Chapter 10: Alright
As Isa’s words fell, the Flame Incarnation spread its wings and soared into the air, a massive flame greatsword coalescing in its hands.
Bang!
A sonic boom echoed as the Flame Incarnation tore through layers of air, charging straight at Su Xiao.
Su Xiao stepped forward, his longsword slashing upward.
Boom!
A thunderous roar erupted from within the royal palace, with large cracks spreading across the outer walls.
Inside the council hall, Su Xiao’s feet sank into the marble floor. This Flame Incarnation not only carried searing heat but also possessed formidable speed and strength.
Just as Su Xiao blocked the greatsword of the Flame Incarnation, fluctuations in fire elemental energy surged around him.
Su Xiao exerted force, pushing the Flame Incarnation back a short distance. That brief retreat made Isa’s eyes widen in disbelief—a human could actually match the Incarnation in raw strength? That defied logic!
Su Xiao kicked the Flame Incarnation in the lower abdomen, then leaped backward.
Boom!
An elemental explosion engulfed the Flame Incarnation. If Su Xiao hadn’t retreated, he would have been caught in the blast as well.
Earlier, Su Xiao had assumed Isa couldn’t use elemental explosions after manifesting the Incarnation, but now it was clear that wasn’t the case.
The abilities of a witch were utterly shameless, nothing like the witches from the myths Su Xiao knew. An elemental witch was practically a hybrid of summoner, mage, and agility-type fighter. Don’t think Isa lacked close-combat skills—when dodging Su Xiao’s blade aura, she moved as nimbly as a wildcat.
Of course, this brazen profession came with harsh requirements. Just the fact that one had to drive themselves mad first would deter most people. You get what you give, and such was the way of witches.
Su Xiao shielded his face with his left arm. As the elemental explosion subsided, he landed lightly on his feet.
“Is that all you’ve got?”
Su Xiao’s gaze fixed on Isa.
“Human, are you insulting me?”
Isa’s demeanor shifted as the battle began, growing increasingly unhinged.
“If that’s the case, let’s try a different approach.”
Crimson blood mist spread from Su Xiao’s center. When it touched Isa, she involuntarily stepped back twice.
“Tch.”
The veins on Isa’s neck bulged, clearly enraged.
Bang!
A dull thud came from beneath Su Xiao’s feet. In an instant, he closed in on the Flame Incarnation, his longsword slashing diagonally.
The Flame Incarnation raised its greatsword to block, but Su Xiao’s blade didn’t fall. Instead, he crouched low and delivered a straight kick to the Incarnation’s shin.
Crack! The Flame Incarnation’s lower leg bent backward. This thing was solid—otherwise, it couldn’t have clashed head-on with Su Xiao.
Though solid, the Flame Incarnation wasn’t a living being, so it felt no pain.
As Su Xiao snapped its leg, the Flame Incarnation raised its greatsword, flames blazing along the blade, distorting the surrounding air with heat.
Su Xiao stepped back half a pace, flipped his longsword from a forward grip to a reverse grip, and spread his legs slightly.
Clang! The greatsword struck Dragon-Slaying Flash. Su Xiao tilted his blade, redirecting the flaming greatsword toward the ground.
Boom!
The council hall trembled as the greatsword’s tip embedded itself in the floor. With his legs apart, Su Xiao bent forward and slapped his palm against the ground.
Cracks spiderwebbed across the floor from the impact. Using the rebound, Su Xiao vaulted up, landing one foot on the Flame Incarnation’s right hand. With a crunch, more than half of the flaming sword sank into the ground.
Isa, watching from a distance, was stunned by Su Xiao’s fluid movements, but she didn’t forget to attack.
As the flame in Isa’s hand flared, the fire elements around Su Xiao intensified. The Flame Incarnation’s surroundings were saturated with fire energy, and since it was immune to elemental explosions, it was essentially a mobile bomb capable of close combat.
Just as Isa prepared to trigger another elemental explosion, a dark gun muzzle aimed at her.
Pew, pew, pew.
D·Assassin fired three bullets in quick succession. Su Xiao stood on the tip of the flaming greatsword, his right hand holding the blade, his left hand gripping D·Assassin.
Though Isa didn’t know what D·Assassin was, she still conjured a wall of flames in front of her, hoping to block the bullets.
After firing three shots, D·Assassin vanished from Su Xiao’s hand. Pressing down on the greatsword, he slashed at a claw swiping toward him.
With a wet thud, the Flame Incarnation’s thick left arm was severed. In the next moment, three slash marks appeared on its neck, right shoulder, and waist.
Su Xiao kicked off the flaming greatsword, flipping backward midair. While airborne, he unleashed dozens of blade auras aimed at the Incarnation’s torso.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…
Each blade aura struck the Flame Incarnation’s body. Given its defenses, one or two auras wouldn’t do much, so Su Xiao sent dozens.
Behind the flame wall, Isa sensed the heavy blows landing on her Incarnation. Her face turned deathly pale. When she dispelled the wall, she was “pleasantly” surprised to find the Flame Incarnation had been chopped into dozens of pieces.
A massive head flew toward her—the Incarnation’s head. Isa dodged just in time, but a whistling wind came from behind.
Hearing that sound, Isa’s heart sank. She knew the Incarnation’s defenses well. If it could be carved up like that, what would happen if that blade hit her?
Thud! A numbness spread across Isa’s lower back. It felt more like being struck by a blunt object than a blade.
Su Xiao had used the back of Dragon-Slaying Flash to smack Isa’s back. After the strike, he flicked his arm, and the longsword embedded itself in the ground beside him.
A layer of pale blue crystal formed on Su Xiao’s hands and forearms. He wasn’t just a swordsman—his “Close Combat Mastery (Passive)” was nothing to scoff at.
Su Xiao clenched his right fist and drove a straight punch into Isa’s lower back. With a tearing sound, a circular hole appeared in the fabric over her abdomen—a penetration effect from the force.
After taking that punch, a numbing sensation spread from Isa’s waist down her legs, making her unsteady. Though she looked delicate and easy to topple, her durability was impressive.
Isa’s eyes flashed with ferocity, but in the next moment, a blunt impact struck her spine. The ferocity faded, and her body below the neck went completely numb.
One punch to the lower back, one to the spine. Su Xiao wrapped his right arm around Isa’s neck, his left hand gripping his right wrist, forming a rear naked choke.
Crystal spread from Su Xiao’s neck to his head—the most vulnerable part during a chokehold.
After three seconds, Isa went limp in Su Xiao’s arms.
“You… you villain! Release that poor lady!”
A clearly uncertain shout came from behind. Su Xiao released the choke, grabbing Isa by the neck, and turned toward the source.
Three figures stood behind the council hall’s door—two women and one man, all young and clad in leather armor. They looked like classic “heroes” from legends.
“I’m hunting a witch. Go back where you came from.”
Su Xiao showed no courtesy to these random intruders.
“Witch?”
The leading young man glanced at Isa, then at the shattered Incarnation nearby. He clearly had some knowledge, but arriving just as Su Xiao was beating Isa—her delicate demeanor—had sparked his knight-errant instincts.
“Alright.”
A short-haired girl behind him wore an awkward expression. The two women dragged the young man out of the hall. These girls were sharp—from the Incarnation’s state, they knew the beaten woman was a witch. If a witch could be so thoroughly dominated, Su Xiao was obviously not someone to mess with. So, they wisely retreated.