Chapter 17: They Have Arrived
The streets were bustling with pedestrians. After walking out of the central street, various wooden stalls appeared on both sides of the road. Since late autumn was approaching, fresh fruits and vegetables had become rare. Easy-to-store foods like black potatoes and Mapachu were selling well. Mapachu was a plant similar to potatoes but flat and elongated in shape, with slightly toxic stems and leaves, while the roots were edible.
The slightly chubby Gray Rat was introducing the situation within the Holy City to Su Xiao. This guy was a typical know-it-all, aware of the nobles' preferences, the divisions among various factions, and even where the most prostitutes could be found.
The Old Divine Stick kept his head lowered. Recently, he had been carrying that metal book with him everywhere, becoming even more eccentric. The Saber-haired King was looking around on both sides of the street, seemingly disappointed that she hadn't found what she was looking for.
Zos, true to his habit, looked at everyone as if they owed him millions, standing out starkly from No. 10 beside him.
Su Xiao, at the very front, suddenly stopped. His gaze swept around, as if searching for something.
The fastest to react wasn't the Old Divine Stick or the Saber-haired King, but Zos. Three deep blue crows swooped down, circling around Su Xiao.
Seeing this, the Saber-haired King was puzzled. The Old Divine Stick, walking alongside her, stopped. The metal book in his hands began to glow red-hot.
Sss~
The scorching metal book burned the skin of the Old Divine Stick's palm. Instead of throwing it away, he cradled it in both hands.
Pah-lah-lah...
The metal book flipped rapidly through about a third of its pages before stopping. On that page were densely packed black characters and a pattern resembling a human figure.
"Everyone, don't move. They've found us."
The Old Divine Stick's lips trembled. Earlier, when faced with an assassination attempt, he hadn't even raised an eyebrow.
"Who has found us?"
The Saber-haired King gripped the hilt of her sword tightly, her entire body tense. She felt terrible now, as if thrown into a pool of slime—slimy, cold, and constantly squirming.
This disgusting sensation caused the Saber-haired King physical discomfort. She felt like vomiting. When she was in the extremely cold region of the Black Abyss, she had killed a giant lizard to keep warm and crawled into its belly, but even that hadn't felt as bad as this.
"Them."
The Old Divine Stick's gaze swept around. The street vendors' calls faded, and the nearby commoners stood frozen in place, as if time had stopped.
The buildings along the street rapidly decayed, as if corroded by centuries. The world's colors were reduced to just two: black and white. Other colors hadn't completely disappeared but had dimmed.
A bone-chilling cold wind blew, and white cotton-like fluff drifted across the street.
Tut-tut-tut...
Zos's teeth chattered. The crows he had summoned burst apart with a series of *puff* sounds.
Crack, crack.
The sound of bones grinding came. Moments ago, this had been a bustling medieval street scene. Now, everything in sight was only black, gray, and murky white, with a putrid smell permeating the air.
The sheathed Dragon-Slaying Flash appeared in Su Xiao's hand. Earlier, to conceal his combat strength, he hadn't carried it with him.
Zheng~
The long blade was drawn, its gleaming edge becoming the only different color in this street, like the sole ray of light in the darkness.
"Very close."
Su Xiao's muscles tensed. His instinct ability was fully activated, making him feel as if sharp needles were pricking his skin. This terrifying sense of crisis was something he hadn't experienced in a long time.
Blood energy uncontrollably spread around Su Xiao. Zos, behind him, saw this and was filled with disbelief. He pricked his palm with his nail, and the pain stopped his body from trembling.
The Old Divine Stick sniffed and looked at Zos in shock.
"Zos, clench your fist. Don't let go, and whatever you do, don't look back."
The Old Divine Stick wanted to slap Zos hard. Bringing out the smell of blood now was practically asking for death.
"I... I feel something behind me."
Zos's body was stiff. It wasn't just a feeling; there really was something.
Crack, crack...
Bones grinding. A head covered in a black linen hood poked out. The edges of the hood had frayed threads. The fabric looked like it had been corroded for countless years, covered in black or gray grime, appearing stiff and brittle.
A figure stood behind Zos. Cold sweat dripped down his temples. Suddenly, a face—mostly decayed and withered—appeared right in front of Zos. Their noses were almost touching. If Zos weren't a transcendent, he would have screamed.
"Wa nuo xiang sai lai ji (unknown language)."
The Old Divine Stick chanted the words from the metal book in a low voice. The humanoid monster, draped in decaying linen, turned its head. Without any visible movement, it appeared beside the Old Divine Stick, staring fixedly at the metal book in his hands.
The Old Divine Stick's fingers pressed down, and a page from the metal book flipped up. A hand covered in black spots, withered like a chicken claw, reached out and grabbed the floating metal page. Its movements were stiff but incredibly fast.
The humanoid monster shifted its gaze again. Its gray-white eyes met Su Xiao's at the front, finally stopping on the armguard on his left hand.
The humanoid monster vanished instantly. Su Xiao held Dragon-Slaying Flash horizontally in front of him. A withered hand reached for the blade.
Boom!
The ground beneath Su Xiao's feet shattered, and rubble flew up. Cracks spread across the buildings on the half-block behind him. Glass shattered with a clatter, and over a dozen fissures rapidly extended from behind his feet.
Blue-white electric arcs surged across Su Xiao's body. Exile shot in from a distance and *thumped* into the humanoid monster's chest. The sound was like nailing into a hard wooden stake.
Exile only penetrated a few centimeters before stopping, unable to advance any further.
Thick black blood dripped. The humanoid monster's hand, gripping Dragon-Slaying Flash, was slightly cut but not severed. This creature's body was unbelievably tough.
Su Xiao's expression was grim. He could feel that even if he fought for his life, he might not be a match for this humanoid monster.
The Apostle's Eye floated behind Su Xiao.
[Comparing both parties' intelligence attributes... Comparison complete. Our intelligence attribute is 1.42 times that of the enemy. Due to the enemy's higher rank, only 74% of the enemy's data is obtained.]
Data as follows:
Name: Prisoner·Chira
Category: Resident of Dead Silence City
Position: Black King's Left Guard
Health: 71.8% (Erosion and assimilation in progress...)
Death Force: 9245/9500 points
Strength: 119 (True Attribute)
Agility: 102 (True Attribute)
Stamina: 120 (True Attribute)
Intelligence: 75
Charm: 3
Skill 1, People of Death (Passive, LV.66): Health +7000 points, no pain sensation, reduces 30% physical damage, reduces 50% holy damage, reduces 50% dark damage.
Skill 2, King's Guard (Passive, Lv.40): When within 300 meters of the Black King, all attributes +5 (except luck attribute), and equips Polar Night Armor, increasing external armor defense by 130 points and physical defense by 30 points.
Skill 3, Cavalry Regiment (Active, Lv.57): When within 300 meters of the Black King, Prisoner·Chira can summon a 30-person Death Cavalry Regiment. Within Dead Silence City, the Death Cavalry Regiment has absolute immortality. They only disappear after Prisoner·Chira is eliminated.
Skill 4, Unarmed Combat Grandmaster (Passive, Lv.29): Details not visible.
Skill 5, Unarmed Combat Grandmaster Lv.20 Derivative Ability: Details not visible.
Skill 6, Unarmed Combat Grandmaster Lv.10 Derivative Ability·Steel Body: Details not visible.
Skill 7, Heart Plunderer (Active, Lv.70): Prisoner·Chira's entire right arm becomes death-ified. If approached and forcibly paralyzed by ??? ability, it ignores external defense, physical defense, and body resistance to steal the heart.
???
???
...
The ground beneath Su Xiao's feet rapidly cracked. He felt a tremendous force coming from the blade. The enemy's strength was terrifying. Despite its seemingly stiff movements, its speed was extremely fast. It had appeared in front of him without any visible motion.
Prisoner·Chira—this was the first resident of Dead Silence City that Su Xiao had encountered, and it was powerful enough to alter the surrounding environment.