Peril and a Nightmare the Martial World Will Never Forget

The moment Prince Nolan jumped down, he made no attempt to protect himself, plunging straight down. The sight was terrifying—Serena felt a chill run through her and screamed, "Don't—!"

Without regard for her own safety, Serena released her protection and swung herself on the rope, aiming to intercept Prince Nolan's fall and try to catch him.

"Wait for me." It happened in an instant, yet for the two of them it felt as long as a year. Their eyes were wide, locked on each other, terrified that a single mistake would cost them everything.

In that moment, both their hearts seemed to stop. They stared at each other, desperate to hold on and never let go.

Sean Xuan saw what was happening and was about to rush over to help, but just as Prince Nolan jumped, a four-limbed, long-haired monster burst from the cave and lunged straight at Prince Nolan and Serena.

With that kind of force and impact, if the creature hit them head-on, neither Prince Nolan nor Serena would survive.

"Get out of the way!" Sean shouted, ignoring his own safety as he leapt toward Serena and Prince Nolan. Unexpectedly, the long-haired monster landed at just the right moment and collided with Sean, sending both man and beast flying, locked in a struggle mid-air.

"Ah—" Serena had just caught Prince Nolan's hand, barely had time to feel relief, when she saw this scene. Tears sprang from her eyes. "Sean!" she cried, wishing she had some way to rush over and save him.

Sean wanted to call out to Serena to say he was alright, but the monster's limbs were freakishly agile. Even as they fell, it kept grappling with him, leaving Sean no chance to spare a word.

"Don't worry." As soon as Prince Nolan stabilized himself, he let go of Serena's hand and launched himself at Sean and the monster.

Seeing Prince Nolan take action, Serena breathed a sigh of relief. "Be careful," she called out. She didn't want Nolan to get hurt while saving Sean.

Nolan didn't even have time to respond. Having fought the long-haired monster before, he knew how terrifying it was. As he leapt out, he fired his Tiger Claw Grappling Hook and descended rapidly, chasing after Sean.

At that moment, Sean was incredibly grateful for the thin vines on the cliff wall. Though not very sturdy, they managed to break his fall just enough. Plus, with the strange gear Serena had outfitted him with, he barely held on until Nolan intervened.

When Nolan reached him, Sean was covered in blood, and the long-haired monster tangled with him wasn't much better off—though it was unclear whose blood it was.

"I'm about to strike," Nolan warned before dropping down. Sean looked up, understood Nolan's plan, and nodded to show he'd cooperate.

But in that split second of distraction, the monster raked Sean's chest with its claws—sharp as daggers—tearing his clothes and leaving three bloody gashes. Even for someone as tough as Sean, the pain made him gasp.

Just then, Nolan dropped down hard. Sean, using his last bit of strength, managed to switch places with the monster. Nolan's kick slammed into the creature's head, sending it flying with a scream—Sean was also flung outward.

Fortunately, Nolan was ready. As Sean was thrown out, Nolan whipped his long flexible sword and caught him, hauling him back to safety.

"I just cheated death," Sean said as he regained his footing, letting out a breath of relief.

That was truly a close call. If he'd really fallen, he wouldn't even have known how he died.

"It's far from over." Nolan pointed down—astonishingly, the monster he'd kicked away was already climbing back up. Its movements were skilled and fluid; the sheer cliff didn't slow it down at all.

"What is that thing? How is it so strong?" Sean wasn't inexperienced—he knew some animals could climb, but this long-haired monster was stranger than anything he'd seen. Up close, Sean had glimpsed a human face; its hands were human-like, but it wasn't an ape or anything similar.

"It's human—a wild man." Even though the cave was dark, Nolan had fought it before and knew for sure.

While Nolan and Sean caught their breath and discussed, Serena took aim at the creature. As soon as it entered her gun's range, she fired.

But even as the bullets hit, the long-haired monster showed no reaction and kept climbing.

"Did I miss?" Serena muttered in confusion, unwilling to give up, and fired two more shots.

She was sure she hadn't imagined it—the bullets didn't hit any vital spots, but they definitely struck the monster. Why didn't it react at all?

"Its skin is thick," Nolan said, remembering how even his long flexible sword hadn't done much in their fight. "You go up first. With me and Sean here, nothing will happen to you."

Nolan gave Serena a look. At first, she didn't understand, but when she saw the blood soaking both Nolan and Sean, she instantly got it.

Even if they were ambushed, they didn't want to show up at the Martial Arts Conference looking battered and filthy. Some things were better handled in private—they didn't want to disrupt the conference or let those people slip out of Prince Damien's schemes.

Serena trusted Nolan and Sean's abilities. With the two of them working together, that monster wouldn't be a problem. She didn't linger—using her own climbing tools, she started up toward the summit.

Sean tried to ignore the exchange of looks between Nolan and Serena, focusing intently on the long-haired monster and rapidly analyzing its weaknesses and attack patterns.

Serena's speed wasn't fast. By the time Nolan and the monster were fighting, she'd only made it halfway up. The monster was truly tough—even with Nolan and Sean teaming up, they took a beating. By the time Serena reached the summit, the two men still hadn't arrived.

Serena knew time was short. She glanced around to make sure no one was behind her, then opened her Smart Med-Pack and took out clean clothes for both men—plus an extra set of Nolan's clothes for Sean.

Nolan was a bit taller than Sean, but their builds were similar enough that it would do.

Once the clothes were ready, she moved on to the medicine...

When Nolan and Sean finally climbed up, both covered in blood, Serena had everything prepared. As soon as she saw them, she ordered, "Take off your clothes."

Nolan was used to Serena's bluntness. Sean felt a little shy, but seeing Nolan's calm, he quickly set his embarrassment aside.

No point losing face, right?

Serena worked quickly, but even so, tending to two wounded men took time. By the time she finished treating their injuries, it was already late.

"Hurry up and change into clean clothes, so you won't be the last to arrive," Serena said, tossing the outfits to the two men. She then slipped away to a hidden spot and changed into a fresh set herself.

Unless you'd seen them at the base of the mountain, you'd never guess these three had just survived an ambush.

But now the sun was up, and the Martial Arts Conference was about to begin. There was no time to rest. Nolan looked toward the heart of Skyvault Mountain, a cold gleam in his eyes. "Let's go," he said.

This Martial Arts Conference would become a nightmare the martial world would never forget.