Skinwalker Belle – Chapter 317 – How Could I Miss Out on Such a High-Stakes Game?

“Ugh—”

The moment they landed, the sound of retching behind him shattered the solemn silence of Border Dragon City’s plaza.

Yui and Yuzuru, the two sisters, were deathly pale, as if half their lives had been drained away, collapsing limply to the ground.

“Too weak.”

Lin Fan shot them a disdainful glance and casually flicked out two streams of gentle energy that sank into their bodies.

“Th… thank you, sir.”

Yuzuru, at least having the foundation of a peak Level 5, gasped for breath a few times before managing to struggle to her feet, pulling her sister up along with her.

As the two sisters gazed at the massive city before them—entirely pitch-black and radiating an aura of iron and blood—the shock in their eyes was beyond words.

So this was the Dragon Spirit Continent? Even the energy density in the air was a hundred times higher than on Blue Star.

“Greetings, Princess!”

The crisp, uniform clatter of armor rang out.

Around the plaza, the guards who had been hurrying about immediately dropped to one knee upon spotting the familiar figure.

Lin Fan keenly sensed something amiss.

Today, Border Dragon City was too quiet.

That suffocating stillness felt like a low-pressure zone drained of all air before a storm.

A faint scent of gunpowder hung in the air—the lingering trace left behind after a massive army had gathered.

Just then, Long Yan stumbled out of the Rift as well.

“Long Yan.”

Lin Fan raised an eyebrow, his gaze sweeping across the empty walls and defenses. “Go ask around—has something happened in the city?”

After making inquiries, Long Yan returned and lowered his voice: “Your Highness, something big has happened! While we were away, the Third Elder called in reinforcements from the ancestral lands!”

“Oh?” Lin Fan’s interest was piqued. “Who did he call?”

“The Fifth Elder, Lady Long Xuan.”

Long Yan swallowed hard, his expression tense. “And the City Lord as well. The three of them, all top-tier experts, set out for the Death Swamp an hour ago.”

Long Xuan?

Lin Fan quickly searched his mind through Long Wu’s memories for information about that name.

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Fifth Elder of the Pure-blood Dragon Council of Elders, peak Level 7.

Most importantly, she was a female Pureblood Dragon Clan member.

A smile of extremely dangerous curvature tugged irresistibly at the corner of Lin Fan’s mouth.

“Going there to do what?”

“Huh?” Long Yan was taken aback, not quite understanding the question, but answered honestly anyway, “I heard the Third Elder’s injuries haven’t healed and he can’t swallow his pride. He wants to combine the strength of three to kill that Fallen Magic Dragon and avenge Young Master Jingyun.”

Three against one.

To avenge that unlucky son of his, the old bastard was really going all in.

Lin Fan quickly calculated in his mind.

That old coot Long Jingtian had been severely wounded by the Demonic Dragon before. Though he’d returned to the ancestral lands to recuperate for a month, there was no way an injury like that could heal so quickly. At best, he’d be only slightly stronger than Long Teng.

Long Teng was peak Level 7.

Plus a fully recovered Long Xuan, also at peak Level 7.

All three ganging up on a Demonic Dragon that was also still nursing its wounds.

Sounded like things weren’t looking good for that Demonic Dragon…

“Tsk, how could I miss out on a high-stakes game like this?”

A glint of greed flashed in Lin Fan’s eyes.

A Level 8 Demonic Dragon’s Crystals, Dragon Bone… those were priceless treasures.

And that Fifth Elder, Long Xuan.

If he could peel her Skin in the chaos…

A peak Level 7 female Pureblood Dragon Clan Skin—if fused with the current “Ancestor of Life” bloodline, or used as a disguise to infiltrate the Council of Elders…

It was practically a gift delivered right to his doorstep.

“Got it.”

Lin Fan waved a hand, that lazy expression returning to his face. “Since Father has gone off to handle important matters, I won’t add to his troubles. Long Yan, you take the men and guard the city gates—don’t let anyone sneak in and steal the place from under us.”

“Yes!” Long Yan felt as if he’d been granted a reprieve. He’d truly been afraid this little ancestor would insist on charging into the marsh again.

“Come on, back to the estate.”

Lin Fan swaggered toward the City Lord’s mansion with the two sisters in tow.

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Inside the mansion, in the eldest young lady’s private chamber.

Sprawled shamelessly in a starfish position across the luxurious black-gold velvet bed, Lin Fan rubbed her cheek contentedly against the soft pillow.

“Now this is a comfortable bed.”

She sighed in satisfaction, then flipped over and sat up, gazing at the two sisters standing at the bedside.

“Yuzuru.”

“Yuzuru here.” The short-haired, cool beauty stepped forward immediately. Her form-fitting combat suit rustled faintly with the movement, and the dagger strapped to her outer thigh glinted coldly.

“For the next few days, no matter what happens outside—even if the sky itself falls—this door does not open.”

As she spoke, Lin Fan pulled several high-grade Crystals she’d brought back from Sakura Island out of the System Space and casually tossed them over. “If anyone tries to force their way in, tell them I’m exhausted from the journey and resting.”

A flicker of surprise passed through Yuzuru’s eyes, then instantly gave way to her usual cold composure: “Understood. As long as I draw breath, no one crosses this threshold.”

Having arranged her two pawns, Lin Fan walked over to the full-length mirror.

Reflected in the glass was that radiantly youthful, breathtakingly beautiful “Dragon Clan Princess.”

“Alright, time to go join the fun.”

She raised her hand, her fingertip tapping lightly on the “Phantom” necklace at her throat.

Hum—

A faint hum rippled through the air.

Her presence, her energy fluctuations, even her body temperature—all vanished completely in that instant.

This was the concealment function of the Phantom set. Combined with the Spiritualization talent inherent to her “Ancestor of Life” Bloodline, even a Rank 8 Powerhouse nearby would find it nearly impossible to detect her existence, so long as she didn’t make a move.

The window slid open silently.

A transparent ripple swept across the sill and vanished in an instant into the overcast sky of Border Dragon City.

…

At an altitude of a thousand meters, the Astral Wind howled.

Lin Fan shot through the clouds like an invisible phantom.

Below, Border Dragon City rapidly shrank to a tiny black dot. Ahead stretched an endless wilderness, and at the very edge of her vision, that death marsh perpetually shrouded in toxic mist was already coming into view.

“Three against one—this is a guaranteed win by any calculation.”

Lin Fan did the math in her head.

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Long Teng, Long Jingtian, plus that Fifth Elder she’d never met, Long Xuan.

That lineup was way too stacked.

If they smoothly slaughtered the Demonic Dragon, the spoils would be divided up clean and neat—and worse, it might expose the truth behind Long Jingyun’s death.

That wouldn’t do.

If she wanted to grab a share of the pie, or even walk off with the whole pot, then she needed to make that pot of stew even murkier.

Only with enough chaos on the field would she, the “backstabber,” have room to operate.

“I need a meat shield—someone tough, obedient, and capable of drawing all the fire.”

Lin Fan’s mind stirred.

In her Mental Sea, the soul-thread connecting her to Su Xiaoxiao trembled faintly.

…

Azurewood City, rear courtyard training grounds of the City Lord’s mansion.

Boom!

A thunderous crash. The hard obsidian floor was blasted into a crater five meters in diameter.

As the dust cleared, it revealed a man stripped to the waist.

Long Yan gasped for breath, sweat streaming down the sharply defined lines of his muscles. Golden scales flickered faintly beneath his skin, radiating a terrifying aura of tyranny that made one’s heart tremble.

In his hand, he carried a heavy lance he had just retrieved from the armory.

For the past month, he had been out of his mind.

Aside from eating and sleeping, he spent every moment in the Mist Forest, slaughtering demonic beasts.

His reckless, death-defying fighting style had the entire Azurewood City garrison watching with their hearts in their throats.

But he didn’t care.

Only one thought occupied his mind: Get stronger! Fight his way back to the ancestral land! Bring Ning Shuang home!

Now, the Ancient Divine Dragon Bloodline within him had been fully awakened. Though his cultivation remained at the early seventh rank, in terms of pure explosive power, even a late seventh-rank expert wouldn’t dare take a full combo from him head-on.

“Still not enough…”

Long Yan clenched the lance shaft so hard his knuckles turned white. “At this level, I’m not even worthy of polishing the elders’ shoes!”

Just then, a panicked figure stumbled and rushed into the training grounds.

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“Lord Long Yan! Something terrible has happened!”

It was Su Xiaoxiao.

Though the little fox spirit had been force-fed to the fifth rank by Lin Fan, she showed none of the bearing of a true expert.

Having run too recklessly, she nearly tripped, her face etched with terror and urgency.

Long Yan whipped around, the killing intent in his golden vertical pupils not yet faded, causing Su Xiaoxiao to instinctively shrink back.

“What is it?” His voice was hoarse, carrying a metallic, grating quality.

“Big… Big Sister just contacted me through soul transmission!”

Su Xiaoxiao gasped, her voice cracking with tears as she cried out: “She said… she said something happened to Long Wucheng!”

Buzz!

The air instantly froze.

The golden scales on Long Yan’s body burst outward violently as a terrifying pressure swept across the entire training ground.

“What did you say?!”

He took a single step and appeared before Su Xiaoxiao in an instant, his hands clamping down hard on her shoulders. “Speak clearly! Where is she? What happened?”

Long Wu.

That woman.

Though she always loved to humiliate and tease him with her words and actions.

But she was Ning Shuang’s sister!

She was the only person in this world who knew Ning Shuang’s whereabouts, the only one who could lead him to Ning Shuang!

If something happened to her…

Long Yan didn’t dare think further.

“She’s… she’s in the Death Swamp!”

Golden light erupted wildly from his body. Without a moment’s hesitation.

Without even a word of explanation to anyone.

He shot into the sky, kicking up a violent gale, carrying world-destroying killing intent as he charged madly toward the direction of the Death Swamp.