The Legendary Man

Chapter 886 Close Call
As Jonathan noticed the injury on his back, a thin layer of cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
Since acquiring the mysterious bronze handbell from Garrison, Jonathan had relied on its seemingly absolute defensive abilities.
Regardless of what attack he faced, the bronze handbell protected him thoroughly.
Even when confronted with a direct strike from Kenado, a master in the Divine Realm, Jonathan only suffered internal damage
due to the energy waves transmitted within.
Jonathan initially thought that the strange bronze handbell's defensive ability was absolute.
However, Paurius' arrow was able to pierce through it.
That single shot would have penetrated Jonathan's heart and killed him without the Cursed Seal, which clung to the arrow.
The arrow embedded itself in his flesh, reaching as deep as his spine.
Enduring the excruciating pain, Jonathan thrust himself forward and grabbed hold of the arrow with the help of the bronze
handbell.
“No wonder it feels familiar. This clearly carries the same aura as the longbow wielded by the shadowy figure in the illusionary
realm,” muttered Jonathan through gritted teeth.
The next moment, as if responding to a call, the arrow suddenly flew back without warning.
A chunk of flesh was torn away by the sharp projectile.
The golden light enveloping Jonathan receded, transforming into a bronze handbell in his hand.
Since the mysterious bronze handbell couldn't block the arrow's power, he abandoned its protection. Though the bell offered
incredible defense, its energy consumption was equally terrifying.
“Paurius, I've thought it through. If we were to truly engage in battle, Ksana and I would have a forty percent chance of defeating
the three of you,” Jonathan said, brandishing his Heaven Sword with a grin.
“Forty percent for you, sixty percent for us,” he added. “Initially, I didn't want to involve you, but now, you know too much.”

Paurius glanced at the arrow in his hand and put it away. “Jonathan, I've known you were the Chanaea Asura for a long time. I
thought you were some invincible force, but it turns out you're just like any other mortal. You can bleed and feel pain.”
With a flick of his wrist, Paurius summoned several sharp beast claws.
Hovering above his palm, their mere presence exuded an oppressive aura.
“Jonathan, come back to Sanctuary with me. I'm sure God would be very interested in you.”
As the two spoke, another God Realm cultivator wielding a spear had already positioned himself behind Jonathan.
Meanwhile, the last adversary was locked in fierce combat with Ksana.
Although Ksana was slightly disadvantaged, her charred wooden staff held her opponent at bay, preventing him from aiding the
others.
Paurius moved his fingers slightly, and the claws swiftly encircled Jonathan, blocking his possible escape routes.
“Jonathan, what are your chances of victory now?” Paurius mocked.
Sensing the connection between the surrounding beast claws, Jonathan smirked at Paurius. “Paurius, the fact that you can stand
before me and ask that question makes me believe I have at least an eighty percent chance of winning.”
“I think you've lost your mind.” Paurius laughed.
But at that moment, his right hand suddenly clenched without warning.
Silently, five sharp claws converged from all directions, effortlessly piercing through the body in the center.
However, Paurius' face turned pale when he realized it was not Jonathan but his fellow companion who had been torn apart.
On the ground, streaks of purple light shot into the sky, enveloping over a hundred meters.
This was the manifestation of the array patterns from Jonathan's Divine Chessboard. Unbeknownst to them, Jonathan had
somehow managed to set up the chessboard beneath Paurius and his companions.
In midair, ripples of black energy appeared.
Jonathan gathered all his killing intent and tried to kill Paurius in one shot.

At that moment, Paurius knew he was in danger. Without hesitation, he pulled out an ancient shield and moved it in front of him,
turning into an afterimage as he charged toward the edge of the Divine Chessboard.
In the center of the Divine Chessboard, the God Realm cultivator held his chest and tried to leave, but right as he lifted his foot, a
black spear pierced his head from above.
Jonathan landed beside the cultivator, reached out, and grabbed the corpse by the neck.
The coffin swiftly absorbed the remaining life force.
Deftly cutting off the corpse's fingers, Jonathan took the storage ring and looked at the distant Paurius. “Now the odds of winning
are ninety-nine percent!”
“How did you release the formation plate? I was watching your every move just now, so you shouldn't have had the chance.”
Jonathan laughed at the sight of Paurius' pale face.
“You Remdik people and those Western Epea guys are all the same, always talking about being chivalrous and only fighting
head-on.”
Jonathan lifted his right foot and stomped hard, sending a massive wave of spiritual energy that scattered the surrounding snow
and gravel.
Underneath the ground, the black Divine Chessboard was revealed.
“We are more than fifty miles away from the river channel. I left no footprints before reaching the foot of the mountain. If you can
still find this place, it means we've already been exposed.”
Jonathan's teasing words reached Paurius' ears, making his face even paler.
“You mean, you already set up the chessboard before we arrived?”
“Yes,” Jonathan said with a smile.
“Wherever I set up the chessboard, that's where you'll find me. Wherever you find me, that's where I'll kill you!”
Ding...

With a soft chime, Jonathan's figure crossed tens of meters instantly, his Heaven Sword aimed directly at Paurius' throat.
On the Divine Chessboard, space meant nothing to Jonathan.
He and Paurius were less than a hundred meters apart. First, he used the formation on the chessboard to cross tens of meters.
The remaining distance of fewer than thirty meters was just a single step for Jonathan.
Paurius tried to block Jonathan's attack with the ancient shield.
Yet, the next moment, the Heaven Sword cut through it and swung toward Paurius' neck.
The two brushed past each other before Jonathan's figure stopped tens of meters away. He turned his head and saw Paurius,
who was holding his right arm and looking at him with blood all over his face.
That last attack had severed Paurius' shield and arm and nearly scraped off his entire nose as he leaned back to avoid it.
“Retreat!” Paurius yelled and turned to leave.
When he had all four limbs, Paurius could still fight Jonathan, but now with one arm severed and hindered movement, he was no
match for Jonathan.
The opponent entangled with Ksana also withdrew. Ksana wanted to chase after him but was stopped by Jonathan.
“Jonathan, now is the best time to kill them. If we let them go back, our whereabouts—”
Before Ksana could finish, she saw Jonathan had already removed his shirt and thrown it on the ground.
There was a dark red stain on the back of the shirt.
When Jonathan turned around, the injury on his back where the arrow had hit him had already rotted into a palm-sized patch,
and the edges were still slowly spreading outward.