Game’s Dogma

Pulchriture focused her icy eyes and abruptly halted. Several knives shot out from her hand, catching Chan Ka Lok off guard. They struck and inflicted rend on him, which dealt bleeding damage over time.

Level 28 Assassin skill, Knife Toss!

Everyone applauded her in their minds. It took a second or two for Shadowstrike to reach its target; they all thought it was impressive that Chan Ka Lok could spin around in response, yet Pulchriture somehow reacted to his reaction in less than a second and cast Knife Toss to force stop Shadowstrike. Her inhuman reflexes and adaptability were a feast to their eyes.

Pulchriture pressed her advantage and cast Dual Slash; despite being a low-level skill, it had quick casting speed. Chan Ka Lok remained calm even though he lost the upper hand and defended himself with his sword, parrying and blocking her attacks.

Assassins were the nemesis of mages and clerics for a reason. They could deal bursts of damage and had the highest attack speed among all four basic classes. In exchange for speed, daggers had very limited reach.

Among the symphony of metal clashing against one another, Pulchriture cast countless low-level skills while sneaking in basic attacks from time to time, forcing Chan Ka Lok to fall back with every attack. She was the textbook example of how an assassin should wield a dagger.

However, Chan Ka Lok’s defence never faltered. Those with sharp eyes could tell that he wasn’t overwhelmed by frustration and instead kept a keen eye on any chance to counterattack. 

Pulchriture also realised that he was a tougher opponent than she had expected. 

Counterattacking? she thought. I’ll end you in one strike!

She grinned as her gaze turned vicious. Suddenly, she pulled herself away and disengaged, leaving Chan Ka Lok who had been defending her flurry of attacks for so long in a momentary daze—and that was exactly what she aimed for.

Having just put some distance between them, Pulchriture used Knife Toss again, sending several knives whizzing through the air, before activating Shadowstrike. Chan Ka Lok reacted quickly with two diagonal slashes, the Level 18 Warrior skill Saltire Slash.

Some players shot up from their seats. Yes, Chan Ka Lok knocked away all the flying knives with Saltire Slash, but where was Pulchriture? Didn’t she just use Shadowstrike?

Drako Yau’s eyes also lit up at her marvellous display. She used Forced Lurk halfway into Shadowstrike, forcefully ending the latter. It created the illusion that she disappeared during the teleportation phase of Shadowstrike.

Pulchriture resurfaced behind Chan Ka Lok and thrust her dagger at his chest. Much to her surprise, Chan Ka Lok started spinning on the spot—it was the Level 35 Weaponmaster skill, Gyrate!

Weaponmaster Level 35 Sword and Katana Combatives skill, Gyrate: Spin quickly and attack with a fifteen-combo flurry of strikes, each inflicting rend on the enemy.

As Gyrate dealt a lot of damage in a series of attacks and had a long cooldown, many called it a finishing skill of the Sword and Katana Combatives tree. Its range was fairly limited and only damaged enemies in proximity. However, it turned out to be the most suitable skill Chan Ka Lok had to deal with the situation right now.

Gyrate dealt damage in a circular area around the caster, so Pulchriture who snuck behind Chan Ka Lok was well within range of the spinning skill. Chan Ka Lok was using the finisher as a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree defensive barrier!

Clang!

Not only did his spin deflect Pulchriture’s attack, it also rend her multiple times in a bloody shower.

Everyone had a myriad of feelings swirling within them. They were all top players in the game, so they naturally saw how nerve-racking the fight was. The two showed outstanding technique from the start, and the fight gradually evolved into a battle of tactics and the mind. Pulchriture’s combo of force-ending Shadowstrike into Forced Lurk then circling around Chan Ka Lok was already unbelievable, yet Chan Ka Lok defended himself with Gyrate and even landed several blows on her.

After this battle, Chan Ka Lok who had been fairly obscure would definitely rocket into fame. This quest revealed many players who had been concealing their strength to the world.

Puk!

The pop sound brought everyone’s attention back to the sparring ground. Pulchriture who was being diced by Chan Ka Lok’s Gyrate suddenly turned into a shadow and vanished. Slyfox lost it and shouted, “It’s the Level 40 skill Shadow Clone!”

What! It was a clone?! The spectators couldn’t hold their shivers.

Having interrupted Shadowstrike and hid with Forced Lurk, Pulchriture created the best attacking opportunity she had in the entire fight, but she instead baited Chan Ka Lok into responding to her feint using Shadow Clone.

While Gyrate had a high hit count, it couldn’t be interrupted like assassin skills. Right now, Chan Ka Lok was like a laughable clown spinning on the spot for no reason.

Pulchriture’s combo consisted of a real attack, two consecutive feints, then another real attack. As if the smooth transition between attacks and feints wasn’t terrifying enough, her calculating mind was what sent shivers down everyone’s spines.

It was over.

Pulchriture stood behind Chan Ka Lok, just a step out of range of Gyrate. Once his skill ended, she’d put an end to it. The brief moment of stiffness after the skill ended was when he would meet his death.

There was nothing to feel bitter about dying to such a well thought out scheme. Was Chan Ka Lok weak? The answer was certainly no, given his outstanding performance in parrying and responding to Pulchriture’s attacks that was worthy of an elite player. Still, nothing but defeat awaited him in the face of Pulchriture’s craftiness.

Gyrate ended. Pulchriture spun into action.

A step, a lunge, and a thrust—All-out Strike! The most powerful single-target skill assassins had, buffed by Backstab, Lurk, and her epic equipment, could most certainly take out Chan Ka Lok; he’d be left with a mere sliver of Health even if he miraculously survived.

Puk! Puk!

Two thuds could be heard. Pulchriture’s dagger stopped right before Chan Ka Lok’s chest no matter how hard she pushed, while his index finger struck her shoulder. Her face flushed red as she struggled to break free, but regardless of what she did, she couldn’t even twitch a muscle.

After a moment, Chan Ka Lok pulled back his finger and made a palm-fist salute at Pulchriture. “Thank you for the spar. Please excuse me then.”

The battle was decided. Though no one knew what skill Chan Ka Lok had used, its effect of rendering the opponent immobile was obvious. He didn’t land the final blow and instead walked away, but everyone could tell victory was his; he could easily kill Pulchriture as long as he willed it.

The spectators all had confused expressions. They could see through Pulchriture’s battle plan, but Chan Ka Lok’s skill that froze her came out of nowhere. How did he do it? That no one knew, and all they were certain of was his victory.

Inheritance—Noh Firearms Marksmanship

Description: It is a combat style revolving around the use of firearms developed during the Sengoku period. Developed and refined to its pinnacle by the Noh Clan, it is rumoured to have originated from the ancient traditional dance passed down the clan.

Skill type: Noh Firearms Marksmanship goes against the common sense of using firearms as a means of dealing damage over long ranges. It incorporates various combat techniques into mid-range marksmanship, hence all its practitioners do not fear melee combat.

Inheritance condition: Liked by Lady Noh, has a “Friendly” relationship with the Oda Clan, and has Dual-Wielding Rifle Mastery or Firearms Mastery.

For every 1000, then 2000, then another 2000 Likes on all chapters (1000 -> 3000 -> 5000), there will be bonus chapters! Register an account on Penana and start Liking now for more chapters!

Join our discord server: here!