The man at level 24 had not been able to get to lvl 24 for nothing. If he was the one who had been surprise attacked he would have probably been dead. Unfortunately for Karn if he did go after him first he would not have been able to kill the other two first.
Karn had to finish all of the bandits quickly since his stamina was still at 10 comparable to a 3rd tier martial warrior. If the battle lasted for a long time he might even die to the level 18 he had just killed once he ran out of stamina. Therefore, Karn decided to go for the most cost efficient approach to this as possible.
The level 24 man was able to take out his sabre in the nick of time and tried blocking Karn's attack. The bandit that was sure he would be able to block the attack suddenly saw the dagger pass through his blade and vanish into thin air like mist. His neck had been slit open with eyes still not sure what had happened to him.
3 of the bandits had died in a blink of an eye. 2 of them were 3rd tier martial warrior's and the one who had just died was a 2nd tier martial warrior in a league of his own among his peers.
By now everyone was aware of the commotion that had been caused by Karn and saw how he had killed their fellow bandits. The silence was loud, even the grasshopper nearby did not have the courage to make a noise.
After an awkward second, other than the two bandits at level 35 everyone took out their weapon with eyes full of wariness. They all had become seasoned warriors and were not stupid enough to charge at an old man who had killed their friends within a second.
"Not coming at me? Heh heh I guess you guys do have good instincts. Let me start it off then." Said Karn. In front of the other bandits an intense bloodlust could be felt. His original bloodlust had been strengthened to the point it had become a mental attack thru the Qi he had acquired when he awakened his cultivation. All of the bandits that had a level under 10 felt like they were facing off against a great Oni. Their legs shook and some even went limp falling to the ground frozen by the fear.
The bandits under level 20 had all been stricken with fear for a second but were able to recollect themselves in time before Karn attacked. Everybody who was level 20 and above were not effected and stood strong in front the old man in front of them.
Karn noticed this phenomena but decided to worry about what had just happened later.
Karn made his move again going after another bandit at the level 22. Just like before when the bandit tried blocking the Old man's dagger it turned into mist and another 2nd tier martial warrior had died.
"He is practicing some sort of illusion martial art!" Ban who was one of the two level 35 in the bandits group spoke with a hint of gloominess. He had worked as a bandit since young and was considered talented to be able to become a Quasi bandit leader in the group.
Even after all the people he had robbed he had only gotten his hands on two martial arts in his entire life. One was his signature technique Fire fist martial art. The other one had been taken and learnt by the other quasi bandit leader in the group. The two were friends who had gone through many trials and tribulations together to become this strong.
One thing was clear to Ban though. The martial art that the old man was using was clearly stronger than the Fire fist martial art he practiced. He would never have been able to kill an 2nd tier martial warrior like him in one attack.
Ban looked at the rest of the bandits camp and then at his friend Dean who was also looking at him. The both of them nodded to each other and moved together. The moment they moved Karn who was busy killing the bandits was instantly alerted through God's eye even though he had his back to them.
Ban and Dean thought this would be the best time to kill the old man that was running amok in their camp. As soon as Ban got close enough to land a punch a profound heat manifested itself around Ban's hand turning itself into a hand made out of fire itself.
Karn noticed this attack moved out of the way just in time and aimed his dagger at Ban's neck. Ban instead of being surprised expected this and retreated just in time. His leather chest armor had been split open. This was the work of the heavenly thief technique.
Ban understood what had happened. The dagger coming at his throat was just an illusion and the real dagger was actually aimed at his chest. If he had chosen to block the attack instead of retreating he would have suffered a great injury. Ban knew that when he fought Karn he had to determine whether the attack was real or not and figure out where the real attack was supposed to come from to beat the old man by himself.
"Seems like you are not as dumb as the others." Karn said as he looked at Ban. This was the highest level opponent he had ever faced. Not only that his opponent was also practicing a martial technique just like him but even Karn understood the difference between the techniques. Ban's martial art was based around strength leaving a deep chasm to cover for agility. On the other hand Karn's technique specialized around speed and trickery. Two very different techniques but both had their own strengths.
In the world of martial arts and cultivation no one technique was stronger than the other. They all had their own strengths and weaknesses. Using grade to determine their effectiveness was a fool's way to learn how to fight. In many ways a master of martial arts could use many techniques at the correct time to win against a person above him in cultivation.
Karn who was seemingly watching Ban attentively jumped in the air again. Everyone watching thought the old man had just made a mistake but a figure had come out of thin air where Karn had just been. Dean with his small ponytail could be seen throwing a palm strike into thin air.
"He saw me??" Dean said with a gloomy face looking at the old man who had just dodged his palm strike.