Fang Senyan gasped for breath, leaning against the pillar beside him, wiping the sweat—and blood—from his face.

The sweat rolled down his back, etching a track across his grime-caked skin, then seeping into the wound, causing a sharp, burning pain.

Vante’s corpse lay a clear three meters before him.

Fang Senyan had to admit, his initial tactic had been flawed.

He had calculated that if Vante couldn't achieve overwhelming superiority against him, even if they traded wounds—one axe for one sword—he would ultimately be the one to fall short. But Fang Senyan quickly realized that combat wasn't a math problem; the accounting wasn't that simple. Vante was at his peak, likely possessing an ability similar to an advanced fundamental skill like Dual Weapon Mastery or Greatsword Mastery. Not only was his damage output vastly increased, but the transition between drawing and retracting his sword was fluid, like running water.

The fight had lasted less than two minutes before Fang Senyan sensed something was wrong. Although his health pool was larger than Vante’s, Vante's damage output and attack range far exceeded his own. Furthermore, Vante had relentlessly targeted his legs. If they continued to trade blows, Fang Senyan would likely be crippled first! Speed was already his inherent weakness; reaching that point would only compound his misfortune.

Of course, Fang Senyan was in this predicament because he hadn't yet deployed his trump card, "Ambition." Had he used it, the perceived lack of burst power would have been instantly rectified! And once the enemy knew of "Ambition's" existence, they would naturally exercise far greater caution in their attacks, tipping the scales entirely in his favor.

However, just as Fang Senyan hesitated about unleashing "Ambition," aid arrived! As Vante roared, raising his dual swords for a decisive blow, a searing bullet suddenly flew from the distance, striking his wrist with a sharp thwack! The dual swords immediately skewed off course, slicing past Fang Senyan’s left shoulder and gouging a deep furrow in the ground!

This was Morgana’s miraculous ability to influence the battlefield! Vante’s rhythm was instantly broken. Fang Senyan easily dodged and returned the favor with an axe swing. The fact that Morgana, locked in combat with Das on the rooftop, could spare the concentration to intervene was a clear indication that Morgana had already gained absolute dominance in that duel!

At this juncture, Fang Senyan spoke a very serious sentence,

A sentence aimed directly at Vante’s innermost core.

“Danni’s seed must still be on you.”

This single statement instantly drained eighty percent of Vante’s fighting spirit!

For Vante, he was accustomed to charging forward like a battering ram, watching enemies crumble under his staggering 28 points of Strength. He expected to dispatch foes in two or three strikes. But today, his Berserk ability had already been spent, meaning his Strength could no longer provide that extra crushing damage against Fang Senyan! Consequently, he was inevitably drawn into an unfamiliar war of attrition. As time dragged on, the inherent bloodlust and the fierce, defiant style of the Berserker began to wane.

And Fang Senyan’s words forced Vante to inevitably think of Danni…

“Danni’s seed is still with me! It is her only hope for revival!”

This was the phrase Fang Senyan did not utter, yet Vante couldn't help but recall it! Thus, a desire to retreat began to sprout in Vante’s heart. However, his dual swords were weapons favoring offense over defense. Fang Senyan sensed Vante’s wavering intent but didn't press too hard; merely preventing him from retreating comfortably was enough. Simultaneously, he constantly maneuvered Vante toward open ground, facilitating surprise attacks from the distant Morgana.

Evidently, the Banks Gang had planned an escape route for their group when setting up this ambush site. Vante’s objective was an inconspicuous building on the east side of the battlefield. But just as he neared that building, Morgana—who should have been dueling Das in the distant high-rise—strangely appeared in a window of a structure twenty meters away! The muzzle of his Golden A erupted in blinding fire!

Vante was stunned by this sudden assault. Gritting his teeth, he tried to accelerate his escape, but Fang Senyan rushed in again, burying an axe in Vante’s thigh!

Though Vante was only ten meters from that building, those ten meters became an impassable chasm! He wildly swung his dual longswords, prompting Fang Senyan to retreat a few steps, while Morgana poured fire from the A. As long as Vante tried to advance, Fang Senyan would cling to him relentlessly.

And so, Vante died. For someone whose fighting style emphasized relentless forward momentum, the moment retreat enters the mind, disaster often follows. Especially for a character like Vante, sculpted specifically for teamwork—his strengths were pronounced, but his weaknesses were equally stark. With teammates, his shortcomings could be mitigated, but without them, exposing a weak spot often sealed his doom!

Fang Senyan leaned against the wall, catching his breath for a moment. He picked up the blood-red key that had dropped behind Vante, took a deep breath, raised his head, and smiled at Morgana:

“Nicely done. Did you take care of Das? Honestly, eighty percent of the success for this key belongs to you; come and get it.”

Even though they were positioned in the acute angle between two buildings, shielded from the view of the few remaining contractors outside, Morgana stood twenty meters away, cautiously scanning his surroundings, his gaze complex:

“Das escaped. His ability is indeed formidable; the Ministry’s Barrier seemed ineffective against him… As you know, I lead the remote strike team for the Symbiotic Society.”

Fang Senyan shrugged dismissively:

“I heard it from Greg seventy-two hours ago—may God rest his soul—so what?”

“So, what if I told you I’ve already received word from Metal Mentor and Nu?”

Fang Senyan replied:

“I believe you. What did they say?”

Morgana stated:

“They will arrive in five minutes.”

Fang Senyan’s expression immediately changed:

“What are you thinking?”

Morgana fell silent for a moment, retreating behind cover:

“My Perception is 18, and I also possess an ability called True Insight. It allows me to collect combat data on others.”

Fang Senyan said flatly:

“As suspected. So, you can review combat logs without my knowledge… Hmm, that explains the huge initial discrepancy in performance. So, what do you want?”

Morgana’s response was somewhat unexpected:

“I don’t know your objective, and I don’t wish to know, but I do not wish to be your enemy. If you promise not to attack me, I have an item I acquired earlier: Special Floo Powder. It can be used outside of combat to instantly reach the platform where the 5972 train bound for Hogwarts departs at Platform 9 and 3/4, allowing immediate initiation of the return sequence to the Nightmare Space. This ensures absolute secrecy from Metal Mentor and the others.”

In this world, returning to the Nightmare Space required boarding the Hogwarts Express. Morgana stating this clearly indicated his intention to leave immediately, untainted by this conflict. In truth, given Morgana’s calculated nature and depth, revealing this information now, when he could use it against Fang Senyan later, would be the height of foolishness. He should have hidden it and waited until Metal Mentor and Nu arrived in another two or three minutes, then revealed it secretly to gain the upper hand. This demonstrated Morgana’s genuine lack of hostility toward Fang Senyan.

There was, of course, another possibility: that Morgana had already betrayed Fang Senyan to Metal Mentor and was now feigning reconciliation—a seemingly comprehensive maneuver that was, in fact, the most idiotic approach. The moment Fang Senyan met Metal Mentor, Morgana’s lie would likely be exposed, leading both parties to view him with contempt and suspicion. Given Morgana’s demonstrated shrewdness, this path was highly improbable.

Fang Senyan had anticipated the possibility of someone seeing through his attributes long ago. Although viewing others' combat information within this world was generally restricted, exceptions existed. He had long deduced that someone might actually possess the ability to view his stats, and based on the current understanding of spatial rules, the most likely candidate would be a ranged physical attacker, as Perception was their primary secondary attribute after Agility!

That was why, when ambushed by the Banks Gang, Fang Senyan had deliberately stalled the fight with the elemental contractors. His main goal was to have as many Symbiotic Society ranged physical attackers die as possible. However, his ultimate purpose was to muddy the waters and see if he could snag a piece of the action while Metal Mentor pursued the Demon Stone. If all the Symbiotic Society ranged specialists died here, it would undermine that expectation.

Furthermore, if Fang Senyan had chosen not to intervene at all, by the time Morgana’s group was eliminated, he wouldn't be certain that the few elemental contractors could handle the remaining Banks Gang members alone. He hadn't expected the probabilistic event to actually occur:

That someone within the Symbiotic Society actually possessed this ability and had survived the chaotic, deadly setup. It was undoubtedly a low-probability event, but fortunately, for reasons unknown, Morgana chose to abandon loyalty to his team and refused to fight Fang Senyan!