I Can Only Cultivate In A Game-Chapter 166: You Lose

Victor combined rapid swordplay with agile footwork, using his Phantom Mirage Step intermittently to leave afterimages when dodging Tarkos's blows.

Each time Tarkos tried to predict him, Victor would switch tactics.

But the assassin was starting to adapt too.

At one point, Tarkos feinted, baiting Victor into a lunge—then smashed a brutal headbutt into Victor's forehead.

Stars exploded across his vision as Victor reeled backward.

'Son of a—!'

Blood trickled down his brow.

His hands shook slightly as he gasped.

If this dragged on much longer, he'd lose.

Victor inhaled sharply—

—and unleashed a massive torrent of flame.

[ Dragon Breathing Art: Flame Dragon Torrent ]

A spiraling vortex of flames burst from his mouth and coiled into the shape of a roaring dragon.

It swept across the field like a living inferno and slammed into Tarkos.

The assassin threw up his arms forcing his tattoos to cover his front torso in a bid to shield himself, but even he couldn't fully block it.

Flames licked across his body and seared his exposed flesh.

Victor didn't stop there.

The moment the flames engulfed Tarkos, he activated another technique:

[ Phantom Mirage Step ]

His body blurred—one Victor became three, then six, then twelve.

Each afterimage raced around Tarkos as sword flashed from every angle.

The assassin grunted, trying to orient himself while swinging blindly.

Burned and disoriented, Tarkos couldn't see the real Victor—

Not until the true strike came.

From a blind spot Tarkos hadn't yet covered,

Victor slashed.

The blade slipped through defenses and bit into the assassin's lower back, slicing a deep gash.

Blood erupted like a geyser.

Tarkos roared and spun as his tattoos tried to move defensively too late.

Victor backflipped away nimbly, landing on his feet with a grunt.

Smoke rose from the battlefield as the scent of burnt cloth and blood swept across the air.

Victor's chest heaved.

Across from him, Tarkos was crouched with one hand pressed to the bleeding wound.

And for the first time...

The assassin wasn't smiling.

Victor twirled his sword lightly and gave a cheeky smirk.

"Round two's looking a little rough for you, buddy."

Tarkos's eyes narrowed dangerously.

Then—

He chuckled.

"You really are evolving."

Victor shrugged. "What can I say? Pressure builds diamonds."

Tarkos slowly straightened.

"I guess I'll have to stop playing around too... I'll end it properly now."

Victor's instincts screamed danger at this moment.

Before Victor could react, Tarkos extended his arms outward with hisbpalms facing up.

The tattoos across his body writhed and flowed like rivers of ink.

Suddenly, from the center of his chest, a thin black blade grew outward—

—like a living weapon forged from pure malice.

Victor's eyes widened.

"What the hell is that?!"

Tarkos wrapped his fingers around the blade as his aura darkened.

"Inkblade Severance," Tarkos intoned.

The moment he swung the weapon once—

WHOOSH!!

A hundred lashes of black slashes swept forward like a storm with each one being sharp enough to slice through steel.

Victor's pupils shrank.

He raised his sword and activated his Void Emperor Bloodline in an instant.

[ Void Emperor Bloodline Activated ]

His body was instantly flooded with arrows as spatial Qi spread across his muscles, arms, and blade.

Victor's right arm blurred into near-invisibility as he swung madly to deflect.

CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!

Each lash was like a steel whip.

Each parry rattled his bones.

He managed to parry around eighty of them, but the rest—

TSSHHHH!!!

Victor vanished using Shadow Blink to dodge before the remaining attacks shredded him.

---

He reappeared dozens of feet away, panting with his body soaked in sweat.

But—

Before he could recover, Tarkos was there.

It was as if he knew exactly where Victor would appear.

Tarkos came at him with his Inkblade whistling through the air, ready to cleave him in two.

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Victor cursed under his breath.

'I can't outrun this guy forever.'

He deflected one strike.

Then another.

And another...

But even with his boosted speed and Void Qi, he couldn't keep up for long.

Tarkos's attacks boxed him in like a predator cornering prey.

Then the inevitable happened...

A swing slipped through.

The Inkblade slashed across Victor's side, sending him crashing into a nearby boulder, shattering it with a sickening crunch.

Dust exploded into the air, veiling Victor's form.

Tarkos approached with a casual posture despite his bleeding back.

He could see Victor sprawled out, lying in the cratered ground with blood leaking from his side.

He lowered his blade slightly.

"Predictable," Tarkos said. "Transmigrators are all the same. You burn bright... then die."

He raised his arm, ready to stab the blade into Victor's chest when...

SCHLUKKK!!

Tarkos's body suddenly jerked violently.

His eyes widened as pain bloomed through his gut.

He slowly looked down in confusion.

An invisible blade had pierced through his abdomen—

—shot clean out of his belly and dripped crimson liquid.

From the dust cloud, Victor stood upright with a steady stance and hand extended outward as if directing something.

His sword was embedded in Tarkos's body.

He smirked darkly.

"Predictable," Victor echoed back mockingly.

---

Flashback (Few seconds earlier)

As the Inkblade slashes descended, Victor had no time to parry them all.

So at the final moment where only a few slashes were left, he activated Iron Vein Flow.

[ Iron Vein Flow Technique: Activated ]

His body hardened, turning a coppery hue as resilience surged into his bones.

Damage that should have torn him apart was reduced by over 40%.

It still hurt like hell

But he endured.

While Tarkos dropped his guard, assuming he had won—

Victor had secretly infused his sword with Void Emperor Spatial Qi, cloaking it entirely in space-distorting energy and rendering it invisible.

He directed the floating weapon like a silent snake through the dust and positioned it behind Tarkos.

And when the time was right—

He drove it forward without a second thought.

---

Tarkos staggered while coughing blood as the sword turned visible.

He whirled around to attack, but Victor pressed the advantage immediately.

Rushing forward explosively and retrieved his sword from Tarkos's body.

Without hesitation, he unleashed a savage combination:

[ Phantom Moon Slash ]

Multiple afterimages of Victor's sword rained down.

Tarkos blocked a few strikes sloppily, but several others dug into his arms and legs.

With his mind and body already in so much pain, he couldn't move his tattoos like how he used to.

Blood splattered the broken ground.

Tarkos roared before activating a defensive technique that caused a fresh tattoo to shield part of his body—but Victor had already moved.

He spun low and carved a deep gash across Tarkos's thigh.

Another swipe lacerated his shoulder.

Finally, Victor delivered a spinning kick into the assassin's ribs, sending him flying backward with a grunt.

Dust swirled across the surroundings as Tarkos rammed into the ground and slid across it.

Victor dashed forward with speed and appeared above Tarkos who was still sliding across the ground.

Tarkos gasped as Victor's blade pierced straight through his right arm and drove it into the rocky ground causing his sliding body to instantly come to a pause.

He grunted but didn't scream.

On his left side, a sharp Wind Blade conjured by Victor hovered and then stabbed clean through his other hand, pinning it down as well.

Blood pooled around him as the tattoos on his body shifted wildly but were unable to reach damaged areas.

Victor stood over him with another Wind Blade condensed at his fingertips—

—the edge gleamed cold and sharp as it floated just a few inches from Tarkos's exposed throat.

Victor's expression was grim.

"You lose," Victor said coldly.

The wind around them howled, carrying the finality of death in its chill.

Tarkos simply smiled despite his predicament.

"Going to kill me now?" he rasped.

Victor tightened his grip on his sword.

"Damn right."

He pressed the Wind Blade closer—

A bead of blood formed where the blade lightly nicked Tarkos's throat.

"You're wasting a valuable opportunity, Fang Chen."

Victor narrowed his eyes.

"Don't try to stall..."

"No," Tarkos voiced with a defeated but calm tone. "I'm offering you survival."

Victor didn't lower his blade.

"You have ten seconds to make sense or I slice open your throat."

Blood dribbled from the corner of Tarkos mouth as he coughed.

"You really think you can take on the Jade Serpent Sect alone?"

Victor's brow twitched.

"That's suicide," Tarkos continued. "They aren't just a random sect. They're old. Vicious. They have ties across multiple cities... and killers far worse than me."

Victor didn't respond but his face contorted slightly in thought.

Tarkos smiled wider, sensing the hesitation.

"You kill me... fine. You'll die next when you go after them.

You keep me alive... and I'll help you destroy them."

Victor was drowned in his thoughts for a bit.

He didn't trust Tarkos.

Why should he?

He was a seasoned assassin... a murderer.

"And how do I know you won't just stab me the second I let you loose? I think I'll rather just take my chances with the Jade Serpent Sect..."

Victor raised the wind blade, prepared to land a final strike when Tarkos spoke again...

"There's a way to bind me!"

Victor raised an eyebrow as he paused.

"And that is?"

"A Blood Contract Pact..."