Asura in Arknights

She had seen this strange thing before. When she first infiltrated the Paul Pharmaceuticals lab, it was these black particles that eventually caught up with her, and it took her a lot of effort to shake them off.

When mentally exhausted, Shining inevitably becomes somewhat lax.

Unexpectedly, the thing found her again and silently followed her all the way back to her hiding place.

“This isn’t entirely your fault, and I shouldn’t put all the blame on you,” Margaret said.

With that, Margaret tossed aside the disguise she was using, pulled out her one-handed warhammer from the corner of the room, and charged toward the black particles that were gathering in the room.

After being deflected by the barrier released by Shining, the black particles gathered into a blurry human figure not far away. Margaret crossed the distance of a few steps in an instant, and her warhammer mercilessly smashed into the figure's head.

"They really show no mercy."

A voice, neither male nor female, came from the figure. The figure used a method incomprehensible to ordinary people to condense black particles into a short sword, and used the short sword to deflect the heavy hammer that Margaret hurled at him. Then his body disintegrated again and reformed on the other side away from Margaret.

Like a criminal suspect who had escaped from the film set next door, he was all dark-skinned and there was nothing on him that could identify him.

It was the elusive leader of the Wuzhou Alliance, one of the three Xuan Tie Grand Masters.

"Hmph... I didn't expect you to be discovered. You guys do have some strength."

"Shining, watch out for this guy. If I'm not mistaken, this is Xuan Tie, the leader of the Unarmored Alliance," Margaret said, standing in front of the two of them without turning her head.

"Huh? You actually know me?" Xuan Tie Dawei was taken aback, looking somewhat puzzled.

Most people don't even know the existence of the Wuzha Alliance, let alone recognize him as a Xuan Tie Dawei. What is the background of this woman? Could it be that he has accidentally caught a big fish?

A woman with long black hair... from Yan Country? Xuan Tie Dawei couldn't think of anyone whose features matched, but after staring at Margaret for a few more seconds, he suddenly felt that the face looked somewhat familiar.

He simply dyed his hair black, but he almost fell for it.

"Wait, your face... I'm not mistaken, am I? Ha, isn't this the famous Radiant Knight? Looks like I've caught a big fish after all." Xuan Tie was overjoyed.

Despite her identity being exposed, Margaret showed no panic. She stared intently at the enemy before her, knowing that as long as she could keep him here forever, it didn't matter if her identity was revealed.

However, the tricky part is that they are facing Xuan Tie, the leader of the Wuzhou Alliance, who is the top expert in the entire Kazimir. It will not be easy to keep him here.

The Xuan Tie Grand Master snorted and said, "Hmph... the eldest daughter of the Lin Guang family, you actually dare to come back here. But be glad, you are not my target. As long as you hand over what you stole from Boer Pharmaceuticals, I can pretend I don't know you exist."

"What information do you need? What do you want to do with it?"

Xuan Tie Dawei's target was also those data... This immediately alerted Margaret.

The Unarmored Alliance is a lackey of the Commercial Union, but if they were really here to retrieve the lost data from Pol Pharmaceuticals, then it would not be just Xuan Tie Dawei here.

They will likely face an onslaught from countless assassins of the Unarmored Alliance.

In other words... this should be a private operation by the Xuan Tie leader, and the Wu Zhou Alliance was unaware of their existence.

“That’s none of your business,” Xuan Tie Dawei said somewhat impatiently. “Of course, I don’t mind giving it a try and seeing how much you’ve improved in the three years since you left Kazimierz.”

"...We need some time to consider it."

Margaret's hand holding the warhammer fell to her sides, as if she had completely lost her will to fight, a gesture that made Xuan Tie even more disdainful.

The Radiant Knight was indeed a titled knight who didn't live up to her name. She just happened to run into the worst tournament and was lucky enough to win the championship. Compared to her formidable predecessors, she was far inferior.

"Hurry up, my patience is running out!"

“I understand…” Margaret nodded slightly, as if she had made up her mind.

However, she made a decision that Xuan Tie Dawei did not expect.

With a loud shout, a golden phantom of a pegasus emerged from Margaret's body, and a warm, soft golden light instantly filled the entire room.

Under the light, Xuan Tie Dawei felt a burning pain, as if he were being scorched by fire.

"The Shining!"

"Leave it to me."

A glint of cold light tore through the ocean of golden light.

Chapter 41 The Fall of the Black Iron

Before anyone knew it, the longsword that Shining had been using as a staff had been drawn. A pale white light, even more violent and ferocious than Margaret's golden radiance, condensed on the blade, constantly emanating an aura that sent chills down one's spine.

The moment the sword was drawn, Shining's aura underwent a dramatic change.

If Shining usually gives off an air of languid mystery, then Shining now is like a deadly weapon stained with blood, its stench so strong it's almost nauseating.

Shining and Margaret passed each other, their swords aimed directly at the position of Xuan Tie.

In the next instant, the entire world seemed to split in two. The cold light condensed on the sword destroyed everything in its path with overwhelming force. Even the black particles that constituted the Xuan Tie Grand Position were annihilated by nearly one-fifth under this terrifying power.

What's most astonishing is that if the power contained in this sword were released, it would be enough to destroy everything nearby. However, Flash Spirit contained all this terrifying power within a single longsword. Apart from the locked Xuan Tie throne, even the wooden table right next to it was completely unaffected.

"Hmph ahh ...

A piercing scream pierced the roof as Xuan Tie Dawei's body disintegrated into a thick, inky mist that surged violently.

"Die...die! You all must die!"

Intense pain tormented Xuan Tie Dawei's nerves. Since honing his Originium Arts to this level, he hadn't been injured in ages. His body, formed from black mist, was tangible yet intangible, virtually immune to all physical attacks and possessing extremely high resistance to most spells.

Amidst the unprecedented suffering, Xuan Tie Dawei also felt a trace of fear.

This Sarkaz woman who appeared out of nowhere... she really has the potential to kill him; the Originium Arts attached to that sword... are truly too dangerous.

"Ha!"

The Radiant Knight seized the opportunity and charged forward, but the Xuan Tie Grandmaster merely waved his hand, and the power erupting from the black mist sent Margaret flying to the side.

To the Dark Iron Lord, a knight like Margaret posed no threat whatsoever. No matter how heavy the force of her hammer swings or how dazzling the Originium Arts were, she couldn't break his body; at most, she could only slightly impair his vision.

Ignoring Margaret completely, Xuan Tie focused all his attention on Shining.

The black mist that formed their bodies suddenly spread outwards, transforming into countless tiny black blades that lunged at the two of them.

"Let's see how you dodge this move!"

Xuan Tie Dawei had clearly recognized the strength of Shan Ling's sword, but he was not without means to deal with it.

Extremely compressed energy creates terrifying power, but this also means sacrificing attack range. After Xuan Tie Dawei expands his body, each of Shan Ling's swords can only destroy a small part of it. If he wants to expand the attack range, it means a significant decrease in power.

Before Shining destroys his entire body, he has enough time to kill everyone.

These tiny black blades, if they manage to create even a small wound on them, will shatter into particles that travel through the wound and damage their bodies. The same applies if these particles are accidentally inhaled.

This attack, launched from within the body, was Xuan Tie Dawei's trump card. He grinned inwardly, imagining the scene of receiving all the spoils of war.

The Radiant Knight, wanted by the National Assembly... this should bring him a considerable bounty.

However, surrounded by countless black blades, and seemingly on the verge of death at any moment, the two showed no signs of panic. The Sarkaz female swordswoman even suppressed her killing intent and calmly looked at him.

Shining said softly, "Liz."

"Ah."

A clear voice suddenly rang out behind Xuan Tie Dawei, and only then did Xuan Tie Dawei realize that he seemed to have overlooked someone all along—

The frail girl lying on the bed, whom he had initially intended to take hostage.

Liz…is that what she’s calling? Xuan Tie Dawei suddenly found it somewhat amusing. In this desperate situation, what could that girl possibly do?

Soon, Xuan Tie Dawei realized just how wrong he had been.

Having spent a long time in Kazimierz, he had become somewhat assimilated by the country's mindset, forgetting an extremely important thing—the strength of a person's Originium Arts has no direct relation to their physical abilities.

The azure domain slowly unfolded, and the light on the Radiant Knight was suppressed by this domain, gradually dimming. Xuan Tie Dawei did not care at all, letting this domain engulf him.

The next instant, Xuan Tie Dawei's expression changed.

The black blades that were attacking Shining and Margaret all suddenly stopped in mid-air... He had actually lost contact with those black blades.

Moreover, under the suppression of the azure blue domain, he gradually felt that he could not control his spells. Not only the energy contained in his body, but all the source energy within the entire range covered by the azure blue domain returned to calm, and no one could use this inert source energy to release spells.

"How is this possible?" Xuan Tie Dawei screamed in terror.

If Originium can be reverted to inertia, wouldn't that mean no one can use Originium Arts in this field? How could such a spell exist?

The cold reality slapped Xuan Tie hard in the face; he felt the effects of his spell were wearing off.

Countless black blades disintegrated into black particles, converging on the ground to form an ordinary-looking middle-aged man. A deep, bone-revealing wound stretched across his chest, the injury left by Shining's sword, manifesting in this strange form on his body.

“It’s over,” Shining said calmly, carrying his longsword as he walked forward.

Xuan Tie Dawei could only retreat in terror.

The azure domain continuously suppressed the Originium energy within his body. Without being able to use Originium Arts, the so-called Xuan Tie Da Shi was nothing more than an ordinary person with a little strength, pale in comparison to Shining.

A cold glint flashed, and Xuan Tie Dawei desperately dodged to the side, but even so, the sword still sliced ​​open his throat.

After rolling several times on the ground, Xuan Tie Dawei crashed into the wall behind him in a sorry state. Even though he tried to cover his wound, blood still gushed out.

The demonic Sarkaz woman continued to walk towards him at her own unhurried pace.

I can't die...

But in the current situation, how can he turn things around?

With nowhere else to turn, Xuan Tie suddenly remembered something: the potion he had stolen from the Boer Pharmaceutical Laboratory... Now, that was the only thing he could use.

Without hesitation, Xuan Tie Dawei took out the potion and plunged it into the still bleeding neck.

As the medicine was injected into his body, Xuan Tie Dawei could feel the fatal wound on his neck healing rapidly, and the suppressed Originium energy in his body also showed signs of loosening.

Yes, that's it... just a little more effort...

The longsword pierced his chest, shattering his heart into pieces. No matter how potent the potion was, it couldn't rebuild his shattered heart.

Xuan Tie Dawei could only fall to the ground, filled with resentment and unwillingness.

Who would have thought that the leader of the Unarmored Alliance, feared by countless people, would fall into the hands of a frail young girl?

"...Liz, that's enough."

As she instructed, Liz obediently reclaimed her territory.

As the pale blue light dissipated, Shining felt a lightness on her body. Liz's move couldn't distinguish between targets; even Shining would be suppressed by Nightingale's 'Sanctuary' and lose the ability to use magic.

However, for Shining, even without magic, her blade remains sharp, unlike the Black Iron King lying on the ground, who is a useless piece of trash without magic.

Wiping the blood off the sword, Flashy put it back in its sheath and exhaled deeply.

"Let's go, we need to find somewhere else, we can't stay here any longer."

……

When Xuan Tie Dawei opened his eyes again, he found himself in a magical world. Countless blurry figures, their faces indistinct, reached out their hands to him and said in unison,

"Welcome, my compatriot."

Chapter 42 Adams

On this day, Li Ang and Marna's conversation lasted for a long time.

Perhaps because of what happened to Renne, Li Ang had some concerns. Li Ang could sense that Marna trusted him much more than before. At this point, they were truly on the same side.

Marna Nearl, that's his full name. He comes from a long-established knightly family in Kazimierz, and the reward he's prepared to give to Leon is the manor that his family has inherited.

Although this made Li Ang feel somewhat uneasy, the manor was indeed worth that amount in terms of its value alone.

Li Ang strongly suspected that Marna was simply unable to afford the high maintenance costs of the manor, so he planned to repurpose it and dump it on Li Ang—his official identity was just an employee of a small company, so where would he get so much money?

After that, Marna also frankly told Leon about their current situation.

It's true that the Securities and Futures Commission is behind Marna, but due to the order of Kazimierz and the power of the Business Alliance, they cannot act openly without having concrete evidence against Pol Pharmaceuticals. At most, they can protect their relatives in secret and prevent the Business Alliance from using any underhanded methods.

As for the specifics of these methods... Marna revealed to Leon a little-known organization in Kazimir—the Unarmored Alliance.

A group of assassins trained by the Business Alliance secretly eliminates any targets that do not align with their interests, such as disobedient independent knights or businessmen who do not abide by the Business Alliance's rules.

If the business alliance is prepared to break off relations, they will inevitably deploy assassins from the Unarmored Alliance. As long as the Unarmored Alliance does not send out its entire force, the oversight body promises to guarantee the safety of the Rein family and Adele.

However, this is also their last line of defense. Once the Wuzhou Alliance takes action, it means that the operation against Boer Pharmaceuticals has been exposed. Without concrete evidence, the Securities and Futures Commission cannot take action against such a behemoth as Boer Pharmaceuticals.

Leaving Kazimierz was the fallback plan arranged for them by the Supervisory Board. Before that, the Supervisory Board could only provide very limited assistance to Leon and Marna.

During this period, in addition to investigating suspected victims of Pol Pharmaceuticals, Manner also tried to infiltrate Pol Pharmaceuticals several times. With his wonderful Originium Arts that could reduce his own presence, there were few places in Kazimierz that he could not enter, but unfortunately, Pol Pharmaceuticals was one of them.

Perhaps because of the previous intruder, Pol Pharmaceuticals quickly replaced its internal security system, spending a large sum of money to purchase a complete set of equipment from a company in Colombia.

Manna's magic can fool humans, and even Originium Arts that rely on perception, but it cannot fool machines.

The anti-theft system, consisting of just cameras, infrared sensors, and pressure-sensitive triggers, left Marna helpless, since his magic couldn't completely erase his existence.

“At this stage, the only breakthrough lies with you,” Marna said to Li Ang. “You have already signed a contract with Pol Pharmaceuticals, and it shouldn’t be long before you get access to Pol Pharmaceuticals’ headquarters.”