Chapter 66 Terrifying Combat Instinct

• “I’ve been waiting for you!” In the dark, the figure caught by Kunlun’s wrist didn’t panic at all. He sounded almost… pleased. Edward Raine frowned. This place was pitch-black—outside the cage, you couldn’t see your own hand. “Who are you?” Kunlun let go of his right hand. Since they’d already spotted him, he didn’t care whether the guy tried anything. He knew if the man moved, he’d flatten him in a heartbeat. The figure stepped forward, into the light spilling from the cage, and the centipede-like scar at the corner of his eye showed. “Lone Wolf?!” Edward blinked, then caught up. “Weren’t you about to take a swing at me just now?” The last time in the cage, he’d held back on Lone Wolf. From Lone Wolf’s reaction, Edward didn’t think the guy would hold a grudge or go for a cheap shot. “I—I just wanted to say hi.” Lone Wolf looked awkward. “During an underground fight, if I suddenly yell for you, it looks bad.” Edward rubbed his nose and gave a sheepish smile. “If you’re saying hi, at least walk up first. Reaching out from the dark in a place like this? Hard for Kunlun not to take it the wrong way.” “I didn’t think it through.” Lone Wolf chuckled, embarrassed. Seeing him again, Edward found Lone Wolf’s vibe very different from in the cage. Back there, Lone Wolf had felt like a bloodthirsty beast. Now? Much softer. Even… restrained. Boom! The underground arena exploded with a roar. Startled, Edward turned toward the cage. The fight had gone white-hot. Blood and brutality were on full display. Fists slamming into flesh—that raw, violent thrill—lit up the wild side in everyone. “They’re about to decide it,” Lone Wolf said calmly. “With Hippo’s strength and size, he’ll finish it in about a minute.” After years steeped in underground fights, Lone Wolf knew his stuff. Edward didn’t argue. In an underground pit like this, people died all the time. Forget proper tournaments and weight classes. But Kunlun suddenly asked Edward, “Master Edward, what do you think?” Edward was caught off guard—then it clicked. Kunlun was testing him. Lone Wolf frowned but kept quiet. Just now, when he’d approached, Kunlun had sensed him and stopped him cold. That tiny exchange told him Kunlun outclassed him. In the dark, the screams rolled like waves. Inside the cage, blood sprayed. The man Lone Wolf called Hippo had totally taken control, even breaking his opponent’s left arm with a single heavy punch. What shocked Edward was that even with a shattered arm, the short guy kept slipping and darting around. He still countered with his right whenever he saw a sliver of a chance. He wasn’t panicking. Wasn’t losing his head. That hooked Edward’s attention. Second by second, time crawled. The burning fight turned the whole place electric. Edward stared tight on the action—really, on the short guy. Kunlun watched him with a half-smile. Lone Wolf whispered, “Can he actually turn it around?” Right then, Edward spoke. “The short guy’s footwork is weird.” Lone Wolf’s expression jolted. He rushed to study the short guy’s feet. Kunlun pressed, “Weird how?” “Looks messy, but it feels… deliberate. Like ‘an antelope hanging its horns’—he keeps slipping past the kill shots at the last second.” Edward locked onto the short guy, his voice filled with a doubt he didn’t quite buy himself. “His footwork feels like a predator coiled to strike. He’s waiting—waiting for the perfect opening. One hit. Lights out.” Kunlun’s pupils tightened, the smile wiped from his face by surprise. Back when he was a mercenary, the battlefield was even more brutal than this cage. It forged a terrifying skill set—way beyond Lone Wolf’s level. And even Lone Wolf hadn’t seen this. Master Edward, who’d only fought once for real… saw it. That kind of instinct? Even Kunlun felt his heart skip. The words had barely left Edward’s mouth— “Ah!” In the cage, the short guy who’d been getting pummeled suddenly roared. “Here it comes!” Edward’s eyes flashed. Inside the cage, the short guy folded, lunged, braced his right hand on the floor, whipped his lower body upright, and his right leg scythed through the air like a battle axe, slamming into Hippo’s temple. Thud! The tower-like Hippo froze and dropped, straight as a pole, onto the mat. The rowdy arena snapped into dead silence. Everyone was stunned. No one thought a fixed-looking fight would flip in a single heartbeat. Only after the ref announced it did the silence break into a flood of screaming. “He… he really turned it around?” Lone Wolf gaped, staring at the cage like he couldn’t believe it. “Whew…” Edward let out a long breath. He’d been so locked on the short guy that his own nerves had wound tight with the fight. “Master Edward, your progress blows me away.” Kunlun clapped his shoulder, eyes warm with pride. Among the younger generation at the Thomas Residence, “elite training” always included conditioning and fighting. Since joining the household, Kunlun knew all their levels by heart. None of them had grown like Edward. “The old Master really has an eye for talent.” Even as he praised him, Kunlun marveled inside. Edward shot back, “Come on. You threw me a pop quiz, so of course I focused. Way easier than Lone Wolf watching it cold.” That kept Lone Wolf from feeling too awkward. Kunlun nodded, speaking slowly. “Remember this: fighting is killing. Before the fight’s decided, the enemy can hit you a hundred times. If you’re still standing when the opening comes, the win is one move. Killing is one move.” Edward nodded without a word. Beside him, Lone Wolf looked shaken, deep in thought. Kunlun smiled. “Still, the short guy’s kind of dumb. He paid a heavy price to land that kill shot. He kicked his opponent to death, sure—but his arm’s busted. He won’t be fighting for a month or two.” “Fighting is killing: before it’s decided, balance the price with the payoff. Use the smallest cost to buy that one killing move.” Edward chewed on that, smacking his lips. “I’ll go book your slot,” Kunlun said, and headed off. Lone Wolf finally snapped out of it. He watched Kunlun’s back, eyes dark, then turned to Edward. Doubt. Thought. In seconds, his gaze shifted again and again. Then it hardened. He spoke low and firm: “Please let me follow you!”