Brian was left speechless, unable to argue back. Filled with rage, he decided to vent it through battle.

"Brown is my brother. You've done this to him, so I'll definitely make you pay for it!"

Brian drew his steel sword, gripping it tightly with his hands. His eyes were wide with battle intent, glaring fiercely at Ed as if he would charge at him in the next second.

"And I'm telling you, I'm much stronger than Brown!"

Ed, however, seemed completely indifferent, his face blank. "No need for useless chatter. If you're going to fight, hurry up."

His hunter's senses were always active, and most of the time, he wasn't focused on these two, but rather on the ghost spirit behind them.

One reason was to prevent the ghost spirit from attacking from behind, and the other was to constantly monitor how much the ghost spirit's power had recovered.

After all, the ghost spirit was his main concern.

The two in front of him were nothing more than mere fodder.

Just then, Ed suddenly heard a faint sound near Brian's feet.

"I can't believe it… I lost to Ed again! Brian… cough, cough… you must avenge me!"

"You can definitely kill him! Go, I want to see that damned thing die with my own eyes!"

The words came from Brown, who was barely able to breathe. Lying there, covered in blood, he could only wriggle like a worm.

Every time he spoke, he coughed up blood.

Yet he still urged Brian to act quickly. He hated Ed with all his heart, and in his mind, Brian defeating Ed was not a question.

Ed activated his hunter's senses and briefly checked. Although he couldn't discern the exact strength, he wanted to get a rough sense of Brian's power.

However, as soon as he focused, Ed was stunned. It felt as though his sensing ability had been severed by something.

Upon closer observation, he noticed a black stone hanging around Brian's neck, emitting an invisible force that cut off any attempt to sense its wearer.

Ed's mind clicked. "So that stone is the problem. No wonder I didn't notice these two earlier."

"But once I kill Brian, that thing will be mine."

In truth, Brian's strength was far superior to Brown's.

This was precisely why Brown had insisted on bringing Brian along before coming here.

Even though his desire for revenge was strong, he still didn't dare to face Ed alone without Brian.

Unfortunately, he never anticipated that even with Brian by his side, the final result would still be so disastrous!

As for the dying Brown, still full of resentment, Brian let out a sigh.

"You're about to die, can't you say fewer words?"

"You can rest assured, I will definitely kill him!"

With that, Brian lifted his head and turned his attention to Ed, beginning to observe him closely.

Although Brian kept saying that he was going to kill Ed, he still hadn't made a move up until now.

Compared to Brown, he wasn't as reckless. Moreover, after watching Ed's battle with his own eyes, he already knew that Ed was much stronger than he had imagined!

At this moment, as he looked at Ed, Brian couldn't help but wonder to himself:

"How strong is this guy? He can't possibly have reached the middle rank of Black Iron, right?"

But as soon as that thought crossed his mind, Brian immediately shook his head and dismissed the ridiculous notion.

"Impossible!"

How much effort had he put in to become a middle-ranked Black Iron Hunter? How could this sudden newcomer, Ed, be at the same level as him?

At best, he might know some swordsmanship!

Brian needed to maintain absolute confidence before the fight, but deep inside, he still wanted to confirm whether this battle was truly a sure win!

His eyes shifted, and suddenly he thought of something.

"I've got it! Ed, let me show you something nice!"

Ed only saw Brian reaching into his own body and pulling something out. Then, something flew toward his face!

Judging from its shape, it looked somewhat like a flashbang, and when it got close to Ed's face, it exploded with a blinding white light!

There was no harm, but the flash made Ed squint his eyes slightly.

At that moment, a few runes appeared above his head.

It was a Black Iron short sword with two marks engraved on it. Upon seeing it, Ed's eyes slightly narrowed. Was this… his cultivation?

But as he saw the runes more clearly, Brian was left utterly dumbfounded. The object he had just thrown was called a Spirit Probe Pellet.

Its purpose was to reveal the exact cultivation level of the opponent.

When Brian saw that Ed was indeed a middle-ranked Black Iron Hunter, his heart seemed to tremble as if an earthquake had just occurred!

"WTF…"

"This has to be a joke!"

Brian couldn't accept it. He really couldn't accept it!

As a member of the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association and the eldest disciple of the one-eyed master, he had received countless resources, teachings, and endured much hardship.

Except on competition days, almost every day, he had been seizing every second during the day for training!

It was only just before the competition that he had finally become a middle-ranked Black Iron Hunter!

But Ed, he had no association, no teacher, and was even once discarded by the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association! How could he possibly have become a Black Iron Hunter like this?

Brian's confidence had completely crumbled!

But Ed frowned slightly and said, "I didn't expect you to have so many strange things about you. Does the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association really offer so many privileges?"

Brian snorted coldly, forcing himself to calm down from the shock, and said, "This is the foundation of the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association!"

"I am the eldest disciple of the one-eyed master. Someone like you, a lowly Hunter, will never be able to envy me!"

As the words left his mouth, Brian once again pulled a bottle from his body.

He turned it upside down, and a liquid, resembling oil, began to flow out. Brian evenly smeared the liquid onto his steel sword.

"Fortunately, I still have this bottle of sword oil!"

Brian had initially thought that his strength would be enough to suppress Ed, but now, reality had shaken him awake. Still, Brian quickly regained his composure.

If their cultivation levels were equal, then the one who was stronger in other aspects would become the winner!

And Brian, fortunately, was the one who could achieve that. After applying the sword oil, his seemingly ordinary steel sword began to glow a fiery red, as if it had become incredibly sharp!

"Ed, it's a pity that you will never be as good as me. Aren't you jealous of all the treasures I have?"

Ed, however, stood there calmly, watching as Brian finished applying the sword oil. Only then did he speak nonchalantly:

"Are you done preparing everything? If there's anything else you haven't brought out yet, you might as well take it out now, because you'll never have a chance to use it again in this life."

"Hahaha, you're really cocky! How could you possibly know the true power of the sword oil? Now, let me show you its true might!" Brian scoffed, his head tilted back in a cold laugh.

After fully preparing, he confidently leaped into action.

Ed immediately responded, and both combatants faced off with their swords. In midair, their blades collided repeatedly, causing sparks of iron to fly!

As they clashed, the sword coated with sword oil indeed exhibited a much fiercer attack, as though it were imbued with magic!

With each clash, it became evident that Ed was falling behind slightly!

Brian's confidence grew stronger, and the lingering worry deep inside him was finally laid to rest.

Brian took a deep breath, "It's clear I'm bound to win. Ed, give it up. You're already in a suppressed state."

"From here on out, my sword will only grow heavier, while yours will grow weaker. If this continues, I will eventually cut you down!"

Brian laughed as he spoke, wondering if Brown had finally breathed his last.

If not, then Brian would be able to avenge him before his death, allowing Brown to witness it with his own eyes!

But as Ed heard Brian's words, his expression barely shifted. In fact, what Brian said was somewhat true, and it showed a certain understanding of swordplay.

In a typical swordfight, the one gaining the upper hand would see their sword strikes grow stronger. But this assumption held only if both combatants had already exerted their full strength!

Brian watched as Ed's sword was forced lower and lower under his pressure!

With the sword oil, every time Brian struck, it felt as if he wasn't holding a sword, but rather a massive hammer, smashing down at Ed with great force!

At this point, Ed was holding his sword with both hands, and the blade was almost at the point of slashing across his own face.

Brian decided that he would no longer waste time. With the next strike, he would put all his strength into it and finally end this fight once and for all.

"This ends here! Die!!" Brian shouted, his whole body surging with power as he focused it all into the sword in his hand.

He even leapt into the air, aiming to strike Ed down!

In his eyes, this attack was supposed to be unstoppable, like a force that would crush everything in its path. After this strike, the battle should have been over. But the next moment...

Crack!

Ed blocked Brian's sword, and he appeared to be in no worse position than before. On the contrary, it seemed as if resisting Brian's blow took almost no effort at all!

Then, Ed unleashed a sword technique that Brian couldn't even begin to understand. His body and hands moved in unison, and he forcefully knocked Brian's sword aside.

Immediately after, Ed suddenly swung his own sword toward Brian!

"What!?" Brian's face changed drastically, but there was no time to panic. He had no choice but to react quickly. After his previous strike, he was already exhausted.

Now, all he could do was block while desperately retreating, struggling to regain his footing. In the end, he was forced to retreat more than ten steps.

It wasn't until Ed finished his series of sword strikes that Brian finally had a moment to catch his breath.

His mind was nearly overwhelmed by shock: "How is this possible? What the hell is going on? How did he do that?"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.