CHAPTER 275: Killing Two Birds With One Stone

There were ten people in the group that had ambushed Lawrence -

three mages, four archers, and three swordsmen.

Of the three swordsmen, only one was a swordmaster, while the other two were senior swordsmen. Apart from the Earth Adept Mage that Han Shuo had already killed, there was a Space Adept Mage and the black-robed Dark Archmage.

The black-robed mage felt a chill run down his spine when he saw Han Shuo appear with Pollak's head in his hand. The two mages had been standing back to back, yet he hadn't even noticed when Pollak was killed. This indicated the absolutely extraordinary strength of the newcomer.

"Kill this person first!" The black-robed mage shouted, about to chant a magic spell.

Suddenly, the large tree beside him swayed in a strange way. Like a peacock displaying its tail, the branches of the tree turned into sharp arrows and shot towards the mage in a hail of sharp missiles that covered the sky. He had no time to react as a dozen branches transformed his body into a pincushion. He turned into a hedgehog, his blood flowing profusely.

The mage's eyes were still wide open as he died. He couldn't accept that the tree had suddenly become a murder weapon. Why did the ordinary tree suddenly turn into an unblinking murder weapon?

The two senior swordsmen were dressed in black nightwalker outfits when they jumped down from the roof, intending to kill Han Shuo firsthand. Ridiculously, three cracks somehow appeared on the ground where they landed. They had intended to use the force of their movement to leap at Han Shuo, but let out a tragic scream as they were swallowed up by the cracks like flies in a spider's web. The rest of the crowd looked on, dumbfounded and disturbed by the strange events. Then the swordmaster-assassin ordered in a grave tone: "Retreat!

The four archers and the mage seemed to be granted amnesty. They quickly turned to flee.

"You want to flee? Hehehe, it's my first day at work! I'll gain some prestige by catching all of you!" Han Shuo leisurely gave chase, smiling cutely.

The Swordsmaster leapt, his feet about to tap the small tree next to him, when the tree unexpectedly came to life, its snake-like branches wrapping tightly around his ankle. More and more branches twisted like octopus tentacles, binding the lower half of his body tightly.

The swordmaster's face was horrified as he waved his sword, trying to hack off the soft branches. But at that moment, the old assassin Lucky emerged from the shadows and approached like a ghost to finish off the struggling swordsman.

Han Shuo was about to act, but stopped when he saw Lucky approaching. He understood that this swordmaster would have a hard time escaping death, so he turned his attention to the four archers and the Space Adept Mage.

"Bryan, take one alive!" Lawrence was both surprised and overjoyed. He hadn't expected Han Shuo to be so breathtakingly calm in the face of so many experts. He had used an unexpected method to casually play with them in his hand.

"Ah! Murder murder! Close the door, close the door quickly!" Even though this alley was secluded, there were still people in broad daylight. Several civilians opened their windows to take a peek when they heard Han Shuo's shouts, then hastily closed both their windows and doors for fear of being implicated.

Han Shuo's sensitive hearing soon picked up the sound of a cavalry team approaching quickly from a distance. He looked in the direction the four archers had fled and laughed darkly.

His body flashed with a whooshing sound like a stone shot from a catapult, and in the blink of an eye he landed in the midst of the four archers. The Demonslayer Edge instantly took three lives like a demon summoned from hell.

Han Shuo grabbed the last archer by the neck and lifted him up with one hand. The archer was only one metre and seventy centimetres tall, so his legs flailed as he was lifted. He grunted loudly, unable to utter a complete word as he looked down in horror at Han Shuo.

The quiver on the poor archer's back had long since been thrown away. Although he fought with everything he had, he couldn't reach Han Shuo as both of his arms were shorter than Han Shuo's. It looked rather comical.

"Kid, be good and your crime will be lessened!" Han Shuo grinned. He walked back towards Lawrence while holding the archer lightly.

The other Space Adept mage didn't get a few steps before he was coldly shot down by a dark arrow in the middle of his back. The dead mage fell from the roof to the ground.

The person who shot the arrow was the old assassin Lucky. Han Shuo had seen the events clearly, so he wasn't surprised by the death of the space adept mage.

"Who, who dares to fight in the street?" The cavalry charged from a distance only after everything was over. The leading officer was fully armoured as he shouted.

"You city guards are truly unreliable!" Lawrence on the other side shook his head and let out a long sigh. He didn't spare a glance at the officer and looked at Han Shuo with appreciation, "Thank you, Bryan!"

"Alright. I choked this person unconscious, so you take care of him yourself. Remember that I protected you this time, so the higher-ups of the Dark Mantle will take note of this achievement. I also protected the Order of the North Castle and prevented a vicious assassination, so the Northern Guard should record this for me! Two deeds in one go, what a great harvest! Han Shuo was secretly smug.

"Got it!" Lawrence understood what he meant and replied with a smile.

"Mm, there is no more danger on the street, I will leave then!" Han Shuo just threw out these words before he left in style.

The officer had originally wanted to stop him, But he simply didn't have the courage to say anything and let Han Shuo leave leisurely when he recognised Lawrence and saw the two of them chatting warmly.

Han Shuo reached the northern stronghold of the Dark Mantle at night as he'd promised. Emily had been waiting for a long time. When she saw Han Shuo appear, she immediately waved her hand to signal Chester to withdraw so that she could be intimate with Han Shuo.

The two of them discussed what had happened after they'd parted in the Valley of Sunshine. They also talked about the stolen blueprint from the Northern Guard.

"Are there any clues?" Han Shuo asked Emily after listening.

"I'm looking into it, but I can be sure that the people haven't left Ossen City since the Dark Mantle immediately started investigating. Our people are stationed at all four gates. The foreigners are being held by the Empire, so they have no chance of escaping.

"In fact, we have recently discovered some suspicious groups. However, we can't be sure that they are the ones behind this. I'm investigating this with all my might. As long as I can find out which group did this, none of them will be able to escape from Ossen City. Just wait for my news. Although this problem is delicate, the Dark Mantle will definitely handle it properly since it happened inside the city. Emily wore a cautious expression as she whispered in a low voice.

"Keep these two things well. They will definitely help you increase your power!" Han Shuo took out the staff embedded with three amethysts and a notebook in which he had written down everything he remembered from Ayermike Cotton's old notebook. He handed them to Emily.

"For, for me?" Emily was stunned to see these two things, her mind temporarily dizzy. She clearly understood how valuable these things were.

Ayermike Cotton's handwritten notebook had recorded his experiences, understandings and feelings about dark magic. It was a sacred object that any dark mages would give an arm and a leg for. As for the staff , its value was even harder to calculate, given the frighteningly rich dark elements on its surface.

Emily had already had a faint premonition when she heard Han Shuo say that he had taken a copy of the notebook. However, her heart still beat wildly in disbelief when he actually handed her the two treasures.

"Of course, they belonged to you the moment I got them. However, you must prepare a reason for this staff so that it doesn't arouse Candide's suspicion!" Han Shuo had given the original handwritten notebook to Candide, but had kept the matter of Ayermike Cotton's staff secret. For dark mages, this staff certainly wouldn't have the usual effect of magnifying spells. Han Shuo reminded Emily in advance so that she could avoid Candide's scrutiny.

Emily took a deep breath and murmured, "The Dark Star Staff belonged to the magical god Ayermike Cotton. It's thick coating of dark element can help dark mages gather their mental strength faster. Whether you are training or casting spells, your speed should be five times faster when using the Dark Star Staff. This staff is considered a divine artefact for dark mages".

"Then there's the understanding of the dark magic of the magical demigod Ayermike. If I can fully understand everything, my power will increase exponentially and reach new heights. These, these two things are simply priceless artefacts for dark mages!"

"No need to be so touched. I am well aware of their value. They are yours now!" Seeing Emily so happy to the point of forgetting everything else, Han Shuo hugged her waist and continued, "Eat this pill. It can give you eternal youth and is very beneficial for the study of dark magic."

Emily's heart almost stopped from excitement when she heard the two words 'eternal youth'. One good thing after another had fallen on her head today, all brought about by Han Shuo. It was the first time in her life that she had experienced something like this, and it also proved her position in Han Shuo's heart.

"Eternal youth, eternal youth..." Emily's main concern was her age. Being older than Han Shuo had been a knot in her heart. Now that there was a medicine that could maintain eternal youth, she was willing to pay any price. Her entire being became distracted as she mumbled incessantly.

"Eat it, I'll help you dissolve the pill!" Han Shuo whispered. He took her hand and brought the Rebirth Pill to her lips.

Emily's eyes shone brightly as she swallowed the Rebirth Pill without hesitation. Afterwards, her bones emitted cracking sounds as the Rebirth Pill gradually rebuilt her body with Han Shuo's help.

Like Fanny and Phoebe, Emily also had to go to the toilet. She only felt safe after Han Shuo told her about the side effect of the pill.

Han Shuo left the fortress and went straight to the Boozt Merchant Guild.

In the deserted training ground inside the guild, Phoebe was wearing a pure white warrior outfit, her hair braided and tied into a ponytail. The sword in her hand whistled as she danced. Her body moved like lightning in the field, shadow images appearing one after the other at high speed. Extremely sharp silver crosses blossomed from the sword as it shattered a huge rock with rumbling sounds.

Suddenly, Phoebe seemed to have discovered something. She raised the sword in her hand and shot spinning crossblades at a small tree. A cracking sound echoed as the tree exploded into hundreds of pieces.

A black light flashed and a shadow behind the tree rushed forward at high speed, slipping through the spinning crossblades. A huge aura of killing intent enveloped Phoebe and held her back. Fear spread from the depths of her soul and filled her mind. In an instant, everything around her seemed to be trapped by the killing intent. Phoebe suddenly felt her body stiffen, she simply couldn't move. A deep fear surged through her heart.

However, the violently churning killing intent suddenly stopped as it almost touched Phoebe's delicate body. It spread to the sides without hurting her in the slightest. As the killing intent disappeared and she relaxed her entire body, Han Shuo appeared in front of her with a slight smile.

"Congratulations! I didn't expect you to reach the rank of Great Swordsmaster at such a young age. Truly incredible!" Han Shuo looked at Phoebe with a smile and congratulated her.

Phoebe rushed into Han Shuo's chest with happy surprise, like a young swallow returning to its nest. A faint scent mixed with a hint of sweat immediately assaulted his nostrils. She hugged Han Shuo tightly and said in a sweet, excited voice, "It's all thanks to this medicine, otherwise I wouldn't be able to break through so quickly. Look at me, how different am I from before?"

Like Fanny, Phoebe's skin was as soft and delicate as silk. Her already beautiful smile was now even more soul-stirring after being reformed by the Rebirth Pill.

"You've become much more beautiful!" Han Shuo replied honestly.

"Mm, I'm all sweaty, let me take a bath first!" Phoebe gently pushed Han Shuo away and walked to her bathroom, somewhat embarrassed. Suddenly, she stopped halfway and said in a voice that couldn't be lighter, "Come with me!