My Computer Leads to an Instance Dungeon-Chapter 205 - 166: Extrasensory Precognition

Fang Zhen's words plunged everyone present into silence.

After a moment, Karen scoffed.

"Do you have any idea what you're saying? Or do you just blurt things out without thinking, like Pat?"

"Thirty Heavy Armor Soldiers? Even a third-rank Curse Sealer wouldn't dare claim they could handle that alone. But you can? Are you more capable than the Vice President of the Whig Society?"

"In fifteen breaths, no less? With a time limit like that, not even our President would guarantee success. But you can?"

Fang Zhen raised an eyebrow at Karen's sharp, provocative words.

'Whether he's a traitor or not, one thing's for sure: Karen is incredibly annoying.'

'With a mouth like that, it's a real miracle he's lived this long without getting beaten to death.'

"Karen, at least let Fang Zhen finish," Tos, the Night Diver, interjected, unable to listen any longer.

Karen waved it off. "I'm not targeting Fang Zhen. It's just that in a situation like this, you have to be responsible for what you say. You can't just spout nonsense."

"Fang Zhen claims he can kill thirty Heavy Armored Guards in fifteen breaths. That's an absurd claim, and I have to call it out."

"Otherwise, if he's just bragging, he'll drag us down on the battlefield. We might be misled and end up injured or even dead. With stakes this high, am I not allowed to question him?"

"I'm just looking out for all of us."

Tos, having been rebuffed—whether intentionally or not—by Karen, was left fuming but speechless.

Knowing he couldn't win an argument with Karen, Tos simply shut his mouth.

"I believe you have some explaining to do, Mr. Fang Zhen," Karen said, pressing the issue as he stared at him.

Fang Zhen had been in a good mood, but now he felt Karen was pushing things too far.

Even a saint has his limits, and after Karen had provoked him time and time again, Fang Zhen had no intention of indulging him any longer.

Fang Zhen spoke in a placid tone. "I've made an observation. Most people think about things from the perspective of their own limited horizons, and from there, they reach what seems to them to be a reasonable conclusion."

"This is especially true for those who are clever, but not truly intelligent. They always think that what they see is all there is, and that if they can't do something, no one else can either."

"In my homeland, we have a saying for this: 'a frog in a well.' It means the frog can only see the tiny patch of sky directly above it."

As he said this, his gaze swept over Karen.

"Karen, you believe it's impossible for me to kill thirty Heavy Armor Soldiers in fifteen breaths. Heh. That only proves one thing: the sky above your head is far too small."

The moment Fang Zhen finished speaking, Karen's face flushed crimson.

Karen shot up from his stone chair, glaring at Fang Zhen. "Who are you calling a frog?!"

Fang Zhen chuckled. "Who is the toad scolding?" he asked suddenly.

"The toad is scolding you!" Karen, veins popping on his forehead, roared back.

The words had no sooner left his mouth than Karen realized his mistake. Grammatically, he had just admitted to being the toad.

'A stupid joke from my elementary school days,' Fang Zhen thought, amused, 'and Karen fell for it hook, line, and sinker.'

It took a moment for the others to catch on. But Karen wasn't very popular, so instead of anyone speaking up for him, most of them seemed to enjoy watching him make a fool of himself.

Karen, who apparently had a fragile ego, couldn't stand the public humiliation. He had lost too much face.

With an angry grunt, Karen unslung the greatsword from his back and planted it on the ground with a THUD.

"Fang Zhen, I've had a problem with you from the start! You're an outsider, no status, no backing. What gives you the right to act so arrogant in front of me?"

As he spoke, Karen pulled off his leather gauntlet and threw it down in front of Fang Zhen.

"You know what this means, don't you? I, Karen, refuse to believe you're as good as they say. If you've got any spine, pick up that gauntlet and face me in a duel!"

"Karen!" Gwendolyn exclaimed, immediately rising to her feet to stop the fight.

But before Gwendolyn could persuade Karen, Fang Zhen had already picked up the gauntlet.

'I'm quite familiar with this ritual,' he thought. 'Looks like the Curse Seal World also has the tradition of challenging someone to a duel by throwing down a gauntlet.'

'It's a little out of place for a member of a civil organization like the Whig Society to be doing this, but whatever.'

'Besides, I want to test my new skills, especially how my Extrasensory Premonition works in a real fight.'

Fang Zhen picked up the gauntlet. "I accept. Do you want to do this now, or pick another time and place?"

Seeing Fang Zhen pick up the gauntlet so decisively, and with such calm confidence, Karen was surprised.

Karen wasn't a completely brainless person. He took a few deep breaths, recovered somewhat from his state of fury, and although his tone was still unfriendly, he hadn't completely lost his head.

"We'll follow the rules. One picks the time, the other picks the place," Karen said. "I choose the place: right here in Master Gwendolyn's courtyard. There's enough space."

"You set the time."

"And don't worry. I just have a problem with your attitude; I don't actually want to kill you. I'll pull my punches in this duel. I won't take your life or leave you crippled."

"But if you're all talk and no action, you're bound to get hurt."

Seeing Gwendolyn and the others still wanting to persuade him, Karen waved his hand and said, "Don't try to stop me. This isn't just a fit of pique. Don't you all want to see just how strong this Fang Zhen really is?"

"If he's really that strong, I'll have no problem following his plan. I'll even endorse it. But if he's just an arrogant fraud, I'll expose him and save us all from the disaster of following his lead."

"This is his chance to prove himself. It benefits all of us, so there's no need to talk me out of it."

Hearing Karen say this, Gwendolyn, Tos, and the other more mature members who wanted to smooth things over were once again at a loss for words.

As annoying as Karen was, his words, when you thought about them, actually made a lot of sense.

"No need to wait. Let's do it now," Fang Zhen said, getting to his feet.

He walked over to his Jue Ying motorcycle and retrieved his longspear.

"Let's duel now. Heh, and don't worry," Fang Zhen said, "I won't be taking your life, either."

Karen didn't know it, but his previous words—leaving the door open for cooperation—had just saved his life.

Fang Zhen always operated on the principle of reciprocity. If Karen had gone for the kill, he wouldn't have held back either. But since his opponent just wanted to vent his anger, Fang Zhen wouldn't go for a kill either; a simple lesson would suffice.

He also didn't want to make a real enemy of the Whig Society.

Teaching Karen a lesson, demonstrating his power, and earning a voice in their plans—that was Fang Zhen's true objective.

Seeing that the two had made up their minds, Gwendolyn sighed and made way.

The center of the courtyard was cleared, leaving an open space.

Fang Zhen, wielding his spear, and Karen, with his long, broad greatsword, stood facing each other.

"You haven't practiced with Curse Seals for more than a few days, so I won't bully you. In this fight, I won't activate my Curse Seal. We'll compete purely on martial skill," Karen said.

Fang Zhen was slightly surprised.

'This Karen guy is surprisingly honorable.'

Fang Zhen nodded slightly. "I'll go easy on you."

Karen was so enraged by this that his face twisted.

"Enough talk! Let's begin!" Karen said.

"Fine."

Fang Zhen stepped forward with his left foot and back with his right. His right hand gripped the spear like a lock, his left guided it like a sleeve. Pivoting at the waist, he assumed a classic level-spear stance, a posture ready to block, seize, and thrust. The tip of his spear was aimed directly at Karen's centerline.

Karen took two deep breaths, and his aura changed abruptly.

Karen may have been obnoxious in conversation, but with his greatsword in hand, he became utterly serious. His eyes sharpened as he raised the blade high above his head with both hands, the tip pointing downward in a high guard, ready to cleave or thrust.

The greatsword was clearly heavy, and the fact that Karen could hold this opening stance with perfect stability proved he had dedicated serious effort to his martial training. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

At this moment, Fang Zhen activated his Extrasensory Premonition skill.

In an instant, he felt as if the world itself was different.

He was trying to figure out exactly what was different when suddenly, Karen moved.

More precisely, it was a phantom of Karen that moved.

Fang Zhen saw what appeared to be a perfectly lifelike phantom of Karen. It sidestepped with incredible speed, dodging the line of his spear, and brought its sword down in a vicious overhead chop aimed at his hands.

And when he saw this phantom, the real Karen hadn't even moved yet.

'A one-second premonition!'

Fang Zhen now completely believed in his Extrasensory Premonition. Without making a large movement, he shifted the tip of his spear a few inches to the right.

And at that exact moment, Karen's real body moved.

Just as Fang Zhen had foreseen, Karen advanced from the side of the spear, preparing a high chop aimed at the arms holding the weapon.

This combat maneuver and its timing were flawless.

The only problem was that in the same instant Karen moved with lightning speed, Fang Zhen's spear tip moved as well, perfectly intercepting his forward path.

The scene looked as if Karen was committing suicide, throwing himself onto the tip of the spear…