Chapter 68: A Song of Ice and Fire

Old Tom had already retreated behind several burly warriors. A cold sneer tugged at his lips. “The courage of a Tier 5 Vanguard really is something else. You knew it was a trap, yet you still walked right into it. Impressive.”

Finn flicked his wrist and drew the Skybearer Sword, holding it upright before him. The icy blade caught the light, gleaming in his dark eyes. “No. You people are the ones who don’t fear death. That kind of courage deserves praise.”

“Four Tier 4 Vanguards, and you still think we can’t kill you? Once we cut you down, we’ll avenge High Priest Schmid and earn eight thousand dollars besides. Easy money.” Old Tom raised his hand and gave the order. “Open fire! Let’s see what this out-of-town bastard is made of!”

Bang bang bang bang bang! …

Gunfire erupted from every direction in a rapid staccato. At least three heavy machine guns poured a torrent of bullets toward Finn, the barrage mixed with the thunderous cracks of sniper rifles.

Bullets rained down like a violent storm, the roar of gunfire shaking the air!

Finn channeled Profound Energy into a shield. Countless yellow sparks burst across its invisible surface. Brass rounds and armor-piercing bullets ricocheted harmlessly away. Several even bounced back and struck the men nearby, making the attackers injure their own comrades.

“Just as expected. He really does have a shield that blocks bullets, exactly like the bounty notice from Radiant Path Radio said.” Old Tom showed no panic. Everything was unfolding according to his plan.

Finn swung the Skybearer Sword. The gleaming blade erupted in roaring flames, crimson fire surging toward the sky. Strands of Profound Energy coiled around the hilt and flowed along the blade.

On the broad face of the sword, talismans lit up one after another—Sharpness Talisman, Adamantine Talisman, Heavenly Resilience Talisman, and more—shimmering with a magnificent, imposing light.

The gunfire gradually faded. A man with a swollen belly leaped out of the encirclement. His eyes bulged, his mouth gaped open, and his throat expanded to twice its normal size as he made a violent retching sound.

“Ugh~”

A jet of extremely foul, murky green liquid erupted from his mouth, shooting five meters straight toward Finn’s face.

“If your breath stinks that badly, don’t try to imitate a fountain!” Finn sidestepped the reeking stream and raised his sword. A surge of fierce flames burst forth.

Crimson Flame Torrent!

The violent flames struck like a dragon, swallowing the green liquid and instantly turning the man into a human torch.

“Ah!” Before the man’s scream could finish, his belly exploded with a loud bang inside the flames. A foul stench spread through the air.

While Finn was still dealing with him, another attacker launched an assault from behind. Translucent light orbs glowed around the man’s hands as powerful streams of water blasted out, wave after wave. The spray was blazing white, and the force was like a firefighter’s high-pressure hose.

Finn deployed his Profound Energy shield to block the splashing waves, sparing himself from being drenched head to toe. He then countered with Crimson Flame Torrent. At the same time, he noticed that the water was the lowest-quality Grade-3 irradiated water.

The surging flames clashed with the waves. Layer after layer of spray was scorched into high-temperature steam, and white mist quickly blanketed the battlefield.

Ice spikes suddenly formed on the ground. Cold air surged outward, and chunks of ice froze around Finn’s feet. Through the swirling white fog, Finn spotted a mutant using an ability to drop the temperature.

Under the combined pressure of water and ice, the flames on Finn’s sword were temporarily suppressed. Even the wildly dancing Crimson Flame Torrent lost much of its momentum.

Finn had cultivated the Fire Profound Divine Art. His defense had reached Ethereal Realm (Tier 4) standards, but his attack power was only at Calamity Realm (Tier 2). As a result, he could not simply sweep through every battle without resistance.

“Finn, accept your fate! You’re about to die! We already knew your special ability was breathing fire. Too bad for you, the Walker family has no shortage of water-controlling mutants!”

Old Tom threw his head back and laughed. A thick ice shield formed in front of him, the hazy ice crystals hiding his cunning face.

Two blond youths lay on the iron roof. They looked nearly identical and were clearly twins.

Piercing cold energy radiated from between their eyebrows. The steam filling the air was drawn together and frozen into long, slender ice cones with razor-sharp tips. The cones launched from the space between their brows one after another with sharp whooshing sounds, flying toward Finn’s neck from tricky angles.

Five or six mercenaries armed with short knives and daggers rolled into the fog, closing in to kill Finn at close range.

Old Tom watched the fierce battle before him with calm composure. He understood that Finn had fallen into a complete disadvantage. Once his strength ran out, defeat and death would only be a matter of time.

Shua!

A flash of lightning seemed to burst forth as a brilliant sword light tore through the vast white mist.

Chivalric Eightfold Whack - First Cut: Star-Splitting Moon-Cleaving Slash!

The surging sword qi split apart the steam and fog, cutting the water attacker—whose blast was even stronger than a fire truck’s hose—in half at the waist.

Finn stopped maintaining his Profound Energy shield. Instead, he swung his sword and charged forward through the biting air, letting the raging waves and ice shards batter his face.

In the blurred white fog, a mercenary quietly rolled to Finn’s feet. He possessed some kind of night-vision ability, his eyes glowing green like a wolf on a nighttime raid.

The mercenary swung a tungsten-steel dagger in a dazzling flurry of strikes, carving more than a dozen wounds into Finn’s thigh in an instant.

He lifted his head slightly, expecting to see blood spraying everywhere—only to meet Finn’s cold, merciless eyes.

Finn brought his sword down and swept it sideways with force, severing the mercenary’s head. Thick blood gushed from the stump of his neck, staining the white mist a brutal crimson.

Another mercenary rushed in. Finn raised his sword and chopped down hard, splitting both the man and his gun in two.

He then leaped straight into the enemy formation. Finn twisted his powerful waist and swept the Skybearer Sword in a perfect semicircle, its light cold and sharp as snow.

Chivalric Eightfold Whack - Second Cut: Blood Moon Rising!

Three men hadn’t even reacted before they were all cut cleanly in half at the waist. The severed surfaces were smooth as glass, the pale white of their split spines still visible.

A wave of cold air rushed forward, growing stronger. The temperature-lowering mutant realized something was wrong and stopped holding back, unleashing his ability at full power.

Countless ice spikes climbed up Finn’s feet and froze them solidly in place. A layer of white frost spread over his entire body, making him look like an ice sculpture.

Crack! Crack! Crack! …

Finn flexed the muscles across his body. His spine twisted like a dragon as the ice shattered and fell away piece by piece. He then raised his sword and unleashed Crimson Flame Torrent once more!

Flames surged into the sky. It was like a military flamethrower spraying fire in every direction, or an ancient giant dragon opening its maw to breathe scorching dragon breath.

The flames swept around Finn in a ring, forcibly pushing back the cold air while melting the ice spikes binding his feet.

Finn regained his freedom of movement. Like a fierce tiger bursting forth, he charged straight into the enemy ranks. His burning sword thrust out, piercing through two men’s throats. Their blood didn’t even have time to spray before it evaporated completely.

The temperature-lowering mutant dropped his ability and turned in panic to flee. Finn closed the distance in a single step and drove his sword through the man’s heart while activating Crimson Flame Torrent, roasting him whole.

He shook the charred flesh off the Skybearer Sword. Steam rose from Finn’s body as he gripped the straight blade, its edge cold and sharp, and stepped toward the next man marked for death.