Chapter 310: Strangle

Chapter 310: Strangle

Xina hid in the seawater and watched silently, even beginning to anticipate. A guy even more unlucky than himself was about to appear, which made him somewhat excited. Because of his excitement, the whirlpool suddenly spun faster, and the sound of wind and waves followed.

A full moon hung over the sea. Under the cold moonlight, Bran’s silhouette actually had a kind of hazy beauty. It seemed as if a layer of mist was slowly gathering toward him, making the moonlight appear increasingly blurry.

Under the blurred moonlight, Ola’s face gradually sank into shadow, his entire body slowly turning into a gray statue, appearing solemn and majestic. Bran’s shadow was cast upon him, at his feet…

Xina, who had been watching all along, was startled with horror—this was wrong!

The sound of wind and waves grew more urgent. Xina suddenly wondered, what was Wizard Bran’s ability? And what about that cat’s ability?

In their two encounters, apart from direct clashes of mana, Bran had always used sound to attack or defend. So Xina had thought Bran’s ability was sound manipulation. Using sound to create vibrations, then generating immense destructive power .

Even when Bran had just announced his name, the sound had also echoed above Xina’s head. As if specifically reminding him to remember the ability represented by that name.

He suddenly considered a possibility: what if sound was only a derived method?

At this level, although strength could be judged by mana, ability was also an indispensable deciding factor, because mana often needed an ability to be fully utilized. Moreover, the nature of mana was closely related to ability; they were two sides of the same coin.

In their just-concluded encounter, he had tried to disrupt the other party with the sounds of wind, rain, and waves. Although not very effective, there had been some progress. He thought he had found the right direction. If not for worrying about the cat hidden in the shadows, he would certainly have continued trying.

Now, having stepped back and observed from a bystander’s perspective, he suddenly realized that the sound seemed more like a means of deception. Xina felt a bit of fear and began to feel grateful—luckily, someone had interfered with their duel.

But he still dared not relax. Before finding that hateful cat, everything required caution. In battles, feinting and misleading were common, let alone considering what he had done along the way. The Amphibians probably already hated him to the bone. Until the situation was truly clear, Xina would not take any action.

Ola watched the young man in front of him standing steadily; the hesitating posture from earlier while walking had also disappeared. Sharp, bloodthirsty—Ola felt he was facing not a person, but a beast. Locked in mutual focus, his attention involuntarily shifted downward, as if a pair of eyes were peering at him from there.

But before he could think it through, that hateful voice sounded in his ear again, “I’ve got you. You still have time to run.”

“Run?” Ola scoffed. “If I wanted to leave, I could anytime. But you have no chance to run away.”

Both sides probed each other, hoping to find an opening.

“Since you don’t want to run, let’s chat then. Can you tell me what the monster in the sea is, why you appeared here full of killing intent, and even planned to kill my friend?”

As he spoke, a thread of murderous intent seeped from the young man before him, growing stronger. This forced Ola to be fully on guard.

“Maybe I’ll speak first, as an exchange. If you stay silent, I’ll take it as you agreeing.”

Faced with the young man’s provocation, Ola snorted angrily. While Xina and this young man were confronting each other, he had been secretly observing. He did not have the young man’s skill in controlling sound, nor could he speak and distract himself while focusing on defense. Although he seemed to have lost ground in terms of momentum, Ola had already noted this debt. Let you be smug for a while. As soon as you show the slightest slack in your words, I’ll give you a lesson you’ll never forget.

“I snatched a little thing from that monster and kept it as a souvenir. Thinking about it now, this little thing might also be your purpose for coming here.

What’s that look? Don’t believe me?

It was a Water Pearl that grew from that monster’s body, a Fruit, a Key—who knows how you name it. After snatching it, I suddenly found some urgent matters to handle, so I left first. I didn’t expect my steps to be too fast; it only caught up today.

You still don’t believe me, right? Really, should I tell you more about how I defeated it, or why it didn’t dare act recklessly before me?”

Ola’s expression stiffened. He suddenly realized anger had clouded his mind. He hadn’t noticed this detail—Xina’s behavior just now was indeed somewhat abnormal.

“It was similar back then, too. Only it was even worse than you; it only stared at me, ignoring my partner, ignoring that I was never alone.”

Ola was shocked. There was someone else! Impossible!

“The web of Mana had already been spread. I just needed some time to quietly cast it around ‘you’.” The voice now was full of smugness, mockery, and a hint of pity.

Run!

Ola’s body swayed but did not move an inch. The young man’s Shadow had somehow attached itself to Ola, beginning to wind and climb up him. The voice kept chattering, “I’ve been right beside you, at your ear, but you looked right through me.”

Ola’s Mana erupted violently, and the Shadow entangled on him began to loosen. With his outburst, the young man before him suddenly wilted, turning into a puddle of water that flowed into the shadow at his feet. Thus, the Shadow tangled on him instantly thickened and gained weight. And he felt like a trapped beast sinking into a Swamp.

But what made him feel even more despair was the murderous intent in front of him growing sharper. A Black Cat crouched there, silently watching him. Between life and death, the instinct to survive completely ignited Ola’s power. Accumulated strength from countless years was released in an instant, and the Shadow tightly entangled on him was finally pushed apart.

His figure swayed as Ola broke free from the last restraints. Huahua moved at that moment. She flashed back and forth in front of and behind Ola, using her most primitive claws and teeth to keep him there.

A sharp shriek came from the Shadow wound around Ola. At the same time, the dark reflections among the sparkling waves on the sea surface came to life. They broke free from the waves, turning into fluttering wisps that pounced toward Ola, wrapping him layer by layer, forming a human-shaped black cocoon.

The black cocoon swayed, wobbled, gradually shrank, and slowly transformed into a young man. A Black Cat crouched beside him, quietly keeping him company.