The Iron Sword Mad Lion was dead.
No one had seen that coming.
From the moment Shi Feng drew his blade and thrust it into the Iron Sword Mad Lion's chest to the moment the beast fell, every move Shi Feng made had been perfectly visible to the onlookers. And yet something struck them as odd — Shi Feng's sword strike wasn't fast. By their reckoning, even they could have dodged it. So how had the expert, the Iron Sword Mad Lion, failed to avoid it?
It hadn't even put up a shred of resistance.
Could the Iron Sword Mad Lion have been all bark and no bite — a paper tiger riding on borrowed fears?
The thought was instantly rejected as absurd.
The Iron Sword Mad Lion's gear was real. Its level-five rank was real. It was a bona fide expert. And yet this expert, clad in so much Bronze Equipment that its defense and HP far exceeded those of an ordinary player, had been taken down in just a couple of exchanges. It was utterly mind-boggling.
Even if a normal player had attacked the Iron Sword Mad Lion with everything they had, it would have taken quite a while to bring it down. But Shi Feng had finished it off in two moves.
Just how terrifying an attack power did that require?
The realization left everyone stunned.
The smiling Shi Feng standing before them was no fat-cat whale — he was a devil wearing a mask, grinning at them, and they had been completely oblivious. A chill surged through their bodies, making them shudder. None of them dared look at the smiling Shi Feng any longer.
"You… you despicable coward!" Ximen Piaoxue stumbled back several steps, pointing a trembling finger at Shi Feng, his heart hammering with shock. Unlike anyone else, he knew his big brother's strength better than anyone, and now he had a visceral understanding of just how powerful Shi Feng truly was. Being stared down by Shi Feng made his blood run cold. But then a thought struck him — this was a safe zone. What was there to be afraid of? He burst out laughing: "You're done for! You dare kill someone in a safe zone? No one can save you now. Just wait for the guards to execute you on the spot and throw you into lockdown!"
Ximen Piaoxue's outburst snapped everyone back to reality. They had been so thoroughly rattled by Shi Feng that they had completely forgotten this was a safe zone, guarded by powerful guards. No matter how strong Shi Feng was, he couldn't be stronger than the guards. In moments, he would be seized and meet a miserable end.
"What a shame. Still, killing someone in a safe zone — that takes some serious guts. Even if the guards kill him and he gets locked up, it was worth it. He got to live large for a day. Tomorrow he walks out and he's still a badass."
"So cool! Big bro expert, I can warm your bed! Add me as a friend! Carry me through levels! I promise I'll be obedient!"
Among the players present, quite a few began to admire Shi Feng's audacity. Not only had he dared to stand up to the Martial Alliance, he had even challenged the laws of Red Leaf Town. He was practically their idol. A number of attractive female players started asking around about Shi Feng, and some even sent him friend requests on the spot, eager to get to know him.
At that moment, a squad of heavily armored guards approached.
Ximen Piaoxue pointed at Shi Feng and cackled: "Aren't you all that? Let's see what you do now! Not only will you lose a level, you'll be locked down for twenty-four hours. Even if you're an expert, twenty-four hours in the slammer will turn you into second-rate trash. Then we'll see how the Martial Alliance deals with you. There'll be no escape — not heaven, not earth, nobody can save you!"
In the distance, Ci Xin was writhing with regret.
The series of moves Shi Feng had just executed had appeared slow, flowing as naturally as breathing — utterly without the slightest hint of awkwardness. Ci Xin's admiration for Shi Feng deepened.
What Shi Feng had just performed was the very assassination technique that Ci Xin himself had been striving toward.
An ordinary person wouldn't understand what that meant. But Ci Xin had played multiple virtual games and competed in combat tournaments within Divine Realm. He knew exactly how formidable Shi Feng's skills were.
If he had encountered Shi Feng before, he would have thought nothing special of him.
But he had once had the fortune of exchanging words with a martial arts grandmaster, and that grandmaster had described exactly this kind of situation.
Combat, at its core, pursues the simplest killing technique. When that technique reaches absolute perfection, it becomes imperceptible — there is no jarring sensation, only an eerie sense of naturalness.
Any expert who reached that level was extremely dangerous. They could stand before you with a smile, draw a blade across your throat, and even though you saw it with your own eyes, you would think it was a joke. You wouldn't sense the danger approaching. Your body wouldn't react. And by the time you realized you were dead, you still wouldn't know what had happened…