Chapter 6: Success (1/2)

Chapter 6: Success

Translator: IreneEditor: Lis

Unlike the others who felt as though they were bound hand and foot, Ai Hui was like a fish in water, glad to be back in a familiar environment.

In the Wilderness, darkness ruled. Numerous massacres and sneak attacks occurred quietly in that very darkness, seizing lives and warmth. Strength didn’t matter; the elementalists who were unable to adapt to the dark would not survive.

Ai Hui soon sensed a presence nearby—so close that he anticipated they would pass each other.

Initially, he had no intention of attacking. As long as he managed to hide and keep silent in a corner for five minutes, he could collect the prize money and leave because the rules stated that he would win as long as he persevered for five minutes without being defeated.

It was, however, a matter of life and death in the Wilderness. No rules applied.

When Ai Hui realized that the situation was not as he had expected, he responded instinctively. The opponent was dangerously close to him. If the opponent attacked, he wouldn’t be able to launch a counterattack. Ai Hui entered a flowing state and gauged the danger level using the terrifying

dire beasts that lived in the Wilderness as a benchmark. He would never foolishly assume that the people around him would be unable to adapt to the darkness.

Countless life or death experiences had taught his body that when such situations arose, initiating an attack would give him a greater advantage.

His footsteps were light and graceful. Like a cat in the night, each step he took was absolutely noiseless.

His movements were very slow, to the point that not even the sound of wind could be heard. This was where Ai Hui’s rich experience came into play. Within the dark environment, each breath or sound was as piercing as a dazzling ray of light.

Silence was darkness’s best companion.

Ai Hui vaguely sensed his opponent’s position and gently advanced towards it.

He was in a highly anticipatory state. The flesh and muscles throughout his entire body were in a critical state, like a volcano on the verge of eruption. Nobody would have been able to discern this, however, from his external appearance.

Suddenly, he stopped and held his breath.

He was a seasoned hunter; he sensed that his prey had detected his presence.

He did not know how to describe this sense of awareness or where this intuition was based. There was no need for substantiation in the Wilderness. There was only victory or failure, life or death.

He stood in place like a statue, without a single movement.

On the other side, Shi Xueman smelled the faint trace of a dangerous odor. Although she wasn’t certain, it was enough to put her on guard. She focused all her attention on the surroundings, vigilantly using her ears to capture any sounds.

The surroundings were very quiet as if there was only emptiness.

But somewhere a little further away, she could hear the breaths of a few people. Although they were suppressed, she managed to capture the noises. In fact, she heard someone tiptoeing quietly around her left side.

Inwardly she shook her head. At this point, any movement would lead to an attack.

Right then, about ten meters away, a cry of surprise and a stifled groan could be heard, followed by the collisions of intense punching and kicking. Soon, chaos took over that area.

Shi Xueman mentally heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed it was an illusion. There was no one within a three-meter radius from where she stood.

Fighting in the dark was indeed very different.

Shi Xueman felt stimulated by such an unfamiliar battle. Her nerves tensed up like never before. Her perception of the surroundings was also unprecedentedly acute. If she could keep this up, her fighting abilities would take a qualitative leap.

Before her eyes unfolded a path she had never seen before.

She felt like a hunter hidden within the shadows, waiting for the best opportunity to strike. Confidence bubbled up within her. Under such a high level of alertness, even the slightest change in her surroundings could not escape her.

While she was preoccupied with this fresh experience, she suddenly felt something brush against her shoulder.

It broke her reverie and made her hair stand on end. She had not moved, so why would she bump into anything?

Someone was close by! She’d been unable to detect anything—a presence, a sound, even a change in airflow. A chill shot up her spine.

Her reaction was too slow however. Even as she finally realized the danger, it was already too late.

When Shi Xueman had been lost in her thoughts earlier, the statue-like Ai Hui made his move. He moved excruciatingly slowly, even more so than a ninety-year-old lady. He advanced with his five fingers carefully extended, grasping and exploring the area before him. His body leaned forward slightly, with the flesh and muscles in his body all ready to make a lunge.

With Ai Hui’s high level of concentration, he blocked out the battle noises from close by and remained completely unaffected. All his attention was on his fingertips. He knew that if he came into contact with someone, the battle would be over in a blink of an eye. Victory or defeat, the result would be pronounced at this moment.

The moment his fingers felt an obstruction, Ai Hui launched an attack without hesitation.

With knees slightly bent and tendons creating a burst of energy, his body sprang forward with lightning speed like a nimble and fierce cheetah. The sensation beneath his fingertips became more solid, his rich experience leading him to deduce that he had touched his opponent’s shoulder.

When Shi Xueman responded by violently lunging forward to push against his attack, she lost her balance on the spot, and her body tumbled towards the ground. Her left hand, which had been ready to counterattack, lost effectiveness as she instinctively reached out to regain balance.

However, her arm became entangled with his, locked into a vicious attack that numbed her right arm.

The attack that completely suppressed her did not stop there. Shi Xueman was greatly shocked as her opponent’s body wrapped around hers like a snake. His body pressed up against her back tightly like an octopus. His legs were like thick and solid steel wires. They extended to her front and held onto her legs as his toes clasped onto her calves like a metal lock.