How come this arcanist is invincible?

Chapter 116 Weakening the Thorn

As night deepened, the lights in Shuangsheng Port went out one by one, leaving only a few scattered lights shining in the alley.

Kane walked across the pontoon bridge, the planks creaking softly, the river water beneath shimmering coldly.

As we passed through a narrow alleyway on a floating island, a figure suddenly appeared ahead, carrying an old lantern.

The lamplight stretched his shadow long—he was a half-elf, dressed in ordinary cloth, looking no different from any other passerby.

Kane didn't pay any attention and continued walking, wanting to get back to the Brotherhood's tavern to rest as soon as possible.

Just as the two brushed past each other, the half-elf uttered a low shout: "Weaken Spikes!"

A dim beam of magical light shot from his fingertips toward Kane.

Kane frowned but didn't dodge. He had noticed someone following him a while ago, but he hadn't expected them to act so quickly.

The half-elf's face lit up with joy, thinking he had definitely won. But the smile froze on his face the next second.

The magical light touched Kane's cloak, flashed briefly, then quickly dimmed and disappeared completely, causing no damage.

"How...how is this possible?" The half-elf's face turned pale.

He reacted quickly, immediately throwing away the lantern and turning to run, while simultaneously pulling out a short sword from his robes and gripping it tightly, his whole body trembling—clearly a novice.

Kane was not surprised.

Although his cloak wasn't enchanted, it was woven from a large amount of giant spider silk, making it highly resistant to magic. Ordinary spells couldn't harm him at all, and even first-level spells might fail. "Weakening Spikes" was just a basic spell.

He didn't rush to make a move, observing the panic on the half-elf's face. With the help of the drow's darkvision, he could clearly see the sweat on the other's palms and his trembling fingers.

"Who are you? What do you want?" Kane's voice was icy.

The half-elf froze, his lips trembling for a long time before he finally managed to squeeze out, "If I... I catch you, I'll have money!"

Kane's expression shifted slightly, and he was about to ask another question when he suddenly heard a whooshing sound.

He twitched his sharp ears, shifted his body to the side, and simultaneously drew his sword with his right hand. With a "clang," the curved sword was drawn, and with a flick of his finger—a crossbow bolt was deflected, fell to the ground with a "thud," and the arrowhead got stuck in a crack in the stone slab.

Kane looked up and saw two men walking towards him from the end of the alley—the two mercenaries from the tavern. They had taken off their hats, revealing pointed ears, and their eyes were filled with undisguised greed and ferocity as they stared intently at Kane.

"It's you." Kane's tone turned serious. "What do you want?"

The fat mercenary sneered:

"Trying to get rich! A pure-blooded drow, hanging around the Dark Brotherhood tavern for so long, he definitely doesn't have a family backing him anymore. If we capture you, we can run away and make a fortune, and nobody will know it was us."

"Is the employer the Bloodline Purification Society?" Kane asked directly.

The fat mercenary's smile froze for a moment, then he nodded:

"Yes. Unfortunately, no matter how we try to lure you, you refuse to come with us to find the treasure, so we have no choice but to take action."

Kane understood everything.

No wonder those two mercenaries kept talking about how much money and equipment bloodline purification would bring in the tavern; they were setting a trap to lure him in.

If he doesn't fall for the trap, they'll ambush and capture him, then hand him over to the Bloodline Purification Association in exchange for a reward.

It seems that the Bloodline Purification is after his pure-blooded Drow identity.

The mating of a pure-blooded drow and a mixed-blood high elf may produce offspring with a high bloodline that is atavistic, making them valuable "materials" for the other party.

He looked at the three people before him, his brows furrowing slightly. All three were only at the first tier of strength, making them easy to deal with. However, Twin Harbor strictly prohibited private fights and murders; killing them here would cause trouble and interfere with his investigation of "Lady Dream."

The skinny mercenary noticed Kane's hesitation and, glancing at his unharmed cloak, his expression changed drastically. He had guessed Kane's cloak was unusual, possibly enchanted, after the spell failed. He quickly whispered a few words in the fat mercenary's ear, whose expression also turned serious, his gaze towards Kane filled with apprehension.

Kane watched this unfold, a cold smile playing on his lips.

This is the power of information asymmetry. The Dark Brotherhood members, like Sophia, treated him with respect not only because of his Tier 2 strength, but also because of his generosity, assuming he had the backing of a powerful drow family. Moreover, drow are known for their vengefulness and assassination skills; no one dared to mess with them.

These two low-ranking mercenaries, unaware of this, acted rashly based solely on the value of his pure-blooded drow. Now, realizing something was amiss, they've become fearful.

The fat mercenary, assessing the situation, knew he was outmatched. He immediately suppressed his greed and put on a fawning smile: "Sir, we were blind and offended you earlier. Please forgive us. Could we let it go? We are willing to offer thirty gold coins as an apology."

Kane smirked coldly: "Just let it go like this? Wait until I arrest you all, find out everything, and then we'll talk about forgiveness."

He slowly raised his scimitar, his fingers tracing the blade, a hint of murderous intent flashing in his eyes. But after a moment's thought, he put it down.

We can't kill these three now. If we kill them too quickly, we won't be able to get any information about the Bloodline Purification Society. Besides, they came to us of their own accord and triggered a side quest; there's no reason for us to let them go.

Side Quest: Deterrence

[Introduction: The Bloodline Purification Society has set its sights on your pure bloodline, posing a deadly threat and preventing them from provokeing you again.]

[Requirement: Obtain a perfect spell meditation (1st ring)]

"Meditation spell..." Kane muttered to himself.

He had used it once before at the demon cult stronghold, transforming the ordinary spell "Hand of the Mage" into a lethal skill through meditation.

The "modification" function of meditation spells is still very useful—but the failure rate is very high, and once it fails, a lot of experience will be wasted.

He was silent for a moment, then looked up at the three men: "Surrender, tell me everything you know, and I might spare you this time."

The fat mercenary's face turned pale, then flushed, as he glanced at the thin mercenary and the half-elf. The three exchanged a look, each seeing the resolve in the other's eyes. They knew that even if Kane spared them, the Bloodline Purification Society would not let them go.

Rather than waiting to die, we might as well take a gamble.

The next second, all three of them moved at the same time.

The fat mercenary was a warrior, in charge of the main attack, and charged forward with a heavy battle axe, trying to buy time.

The skinny mercenary was a wanderer, agile and quick. He snatched the half-elf's crossbow and circled behind Kane, looking for an opportunity to shoot.

The half-elf, a mage apprentice, quickly took a few steps back, closed his eyes, and began chanting a spell, preparing to cast buff spells on the fat and thin mercenaries.

"Unfortunately, you've forgotten that I am also a spellcaster." Kane smiled faintly, slowly lowering his scimitar, the tip of which lightly touched the ground.

The fat mercenary was stunned for a moment, then his face lit up with elation—he thought Kane had given up and was a beat too slow to react.

But the skinny mercenary's expression changed drastically, and he shouted urgently, "Watch out! It's a trap!"

It's too late.

With a thought, Kane's enchanted scimitar emitted a dim black light—the first-circle spell "Fear" was activated.

The fat mercenary had barely reached him when the ecstasy on his face turned to utter terror. His eyes widened, his mouth gaped open, as if he had seen the most horrifying thing. His body froze on the spot, trembling, and he even dropped his battle axe.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Kane's blood flowed faster, and a faint red glow emanated from his body. He swung his left hand, holding back thirty percent of his strength, and slammed a heavy punch into the fat mercenary's chest.

With a muffled thud, the fat mercenary groaned and spat out a mouthful of blood. His body flew out like a kite with a broken string, crashing into the alley wall and sliding to the ground. He struggled a few times and then lay still, only able to gasp for breath, his eyes filled with fear and despair.

"Damn it!" The skinny mercenary gritted his teeth and pulled the trigger, firing a crossbow bolt at Kane's thigh. He knew the smock offered some protection, but the legs might be weaker.

Kane remained unfazed, slightly shifting his body without making a dodge. The crossbow bolt struck his thigh, but was deflected by the spiderweb pattern of his cloak, and "whoosh"ed into the brickwork of the alley wall.

The skinny mercenary panicked completely, threw away his crossbow, pulled out a dagger, and rushed forward to fight desperately.

But Kane didn't give him the chance, pointing his finger and uttering a low growl: "Mind Wedge!"

An invisible spiritual force pierced the thin mercenary's head like a sharp wedge. His body stiffened, his steps faltered, and his eyes glazed over. All the despair and ferocity on his face vanished; he stood motionless, as if his soul had left his body.

On the other side, the half-elf mage apprentice had just finished chanting a spell to buff the two. Seeing the fat mercenary heavily injured and the thin mercenary's dazed expression, the spell stopped, his face filled with despair, and his legs went weak, almost causing him to fall.

Kane seized the opportunity, flashed to the skinny mercenary, and crashed heavily into his arms. With a "bang," the skinny mercenary flew out and fell to the ground, unconscious.

After dealing with the two mercenaries, Kane turned around and walked step by step toward the half-elf mage apprentice.

The half-elf trembled with fear and retreated repeatedly until his back was pressed against the alley wall with nowhere to go.

"I...I surrender! I surrender!" The half-elf quickly threw away the short staff he was using as a spellcasting medium, covered his head with his hands, and cried out in a trembling voice, "I demand to be treated like a prisoner of Sussas! Don't...don't kill me! I'll tell you everything!"

Kane didn't speak, but simply nodded, pulled a rope from his pocket, and tossed it over: "Tie your own hands, and don't try anything funny."

The half-elf dared not resist, picked up the rope and tied his hands, standing dejectedly to the side, not daring to breathe.