Chapter 50: The Dignity of a Tank
"I've heard similar words from someone else."
Su Xiao looked at the bald leader. From the attitude of this guy, it seemed he didn't need to be placed on the kill list, meaning the two sides might not have reached the point of irreconcilable enmity yet.
The bald leader was different from Leng Yue, the leader of the Red Spider Lily. Leng Yue was the type who would forge a death feud with anyone who killed her main members, leading to an endless, unyielding conflict.
The bald leader, on the other hand, prioritized interests. When the enemy became too powerful, he would choose to temporarily avoid them, just like when they had surrounded and killed Ubi earlier, he decisively led his people to retreat.
"Who?"
The bald leader already sensed something was wrong. In fact, he was now very hesitant, torn over whether to order his men to surround and kill Su Xiao. If he gave the order now, regardless of the outcome, both sides would transform from ordinary hostility into an irreconcilable death feud.
"You don't need to know."
Su Xiao didn't say that person was Stan, because he disdained using the reputation of a mortal enemy to intimidate others. That would be a sign of concession, and at this moment, it was all about projecting momentum.
"Really not handing it over?"
The bald leader's face was ashen. He didn't know what the consequences of his next choice would be.
"..."
Su Xiao remained silent, only controlling the Wood Spirit to climb up his leg.
"Attack!"
The bald leader's eyes blazed with fury. He decided to use their numerical advantage today to eliminate Su Xiao and remove the threat once and for all.
"Concentrated fire formation!"
As soon as the bald leader finished speaking, several support-type contractors with control abilities locked onto Su Xiao as their target, and several control skills were unleashed.
Su Xiao stomped the ground, sending out an electromagnetic pulse, while simultaneously leaping sideways to dodge an energy arrow. As for the other control-type abilities, Su Xiao ignored them entirely—they were all mental-type control abilities.
Zzzt~
An electromagnetic pulse with a diameter of 25 meters swept through, causing the dozen or so nearby contractors to instinctively step back.
Boom!
A massive explosion spread from the center of the field. The unique flames of an alchemy bomb radiated outward, obscuring the vision of the dozens of contractors in the vicinity.
"Straight ahead, 12 o'clock direction, he's charging in, so fast!"
A perception-type contractor shouted into the team channel. Upon hearing the direction, the bald leader immediately realized who Su Xiao's target was—himself.
"Short Tai, block him!"
The bald leader didn't retreat. He planned to use himself as bait.
Boom!
Another explosion erupted, this time right in the middle of the crowd.
"Over here!"
Slash, slash...
The sounds of cutting came through, followed by a brief scream as a rogue contractor fell, nearly bisected at the chest.
Clang, clang, clang...
Dense blade auras radiated outward within the flames, crisscrossing and difficult to defend against. Blood splattered as two unlucky support-type contractors were engulfed by the blade auras, instantly chopped into large chunks of flesh.
"Where is he?"
The bald leader raised his arm to shield his face. The smoke and flames from the explosions obscured his vision, and with his perception accuracy, he couldn't pinpoint Su Xiao's exact location.
"Leader, he's right in front of you!"
The shout in the team channel sent chills down the bald leader's spine. He hadn't expected the enemy to close in so quickly.
"Short Tai, this is an opportunity, Short Tai! Short Tai?"
The bald leader's calls went unanswered. The residual effects of various attacks from his surrounding members forced him to instinctively lower his body.
Su Xiao burst out from the smoke, a dagger still embedded in his lower abdomen.
As he charged into the crowd, the surrounding contractors didn't fall into chaos. Despite the smoke and flames blocking their vision, they still managed to locate him and concentrate their fire.
Su Xiao endured three small-scale volleys of concentrated fire. His 600-point counter shield was shattered directly, and it was only thanks to his survival capabilities, on par with a main tank, that he wasn't instantly killed by the barrage.
Su Xiao's goal was clear: prioritize killing the control-type contractors. After enduring three volleys of concentrated fire within the smoke, he finally broke into the group of support contractors. What followed was like a tiger entering a flock of sheep.
One could imagine what happened when Su Xiao, with his blade mastery, charged into a group of support contractors who were unskilled in close combat.
After a total of 21 seconds, seven support-type contractors suspected of having control abilities lay in pools of blood.
Within the smoke, a milky white light flickered over Su Xiao's body—it was the soft-voiced female healer remotely restoring his injuries.
A stocky man, about 1.5 meters tall, stood blocking Su Xiao's path. He held a two-meter-tall tower shield. His name was Short Tai, the main tank of the Starfire Adventure Group.
Blood dripped from the tip of the Dragon-Slaying Flash. Su Xiao pulled the dagger from his lower abdomen and hurled it at the main tank.
Short Tai immediately raised his tower shield to block. He had heard the bald leader calling him earlier, but now he didn't even have time to respond.
With a clink, the dagger was deflected by the tower shield.
"Leader, I..."
Before Short Tai could finish, Su Xiao was already in front of him, the two-meter-tall tower shield separating them.
In the past, whenever Short Tai raised his tower shield, he felt a sense of security, even when he had faced Ubi head-on.
But now, Short Tai felt none of that. He had an urge to turn and flee, but the professionalism of a main tank kept him rooted in place, blocking Su Xiao's path.
Su Xiao took a few steps to the front of the tower shield. Instead of swinging his blade, he assumed a side-kick stance. The Wood Spirit quickly climbed onto his foot, activating its attack mode.
With a terrifying whoosh, Su Xiao delivered a side kick to the center of the tower shield.
Thud!
The ground within a hundred meters trembled.
Behind the tower shield, Short Tai's eyes bulged, his face flushed crimson. An overwhelming force he couldn't resist came through the shield.
Crack, crack...
Short Tai's arms suffered severe fractures. But that wasn't the worst part—the worst was that he saw cracks beginning to form on his tower shield.
"Immovable... Mountain!"
Short Tai's body emitted a earthy yellow glow. Despite enduring an incredibly powerful impact, he didn't fly backward.
With a sharp crack, the tower shield snapped in two at its midpoint, the break jagged and uneven. Large shield fragments flew toward Short Tai like shrapnel from a missile.
Slash, slash...
Several shield fragments embedded themselves into Short Tai's torso, blood spraying out. Yet he still stood his ground, not taking a single step back. Having his shield broken by a single kick was a difference in strength, but refusing to retreat was the dignity of a main tank.
"Ugh!"
Short Tai spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with internal organ fragments. He glanced at his health bar and gave a bitter smile. His health was down to just 17%. Such was the power of the legendary-grade equipment, the Wood Spirit. Legendary grade wasn't just about high ratings.
"You... are impressive."
Su Xiao stood before Short Tai. This main tank, after enduring a side kick enhanced by the Wood Spirit, hadn't budged an inch.
"Cough."
Short Tai couldn't speak anymore. He could only glare at Su Xiao, his eyes clearly conveying defiance.
With a swish, the Dragon-Slaying Flash sliced across Short Tai's throat. Nearly four-fifths of his neck was severed. His body stiffened, yet he still didn't take a single step back.
"Oh?"
Su Xiao was about to deliver another strike when he realized Short Tai had already stopped breathing. This main tank had died without retreating even one step.
"You... are very impressive."
Su Xiao stepped forward to move on. But as soon as he took two steps, a barrage of attacks came at him. The smoke hadn't cleared yet, meaning more support-type contractors had locked onto him.