C5 Choice 10
Lin Yuan coiled his body forward, positioning the iron shield in front of him, and summoned every ounce of his focus for defense.
The Goblin captain, blessed with agility and skill, made attacking outright a suicidal move. Defense was the only option, waiting for a chance to exploit a weakness!
"Guaa!"
A shadow flashed before him in an instant!
With nerves stretched to their limit, Lin Yuan jerked his head aside as the rapier whisked past, grazing his brow and leaving a gash over ten centimeters long.
Warm blood trickled down his cheek.
"Kill!"
Before the Zhanmadao could strike, the Goblin captain had already retreated into the shadows, back to where he started.
This strategy was failing!
Discarding the iron shield from his left hand, Lin Yuan furiously wiped the blood from his face, feeling like a fish laid out for the slaughter. He had to change the tide of battle!
Retracting his right hand, he leveled the Zhanmadao, while his left hand steadied the tip. Lin Yuan was poised like a taut bow, the Zhanmadao ready to spring forth like an arrow.
The Goblin captain inhaled deeply, the recent exchanges having drained him more than his casual demeanor betrayed.
Crouching low, he let out another fierce cry:
"Guaa!"
The shadow surged forward, a sword thrust piercing Lin Yuan's abdomen.
Biting down hard, his abdominal muscles clenched, Lin Yuan sneered at the captain before him. He had him now!
"Kill!"
The Zhanmadao thrust straight ahead. The Goblin captain attempted to turn and flee, but the rapier was trapped in the vice of Lin Yuan's muscles, his fluid movements abruptly halted.
With a "pu," the Zhanmadao descended, and the captain's head burst open like a smashed watermelon. His body convulsed twice, then lay still, blood pooling on the ground.
Lin Yuan clenched his jaw, slowly extracting the rapier from his abdomen as a dark essence wafted from the Goblin captain's corpse, swiftly assimilating into his own body.
"Skill: Charge."
Lin Yuan's pupils dilated with excitement, and he couldn't help but burst into triumphant laughter.
Rebirth truly made a difference!
In his past life, Lin Yuan had never possessed a single combat skill until his death. Now, merely at the Third Rank of Dark Iron, he had acquired the Charge skill. Such fortune was beyond words.
Five elite marksmen stepped forward; four hoisted the bodies while one cleaned a rapier, sheathed it, and presented it to Lin Yuan with both hands.
Once Lin Yuan took the weapon, the Goblin dabbed his finger in the blood on the ground and pressed a green fingerprint onto Lin Yuan's arm. He bowed respectfully, then turned and led his Goblin squad out of the campus with decisive strides.
Lin Yuan examined the luminescent blood fingerprint on his arm and swallowed hard. Goodness, this Goblin captain wasn't just any noble—he was royalty!
In his past life, Lin Yuan hadn't mingled with royals, but he'd heard the tales: a Superpowered with an indelible blood fingerprint had certainly dueled and triumphed over a monster royal.
The more blood fingerprints one had, the more formidable they were. Nine such marks signified a Superpowered of legendary status!
These fingerprints served as beacons, summoning other royals to challenge the bearer.
The challenger's rank would escalate with each additional fingerprint, culminating in a legendary Gold Rank duel by the ninth.
Should one amass nine blood fingerprints, the royal family would cease their pursuit and even bestow upon them royal status.
Upon learning this in his previous life, Lin Yuan couldn't help but smirk. If they couldn't kill you, they'd make you one of their own—an audacious concept indeed!
It was one thing for human-like species, but what about becoming the kin of Stone Skin Earthworms or Jungle Scorpions? Without a sound, one might turn into a ground-dwelling creature.
No matter how vigorously Lin Yuan rubbed, the fingerprint remained. He shook his head in resignation.
The royal family's duel invitation always granted the opponent at least a month's preparation, a seemingly honorable gesture. Yet, if calculated precisely, a Gold Rank legend would come seeking him within the year. Lin Yuan smiled wryly at the thought—a Gold Rank legend within a year was an utter impossibility!
In his past life, Lin Yuan had struggled for five years, only to achieve a meager Third Rank in Bronze. The highest tier he'd ever encountered was the Second Rank of Silver. As for the Gold Legendary, he was nothing more than a name whispered in awe, a figure shrouded in mystery.
The thought of becoming a Legend within a year was daunting, to say the least.
As Lin Yuan watched the Goblin horde receding into the distance, memories of the raucous Goblin army on the school's sports field flooded his mind. He tightened his lips, picked up the iron plate, and reminded himself that progress was made one step at a time. His immediate goal was all that mattered for now.
No longer tiptoeing around, Lin Yuan boldly made his way to the parking lot.
The field was swarming with at least ten thousand Goblins—a suicidal destination if he dared approach. The other buildings housed too few to bother with, a waste of precious time. But the parking lot was teeming with three or four large Goblin squads, just the right number for him to ascend to the Seventh Rank.
From a distance, the distinct "Gu Gu, Gu Gu" of the Goblins in the parking lot reached Lin Yuan's ears. Clutching his Zhanmadao, he quickened his pace.
At fifty meters, his Charge skill remained unresponsive.
At forty meters, still no trigger.
But at thirty meters, a swarm of Goblins spotted Lin Yuan and charged towards him with ear-piercing howls.
Charge!
His skill activated, transforming Lin Yuan into a blur as he surged into the Goblin fray!
With a "Buzz~", his Zhanmadao became a streak of lightning, cleaving through the mass of Goblins, scattering severed limbs and weapon fragments in its wake.
"Kill!"
As the Charge ended, Lin Yuan let out a roar, his Zhanmadao dancing in his hands as he hacked at the Goblins encircling him, his blade ensuring a spray of blood with every strike.
"Race: Human; Level: Dark Iron Fourth Rank."
In the heat of battle, Lin Yuan felt a jolt as his stamina swiftly replenished. Ascending to Dark Iron Fourth Rank, his physical prowess surged, and the Zhanmadao moved even faster in his grasp.
"Ding Ding, Puff!"
An onslaught of arrows rained down on Lin Yuan. Most were deflected by his iron plate and armor, but six or seven arrows found their way through the gaps, burying themselves deep within his flesh.
Lin Yuan executed a spinning slash with his Zhanmadao, clearing the Goblins that surrounded him, and immediately followed with a powerful Charge, barreling into the ranks of the elite archers.
Caught at close quarters by Lin Yuan, the long-range elite archers found themselves in peril.
Lacking support from their Goblin comrades, they couldn't mount an effective defense. Lin Yuan's frenzied slashing cut down more than half of them in an instant.
Had it not been for the four Goblin captains rushing to their aid, the elite archers would have undoubtedly been annihilated by Lin Yuan.
With other Goblins providing cover, the four captains lunged at Lin Yuan with their double-edged spears.
Despite being twice their level, Lin Yuan struggled to fend off the assault. He dodged left and right, narrowly evading three spears, but the fourth one plunged into his right leg.
Without his armor's protection and his high level, his right leg would have been rendered useless.
Yet, Lin Yuan was far from unscathed. His bones might have been intact, but his flesh had been deeply gashed, and blood gushed from the wound.
Charge!
Breaking free from the encirclement, Lin Yuan cut down the outermost Goblins, then charged straight back into the fray!
With a resounding "Ding!" one of the Goblin captains was cleaved in two, his spear and body falling apart. Lin Yuan's charging speed was truly astonishing.
Seizing the moment before the other Goblins could react, Lin Yuan swung his blade, taking down a second captain. Before the rest could close in, he charged once more!
In a flash, he broke away from the Goblin horde's center, slaying any Goblin within reach as he gasped for air.
Charging was no longer an option; it was too draining. Another attempt would be suicidal. He had no choice but to stand his ground.
Quickly popping a grape into his mouth to regain some stamina, Lin Yuan brandished his Zhanmadao and bellowed as he cut through the swarming Goblins.
One by one, the Goblins fell, but the Zhanmadao grew heavier in Lin Yuan's hands. The few remaining elite archers continued to fire arrows at him as they retreated.
Within a mere two or three minutes, Lin Yuan's upper body armor bristled with arrows, making him resemble a porcupine.
