Chapter 45: Karl
A large array of tarot cards circled around Karl.
"What's this, a melee fighter not seizing the initiative?"
Karl showed no intention of striking first, instead standing leisurely in place.
Su Xiao kicked a branch into the air. As it approached within a few meters of Karl, it ignited with a *whoosh*. Seconds later, the branch turned into several charred pieces that fell to the ground, faint traces of moisture seeping from the charcoal.
Fire, wind, water—Su Xiao vaguely sensed these three elements were abnormally dense around Karl. Due to his absolute magic immunity constitution, his perception of elements was somewhat blurred.
He absolutely could not approach the opponent now, or he would be attacked by chaotic elements. The area around Karl was filled with elemental turbulence.
Getting close now wouldn't be fighting Karl, but rather battling the three elements near him.
This state of Karl's would end soon; it was a defensive measure during his preparation phase.
"Sharp perception. You didn't charge in."
A hint of disappointment flickered in Karl's eyes. With a flip of his hands, which were clad in black leather gloves, two large pistols appeared in Karl's grasp.
The twin guns in Karl's hands weren't made of metal, but of some kind of wood that closely resembled metal in texture.
These two guns were Karl's staffs.
"I originally wanted to invite you for a match in the arena, but it seems a life-or-death struggle is more thrilling. I am Karl, the eleventh member of the Phantom Troupe."
The magazines of Karl's two pistols ejected. The tarot cards floating in mid-air rapidly shrank, splitting into two streams and automatically entering the magazines.
After all the tarot cards entered the two magazines, the violent elemental turbulence around Karl disappeared.
Su Xiao stomped the ground beneath him, twirled the Dragon-Slaying Flash in his hand into a flash of blade light, and charged at Karl.
"Don't even think about getting close."
Karl aimed his gun at the ground beneath his feet and pulled the trigger.
"Wind Bullet: Shockwave Cannon."
A cyan bullet shot out from the gun barrel. The cyan bullet grew larger as it left the muzzle, turning into a cyan wind sphere the size of a washbasin by the time it hit the ground.
*Boom!*
The shockwave cannon exploded on the ground, sending a shockwave spreading in all directions. Dead leaves and soil were all blown away, exposing the muddy ground within a radius of several dozen meters, forming a circular clearing.
A fierce wind brushed against his face. Su Xiao's steps faltered, but only for a moment.
"Fire Bullet: Great Fireball."
Karl aimed at Su Xiao and fired. A bullet-sized fireball left the muzzle, rapidly expanding until it was three meters in diameter by the time it reached Su Xiao.
Su Xiao abruptly stopped his advance, sidestepping to dodge the great fireball.
"Nice move."
Karl was a bit of a chatterbox during combat.
Su Xiao's forward momentum didn't diminish at all. He was at most five meters away from Karl.
Unlike ordinary mages, Karl didn't seem to mind Su Xiao getting close.
Karl raised his pistol, this time aiming it at his own temple.
"Water Bullet: Clear Wave Barrier."
*Bang.* A transparent bullet shot out from the muzzle, transforming into a layer of translucent water barrier that appeared around Karl.
Karl's spellcasting was incredibly fast. An ordinary mage could only use one skill at a time, but with his twin guns, Karl could use two skills simultaneously, with no pause between casts.
Su Xiao had already closed in on Karl. The longsword in his hand let out a low hum as it slashed straight for Karl's throat.
Unhurriedly, Karl aimed his gun at Su Xiao, confident in the defense of his water barrier.
*Pfft.*
A spurt of blood erupted. Su Xiao's single slash broke through the water barrier, sending a small piece of skull flying.
"Fire Bullet: Flame Dragon, Water Bullet: Water Thrust, Wind Bullet: High-Impact Wind Blade..."
The searing pain from the Cyan Steel Shadow energy made Karl's hair stand on end. He fired six shots in quick succession, a barrage of skills hurtling towards Su Xiao.
The calm and composure on Karl's face had vanished, replaced by shock. He seemed unable to believe that Su Xiao had broken his shield with a single strike.
"Fire Bullet: Blazing Body, Wind Bullet: Lightness, Water Bullet: Clear Stream Healing..."
Karl fired several shots at himself in succession, layers of shields appearing on his body.
*Boom!*
A large number of skills exploded on Su Xiao's body: the scorching of flames, the erosion of water, the cutting of wind.
The nearby ground was eroded by the elements, taking on various colors, and all the surrounding vegetation was destroyed.
The collision of fire and water produced a large amount of steam. Karl pointed his twin guns at the steam cloud, his expression serious.
Karl was ready to fight for his life. The sharpness of Su Xiao's blade had exceeded his expectations.
"He took six skills. With 15 points of stamina, he should at least be severely injured."
Karl's tone was confident. This was the experience he had accumulated from countless battles.
The steam dissipated, and Su Xiao walked out from within. The long coat he wore was damaged.
Anyone else might not have been able to withstand Karl's rapid-fire barrage. The ability to use six spell skills in succession was a very powerful technique, an effect that could only be achieved by three or four mages casting simultaneously.
Su Xiao's absolute magic immunity constitution negated 40% of spell damage. Calculated that way, the six spell skills were no longer unbearable.
Furthermore, since the battle began, Karl had only used one control skill. It wasn't that Karl lacked control skills, but rather it was due to his combat style.
Karl was essentially a magical autocannon, capable of unleashing over a dozen spell skills in just a few seconds.
His spellcasting had no startup or incantation steps. For Karl, casting a spell was simply pulling a trigger.
"Last time I invited you, only the number thirteen spot was vacant in the troupe. It seems I underestimated you. Come on, let's fight to the death. If you win, no one can compete with you for the key to the main quest. Also, take this number, eleven."
Karl turned the back of his hand towards Su Xiao, the black '11' on it particularly conspicuous.
Su Xiao frowned. What did the other party mean by this?
"Confused, huh? Heh, that's the rule of the troupe. The strong live, the weak die. Even if I die in battle, no one will come to avenge me. If I die, it only means I wasn't strong enough. You can join the troupe using my rank number."
Su Xiao was somewhat stunned. This troupe was truly bizarre.
"A strange organization."
"Haha, it's not strange. To tell you the truth, besides the seventh member, Revolver, I've never seen anyone else in the troupe. I only know their codenames."
Su Xiao was speechless.
"Meeting a strong opponent today made me talk a bit too much. Come on, let's fight. Battle is the most exhilarating thing. Only battle can make one forget their troubles."
Karl's expression was weathered, as if he had experienced something unforgettable in his life. He gripped his pistols tightly, and his aura changed.
"Agreed."
Su Xiao raised his blade and charged forward.
*Bang, bang, bang...*
The twin guns in Karl's hands were now like two machine guns, unleashing a torrent of spells as if they cost nothing.
A flood of spells formed in front of Su Xiao: water spheres, fire arrows, wind blades, all rushing towards him.
Cyan Steel Shadow energy permeated the Dragon-Slaying Flash. When Karl had been slashed earlier, he only suffered excruciating pain without any other abnormal effects, indicating that Karl was vastly different from a traditional mage.
*Clang!*
A single slash broke through an incoming water sphere. Su Xiao plunged headfirst into the torrent of spells before him.
He dodged what he could, and what he couldn't dodge, he slashed through with his blade.
The Cyan Steel Shadow energy enveloping the Dragon-Slaying Flash would clash with the spells. As long as Su Xiao could strike the spell, that spell skill would be prematurely triggered.
This was a technique Su Xiao had developed. He called it 'Mana Detonation.'
*Boom, boom...*
The sounds of explosions and wind blade cutting continued incessantly.
Su Xiao didn't want to tank these spells either, but there were simply too many. He felt like he wasn't fighting a single mage, but rather the mage corps of some adventure group.
*Whoosh.*
All the spells dissipated. Su Xiao had closed in on Karl.
"Immune to spell damage?"
Karl looked at Su Xiao in surprise. Although Su Xiao was quite injured, he had withstood the relentless bombardment of spells.
Once he successfully closed the distance, it was Su Xiao's home turf.