Chapter Sixty-Eight: The Close-Combat Mage

Once again utilizing Apparition, Gu Zhongyan vanished from his original spot, and in the very next second, he appeared almost face-to-face with the vampire captain. So close, in fact, that the captain felt he could see Gu Zhongyan’s face beneath the hood. Panic-stricken, the vampire captain reflexively raised his Scorpion submachine gun to fire, but Gu Zhongyan was already one step ahead, lifting his Draconic Bone Wand.

This time, however, he didn’t use Sunburst. The wand, grim and skeletal, elongated and transformed before the vampire captain’s horrified eyes, becoming a gleaming silver longsword in an instant.

In the blink of an eye, silver light flashed—before the captain could even react, his submachine gun was sliced clean in two. The shining blade slipped through the special armored plating of his bulletproof vest as easily as a knife through tofu, piercing his heart and running him through.

Just like sunlight, weapons of silver wrought equal devastation on vampires. The moment the blade entered the captain, a nauseating stench of burning flesh filled the air, reminiscent of scorched meat on a grill. From the wound, blackened scars spread rapidly, racing across his body in an instant.

His body glowed from within with an eerie red light, like a lump of burning charcoal. At the peak of that radiance, it suddenly subsided—as if the charcoal had been spent—and, with a final wail, the vampire captain disintegrated into a cloud of ash.

The captain’s death was the overture to a massacre.

Abandoning magic in favor of close combat, Gu Zhongyan demonstrated to the vampires the terror of a melee sorcerer. With the silver longsword in hand, he charged at them like a tiger descending from the mountain.

Silver lightning arced through the air, each swing of the blade ringing out like the scythe of Death itself. With every flash, a vampire shrieked and was reduced to ashes amid a blaze of red.

Black ash swirled around the gleaming blade, forming a thin mist that enveloped him. From afar, he resembled those villains in films, shrouded in sinister black smoke.

A rattling storm of gunfire erupted, plunging the hall into chaos.

At first, the vampires tried not to hit their own, but after Gu Zhongyan felled seven or eight of them in a whirlwind sweep, they no longer cared about friendly fire. Bullets could make them bleed and hurt—but not kill. Gu Zhongyan’s sword, on the other hand, meant certain death.

The hail of indiscriminate fire did hinder Gu Zhongyan somewhat, but his physical prowess was far from his only advantage. After all, his primary calling was that of a mage.

With blinding speed and the ghostly unpredictability of Apparition, Gu Zhongyan became a phantom, flickering through the hall. No density of gunfire could pin down someone who moved so swiftly.

He even used the vampires themselves as shields, letting them absorb the bullets meant for him, only to cut them down afterward, turning them to dust.

By the time the Defenders Alliance finished the battle outside and charged into the underground hall, the elite vampires were all but broken by Gu Zhongyan’s assault.

It was then that Elder Cane and Matt—those who knew Gu Zhongyan best—were struck by the recollection that he had once fought at their side, hand-to-hand, blade-to-blade, as one of them. But with the return of his magical power, they’d never again seen him fight in close quarters—until now.

It was clear that, though he favored magic, his skills in melee had not dulled in the least. At least in Matt’s eyes, he no longer felt certain he could best him in a duel.

As the main force arrived and only a handful of vampires remained, a cold gleam flashed in Gu Zhongyan’s eyes.

“Time’s up. All of you—go to hell together!”

Even as he spoke, the silver longsword in his hand radiated icy, lethal intent. A streak of silvery light, cold as frost and brimming with murderous force, shot toward the last vampires in the blink of an eye.

Terrified out of their wits, the remaining vampires opened fire wildly. But Gu Zhongyan, fully prepared, could not possibly be hit—especially not by the meager few guns left, which could at best graze his armor, but never truly harm him.

Still, a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit; unwilling to risk any misstep, Gu Zhongyan remained utterly vigilant. He leapt into the air, his black-and-gold wizard’s robe billowing like a phoenix’s wings, slicing through the storm of bullets with impossible angles and movements no ordinary person could execute.

“Impossible!”

The vampires’ faces twisted in horror as they instinctively turned to flee.

But it was too late. The silver blade, as if slicing through air, slipped through the barrage, armor shattering, blood spraying, ash exploding in a brilliant red glow—one vampire after another perished, returning to Dracula's embrace.

Then came the second strike, then the third. The silver sword flashed like a spring brook, weaving swiftly among the remaining vampires.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Amid the dazzling crimson fire, Gu Zhongyan stood tall, surrounded only by drifting ash.

He turned slowly, his sword shrinking back to its original wand form, the killing aura receding, leaving him looking every bit the ordinary wizard.

The members of the Defenders Alliance stood dumbfounded until, after a long moment, Danny stammered, “Sean—Sean is a wizard, right? Or am I remembering wrong?”

Luke and Jessica wore equally bewildered expressions, clearly shaken by the sight before them.

Elder Cane and Matt exchanged a wry look, unsure how to explain the tradition of the melee sorcerer.

Fortunately, Gu Zhongyan spoke before they could.

“All right, this isn’t the time to stand around. After all this time, Deacon Frost is sure to have gotten word. We’re in for a tough fight—are you all ready?”

The others snapped back to attention. Elder Cane nodded solemnly.

“Don’t worry. My people are stationed outside the building—even the sewers are covered. Not a single vampire will escape.”

Jessica and Danny quickly added that all the vampires in the surrounding three blocks had been dealt with—there would be no more trouble.

“In that case, let’s finish this in one go and wipe out this rabble.”

With that, Gu Zhongyan took the lead, charging up the passage toward the top of the building.