Su Lun could tell that the Old Cowboy was somewhat "reluctant" to come out.
Perhaps he didn’t know that from the beginning to the end, Su Lun was always confident about escaping; he thought that now Su Lun was confronted with Amo E. Clair, one of the "Top Ten Legendary Bounty Hunters" known as the "Punishing Lawyer," and saw this as a dead end with no way out.
Moreover, the Old Man didn’t step forward out of goodwill to save Su Lun; it was mostly because Amelia was now in his hands.
If he didn’t save the day, both Su Lun and Amelia would die.
Could it be his illegitimate daughter?
Su Lun didn’t have time to guess.
It seemed the Old Cowboy had already read his thoughts, his tone complicated, "If my daughter hadn’t died, she would be about the same age as that girl Amelia now."
With that, he once again said, "I’ll take care of things here."
Su Lun listened and was a bit speechless, thinking to himself: If you hadn’t come, I would have already left.
Now this whole act is making things awkward.
He asked again, "Can you beat her?"
Regardless of whether he came to save himself or not, the fact remained the Old Man had come forward to lend a hand, and that was a favor in itself.
At the very least, he should try to see if they could work together, perhaps there was a chance for both of them to leave unscathed?
Hearing this, the Old Cowboy didn’t say whether he could win or not, only responding indifferently: "I won’t die."
"???"
Su Lun looked at him with a bizarre expression, sizing him up.
I know you’ve concealed some skills, but...
Where does an old man like you get the confidence to survive under the hand of a "Top Ten Legendary" opponent?
Su Lun wasn’t a rookie in the business, and though he wasn’t skilled in mystical arts, he had some understanding of them.
The "tch" earlier that interrupted the casting wasn’t because the Old Man was truly stronger than that woman, but he likely spotted some flaws in the verbal spell and cleverly broke it.
What about your domain?
Show it to me.
Make me admit I was wrong about you.
If you don’t have a domain, what are you going to fight her with?
The Old Cowboy was always a sly old fox; he understood Su Lun’s expression and revealed a bitter smile full of subtlety, and his tone was deeper than ever, "I won’t die. But after today, many will die."
At this critical moment, can’t we speak more clearly?
Su Lun was somewhat at a loss, pondering for a moment, he still couldn’t understand what that meant.
But at this moment, he felt the Old Man wasn’t joking around.
...
The woman on the other side eyed the Old Cowboy’s arrival with a slightly more serious look, but she didn’t really show any fear.
Seeing that Su Lun hadn’t escaped, she was also not in a hurry to attack, seemingly viewing them as lambs to the slaughter. Instead, she started reminiscing, "Your Honor the High Judge, long time no see, huh? You didn’t hide in a stinking ditch; you dared to show your face?"
That’s how verbose people are; the moment they engage, so long as they find a point to argue about, they start spewing out flowery rhetoric.
Seeing the Old Cowboy ignored her, the woman sneered and carried on the topic herself: "His Excellency says I don’t represent justice? Heh heh..."
An expression of immense arrogance and pride emerged on her harsh face as she said: "Since I started as a lawyer’s apprentice, I have gone through eight hundred and thirty-two trials without a single defeat. Even the scandal involving you from five years ago ended in my hands. I uphold the authority of the law, the scales that judge good and evil. If I don’t represent justice, then what does? Please tell me, Your Honor the High Judge?"
The trailing echo lingered for a long time.
Su Lun, hearing this, faintly felt that this wasn’t just a verbal confrontation, but akin to an altercation of mystical techniques.
Previously, he had inquired about domains with his mentor, and one explanation from Mr. Jing was that a domain is actually a "logical loop."
A logical consistency within a range, with refined rules, possessing the ability to control everything.
Su Lun had a few encounters with Amo the "Punishing Lawyer," and had personally experienced it.
Inside the logical loop, if she said she was invincible, then she was invincible.
Because Su Lun couldn’t spot a flaw in her rule’s logic, he had to take a beating.
Hearing this, Su Lun glanced sideways at the Old Cowboy beside him, wanting to hear how he would break the opponent’s logical loop.
It was like a debate; once a logical flaw is caught, you’ve fallen behind and lost some points first.
He believed the Old Man would never back down.
However, unexpectedly, the Old Cowboy didn’t address the lofty topic of justice; instead, he uttered an exceptionally vulgar word: "Tart."
Su Lun’s eyes twitched at this unexpected turn. What’s going on?
Looking at how the Old Cowboy was eyeing her chest and skirt, it was a blatant lecherous gesture.
Hey, hey, she’s one of the top ten legends; even if you’re acting like a hooligan, restrain a bit!
Otherwise, instead of being stabbed to death with one cut, you’re going to end up being stabbed ten times.
The woman’s face darkened as if she had been struck a sensitive nerve, her cold voice retorted, "Hah, the once great Judge of the Imperial City, speaking so coarsely now?"
The Old Cowboy, with an air of indifference, spoke even more vulgarly: "For the sake of climbing the social ladder, licking the boots of all the big shots, what face do you have to say you represent justice?"
It was a blatant argument, with every sentence hitting below the belt.
As Amo listened, her face darkened abruptly.
You attack me personally when I talk to you fairly?
She quickly realized that this was no longer the High Judge who would hold back in court for the sake of chivalry and honor when pushed to the edge of defense.
A cold light flickered in her eyes as she almost hissed, "Old fool, are you looking for death?"
...
Su Lun watched the whole process, his expression steady but inwardly he was deeply shocked.
So... she’s unguarded?
Even after being wounded by the knife earlier, the woman’s momentum hadn’t weakened at all. But now, she was thrown off balance just by the Old Cowboy’s few words?
He knew that normally, such verbal jabs couldn’t disturb the mentality of a Tier 7 professional.
But it seemed that both knew each other’s background well, and those words must have struck a nerve.
Su Lun marveled inwardly, impressed.
Alright, I was wrong; the Old Man is awesome!
The woman might have been trying to trigger some mystical technique, but the Old Cowboy’s move was indeed brilliant.
Even if you speak eloquently, I’ll just spit a vulgar loogie straight into your throat.
```
Brilliant, truly brilliant!
And Su Lun could clearly feel that as soon as the old man spoke, most of the murderous intent previously locked onto his head shifted away.
Was this creating another chance for him to escape?
Brilliant indeed, the skill of provoking hatred was simply astounding!
Never before had Su Lun found this old man so unfathomable.
With such a talent for attracting hatred, he must have some real ability as his confidence.
Su Lun felt that now, if he were to abandon the Old Cowboy and run, he wouldn’t feel the slightest bit guilty.
...
Being mocked like this, Amo’s intent to kill had greatly intensified.
Even the thought had surpassed his mission to kill Su Lun.
The Old Cowboy was utterly fearless, continuing to walk straight over.
Su Lun figured that it was probably about time for the scene where the old man shows his dominance and crushes the "top ten legends" with his field.
He also prepared for the moment the two confronted each other, and then he planned to make his escape.
But...
What followed was an unexpected reversal that he never saw coming.
....
The old man walked over, and Amo, whose killing intent was peaking, pointed to the law codex in his hand and started chanting again: "By my Law Codex of Punishment, Article Seven: I sentence you to the extreme penalty, to the executioner’s block!"
As soon as Su Lun heard the beginning, he knew that the other person was about to cast another mysterious spell.
But this time it wasn’t directed at him, so he didn’t feel any sense of crisis.
Watching the increasingly steady steps of the Old Cowboy out of the corner of his eye, Su Lun thought it was in the bag!
Is this the aura of a master?
Is this the disdain of a hidden powerhouse?
The old man was about to burst forth!
But gradually, Su Lun started to feel that something was off.
The woman had already completed her spell, but the old man hadn’t shown any reaction—was he planning to withstand the curse?
At that moment, Su Lun also saw that the Old Cowboy was clearly bound by some mysterious force.
And as soon as the woman’s words came out, an illusionary executioner’s block like a mirage suddenly condensed out of thin air right where the Old Cowboy was standing.
As her words ended, the blade on the executioner’s block suddenly fell.
With a "swoosh" of the blade,
Blood splattered,
And a head tumbled and rolled on the ground!
The Old Cowboy had no chance to react, and was already lying dead on the spot.
"???"
This scene had Su Lun completely dumbfounded: the plot wasn’t right!
He possessed the All-knowing Eye, which discerned the truth at a glance.
This was not any dummy or illusion.
It was the Old Cowboy getting his head cut off right in front of him.
Scalding hot blood poured on the ground, the body lay there, and from the severed neck came a continuous "sizzle" of spurting blood.
Everything was so real.
He... had died on the spot!
Not far away, the chief attorney Amo’s face already showed mockery.
Is that all?
...
"Damn... What the hell is happening?"
Su Lun felt that without cursing, he couldn’t describe his state of dumbfoundedness.
Was the old man just talk?
He drew all that hatred then just got killed?
The old man’s entrance had been as mysterious and flashy as his death was absurd.
Although the hierarchy gap was wide, and sometimes one-hit kills could happen.
But still...
That huge contrast between being a hidden expert one second and a corpse the next was too much for Su Lun to accept in the moment.
Although he felt that death was a grave matter, he couldn’t help but want to say: Old man, hurry up and stand up, take back that "I can’t die" you said earlier.
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I actually believed it.
However,
Just when Su Lun had run through all sorts of possibilities in his mind, something even more bizarre happened.
At that moment, the Old Cowboy, whose head and body were severed, really did stand up! Suddenly
"His" fingers moved, and then the entire blood-soaked headless body actually struggled to its feet.
Su Lun was totally flabbergasted.
Although he felt something was off when he hadn’t seen the "gray fog" before,
Watching the headless Old Cowboy stand up still turned his understanding upside down.
Isn’t this too absurd?!
Su Lun had seen a lot, but he had never seen someone who had their head cut off stand up again?
Without "gray fog," it meant the Old Cowboy wasn’t dead.
But the head had rolled two meters away, blood spilled several jin, and you’re telling me the person isn’t dead?
Not far off, chief attorney Amo was also showing an incredulous expression.
Yet, an even more unexpected scene occurred.
It was after the Old Cowboy was beheaded that it seemed as if a cage trapping a monster inside his body was unlocked, and a terrifying pressure descended on the street.
```
It felt as if... the gates of hell had been opened, a sense of despair beyond description swept over everything.
In that instant, the Old Cowboy was engulfed in black and red flames of hellfire.
Yet despite the blazing fire, the temperature of the entire street plummeted to freezing, sending shivers down one’s spine and a creeping sense of death that made one’s scalp tingle.
His eyes blazed with flames, yet void of any emotional turbulence.
This was an indiscriminate, icy killing intent!
As one who had come to understand the laws of death himself, Su Lun was extremely sensitive to this feeling and immediately grasped the truth, "Did this guy sacrifice his soul?"
This wasn’t Old Cowboy’s own strength, but the power granted in response by a high-ranking deity of death after the soul had been offered in sacrifice.
So that’s how it is!
In an instant, Su Lun understood everything.
...
The Old Cowboy, reborn from the flames, stood up, picked up his head and placed it back on his neck, "click" he tried it out.
Then, he raised the ancient silver crossbow in his hand, ablaze with the hellfire.
Not far away, the Grand Inquisitor, Amo Clair, expression changed slightly, "You are that ’Hell’s Judge’!"
As shock washed over her, she flipped open her codex, murmuring, "My codex of retributive laws, Article Seven: For all evil and filth in this world, I bring the Holy Light Judgment!"
Almost at the same moment, with a "swoosh," the hellfire rocket hit Amo. Although it seemed to only cause a slight blackened scorch wound, it penetrated her defenses.
However, the Old Cowboy was pierced through the chest by a beam of Sword of Holy Light descending from the sky, and he knelt down again.
He died, again.
It seemed as if he’d traded his life for a chance to strike.
Yet before a second passed, as soon as the Holy Light Sword vanished, the hole in Old Cowboy’s chest was immediately covered by hellfire, and he stood up again.
After dying one more time, his aura grew threefold stronger!
This time, the silver crossbow in his hand suddenly turned into a chain of flaming iron, which shot out with a "clang" towards the distance.
"Snap!"
Amo Clair didn’t dare to meet the attack head-on and surprisingly dodged!
Watching this, Su Lun finally understood what the guy meant by "I won’t die."
It was literal: he really wouldn’t die.
The Old Cowboy’s life had been offered to that death deity, and no mere mortal could take it away anymore.
However, seeing the soulless fire in the Old Cowboy’s eyes, Su Lun knew this was no longer that cowardly Old Cowboy. He wasn’t even human anymore.
At this moment, he was merely a divine servant following the will of that death deity!
Not all are answered by the gods.
Su Lun didn’t know what the Old Cowboy had been through, but to receive a response from a high-ranking death deity, there must have been something exceptional about him.
The Old Cowboy, now a divine servant, began to fight against that one of the top ten Legendary Bounty Hunters.
Although the old man’s methods were significantly weaker, he possessed an immortal body.
That was truly unsolvable.
An immortal body, one nearly invincible, this was a fight that couldn’t be finished in a short time.
Seeing this, Su Lun knew it was time for him to leave.
The Old Cowboy was such a coward on ordinary days yet didn’t use this ability; there must be a price to pay for it.
But it was irreversible now.
Watching the two clashing fiercely, Su Lun didn’t hesitate; he turned around and bolted out of the range covered by the domain, sprinting away.
...
Probably the Rodriguez family members also didn’t expect that even Amo Clair, one of the "Top Ten Legendary Bounty Hunters," couldn’t stop Su Lun, and "Shadow Duke" had held off most of the official level of Lyndon, perhaps there was also some move by the Yekaterina Lans family...
Anyway, Su Lun had left Manglin Street, charging all the way, and didn’t encounter any more threatening obstructions.
Unless another seventh-tier professional came, it’d be very difficult for anyone to hold him back.
"Prism Barrier" covered several streets, like broken glass scattered all over the ground.
But as long as he didn’t use Spatial Displacement, there were absolutely no issues.
With a detailed map of Lingdun City in his mind, Su Lun charged through the streets and alleys, trying to avoid any places that might be under surveillance.
Just as he was about to rush out of the Prism Barrier’s coverage area, he suddenly looked up at the raindrops in the sky and sensed something different!
In the rainwater, a terrifying woman in a white wedding dress was rapidly taking shape.
Where didn’t Su Lun recognize what this was, his eyebrows raised, "Ghost Bride?"
His thoughts shifted, and he wasn’t surprised.
He had previously killed Augustus, one of the top figures of the "Giants Hermit Society"; it was normal that the cult had reacted by now, sending people to hunt him down.
And it wasn’t just the Ghost Bride he had seen before; the dark winds howling in the rain were clearly suspicious too.
Su Lun noticed that where the wind elements were richest, there were fluctuations of souls; through the All-knowing Eye, another monster’s name appeared — "Terror Wax Figure - Sleeping Beauty."
"Such perfect wind element manifestation; the body before death must have been the talent bearer of the [A-003-Whisperer]. They really did make it happen. Now that these two types of elemental spirit mediums have appeared, the other two elements must be here too."
Upon considering this, Su Lun immediately realized he must have been exposed by the rainwater and then ambushed by prediction.
However, now he only saw two of them, probably because they could move fast enough to be here first.
Though Su Lun guessed that the gathering of the four wax figures would surely be a lot more troublesome than the single Ghost Bride he faced before, he wasn’t all that afraid.
"Not afraid of the ’Top Ten Legendary,’ should he fear these few puppets?"
Su Lun had always wanted to trouble that ’Curator’, but now was obviously not the right time.
Today’s scene had been set up for him; he truly dreaded what kind of monsters and demons might emerge if he got held up by these wax figures.
With that thought, he didn’t harbor the slightest intention to fight, he unleashed his Eight-Armed Spider Lance and began to sprint wildly.
Those that could fly weren’t necessarily faster than running on the ground.
Especially with the assistance of an augment like the Eight-Armed Spider Lance, which ignored all obstructions.
Since he was already discovered, there was no need to hide anymore.
Su Lun’s physical quality was no less than that of an average fifth-tier melee professional. With the Eight-Armed Spider Lance spread out, he zoomed incredibly fast.
Behind him, the Ghost Bride and Sleeping Beauty relentlessly pursued, with wind blades, rain bullets, hurricane techniques, and all sorts of puddle spells, hypnotism cast indiscriminately...
Su Lun simply ignored all of it and continued his headlong dash.
The Eight-Armed Spider Lance disregarded the various puddle traps, and the dominating Rune Vajra shouldered the attacks, smashing through them unimpeded. Although he sustained some minor injuries, they were inconsequential.
Finally, after running through several blocks, he could no longer see the blue light of the "Prism Barrier" in the sky, and his heart leapt with joy: "I’ve escaped!"
Two wax figure automatons were still doggedly pursuing him from behind, but Su Lun didn’t pay them any attention. With a concentration of his sorcerer’s seals, a flash of spatial fluctuation occurred, and his figure had already vanished.
Su Lun had not been captured or killed on the spot.
Thus, this conspiracy had completely fallen through.
...
Meanwhile, in the Queen’s district, eight blocks away from Parrot Street on Solomon Street.
Inside a small building, William and a woman shrouded in a cloak were waiting for news from over at Parrot Street.
"What? Legendary Hunter Amo Clair couldn’t keep that person?!"
"Yes, young master. We’ve just confirmed the news. Moreover, all the intelligence networks have lost track of the target; he must have escaped."
"Also, the police station at Lyndon and the intelligence agency have already confirmed it—some mysterious Big Shot spoke up, which is why no one dared to make a move. Our people wanted to act, but they were suppressed too. And that ’Big Shot’ has a very high level of authority; even our insiders haven’t found out who it is. Over at the military, General Nikola Rostov has been pressing down; he was once Alek Barrett’s teacher and has deep family ties..."
"..."
Hearing this news that was like a bolt from the blue, William stood there, thunderstruck.
He could not have imagined that his seemingly foolproof plan would end like this.
"How is this possible! How could that guy have escaped!"
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"Did the royals intervene? That shouldn’t be... Damn it, how could that guy have managed to influence the top people at Lyndon?!"
"..."
Listening to William talk to himself as he replayed the events, the cloaked woman remained silent throughout.
Although her face was not clear, one could distinctly feel her aura had weakened significantly in that instant.
After pondering for a long while, she finally spoke with an extremely weak voice, "I have already tried my best to suppress his fate in this scheme, but those experts failed to stop him, which is also destiny. When decline reaches its extreme, resurgence is inevitable; if he could not be killed this time, his fortune will grow even stronger. William, you’d better take care of yourself."
William frowned, "Are you leaving?"
The cloaked woman sighed, "What I could do, I’ve done. I paid a great price to lure him into the trap and even foretold that he would kill Augustus, but... Nevermind, it’s pointless to talk about it now."
Unwilling to give up, William said, "There’s no other way?"
The cloaked woman turned to leave but paused and, after a moment’s thought, she mentioned a plan without much hope, "There’s one last chance. Stay here and wait. Bet that he will come to you for trouble. If he acts, you will have another opportunity to kill him. If he refrains, he has already made his mark. The tide has turned."
"..."
William watched the disillusioned robed figure leave the room, his eyes filled with gloom, yet he was unable to stop her.
He clearly understood what that "fortune" referred to.
That damned man had stolen the fortune that should have belonged to him!
Katyusha was supposed to be his, the opportunities were supposed to be his, everything about the Regaddie family should have been his.
But now, that man’s threat was growing bigger, and even voices within the family began to support him...
In the room, the formation disk for the "Prism Barrier" was still placed, serving as bait.
Suppressing the murderous intent in his eyes, William waited in the room.
...
Before long, a man in a leather jacket riding a motorcycle appeared on Solomon Street.
He looked at the deserted street and fixed his gaze on a youth wearing a newsboy cap at the corner newsstand.
Su Lun drove his motorcycle over and stopped by the curb, saying, "A copy of the Lyndon Daily News, please."
At that moment, the newsboy looked up, recognized something, and said softly, "Mr. Su Lun?"
Su Lun took off his motorcycle helmet and smiled, "Long time no see, Tommy."
This youth was none other than Tommy, whom he had met on his way to the Dawn Relic in old Lington.
After his dad was sacrificed in the curse space, he ended up working under Sabina.
Now, he had become a very important and capable member of the "Mirror Organization."
Tommy was here because he had a very special talent; he possessed an exceptionally strong "spiritual sense."
Specifically, he could see people’s spiritual power, thus identifying their identities. This was somewhat similar to Su Lun’s Soul Perception.
Previously, Sabina had specially trained Tommy to develop his talent and found that he might be a [B-058-Insightful One].
But it wasn’t exactly the same.
Tommy’s talent hadn’t been fully developed; as he grew stronger in rank, he would be able to see all sorts of other things, such as a bit of cause and effect.
In any case, this talent currently seemed very suitable for an intelligence officer.
Su Lun wasn’t in a rush to catch up on old times; he had other matters here and asked, "How’s the situation?"
Tommy, very much the qualified intelligence officer, concealed his radical actions, handed over the newspaper, and said, "We’ve confirmed that the source of the barrier is right at 121 Solomon Street. Several groups have come and gone, and some have already followed them. The barrier is still there, and the most important person is still there."
Tommy’s ability let him directly see the core of this prism formation was here.
"Mm."
Su Lun nodded, flipped through the newspaper, but his hand was touching the black umbrella on the motorcycle.
Quickly, his perception passed through, and he "saw" the soul fluctuations inside that house.
Su Lun murmured to himself, "It’s indeed that William Junior."
At this moment, Tommy asked, "Sir, are we going to take action? The team leader said we should follow your command."
Su Lun had originally planned to check out the situation and confirm some suspicions.
Seeing that it was William causing trouble behind the scenes, he wasn’t surprised at all.
He could have taken action.
But upon reflection,
he put away the newspaper and said, "No."
After a pause, he told Tommy, "Everyone has done a good job. We can all pull out now."
"Ah?"
Tommy looked over, puzzled. Were they really going to pass up such a good opportunity?
Su Lun guessed something, glanced at the distant house, with a slight smile on the corner of his mouth, "That guy is probably waiting for me to show up. After all, this is his last chance. Although the probability is slim."
As he spoke, he seemed to recall something, paused, and then added, "But after today, he won’t have any chance at all!"
Su Lun started his motorcycle and drove straight away from Solomon Street.
PS. A request for a wave of end-of-June monthly tickets, and a guaranteed base of monthly tickets for July.