Chapter 60: Tracking
The raging waves swept through the building complex, smashing structures apart along the way.
Two figures leaped across the rooftops, one tall and one short. The shorter figure wielded a long dagger, while the taller one clenched his fists, blue flames enveloping his forearms and fists.
Bang, bang, bang.
Blue fist shadows flashed, so fast they left afterimages, blue flames scattering in the air.
The shorter figure was Gulu, and the taller one was none other than Holy Flame from the Sanctuary Paradise side. He was among the first batch of Sanctuary Paradise contractors to arrive at Rubei City.
Gulu and Holy Flame bounded between buildings, both drenched from head to toe. Behind them, the tsunami surged forward, crushing every structure in its path.
"Annoying bastard."
Gulu tossed her dagger, which whizzed past Holy Flame's ear. Just as he thought he had dodged it, sharp barbs sprang out from both sides of the blade.
Observing with a microscope would reveal a thin fiber thread connecting Gulu and the thrown dagger—so fine it was invisible to the naked eye.
Gulu yanked her arm, pulling back the dagger that had just flown past Holy Flame's ear. The barbs on the hilt pierced straight into the back of his neck.
Mid-leap, Holy Flame let out a muffled grunt. The dagger lodged in his neck now resembled a row of fishhooks, each barb covered in tiny secondary hooks. If he tried to rip it out with brute force, half his neck would be torn open.
"Haha, finally hooked one."
Gulu pulled the fiber thread with all her might, accelerating her forward charge.
Holy Flame's jaw muscles bulged as he prepared to yank the dagger out by force, only to realize he couldn't move.
"Poison."
An unknown toxin had invaded Holy Flame, silently paralyzing his body without any warning.
"Oh ho~"
Gulu cheered up, leaping forward quickly. Behind her were the tsunami and the dragged Holy Flame.
Bang!
Holy Flame's head slammed into a building. He was now completely stiff, unable to move even a finger.
Just five minutes ago, Holy Flame had been dominating Gulu, his fists so fast they nearly pinned her to the ground for a relentless beating.
But one small mistake had plunged Holy Flame into an abyss of no return. That was Gulu for you—her strength wasn't great, her speed wasn't exceptional, and she had no flashy abilities, but if she caught even the slightest opening, her opponent might never recover.
There was no doubt that Gulu, dragging Holy Flame as she leaped between buildings, was having a blast. But her opponent, Holy Flame, had a massive psychological shadow. The reason was simple: those barbs piercing his neck were actually growing, absorbing his blood and spreading through his veins like vines.
If it were any other contractor, they would either break down or despair in such a situation. Gulu's methods were simply too ruthless. This wasn't a fight; it was torture.
"Ah!!!"
Holy Flame roared. Hearing this, Gulu was a bit surprised—his mouth could still move, meaning his poison resistance was strong.
Gulu pulled out a large anti-tank mine, tore off the pin with her teeth, and silently counted in her head.
Four seconds later, she tossed the mine. A deafening explosion rang out behind her, and the furious roar ceased.
With a tearing sound, flesh ripped apart reached Gulu's ears. She tightened the fiber thread, and the legendary-grade dagger came back with a large chunk of flesh attached—Holy Flame's entire back and the back of his head had been torn off.
"Not very sturdy. I'll let you off this time."
Gulu dropped the flesh in her hand and quickly leaped forward, not wanting to be caught in the tsunami.
After losing a quarter of his muscles and a third of his skin, Holy Flame learned a lesson: the little brats in Reincarnation Paradise were not to be trifled with, especially those who seemed mentally unstable.
The tsunami nearly reached the city center of Rubei before it began to recede. But don't think it was over—this was just the first wave.
The waves slowly retreated, leaving behind a massive pile of building debris in the city center. In an instant, the area turned into a garbage dump.
Countless marine creature carcasses littered the streets. A scarred killer whale flopped around in the wreckage.
"Cough, cough, cough..."
Dry coughing came from within the debris. A metal arm emerged, and soon, a drenched Black Bee crawled out from the rubble. He had been injured before, and when the tsunami swept him up, a concrete slab in the wave knocked him unconscious.
"I survived... that monster..."
Black Bee laughed in relief as he stood up. Dozens of dead elemental bees fell from his clothes—the hundreds of bees on his body had protected him.
"Thank you all."
He picked up the bees and stored them in his inventory. Black Bee's class was a hybrid of summoner and space mage, allowing him to summon only one type of creature: elemental bees. Initially weak, they grew stronger by devouring powerful enemies.
Black Bee clasped his hands together, attempting to use his spatial ability. After a moment, pale-faced and gasping, he realized that with so many elemental bees dead and his injuries, he couldn't use spatial abilities for a while.
Realizing this, Black Bee sprinted into the nearby buildings and quickly disappeared.
Splat.
A frog leaped down from a building, landing where Black Bee had been.
Bang! The frog exploded into a puff of white smoke. A few minutes later, a figure arrived nearby.
"This is it. Boss, I've found the target's trail."
The figure quickly formed hand seals.
"Summoning Jutsu!"
Bang.
White smoke rose, and several twisted, grotesque birds appeared.
...
Half an hour later, at the farthest point from the coast in Rubei City.
In a small alley, several trash cans lined up, with a figure lying on top of them. Cold rain beat down on Black Bee's face as his eyes opened.
"Good."
He sat up and stretched, finding that the dull pain in his organs had disappeared. The newly spawned elemental bees were weak in combat, but they could still activate his spatial abilities.
Just as Black Bee thought victory was within reach, a whistling sound came from above.
Boom!
A pillar of fire erupted in the rain, collapsing several buildings with cracked walls.
The smoke was quickly washed down by the rain. Black Bee, covered in mud, stood in the rubble, his eyes regaining their usual confidence.
Leather shoes crunched on broken glass. The People's Teacher stepped over the debris, walking slowly toward Black Bee.
"Persistent as a ghost."
If Black Bee had a list of his enemies, the top spot belonged to a woman named Xi. To his relief, Xi had died in the last world war, reportedly blown up—something Black Bee found hard to believe. Second on the list was the People's Teacher.
"You don't seem to enjoy fighting me. Maybe that's what they call aversion."
The People's Teacher's voice was as emotionless as ever, like a killing machine.
"Who would want to fight a deadpan like you?"
Black Bee chuckled, confident he could escape with his spatial ability at any moment, so the People's Teacher's terrifying combat power didn't bother him.