Chen Ling

The battle unfolded too quickly; from its start until now, barely 5 seconds had passed. Irien, injured, hadn't even had time to launch his next attack when Zhi Dan was struck down. His expression turned grim, but his killing intent grew even heavier.

"I underestimated you after all," Irien said. "But you're a spent arrow now."

Irien waved his hand, and a beam of light shot out, piercing Hua Yan's thigh. In his left hand, an energy dart continued to form. In his right hand, a nail made of blue light gradually took shape.

His main Card was not the one that fired the energy dart he had been using until now, but this nail. Ding Jian Card, a Five-Star Card, its sole skill being Ding Jian, with peak Grade Five attack power, an additional 30% defense-piercing effect, a 3000m attack range, a 500m target lock range, a 10-second energy accumulation time, and a 10-second cooldown. Irien's use of this Card now undoubtedly aimed for an instant kill.

Hua Yan gritted his teeth, enduring the pain, and stood up. His defensive skill was gone, so the energy dart had easily pierced his thigh, leaving a bottomless hole in the ground.

Bao Dan Card, High Explosive Bullet skill activated.

Between Hua Yan's hands, energy began to gather into a red oval ball.

After 1 second, the energy dart had formed, and Irien fired it again. The beam of light struck Hua Yan's forehead. However, the head was the strongest defensive area, so it only left a scratch. Even so, its power still stunned Hua Yan.

Irien swapped Card Energy extremely quickly, then continued to fire an energy dart that pierced Hua Yan's chest.

Hua Yan stood like a statue, allowing Irien to attack him countless times, still standing tall. As long as his head wasn't pierced, he could hold on for a while.

Now it was a race against time; whoever completed their energy accumulation first would win.

Suddenly, Hua Yan's eyes flashed, and he roared, pushing the oval ball forward. The ball flew faster and faster, its momentum unmatched.

Irien remained calm. He activated his Qi Flow Card, dodging and retreating extremely quickly, instantly falling back 50m.

But the High Explosive Bullet, with its locked target, pursued him like a shadow.

After retreating 70m, Irien's eyes turned cold. His mission was to assassinate Chen Ling, not Hua Yan. Hua Yan had guessed this and always blocked Chen Ling, forcing Irien to use Ding Jian, even though doing so would give Hua Yan a chance to counterattack.

Ding Jian took a long time to accumulate energy, but its penetration power was unmatched; only it could pierce through Hua Yan and still have enough power to eliminate Chen Ling. At this moment, Ding Jian was ready, and Irien fired it without hesitation.

But in that instant, the High Explosive Bullet appeared in front of him. Hua Yan had anticipated his intention.

"Pfft, pfft. Boom!"

The nail, launched like a beam of light, easily pierced through the High Explosive Bullet, then struck Hua Yan's head, sending him flying back several meters. However, being blocked by the High Explosive Bullet, it no longer had enough power to continue attacking Chen Ling.

On the other side, the pierced High Explosive Bullet immediately exploded. The peak Grade Five attack power, unimpeded by any energy shield, erupted with astonishing force.

A pillar of fire rose nearly 30m high, and a shockwave spread almost a hundred meters, sweeping away everything in its path.

The surrounding houses were severely damaged. Tung Lin, even though he was hiding behind a house, was thrown back by the shockwave, clutching his chest and spitting out a mouthful of blood.

Irien, less than 10m from the center of the explosion, was completely annihilated, not even his bones remaining.

The entire area suddenly became chaotic; the massive explosion injured many people. Imagine being woken up by a shockwave, spitting blood, and your house in ruins – how could one not panic?

Tung Lin scrambled to his feet; he needed to leave this place immediately.

But after a few steps, he remembered that one person's fate was unknown, so he turned back. If he were asked to jump in and save someone during a battle, he would refuse; he still cherished his life. But now that the fighting was over, abandoning someone without saving them was something he couldn't do.

Fortunately, his physique was excellent, so carrying another person and running was not a problem. He carried Chen Ling all the way home.

Tung Lin wasn't foolish; these people's identities were certainly sensitive. Taking them to a hospital would definitely lead to trouble, even a deadly disaster. So he brought them home and then called a doctor.

By the time the doctor left, it was almost three in the morning; Chen Ling's injuries were indeed severe. He was now fast asleep.

Only now did Tung Lin have a chance to observe this person more closely.

Chen Ling was a young man of about 20, tall and slender but with solid muscles. His face was long and refined, like a scholar. On his left chest was a black crescent moon tattoo, both eerie and domineering. The mask had been removed. Tung Lin guessed this mask was made from Shan Mu, a rare and super-hard wood, a necessary material for preparing many types of Card Ink mentioned in the old book. Tung Lin briefly thought about taking the mask for experimentation, but it was just a fleeting thought; after all, it wasn't his.

The next morning.

When Tung Lin woke up, Chen Ling was still unconscious. He went about his usual morning exercises.

After exercising, as soon as he returned home, Tung Lin felt something was wrong. He didn't see Chen Ling anywhere. If Chen Ling had recovered and left without thanking him, that would be one thing, but his wounds hadn't fully healed.

He searched the house, and just as he was about to go out, he saw Chen Ling limping in from outside, his face pale but much better than before.

"You saved me last night?" Chen Ling asked.

"Yes."

"You're lucky. If you had saved those two, you wouldn't be standing here talking right now."

Tung Lin flinched, cold sweat breaking out. Right, he didn't know if these people were good or bad; perhaps the person he saved would readily kill him to silence him.

"However, you know too much. I'm not sure you'll live to see tomorrow," Chen Ling looked at Tung Lin with sharp eyes.

Tung Lin tensed and took a step back. He knew this person was not someone he could contend with. Was he going to die for his kindness?

The atmosphere in the house became unprecedentedly heavy.

"Hahaha, your tense face is truly amusing," Chen Ling suddenly burst out laughing. "Hehe, don't be scared, I just scared you a little to get acquainted. Who would harm their benefactor?"

Watching Chen Ling laugh heartily, Tung Lin's head was filled with black lines. This guy's prank was too much; it scared him senseless. However, being scared once made him sober up and become more cautious. He still couldn't trust this person.

"Don't worry, little brother, my Spiritual Power has been damaged and needs time to recover. I'm a Card Crafter; I won't harm you. My name is Chen Ling, and I'll have to rely on your hospitality for a while," Chen Ling said sincerely. "Oh, what's your name, little brother?"

.....

From this moment on, Tung Lin's house had one more occupant. The house, already cramped and hot, became even more so. Tung Lin began to wonder if he should buy an air conditioner.