Chapter 019: The Decisive Strike

Clang—
It was as if the sharpest iron instrument were piercing through someone’s eardrums—a sound so unbearable that it caused pain to appear on everyone’s face. Edgar’s curved sword had already cut through Du Fan’s blade of light and landed straight on Du Fan’s raised sword…
Suddenly, a bright light burst forth, blinding everyone. Then a violent gust of energy spread out in all directions, swirling violently. If not for the elfin residence having been reinforced after a previous lesson, the building would likely have collapsed at that moment.
Within the bright light, a crisp “ding” sound was heard, and countless cracks appeared on Edgar’s curved sword. As these cracks spread, with a final “crack,” the sword shattered into pieces, scattering everywhere. In the boiling combat energy, those fragments were instantly melted…
Edgar spat out a large mouthful of blood with a “pfft” sound. His armor broke apart piece by piece, his entire chest turning to fragments, before he was flung backward and crashed hard against a pillar in the hall before falling to the ground.
Edgar spat out more blood several times. He tried to get up but didn’t even have the strength to stand; he could only move his hands.
The guards around were too shocked to speak, while Prince Quested’s jaw almost dropped.
In contrast, Count Christopher wore a smile. He had seen Du Fan’s skills on the day of the coup, and he had predicted this outcome long ago.
Du Fan slowly stood up and walked step by step toward Edgar. When he reached him, he smiled coldly and said, “Indeed impressive. But this is merely the skill of a dog, not that of a human… It’s a shame. If it were me in the past, you might have held out a few more moves under my attack. But now…”
Edgar sneered and suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood in Du Fan’s direction with a “pfft.”
Du Fan wasn’t angry at all. He just looked at him and said calmly, “Well, Commander Edgar, are you going to admit defeat now, or shall I take action to decide the winner?”
Edgar’s chest heaved continuously. It took him great effort to force out a sentence: “Only the brave Lani die in battle; there are no cowardly Lani who admit defeat!”

“Very good,” Du Fan nodded. “You’re seeking your own death—no wonder I’m to blame!”
With that, Du Fan glanced at the commander of the Imperial Guard and suddenly smiled eerily. He pointed Frostfall Snow in his hand toward where the man stood, and instantly, a wave of cold energy spread out from the blade’s edge…
This spreading sword energy was neither combat energy nor magic. Yet, it instantly transformed into a vortex of cold air, growing larger and larger until it finally formed a torrent of icy air that rushed headlong at Edgar.
Those watching were shocked by this sight.
In the blink of an eye, as the icy air struck Edgar, the commander of the Imperial Guard turned almost entirely into an ice statue.
Once the cold energy dissipated, Du Fan’s gaze fell on Frostfall Snow in his hand. After a moment, he sighed softly and said, “A divine weapon is indeed extraordinary… Edgar, you’re the first to die at the hands of my divine weapon. Consider it an honor for you!”
With that, Du Fan stared at his opponent, now an ice statue, then suddenly turned eerily. He swung Frostfall Snow in a graceful arc, and with a soft “whoosh,” Edgar’s head was severed, without a single drop of blood.
The flying head traveled in a strange trajectory before landing squarely on the table beside Quested. Even after landing, Edgar’s face still showed a look of terror, utterly bizarre.
Du Fan slowly sheathed Frostfall Snow back in its scabbard, then clapped his hands gently before walking up to Prince Quested. With a slight smile, he said, “Your Highness, by the rules of your Lanxi Empire, it seems I’ve already won, right?”
Prince Quested’s expression darkened. He stared at the head before him before forcing a smile after a moment. “Lord Du Fan truly lives up to his reputation. These subordinates have always lacked self-awareness. It’s good that you’ve given them a lesson!”
Du Fan smiled slightly and simply bowed. “You’re too kind.”

Prince Quested slowly stood up. After a moment, his expression returned to normal, after which he bowed and said, “Duke! Count! Let’s meet at the negotiation table tomorrow. I, Quested, accept my loss. You may take back whatever I lost today… But I have given my word, and if the other party does not agree, there is nothing I can do!” Without even glancing at Edgar’s body, he turned and strode away.

Watching them leave, Count Christopher smiled slightly and said, “Duke, you’ve indeed deflated their arrogance today—that’s a good thing. I’ve had a lot of trouble dealing with them these days!”

Du Fan shook his head slightly and said, “It’s not necessarily a good thing… Did you hear Quested’s last words?”

Count Christopher wasn’t foolish. Hearing Du Fan’s words, he pondered for a moment before saying, “In that case, Prince Quested and Prince Leopold probably aren’t on the same side. Prince Quested is likely acting on behalf of their first prince… It seems that even if he agrees, if Leopold doesn’t, there’s nothing he can do.”

At this, Count Christopher sneered, “These Lannians are truly cunning. He spoke nicely, but he must have planned ahead—knowing that even if they lost, they wouldn’t suffer any real loss.”

Du Fan smiled faintly and said, “Not necessarily.” He then glanced back at Edgar’s body. “If we find an excuse to duel all their warriors and kill them all, I doubt anyone will dare to lead an army to attack us.”

Count Christopher obviously recognized this as a joke. He just laughed and said nothing more.

With things having escalated to this point, neither of them could stay at the Elven Residence any longer. Ignoring the astonished gazes around them, they slowly left.

By the time they reached the entrance of the Elven Residence, the imperial guards had already arrived upon hearing the news. But upon seeing these two important figures, who would dare to stop them? They could only respectfully help Du Fan and Count Christopher onto the carriage.

As for Edgar, his death was in vain.

After sending Du Fan back to the duke’s residence, Count Christopher exchanged a few words before smiling and leaving.

In the duke’s palace hall, the duchess was sitting there, a rare occurrence. Seeing Du Fan enter with a gloomy expression, she couldn’t help but ask, “Du Fan, what’s wrong?”
Du Fan frowned and after a moment recounted everything that had happened that day.
The duchess didn’t seem very sensitive to politics. Hearing that Du Fan had been sent for peace talks, she merely nodded. But when she heard that Du Fan had duelled with someone from the Lani Empire, she became visibly panicked. Finally, upon learning that Du Fan had killed his opponent, she sighed softly and said, “Du Fan, it’s not that I’m criticizing you… One should always leave some room for maneuver; nothing should be taken to extremes. You already won by defeating Edgar today, but you also killed a man from Quested. I’m afraid this will create a grave feud with the people of the Lani Empire in the future. That won’t benefit you at all. Your fief will be in the Southern Lands, where you’ll inevitably deal with them. If you don’t show them any leniency now, they likely won’t show you any either.”
Du Fan shook his head and said calmly, “Not necessarily. Prince Quested is part of the first prince’s faction in the Lani Empire, but there’s more than one prince there. If I offend one prince, the other will surely be delighted… So, it’s fine.”
The duchess frowned, not knowing what to say.
Du Fan sighed again and said, “Besides, over the years, the people of the Lani Empire have never lost. Their arrogance is unimaginable… If I don’t show them some strength, then there’s no point in being a peace envoy.”
The duchess only sighed and then comforted Du Fan a few more times before leaving the hall.
Du Fan went to Duke Green’s study and recounted everything Count Christopher had said that day. After hearing Du Fan’s account, Duke Green smiled slightly after a moment and said, “Christopher is a smart man, but can we really agree to his demands so easily? Watch how he behaves this time. If he tries to shift the blame onto you, just refuse outright. If he knows how to act properly, then everything can be discussed…”
As for how to proceed with the peace talks the next day, Duke Green said nothing, as if the matter didn’t exist at all.