A red line spread from the bear's neck, and it couldn't make a sound. Clutching its neck, it stumbled a few steps before collapsing.
As the dagger swung, Merritt had already leaped off the bear's back, holding his breath as he lunged at the four bandits in front of him, swinging the dagger again.
There was no sound from behind. By the time the bear's fall was heard, Merritt was already behind the four men.
Four men, three guns.
Who to attack first?
He had to attack the ones with guns, but he couldn't target Harley.
From Harley's movements, Merritt had already noticed that this guy had some skills. Given his current physical state, the success rate of a sneak attack on Harley would be low.
Thud!
The dagger plunged into the back of one gun-wielding bandit, who screamed and fell. At the same time,the other bandits noticed the change and quickly turned, raising their guns.
Whoosh!
Merritt pulled out the bloody dagger, which then flew through the air like a streak of cold light. One of the bandits, holding a handgun, had just turned around when his eyes bulged.
The dagger pierced his neck. Despite holding a gun, he lost the ability to shoot and collapsed immediately.
First, he killed the bear, then swiftly took down two armed bandits. Now,only two bandits remained.
Most importantly, Merritt had taken out the two bandits with guns, leaving only Harley with his rifle.
Bang!
Harley wasn't slow to react. The dark muzzle of his gun spat fire, but just as he fired, Merritt was already beside the other bandit—the last one alive besides Harley. Unlike Harley, this bandit didn't have the quick reflexes needed to survive.
The robber barely had time to react before Merritt grabbed him and dragged him over, causing a spray of blood.
The robber was dead, killed by the rifle.
Why did Merritt choose to kill the two armed robbers first?
Firstly, Merritt noticed that Harley had some skills and was concerned that an ambush might not succeed given his physical condition. Secondly, Harley was armed with a rifle, while the other two robbers had handgunsEven though Merritt knew that all three guns were shoddy products from small workshops with poor penetration and lethality, he still couldn't be absolutely sure. Who knew if a handgun bullet could penetrate a body? But one thing was certain: the rifle definitely couldn't.
The rifle's advantage was its wide coverage, but its single-point attack power was much weaker. Even military rifles would struggle to penetrate a human body, let alone these knockoffs.
Of course, the impact force was unavoidable.
Under the huge impact, the fourth robber who was shot, along with Merritt hiding behind him, were both sent flying uncontrollably.
Unlike a handgun, a rifle can't fire continuously; it needs to be reloaded after each shot. Harley, both shocked and furious, was about to reload and shoot again.
The impact of the first shot had sent Merritt and the robber's corpse flying, but he was no longer shielded by the robber's body. He would have nowhere to hide from the second shot.
In that critical moment!
Two knives whistled through the air!
The knives, taken from the bear-like man, had already been used as throwing weapons to kill one robber. But Merritt had taken the opportunity to collect two new knives from the other dead robbers.
He threw both knives simultaneously—one aimed at Harley's chest, the other at the rifle in his hands.
Harley had to make a choice!
Harley was horrified; he could only dodge one of the knives.
If only he had known... Hindsight is always twenty-twenty, but it's too late for regrets now.
He quickly sidestepped to avoid the knife aimed at his chest. At the same time, another knife struck the barrel of his rifle, causing the muzzle to shift slightly.
Bang!
The rifle spat fire, but the muzzle had already been knocked off target.
Merritt narrowly escaped the shot and bolted toward the tall grass nearby, which stood about waist-high.
His speed was thanks to the last bit of inner energy he had left. Now, he was at his limit, while the strongest among them, Harley, was still alive...
Harley was different from the others who had been killed. Those companions were just bold and ruthless, without any special skills. Harley, however, had extensive combat experience.
He stared at the silent grass in the distance.
If the opponent were an ordinary person, he could have charged in with his gun without a second thought. With his skills, there would be no need to worry. But the earlier clash..