212: Chapter 212 Another Mutation!

Qin Yan had just finished his disappointing search of Zhang Bei and straightened up, preparing to return to his sister's side.

However, the very moment his gaze shifted away—

Another sudden change occurred!

A dark shadow, as if blending into the night, silently appeared next to the bloodthirsty evil spirit whip that Qin Yan had tossed onto the ground!

This dark shadow appeared very abruptly, without any warning!

Qin Yan hadn't even heard any footsteps.

Warning bells blared in Qin Yan's heart, and he jerked his head around to look at the dark shadow!

He saw that the shadow's figure was not tall, even somewhat slender, and was entirely shrouded in a voluminous black cloak.

The hood hung low, concealing their face.

A hand with long, slender fingers and distinct knuckles extended from the sleeve of the black robe.

It nimbly and casually picked up the dark red long whip emitting an ominous aura from the ground!

"Who are you?!"

Qin Yan shouted sharply, his voice sounding exceptionally clear in the silent night sky.

Almost instinctively, he took a large stride, once again completely shielding Qin Xiaoxi behind him.

He raised the long spear in his hand, pointing the tip at the mysterious dark shadow, circulating his blood qi to its peak as he entered a state of maximum alert!

Too fast! Too bizarre!

This person had approached to such a distance, and he hadn't noticed in the slightest!

Was the opponent friend or foe? What was their purpose?

The dark shadow seemed oblivious to Qin Yan's sharp shout and defensive posture, not even sparing him a glance.

They merely lowered their head slightly to examine the bloodthirsty evil spirit whip in their hand.

Then, the fair wrist holding the evil whip gave a light flick.

In the next moment, the bloodthirsty evil spirit whip, which was over two meters long, vanished from the shadow's hand!

A Storage Ring!

Qin Yan's heart sank abruptly, and his expression became more solemn than ever before!

Storage equipment was extremely difficult to refine and had high material requirements, making them immensely valuable!

Usually, only mid-to-high-tier martial artists with great strength, deep backgrounds, or immense wealth could possess one.

With Qin Yan's current status as an elite freshman at Modu University of Martial Arts, he had not yet obtained a Storage Ring himself.

This person before him had casually used storage equipment to take the evil whip; their origins were definitely not simple!

"An expert! Or at least someone with a deep background!"

Qin Yan made a judgment instantly.

Only then did the dark shadow seem to 'notice' Qin Yan's presence.

A hoarse, dry voice drifted out from the shadows beneath the hood.

It was impossible to distinguish gender, let alone age or emotion:

"Was it you who defeated Zhang Bei?"

Thoughts raced through Qin Yan's mind.

The opponent knew Zhang Bei!

And they seemed to care about Zhang Bei's death?

The probability of them being a foe rather than a friend was extremely high!

At a time like this, rashly admitting to killing Zhang Bei was by no means a wise move.

Stalling for time until Wang Meng and the others arrived was the safest choice.

His expression remained calm as he shook his head and calmly asked in return, "Zhang Bei? I don't know him. Who are you? Why did you take that... dangerous weapon?"

"Heh..."

A very faint, mocking sneer came from beneath the black robe.

"Men... are indeed all this hypocritical, truly nauseating. You deserve to die."

The last few words were uttered flatly, yet they carried a cold indifference that treated human life like grass.

Before the words had even faded, the dark shadow raised their right hand again!

The dark silver Storage Ring on their hand flickered slightly.

A longbow, entirely a dull blood-red color, appeared in their hand!

The bow's lines were smooth yet exuded an eerie evil, with both ends of the bow tips resembling curved fangs!

Almost at the same moment the longbow appeared, a similarly blood-colored arrow was already notched on the string!

Without aiming or gathering power, the dark shadow simply pointed the bow in Qin Yan's direction and released their fingers!

"Twang—!"

The bowstring vibrated, and the blood-colored arrow shot forth, drawing a bizarre blood-colored arc in the air.

It aimed straight for Qin Yan's heart!

However, at the moment the arrow left the string and the Black-Robed Person's blood qi inevitably fluctuated, Qin Yan's tense heartstrings actually relaxed slightly!

He caught it!

Though it was extremely subtle and fleeting.

At the instant the opponent drew the bow, a clear fluctuation of blood qi radiated from the Black-Robed Person's body! Its intensity was...

third grade mid-stage! Approximately the same as his own.

This discovery instantly relieved most of the immense pressure in Qin Yan's heart.

The unknown was what was most terrifying.

Once he determined the opponent's strength level, even if they had bizarre methods, he had the confidence and a reference point to deal with them.

"Hah!"

Qin Yan gave a low shout, and the long spear in his hand instantly danced into motion!

The brilliant three-foot golden Spear Light erupted once more, and twenty-eight condensed pale-golden Spear Auras swirled around him like the most loyal satellites!

"Break!"

The long spear turned into a golden streak, sweeping toward the incoming blood-colored arc of the arrow with unerring precision!

"Clang—!!!"

The spear blade and the arrowhead collided violently!

The cold and evil power contained in the blood-colored arrow clashed fiercely with the pure, solid blood qi power of the utmost yang contained in the golden Spear Light and Spear Aura!

The expected stalemate did not occur.

The golden Spear Light and Spear Aura swept the blood-colored arrow away with overwhelming force.

Qin Yan's figure remained as steady as a rock, without even a wobble.

He stood with his spear, looking sharply at the Black-Robed Person.

"Oh?"

From beneath the hood, a very faint sound of surprise seemed to emerge.

"You have some skill... No wonder a piece of trash like Zhang Bei fell by your hand."

The hoarse voice still betrayed no emotion, but there seemed to be a hint of... interest in the tone?

"Then... try taking another arrow from me!"

As the words fell, she raised the blood-colored longbow in her hand once more.

This time, her movements were clearly much more serious.

The bow was slowly drawn to a full moon, and another blood-colored arrow was already on the string!

The power of this arrow was by no means comparable to the previous one!

Qin Yan's gaze was solemn; he didn't dare to be the least bit negligent as he prepared to meet this even stronger strike.

However, just then—

"Brother Qin Yan! We're here!!"

"Quick! Surround this area!"

"Stay alert!"

From afar, Wang Meng's booming shout was the first to arrive.

Following that were dense and heavy footsteps, the sound of vehicles braking hard, and the shouts of numerous association members setting up their defenses!

Dazzling headlights cut through the darkness, rapidly approaching this location!

The Black-Robed Person's fingers, which were about to release the string, paused slightly.

The gaze from beneath the hood seemed to glance at the rapidly approaching association members, then swept over the battle-ready and composed Qin Yan.

"Tsk... troublesome."

A very low click of the tongue, carrying a hint of impatience and regret, came from beneath the black robe.

In the next moment, she unhesitatingly put away the fully drawn blood-colored longbow and arrow.

The dark silver ring flickered slightly, and the longbow vanished.

She didn't look at Qin Yan again, nor did she care about Zhang Bei, whose life or death on the ground was unknown.

Her figure flickered, and she leaped up as gracefully as a phantom.

Her toes lightly tapped on nearby wall tops and tree branches.

With a few elegant and swift maneuvers, she blended into the deeper darkness of the night.

She vanished without a trace, as if she had never appeared.