It was evident that Vasily was quite pleased with his maneuver.
Putting aside other matters, he had absolute confidence in his own strength.
As long as he could assume a defensive stance before Lin Ran could sound the horn for his counterattack, Lin Ran would have no way to break through his defense.
As expected!
The next moment, a shining sword blade and a blood-red sword blade slashed out from the smoke ahead, both easily parried by his crossed dual blades.
Hmph, still as soft and powerless as before! Just like that last sword!
Last time, you relied on the clever force activated by the sword's inherent magic to escape by the skin of your teeth. Now you're out of tricks!
You're an awakened one who is better at other things, yet you insist on challenging me in my strongest domain…
Boasting leads to divine retribution!
If I don't smash Lin Ran's face hard, I won't be worthy of his arrogant attitude that borders on utter recklessness!
Break!
Pushing his dual blades forward with all his might, Vasily shattered the resistance of the shining sword and the blood-red sword. With his left blade, he aimed for the shoulder; with his right, he slashed at the waist.
This kind of pincer attack, not aimed at vital points, is the hardest to dodge. Where will you go this time!
However, what instantly cooled his blood-engorged head was that his two blades, clashing towards each other, did not hit the so-called Lin Ran. Instead, they collided in mid-air, creating a wave of mutual force that impacted his own hands.
Clang!
This was truly hilarious.
Originally, Vasily had exerted his full strength to inflict the greatest possible damage on Lin Ran.
He had held nothing back with either his left or his right hand.
Now, due to the law of action and reaction, he had, in effect, hit himself, resulting in a massive stiffening, and the weapons in his hands were almost knocked away.
What in the world?!
How could Lin Ran have vanished completely in such a short instant?!
The figure wielding his dual swords just moments ago was so clear, and now it was completely gone?
Even with an unimaginably high-speed movement, there should have been some trace left behind!
Vasily's pupils contracted sharply, and he suddenly thought of a possibility.
Could it be that the phantom that just exchanged blows with me was not Lin Ran himself?
Whether it was a summoned creature, a clone, an illusion, or something else, it could have perfectly achieved the effect just witnessed.
As long as he canceled it at the right moment, it could be done…
That means I've been tricked?!
Realizing this, Vasily hastily turned around and swung his dual blades behind him.
Since Lin Ran had set up such a vicious trap, his threat was almost certainly coming from behind—the most difficult position to react to and the most unexpected.
I guessed right!
The moment he turned, Vasily saw a presence attempting to use his sword to slash at his neck, and his eyes widened.
Break!
Quickly swinging his weapons towards the figure in front of him, Vasily pushed his speed to the maximum, another exchange of dual blades.
However…
Clang!
The figure, which Vasily was about to strike, inexplicably vanished, and Vasily's dual blades met, again striking empty air.
This time, the force of mutual action almost shattered his wrists.
What the hell, I've been played again?!
Vasily's expression changed drastically. Before he could even comprehend what had happened, the gust of wind from behind made his scalp tingle.
Behind me?!
Again from behind?!
Is this one real or fake this time?!
Vasily felt as if his brain was about to explode at that moment.
But whether it was real or fake, he could no longer turn around again after having just spun around once…
Swoosh!
This time, the sharp sword was a complete reality, piercing directly through his chest.
This… How is this possible?!
Looking at the cursed sword shimmering with blood light in his chest, Vasily's eyes were about to burst.
What method did Lin Ran use…
Teleportation? Illusion? Clone? Mirroring? Summoning?
He had been toyed with from the very beginning…
"Clang!"
Seeing this, the phantom of the Ice-Fire Divine Phoenix behind Vasily also became anxious. It immediately drove its ice and fire energy to unleash a powerful shock, helping to temporarily push Lin Ran away from Vasily's back.
However, this move seemed to consume a lot of the Ice-Fire Divine Phoenix's energy, causing the entire phantom's color to dim considerably, no longer as awe-inspiring as before.
Vasily took advantage of this brief respite to quickly check his wound.
The sword Lin Ran had used to wound him was the Cursed Sword, containing powerful dark energy and curse damage, naturally causing immense destruction and erosion.
However, for Vasily, who was accustomed to bloody battles, this seemed to be an acceptable consequence.
Although, under the effect of the curse, he could not heal the wound with any healing method.
But he could temporarily seal the wound using Blood Refinement, minimizing its impact on his combat effectiveness in the short term.
Yet, just as he had completed the simple treatment of his wound, Lin Ran, who had retreated not far, launched another offensive.
Emerging from the smoke, he simply swung his dual swords again. This time, Vasily dared not rashly charge forward to meet the attack.
Who knew if the Lin Ran rushing towards him this time was real or fake?
What if Lin Ran pulled off another trick like that, a frontal feint combined with a sneak attack from behind, and he'd be finished?
But if he didn't take the Lin Ran in front of him seriously, what if that Lin Ran was real?
Thinking this, Vasily became somewhat irrationally agitated and resorted to his most common method of response.
His most common method, that is… ignore it!
Don't bother with the details. Whether the thing in front is real or fake is unimportant. Since he couldn't tell anyway, he'd just charge in and fight!
Getting injured, frankly speaking, was not a big deal!
He was a Berserker… The more severe his injuries and the less full his mental state, the stronger his combat power would become!
If that was the case, what was there to fear?
After all, he had already tested it. Lin Ran's direct combat ability was weak, shattering at the slightest touch.
Such a despicable scoundrel who could only rely on sneak attacks, if he just got one chance to touch him, he could change the entire course of the battle!
One second ago, Vasily was probably thinking this.
But one second later, his expression changed drastically once again.