Chapter 60: Counterkill

The fragments of the Great Shield scattered wildly, exposing Lei En's body.

De Lisi withdrew his long sword, stepped back two paces, slightly widening the distance from Lei En, and without hesitation unleashed the Flame Rush again.

The Flame Rush is his most powerful technique, quick to activate and long‑ranged; its only flaw is that it requires an optimal distance—about ten steps—from the target to unleash maximum burst, with power diminishing if too far or too close.

Even though at this moment there were only three steps between him and Lei En—far too close, so the Flame Rush might have less than half its power—there was no time to worry about that.

De Lisi's long sword grew scorching hot, as if forged from lava, and thrust straight at the nearby Lei En.

Shhh!

The sword ripped through the air with a high‑pitched scream, and in an instant pierced the space in front of Lei En, the searing heat nearly setting his clothes ablaze.

The onlookers around felt a pang of compassion at the sight.

They didn't know what grudge De Lisi and Lei En had, but from this single sword it was clear De Lisi had murderous intent, aiming to kill Lei En on the spot.

"Stop…"

Da Wen Lahe and Bo Luoke shouted in unison, neither wanting this outcome. Bo Luoke even drew his soul gun in a flash, but it was already half a step too late.

However, what happened next was completely unexpected by everyone.

Lei En seemed caught off guard, standing his ground without dodging, allowing the flaming long sword to drive straight into his own chest.

Seeing his attack about to succeed, De Lisi felt a surge of exhilaration.

Suddenly, he sensed resistance on the blade, as if it had struck not flesh but a steel plate, even producing a strange clank.

"What…?"

Before the thought left De Lisi's mind, as he was about to unleash the fire Element power on the sword, a corner of his eye caught a war hammer descending from below, smashing hard onto the blade.

Clang!

The terrifying force nearly bent the blade; De Lisi's palm split, he could no longer hold the long sword, and was blasted into the sky, the burst from the Flame Rush detonating between the two, the scorching air violently trembling.

Both Lei En and De Lisi were forced to retreat.

De Lisi, empty‑handed, suddenly saw Lei En raise his left hand, pointing at him, while silently muttering under his breath.

"He's about to cast a spell!"

De Lisi didn't forget that Lei En constantly called himself a Wizard; though he didn't know which spell Lei En wielded, he could not let Lei En complete the casting.

The best way to deal with a caster is to close the distance and strike up close.

Even unarmed, he could still interrupt the casting.

As for close combat with Lei En, De Lisi, a magic swordsman who advanced from a ranger, wasn't worried at all.

From the earlier fight he realized Lei En's speed was average and not agile; after a few seconds of grappling, if he could catch the long sword falling from the sky, Lei En would have no way out.

De Lisi immediately halted his retreat and lunged forward fiercely.

"You're digging your own grave."

Lei En thought to himself, and in the bewildered gazes of everyone, he suddenly lowered his left hand, swung his right arm, stretched his posture, gathered all his strength into his hand, and flung the battered war hammer.

The charging De Lisi couldn't dodge in time; the distance was too short, and the war hammer struck his chest directly.

A muffled thud that made one's teeth ache rang out.

De Lisi seemed hit head‑on by a cannonball, flying backward dozens of meters; with a boom he slammed into the training ground's wall, crashing to the ground alongside the war hammer.

He was shocked and angry, leaning against the wall to stay upright; looking down, his chest was caved in, countless bones broken, breathing became extremely difficult, and his face turned pale instantly.

"Pfft…"

De Lisi finally couldn't hold back, spitting a mouthful of blood,

staining the ground crimson.

In just two or three seconds, the situation turned dramatically; the long sword that had been blasted away now fell from the sky, Lei En stepped forward two paces and kicked the sword's hilt end.

The long sword became a bright streak, shooting straight at De Lisi's head.

Lei En showed no mercy; De Lisi had clearly tried to kill him, so now he had to retaliate in kind.

The sword flew at extreme speed; the gravely wounded De Lisi was unresponsive, his body sluggish, watching helplessly as his own blade raced toward him, about to pierce his skull.

The exorcism squad members watching were mostly stunned by the turn of events, unable to react.

"Captain!"

"Move quickly…"

A few members let out startled cries.

"Lei En, stop," Bo Luoke shouted loudly; he already had his soul gun in hand, ready to fire, but his hesitation made him too slow.

Desperate, De Lisi closed his eyes to await death, when a huge hand suddenly appeared before him, grabbing the blade and halting the long sword.

At that moment, the sword tip was less than a finger's breadth from De Lisi's brow.

De Lisi's mind relaxed, he could no longer hold on, and suddenly collapsed into unconsciousness.

"Sir General," the exorcism squad members breathed a sigh of relief; the one who seized the long sword was Da Wen Lahe, who arrived at the last moment and saved De Lisi.

Da Wen Lahe looked at the sword in his hand and found his palm had been cut.

Although the sword's cut was shallow, merely breaking the surface skin without bleeding, Da Wen Lahe still felt a slight alarm.

After advancing to Steel Knight, he possessed defensive Elements such as 'Resilient Skin', 'Dragon Bone', 'Strength', and 'Unyielding Willpower', rarely taking damage, yet merely catching the long sword barehanded had sliced his skin.

"Lei En definitely has a power Element, and more than one layer."

"And it's odd that he blocked De Lisi's sword without injury."

Da Wen Lahe's mind flashed with various thoughts, becoming curious about Lei En; a level‑one defeating a level‑four, a cross‑tier challenge succeeded—this certainly couldn't be explained by a battling Wizard alone.

At this point, De Lisi's teammates finally reacted, glaring at Lei En.

Three novice super‑humans each drew weapons, surrounding Lei En, shouting, "How dare you kill the captain!"

"Don't even think you'll walk out alive today."

Bo Luoke hurried over to break the encirclement, urging, "Everyone stay calm, put your weapons away."

On the contrary, Lei En didn't react much; he didn't regard these people, feeling a bit regretful that he couldn't kill De Lisi today, and future trouble would be inevitable.

Of course, killing De Lisi might have been even more troublesome.

The atmosphere grew increasingly tense; Da Wenlah flung aside his long sword and shouted, "Sheathe your weapons, each of you, what are you saying!"

One of De Lisi's team members retorted unwillingly, "Chief, he tried to kill the captain…".

Da Wenlah glanced at him and said, "I don't intend to favor anyone; you all should know that this contest is about who goes first without holding back."

The few team members averted their gazes, daring not to look Da Wenlah straight in the eye.

Anyone could see that since the contest began, De Lisi had ill intentions; that fiery thrust just now was meant to slay Lei En with a single sword.

But the result dropped jaws: despite a three‑rank gap, De Lisi actually lost, nearly being counter‑killed.

The combat Wizard is unbelievably powerful!

Only at this moment did people regain their senses, realizing what an incredible feat Lei En had accomplished. The rumored "cross‑rank challenge" unfolded before their eyes.

The team members instantly lost courage and involuntarily stepped aside.

Da Wenlah ordered, "Quickly send De Lisi for treatment; his injuries are severe and will require a period of convalescence."

"Yes, Chief," the men hurriedly lifted the unconscious De Lisi and carried him away.

"Disperse, everyone."

Da Wenlah felt a headache; a perfectly normal contest had turned out like this.

De Lisi will need three to four months to recover; the Demon Extermination Squad lost a key member, the second squad's strength plummeted, and many missions became unattainable. Moreover, this setback caused De Lisi's reputation within the squad to tumble, greatly affecting his future prospects.

Although all this was De Lisi's own doing, part of it is also his own responsibility.

If it hadn't been for preserving De Lisi's face and directly thwarting his scheming, there wouldn't have been so much trouble.

Back in the office, Da Wenlah glanced at Lei En, whose upper clothing was half‑burned, and thought, since De Lisi was defeated and can't return soon, Lei En must be promoted.

He couldn't just kick Lei En out and cause the Demon Extermination Squad to lose a captain for nothing.

Everything could only be blamed on De Lisi's own lack of resolve and inferior strength.

Moreover, Lei En isn't without backing; behind him may be a legendary Demon Hunter, with whom he seems to have a good relationship.

Da Wenlah made up his mind, smiled, and said, "Lei En, today you truly opened my eyes; a cross‑rank challenge is something I've never witnessed before."

"Chief, you flatter me," Lei En replied modestly.

In truth, his victory was extremely close.

Both being Demon Swordsmen, De Lisi's attack burst was higher than that of Wei Er Te of the Gale type; even with a steel body, he wouldn't dare recklessly block a long sword with his body.

Just now, when he smashed the sword blade with a war hammer, his steel body only held for half a second; had the hammer been a fraction slower, he would surely have been gravely injured.

Da Wenlah, unaware of the details, merely marveled at Lei En's combat technique.

He praised him a few more times to show closeness, then said, "Lei En, with your strength joining the Demon Extermination Squad is no problem, and even becoming a captain is sufficient. Welcome to us; from now on, help keep the people of Longshande safe and eradicate all evil demons and monsters."

"Yes, thank you, Chief."

Lei En's face showed excitement as he rose and saluted.

Da Wenlah encouraged him a while longer, almost directly telling Lei En that if he performed well, there would be a chance to promote him to captain.

Lei En pretended great gratitude, though he had little thought about the captain's position.

Conversely, Bo Luoke felt both joy and worry: glad that Lei En joined his team, propelling his strength to the top of the five squads; but worried that the Chief valued Lei En so much that Lei En wouldn't stay in his team long.

The three each harbored their own thoughts, yet outwardly it was all harmony.

Later, Lei En went to the Demon Extermination Squad's prayer room, loudly prayed before several team members as witnesses, affirming himself as a follower of the Goddess, and then formally joined the squad.