Duel

Fandral Staghelm was practically consumed by fury.

He wanted to kill the Three, but that was an impossible task.

The three ninjas of the Kinkou Order were no fools; Shen and Kennen each took a direction, drawing the enemy's attention, while Akali, with her superior stealth, trailed far behind, leaving marks to guide those who followed.

Unable to catch the two in front, and with turning back to deal with Akali being too time-consuming, they chased for a while, and upon realizing they couldn't resolve the situation, Fandral could only suppress his agitated mood and retreat according to the established plan.

Soon after, they found a relatively safe corner, and Fandral stopped to instruct, "You guard the entrance, I will cast the spell."

Just as Broll had feared most, they indeed possessed a way to bypass the imprisonment array and teleport directly to the outside world.

"I'll go chase away those few little flies," Garona said, entering stealth and moving back along the path they had come.

This legendary assassin was still unwilling to accept it; she had been thoroughly outmaneuvered by Akali and Kennen before.

However, in Garona's mind, it wasn't due to her lack of strength, but rather the environment forced her to continuously fight and hold back the ninjas, preventing them from disturbing Lyana's destruction of the prison.

Now that everything was back to square one, Garona could fight in the way of an assassin, and this was the real test of assassination skills!

The battlefield was in a narrow tunnel.

Here, the light was dim and the terrain was cramped, which not only enhanced the assassins' concealment but also gave the advantage to the side that launched a surprise attack first.

Whoever could discover the other party first in such an environment would have a great chance of winning.

The empty tunnel showed no sign of life, yet it was filled with murderous intent.

Akali was the first to arrive, carefully lurking, continuing to track Staghelm and the others' whereabouts.

She wasn't worried about losing them; the other party hadn't deliberately erased their tracks, nor had they made any disguises.

What's more, she had left a special tracking substance on Garona—a secret concoction that emitted a unique scent.

The scent itself wouldn't be noticed, but when mixed with the medicine on Akali's body, it would produce a special odor.

She had only crept a few steps when she suddenly frowned because she smelled that scent.

The tunnel was empty, which meant only one thing—Garona was lying in ambush for her here!

Akali's mind raced, and she immediately thought of a solution.

She continued forward, pretending to be completely unaware.

Continuing to sneak a few steps, the scent grew stronger and stronger, enough for her to clearly distinguish its source.

At this moment, Garona was clinging tightly to the top of the cave.

She held a "Shunpo" in her mouth, her feet braced against the cave wall, and her hands supported her on the other side, securing herself in place.

This was an ambush method that ordinary people would never think of, and she believed it would bring a huge surprise to her prey.

Soon after, the prey arrived.

Although she couldn't see the figure of the human girl, her extraordinary senses still allowed her to capture the other's location.

The green-clad assassin was cautiously creeping forward, looking very vigilant, but she was completely unaware of the threat from above.

"Still too young," Garona slightly raised her eyebrows.

When the other party passed directly below her, Garona silently contracted her body, allowing herself to fall freely from the top of the cave.

She adjusted her posture in the air, stretched her body, and grabbed "Shunpo."

In the Shadow World, the short blade cut through the light in her hand, turning into a deadly web of knives that completely enveloped Akali below, giving her no chance to escape.

In this instant, Garona had already sentenced this exceptionally talented human girl to death.

There was no such thing as a counterattack in the battle between assassins; unless one's strength was overwhelming, going second meant failure and death!

Just as Garona's sure-kill strike was about to hit the lurking Akali, she suddenly lunged to the right, pre-emptively dodging the attack.

At the same time, she exerted force with her feet, slamming them against the uneven cave wall with two "thud" sounds.

She then used the kunai on her hand as a grappling hook, climbing up the wall like a gecko, borrowing strength in the air to flip her body and land on the ground.

This series of actions was completed in the blink of an eye, and the situation reversed in an instant.

Garona, who had been pouncing on Akali from a high position, had now fallen to the ground, while Akali, as the "hunted" target, had instead come into the air, launching a surprise attack like Garona had done before.

She twisted her slender waist in the air, unleashing unparalleled power, and the pair of kunai in her hand spun with her body, carrying a deadly arc, heavily pecking towards Garona's back!

When Garona realized that the other party had dodged her sneak attack, she already understood that her ambush had been seen through long ago.

She didn't know if she had inadvertently exposed herself or what, but she knew that she had lost this round.

She felt a chill coming from her back as she landed, and the black-haired human girl was launching a long-planned counterattack.

The legendary assassin rolled away in a panic, and with a "tearing" sound, Garona felt a chill from her left shoulder to her back, followed by burning and tearing pain.

She let out a muffled groan, forcibly concealed herself, and disappeared into the air.

In this round, Akali had a complete victory!

She wasn't willing to give up such a great advantage.

Just like the reason why Garona initially chose this place for her ambush, the terrain here was narrow, and unless the disadvantaged party had extraordinary speed, they would only be chased to death.

And Akali happened to be one of the heroes in the League of Legends who was best at chasing.

Even the legendary assassin Garona would find it difficult to escape from her.

Relying on the bloody smell in the air and the scent of the special tracking substance on Garona's body, Akali easily locked onto the other's figure.

Then, she turned into a green phantom and rushed towards the other party, instantly closing the distance between them.

When Garona realized that she couldn't escape by conventional means, she was a little flustered for a moment.

She knew that as an assassin, the most important thing she couldn't lose was not her weapon, but her composure.

But she couldn't calm down now!

Garona let out a beast-like roar, suddenly turned around, and slashed at Akali with a knife.

The orc part of her bloodline was dominating her emotions, making her somewhat caught up in a fanatical desire to fight.

Unfortunately, Akali didn't lose her composure.

She knew that she had the advantage now, and she also knew that a head-on confrontation would be giving up the advantage to compete with the other party's strengths.

So, as a conscious assassin, she was very clear about what she should do.

Garona's counterattack only hit the air, and Akali stealthed again, disappearing without a trace.

Garona became even more agitated and uneasy, roaring a few times in unwillingness.

She knew she shouldn't be like this, but she still couldn't control her anger.

But at this moment, a subtle sound entered Garona's ears, and she immediately calmed down a little.

She suddenly slashed wildly at the air as if to vent, as if treating the air as an enemy.

After venting for a while, she glanced warily behind her, then suddenly turned around, unleashing all her strength, and fled towards the other end of the tunnel!

"Escape?" Akali, lurking in the shadows, watched this scene in confusion.

Could it be that the assassins of this world are so easily flustered?

She was a little suspicious.

Before, Garona had caused her a lot of trouble.

This half-orc female assassin was the most skilled assassin Akali had encountered in this world.

She felt that Garona was slightly stronger than that famous assassin Valeera Sanguinar from the high elves.

But could a top assassin's psychological quality be so fragile?

Akali was a little suspicious.

However, she wasn't willing to give up such a great opportunity.

She raised her vigilance but still pounced.

—This time, the little girl suffered a loss.

A flame druid who had transformed into a cheetah suddenly jumped out of the shadows.

Just as Akali's kunai was about to kill Garona, the cheetah seized the best opportunity, jumping out of the shadows and pouncing on Akali, who almost didn't have time to turn around.

Akali groaned, her back clawed.

Although she had tried her best to twist her body, she had only avoided the vital points.

A burning pain came from her back.

She threw a smoke bomb when Garona counterattacked, and then retreated back into the smoke.

She had been ambushed.

Akali bit her silver teeth and sent a signal to the other two: "Senior brother, Kennen, come here quickly! I've been ambushed!"

She glared hatefully at the two bad women retreating to the other side in the shadows, and gritted her teeth, "Hmph, I'll find reinforcements too!"

"Coming right away—Yahoo!" Kennen, not far away, turned into a ball of lightning, traversing the tunnel at an extremely fast speed, heading this way.

"Me too—There are reinforcements too," Senior Brother Shen asked with concern, "How badly are you hurt, Akali?"

"It's alright, just a few scratches," Akali didn't want to show weakness.

"That bad woman was also injured by me!"

"Which one?"

"The ugly one!"

"Oh! Nice one, Akali!" Kennen chuckled.

—

Shen had indeed brought reinforcements, and more than one at that.

At this moment, Garona and Leiana were retreating when a group of uninvited guests suddenly appeared from the other side of the fork in the road, blocking their escape route.

Beside him were "Lissandra, the Ice Witch," radiating a chilling aura, and "Nidalee, the Bestial Huntress," wielding a javelin. Both sides knew the newcomers were hostile, and Leiana, thinking of the pursuers behind them, immediately stopped hesitating. With a low growl, she transformed into a panther engulfed in flames, pouncing towards the enemy.

Garona, on the other hand, kept a close eye on the enemies, her figure gradually disappearing into stealth.

Excitement flashed in Nidalee's eyes. She loved hunting, especially hunting animals. She twisted her waist and hurled her javelin at the burning panther, then pounced forward, also transforming into a panther form.

Although she lacked the burning special effect, Nidalee was confident that her claws would teach this discordant panther a profound lesson!

Lissandra released a moving ice shard. Between her hands, she conjured the cold light of frost, creating a shimmering ice spear without uttering any incantations. With a gentle push, Lissandra sent the ice spear flying towards Leiana.

Garona had not yet revealed herself, so she only had to deal with the enemy who had shown herself.

Shen, meanwhile, stood guard to her left and right, protecting her safety and preventing the witch from being assassinated—although Shen understood very well that she didn't actually need his protection.

He seemed unable to withstand the chilling aura emanating from Lissandra and moved slightly further away.

Garona believed she had found an opportunity and immediately prepared to strike.

A surge of anger welled up within her. Today's journey had been so unsuccessful that she began to feel as though her skills had completely dulled. Twenty years ago, anyone who knew the name "Garona" would tremble in fear. She had assassinated the King of the Azeroth Kingdom and had also spent time at Ravenholdt Manor, becoming its top assassin. She was Ravenholdt Manor's golden brand, and the mere phrase "never fails" was enough to make people understand her position in the assassin world.

During that time, her assassination missions never failed. No matter how heavily guarded the target was, or how powerful they were, she could always find an opportunity for a fatal strike.

Therefore, in the assassin circle, her name had always been legendary, like thunder reverberating in the ears. Her deeds were praised by countless generations of assassins, and she herself was worshiped and revered.

But the legendary assassin had failed too many times today, and she felt that she was no longer worthy of the title.

At this moment, Garona reached behind Lissandra. She could feel the chilling aura emanating from the witch, which invigorated her and calmed her agitated mood.

Garona aimed at the back of her heart, and "Shadowstrike" drew an unremarkable trajectory, not as complex and gorgeous as before, but even faster and quieter.

This was the truly deadly assassination technique!

But just as she once again felt certain of success, fate deceived her once more.

The blade had almost touched the Ice Witch's back, but it was only "almost." Garona's achievement was limited to this, because in that instant, Lissandra suddenly disappeared. When she reappeared, she was already in front of Leiana.

There was an ice shard moving slowly over there, and now the ice shard had become Lissandra, while the original location of Lissandra only had the exposed Garona and the watchful Shen.

The timing of Lissandra's appearance was simply too perfect—at this moment, Nidalee and Leiana were locked in a fierce battle, both of whom could be considered variant druids—Valoran did not have the doctrine of druids, nor did it have a clear profession of druid. Nidalee's ability to transform was more of a natural gift; Leiana was originally a druid, but now, after accepting the power of the Fire Lord and changing her faith, she could no longer cast pure natural magic, but rather mutated flame magic.

As soon as Lissandra appeared, she unleashed a Frost Ring. The power of ice spread out, instantly imprisoning Leiana in place with countless ice shards.

A panther trapped in its limbs meant it could only wait for death.

An ice spear pierced Leiana's hind leg, pinning her to the spot. She groaned in pain, having just struggled to break free from the Frost Ring, when a chilling voice rang in her ear: "I advise you not to move!"

Leiana looked up and saw Nidalee transformed back into her human form, aiming a javelin at her throat.

Garona, seeing that the situation was not good, also gave up entanglement with Shen. She scattered blinding powder and forcibly cloaked herself, disappearing in place while Shen turned to dodge.

Shen was about to give chase when Lissandra said, "No need to rush, she won't get away."

"I wonder how things are going with Gnar?" Nidalee said.

Gnar had originally come with Nidalee, but they had separated at the fork in the road.

She had come here with Shen, while Gnar and Kaddarin had gone to where Deerhelm was.

At this time, Deerhelm was at a critical juncture in casting his spell, but a large-eared, bipedal little animal suddenly hopped in, its pair of dark eyes curiously looking at him.

Deerhelm noticed that the little animal had a bone boomerang in its hand, and at the same time, he sensed that his spell was being interfered with by an external force.

He was an extremely intelligent man and instantly sensed that something was wrong. The deaths of his beloved relatives, his son and granddaughter, filled his heart with violent emotions. Therefore, upon seeing this uninvited guest, he immediately showed no mercy, freeing up one hand, and he condensed the light of flames on his hand, pointing it at Gnar.

Gnar's body was instantly engulfed in a sea of fire, and the ground was scorched red by the terrifying heat.

Deerhelm was confident that any animal in that sea of fire would be roasted and charred within seconds, and regardless of whether this little animal was innocent, he would not have the slightest pity!

In the last moment before the sea of fire rose, he saw a humanlike panic in the little animal's eyes.

"Perhaps this is a little animal that inadvertently wandered in here?"

Deerhelm guessed.

But he would not feel guilty because of this, "It's a pity it appeared at the wrong time."

Just then, a small figure jumped out of the sea of fire. It was the little animal that had just been surrounded by flames. It jumped outside, but the flames still left some traces on it. A large patch of its good-looking fur was scorched, and the webbing of its hind legs touching the ground was even scalded.

Gnar stared angrily and sadly at this big bad guy, and the anger in his heart continued to accumulate.

Deerhelm frowned, he realized that this little thing seemed not so simple.

Could it be some kind of spiritual guardian in the Moonlight Forest that he didn't know about?

But even so, he could not let the other party go.

A flame appeared on his fingertip, containing ten times more terrifying flame energy than just now.

Only this time, Gnar didn't want to be passively beaten again.

It threw the boomerang in its hand at this big bad guy, and at the same time, it screamed and pounced at him.

"Are you planning to bite people?" Deerhelm felt a strange feeling in his heart.

It was like a puppy less than a month old "barking" and pouncing at a grown man, trying to scare him away.

He waved his hand gently, and that ray of fire turned into a scarlet orange rocket, stabbing straight at Gnar.

Even Deerhelm himself could not stop the terrifying power, and he believed that in the next instant, this little animal would be reduced to ashes.

But just then, a rough and terrifying roar suddenly came from the little animal's mouth. The cute and harmless little animal disappeared before his eyes, replaced in mid-air by a behemoth more than ten meters tall.

A huge shadow enveloped Deerhelm, and the giant Gnar pressed down like Mount Tai in the other party's astonishment.