With a loud explosion, the CCG convoy came to a halt. Ghoul investigators jumped out of their vehicles, armed with assault rifles, using the car doors for cover as they cautiously scanned the surroundings.
"Hey, Bai Ye, are you okay?"
Zhen Hu Xiao rushed forward, holding a Quinque.
Su Xiao was hiding behind a car, signaling Zhen Hu Xiao to stay back. The explosion earlier might have just been a test to see if they could kill him. Right now, a large number of ghoul investigators were surrounding Su Xiao. Unless the enemy contractor was foolish, they wouldn't engage him now. The firepower from these hundred or so ghoul investigators was not to be underestimated. Unless the enemy contractor could take them out in an instant, they were at a disadvantage.
The street was unusually quiet, with only the faint crackling of burning vehicles.
"It seems like someone wants to kill us. Why?"
Ling Yu Shi Zao peeked out, looking eager for action.
As Su Xiao was scanning for the enemy's location, the enemy contractor made a move. A green shockwave suddenly spread out, sweeping over Su Xiao in the blink of an eye.
[You have been attacked by 'Wrath of Nature'. Intelligence attribute check in progress.]
[Check result: Intelligence attribute above 10 points, immune to sleep effect.]
[You are immune to the control of 'Wrath of Nature', vitality restored to 100%.]
After the green shockwave passed, the ghoul investigators around Su Xiao began to collapse one after another. They weren't dead; they had just fallen asleep, and they looked peaceful, glowing with a faint green light.
Ling Yu Shi Zao, standing next to Su Xiao, swayed as if drunk but managed to stay upright thanks to her strong will.
Su Xiao grabbed Ling Yu Shi Zao's head and slammed it against the car door.
"Bang."
A large dent formed in the car door, and a trickle of blood flowed from Ling Yu Shi Zao's white hair. Her previously dazed eyes gradually regained focus, looking at Su Xiao in confusion.
Su Xiao still held onto her head.
"Are you awake?" If she wasn't, he was ready to do it again.
Ling Yu Shi Zao nodded, and Su Xiao released her.
"What just happened? I felt so sleepy."
Ling Yu Shi Zao didn’t hold a grudge; instead, she leaned closer to Su Xiao.
"Shi Zao, enemies will appear soon. Do your best to hold off one or two of them, even if they aren’t ghouls, you can kill them too. Got it?"
Ling Yu Shi Zao nodded.
This was why Su Xiao brought Ling Yu Shi Zao along; she had almost no sense of right and wrong. If it were Zhen Hu Xiao, she would never accept such an order. For ghoul investigators, killing ghouls and killing humans were fundamentally different.
"Hide here and wait for my command."
As Su Xiao spoke, he took Zhen Hu Xiao's Quinque and tossed it to Ling Yu Shi Zao. Zhen Hu Xiao had already fallen asleep, seemingly unable to resist the sleep effect.
Su Xiao stood up, gripping the Dragon Slaying Flash as he stepped out from behind the car, his focus razor-sharp.
The street was silent, except for the unconscious ghoul investigators.
The enemy had come prepared, first using explosives to block the way and then launching a crowd control attack to weaken Su Xiao's side.
Several hundred meters away, in a small alley, a girl in green clothes named Ye Zi looked sadly at a piece of parchment in her hand. The parchment was covered in intricate, mysterious patterns, but right now, it had large cracks appearing on it.
This was a green skill scroll that could only be used once.
"Queen, if that guy doesn’t bleed out, we’re in big trouble."
Ye Zi's expression turned worried as she let the parchment slip from her fingers, turning to ash.
The Queen shook her head, her red lips curling into a smile. "It’s okay. Even if we don’t get a bleed card, the follow-up 'Source of the World' will more than make up for our losses, and we’ll make a big profit. I’ll get you a healing staff then."
Ye Zi's eyes lit up at the mention of a healing staff, but then she suddenly thought of something.
"Forget it. I need to revive 'Ka Ka' first, and that requires a huge cost."
The Queen's expression darkened; she knew the cost of reviving 'Ka Ka'.
"Alright, once this world ends, we’ll revive 'Ka Ka'."
Ye Zi felt a bit touched, but just as she was about to speak, the Queen raised her hand to interrupt.
"That guy is coming out. Hei Bai, get ready to snipe."
The Queen pulled out a giant metal shield, ready for battle.
"Understood."
On the rooftop of a tall building, Hei Bai lay at the edge, a thick brown cloth spread beneath her. She spat out her gum, her long purple ponytail cascading down her back, and pressed her fingers against her temples.
"Buzz~."
The sound of precise machinery whirring filled the air.
"Click~. Click~. Click~."
A small piece of armor appeared above Hei Bai's head, and a detection device appeared in front of her right eye, resembling a night vision scope but glowing red and very precise.
This was green gear with night vision, heat sensing, and ultrasonic detection, making it ideal for snipers.
Hei Bai's slender fingers rested on the trigger of her sniper rifle, the red crosshair in the scope aimed directly at Su Xiao.
Previously, Hei Bai had hesitated to take the shot because Su Xiao’s senses were incredibly sharp.
As Su Xiao walked down the street, he suddenly stopped, a prickling feeling running down his spine.
He was being targeted, and it was by a deadly weapon.
Using his intuition, Su Xiao began to sense the source of danger. Soon, he locked onto a rough location—above and to his left.
Looking in that direction, he only saw a building silhouetted against the night sky.
Through the scope, Hei Bai saw Su Xiao lift his head, staring straight at her position. She scoffed, feeling a bit exasperated.
"Damn intelligent special trait."
As she spoke, Hei Bai pulled the trigger...
Su Xiao remained standing still, the feeling of danger peaked. Suddenly, he felt a dull pain in his heart and instinctively shifted to the side.
"Bang." The sound of a gunshot shattered the night.
A strong wind brushed past his shoulder, creating a hot draft as it exploded into a hole several dozen centimeters wide in the asphalt behind him.
A sniper!
Su Xiao didn’t dodge the bullet because he was faster than it; he anticipated the shot and moved to evade.
Instead of staying put, Su Xiao suddenly sprang into action, rushing toward the source of danger.
"Bang, bang, bang~!"
Hei Bai fired three shots, but only one grazed Su Xiao's sleeve.
The distance between them quickly closed, from 700 meters to 400 meters.
Hei Bai felt a chill run down her spine, sensing she was being hunted like prey.
Her fingers rapidly pulled the trigger.
But Su Xiao seemed to predict the bullet's trajectory, dodging every shot.
In this life-or-death moment, Su Xiao's senses sharpened to an unprecedented level. Wherever the unknown sniper aimed next, Su Xiao felt a faint sting at that spot, which was key to his ability to dodge the bullets.
"Queen, this guy's perception is completely abnormal. I can’t lock onto him. Buy me some time; I’ll use that move."
"No problem."
The Queen, hidden in the alley, nodded.
"Ye Zi, stay hidden here and look for a chance to heal me."
Ye Zi nodded. Before the Queen left the alley, a green glow appeared in her hand.
"Honor Badge."
The Queen was enveloped in a bright green light, her arm muscles visibly bulging.
"I'm going in; watch my health."
The Queen charged out of the alley, roaring as she rushed toward Su Xiao.
With her physical strength as her main attribute, the Queen wasn't fast, but as she charged, her speed increased dramatically until she almost became a blur.
Noticing the rapidly approaching Queen, Su Xiao had to temporarily give up on the unknown sniper.
"Shi Zao, go to the rooftop of that mall and deal with the enemies up there."
(End of Chapter)