Timeless Assassin

(The isolated forest, Leo Vs Su Pei)

Dupravel felt two intruders approaching the battle area long before they actually arrived in the vicinity, however, after realising that it was just Veyr and his bodyguard, Dupravel once again paid them no mind.

Leo versus Su Pei was a very interesting battle in his eyes, as although on the surface it looked like a regular fight between two Grandmasters, where neither fighter made any big moves, deep down, the cause and effect behind each attack was simply marvellous for those who had enough knowledge to understand it.

*CLANG*

*CLANG*

*CLANG*

The tempo of the battle kept increasing from the start till this point, where now, Leo was finally forced to use both hands and block the incoming attacks using both daggers.

"Are you properly warmed up now?" Su Pei asked, as he pressed down on Leo using his supreme swordsmanship skills, which were theoretically impossible for any Grandmaster to defend against.

The 'Roaring Tiger' style of sword fighting consisted of six linked moves, with each move flowing into the next like a seamless current of blades.

It was not a style meant to overwhelm with brute force, but rather, one that sought to wear down the opponent's guard through rhythm, deception, and precision.

Each strike served as both a blow and a feint, dragging the defender into a false sense of balance before yanking it out from under them in the next motion.

The first strike was simple: a downward diagonal meant to bait a high parry.

The second twisted underneath that parry, turning the blade mid-swing to slash from below.

The third came horizontally with greater speed, pushing against the newly shifted guard.

The fourth was a tight spin, flipping the blade over the defender's weapon and exposing their entire center.

The fifth, a step-through thrust aimed directly at the solar plexus.

And the sixth, a whiplash draw-cut from an upward angle, meant to sever the neck or the head depending on the height.

Any ordinary Grandmaster would find themselves overwhelmed by the fourth move, their balance gone and their guard blasted wide open, so that the final two strikes landed as clean killing blows before the defender could even reset their stance.

And to make matters worse, Su Pei had long evolved the style beyond its original form.

Every slash carried with it a secondary motion, subtle illusions layered over real strikes, each cloaked in microbursts of mana that shifted the perception of timing and trajectory by mere milliseconds…. just enough to mislead even the most seasoned veterans, who would find themselves dodging shadows while the real blade carved into their ribs.

It was a style designed not just to win, but to dominate.

Yet Leo… wasn't fazed in the slightest.

*CLANG*

*CLANG*

*CLANG*

*CLANG*

*DODGE*

*CLANG*

He met each strike head-on, not just with equal tempo, but with precise intention, as if he knew the script of the dance before it even began.

His left dagger parried the first blow diagonally, then twisted to catch the rising second.

His right hand intercepted the third, knocking it aside with the flat of his blade, before both arms shifted in perfect unison to deflect the fourth spin cleanly.

And then, without missing a beat, he stepped back a half pace, angling his body just enough to avoid the fifth thrust while using his left dagger to redirect the sixth.

His body moved like water around stone, flowing just far enough to stay untouched, but never more than was necessary.

To a normal onlooker, this entire sequence would look nothing more than a routine spar.

Just two Grandmasters squabbling.

But only Dupravel and Su Pei understood the true meaning behind Leo's dominance.

The two of them had no idea that Leo could see 'Killing Intent'

No idea that Leo could see the exact trajectory of the enemy blade, before Su Pei swung it.

And hence, to them, the ease with which Leo battled, seemed to be outrageous for a simple Grandmaster.

'I can somehow keep up against this old monster because he has restricted his strength and speed to the Grandmaster Tier, but even with Killing Intent, I can't see a single opening on his body.' Leo thought, as although he defended well against Su Pei's attacks, he did not see the familiar red dots of vulnerability on his opponents body, that he often saw on Veyr or Dumpy while they sparred.

Su Pei's guard was simply flawless, and probing for weaknesses only opened him up for counterattacks.

'Alright then…. Since there are no openings in his guard to exploit, I must create one of my own by being creative—' Leo eventually concluded, as he took a couple steps back, and decided to reset the tempo of this battle.

—----------

(Meanwhile, Veyr)

From a few dozen meters away, Veyr observed the battle between Leo and Su Pei unfold with a perplexed expression on his face.

On one hand, he did not understand why the two were fighting?

Or why it looked like the enemy Commander has restricted himself to Grandmaster strength to fight Leo?

However, whatever the case, it did not seem like the two were simply chatting or plotting something sinister together to betray the Cult.

"Really Valterri? You made me come all the way out here, just for this?" Veyr asked in annoyance, as Valterri kept his head bowed and his expression neutral.

"How would you interpret this Valterri, I'm sure if I sent you alone to scout this place, you would come back and tell me that my cousin brother was receiving battle training from the enemy Commander.

Is that what you feel is going on here?" Veyr admonished, as once again, Valterri remained quiet, not offering a word.

"He is the Shadow Dragon, Valterri….. I appreciate your cautious personality of not trusting anyone, but he's a man you can trust.

If he really wanted to be Dragon, he would have defeated me and taken the role at Sir Lewis Hamilton Arena.

But he did not.

My cousin here….. I'm sure he's fighting battles you can't even understand." Veyr concluded, as he went back to quietly watch the fight unfold, as he too became mesmerized by what now lay before him.