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Shawn Young saw that Hayato Falcon was calm and composed, yet his whole body was shrouded in murderous intent. Shawn knew that Hayato Falcon was truly ready to kill for the blade. Without hesitation, Shawn gripped the Murasame Blade with both hands and slowly circled Hayato Falcon, searching for a weakness. He planned to use the formidable power of the Murasame Blade to strike a fatal blow. But after Hayato Falcon took his stance, he dropped his head and stood motionless, breathing steadily, clearly unfazed by Shawn's attempt to distract him!
"Break—!" Shawn suddenly roared, but his body flashed backward. His left hand shot up—"Swish—!" A dazzling blue light shot straight toward Hayato Falcon's face.
The flash of the blade vanished in midair—"Boom—!" A loud explosion split a burst of flames in two. Shawn's expression instantly turned grim, because this Palm Thunder was a mid-tier Taoist lightning spell, powerful and known for its sudden and concealed activation—perfect for ambush. He hadn't expected Hayato Falcon to remain unmoved, breaking Shawn's Palm Thunder with just one stroke!
The sneak attack failed, but Shawn didn't stop. He roared, crouched slightly, stomped his feet, and lunged forward, gripping the Murasame Blade with both hands. With unmatched killing intent, he slashed at Hayato Falcon using the Crushing Blade Technique from Xingyi Blade Arts, combining the explosive force of Xingyi Fist—tiger sitting, dragon crouching, the blade like a fierce tiger, murderous intent fierce and unadorned!
This was the only blade technique Shawn learned from Master Winston Yuan, and he rarely had time to practice it. He never expected it to come in handy today!
"Yah—!" Hayato Falcon also let out a roar, but instead of retreating, he advanced. His figure flashed, charging straight into the powerful blade aura of the Murasame Blade. At the same time, his katana flashed like lightning from his waist, slashing at Shawn's head with a momentum that showed he was willing to risk mutual destruction to take Shawn's life!
A fierce blade aura, filled with killing intent, came slashing down toward Shawn's head. Shawn was stunned—he hadn't expected Hayato Falcon to use such a reckless technique. He knew that if this blade struck, he'd be instantly decapitated! Shawn quickly dodged and raised the Murasame Blade to block Hayato Falcon's katana.
"Clang—!" The weapons collided, sparks flying. Hayato Falcon's katana was actually sliced off by the Murasame Blade, with a chunk of the blade flying into the air.
Shawn was secretly delighted. He stomped forward and flicked the Murasame Blade toward Hayato Falcon's chest in a diagonal slash, hoping to finish him off in one go. Unexpectedly, Hayato Falcon didn't dodge; instead, he twisted his body and crashed straight into the tip of the Murasame Blade.
"Crack—!" There was a strange, crisp sound. Shawn felt a jolt in his arms—the Murasame Blade had already sliced into Hayato Falcon's abdomen. Oddly, there wasn't the expected spray of blood; instead, Hayato Falcon's ninja outfit was shredded by the blade aura, revealing a dark, bamboo-segmented vest underneath, faintly glowing—a bizarre piece of armor!
The razor-sharp, domineering Murasame Blade was embedded in Hayato Falcon's strange vest and couldn't be pulled out immediately. This unbelievable turn of events shocked Shawn to his core.
"Hmph—Die!" Hayato Falcon sneered coldly, yanking his broken katana back and unleashing a spinning slash straight at Shawn's neck.
"Ah—!" Shawn was horrified. In desperation, he withdrew his hands and rolled backward on the floor, barely dodging Hayato Falcon's deadly strike. But the Murasame Blade had already been snatched back by Hayato Falcon.
"Heh heh—Surprised? Let me tell you—I'm wearing the Celestial Silk Armor, one of the Three Treasures of Iga, woven from ancient celestial silkworm threads. It can resist all legendary weapons! Keh keh—Now, you can die with clarity!" Hayato Falcon sneered, retrieving the Murasame Blade from his abdomen and walking slowly toward Shawn.
"Ugh—I'm doomed—" Shawn thought, deeply alarmed. He knew Hayato Falcon was bent on killing him, so he quickly retreated several steps, gathering his true energy to prepare a last-ditch counterattack.
Hayato Falcon stared at him coldly, advancing step by step. In his eyes, the panicked Shawn was already a dead man.
Suddenly, the thick mist beside them rippled, and a figure flashed out, appearing next to Hayato Falcon. Hayato Falcon was startled and looked up—it was Mai Kanda, back again, her ninja blade stained with fresh blood, clearly having just slaughtered enemies.
"Junior Sister! Wait a moment, I'll kill this guy to consecrate my blade! Then we can really go wild!" Hayato Falcon was delighted by Mai Kanda's arrival. Despite the ambush, the Iga ninja corps had suffered heavy losses, but he and Mai Kanda, the two elite ninjas, were still standing and had already reclaimed the Murasame Blade. If they could finish off Shawn, the most troublesome enemy, there would be no strong opponents left in the base. Then, teaming up with Mai Kanda, he could wipe out all resistance and turn defeat into victory!
"Mm—" Mai Kanda replied, then moved to stand behind Hayato Falcon.
Hayato Falcon sneered, raising the Murasame Blade at the stunned Shawn. "You defiled the Murasame Blade. Now your blood will cleanse it!"
"Squelch—!" A flash of blade in the mist, then a muffled thud—Hayato Falcon felt his body jolt as if struck by lightning, frozen in place. His throat burned; he instinctively clutched it, dropping the Murasame Blade to the ground. Wide-eyed, he turned—Mai Kanda was staring coldly at him, her eyes filled with murderous intent, her ninja blade's tip driven hard through his throat!
"Ugh—gurgle—guh—" Hayato Falcon stared in disbelief, raising his hand to point at Mai Kanda, his expression clearly asking why she would do this.
Mai Kanda didn't answer; she twisted and yanked her ninja blade free, then retreated several steps, staring coldly at Hayato Falcon. "Sss—" A jet of blood spurted from Hayato Falcon's pierced throat, instantly staining the ground. Hayato Falcon felt his strength drain rapidly with the loss of blood, dropping to his knees, clutching his wounded throat as crimson blood oozed between his fingers.
Hayato Falcon's mouth hung open, gasping for air. The light of life quickly faded from his eyes, but he still glared at Mai Kanda with disbelief and endless resentment, making her heart tighten.