It allowed the Fishman to tightly grasp it with four arms, bringing the horn to its lips.

Inhale, and blow.

Dee-awn——

A sharp, piercing horn sound suddenly exploded.

Invisible sound waves, carried by strong air currents, surged around.

Eardrums aching, Xia Nan, who had just leapt through the air to cut down and shatter the light barrier, felt a gale like a storm in the sea rushing towards him.

His feet hanging in the air, with no support to exert force from, the strong air current swept Xia Nan away.

It certainly wasn’t another defensive spell cast by the Fishman Priest.

This air current that surged out with the horn’s sound was a special ability inherent to the horn itself.

When Xia Nan adjusted his body balance midair, quickly dissipating force under the effect of [Tidal Shaping] specialty, he gently floated to the ground like a feather.

The Fishman Priest ahead had already retreated rapidly.

And the "Carrion Vulture" Gerry, who had originally been led away by the Wanderer A Gu, had also charged up.

"Ding!"

Sparks flew!

The swiftly slashing pirate scimitar collided fiercely with the Cold Shield that rose to meet it.

Even against professional adventurers two levels higher than himself, the robust physique obtained through multiple Secret Realm enhancements showed no weakness.

With a slight exertion of his left arm, he directly pushed back the scimitar.

The fierce figure used the force to retreat a few steps, blocking in front of the rapidly retreating Fishman Priest.

Thus, a round ended.

Xia Nan looked at "Carrion Vulture" Gerry in front of him, and the Fishman Priest behind.

His facial expression unchanged, thoughts flickering in his mind.

It was clear that his beheading tactic only half succeeded.

Utilizing [Teeth Hunting]’s burst ability to close in rapidly, catching the opponent off guard, and using his battle skill to cut down the Fishman Priest’s trump card, yet he ultimately failed to kill the Fishman on the spot, giving it a chance to recover and catch its breath.

What should he do next?

Continue with the assassination plan against the spellcaster, or solve the pirate leader in front of him first?

No!

The priority of the spellcaster should always be the highest at any time, the Fishman Priest must be killed first!

Xia Nan quickly thought about his next combat strategy, while not far ahead, "Carrion Vulture" Gerry suddenly opened his mouth:

"’Haiya’ Xia Nan?"

"I didn’t expect to meet you here."

"You and our Ebbtide Gang shouldn’t have any contradictions, right? If it’s because of that incident at the docks, I can compensate you, and the little gangster who provoked you can be handed over for you to deal with."

"Let’s stop here, continuing won’t do any good for either me or yourself."

"Or... perhaps we can talk and reach some cooperation?"

"Gold coins, battle skills, and enchanted equipment, anything’s negotiable, how about it?"

The response he got was a sharp wolf howl filled with killing intent.

Xia Nan never wasted words on the dead.

"Tsk."

Knowing that his plan to stall time failed, "Carrion Vulture" Gerry secretly gritted his teeth.

With a flick of his right hand holding the scimitar, a deep green glow with a deadly sweet scent appeared along the blade’s edge.

The job he held was called [Corrosive Blade Raider], a niche variant of [Warrior].

Though it fell short in strength and speed compared to its main profession, it gained special abilities regarding corrosion toxins.

The green glow on the scimitar’s surface not only carried a deadly poison but also had a strong corrosive effect, capable of eroding the defensive equipment it attacked.

Typically in battles, most of the time, enemies would be caught off guard by the poisonous blade due to the lack of information, leading not only to their equipment being corroded but also their bodies being gradually weakened by the toxins.

Of course, since corroded equipment couldn’t fetch a good price, Gerry wouldn’t usually use this battle skill unless facing an especially difficult enemy.

At present, facing "Haiya" Xia Nan, who had made a name for himself in Suo Yu Bay, even setting aside the terrifying battle skills that had wiped out the Corner Shark Gang’s high-ups, the sheer explosive power Xia Nan showed in those brief seconds was enough to make Gerry fight with all his might.

Facing the oncoming Black Wolf, a fierce glint flashed in Gerry’s triangular eyes, his scimitar gleaming with deep green light, slashing down.

"Ding!"

A crisp sound burst forth.

The pirate scimitar once again collided with the pitch-black Arm Shield.

"Got it!"

Gerry was secretly delighted.

The collision was forceful enough for the corrosive venom on the blade’s edge to erode and soften the oddly shaped Arm Shield.

Just two or at most three more strikes would suffice to completely destroy the sole piece of defensive gear on Xia Nan’s body.

By then, this "Haiya" Xia Nan would have to block with the longsword, leading to a chain reaction.

A few rounds later, once the Arm Shield, longsword, and even the armor were all corroded by venom, no matter how strong his abilities, facing him with complete weapons and equipment, the opponent would fall behind, and gradually lose control of the body under the toxin’s corrosion.

The thought flashed through his mind.

But just the next second, Gerry’s expression suddenly froze.

The scimitar indeed struck solidly against the Arm Shield, and the deep green venom on the blade’s edge splashed onto the shield’s surface with the collision.

But to his disbelief, this ever-effective corrosive venom seemed to have no effect on the pitch-black Arm Shield reflecting a cold glow.

Like raindrops slipping down a glass surface, not to mention corroding it, it didn’t even leave the faintest mark.

"Why!?"

Gerry wondered in shock.

Of course, Xia Nan wouldn’t tell the opponent that his [Dark Scale Guard], made primarily from Secret Realm Giant Snake Scales, was immune to corrosion/acid damage (from non-legendary sources).

In fact, he hadn’t even noticed or cared about the opponent’s little tricks in his mind.

Because his true target was not the "Carrion Vulture" Gerry before him.

"Ding-pong!!!"

Unlike the previous forced defense, this time the Snake Scale Arm Shield was proactively thrust forward by Xia Nan to meet the scimitar, in a way, acting as an "attack".

This allowed him to add [Heavy Tide] to it.

Compared to the vibrant russet force field energy of [Gravity Etching], the gravitational waves could only be seen as slightly distorted space.

Without sufficient observation ability, it was extremely difficult to detect.

"Carrion Vulture" Gerry also didn’t notice.

Or rather, even if he noticed the air becoming abnormal around the Arm Shield, knowing nothing of Xia Nan’s battle skill specifics, he couldn’t determine the reason for the change.

So, when the agility check for the imbalance effect after [Heavy Tide] hit, he wasn’t prepared in advance.

He only felt an indescribable strange force traveling from his right hand holding the scimitar, spiraling upwards, and spreading throughout his arm and whole body.

The original stable balance suddenly faltered, as if he was treading on undulating waves instead of solid ground.

And with Xia Nan’s supportive push with the Arm Shield, he was sent flying backward.

"Damn it!"

Gerry sensed something was wrong, placing the scimitar across his chest, trying to stabilize his balance midair with his legs.

Oddly, though, the gray-black straight sword expected to descend again was nowhere in sight.

Instead, he heard a high-pitched wolf howl near his ear, and felt the fierce wind rushing past.

As if realizing something.

Gerry’s pupils contracted sharply, instinctively turning his head towards the side and back.

He saw the swaying maned black Winter Wolf taking advantage of this moment to leap over him.

And its target... was precisely the Sha Hua Fishman Priest, currently retreating rapidly under the escort of a few Elite Guards!

"Damn it!!!"