Chapter 77: Breathing Time
With a flick of his wrist, the Short Blade traced an arc of silver light, leaving a flurry of afterimages in its wake. It spun as fast as a meteor, instantly sealing off all of Lin Feng's vital points and giving him no room to breathe.
Lin Feng's expression was grim. He swung his arms, and the ordinary long blade in his hand crashed against the storm of afterimages. In that instant, a sound like rolling thunder exploded.
"BOOM!"
A powerful shockwave blasted outward, cracking the stone slabs on the ground. Lin Feng was forced back several steps before he could steady himself.
The long blade in his hand, however, shattered into pieces that fell to the ground like scrap metal.
Lin Feng had come out at a slight disadvantage, but it was mainly due to the disparity in their weapons' quality.
When it came to actual strength, there was surprisingly no clear difference between the two!
Chen Long was stunned. Lin Feng had actually met his attack head-on, and with no preparation. 'To have such terrifying reflexes and skill… even I'm a little surprised.'
"You're quite skilled," Chen Long said, "but today, you are destined to die here."
A mocking expression crept onto Chen Long's face. He was determined to take Lin Feng down. 'This guy's potential is just too great. If we don't finish him tonight, the Black Tiger Gang will never know peace again.'
Lin Feng glanced at Chen Long with indifference, not deigning to reply. The sleeve on his left arm was gone, revealing a wound beneath. Blood had already soaked his clothes, and his eyes grew colder by the second.
Chen Long's expression frosted over as he thrust his Short Blade forward. The move was as swift as a phantom, accompanied by a sharp, whistling wind.
Lin Feng's body trembled slightly. With a light touch of his toes, he instantly shifted sideways, dodging the fatal blow.
'I have no weapon now. I'll be at a huge disadvantage if I fight him head-on. My condition is terrible; I'm already severely injured and can't afford a prolonged battle. Otherwise, I'll be in real danger.'
Chen Long pressed his advantage, throwing the Short Blade at Lin Feng while simultaneously rushing forward. He knew Lin Feng was extraordinarily strong, but he thought, 'Under such a dense barrage of attacks, even if you were made of solid steel, I'd smash you into paste!'
Chen Long's tactic worked. Lin Feng was struck in the chest and sent flying backward, crashing heavily to the ground.
"PUH!"
Spitting out a mouthful of blood, Lin Feng looked up at Chen Long, his eyes filled with a biting killing intent. That last strike had been truly vicious.
'If I hadn't dodged in time, I would have been gutted. This old bastard is truly ruthless.'
"Heh heh, it looks like you've run out of tricks. How are you going to escape now?"
Chen Long sneered at Lin Feng. Victory was in his grasp; there was no way Lin Feng could possibly escape.
A thick sneer hung on the corner of his mouth. He was certain Lin Feng was as good as dead. There was absolutely no way he could get away this time.
"Is that so? If you're that confident, then give it a try."
As Lin Feng finished speaking, his body jolted. With a twist of his waist, he dodged Chen Long's killing blow by a hair's breadth.
At the same time, his arm lashed out at Chen Long like a boneless whip. A pitch-black afterimage, like an arrow loosed from a bow, shot straight for Chen Long's face.
Chen Long was startled by Lin Feng's bizarre move, but he quickly let out a cold bark and resumed his attack.
"BANG!"
Lin Feng's elbow slammed heavily into Chen Long's arm. The blow forced Chen Long back two steps, his eyes locked on Lin Feng.
"You've got a few tricks, kid, but an attack like that won't be enough to stop me. Today, I'll show you what true despair is!"
Chen Long's expression was incredibly ugly. Lin Feng had actually forced him back right under his nose. The result was hard for him to believe. He was a level higher than Lin Feng; logically, Lin Feng should have been utterly defeated.
But the reality was the complete opposite. Not only had his attack failed to produce any results, but he was also being suppressed by Lin Feng. The situation was now very unfavorable for him.
Hearing this, Lin Feng gave a cold smile.
"In that case, I'll be happy to oblige. Let me show you what *real* despair feels like!"
This time, Lin Feng held nothing back. His opponent was the first Martial Artist that night who had put him under real pressure, especially with that Short Blade he wielded.
It was no ordinary metal weapon; it must have been an armament passed down from one of the hidden sects. While not of a particularly high grade, it was at least Yellow-rank.
"SWOOSH!"
Before Chen Long could even process what was happening, he felt a dangerous presence approaching from behind. He quickly spun around to block just as a cold glint of light struck his shoulder hard.
Struck by the sudden heavy blow, Chen Long stumbled back several steps. He looked down to see a sharp, silvery-white fragment of the long blade embedded in his shoulder. If it had been half an inch to the side, it would have pierced straight through his shoulder.
"You're courting death!"
Chen Long's rage flared. He never imagined Lin Feng would dare to launch a sneak attack on him. Furious, he unleashed a torrent of Inner Strength from his body, his speed instantly becoming terrifying as he lunged at Lin Feng.
"SWISH!"
He brandished his Short Blade and slashed at Lin Feng. Lin Feng sneered, sidestepping the blade with a flicker of his body, then followed up with a powerful punch aimed at Chen Long's ribs, right where his heart was.
"CLANG!"
Chen Long sneered. With a flick of his wrist, a throwing dart shot out from an unknown spot. Lin Feng leaned to the side, dodging it once more.
Chen Long's eyebrows shot up; he clearly hadn't expected Lin Feng to dodge that. But he didn't slow down, twisting his Short Blade to stab at Lin Feng's chest again.
Lin Feng leaned back, dodging Chen Long's attack once more. Chen Long's Short Blade shot out again, this time aiming straight for Lin Feng's throat.
"SWISH!"
But Lin Feng, as if anticipating it, leaned aside and once again evaded the killing blow.
Chen Long's face was as dark as storm clouds. He was utterly enraged. This kid had dodged his attacks time and time again, causing boundless killing intent to surge within him.
The cold glint in his eyes intensified, and the Short Blade flew from his hand once more.
Seeing this, Lin Feng moved and dodged it directly. But just then, he heard the sound of something slicing through the air right next to his ear.