Chapter 29: The Thing He Does Best
A fierce gale swept through, rustling Leng Yue's mage robes and slightly accentuating her eye-catching figure. All the contractors present remained silent, while the rogue contractors sensed something was wrong.
Boom.
Allen dragged a massive boulder to block the exit, completing the defense task.
[Detected successful defense of all war zones. Beginning final calculation of offense-defense contribution rankings.]
[First Place: Bai Ye, Offense-Defense Contribution Value: 11,650.]
[Second Place: Leng Yue, Offense-Defense Contribution Value: 2,230.]
[Third Place: Adam, Offense-Defense Contribution Value: 2,228.]
[Fourth Place: Chen, Offense-Defense Contribution Value: 315.]
[Fifth Place: Blood Rose, Offense-Defense Contribution Value: 268.]
...
[Global Announcement: The offense-defense mission has ended. Subsequent return qualification missions have been released. Due to the conclusion of the offense-defense mission, contractors can now obtain World Sources.]
...
[Hunter ranked first in the offense-defense battle. Reward: Soul Crystal (Small) ×5, one random Blue Equipment Chest.]
Five Soul Crystals (Small) and one Blue Chest appeared in Su Xiao's storage space, along with the subsequent "Return Qualification Mission."
Su Xiao ignored these. He sensed a sniper on the towering city wall aiming at him.
The women of the Spider Lily stood in a row, glaring at Su Xiao with hostility. No one dared to make the first move now, as members of the Survey Corps were still present.
"Rose Wall sealed!"
Erwin roared, and nearby, hundreds of Survey Corps members cheered, some with tears welling in their eyes.
"All personnel, assemble! Assist the Garrison Corps in handling the aftermath."
Although the Titan threat was eliminated, matters were far from over. Post-war cleanup was also troublesome—relocating displaced civilians, disposing of soldier corpses, and so on.
Hange Zoë carried the unconscious Allen to Su Xiao's side.
"Bai Ye, let's retreat. First, deal with Allen Yeager."
Su Xiao stood still. He had a chance to leave, but he wouldn't now, because he had discovered a Violator within the Spider Lily Adventure Group.
"I have some matters to handle here. See you later."
Hange Zoë didn't suspect anything and simply carried Allen away.
The Survey Corps began dispersing in all directions, while the contractors remained motionless.
"Is this guy asking for death? He's not leaving with the Survey Corps?"
"Who knows? Maybe he's too scared to run. Provoking those crazy women of the Spider Lily..."
"Want to start a bet? I bet 'Tuanzhang' lasts five minutes."
"Pfft, five minutes? Are you joking? Facing a siege of over fifty people, I bet 'Tuanzhang' can't even last five seconds."
These rogue contractors clearly loved watching the drama, already discussing how Su Xiao would die.
Adam sighed upon hearing the chatter.
"This brother really has 'deep luck with women'—so many of them have it out for him."
Beside him, Lie curled his lips.
"We've clashed with the Spider Lily once before. These women are a real headache, especially Leng Yue. I still can't figure out her role. If anyone calls her a mage, I'll beat them to death."
The Brotherhood members began backing off, familiar with the Spider Lily's methods.
A gust of wind whipped the banners on the city wall, rustling loudly. Battle was imminent.
"So you're the one who killed Queen, Black-and-White, and Leaf."
Leng Yue stood before the women, her cold gaze fixed on Su Xiao. Su Xiao could tell at a glance that she was the Spider Lily's leader. This woman had an air of icy, queenly authority.
Su Xiao jumped down from the rooftop, gripping Dragon-Slaying Flash as he slowly walked toward the Spider Lily women.
"Those two women were called Black-and-White and Leaf? I almost forgot. If I recall, Black-and-White was a sniper, and Leaf was a timid healer?"
Though facing over fifty contractors, Su Xiao felt no fear.
He had a vague sense that these contractors weren't terrifying—or rather, he had the ability to deal with them.
This wasn't Su Xiao's blind confidence but an instinct. He instinctively felt that, compared to plot creatures, he was better at handling contractors.
"It seems... it really is you!"
Leng Yue gripped her slender staff, making it creak. The staff was exquisite, long and silver, inlaid with many milky-green gems.
Large crescent-shaped wind blades materialized around Leng Yue, swirling to protect her.
One wind blade swept across a stone on the ground, slicing it cleanly in two, the cut as smooth as a mirror.
Seeing this, Su Xiao frowned. Was the Spider Lily's leader a wind mage?
No, this woman was definitely more than just a wind mage.
"Xiao Hei, set up the barrier."
"Glasses Girl, you take temporary command of the control-type sisters."
Leng Yue organized the entire team, preparing to kill Su Xiao instantly.
"Understood."
Xiao Hei, the scheming woman, closed her eyes, a red glow emanating from her hands.
"Triple Seal: Death Cage."
A square barrier expanded outward, enveloping an area four hundred meters in radius. The barrier forbade entry or exit and was exceptionally sturdy.
"Sniper, pin down the target. Control-type, prepare. Once he's locked down, focus all fire."
Leng Yue gave the order in the team channel.
On Rose Wall, a sniper in jungle combat gear locked onto Su Xiao. Her lips trembled.
"Die, you damn bastard."
The sniper was named Bee. Bee's emotions were unstable, filled with intense hatred for Su Xiao.
It was understandable. The Black-and-White killed by Su Xiao was her mentor and savior.
"We promised to leave this damned Paradise together. Why did you have to die?"
Bee took a few deep breaths, held her breath, and controlled her heartbeat.
The slight tremor in her scope vanished. The green crosshair aligned with Su Xiao's head, and her calloused index finger lightly pressed the trigger.
Bang.
The bullet left the casing, accelerated through the spiral rifling, and exited the muzzle.
A burst of air erupted from the muzzle. Gunpowder smoke and muzzle flash shot out. The bullet's tail trailed a wisp of smoke.
The finger-length bullet flew through the air at high speed, parting layers of air, heading straight for Su Xiao's head.
Su Xiao's pupils slightly contracted. His Heart Eye perception immediately locked onto the incoming bullet.
Thirty meters, ten meters, five meters. Draw the blade!
Dragon-Slashing Flash swept with a faint blue glow. The sharp edge struck the bullet's center.
Ding.
The bullet was neatly cut in two, whistling past Su Xiao.
Thud, thud.
The bullet fragments embedded into the ground, leaving two fist-sized holes.
"What the hell is that? He... he cut a sniper bullet?"
A rogue contractor stared dumbfounded at Su Xiao. The other contractors were equally stunned.
Seeing Su Xiao cleave a sniper bullet, Leng Yue's heart churned.
"Could it really be like Xiao Hei said? His neural reaction speed is insane. His Agility attribute might be close to 20 points."
Leng Yue muttered, but she couldn't back down now. Once the Blood Mark was activated, it was kill or be killed. Otherwise, she'd lose her standing as leader, unable to command respect.
After Su Xiao cut the sniper bullet, the sniper on the wall, as if provoked, fired a three-round burst.
Su Xiao sidestepped. The bullets grazed his shoulder.
"This familiar shooting style..."
After dodging, Su Xiao immediately thought of one person: Black-and-White.
Having evaded the Spider Lily's first attack, Su Xiao didn't stay put. He stomped the ground and charged toward the densest cluster of Spider Lily members.
His Agility attribute was a full 17 points, granting him high running speed, especially in short bursts.
Leng Yue only saw a blur as Su Xiao closed within fifty meters of them.
"Control-type, prepare."
If Su Xiao was locked down, he was dead. Now came the critical moment—had his simultaneous triple attribute enhancement been worth it?