But it was completely meaningless.
After a loud crash, the Berserker flew out like a rag doll, hitting a cypress before falling down. Shakily getting up, he immediately coughed up blood onto the ground.
He looked up, and before him was a towering black shadow.
Nini threw down the giant shield in her hand and chased after him, the Orphen Twin Stars seemed like her armor, and her combat instinct as if imprinted within the Dragon Bloodline, innate and natural.
Fang Hong had long noticed that Nini was very different from Tata, she had almost no concept of calculative power, yet possessed exceedingly high battle intelligence.
And Miss Fairy had mentioned more than once that Nini wasn't much like ordinary artificial dragon souls — in fact, both her origin and her traits were more akin to another class of dragon soul — those that existed in the natural environment of Eteliria, precious creations after the fall of dragons.
Powerful Nature Dragon Soul.
The symbol of the Sky Knight.
Nini held her spear single-handedly, thrusting it forward like a meteor chasing the moon.
The Berserker rolled in a desperate manner, narrowly avoiding the strike.
He got up from the ground, coughing blood again, but he understood that merely evading would eventually lead to his defeat.
Gritting his teeth, he raised his giant double axe with both hands, howling aloud, the magic patterns on his body emitted an even more dazzling light, with a voice full of elements of either pain or wildness. This Berserker profession was so fitting for an Invoker, yet why wasn't it the most mainstream profession for them?
Not just because the Berserker had no future, but also because how many were willing to endure the pain brought by blood rage?
The Berserker's veins bulged, swinging his axe at Nini with the strongest form he could muster.
But he swung an empty swing.
In his dumbfounded expression, the Orphen Twin Stars split apart, and the giant axe swept through the gap between the two halves, hitting nothing but air. The unbalanced Berserker raised his head in shock, only to see the Fearless One from the upper part of the 'Knight Armor' holding a spear with both hands, leaping high.
Beneath its metallic visor, golden eyes looked at him with a faint mocking glint.
Those were the eyes of Nikopolas.
The Berserker's knees buckled, and he fell to the ground on one knee.
And on the other side of the battlefield.
Behind Fang Hong, who was completely unaware, a black mist suddenly split open, and from it shot out a bright dagger, aiming straight for his lower back.
This would be a fatal blow for any Combat Artisan, but just as the dagger in Nightingale's hand was about to reach the coat of Fang Hong, the latter suddenly twisted his body in an extraordinarily odd posture.
Thus evading the strike.
But his Balance and Evasion Value were instantly depleted —
Fang Hong lost his footing and fell to the ground, but he reacted quickly — making no evasive actions, knowing that in the face of a seasoned Nightingale, evasion was pointless without balance and evasion value.
He merely extended a hand, summoning a beam of gold straight down from above the forest.
The Nightingale was slightly taken aback, never expecting his seemingly assured strike to miss, as the other party should not have sensed it. But when he attempted to pursue, the descending beam of golden light forced him to retract his hand, and with a reverse shot from a hand crossbow, sent the Clockwork Fairy flying away.
The latter exploded in midair, transforming into a cluster of golden light and smoke.
The swirling dust instantly enveloped both of them.
Only then did Fang Hong recover some Evasion Value and quickly rolled aside, holding his breath. Upon checking his combat log, he did discover that the 'Dark Blessing' had activated, a Lizardman ritual, allowing him to avoid the strike at a critical moment.
However, this did not happen beyond his expectation — or rather, it was precisely because of this ritual blessing that he dared stand openly and reveal the opposing Nightingale's position.
Now, it seemed his plan was just right.
But as the dust just began to disperse, a ripple swept across the ground. The ripple was nearly invisible, but it raised goosebumps on Fang Hong's skin. He knew it was an ether resonance reaction, evidence that someone was using magic to detect his position.
The spellcaster's skills weren't overly sophisticated, or else he should have been unaware. But among Invokers, there weren't many with such high-level casting skills.
The Nightingale definitely wouldn't be casting spells.
Fang Hong knew the opponent was the potential fifth person.
A Magic Guided Conductor.
It seemed everyone was here —
Fang Hong was aware that his position had been compromised, but remained calm, only calling out in his heart:
"Miss Tata."
"Mr. Knight, I've always been here." Even in this critical situation, Miss Tata's voice remained unhurried.
Fang Hong released Meimei, allowing the puppet to soar into the air, while he said: "Sorry to trouble you."
"Mm."
Silver rays beamed from the Fairy Figures, connecting to Fang Hong below.
As he gestured, a silver light materialized before him, followed by another, then a third and a fourth; four Energy Angels lined up in front of him. He looked up just in time to see the Nightingale emerging from the mist with a dagger, stepping toward him.
Both paused upon seeing each other.
Nightingale adjusted his tall top hat, a bit amazed at the four Energy Angels in front of Fang Hong.
Fang Hong was surprised by the other's identity.
Who would have thought that the Nightingale was actually an old acquaintance, the Dragonfire Guild's assassin he once led into the swamp angler's trap. He had later seen this person in the Stargate Port's wanted order and recognized his identity; the other was named something like Twenty or something?
"Is it you!?"
Both realized the other's identity.
...