Chapter 75: Double Enhancement

"Huh?"

Adam’s vanishing act took everyone by surprise. One moment he was approaching the assassin, then the next, he was gone.

The lead assassin abruptly lowered his arms. But before he could act, he sensed the surrounding air being disturbed. His masked head turned abruptly.

"There!"

Adam had not vanished somewhere else. He had turned himself invisible, taking off into the tree lines before anyone could react.

"After him!"

The lead assassin almost forgot about the captain standing before. He froze mid-step, as Captain Jackson had been ready to move against the other assassins.

The sniper had nothing on fourth realm experts. Their reaction speed could not be underestimated. The moment the lead assassin made a move to chase Adam, the captain would strike without mercy.

It took a moment for the other assassins to spot Adam’s outline, as his invisibility looked more like camouflage. Without hesitation, two third-realm and three second-realm assassins abandoned their standoff and chased after Adam.

"Don’t even think about doing anything foolish." The lead assassin warned after some of his men went after Adam.

No one moved, understanding that the sniper was still hidden.

They could scatter or even engage the remaining assassins, but someone would surely fall. And a gun was still at Miss Xin’s head. It was a risk they couldn’t take.

Moreover, the lead assassin wasn’t worried about Adam escaping. With second- and third-realm assassins after him, it was only a matter of time before he was intercepted. Then again, the nature of their mission was a strange one.

Captain Jackson gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. He had never felt so helpless! How he wished he could tear the assassin before him into pieces.

For now, however, he would have to bide his time.

***

Adam was glad he created the Deceptive Aspect skill. He could use the skill to manipulate the light around his body, thereby reflecting a different image from what observers saw. But that was just one part of the skill.

The second allowed him to bend light around his body, achieving the effect of camouflage. Through this skill, he could achieve the same effect as invisibility.

When he activated the skill, he took off into the tree lines towards town, knowing the sniper would not be able to react fast enough. But that was just his opening move... hopefully.

"After him!"

Adam looked over his shoulder, deactivating Deceptive Aspect. His heart hammered against his chest, his expression darkening. He cursed under his breath as he boosted his speed with the wind element.

Five assassins were hot on his tail, two third-realm assassins flanking him while three second-realm assassins followed behind, steadily closing the distance. They manoeuvred around the trees and uneven ground, covering a lot more distance than he could.

The surroundings turned into a blur as six figures cut through the woods and terrain at incredible speeds.

’It’s now or never!’

Activating Cognitive Partition once more, Adam split his attention into several parts. This was the first time he would be splitting his attention across multiple tasks at once. The question was whether he could achieve what he planned to do in one go.

A part of him focused on manoeuvring his surroundings, his peak physical body moving with seamless ease through the woods. Another focused on the pursuing assassins, while a third part of his attention focused on the forces acting on his body as he ran.

Tapping into the power of Genesis, he tried circulating and manipulating every force affecting his movement in real time. Calculations exploded across his vision as he calculated the precise level of control needed to reduce some forces while increasing others.

But the task was a lot harder than it seemed. Moving at speeds greater than his physique allowed without first practising and creating a skill was very difficult. He couldn’t just make it happen simply because he understood the forces at play. It took practice.

And the silent pressure that weighed on his mind did not help, disrupting his concentration despite the partitioning.

’Shit!’

From the corner of his left eye, Adam noticed one of the third realm assassins suddenly make a sharp turn and launch off the stem of a tree, abruptly closing the distance between them in a flash.

Adam reacted instantaneously, utilising all the strength he could muster to bend backwards. In the next second, the assassin flashed over his head, the dagger in his hand cutting through the air with a sharp sound.

The abrupt change that came with dodging the gleaming dagger completely disrupted his speed and broke his momentum. He rode the motion and spun mid-slide, his right hand clamping the soil as he slid to a slow stop.

’...’

Adam broke out in a cold sweat, his heart threatening to jump out of his chest. The third realm assassins had him cornered, painfully so. He sensed them at his flank, their masked gazes pinning him down like a physical weight. Strangely, though, they made no moves to attack.

But the three second realm assassins were upon him. Lifting his head toward the approaching assassins, Adam prepared himself for a fight. Without hesitation, he activated his two enhancement skills.

Blood Ignition

Skeletal Reinforcement

A rush of essence flooded his body, his blood igniting with vigour and power. Adam felt his muscles grow taut, his blood vessels dilating to make room for the enhanced circulation.

His bones increased in durability and strength, adding to the power already flooding his system. Titan Genesis took what it received and adapted his body, lessening the burden and strain the double enhancement would have had on his body.

The text from the system flashed before his eyes, showcasing the boost he had gotten in strength and overall speed.

[Strength: 109 — 123 + (60+45)]

[Agility: 99 — 114 + (55+30)]

[Vitality: 103 — 123]

[Perception: 96 — 111]

His strength shot through the roof, bordering on the peak of the second realm. This was not counting the surrounding forces and abilities he could manipulate to add to his attacks.

Adam had never felt so powerful in his life.

The three second realm assassins charged at him with incredible speed. Two closed in from his left and right while the third came straight at him.

Adam did not wait for them to get too close. He seized the opportunity and explosively shot forward, sending dirt, dried leaves, and twigs flying. He appeared before the assassin coming right at him in a flash.

His right fist tore through the air with seamless ease, the blow approaching faster than the assassin had anticipated or thought possible. The assassin rushed to dodge, but that too had been accounted for.

Predictive Sequence had been activated long before the second realm assassins arrived. Their possible combination of moves had been charted before they even arrived.

Adam’s right fist changed its trajectory, following after the assassin’s veering head. His fist connected with the sleek helmet with devastating force, the air exploding outward.

Boom!

The helmet cracked as the force behind the punch sent the assassin flying. The assassin crashed into the trunk of a nearby tree with bone-crushing force and slid down like a broken doll.

’One down. Two more to go.’