Chapter 17: Fierce Battle Against the Giant Eyed Blood Rat

That low growl, in the stillness of the surroundings, was as conspicuous as a beacon in the dark. In just an instant, Jing Wuji pinpointed the monster's location.

In the kitchen!

Jing Wuji immediately melted into the shadows, his figure vanishing from the cafeteria.

Back Kitchen of the Cafeteria.

Two deep blue orbs, as large as basketballs, floated eerily in the air, slowly rotating from time to time.

They were unmistakably a pair of eyeballs!

Jing Wuji stared at the shadowy figure, a chill running down his spine.

Even the wolf-type summoned beast from before hadn't made him feel uneasy—but this creature gave him goosebumps all over.

Mainly because this monster was hideous, after all, the wolf-type demon at least had some style.

Thanks to his excellent night vision, Jing Wuji quickly identified the creature from his studies.

The Giant-Eyed Blood Rat!

It seemed to have sensed something—it turned its head toward Jing Wuji's position, then turned away again.

Jing Wuji thought he had been spotted and prepared to move, but then the rat turned back again. He remained still.

Was this the instinctual warning of a creature sensing danger? As expected, he still hadn't learned how to suppress his killing intent.

Although Jing Wuji confirmed the Giant-Eyed Blood Rat hadn't located him, it kept glancing in his direction. He still wasn't a qualified assassin—he couldn't even suppress his intent to kill.

Killing intent isn't a scent. Shadows can't conceal it. When it's too strong, it's still easily perceived—just not precisely located.

Time to strike!

A longsword formed from condensed shadow appeared in his hand—not to show off, but to maintain a reactive distance from the demon. A longer reach means a greater advantage, while a shorter one spells danger.

Jing Wuji was done waiting. He had come to eliminate this demon!

Sword in hand, he crept closer and closer to the Giant-Eyed Blood Rat. Yet, the creature still hadn't noticed him.

This ends now.

Jing Wuji slashed his sword toward the monster's neck—

—but struck nothing but air. The rat had leaped aside right before the blade came down, nearly making Jing Wuji stumble.

Now the demon was glancing around, trying to understand what had triggered its instincts. With its servant-level intelligence, it couldn't quite make sense of it.

Damn it! So this is the power of a servant-level demon. Back then, he was only able to fight the wolf-type summoned beast because its master had probably forbidden it from going all out. He needed to train in concealing his killing intent when he returned.

Jing Wuji didn't lose heart. Instead, he revealed his presence and confronted the demon head-on!

Since a sneak attack had failed, he'd bait the creature into attacking—and use his Phantom Form to strike back.

The moment he revealed himself, the Giant-Eyed Blood Rat immediately noticed him and let out a shriek.

It didn't realize that this human was the source of the killing intent from earlier.

Its pupils began to shrink rapidly—as if charging up something.

When the energy hit a critical point, a beam of crimson light suddenly shot out from its eye, aimed straight at Jing Wuji!

He had noticed the rat's build-up in time and knew it was preparing a racial skill attack. But instead of dodging, he rushed straight toward it.

The crimson beam moved blindingly fast, piercing straight through Jing Wuji's chest and scorching a charred hole in the wall behind him.

Yet—there was no wound on Jing Wuji's body. He looked perfectly fine as if nothing had touched him.

He had phased through the attack using Phantom Form!

Now within striking distance, Jing Wuji swung his blade again. The Giant-Eyed Blood Rat had to dodge once more, leaping aside to avoid the blow.

After using that eye beam, the demon seemed unable to fire another in quick succession. Instead, it charged forward, relying on its physical strength to fight.

That was exactly what Jing Wuji wanted. In a drawn-out battle, the rat's stamina and reaction speed would far exceed his own.

He sidestepped the rat's lunge and countered, slashing a wound across its side.

Jing Wuji tried to minimize the use of his Phantom Form as much as possible. Although he had ample magic energy, it still couldn't outlast a demon's physical stamina. So, he chose the most energy-efficient way to engage in a drawn-out fight with the Giant-Eyed Blood Rat.

A single bleeding wound wasn't enough to defeat the rat. On the contrary, it only provoked its ferocity. With bloodshot eyes, it turned and charged at Jing Wuji again—this time even faster than before, seemingly intent on pulverizing him.

Jing Wuji felt a bit helpless. While his reflexes were quick and allowed him to react in time, his mage's physique couldn't keep up with the speed of his reactions. With no other choice, he activated Phantom Form again.

At the same time, Jing Wuji dropped to the ground in a sliding tackle, slipping right under the rat. As he passed beneath it, his shadow-forged longsword was already positioned to strike. He slashed a long, deep gash across the demon's abdomen.

Through the wound, its internal organs were visible.

"Squee—!"

The Giant-Eyed Blood Rat shrieked in pain as blood spurted from the gash. It collapsed onto the ground, limbs twitching violently—then more and more weakly, as if it were on the brink of death.

Seeing this, Jing Wuji turned and ran toward the kitchen utensils. He grabbed knives—cleavers, carving knives, anything he could find—and hurled them one by one at the demon with all his strength.

As expected, the Giant-Eyed Blood Rat had been trying to lure him into a trap, hoping to launch a surprise attack once he got close.

But the rat hadn't anticipated that it was facing a highly cautious combatant—essentially a walking embodiment of "play it safe." Jing Wuji bombarded it with dozens of kitchen knives from a distance first, testing whether it still could retaliate.

The more knives embedded into its body, the louder and more desperate the rat's shrieks became.

Soon, Jing Wuji was looking at a Giant-Eyed Blood Rat with dozens of blades stuck in its flesh, twitching occasionally—already appearing dead.

But Jing Wuji knew that a few dozen kitchen knives were far from enough to kill a servant-level demon.

Looks like I'll have to finish this myself.

He approached the demon, ready to end it.

Just as he raised his sword to sever the rat's head, the creature suddenly sprang to life and lunged at him.

But Jing Wuji had anticipated this. A flash of shadow wrapped around his entire body.

Everything seemed to slow down—the rat's pouncing motion, the tension in its muscles, even the flow of blood and magical energy in its body—all became crystal clear in Jing Wuji's eyes.

He dashed around the Giant-Eyed Blood Rat at high speed, leaving deep slashes all over it with his shadow sword.

Still, the demon's terrifying vitality kept it alive, though it could no longer rise to its feet.

After carefully observing, a weakness finally appeared before Jing Wuji's eyes.

Without hesitation, he brought his sword down on the creature's neck, cleanly severing its head. This tenacious demon had finally met its end.

The Giant-Eyed Blood Rat—dead!

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