is a match for me. Even Palosa is stagnant at my current level."
He spoke calmly, with a domineering tone that seemed to say 'who else but me'.
"I have reached an extraordinary stage, but unfortunately…I'm still unable to resist the tide of time." He held his head up high, and finally removed the hood of his black cloak.
This was a thin, white-bearded old man. All his hair had turned white, his eyebrows too. The strangest part was, even his pupils were white!
His face was wrinkly like the bark of an old tree. It was obvious that he was past his prime; he was at least 70 to 80 years old.
"Golden Sword Throne, the key to unlocking a legendary higher level of martial arts. It's now my only hope." Duskdune Shura gazed calmly at Crohn. "I am almost 80 years old. I don't have any more time to 'find my path'."
"Why are you still talking?" Garen cut him short, then stepped forward and said, "Win or lose, we'll have to fight to know!"
Upon finishing his sentence, he dashed towards the old man and stomped hard on the ground with a Step Form.
The whole chapel reverberated; the gigantic sound wave threatened to crumble the building.
Everyone's eardrums sensed a deafening sound, a soft, incessant buzzing. It was the effect of temporary deafness.
Garen was seen sprinting towards Duskdune Shura, and the vibration of air around him sounded faintly like the roar of a mammoth. When he raised his palm to strike downwards, a whirring sound like an elephant flinging its nose could vaguely be heard.
When he entered, Garen had already sensed a powerful, invisible aura faintly suppressing the entire chapel. The shadow of a lion crouched within Duskdune Shura. It was a spiritual shadow formed from strong Bravery. If Duskdune Shura didn't let it out, an average martial arts practitioner would be unaware of the situation.
But Garen sensed it as soon as he entered the chapel. This person's Bravery was almost on par with his own. It was impressive that, being almost 80, he had managed to maintain such a strong Bravery.
This aura was much stronger than Andrela's. It was comparable to his current form.
"Junior! You think you can take advantage of my injury?" Duskdune Shura sneered and turned around. "It's delusional for a fresh Grandmaster of Combat to think he can challenge an elder. How reckless!"
His brought his hands together and placed them on the side of Garen's palm striking at him and gently hit it.
Clap!
Garen was stunned. That knife-like strike contained most of his strength. It was actually deflected by his opponent with a gentle tap.
Bang!
A bullet hole appeared by the side of Duskdune Shura's feet; he managed to easily evade it by an inch.
This 80 year-old man reached a palm out at a moderate pace, but it was unavoidable. It rattled Garen's Shot Form on his other arm, and tapped his chest.
"Lock!" he shouted in a low voice.
Garen's body seemed like it was struck by lightning, and instantly froze in place.
He felt as though his chest had stiffened all of a sudden, and didn't respond to his actions. It was as if flesh and blood had been transformed into cold, hard stone.
"Young man, you don't win in martial arts by relying solely on strength."
Duskdune Shura took a step backwards; his face was calm.
"Talk to me when you actually win!" Garen gave a cunning laugh. His body suddenly inflated; he grew from 1.7 meters to 1.9 meters.
Shot! Step! Swing!
All three forms combined!
Garen Shot his right elbow out and stepped with his feet; the ground shook slightly. His arm transformed into an arc, and his Shot Form was converted into Swing Form in an instant.