Vo Tinh Hai's expression grew stern, the lighthearted air that so often surrounded him gone in an instant. His gaze fixed firmly on the skinny boy who looked to be about the same age as Khanh. Yet there was something disturbingly unnatural about the boy, a sharpness that set him apart from ordinary youths. In Tinh Hai's mind, thoughts raced with clarity and caution:
"He has formed a pact with the Demon of Thieves. Right now, I don't have enough information about the rest of the bandits around us. If I act rashly, the lives of everyone here will be at risk."
Slowly, steadily, he let his LINH surge outward. A blazing wave of spiritual energy poured from his body, rolling like thunder, roaring like crashing tides. The air itself seemed to vibrate as a heatwave spread in all directions, accompanied by a pressure that made the weaker merchants tremble. His great broadsword, which moments ago had gleamed silver-white like the moon, now burned crimson as it was engulfed by the power of LINH HOA. The aura of fire wrapped around the blade, turning it into a weapon of living flame.
Minh Triet, witnessing this, understood immediately how serious the situation was. His thoughts tightened.
"This is advanced LINH, a high-tier manifestation technique. For Master Tinh Hai to go this far, pouring out all of his might, it can only mean the opponent before us is extremely dangerous."
Resolutely, Minh Triet stepped forward, his expression no less grave than his teacher's. With a sweep of his arm, a surge of green energy burst forth as vines erupted from the ground beneath his feet. They coiled and twisted, alive with LINH MOC, glowing with a faint emerald light. His voice rang steady and respectful as he spoke:
"Master, if the situation turns dire, I request permission to use Foresight. With it, I may be able to read the battle and fight effectively."
The boy among the bandits—Duy Thai—narrowed his eyes, his calm demeanor not wavering in the slightest. Slowly, deliberately, he began to channel his own LINH. His voice was quiet yet firm, carrying the weight of someone certain of victory:
"If your side has already made your preparations, then let us begin!"
In the blink of an eye, the entire bandit troop exploded into action. Their movements were coordinated, not like a mob but like predators that had long been waiting for this ambush. With mastery over LINH THO, they melted into the terrain, shifting, vanishing, and reappearing with alarming precision. In a flurry, they leapt forward, knives flashing, aiming to strike at Tinh Hai's group from every angle as though the trap had been laid far in advance.
But Khanh reacted instantly. His own mastery of LINH THO surged, and in a blur of movement he snatched Vy and the two merchants, pulling them clear of the first deadly strike. He understood perfectly: this opening assault wasn't meant for Master Tinh Hai or Minh Triet. It was meant to eliminate him—the weakest link—or to take hostages.
Sure enough, Tinh Hai and Minh Triet evaded with ease. Minh Triet's innate ability allowed him to glimpse several seconds into the future, giving him the clarity to counter every blade aimed at him. Meanwhile, Tinh Hai's fiery LINH seared the attackers' weapons. Daggers and swords were reduced to molten slag the instant they touched his burning aura.
It became clear: these bandits, for all their ferocity, were no more than low-level LINH users—mere initiates who had clawed together scraps of power. Recognizing this, Tinh Hai exhaled, then unleashed his full might.
From head to toe, flame surged, enveloping his entire body. What formed was not just armor, but the manifestation of a warrior's spirit. Crimson plates engraved with beasts of legend—the nghê, the crane, the phoenix—shone vividly as if alive, carved in living fire. His form became that of a war god, every step scattering sparks across the ground. In both hands, he gripped the massive broadsword, its fiery glow so intense it scorched the very air.
With a single explosive motion, Vo Tinh Hai charged, the earth cracking beneath his feet. Flames trailed behind him like the tail of a comet as he raised his weapon high. With a roar that shook the forest, he brought the broadsword down in a strike meant to annihilate the frail boy called Duy Thai.
—
And yet, in that split second, the world shifted. Reality itself seemed to lurch.
The blade should have cleaved through the boy, splitting the ground, burning everything in its path. But instead, the massive weapon was stopped.
By nothing more than a single, bare hand.
Time froze. Minh Triet's eyes widened, his breath caught in his throat. He looked again—and what he saw made his blood run cold. The fiery armor that had encased Master Tinh Hai only moments ago… was gone. Every gleaming beast, every flaming plate of protection had vanished.
Instead, that very armor now covered the body of Duy Thai. The boy's frame was wrapped in the exact same warrior's garb, the glowing red plates identical to Tinh Hai's. Even the great broadsword—once blazing in his master's grasp—was now locked firmly in the grip of the boy's hand. He had taken it, claimed it, as though it had always been his.
A smirk curved Duy Thai's lips. His gaze, calm and unshaken, fixed on Tinh Hai.
But Tinh Hai did not falter. His eyes burned with unyielding determination. He exhaled coldly, voice like steel.
"…The time has come."
From the distance, two streaks of golden light shot across the battlefield. Like arrows forged of sunlight, two women appeared, their speed beyond ordinary sight. Their weapons gleamed—one carried a sword, the other a shield—and both radiated an aura of majesty that could only belong to nobility. They crashed into the fight with overwhelming force, aiming directly at Duy Thai.
The bandit leader's followers panicked, immediately activating their LINH to pull him back. Duy Thai's sneer deepened as he was dragged away.
"So it turns out… we were the prey all along. The real game was set by the nobles, not us."
He slammed his foot onto the earth. Fiery armor flared, erupting into a blaze that devoured the air around him, smoke rising in suffocating waves. The ground itself seemed to quake beneath his fury.
But before his words could finish, the two women had already struck. Their golden aura clashed with the blaze, their weapons cutting forward without hesitation. Yet when the smoke cleared—
The boy and his bandits were gone.
Vanished, leaving only scorched ground and the uneasy silence of an unfinished battle.