After gripping the iron rod in her hand, everything before her seemed to slow down.
The Catwoman's posture was no longer eerie, her movement trajectory became clear, and the crazed smile on her face froze.
Like a premonition of what would happen, a shadow split from her body, drifting outside, weapon held aloft!
Xu Xiaoyou, merely from the direction in which the dagger in the left hand, shoulder, waist, and wrist of the other person twisted, predicted the attack that would be launched in the next second.
'She will slash at my left shoulder.'
This thought surfaced in Xu Xiaoyou's mind.
Clang!
[Your understanding of Swordsmanship is deepening.]
[Swordswoman Resonance Heart Eye (Beginner) 570/10000]
Seeing the previously disheveled blonde girl suddenly seem like a different person after picking up the iron rod, even blocking her attack, a hint of surprise flashed in the Catwoman's eyes.
In close combat, her eyes were filled with excitement, adding more force to press Xu Xiaoyou back:
"I can't tell, darling, you're pretty good!"
'She's going to swing that Nail Ball Stick horizontally at my neck.'
Xu Xiaoyou immediately bent down, and the whistling nail stick narrowly missed her head by a fraction of an inch.
'She'll seize this chance to launch a downward slash, this time at my left shoulder!'
Stepping back with her left foot, she controlled her body's center of gravity, spun her shoulders, and a force surged to her wrist, finally converging on the iron rod in her hand.
This time, she didn't dodge. A bright spot appeared in the silhouette of the Catwoman in her vision.
That was the opening revealed by the Heart-Eye Sword!
She suddenly stepped forward, concentrating all her power on one point, the iron rod in her hand slashing out in an arc like a full moon!
Clang!
The surprise in the Catwoman's eyes was barely concealed, watching her weapon being knocked away, and contemplating the girl's face drawing closer in her sight, she couldn't comprehend why the girl had undergone such an overwhelming change in such a short time.
Before grasping that iron rod, the other seemed like a novice in close combat techniques, yet now she appeared as if she was a professional Cleaner proficient in the basics of Swordsmanship.
Could the other be a combat profession?
This thought barely surfaced in the Catwoman's mind when Xu Xiaoyou's next assault arrived in front of her.
Clang!
The dagger in the Catwoman's hand was positioned vertically at a strange angle by her cheek, just blocking the girl's slash.
Sparks flew from the weapons, she leaned closer to the girl's face, her eyes fervent as if to engrave the girl deeply into her mind, fully analyzing her:
"You're really making me more and more excited!"
"Darling, now I'm serious."
In an instant, Catwoman's skin twitched, a purple radiance emanated over her body, her pupils suddenly contracted, a sinister purple light flashed from within, like a snake ready to strike at a vital part of its prey.
On the outside, Xu Xiaoyou appeared calm and composed, but inside, it was a tumult of waves.
In her eyes, the Catwoman suddenly split into three afterimages, rushing towards her from three different directions for attack.
First the shin, then the chest, finally the neck, which could lead to her demise!
'The opponent is going to strike with three simultaneous attacks!?'
Was it some deceptive trick to confuse her judgment?
No...
The opponent activated the Catwoman's racial talent, entering a 'Spirit Charm' state, her speed too fast to anticipate!
Though she had blocked a few of the opponent's attacks in seeming tranquility before, only she knew how much Spiritual Power it consumed, requiring all her attention on the opponent's smallest movements, happening only in the blink of an eye the three exchange nearly drained her.
Anya was sprinting towards her, still needing her to avoid this final attack in front of her!
Dizziness, blurred vision, and symptoms of mental exhaustion had emerged, and at this rate, she couldn't possibly fend off this attack.
Think about how to avoid this attack!
Suddenly, she recalled the scene at the junkyard facing those three Cleaners before.
Recalling the feel when she activated those three Skill Cards at that time.
[Fireball Bombardment]...she couldn't gather Fire Element, rendering it impossible to activate.
[Bleeding Frenzy]? At that time her mind was chaos, she almost forgot how she caught up with the Pig-Faced Woman and killed her.
Moreover, this Skill Card seemed to have a precondition, requiring the target to be in a 'Significant Bleeding' state.
All that remained was [Back Alley Stab]!
Standing on the edge of the cliff of death, facing an abyss, a step forward would lead to her demise, yet in such moments, she was calmer and more focused, her potential was unleashed to the fullest.
She closed her eyes, remembering the insight from Back Alley Stab, from the footwork, to even the smallest body movements, every bodily motion, every detail from then emerged in her mind like bamboo shoots after rain, as if she was sprinting step by step from the outskirts of a complexly patterned giant maze to its very center.
No...
Still couldn't replicate [Back Alley Stab], the opponent's Agility Attribute was far higher than hers, and she couldn't replicate such a skill card with forced attack determination.
Then there's only...
Change the strategy!
Xu Xiaoyou opened her eyes, a ghostly transparent skill card floated in her hand, ornate golden patterns on its back shone and merged into her body as a light.
[Gathering Skill Card Wind Tight Pulling!]
"Wind Tight Pulling!"
She whispered, and in the next moment, her body swiftly maneuvered back, splitting into several figures like dandelions scattered across the sky, leading the Catwoman to momentarily lose sight of her attack target, standing frozen.
"Eh?" Catwoman tilted her head slightly.
What did the girl just do, she couldn't even completely see her moves clearly.
Sure enough!
As long as you apply the bizarre rhythm of Back Alley Stab's steps entirely for evasion, it produces a completely different effect!
Another gamble won!
Anya finally reached at this moment, her eyes blood red, in a chain of sparring against the Catwoman, her claws madly flinging, slicing the Nail Ball Stick in Catwoman's hand into countless pieces.
Even facing the sharp blade, Anya didn't step back half a step, instead, clenching her teeth, intending to trade injury for injury, life for life.
"Are you a mad dog?"
The Catwoman clicked her tongue secretly, she was intimidated by the little girl's reckless approach, being pressed back step by step, unable to approach the blonde girl anymore.
Until the sound of nearby police sirens buzzed, Catwoman leaped back onto the platform at the top of the 3D projection for Su Leshuang drinks, crouching down, licking her paw pad:
"Alright, you win. Even though those cops are pointless, they still give some trouble buzzing in swarms like bugs."
Gunfire sounded, bullets whisked past her cheek.
"So set on killing me..." Catwoman wiped the blood on her face with her fingers, looking coldly below at the girl aiming a gun at her, eyes burning with fervor suppressed, "Sweetie, I'm growing more fond of you."
"Darling, don't let that face of yours be scratched, I'm very much looking forward to the day we become one~"
Catwoman stood, coolly giving Anya a glance, full of murderous intent:
"Hmph, I wonder why cats dislike dogs so much."
Then she hopped a few times and vanished into the city's concrete jungle.