Volume Two, The Devil's Game Chapter Forty-Seven: The Warden Escaped

Lu Yi slowly closed his eyes. "I've already seen this move."

As he spoke, he suddenly opened his left eye. A blue, rounded hexagon appeared within it, spinning continuously. As it rotated, ripples of irregular blue energy pulsed outward, and soon, the mental-force dagger that had merged with the air became visible once again.

"Sweetheart Yiyi: Is he really trying to brute-force the Guardian's ultimate move?!"

"Black Phosphorus: Streamer, since you can see it, hurry up and dodge! Didn't you say you wouldn't compete with the Guardian on raw attack power?"

"Phoenix: Ultimate moves aren't that easy to dodge; the streamer can only see the attack, that's all."

The Guardian clearly hadn't expected this from Lu Yi. It felt vaguely as if its attack had been influenced by something. However, when it saw the attack flying straight toward Lu Yi—who remained pinned under the pressure of the ultimate move—the Guardian's doubts vanished instantly.

The mental-force dagger plunged directly into Lu Yi's body.

"Hahaha, so you can see the attacks—that's all," the Guardian laughed heartily. "You spoke with such confidence, and yet, this is all you amount to?"

The Guardian covered its face with its hand and shook its head in self-mockery. "Look at my memory. No matter how much I explain to you, you wouldn't be able to understand anyway."

The Guardian began to walk slowly toward Lu Yi. "I've decided not to kill you; I'll just let you stand there quietly."

"Sigh, how many times do I have to say it? Don't have such high expectations for yourself." Lu Yi shook his head. A stream of water formed around him, suddenly propelling him toward the Guardian.

"What!" The Guardian’s expression changed drastically.

"Sweetheart Yiyi: He, he took another ultimate move."

"Heartwarming Man: Indeed, it’s like watching a knockoff."

Lu Yi quickly closed the distance to the Guardian and reached out with his right hand, aiming for its core.

The Guardian immediately regained its composure. Its body rippled and transformed into two streams of water, which then shot upward into the sky. Lu Yi’s right hand raked through the water, managing to grab only a few fragments of the core, while the two streams seized the opportunity to put dozens of meters of distance between them and Lu Yi before the Guardian reformed its human shape.

Lu Yi rubbed the core fragments in his hand and curled his lip; these few scraps weren't even worth the energy cost of opening an energy channel. "My, that really gave me a start."

As he spoke, Lu Yi turned to look at the Guardian. "I didn't expect you to have three different ultimate moves. It's fortunate that I saw this one inside your core, otherwise I’d be finished."

"You! This is impossible! How did you break my attack?" the Guardian roared in frustration.

Lu Yi lifted his chin. "I can't answer that question. Well, are you going to try other moves, or will you use your final ultimate move directly? Of course, I can tell you some good news: I only learned about that one ultimate move from your core. Perhaps your third one could actually kill me, so would you like to try?"

After saying this, he tucked his hands into his pockets, tilted his head slightly, and wore a faint smile. The blue hexagon in his left eye flickered at that moment.

A ruthless glint appeared in the Guardian's eyes. It clapped its palms forward, and two ring-shaped ripples spread out rapidly.

"A mental attack? Nothing to write home about," Lu Yi said nonchalantly, rolling his neck.

"Impossible! You absolutely do not possess such strong mental power; how could it have no effect?" the Guardian shrieked, nearly crazed.

"Alright, you got me there," Lu Yi shrugged. "I didn't neutralize your ultimate move with my own mental power, but your current mental attack is just too lackluster."

As he spoke, Lu Yi raised his arm. A small purple sprite flew from behind his back to his front, flapped its wings a few times, and vanished into the air.

The Guardian stared at the spot where the sprite had disappeared and said slowly, "That is the power to enhance mental strength and dispel negative mental states."

"You saw correctly. But your mental attack is too poor. I used this ability based on the power of your ultimate move, only to find that I had overestimated you. It was completely unnecessary." Lu Yi said, stepping toward the Guardian.

"Stop bluffing! You must have used that skill to escape the illusion!" the Guardian roared, releasing two more mental blasts, yet Lu Yi’s pace did not falter in the slightest.

"That's impossible," the Guardian shook its head, its tone filled with disbelief.

"Pfft, why would I lie to you?" Lu Yi rolled his eyes and continued to press forward. "Is this all you have for mental attacks?"

"How can you have such abundant mental energy? As my prey, shouldn't you be trembling in terror before me? Is there not even a hint of fear in your heart?" The Guardian looked frantic.

"Fear? Maybe there was once. But at most, you’re just a bit troublesome." No sooner had Lu Yi finished speaking than he felt a heavy pressure descend upon him, his feet sinking deep into the soil.

Lu Yi rolled his eyes helplessly; he didn't need to guess to know the Guardian had used an ultimate move again. Although the previous two hadn't hurt him, Lu Yi didn't lower his guard. He braced himself, staying alert for the final ultimate move, though he had some complaints about the oppressive weight of these techniques.

The Guardian held its right hand high, and streams of water converged there. Soon, an axe appeared in its palm.

"A water-type ultimate move?" Lu Yi squinted and smirked at the Guardian.

Seeing Lu Yi’s expression, the Guardian hesitated. Clearly, the lesson from earlier was still fresh in its mind. Its right hand trembled slightly, and then it shouted, "Sea Splitter!"

Lu Yi shrugged and pulled his hands from his pockets, but the next moment, he froze.

The water forming the Guardian's body began to spin rapidly. The water that made up the axe disintegrated, scattering into the surroundings. Within the spray, a waterspout shot into the sky and bolted backward.

"Don't run! Let's fight until the time is up!" Lu Yi shouted, but the Guardian paid no mind. The waterspout covered 100 meters in the blink of an eye, bounced twice, and vanished.

"That running speed—even a galloping horse couldn't catch up," Lu Yi said, shaking his head as he looked at the distant sky.

"Sweetheart Yiyi: The Guardian ran away..."

"Black Phosphorus: Indeed, it really ran."

"Heartwarming Man: Ah, I’m starting to feel like I’m watching a fake game. The Guardian actually ran away."

"Camel Gold: What else could the Guardian do? Water-type moves don't hurt the streamer, mental-type isn't refined enough; none of its methods work. On the contrary, the streamer knows its weaknesses. If it’s not careful, it’ll get its core stolen."

With a swirl of water, Lu Yi pulled his feet from the mud. He clapped his hands together casually. "It really did run. In that case, let's go find the Guardian."

The livestream chat was quiet for a moment before it exploded. "Heartwarming Man: Ah! In my lifetime, I’d never thought I’d see a human chasing a Guardian."

"Camel Gold: Absurd. The streamer is just absurd."

"Phoenix: Streamer, be careful—a tall tree catches the wind."

Phoenix's message made Lu Yi instantly alert, but he chuckled softly. "It's fine." In his view, since the city had a tendency to guide and stimulate talents, it certainly wouldn't kill off an outstanding performer.

Lu Yi's reasoning for this assumption wasn't wrong, but he still didn't understand the composition of the Mist City.

At this moment, the atmosphere on the scene was also a bit strange. Although several major figures were still watching the screen, they were actually arguing fiercely in their consciousness space.

"I believe the current situation has deviated from the original intent of establishing the Devil's Game. This variable should be handled promptly," said the gloomy-looking man.

"I disagree," Meng Fu laughed. "This Lu Yi clearly aligns with our faction, and that left eye of his is obviously the power of a Demon. We all saw it clearly just now: after using composite ripples to slightly alter the Guardian's attack, he used that eye of his to absorb the mental assault. Possessing such a powerful Demon Eye, a man who is not a fool will naturally not discard his own strength. Therefore, this person will eventually join our faction. Think about it: if a coward joined our faction, would any of you find him worthy?"

Several of the bigwigs frowned and shook their heads slightly.

Meng Fu chuckled. "So, as our future capable assistant, I don't think we should target him. In fact, we can even help him in subtle ways."

"Ahem." A short, withered-looking demon coughed. "That may be so. Although he possesses a powerful Demon Eye, he is ultimately a human. You haven't forgotten *that* person, have you?"

Meng Fu frowned. "Then what is your opinion?"

The demon smiled and said, "In my view, if you have plans to cultivate him, you could start giving him benefits now. If not, we might as well watch and see how much potential he truly has."

"I object! There must never be a repeat of that situation. The human race is unreliable," a handsome but sinister-looking demon growled. If one looked closely, one could see a long, thin, withered scar on his face. He stood up and looked at the other demons. "Since his left eye has some value, we should just take it. Our race's power should be in our race's hands."

"You are too extreme. Do you want to force our race to fight against two factions? That would bring even greater sacrifices to our people. We should be winning some humans over..."

Before Meng Fu could finish, the man interrupted: "Our warriors do not fear sacrifice!" The man looked at Meng Fu. "Winning them over? You said the same thing last time. What about that beloved disciple who was with you? Wasn't it because of that person? Why did we lose so miserably last time? Wasn't it because of that person?"

Meng Fu countered sharply, "That was merely a coincidence. In the long run, winning over some humans has indeed reduced our casualties."

"Haha, 'the long run.' After dragging it out for so long, who have we eliminated? It's the same old story," the man said, slamming his fist on the table.

Suddenly, a black radiance pierced into this mental space, and a majestic voice resonated throughout. "We have determined that this person does indeed have the value to be won over. None of you are to interfere with the progression of this game. Meng Fu, Guo Lao."

"Present," Meng Fu and the withered demon replied in unison.

"If this person continues to perform excellently, you two may provide him with *that* type of reward."

The demons in the mental space were stunned for a moment. Meng Fu, however, looked delighted. "We obey the Council of Elders' decision."

"Furthermore," the majestic voice continued, "based on the aforementioned premise, we will grant you two the opportunity to regulate an adventure world. You may arrange for this person and his team to be sent to a designated world. You two must work together; we intend to win the upcoming three-faction primary competition. No other members are to obstruct this. Do you understand?"

"We obey the Council of Elders' decision," the demons replied respectfully, with Meng Fu and Guo Lao looking particularly thrilled.

"Meng Fu, the previous incident was not your fault. This time, we grant you greater authority; do not let us down." The majestic voice resonated directly into Meng Fu's soul. Even though she had long held a high position, she still couldn't suppress her excitement. She bowed slightly. "As you command."

"Great Elder!" the handsome man shouted immediately.

"Rest assured, you will have the opportunity to avenge your past grievances," the voice said coldly.

"Great Elder, humans cannot be trusted!" the man yelled.

The majestic voice rose in volume, "Our decision is made. No more words."

The man's expression shifted multiple times, but he finally gritted his teeth and said, "Yes."

"Very well." The majestic voice faded, and the black radiance vanished from the space.