An Understated Dominance by Marina Vittori

Though Marcell was momentarily stunned, he still explained patiently, ” This man is the guardian of the

Forbidden Ground. If we kill him, we'll be able to take the treasure.”

He was gravely wounded and had to rely on Dustin to deal with Aven, so he needed to be persuasive.

“We can talk about the treasure later. Right now, it’s tto settle sold scores.” Dustin stretched out his

hand, and the long sword on the ground shot up into his grasp.

“Settle old scores? What are you talking about?” Marcell blinked in confusion, especially when he saw the sword

in Dustin’s hand. A feeling of unease spread through him.

“You and that big guy planned to useas bait. Then, you sentinto the fog to clear the way for you,” Dustin

said flatly. “Did you really think | didn’t hear that? Since you want to harm me, don’t blme for being

ruthless.”

“What... What are you going to do?” Marcell panicked. “We're both working for the Hall of Gods. There's no need

for this kind of betrayal. If this mission fails, we both die. You should calm down.”

“Who said I'm with the Hall of Gods?”

Dustin raised an eyebrow.

“If you're not one of their people, why do you have their emblem?” Marcell pressed.

“Are you curious? Go ask Death himself. “Dustin raised his sword without a second thought. He had no hesitation

in killing someone like Marcell, who betrayed others for his own gain.

“I'll take you down!” Seeing Dustin about to strike, Marcell gritted his teeth. He was willing to risk it all and used

the Soul Abyss Technique again.

A torrent of dark energy erupted from his body, which twisted like deadly tendrils and shot toward Dustin.

Since Dustin wasn’t protected by the Glow Incantation, if the energy entered his body, Marcell could drain his life

force while replenishing his own.

If it failed, the backlash from using the Soul Abyss Technique would be devastating. Even if Marcell survived, he

would be crippled. But he didn’t care anymore; it was a do-or-die situation.

“Soul Abyss Technique? That's just a cheap trick.” Dustin sneered. He didn’t even bother to defend himself and

struck with his sword in one fluid motion.

The sword aura shot forward like a crescent moon and cut through the dark energy with an overwhelming force

that shattered it effortlessly.

Without hesitation, Dustin swung his sword again. The scorching sword aura consumed the remaining dark

energy without leaving anything behind.

His mystical pure energy naturally countered the dark energy. With his unmatched cultivation, handling those

energies was child's play.

As the last remnants of the dark energy dissipated, only Marcell’s bones remained-his flesh and blood completely

gone and wiped from existence.

That was the backlash effect of the Soul Abyss Technique. Though it could drain other's life force, the

consequences were severe. One wrong move, and the user could lose everything.

“You think you can escape? Die!”

Dustin's gaze flickered over the bones on the ground. Without mercy, he slashed with his sword again and cut

through them.

The bones shattered and turned to dust instantly, accompanied by Marcell's desperate scream. Even though only

bones remained, a sliver of his soul still lingered within.

If Dustin hadn't noticed, Marcell could have used that remaining soul fragment to possess another body and

return to life. That was one of the tricks of the Soul Abyss Technique. Unfortunately for Marcell, despite his clever

plan, he couldn't hide from Dustin's keen senses.

Dustin had read about the Soul Abyss Technique in an ancient manuscript and understood its characteristics. He

wasn’t about to let Marcell have a second chance.

“Sir, looks like you're gravely injured.” After dealing with Marcell, Dustin turned his gaze to Aven.

After having had most of his life force drained by the Soul Abyss Technique, Aven was on the brink of collapse.

He had no strength left for a fight. If he didn’t get stablets to restore his vitality soon, his end would come

much sooner than expected.

“Who are you?” Aven frowned and looked at him warily.

Though Dustin had killed Marcell, Aven saw it as nothing more than a petty squabble-like dogs fighting over

scraps.

“Don’t worry. | mean you no harm.” Dustin pulled out a tablet and tossed it toward Aven. “Your injuries have

drained your internal energy. You need to heal quickly. From now on, I'll guard the Forbidden Ground.”

Dustin already knew there was a Dracan force hidden below. As someone from Dragonmarsh, he couldn't let the

Hall of Gods succeed, whether for personal or professional reasons.

With Aven severely wounded and no reinforcements from Sacred Wyrm Summit on the way, it fell to him to take

over guarding the Forbidden Ground for the tbeing.

“Hm?” Aven eyed the healing tablet in his hand, and a deep frown formed as he hesitated. He didn’t know

Dustin's background, so he didn’t trust his words.

“Don’t worry, sir. This isn’t poison.” Noticing Aven’s hesitation, Dustin said solemnly, “You can barely move right

now. If | wanted you dead, it'd be as easy as breathing. There's no point in dragging this out. You should focus on

healing, just in case.”

After a brief pause, Aven finally took the tablet. He didn’t have the strength to resist. If Dustin truly wanted to

harm him, he could do nothing. He figured Dustin was probably someone sent by Sacred Wyrm Summit.

“Sir, someone's coming. Be careful!” Dustin heard something, and he turned to scan the surroundings.

Through the fog, a group of people was slowly emerging.

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