# Chapter 349: Damage Transfer
The garden maze was taller and denser than it appeared from the outside. Between the long-untrimmed flower walls, there was only enough space for two people to walk side by side. The branches were tangled and intertwined, and the thickness of the flower walls was at least two meters—neither knives nor axes could get through them quickly.
Moreover, because no one had tended the interior for a long time, there were some snake nests in the flower trees.
The entire vast maze consisted of walkways, and after traversing a third of it, he hadn't found any signs of digging.
At this point, Xu Huo was certain in his heart that most of those "disappeared guests" from before were probably not buried somewhere in the ancient castle.
Continuing further was meaningless, so he led the servant back.
"The rain stopped today. Can people walk on that bridge?" he asked.
"Mr. Xu, are you planning to leave?" the servant asked in surprise. "But the appreciation gala is the night after tomorrow."
Xu Huo smiled. "I want to buy some things."
The servant smiled along with him. "You can make a list and give it to me or another servant. We'll buy them for you. It won't take much time to go back and forth."
Xu Huo took out a prepared list. "A few small items, but it might be a bit troublesome. I came in a hurry this time, so I didn't bring much cash—only a few pieces of jewelry on hand."
The servant immediately said, "There's a pawnshop in the city. If Mr. Xu trusts me, you can leave it to me to handle."
The young girl became shy as she finished speaking. "I won't cheat you."
Xu Huo smiled warmly and handed her a diamond ring. "I won't let you make the trip for nothing. Whatever this ring is pawned for, you take ten percent."
The servant looked slightly flustered, but Xu Huo said, "Consider it a fee for keeping it secret for me. After all, being short of cash isn't exactly a matter of face."
Only then did the servant agree.
Returning to the main building, he asked her to send some strong liquor to his new room.
At the door, he paused for a moment but still twisted the handle.
*Click!* The moment he opened the door, his eyes were suddenly dazzled. Two hands reached out from the sides, one left and one right, grabbing his arms and dragging him into the room.
It was that pair of twin players.
With a punch and a kick, he knocked both of them back. The string hooked around the neck of the person on the left, pulling him away, while the Crimson Sword continuously blocked three sleeve arrows shot from the right!
*Ding! Ding! Ding!*
With three crisp sounds, the person on the left had already broken free from the string's control. He lunged forward, both knees dropping through the air toward Xu Huo!
With a weapon in hand, it was unwise for the opponent to engage in close combat. Xu Huo cautiously retreated, but the other twin came up from behind, swiping two fingers across the ground. "Chu River Han Border!"
In front of him, behind Xu Huo, a barrier like flowing water immediately rose!
With his retreat cut off, he had no escape. The twins, who hadn't yet succeeded, already wore confident smiles on their faces. But unexpectedly, Xu Huo grabbed the string and instantly pulled himself upward. The front twin's knees landed right on the water barrier.
His knees didn't actually collide with the barrier—instead, from thirty centimeters away, they released a golden arc-shaped shockwave that directly shattered the water barrier!
The twin behind was affected by the impact, and Chen Nan, who had launched the knee attack, couldn't help shouting, "Brother!"
"I'm fine!" Chen Tu stepped back two paces and quickly signaled him to look at Xu Huo.
Chen Nan turned around and saw that the hilt of Xu Huo's longsword was emitting a red light, and then a sword aura slashed toward him!
Xu Huo hadn't struck a killing blow, so he aimed at Chen Nan's left arm. But after the sword aura's cutting surface disappeared, there was no wound on his shoulder. Instead, Xu Huo felt a sharp pain in his own left shoulder. Turning his head to look, he saw a wound from his shoulder to his armpit, deep enough to reveal bone!
Damage transfer?!
"Strike while the iron is hot!" Chen Tu used the momentum to rise, shooting several arrows at him, while Chen Nan closed in from the front again!
Xu Huo blocked the sleeve arrows and landed. Without hesitation, he swung his sword at Chen Nan again—this time still aiming for his left shoulder!
Both Chen Tu and Chen Nan were startled, seemingly not expecting him to still swing his sword after the damage transfer. So one advanced while the other retreated!
In these few seconds, Xu Huo had already understood the limitations of this kind of prop. First, the damage transfer had a limit on uses or time—at least it couldn't happen a second time in a short period. Second, the type of damage transfer was limited. The twins had taken punches and kicks before and had been strangled by the string, but those injuries hadn't been transferred to him. Of course, it was also possible that the prop needed time to activate.
Finally, the reason he said this was a prop was because the charging Chen Tu didn't seem afraid of taking a sword strike either. He pushed his speed to the limit, not intending to dodge at all.
Trying to use the time from this sword strike to create an opportunity?
Xu Huo didn't hesitate to raise his sword, still aiming for the left arm. But the perceptive Chen Tu actually shifted his position slightly to the left on his own!
The Crimson Sword could cut a person in half without issue. Chen Nan's arm should have been severed, but the damage reflected back on Xu Huo wasn't that severe—it had at least reduced two-thirds of the power. It wasn't yet a life-or-death situation. Chen Tu's approach proved that even fatal wounds could be transferred.
This sword strike would only add another wound to himself with no other effect.
Xu Huo kicked the chair at his feet, sending it in front of Chen Tu to take the sword strike.
Chen Tu showed a moment of surprise, but then his expression turned resolute. He slid on his knees from under the broken chair, rolled over to Xu Huo's feet, and slapped the ground: "Draw Ground as Prison!"
A thin line of water drew a circle around Xu Huo's feet. When he tried to step out, his feet felt as if nailed to the ground by heavy objects—he couldn't move at all.
Raising his hand, he threw the "Won't Rob You Line" to loop around Chen Tu, then pulled it taut to strangle him. The moment Chen Tu's hand left the ground, Xu Huo could move his feet again. He kicked the onrushing Chen Nan squarely, sending him plastered against the wall, then turned and delivered another kick to Chen Tu.
Both brothers showed pained expressions, but with their rich combat experience, they quickly got back into form. Chen Tu took something and wiped it across his neck, and he slipped out of the binding line like a snake!
"If you come again, I'll get serious," Xu Huo warned before they could act.
The brothers paused for a moment, but in the next instant, they still chose to attack.
This time, Xu Huo didn't meet them head-on. Instead, he turned and rushed toward the other side of the room!
The twin brothers' expressions changed drastically, and they immediately gave chase, but it was too late. Xu Huo had already swung his sword at the standing mirror placed beside the dressing table!
*Crack!* The mirror glass shattered easily into pieces. Xu Huo frowned slightly, and when he turned back to see the pained expressions on the Chen brothers' faces, he confirmed he had found the right target.
"Chu River Han Border!" Chen Tu swiped two fingers, pulling up a water barrier, and then he and Chen Nan fled toward the door together.
How could Xu Huo let them leave so easily? He flicked his lighter, and Chen Tu burst into flames!
"Brother!" Chen Nan hurriedly rushed over to help tear off his burning clothes. But by then, Xu Huo had already circled around the water barrier and reached them. Seeing him raise his sword, Chen Nan suddenly spread his arms wide to shield Chen Tu and shouted loudly, "You're our substitute now! If you hurt my brother, you hurt yourself! Even if the prop is destroyed, the effect is still in place!"