Chapter 30: Killing

Chapter 30: Killing 

Dancing? Ou Xiangrong was taken aback for a moment, unable to comprehend immediately. This mystical item actually invited him to dance.

Ou Xiangrong sneered. There was no way he would dance with the enemy's shoes during a battle. He immediately bit his tongue and spat a mouthful of blood onto the gleaming white blade of the Crimson Dance Shoes.

As an experienced practitioner in the Spirit Realm and belonging to the evil profession, he had fought with Night Wanderer many times and knew the characteristics of this profession. Mystical items were known for their uncanny nature, and he had once been entangled with one for several days, which was extremely troublesome. However, their weakness was apparent – they lacked sufficient actual killing power. Additionally, mystical items generally feared things with strong Yang energy. Thus, a mouthful of tongue blood could suppress the resentment spirit residing in the shoes. There shouldn't be a problem.

The Crimson Dance Shoes, rising and falling, waited for a few seconds. When they saw that the human before them refused to dance with them and seemed to be angry, a faint red glow appeared on the shoe's body, and with a rapid "da da" sound, they charged toward Ou Xiangrong.

Ou Xiangrong stood tall and motionless, waiting for the Crimson Dance Shoes to approach. As it leaped towards him, he calmly swung his Willow Blade, attempting to deliver a heavy blow to the resentful spirit residing within the shoes.

However, the blade passed through the dance shoes without the feeling of hitting anything solid. These eerie red dance shoes seemed to exist in a different time and space, not in the present reality.

"Bang! Bang!"

The next moment, Ou Xiangrong's chest and face were fiercely kicked twice. He experienced the same excruciating pain and breathlessness that Zhang Yuanqing had felt earlier. At the same time, his face stung, and warm liquid flowed from his nostrils.

"This... isn't the item of the Night Wanderer profession..." Ou Xiangrong's face was filled with astonishment and confusion, suspecting, "Is it from the Void profession?"

The characteristics of this item seemed somewhat similar to a profession from a foreign country. How could a level 1 Night Wanderer possess an item from a foreign profession?

Without much time to think, the strange dance shoes turned around and came to trample him again. Ignoring the blood from his nose, he crossed his arms over his chest and with two "bang" sounds, he kicked the enchanting demon down from the top of the car.

Ou Xiangrong lunged, sprinted, rolled, and used the vehicles to dodge, moving about the spacious underground garage. He managed to evade most of the dance shoes' stomps, but he still got hit several times. Each stomp caused excruciating pain, exacerbating the injuries he sustained from last night's fierce battle, with blood seeping from his internal organs.

"Amazing, so strong..." Zhang Yuanqing, the useless master, watched the battle of the Crimson Dance Shoes in astonishment, his eyes wide open.

He once again deeply realized the horror of rule-based items. Their pursuit couldn't be destroyed or interrupted; the target could only passively endure their pursuit unless they cracked the rules, which meant dancing.

However, that was unrealistic. Even if Ou Xiangrong surrendered to the Crimson Dance Shoes and endured the shame of dancing, Zhang Yuanqing would intervene and make his dance go awry. A wrong dance step would render everything futile.

Nonetheless, Zhang Yuanqing now had a clear understanding of the strength of this enchanting demon. The fact that Ou Xiangrong could withstand the stomping force of the Crimson Dance Shoes was astonishing. His physical toughness was terrifying.

"Ou Xiangrong won't foolishly wait to die. Once he realizes that he can only passively endure the attacks without fighting back, he'll definitely choose to escape..." Zhang Yuanqing's mind was clear, and he knew he had to launch a surprise attack before the other could escape.

Not seeking to kill the enemy, but he must delay this murderer.

Bang! Bang!

Once again, Ou Xiangrong couldn't dodge in time and was kicked in the face by the Crimson Dance Shoes. The impact made him stagger backward, causing him to see black and feel dizzy.

An opportunity!

Zhang Yuanqing leaped out like a cheetah, holding the Demon Subduing Staff as he ran in a parabolic arc, circling around to get behind Ou Xiangrong.

He fiercely thrust the Demon Subduing Staff towards Ou Xiangrong's back.

Buzz!

Suddenly, a dense and misty white light blocked the three-edged tip of the Demon Subduing Staff. The force came from the ancient bronze waist pendant tightly held in Ou Xiangrong's left hand, a piece covered with cracks and blood stains, resembling an item used by a seasoned soldier.

It was Zhao Yingjun's defensive item.

"A defensive item?" Zhang Yuanqing's heart shuddered at the failed ambush. He adjusted his steps and moved quickly around Ou Xiangrong, striking the white light barrier with the Demon Subduing Staff, causing ripples of light to emanate from the impact.

With the protection of the Crimson Dance Shoes, he wasn't "instantly killed" by the enchanting demon this time, narrowly avoiding several blade and fist attacks.

Crack!

Finally, under the high-frequency attacks of the Demon Subduing Staff and the Crimson Dance Shoes, the bronze waist pendant shattered into pieces, and the white light disintegrated into fragments.

At this moment, Zhang Yuanqing's Night Wanderer time ended, and his body became visible. Ou Xiangrong seemed to have been waiting for this moment, his eyes filled with scarlet, and twisted and sinister runes surfaced.

Hypnosis!

With a loud bang, Zhang Yuanqing's mind was stunned, losing the ability to think, as if he had forgotten that he was in the midst of a battle. At the same time, a voice echoed in his mind:

"Drop your weapon, don't resist. Drop your weapon, don't resist..."

Ou Xiangrong grinned, and his Willow Blade slashed towards the young Night Wanderer's neck. He was willing to endure the attacks from the terrifying dance shoes rather than use the defensive item because he was waiting for the Night Wanderer to take the initiative to attack.

This item from the Scout profession was already partially damaged, so using it prematurely would only withstand the dance shoes for a moment before it was completely destroyed. So, he decided to endure it and deliberately show a flaw to lure the opponent into attacking.

As he had expected, the young Night Wanderer lacked experience and couldn't hold back his impatience. He fell for the trap.

However, just as the blade was about to cut the young Night Wanderer's neck, Ou Xiangrong saw the opponent's body suddenly collapse. The Willow Blade grazed past, cutting off a few strands of hair.

The pair of red dance shoes that had been relentlessly chasing after him appeared on the Night Wanderer's feet, forcing him into a split position, avoiding the throat slash.

At the same time, the Night Wanderer, who should have been under the enchantment, had a radiant golden light shining in his eyes, instantly breaking free from the confused state. He sprang up and slammed himself into Ou Xiangrong.

Ou Xiangrong was completely unprepared for this situation, and he never expected that a mere level 1 Night Wanderer could break free from his enchantment. At this moment, he still held the posture of swinging his blade, unable to retract his force. He could only watch as the brass staff pierced towards his chest.

"Pluff!"

Flesh tore, and the Demon Subduing Staff erupted with a dazzling golden light, burning away the vitality in his chest.

Ou Xiangrong's vision went black, and the pain nearly caused him to faint. But as an experienced enchanting demon, he exploded with his remaining strength, pulling back his right arm and dragging the Willow Blade towards the Night Wanderer's throat.

At the same time, he tightened the muscles of his left arm, springing the elbow joint, turning his left fist into a powerful spear, and fiercely stabbed towards the enemy's shoulder.

Zhang Yuanqing quickly tilted his head back, avoiding the deadly blade, but was immediately hit in the shoulder by Ou Xiangrong's fist, sending him flying like a sandbag.

Clang!

Zhang Yuanqing crashed into a commercial vehicle, shattering its windows into cracks. His falling figure disappeared from Ou Xiangrong's sight before he even hit the ground. He once again entered the Night Wanderer state.

However, Ou Xiangrong didn't pay attention to him. He stumbled towards Xu Yingying. His heart had been destroyed, and the only thing that could save him now was the fresh blood of a living person. He needed to kill to trigger his berserk state, then burst out of the underground garage, blood-soaked, and take advantage of the bloodthirsty nature of the enchanting demon to heal his injuries and reverse life and death.

However, doing so would undoubtedly cause his moral value to drop below 60, making him a target of the Spirit Realm's pursuit, and he would be hunted down by all the Spirit Realm practitioners in the city. But he didn't have the luxury to consider all that now.

"Dadadada..."

Two faint red glimmers appeared out of thin air, transforming into a pair of brand new red dance shoes, intercepting Ou Xiangrong. To him, the sound of these footsteps was like a funeral bell, the sigh of the Grim Reaper, and Yama's judgment.

"Bang! Bang!"

Ou Xiangrong's face suffered the stomping, and his facial features were mangled. He uncontrollably tilted his head back and fell, but at the last moment, he flung his Willow Blade.

The forty-centimeter-long sharp weapon turned into a silver light and shot towards Xu Yingying in the distance. Ou Xiangrong's gaze remained fixed on the blade.

Ding!

Suddenly, sparks flew as the Willow Blade was knocked away by a brass staff that extended from the void, and a figure appeared beside Xu Yingying.

It was Zhang Yuanqing.

Seeing this scene, hope in Ou Xiangrong's eyes turned into despair and unwillingness.

At this moment, the red dance shoes descended from the sky and stomped on his face, crushing his nose, splitting his lips, and causing his eyeballs to burst out.

Ou Xiangrong's body spasmed a few times, and all signs of life ceased.

Zhang Yuanqing sat down beside Xu Yingying, breathing a long sigh as if exhausted. His chest was filled with surging hostility, and his hands and feet trembled uncontrollably.

This wasn't fear; it was the adrenaline-fueled mental excitement that came from being in a dangerous situation and needing to save oneself. When people are in this state, adrenaline is secreted like crazy, and in such a state, they can truly kill without batting an eye.

Commonly known as "getting high!" The operation plan was successful. Before engaging in the battle, he had already thought it through. The only thing he needed to avoid was the opponent's enchantment skill, so before deciding on the sneak attack, he had already offered the Demon Subduing Staff as a sacrifice.

Among the functions of the Demon Subduing Staff was purification. And the second form of the Crimson Dance Shoes was his reliance for close combat, indeed helping him avoid the deadly throat-slashing attack. Marker, enchantment, berserk, melee... Zhang Yuanqing had carefully calculated all of Ou Xiangrong's abilities and made corresponding countermeasures. If he still couldn't win, Zhang Yuanqing felt it was not worth continuing in this world.

After catching his breath for a few minutes, Zhang Yuanqing calmed down his turbulent emotions and heard a prompt from the Spirit Realm:

[Ding, you have killed a level 3 enchanting demon, gaining 30 moral points, 15 reputation points, and reputation is now activated.]

Zhang Yuanqing was momentarily stunned and quickly opened the character attributes panel, finding a new section for reputation.

Reputation? Killing hostile Spirit Realm practitioners would reward reputation? As an experienced gamer, he was familiar with the concept of reputation, but he didn't know its specific purpose in the Spirit Realm world.

Zhang Yuanqing thought about it and decided not to worry about it for now. He would check the official forum later.

Compared to the reputation rewarded by the Spirit Realm, he was more concerned about the real-world spoils. He got up and walked to the side of Ou Xiangrong's corpse, kicking his eyeballs under the car, and then dragging the body into the shadows in a corner.

Carefully searching the body, he found a cell phone and a wallet. The phone was an old-fashioned model that could only make calls, but the wallet was bulging. Opening it, he found a stack of hundred yuan bills and a fake ID.

Zhang Yuanqing counted them carefully, "As a wanted criminal, you only have around 1,500 yuan on you? Does that make sense..."

Confiscated! He took the money out and stuffed it into his pocket.

Next, he walked to a distance and picked up the sharp Willow Blade. As soon as he touched the weapon, a message appeared in his field of view:

[Name: Bloodthirsty Blade]

[Type: Weapon]

[Function: Bleeding, Bloodthirst, Armor Piercing]

[Introduction: A powerful enchanting demon nourished this blade with its own essence, making it extremely bloodthirsty over time. Its blade can cut through hard steel, and wounds inflicted by it are difficult to heal. It absorbs the essence of its prey and feeds it back to the owner, making them even stronger.]

[Note: A blade that doesn't suit its master is not a good blade.]

"This blade seems pretty awesome. If I had let it kill Xu Yingying just now, Ou Xiangrong would have gained its benefits... Luckily, I stayed by Xu Yingying's side," Zhang Yuanqing thought.

He returned to Ou Xiangrong's corpse, took off the scabbard from his waist, and equipped it on himself. Then, he inserted the "Bloodthirsty Blade" into the scabbard. Currently, the blade was ownerless, and to claim it as his own, all he needed to do was store it in his inventory.

However, Zhang Yuanqing hesitated to do so because the information in the item's description left him somewhat uneasy. The "Note" seemed to imply that using the blade came with a cost.

The "Bloodthirsty Blade" should belong to the category of items that required a price to use, and the note likely described the price. Considering the blade's introduction, Zhang Yuanqing could guess the possible costs. It could either curse its owner, leading to a tragic death, or it might require its owner to regularly nourish it with their essence, which seemed more likely.

Feeding essence again? The Demon Subduing Staff already made me anemic. If I add this Bloodthirsty Blade, how am I supposed to live my life?

At that moment, Zhang Yuanqing noticed the Red Dance Shoes "tapping" in front of him, and a message appeared:

[Would you like to dance with me? If you agree, please take a step in place.]

He suddenly remembered that he hadn't put the item back in his inventory yet. Just as he was about to refuse and take the item back, he received another prompt from the Spirit Realm:

[Attention, using this item requires dancing. If you refuse, Red Dance Shoes will no longer appreciate you and will initiate a pursuit.]

Zhang Yuanqing was surprised and slightly opened his mouth. This was the first time he used this rule-type item in the real world, and he had never expected it would come with such a price.

"Refuse to dance, and it will kill you? Isn't this too unfair..." Zhang Yuanqing smiled brightly and stood up, saying, "I'm more than willing."

Soon, the quiet and spacious parking garage echoed with the crisp sound of tapping. This time, Zhang Yuanqing didn't activate his old injury but completed the dance with his extraordinary physique, though his dance steps frequently went wrong.

Fortunately, as the owner, he wasn't attacked by the Red Dance Shoes during the dance. After finishing the dance, the Red Dance Shoes performed a curtsey with its right foot stepping back and both feet tiptoeing.

As soon as he stored the Red Dance Shoes back in his inventory, he heard hurried footsteps coming from the slope. Following the sound, he saw Li Dongze leading Guan Ya and seven or eight unfamiliar Spirit Realm practitioners rushing into the underground parking garage.

Some of them held guns, some held knives, and some even carried cats... They were fully armed.

"Thank goodness, I've finished the dance," Zhang Yuanqing felt immensely relieved.