Chapter Fifty-Two: Illusion

The auction house was in utter chaos as more than a hundred monsters and demon hunters clashed violently with each other.

Upon the auction stage, hearing the magician’s words, Cheng Feng’s expression turned cold. “You’re one of Dracula’s underlings!”

The magician not only recognized Elena, the female vampire, but also knew that Cheng Feng was her first embrace. The matter of a first embrace was known only to Dracula and the vampires. This allowed Cheng Feng to quickly deduce the magician’s identity.

If he served Dracula, then the magician must also be a vampire.

“You guessed correctly. This time, I mainly wanted to see for myself what kind of person Elena chose as her first embrace.”

The magician’s words carried a mysterious undertone. “I just can’t understand why Elena chose you. She went so far as to betray her master just to pass on the power of her bloodline.”

“From the way you speak, it sounds like you’re jealous of me,” Cheng Feng said, having caught the nuance. He chuckled softly. “Let me guess: you and she were once close, but you never imagined she would give her bloodline to a stranger, a mere human, and never even considered giving it to you. So now you’re upset and came to trouble me. This kind of story happens all the time.”

“Jealous? Me? Impossible. Boy, I’ll take that bloodline power from you right now.”

The magician’s smile vanished, and with a menacing aura, he charged at Cheng Feng wielding his black umbrella.

Cheng Feng had no intention of wasting words. He met the attack head-on, swinging his Lightning Cutter into battle.

Thoughts raced through his mind. There was still one thing he couldn’t quite grasp: according to the magician, he had anticipated Cheng Feng’s attendance at the auction and foreseen the Disaster Association’s actions that night, yet still held the auction as scheduled.

The magician clearly wasn’t afraid of being placed in danger; there was no way he would be unprepared.

Moreover, judging by the monsters’ panic, they had no idea about the Disaster Association’s surprise attack that night, which meant the magician had kept them completely in the dark.

Cheng Feng reasoned that the magician, fully aware they would be surrounded that night, still held the auction mainly to lure the Disaster Association and himself here.

Therefore, there had to be a trap.

Clang!

The blade of the Lightning Cutter clashed head-on with the black umbrella, sending a dazzling shower of sparks flying.

“I know what you’re thinking,” the magician said, his eyes behind the two holes in his white mask locked on Cheng Feng. “Just as you suspect, this auction house is a trap.”

“So what if it’s a trap?” Cheng Feng’s silver eyes shone with unshakable resolve. “No matter what scheme you’ve laid, once I kill you, it’ll all be resolved.”

“Oh really? You’re quite confident. I’m curious; since Elena passed her bloodline on to you, shouldn’t you be stronger? Or is it that you can’t wield that immense power?”

The magician spoke with calm composure, his voice as chilling as the smile on his white mask. “It seems you haven’t truly accepted the fact that you’re now a monster. That’s why you can’t access that power!”

“Shut up! I’m human!” Cheng Feng’s gaze was icy, and his spirit blade seemed to resonate with his will, sheathing the Lightning Cutter’s blade in arcs of silvery electricity.

The crackling energy leapt forth, running down the umbrella toward the magician, who immediately withdrew his umbrella and retreated.

Cheng Feng was about to pursue when the magician suddenly gave a sinister smile. Before his eyes, the magician’s entire figure and appearance began to change.

Bathed in a warped and eerie light, the magician transformed from a tall, slender man in a top hat and black tails into the petite form of Cheng Yi.

Yi?

Cheng Feng froze in place, halting his pursuit, unable to understand why his little sister was here—hadn’t Xue Ju already taken her away from the auction?

And where had the magician gone?

He didn’t know this was the magician’s mental illusion ability, which could briefly disrupt an opponent’s mind and vision, making him see his closest loved one and even forget he was in a fight.

In most cases, this move was almost impossible to counter.

“Heh, die now!” The magician’s lips curled into a smile; beneath the white mask, his eyes flashed with murderous intent. He raised his hand, four playing cards clasped between his fingers, and flung them out.

Swish, swish, swish!

The cards shot toward him like deadly throwing knives. Cheng Feng, puzzled as to why his sister would attack him, readied his blade to block the four cards.

Suddenly, his Crisis Warning ability activated, frantically sounding the alarm in his mind—danger!

No! Something’s wrong with those cards!

Cheng Feng changed his mind instantly, not daring to take the cards head-on. He stamped hard on the ground, dodging to the side.

With a bang, the four cards exploded at once, erupting into clusters of flame that lit up the auction house. The powerful shockwave blasted Cheng Feng, who hadn’t dodged in time, into the air.

“Heh, you couldn't even see through such a simple trick. You’re still far too weak,” the magician sneered coldly. He was about to attack again with his cards when suddenly he heard a blade slicing through the air at high speed.

Clang!

He hastily raised his black umbrella to block the spirit blade’s strike. Shifting his gaze, he looked coldly at Liu Shiyu. “You again...”

“I’ll deal with you!”

With a fierce cry, Liu Shiyu slashed once more, Frost Moon carving a fan-shaped arc through the air and scattering a dazzling spray of blade light.

The magician hurriedly opened his umbrella to block Liu Shiyu’s assault.

Cheng Feng shook his ringing head a couple of times, finally regaining much of his clarity. Using a table for support, he rose to his feet.

Thinking back to how the magician had suddenly assumed his sister’s appearance and he had failed to realize it was an illusion, cold sweat broke out on his back.

He gradually understood that he had likely fallen victim to the magician’s illusion—a nearly unavoidable mental assault. He had almost met his end.

This made it clear to Cheng Feng that he was not yet a match for the magician. He needed to kill more monsters, unlock more superpowers, and become stronger.

Moreover, the state of Spiritual Power Release wouldn’t last much longer...

At that moment, the auction hall was a slaughterhouse of monsters and demon hunters. Everywhere lay the corpses of monsters, scattered limbs, and torn flesh—a ghastly sight.

Some monsters tried to break out through emergency exits, only to find the Disaster Association’s forces had already surrounded the building.

In other words, there was no escape.

Driven to desperation, the monsters finally unleashed their killing instincts in full, fighting the demon hunters with everything they had.

A particularly powerful tiger demon, now blood-crazed, set its sights on Cheng Feng and charged with a roar.

With a thunderous roar, the tiger demon rushed at Cheng Feng. Its hide was thick, its flesh tough, and despite its many wounds, it still possessed incredible vigor.

The tiger demon swiped with its razor-sharp claws. Cheng Feng focused, dodging to one side as a crisp crack sounded—the red table behind him was shattered to pieces by a single blow.

A flash of the blade, a spray of blood—Cheng Feng severed the tiger demon’s neck in a single stroke, sending its head flying into the air.

[Ding! Host has slain a monster-type creature]

[Scan complete... Target: intermediate tiger demon]

[Reward: one superpower. Claim?]

[Reminder: If you do not wish to claim a superpower, you may exchange for skill points]

Hearing the system prompt, Cheng Feng chose the superpower.

[Ability awakening in progress... 30%... 50%... 80%... 100%]

[Passive skill acquired: Mind Ward lv1+1]