Bastian had failed to notice Mark's fire attribute. This was quite unexpected for him.
Ever since he got e-vision, Bastian had never noticed another cultivator who had two or more elemental attributes. Bastian used himself as a reference; he constantly had fire and water attribute World Energy around him. Thus, he assumed that other cultivators were the same.
Kenshin did nothing and merely observed the situation, staying true to his word. Although Bastian was puzzled, he was still focused. Martial Techniques, especially ones with a long range attack, took a long time to prepare.
Bastian wanted to use that time wisely. He ran toward Mark at the fastest speed he could muster. He had previously fought without putting his Dao knowledge into his straight forward movements. He had only input that knowledge into his attack movements. After getting used to it, he tried applying the knowledge to his straight forward movements.
Be it in movement or in attacking, application of the Dao was an odd sensation for Bastian. He did not really feel like he knew what he was doing but at the same time, he also knew what he was doing very well, at a subconscious level.
Bastian had not done any training as a warrior. He had always intended to train as a mage, which lead to him not to take advantage of the knowledge Kenshin had given him.
Now that he was put into a situation where he had to use this knowledge Bastian started to truly realize its value.
Bastian likened it to understanding a mathematical principal. Even if one understood it that did not mean one could solve the problems that required the use of that principle. Such a skill required time and practice for the average person.
Talent in the Dao was far, far rarer than talent in mathematics. So Bastian understood one important fact; without Kenshin's perspective, he would be unable to do anything with the knowledge.
That knowledge was the result of Kenshin's hard work. It was suited to his body. Even with Kenshin's perspective, Bastian's body was not Kenshin's body, and Kenshin was not Bastian. So Bastian still had to adjust the information to his own body and to suite his needs.
That required a little bit of trial and error. So, when Bastian input his knowledge into his movements, it was a far cry from Kenshin's own movements but it was more than enough to help Bastian in his situation.
His targets were the warriors between him and Mark. In a swift manner, Bastian beheaded the warriors one by one. As he was getting closer and closer to Mark, more warriors had fallen. Formations, teamwork, experience, all of that was moot in the face of true strength.
Those in Bastian's way did not have the time to run. Those who were fortunate to not be in his way, were still killed if they were near because as Bastian beheaded these warriors, he would throw the swords he had taken from them, giving his victims more company in the underworld.
Qi could bolster one's defenses but no one here had the ability to cover their entire upper body with Qi. Be it heads, throats, hearts and other organs, Bastian would find a way to kill these men without fail, with a simple flick of his hand, a flick that was endowed with Kenshin's genius.
The last two people that were in Bastian's way were beheaded, but their weapons were not thrown. It was not because there were no people to kill, as there were still a quite a few warriors left. Not to mention others were arriving, attracted by the commotion.
Bastian kept the swords in his hands and went straight for Mark. By this time Mark had already prepared his technique. An indistinct arrow made of flames was strung on his flaming bowstring. It was aimed at the incoming Bastian.
Mark released the arrow. With a whistle like noise, the arrow flew straight toward Bastian. The arrow was incredibly fast, and it caught Bastian as he was only a dozen meters away, squarely on his chest.
*Boom!*
With a loud noise, Bastian's body was thrown back with incredible intensity. The arrow's momentum made Bastian crash into quite a few trees. Bastian's body kept flying back until it was out of Mark's sight.
A long trail of broken trees and disturbed greenery which led straight to where Bastian had fallen allowed Mark to sigh in relief.
Bastian was a truly frightening foe for Mark. From Mark's perspective, Bastian was a warrior who had run out of Qi, yet had been so fast he had been able to dispatch over a dozen Fighters almost effortlessly with no sign of fatigue even showing.
To warriors, Qi was their source of survival. Over time a warrior's body gets used to using Qi as its main energy source. So when a warrior runs out of Qi, their body feels powerless, to the extent that moving their limbs could be very difficult.
Yet Bastian, who was covered in injuries, was moving as if he was normal. As time went on, Mark's mind started racing.
There is no way a warrior out of Qi could move like that. Even if he was still keeping some in reserve, he should at least still show signs of fatigue.
Mark was an archer by nature, thus his eyesight was very astute. Bastian's condition was as plain as day for him.
Yet he was perfectly normal. None of those injuries even slowed him down, even if there were none that were life threatening, some should have at least limited his movement.
Only a person who has Qi to support their body can move like that when covered in that many injuries!
But he shouldn't have any Qi. If he does then-
"Look out! He's alive!"
A shout and some screams interrupted his thought process. He looked around and his eyes met with what was his worst nightmare. Two warriors, who were nowhere near each other, had swords embedded in their skulls.
The warriors who were observing this were filled with dread. Some legs started shaking and some warriors started looking around in a panicked manner.
Some immediately tried to flee. They could no longer take it. As the first warrior was about to make a move, Kenshin's cold voice rang out, "The first man to run will be the first man to die by my companion's hand. Whether or not you believe me shall be your choice."
Kenshin's words made all the expressions on the faces of these men ugly. Even Mark himself could no longer help but to look worried.
The reason for this was simple. Bastian had survived!