Versatile Mage: Starting with the White Tiger Pendant

At the edge of the alley, almost the moment Lu Jun launched his attack, his four teammates noticed it. However, the narrow terrain made it difficult to step in; if they were hit by a crimson beam and skewered like candied fruit, it would be laughable.

"Be careful."

The key was Lu Mei's reliability. She shouted loudly, her slender hands casting magic. A green star track streaked across the air, pointing at Lu Jun, enhancing him. This time, she used a Level-3 Wind Path spell.

"Wind Path: Drifting Shadows!"

The streets howled with wind, and the four people's clothes fluttered. In the alley ahead, blurry, transparent wind paths extended and spread out, even reaching the walls on both sides with crisscrossing trails.

It resembled a grid of wind, like an intricate subway map.

A Level-3 Wind Path could increase movement speed to the point of leaving afterimages, with multiple wind tracks available.

The next moment, Lu Jun experienced the overwhelming enhancement. His body felt light, as if he were about to ascend.

With Water Control, Wind Path, and the Shaking Gold Greatsword, he gazed at the giant-eyed demon rat in the distant darkness. A wild thought flashed through his mind.

Some people freeze in fear when faced with danger, sitting down to await death. Others flee quickly, while a few instinctively fight back. Clearly, he was one of the latter.

Whoosh!

Lu Jun let out a low growl, his figure flickering as he charged at the servant-level demon at high speed. His steps followed the wind tracks, leaving afterimages in his wake. The water ribbons coiling around him trailed behind under the intense wind pressure, forming thousands of threads of blue water.

He reversed his grip on the Shaking Gold Greatsword, its platinum patterns glowing as the blade slashed downward, carving a black arc.

The piercing sound of the sword resonated in Lu Jun's ears, lingering endlessly and then gradually fading away. The scene before him slowed, and everything seemed to freeze in place. Silence reigned.

By now, Lu Jun had already adapted to his heightened senses at such speeds. His gaze was fixed solely on the grotesque demon ahead. He saw the giant-eyed demon rat's pupils slowly contract, releasing another crimson beam.

Buzz!

With a sharp push from his foot, his entire body tilted as he scaled the wall, running along it. The "slow" crimson beam was left behind.

A year later, Zhang Xiaohou would be able to leap across cliffs with the acceleration of a Level-1 Wind Path. Now, with a Tier-3 Wind Path, scaling walls was child's play.

In an instant, Lu Jun reached the demon rat's face along the wall. He held the Shaking Gold Greatsword in a reverse grip, his body and the sword forming a right angle. Positioned vertically above the demon, the blade's platinum brilliance erupted and plunged into its flesh.

With a squelch, he expected the sensation of cutting through steel—a muddy resistance. But the combination of Wind Path's speed and the sharpness of the metal element was like slicing through tofu. In one breath, the sword traveled along the demon rat's spine, cutting through its entire body.

As the resistance on his hands vanished, Lu Jun left the wall. Rotating once in mid-air, he landed gracefully, the water ribbons around him scattering like petals, blossoming into blue water flowers.

Then, he turned his back to the demon rat's corpse and slowly rose, flicking his wrist. The water ribbon slid along the greatsword, spinning off into a blood-red sword flower. The pitch-black greatsword shone brilliantly.

A moment later, a bloodline appeared on the demon rat's forehead. Its massive body split into two halves and collapsed, the cross-section smooth as glass. A great spray of blood burst forth, shooting half a meter into the air before falling like a curtain-call firework.

The scene froze.

"Ah!" Li Xia and the others, who had walked cautiously along the alley's walls to witness the fight, were stunned. The red-haired young woman couldn't stop herself from screaming. Her eyes practically turned into hearts as she shouted, "So handsome! You've peaked, little brother!"

Xu Yan and Mu Yuan stared in amazement at the figure of Lu Jun at the end of the alley, utterly shocked.

Even Lu Mei was slightly dazed. In a brief moment, she saw her brother's back as if he were an unparalleled, towering hero rising with unstoppable brilliance.

The four of them were mere bystanders. Li Xia had previously thought thunder-fire mages, with their mastery of destruction, were destined to shine. But now, cowering behind others and casting spells seemed anything but manly.

A real man wielded a sword and fought demons up close.

Several blue water ribbons extended down both sides of the alley, still connected to Lu Jun after the demon's demise, hovering in mid-air.

Lu Jun's boiling blood gradually cooled. He couldn't believe he'd accomplished such a feat and admired himself for keeping his composure after slaying the enemy.

He reflected on his mindset, feeling as though he'd broken through some constraint. He was now fearless when facing similar demons and could slay them effortlessly. His basic Water Control shield hadn't even been broken.

In fact, Lu Jun's usual combat style wasn't like this. He relied on Wind Path's agility to strike and retreat swiftly. If it weren't for the narrow alley, he wouldn't have taken such a bold risk.

The metal element's offensive power was indeed extraordinary. As long as one dared to wield their sword, it would carve out a new world.

Xu Yan approached the demon rat's corpse, examining its firm flesh and smooth cuts. Shaking his head in amazement, he looked enviously at Lu Jun's Shaking Gold Greatsword. "This demon-slaying weapon is incredible."

No one doubted its origins. With a doting elder sister, it was perfectly normal for her to equip her defensive-specialist brother with a lethal weapon.

Lu Mei snapped out of her daze, walked up to her brother, and scolded, "Don't go in alone next time. If you encounter a demon, retreat first. Are you hurt?"

Her hands anxiously checked him all over.

"Sister…" Lu Jun felt awkward. One moment, he was a ruthless swordsman; the next, he was a little boy relying on his sister.

Nearby, Li Xia approached, her tone teasing. "Little brother, how about stripping down tonight and letting big sis check your body?"

Seeing this, Lu Mei glared at her, directing the team to search the alley for any remaining threats before returning to report.

Xu Yan and Mu Yuan immediately cast magic, Earth Wave and Frost Vine.

Soon, the ground rippled with waves of yellow light, spreading deeper into the dark alley. Frost crawled into the sewer, freezing the manhole cover. The sound of cracking ice echoed from below.

This was an example of using basic magic creatively for detection. Otherwise, a mage's fragile body would be at risk if they approached and a demon suddenly appeared.

Lu Jun paid them no mind. After this battle, he felt the stardust of his metal element glowing brighter, while the bloodied Shaking Gold Greatsword seemed sharper.

"Combat truly refines magic. A few more fights like this, and I'll soon break through to Basic Level-2."

He pondered. The metal element's Level-2 ability, Size Manipulation, allowed crafted "tools" to change size. At the Basic level, the range of change was limited to a maximum of three times.

A nearly four-meter-long sword could become a massive shield in front of him. With the Shaking Gold Greatsword's durability, it could be considered invincible at the intermediate level.

Just as Xu Yan and Mu Yuan finished their search, the white tiger pendant on Lu Jun's chest suddenly trembled.

In his vision, a faint blue glow appeared above the demon rat's corpse, like a firefly or a tiny candle flame. It seemed drawn to the pendant on his neck.

A servant-level soul remnant!

This phenomenon was invisible to others unless they practiced black magic, specifically the Necromancy element.

"Unexpectedly, this white tiger pendant has a similar function to Mo Fan's Little Loach, collecting demon souls."

Lu Jun was thrilled but slightly regretful. "Unfortunately, it's not a complete soul. A remnant soul is worth little—at most ten thousand yuan."

Complete souls, known as Essences, were the intact souls of demons containing most of their essence. They were exceedingly rare, with less than a one percent drop rate. Their energy was dozens of times greater than remnant souls.

As for their value? Even a servant-level essence would cost five million.

Why were they so expensive? Essences had numerous uses, such as creating Stardust Magic Tools, which required essences from demons of the corresponding tier.

In other words, even basic stardust tools cost at least ten million, and nebula tools tens of millions. It was clear how extraordinary the white tiger pendant was.

Moreover, collecting essences was difficult. Only necromancers or special magic tools like Soul Vessels could gather them, and both were scarce in the country.