In the center of the pile of corpses, El stood upright. His body was covered in blood, but his eyes remained cold as ice, staring at one of the surviving bandits who had lost both arms. Blood continued to flow from the wound, making the bandit's face even paler.
"Who the hell are you?" the bandit's voice trembled, but he forced himself to shout. "You know who you're dealing with! We're the Wolf Mercenary!"
El frowned, watching the bandit with sharp eyes. "So, not bandits?" he asked, his tone sounding flat.
"Bandit?!" the bandit replied, his voice full of anger mixed with pain. "So you're the madman who slaughtered the Black Mountain Bandits?! And now you're equating us with them? What's your reason?"
"Reason?" El bowed his head slightly, as if thinking, then replied coldly, "Isn't it obvious? The smell of human blood from your bodies is very strong. That smell is no different from a bandit."
El's words made the bandit pause, but suddenly, his face broke into a wide smile. With a hateful look in his eyes, he looked behind El.
There, one of his friends had moved silently, sword raised high to slash El from behind. "You're dead!" the two bandits shouted in unison.
The swords swung sharply, splitting the air with murderous intent. However, El stood still, without the slightest intention of dodging.
As the blade almost touched his body, El raised his right hand calmly, clamping the blade between his fingers. It was a simple gesture, but it had a tremendous effect.
The sword holder was shocked, his eyes widened in disbelief. His power seemed to have vanished into thin air. The two bandits spontaneously stepped back, their faces deathly pale and their bodies trembling.
"No way... What the hell?!" one of them shouted in a trembling voice.
El just looked at them, his eyes blank, cold, without a hint of emotion. That look was like a knife stabbing straight into their souls.
In the silence, El's presence turned into a suffocating shadow of death.
"Monster... You're a monster!" the bandit shouted, his body trembling even worse.
El did not answer. With quick, light movements, he swung his sword once more. A flash of white erased both their lives in an instant.
Shing!
Splash!
Blood spurted, their bodies collapsed to the ground without a chance to fight back.
Without turning to the remaining eight bandits, El stored the white fire in Sky Pearl Poison. "Pass this on to your boss," he muttered coldly before walking away, leaving those still alive with a fear they would never forget.
El's previous words indirectly hinted that sooner or later, they would share the same fate as the corpses scattered around.
***
In the middle of the silent forest, far from the Wolf Mercenary base, El's footsteps sounded light, almost blending into the silence of the night.
The air was chilly, but the full moon hanging in the sky cast a soft light, reflecting the shadows of each towering tree.
El stopped, leaning against a rough tree trunk. She stared into the darkness, her cold eyes radiating a lifeless look.
"It seems I should stop dancing now," El murmured softly. "Before exactly one year. In fact, it's still a long time." The tone of voice was flat, yet there was bitterness hidden behind every word.
El recalled the events that happened before he decided to attack the group of suspected robbers this time. He remembered his visit to the Jie Lie clan house, where he took Liu Xi's life.
El had long been disgusted by Liu Xi's behavior. Whenever El performs at the theater bar, Liu Xi always causes a ruckus that ruins the atmosphere as he is always intent on harassing his, as well as the other dancers.
As a fellow male, or even as a member of the opposite sex, of course El was disgusted by Liu Xi's behavior.
In addition, Liu Xi often abused his status as an alchemist, a figure respected by many, to suppress anyone who tried to oppose her.
Not even the bouncers and bar owners dared to take action. With all that, El's patience finally ran out.
From behind the tree in front of him, a voice rang out, soft but full of mockery. "What's wrong? My student is getting used to being a woman? Your master is very happy..."
Yuri's figure emerged from the darkness, slowly stepping towards the moonlight. The darkness that enveloped her faded away, revealing her beautiful yet sinister new body.
That body belonged to a young woman who had died, but now came back to life as a vessel for Yuri.
The skin was pale white, reminiscent of the first snow, but with a slightly grayish tint indicating that the body had been lifeless for a long time.
Its eyes, once heterochromic red and blue, had now turned a fiery red in both irises. That sharp gaze was like a dagger capable of piercing the soul.
Her face was beautiful, like a perfect porcelain doll, yet there was an intimidating cold aura. Her long black hair was down, looking elegant despite its simplicity.
Yuri wore a white hanfu decorated with red hell lily motifs, giving off a graceful and deadly impression at once.
El closed his eyes for a moment, then opened his eyelids with a flat look. "Master, please don't tease me," he said, his voice calm.
"I just feel bad for the dancing sisters and the theater bar where I work. If I disappear without word, they'll be in a pickle," El said, recalling his popularity as the "Goddess of Swords" there.
El sighed softly. "What's more, the theater bar has become very crowded because of me. And, moreover, the dancing sisters were nice to me because they often gave me poems."
El was a cold man, but he never treated people who were nice to him badly. He had even promised to teach his sword dance moves to the sisters.
Although the moves are difficult to learn completely, El can customize the moves, so that sisters can understand and master their own versions.
Similar to the Sun Breathing Style that gave birth to various branches such as the Water, Fire, and Wind Breathing Styles, these sword dance moves would later be developed into something similarly diverse, yet sharing the same roots.
However, El quickly changed the subject. "Putting that aside, what about your new body? Is there a problem?" he asked.
"And what about the bandits' treasure? Did you manage to get it?" El continued with a flat expression, though his curiosity was obvious.
Yuri chuckled softly, his voice like a whispering night breeze. "Which answer do you want first? Why are you suddenly asking so many questions?"
El smiled faintly. "About your new body... the main matrial is very expensive. I have to use a Rank 3 Monster Core, which is one of my main missions. And I used not one, but two monster cores for that body."
Yuri walked over, his steps light but full of authority. He raised one hand, moving his fingers gracefully, as if testing his new body.
"Not bad," Yuri said in a satisfied tone. "Two monster cores from similar beasts produce an excellent flow of Dou Qi."
Stopping speaking for a moment, Yuri clenched his palms. "With the addition of some formations of mine, this body is almost as perfect as my original body."
El's eyes bored into his, but he maintained a calm demeanor. He knew the body he had created for Yuri was not only an extraordinary work, but also a dangerous, yet profitable investment.