Lu Xuanming could determine where an attack was coming from by the direction of the airflow when the blade cut through the air, and use 【Iron Raiment】 in advance to defend... but he couldn't determine the shooting position of a bullet.
Therefore, he was shot.
The bullet pierced his thigh, causing Lu Xuanming to completely lose his center of gravity. A huge force abruptly came from his chest, and his entire person was sent flying by a kick!
Dust flew up. The visionless Lu Xuanming fell heavily to the ground.
He reflexively sat up from the ground, but at this moment he had completely lost his direction, having absolutely no idea where the enemy would attack from... Fresh blood trickled out from the bullet hole in his thigh, and his expression was incredibly ugly.
Is this the oppressive feeling of the Third Tier? Even if it's just the Path of the Thief, which isn't good at fighting, it's still not something the First-Tier can deal with.
On the barren Wilderness, Number 8 carried a blade in one hand and held a gun in the other, walking expressionlessly toward Lu Xuanming.
He silently raised the muzzle, aiming at the brow of Lu Xuanming, who was on guard all around in the darkness. Just as he was preparing to pull the trigger, a voice came from the side.
"Only this last one is left?"
"Killing this one... should be considered a great merit, right?"
He let out a loud laugh, his figure like an arrow of blood, rapidly charging toward here!
Another one who stepped onto the Way of the Soldier God?
Number 8 frowned slightly.
Jian Changsheng's speed was extremely fast. Even Lu Xuanming, who had activated 【Iron Raiment】, couldn't possibly catch such speed. With just a blur, he crossed dozens of meters and arrived in front of Number 8. The latter's heart jolted, and he immediately fired several shots at him in succession!
The bullets hit Jian Changsheng's body one after another, yet his speed surged wildly once more. A blood-stained fist whistled as it smashed toward Number 8!
"Steal 'Light'!"
Number 8 unhesitatingly activated his skill again.
Jian Changsheng, who suddenly lost his vision, instantly became like Lu Xuanming, sweeping past the surroundings like a headless fly. Just as Number 8 slightly sighed in relief, a straight punch as heavy as a boulder solidly smashed into his chest!
This punch directly broke two of Number 8's ribs. He violently spat out a mouthful of fresh blood and planted face-first onto the ground.
Lu Xuanming closed his eyes. At some unknown time, he had felt his way to Number 8's side. A pitch-black fist was clenched in mid-air, coldly facing Number 8's direction.
"Your voice exposed your position," he spoke calmly.
Number 8 endured the pain and climbed up from the ground, a vicious glint surfacing in his eyes. Right at this moment, a piece of Xuan Paper quietly drifted over his head.
"Bind."
The character temporarily outlined with fresh blood gradually faded and vanished. Pu Wen, with empty hands, stood to the side, forming a hand seal with one hand.
Number 8's figure instantly froze in place like a sculpture.
Two Law Enforcers who had lost their vision, and an immobilized Fire-Stealer, entered a bizarre state of quietness on the battlefield...
Several seconds later, Lu Xuanming was the first to end his blind state. Like a cannonball, he crashed toward Number 8. The latter also broke free from the immobilization half a second later. With one hand, he once again stole Lu Xuanming's vision, and with the other hand, he raised the gun and fired three shots in succession!
"Damn it! Is his stealing limitless?!" Lu Xuanming cursed inwardly!
Three bullets whistled as they shot into Lu Xuanming's body. Two of them were bounced off by the randomly covering 【Iron Raiment】, while the last one pierced through his shoulder. The arm he originally used to clench his fist instantly hung down.
Number 8 still wanted to fire, but found that the magazine had been emptied. Left with no choice, he could only discard it. At the same time, an intense pain transmitted from his waist and abdomen!
Jian Changsheng's punch directly shattered Number 8's kidney. Then, his hands followed the momentum to hug his waist, fiercely throwing him to the ground!
"Let's see how you run now?!" He sneered coldly.
Jian Changsheng's vision was stolen late, so he hadn't recovered yet. However, he followed the sound of gunshots to find Number 8, shattered his internal organs with a single punch, and mounted his entire person.
Number 8 was ultimately two fists unable to match four hands. Although he heavily injured Lu Xuanming, he was still flanked by Jian Changsheng. He glared fixedly at the tightly-eyed Jian Changsheng, gritted his teeth, directly stole his Dagger into his hand, and frantically stabbed toward the other party's body!
Jian Changsheng completely ignored Number 8's attacks. He laughed loudly twice, his blood-colored fists smashing toward Number 8 like a madman. It was obvious he wanted to trade injury for injury!
At first, Number 8 could still stab him a few times, every stab hitting a vital point. But as he was consecutively hit by several punches, his consciousness grew blurry. In the end, he could only lie on the ground like mud, allowing the rain-like punches to fall.
Every punch hit flesh, every punch broke bones!
Pu Wen, who had used up all his Xuan Paper, stared blankly at the bloody and hideous scene before him, his brows uncontrollably furrowing.
Of course he recognized Jian Changsheng, but he didn't know what the other party had actually experienced to turn from a cowardly and humble Lackey into such a desperate thug...
"Enough!" Pu Wen spoke up.
Jian Changsheng acted as if he didn't hear, fiercely smashing several more punches, sending flesh and blood flying.
"Enough!!" Pu Wen stepped forward and shouted again.
Only then did Jian Changsheng stop his hands. He took a look at Number 8, who was no longer in human shape beneath him, and slowly stood up...
"It's over..." he said. "This Fire-Stealer was killed by me! The credit is also mine!"
He looked at Pu Wen, as if declaring some kind of sovereignty.
"No one will steal your credit." Pu Wen looked around. "By the way, did you see Yan Xicai?"
"I saw him. He was slaughtered by a Fire-Stealer."
Hearing this news, Pu Wen's brows locked tightly. His eyes stared at Jian Changsheng's eyes, seemingly wanting to see through him... The latter also stared at him without fear. On that hideous scarred face, no emotion could be seen.
Lu Xuanming let out a long sigh of relief and staggered to his feet. After recovering his vision, he walked to the nearby Hill and gazed into the distance.
"...They're all dead."
"What?"
"They're all dead." Lu Xuanming looked at the Ancient Vault of the Military Path, littered with corpses everywhere. "Only the three of us survived."
Pu Wen and Jian Changsheng froze. They also subsequently walked up that Hill. Everywhere they looked, there was only blood and corpses... Whether it was the Fire-Stealers or the Law Enforcers, no one was left standing.
This melee was ultimately won by the Law Enforcers... although the victory was extremely tragic.
Three blood-stained figures stood shoulder to shoulder on the Hill, the gentle breeze rustling the hems of their clothes.
An 【Asura】, a 【Heavenly Wolf】, and a Scholar... They were the final winners of this world.
Pu Wen's expression was somewhat ugly. Although he hated Yan Xicai, he was, after all, hired by the other party. With Yan Xicai dying in the Ancient Vault of the Military Path this time, the news returning to Aurora City would definitely cause a great chaos, and he himself was extremely likely to be held accountable.
Lu Xuanming didn't have much of an expression, but perhaps because he lost too much blood from being shot, his face was pale as paper.
As for Jian Changsheng... He looked at the corpses covering the mountains and plains, remained silent for a few seconds, and instead began to laugh:
"The final winner... is me."
Clap, clap, clap——
When everything was completely silent, a crisp sound of clapping came from behind.
The three of them froze at the same time and turned to look.
A figure draped in a Great Crimson Theatrical Robe was, at some unknown time, already sitting properly at the top of a blood-colored rock, smilingly looking down at the three of them... His hands, wearing a Ruby Ring, clapped lightly, like an Audience member expressing sincere praise.
"Wonderful." He smiled.
"I seem to be able to experience the joy of being an 'Audience'?"