Chapter 39: Stand Tall When Taking a Beating

The sound of a gunshot rang out, accompanied by an orange flash of light.

"You!"

A sudden exclamation of shock from Qingyun echoed in the darkness.

"What about me?" Liu Mengchao smiled.

Misaki Mei, standing behind Liu Mengchao, was equally bewildered. The girl in front of her—her sister, Misaki Fujioka—had stopped in her tracks. Or rather, she hadn't so much stopped as been brought to a dead halt by Liu Mengchao’s massive silver sword.

Turning her head, Misaki Mei suddenly noticed that Liu Mengchao had changed. His hair had turned white.

"Ah, what do you think of the new hairstyle?" Liu Mengchao asked, still with his back to her. "When the lineage of Devil May Cry is activated, the hair color changes if it exceeds a certain time limit."

"And furthermore..."

Liu Mengchao’s right hand, gripping his gun, clicked as he engaged the safety. The black Ebony was humming softly in the darkness.

"What do you think of my red trench coat, agent of Mars, Qingyun?"

"You..."

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three consecutive shots rang out. Liu Mengchao struck the fulcrum of the bookshelf, causing it to collapse into a heap of debris. Assisted by the orange light of the muzzle flash, Misaki Mei clearly saw the figure standing behind the shelves.

It was the teacher who had told her that if she did as he said, she would be able to see her deceased sister.

Chibiki Tatsuji.

"I said..."

Bang!

The gunshot cut off Chibiki Tatsuji’s words. The bullet grazed his forehead, and a lock of pale hair drifted down in front of him.

"What were you trying to say, projection of Qingyun?"

Liu Mengchao laughed heartily. He could hear Elia counting down in his ear.

Total time in the Phantasy Nation: twenty minutes.

The Phantasy Nation consumed one thousand points from the prize pool every second. Over twenty minutes, the total cost would be...

"One point two million! Doesn't it hurt your heart, Qingyun?" Liu Mengchao’s question sounded nonsensical to Misaki Mei, but the face of Chibiki Tatsuji—the projection of Qingyun—immediately darkened.

"You knew all along that Misaki Mei wasn't my projection!"

"Isn't that obvious?" Liu Mengchao tilted his head back. He didn't mind wasting a little more time, so he was patient enough to dissect every single thought in Qingyun’s mind.

Every little scheme of that cunning agent.

"When I first joined this world, my identity wasn't that of an agent. Right, Qingyun?" Liu Mengchao continued to speak to himself. "In other words, when I wasn't yet an agent, I existed as a reincarnator. Therefore, your tasks hold the same binding power over me."

As soon as Liu Mengchao finished speaking, he heard Elia’s exclamation in his mind.

"Agent, that is indeed correct!"

"Oh, what keen observation," Qingyun forced a smile onto his face, though it quickly vanished.

Never, ever try to deceive Liu Mengchao! Because the humiliation he would deal you would be far greater than anything you could imagine.

"Your upper eyelids are raised too high, like a little girl’s skirt. Old man, you are masking your fear!" Liu Mengchao’s words slapped across Qingyun’s face like a physical blow. His expression turned even worse.

But the worst was far from over.

"However, I must thank you. Your expression has given me more information, old man, senior." The more humble Liu Mengchao’s tone became, the more Qingyun’s anger and fear grew. He was terrified that Liu Mengchao might say another word.

"Let me think. The Phantasy Nation has usage restrictions in skirmishes between agents. You can only use the power of this world, right? Ah, don't rush to argue; your expression has told me everything. You are now..." Liu Mengchao paused before delivering the words Qingyun feared most: "...powerless."

"Look, I told you not to do that. Trying to hide your expressions in front of me is, as you said, a... waste... of... effort!"

Slap!

Virtually, another invisible slap struck Qingyun’s face. Although Liu Mengchao hadn't moved, Qingyun felt his face swelling.

"Finally, one last piece of advice, Senior Qingyun..."

Bang!

The bullet fired, piercing straight through the left leg of the projection, Chibiki Tatsuji. Losing his balance, Chibiki Tatsuji began to sway.

At that moment, Liu Mengchao moved!

Pushing off with his feet, he leaped into the air. His left hand drew the white Ivory from his waist. Without aiming—as if it were an innate talent—he pulled the trigger.

Bang!

Qingyun’s right leg was shattered.

"Later..."

Liu Mengchao landed in front of the fallen Qingyun, smiling. He crossed his hands, and with two clicks, the safeties of the black Ebony and white Ivory were disengaged.

"Before you learn to talk like a big villain, remember this."

Have you ever watched someone play the piano? Like a musician passionately playing on the black-and-white keys, finally using all his strength to strike the last note.

Bang!

The sound was a single gunshot.

Both arms were shattered simultaneously.

Blood bloomed like flowers.

"Break the opponent’s limbs first."

Liu Mengchao leaned down, looking at the face of Qingyun, which no longer attempted to hide anything. "After that, don't talk too much. First..."

He spun his dual pistols and holstered them. He raised his hand and drew his great sword!

An arc, a flash of silver, and finally, a deafening crash.

Boom!

"Use the sword in your hand to pin the opponent to the ground. Now, you can start..." Liu Mengchao said, leaning his arm on the hilt of the great sword, resting his head on it, and smiling as he looked down. "...speaking."

"..."

"As a villain, the first priority is to talk a lot." Liu Mengchao’s smile appeared utterly terrifying to Qingyun. "And you must speak slowly."

"I won't..."

Click...

Liu Mengchao pressed the sword down further, and a mouthful of fresh blood sprayed from Qingyun’s mouth, cutting off his words.

"My eyes have been enhanced with the Eagle Vision from Assassin’s Creed. Though it’s usually useless, I’m sorry to say I can see everyone who harbors hostility toward me. Which is to say, when I walked into this library, the red dot on your body was like a fire in the night—so dazzling it made me want to cry."

Qingyun stopped speaking and simply closed his eyes in resignation.

"You really don't want to hear me speak? Or do you think I’ll just kill you quickly?"

Click...

The great sword sank in another inch, and an expression of agony appeared on Qingyun’s face once more. This time, Liu Mengchao simply pressed both elbows onto the hilt, leaning over like someone resting on a windowsill, looking down at Qingyun’s expression.

"Don't think everyone is like you, only able to earn one hundred thousand points from the prize pool in a single world." Qingyun struggled to open his eyes, trying to fill his voice with disdain.

"I don't."

"Ah, almost forgot to tell you. Usually, when people are questioned and they’ve been found out, they like to act disdainful. That only represents one answer: I was right. You really can only earn one hundred thousand points per world, senior."

Click...

Liu Mengchao pulled the great sword out and held it in his right hand. He gave it a shake, and a large splash of blood landed directly on Qingyun’s face.

"When this world was just generated, I was still a reincarnator, so the tasks you issued were binding to me as well. Which means, if I had really steeled my heart to kill Misaki Mei, there would only be one outcome: I would have been erased for harming a plot-critical character."

Slap!

Liu Mengchao kicked the prostrate Qingyun, sending him flying into the air.

"However, little tricks cannot accomplish great things." With a flash, Liu Mengchao reached the same height as Qingyun.

Flying kick!

With a loud boom, Qingyun was kicked out the door.

Landing, Liu Mengchao pushed off with his feet, turning into a blur in an instant, and chased the projection out of the library.

Outside, the rain was pouring down. The blood on Qingyun’s body immediately mixed with the rainwater, flowing across the ground.

"Agent of Joanna..." Qingyun struggled to stand, his eyes flashing with resentment. "Don't be smug. This world is just a skirmish; losing here doesn't mean anything." He slowly climbed up, swaying as he gasped for air.

"I’ve already learned all your abilities and what you look like, but you don't even know who I am. My advantage is beyond your imagination!"

"So what?"

Liu Mengchao’s figure appeared before Qingyun, shouldering his great sword.

"This isn't my true strength. My Phantasy Nation will surely make you die a miserable death!"

"Oh?"

Liu Mengchao raised an eyebrow.

*Swoosh!*

The great sword swung, and a spray of blood rose to the sky.

The head plummeted, and blood surged from the ground.

"If you lose, accept it. If you get beaten, stand still, senior."

Turning around, the body hit the ground.

Liu Mengchao looked back at the library he had just emerged from.

In his vision, the red dot representing hostility was gone, replaced only by a faint blue light.

Misaki Mei was there.

Please call me the author who is terrible at describing fight scenes.

Also, what other enhancements do you all think would be cool? Feel free to suggest them in the book review section... Being powerful isn't the most important thing; the most important thing is that it must be cool! ~~~~~~