Chapter 188: Chapter 187: The Fierce Battle at Dusk
The icy blade of the sword came slashing towards him.
Faliagni stared blankly at the sword edge before him, and for a moment was utterly unable to react. He had never imagined that a human could sever space itself, preventing his escape. And by the time he realized what was happening, it was already too late.
Could it really end for me? To die by the hand of a human? Is this how it ends?
Just as Fang Zheng’s sword was about to cleave into Faliagni’s body, the tattered rag doll that Faliagni was embracing suddenly let out a scream, and then it leapt out of Faliagni’s arms, using itself as a shield against Fang Zheng’s sword edge!
As he witnessed this scene, Faliagni immediately screamed, his hand desperately reaching out to prevent the self-destruction of the rag doll. But it was too late—the Sky-Cleaving Sword carried a streak of silver light as it slashed down, cutting the doll right in half.
Master……may you be safe……
As soon as the rag doll was split open, an immense burst of pale blue flames suddenly erupted, wildly spreading in all directions. Confronted with this sudden attack, Fang Zheng quickly retracted his sword and retreated.
The explosion of flames surged around in a whirlwind and then vanished. By the time the explosion had faded, Faliagni still stood there, as if he had lost his soul, staring blankly into the void.
He mumbled her name in a daze, then suddenly clenched his fists.
Faliagni clenched his fists tightly; his eyes were bloodshot, and his face contorted with fury as he turned his head around, glaring fiercely at Fang Zheng and Shana. At this moment, his eyes blazed with undisguised murderous intent.
“You, you actually killed my dear Marianne……”
“That’s right, killed her I have, and if you’re not happy with it, then bring it on,” Fang Zheng snorted lightly, his grip tightening once again on the Sky-Cleaving Sword in his hand.
“Marianne……my dear Marianne……you bastard, you actually dared to kill her……my most precious lover……”
Even Shana felt a chill run down her spine in response to Faliagni’s curse-like whisper, but Fang Zheng remained unmoved. On the contrary, he lifted his chin and looked at the opponent with thinly veiled contempt.
“Just a worthless rag doll, dead is dead…… Speaking of which, you’ve killed quite a few humans yourself. I didn’t see you taking their feelings into consideration, but now, I’ve just taken down a phosphorus, consider it vengeance. Those you have killed can never come back, so let me directly take their place and let you taste what real despair and pain is like.”
As he spoke, Fang Zheng’s expression gradually turned gloomy. He couldn’t help but think of Hirai Enishi and Yuji Sakai, hmm…… To tell the truth, his relationship with them as teacher and student was only a week old. Their emotional bonds hadn’t been strong enough to cry bitterly over each other’s death. However, the fact remained that they had died, inexplicably. This was not the Main World, where there was constant war and chaos; they weren’t like the residents of a fantasy world familiar with the constant struggle between powerful warriors, nor accustomed to wars marked by iron and fire. Like Fang Zheng’s own world, they were just ordinary people, yet they died without reason.
No, if it were merely death, then at least their families could cry and mourn for them. But they vanished from the world completely; aside from himself, no one else knew they had ever existed.
What’s more, I’m here peacefully working, sipping tea, and you come when you please, attacking as you wish…… did you ever consider asking me?
In this day and age, the one with the bigger fists is the boss; I’d like to see if your fists as big as a casserole dish can withstand this! If you’re not afraid to die, then bring it on!
“I will kill you both!!”
“As if I would let you off the hook!”
In the face of the crazed Faliagni, Fang Zheng pointed forward once again and, accompanied by a flurry of Magic Missiles, his figure flashed, and in the next moment, he appeared beside Faliagni, his sword blade unhesitatingly stabbing towards his opponent’s heart.
However, this time Faliagni seemed to have made up his mind not to run away anymore. He let out a roar, and the playing cards in his hand detonated instantly, rushing to meet the Magic Missiles released by Fang Zheng. Immediately after, Faliagni flicked his right hand towards Fang Zheng, and a Gold Coin was propelled from his fingertips, spinning and stretching into a golden chain that flew towards Fang Zheng.
With the flick of Faliagni’s hand, the golden chain chimed crisply, and as if controlled by the sound, the mannequins wielding blades immediately swarmed and launched an attack on Fang Zheng.
But Fang Zheng was not the only one present.
Once again, the flames of the Red Lotus burst forth, and the small girl holding a large sword ablaze with fire leaped from the other side, joining forces with Fang Zheng to attack Faliagni.
“Damn it, you—you won’t get in my way!”
Faliagni, unable to leave due to the Dimensional Anchor sealing the space, thrashed his bells vigorously, commanding his Phosphorus minions to counterattack against Fang Zheng and Shana. But to them, such attacks were utterly trivial. Although the Phosphorus tried to hinder their progress with self-detonation, against Fang Zheng, who was protected by the Shield of Elemental Immunity, and Shana, the Fire Mist Warrior who controlled fire, these attacks posed no threat at all.
“Damn, damn it!! You all go die!”
Faliagni now appeared to be at the end of his rope, shaking the bells with a frenzy akin to madness, but the number of Phosphorus heeding his commands was dwindling.
Watching Faliagni raise his left hand high in a frenzy, Shana’s eyes suddenly sparkled. She then fiercely hacked through the mannequin in front of her and leapt into the air before the explosion.
As the mannequin exploded, Shana had already leaped forward, pushed by the blast of the explosion, darting toward Faliagni like an arrow released from its bow.
At this sight, Faliagni showed a look of surprise. He instinctively raised his left hand to shield his face, as if by reflex to deflect the descending blade.
In the next moment, the blade, ablaze with flames, cleaved through Faliagni’s left hand and then plunged deeply into his body.
Shana was also incredibly excited by the successful strike. If this had been an ordinary battle, perhaps she wouldn’t have been so thrilled. However, this battle was different—their opponent was a King of the Crimson Realm, and more importantly, it was her first time fighting in front of Fang Zheng! With the honor of the Fire Mist Warrior at stake, she absolutely could not let that guy look down on her!
But at that moment, Shana’s ears suddenly picked up Fang Zheng’s voice.
Upon hearing his voice, Shana froze for a moment, only to realize that Faliagni—far from showing the painful expression typical of the Followers of the Crimson Realm she had slain—was instead sporting a confident and calm smirk, as if the previous madness, like that of a lunatic, had nothing to do with the man before her. At the same time, Shana noticed his right hand was holding a revolver aimed at her.
As she stared into the dark muzzle of the gun, Shana felt a chill run down her spine. Ordinary weapons were incapable of causing her harm. But now, she sensed an ominous threat from this peculiar revolver, which meant it was not a mere weapon, but… a Noble Phantasm!
Realizing this, Shana didn’t hesitate to attempt a retreat, retracting her sword, but she was a step too slow. At this moment, Faliagni had already raised the revolver and pulled the trigger at Shana.