"Hiss. Still not dead... "
"And recovering so fast!"
Xu Shu’s eyes suddenly narrowed, extremely surprised.
Indeed, wanting to secretly kill a strong man ranked 250 on the Human List this easily is somewhat unrealistic, he understands this point very well, thus he didn’t have high expectations of instantly killing the opponent.
But at such close range, practically face-to-face receiving a shot of the "Chasing Sun Golden Spear", which was a "weakened version" for stealth, he shouldn’t just be crippled if not dead, right?
This isn’t Xu Shu being overconfident, but a reasonable judgment based on their multiple encounters and both having a grasp of each other’s strength to a certain extent.
Even if Yan Hui was born with Innate Divine Strength, with a robust physique, still a "Grandmaster" capable of enhancing physical strength, not a "Scribe," or "Mechanical Expert" type of glass cannon, he had enough tenacity to survive.
But should have been injured enough to have to flee, hiding for a while to recover slightly, losing the strength to fight again in the short term.
This situation had indeed been part of Xu Shu’s plan concocted within seconds after making his move!
His approach was simple and brutal.
Step one, sneaking an elbow shot to knock Yan Hui flying.
Hopefully, killing by elbow strike, but not worrying if it didn’t.
Because, he wouldn’t waste time chasing Yan Hui, who likely used a lifesaving tactic to escape, choosing instead to deal with other Holy Knights present.
And as long as he won this period of time, he could proceed to step two: taking the opportunity to clean out the Red Emperor Army minions with strength roughly equal to "A Friend in Winter."
—Ultimately, this ambush was a "head-chopping tactic" not a "decapitation tactic," aiming to break and scatter the enemy forces, creating conditions to partner with Xiao Ya, using their realm superiority to subdue, finally allowing them to shatter the leaderless Red Emperor Army!
While also taking advantage of two against one to eliminate the lone, unsupported Voodoo.
If so, when Yan Hui recovered and returned, he would face defeat just like Voodoo, eliminated two versus one by Xu Shu and Xiao Ya.
The plan was quite perfect.
The facts initially proved successful as well.
Yan Hui lost whereabouts when elbowed into flight, "Life-taking Mantra" disrupted the Red Emperor Army’s order, and the accidental deaths of two "Dragon Elephant" from the shockwave proved surprisingly delightful.
Everything was within Xu Shu’s expectations.
This was supposed to be quite a perfect battle, ready for success, wasn’t it great?
Unfortunately, an unexpected variable arose.
Yan Hui managed to return in such a short time, regaining control of the battlefield, providing backbone to the Red Emperor Army!
More crucially, he appeared nearly unaffected, with his strength seemingly still at its peak!
This recovery speed... isn’t it a bit too fast?
Xu Shu was utterly shocked within.
Even if Yan Hui, like him, carried a "Falling in Love" Enchanting Demon, it shouldn’t achieve this, right?
Could the previous mishap mean the Chasing Sun Golden Spear missed, with him having narrowly avoided, only grazing through?
No, seeing his posture now, it seemed he was heavily injured but carrying some treasure making him so resilient to elbows...
As thoughts raced within him, Xu Shu’s gaze naturally noticed the bloody threads winding around Yan Hui’s body.
This method of healing injuries seemed quite eerie, extremely peculiar, yet somewhat familiar.
Ugh...
This appears to be...
Some form of "Death Aura"?
Xu Shu wasn’t entirely certain, unable to articulate what this especially peculiar thing precisely was.
As the first instinct seems to be the "Death Aura" of a "Butcher," but upon closer observation, it felt somewhat different.
That’s that, but the key point is, isn’t Yan Hui a "Martial Artist"?
Where does he get Death Aura?
Death Aura is a unique talent of "Rogues," only controllable at the "Butcher" level to such a manifestation!
Ugh... Grandmaster and Butcher combo...
Could it be?
Xu Shu’s eyes focused, pupils dilating.
With the thought of this combination dual cultivation, a violent yet elegant silhouette instantly surfaced in his mind.
Hong Jun, ranked fifth on the Human List!
This master, nicknamed "Complete Annihilation," can simultaneously release "Death Aura" and "Sword Qi," suspected to be a dual path Transcendent!
Could it mean Yan Hui is also dual-cultivating "Martial Artist" and "Rogue"?
He didn’t show such means before, could it mean he was concealing strengths previously, playing the pig to eat the tiger, revealing real power only when driven today?
Shouldn’t be...
Back then in the ruins, he was extremely hostile towards me, and surrounded by his subordinates, confidants, lacked necessary reasons to conceal then?
Strange...
Additionally, this Death Aura the blood threads exhibit on him is peculiar, haven’t heard of Death Aura being self-healing before, have we?
Just thinking like this, Xu Shu instinctively activated Spiritual Vision, utilizing the last second gap, taking a few more glances.
After several scans, unable to discern the essence of this Death Aura, yet truly noticing a bit of mystery.
Within Spiritual Vision, it could be seen, the Death Aura on Yan Hui possessed quite a distinct source.
It came from Yan Hui’s waist, from the crescent-shaped, seemingly, a spell tool, partially exposed knife handle of the leather pouch!
Upon it danced colors swirling, continuously emitting blood threads, outright becoming the source of the Death Aura!
However, upon discovery, Xu Shu’s confusion instead deepened greatly.