Although he didn't know who the third party hiding in the shadows really was, nor what their purpose might be.

It was better not to wade into muddy waters that could be avoided.

While they were focusing on that adventurer team, this was the perfect time to make a quick escape!

Lin Mo reacted with incredible speed, moving swiftly without the slightest hesitation.

But it seemed the other party had never intended to let him go from the very beginning. Almost simultaneously with the second arrow being shot, they had already taken action.

"Rustle—"

It sounded like the gentle noise of breeze passing through leaves, quietly blending into the sound of Lin Mo's running footsteps—so subtle, so inconspicuous.

Yet hidden within it was an extremely vicious killing move.

"Thud!"

Lin Mo's foot landed on solid ground, his body still leaping forward. The scenery around him rapidly receded as his chest slightly expanded. The moment he inhaled, a spine-tingling warning made his scalp feel like it was about to explode, completely numb.

He quickly turned around, his sword almost instinctively swinging out—

"Slash!"

Time seemed to freeze at this moment. In his vision, that glint of cold steel shone particularly dazzling under the sunlight. He stared at that fleeting reflection, his eyeballs following its movement until they strained painfully within their sockets.

Finally, he discerned the blurred trajectory. In less than 0.5 seconds, he rapidly mobilized all his muscles, twisting the sword's direction by about ten centimeters.

"Clang—!"

The crisp sound of metal clashing reverberated in his ears. The clear recoil transmitted through his hands, and the tangible feeling of hitting something solid jolted Lin Mo out of that peculiar state.

He quickly retreated, his gaze solemn as he looked at the newcomer.

It was a man dressed entirely in emerald green martial attire, with a headscarf wrapped around his head and a black cloth covering his face, making his features indistinguishable.

All that could be seen were those narrow, deep eyes and the fine wrinkles surrounding them.

Assassin!

An assassin whose speed was not inferior to his own, perhaps even faster!

The assassin was equally shocked at this moment, tightly gripping his short blade while feeling the force that made his forearm slightly numb. His deep eyes couldn't conceal his astonishment and surprise.

What he thought was a certain kill had actually been precisely blocked.

Even such a hasty counterattack still possessed such astonishing power, making it almost impossible for him to withstand.

This young brat seemed far stronger than he had anticipated.

Without further contemplation, the next moment he swung his blade to attack again. At such close distance, the short blade held absolute speed advantage over the long sword. Lin Mo could only rapidly retreat, dodging this strike.

However, the assassin before him had anticipated his reaction. With a twist of his wrist, he immediately followed up with a straight thrust aimed directly at Lin Mo's heart!

This was a truly experienced, well-trained assassin—every move targeted vital weak points.

Lin Mo had nowhere to dodge. He could only twist his body aside as the sharp short blade pierced into his chest. He could clearly feel the blade scraping past his sternum. After a momentary impact sensation came a surging flow of heat.

The burning sensation completely enraged Lin Mo. He extended his left hand, quickly grasping the assassin's wrist, and squeezed hard.

Excruciating pain made the assassin's hand instantly go limp, releasing the hilt. Then, before the triumph in his eyes could turn to panic, a sharp blade already swept upward diagonally from the lower right, penetrating through the abdomen and forcefully lodging against the spine.

Amid the hard sensation mixed with gradual penetration, Lin Mo's exertion didn't stop. He roared angrily, bloodshot eyes filling his sockets as his left hand gripping the assassin's wrist violently pulled in the opposite direction of the blade.

"Crack—!"

After the crisp sound, there was no more resistance before the blade as it smoothly slid through.

Lin Mo released his left hand in advance. The assassin's upper body flew out while the remaining half crashed to the ground, scattering red and green contents everywhere.

"Huff—! Huff—!"

Lin Mo breathed heavily, the severe pain in his chest only now surging up, making his expression particularly ferocious.

He retreated several steps to lean against a tree, looking down to examine his wound.

The short blade had almost grazed the central sternum, penetrating about three to four centimeters. It had fortunately gotten stuck between two ribs, preventing further penetration.

Lucky...

If he had twisted his body even slightly slower, or if the angle had been slightly off—even if it didn't hit the heart, the blade piercing his lung would have been a terribly troublesome injury.

While adjusting his breathing to gradually calm down, Lin Mo remained vigilant against possible further attacks from ahead.

Meanwhile, the adventurer team at the rear had also fallen into a difficult battle.

The hidden figures finally emerged from the dense forest. They wore similar outfits to the assassin Lin Mo had just killed—one wielded a heavy sword, another carried a massive axe, a third used a rapier, and the last one standing at the back of the formation was the ranger who had shot the arrows earlier.

Four in total, exactly matching the adventurer team's numbers.

But the combat power between the two sides was clearly unbalanced.

Bern charged at the forefront of his team, directly confronting the warrior wielding the heavy sword.

Heavy sword clashed against iron shield, the tremendous recoil forcing both sides back. But Bern was clearly the less affected one. Seizing the opportunity, he stepped forward, drawing strength from the ground's support as his blade swept toward the opponent's throat.

However, this perfectly timed strike didn't succeed, being blocked by a rapier instead.

"This one's tough to handle. Let's both attack him!"

After a hurried exchange, the two exchanged glances and simultaneously charged at Bern.

The axe-wielding fellow attacked the remaining three team members.

He swung his enormous axe overhead in a downward chop.

Evan's eyes clearly showed panic. Although he had experienced nearly two years of adventure, his previous opponents had only been low-level monsters like goblins, completely outmatched in combat capability.

Even when encountering slightly stronger goblins, he would hide behind his uncle, watching Uncle Bern handle them.

But now, he faced a broad-shouldered, thick-waisted opponent clearly much stronger than himself.

Evan gritted his teeth as if staking everything, gripping his sword hilt with both hands and forcefully meeting the attack.

"Clang—!"

A mightier force than imagined struck, making it almost impossible to maintain his grip. Trembling all over, he forcefully exerted strength with his aching arms again, barely maintaining a brief stalemate.

The next moment, a gust of wind came from the side as a short blade thrust toward the burly man's neck.

The axe warrior clearly also sensed the side attack, forced to withdraw and evade this assault.

The suddenly relieved pressure made Evan collapse to his knees, gasping for breath as he felt his entire body weighed down like lead, difficult to move.

But the battlefield offered no rest time. The next moment, an arrow that had been held ready shot directly toward him.

"Watch out!"

Assassin Kent had the sharpest eyes, recognizing the danger first and kicking Evan.

As Evan fell, the arrow grazed his arm, leaving a bloody trail.

"Hisss—!"

The searing pain made Evan gasp sharply. Meanwhile, the previously repelled axe warrior regrouped and attacked again.

"Get up quickly, Evan!"

Kent urged anxiously. As an assassin, he couldn't confront a warrior head-on directly. They needed Evan to pin down the opponent to have any chance of victory.

Miriam behind them wasn't just spectating either. Though slower than the opponent, her arrow now shot out, aimed directly at the axe-wielding burly man.

But this opponent was no rookie like Evan—his combat experience was clearly much richer. He quickly stopped his movement, sidestepping to avoid the arrow.

The brief time Miriam bought finally allowed Evan to recover. Gripping his sword tightly, he roared and actively attacked.

The burly man hastily countered. Sword and axe collided, each retreating two steps—a draw.

"Brat!"

The opposing burly man instantly flew into rage. He roared loudly, swinging his massive axe down in a chop. This strike carried tremendous force, clearly different from his previous hasty counterattack.

But Evan wasn't stupid. Knowing he couldn't match the opponent in strength, he had anticipated the counterattack and already retreated early, creating distance. Then seizing the moment when the opponent had just exerted force, he thrust his sword straight forward.

"Ding—"

The sword tip struck the axe surface, emitting a clear sound.

The axe indeed held advantage in frontal collisions but also had the obvious drawback of greater clumsiness. Evan exploited this well, creating a brief stalemate on the battlefield.

"Miriam!"

The next moment he shouted. The hesitant girl finally seemed to make up her mind, releasing the bowstring from her fingertips. A sharp arrow flew out, grazing past Evan's scalp and deeply embedding into the burly man's right shoulder.

Excruciating pain made his strength falter. Evan seized the opportunity, swinging his sword in a full arc to chop off the opponent's head.

After delivering this strike, he completely exhausted his strength, unable to maintain his grip on the sword as he collapsed to the ground, gasping heavily.

Meanwhile, Kent had already circled to the enemy's rear, a short blade swiftly and precisely attacking the opposing ranger from behind.

As an assassin, his task was harassment on the flanks and threatening the enemy's backline.

From this perspective, Kent's thinking was absolutely correct.

But—

The ranger who had been drawing aim suddenly turned. The white fletching on the arrow brushed past his fingertips as a swift, precise arrow instantly flew out, accurately embedding into Kent's heart.

Kent urged anxiously. As an assassin, he couldn't confront a warrior head-on. They needed Evan to pin down the opponent to have any chance of victory.

"Kent!"

Bern noticed the situation, shouting loudly. But currently trapped under two opponents' siege, he had completely fallen into disadvantage, unable to spare any extra energy.

Although neither opponent matched his individual strength, two fists ultimately struggled against four hands. Before truly becoming a professional, numerical advantage remained difficult to overcome.

If not for Bern being a knight-class profession specializing in defense, he would have been defeated long ago.

Although Evan and Miriam had cooperated to eliminate one opponent, their own side had also suffered casualties, and Evan was completely exhausted, clearly unable to continue fighting. For the adventurer team, the battle situation could be described as extremely unfavorable.

Miriam looked at the fallen Kent and Evan, momentarily bewildered, her arms trembling uncontrollably.

In the distance, the opposing ranger seemed to reveal a mocking smile. She drew her bow again, aiming directly at Miriam!

Miriam seemed to understand something. With trembling hands, she drew an arrow from her quiver.

Clearly, this would be a ranger versus ranger confrontation. If Miriam lost, their team would be completely wiped out. And the opposing ranger far surpassed Miriam in experience, strength, and even mentality.

He seemed to already see that young girl opposite him struck by an arrow, crying out in desperate agony.

However, just as the bowstring in his hand reached full draw, about to release, a chill suddenly arose from behind, instantly making him feel as if plunged into an ice cellar.

Someone else?!

He quickly turned, firing an arrow in the same manner, but only saw a thrown short blade falling after colliding with the arrow.

The next moment, a blurred figure flashed past from his peripheral vision. The world in his eyes suddenly turned upside down as he saw his own body collapsing...

Lin Mo kicked away the head that rolled to his feet, spitting: "So you're the bastard who ambushed me just now?"

Having witnessed Kent's failed sneak attack, he naturally wouldn't fall for the same trick twice. So he specifically threw the short blade to attract attention, then quickly circled to the flank to deliver the fatal blow to this ranger.

With the help of his "Stealth" skill, his plan executed quite smoothly.

[Slash] proficiency +1

[Stealth] proficiency +1

His gaze swept over the notifications at the corner of his eye. Not just monsters—killing humans could also increase skill proficiency.

This he had already learned when he killed that assassin earlier.

"You—!"

Noticing their ranger being eliminated, the remaining two instantly panicked. They looked at Lin Mo with a short blade "pinned" in his chest, faces filled with horror.

"Taine actually failed?"

Taine was their assassin.

They had previously assigned tasks, with Taine responsible for dealing with Lin Mo. They had almost all assumed that panicked fleeing kid would quickly become a corpse.

After all, Taine had never failed before. As an experienced assassin, he had even managed to assassinate a quasi-professional warrior through ambush!

But now, Lin Mo standing before them undoubtedly told them Taine was dead.

"Retreat!"

Bern noticed the situation, shouting loudly. But currently trapped under two opponents' encirclement, he had completely fallen into disadvantage, unable to spare any extra energy.

The other heavy sword warrior also panickedly ended his moves, wanting to escape.

But at that moment, an arrow suddenly shot out, accurately hitting his calf.

It was Miriam!

Bern also reacted promptly, quickly adjusting his movements from defense to pursuit.

"Trying to run?!"

Having been inexplicably attacked, suffering team casualties, being besieged by two people and pressed for quite some time—he had long accumulated a bellyful of anger that finally fully released now.

"Shield Bash!"

The powerfully swung rectangular shield slammed out, heavily crashing into the opponent. The warrior instantly spat blood, sent flying backward.

Bern quickly followed up, his sword descending—

This strike didn't aim for vitals but pierced through his thigh, nailing him to the ground.

On the other side, Lin Mo wanted to pursue the rapier man, but his injury somewhat affected mobility. Moreover, the opponent was also an agility-focused warrior who ran very fast. After trying for a while and seeing pursuit would be difficult, he could only give up.

With the battle concluded, Lin Mo and Bern's gazes simultaneously fell upon the wailing, agonizing warrior.

Regarding this somewhat inexplicable battle, they both held many questions in their hearts, waiting to be answered...