"Isn't it meant to be her that you want?" Tang Lin asked as he looked at Fang Yue, who had turned her back to him.
"As long as it isn't me then", she pouted innocently as she held both of her hands behind her back, while kicking a pebble.
In such a dire situation, Tang Lin quickly reevaluated the situation cautiously. Besides their weapons and side-character looking appearance, they had no other distinguishable features. One was a rare bow user, while the other two each wielded a sword of high quality: black and white swords.
While the fight was about to start, Tang Lin unconsciously revolved his qi as the three enemies initiated the fight.
Crimson qi poured into his canine weapon, ready to receive the incoming attacks.
"What! How can you still use qi?!?" they all shouted in surprise.
Tang Lin was also confused, but in the heat of battle, losing one's focus was akin to death. He had already learnt this fact the hard way as he proceeded to deflect the black swordman's attack before shoving him into the arrow's trajectory that had been aimed at him.
"Kurgh! You idiot!" the black swordsman groaned in pain, barely surviving.
"AH! S-Sorry boss", the arrow dude said timidly before looking at the white swordsman, who had retreated in fear.
"Since you guys won't reveal your identity, I'll have to name you guys myself for convenience sake. I'll call you the black swordsman, white swordsman and uhh… arrow dude", Tang Lin decided.
'It seems that my breakthrough has increased my strength and senses more than I thought. Being able to still use qi is also a bonus', Tang Lin thought.
"A-A-arrow dude?" the arrow dude stuttered as his mouth twitched.
"Pffttt!! Hahaha!" Fang Yue laughed.
Within the span of a few minutes, she had gone from panicking to shocked and now laughing.
"I knew you were strong and different from the others when I met you travelling alone in the Forest of Remorse. However, it seems you're more innocent than I thought. I haven't been able to laugh like this in a while, because you're so refreshing compared to all those young masters", stated Fang Yue.
"I finished stabilising my condition just then and was about to help you out, but it seems like you might not need my help after all", she continued.
"Hmph! You won't be so lucky this time around", said the white swordsman; not underestimating Tang Lin anymore.
Getting back up, the black swordsman pulled the arrow out of his abdomen.
"Finish this quickly!" he yelled in anger.
"Yes!" they responded.
The hallway wasn't wide enough, so the arrow dude decided to observe the black and white swordsmen assault Tang Lin first.
'Two at once? What should I do?' Tang Lin thought rapidly.
Seeing as the black swordsman would reach him first, Tang Lin decided to finish him off first.
"Hm? You think I'm an easy target just because I lost once?" he asked angrily.
As their weapons clashed, the black swordsman grinned at him.
"I'll show you the true power of this sword!" he said proudly.
Tang Lin was confused at first, until he received the second sword strike from above. The ground started to tremble from the force as sweat ran down Tang Lin's face.
'Ugh, this whale', thought Tang Lin.
"What? Having a bit of trouble now?" the black swordsman mocked.
"You can change the weight of your sword at will?" Tang Lin asked.
"Why don't you tell me?" he asked back as the weight increased again.
*Crack*
Visible cracks were appearing on his canine weapon that he got from the spirit wolf.
'Shit, I need to do something quick', Tang Lin thought.
Moving his right hand that was holding the handle of the canine; he let his opponent's sword scrape downwards. Sparks appeared from the friction as Tang Lin sidestepped to the left before kneeing the black swordsman in the gut.
"Argh!" screamed the black swordsman, letting go of the sword, which stabbed into the ground as more blood flowed out from his arrow wound.
Taking this opportunity, Tang Lin leaped forward for the finishing strike. His canine weapon had successfully pierced the black swordsman's heart.
*Shatter*
As he pulled out his weapon, it had shattered from sustaining too much damage.
Turning around, Tang Lin could see his reflection in the blade of the white swordsman.
*Clang*
"What are you waiting for? Finish him!" Fang Yue said as she blocked his sneak attack on Tang Lin.
"How-..." said Tang Lin mid-sentence before seeing the black sword still stabbed into the ground and the arrow dude aiming at Fang Yue in the corner of his eye.
Running to the sword, Tang Lin wrapped his hands around the handle, but the weight hadn't been readjusted to normal after the black swordsman died.
Inserting his crimson qi, Tang Lin forcefully removed it with brute force, but it was too heavy to swing or strike.
'Obey me! OBEY ME!' Tang shouted in his mind as his heart raced.
*Thump, thump*
Sensing its new user's thoughts and emotions, the weight of the sword returned to normal.
"Descending Blade!" Tang Lin said as he swung down at the white swordsman, ripping his body from the left shoulder to his waist.
"Careful!" he warned as he let go of the sword and pushed Fang Yue out of the way.
The arrow left the bow.
*Spurt*