Chapter 19: Tears of Joy
A large group of contractors charged forward through the corridor, their momentum unstoppable. If contractors from other paradises saw this scene, they would definitely be full of question marks and wonder, "Are these really Apocalypse Paradise contractors?"
In fact, these were Apocalypse Paradise contractors who had been pushed to their limits.
Clang, clang, clang—
Su Xiao's long blade swept horizontally, blocking a longsword, a high-tech war scythe, and a magnetic rod.
'Blade Path: Vibrant Resonance.'
Su Xiao's arm exerted force, and a strange power surged through the long blade, knocking the three melee weapons away.
Boom!
An elemental orb slammed into Su Xiao's shoulder, but it didn't stop his movements in the slightest.
Swish, swish—
Cross-shaped blade light flashed. The three melee contractors at the front only felt their vision go dark before they knew nothing more.
As the three melee contractors fell, four more from behind stepped forward.
A war hammer howled as it came crashing down toward Su Xiao's head.
Su Xiao lightly leaped backward, sheathed his long blade, and assumed the starting stance for a draw slash.
'Blade Path: Slaughter.'
A blood-red chain of light swept through. The shattered war hammer fell to the ground, while the contractor who had wielded it was already sliced to pieces.
Pfft!
An emerald-green alloy arrow embedded itself into Su Xiao's lower abdomen. The moment it pierced in, Su Xiao grabbed it, exerted force with his hand, and pulled the alloy arrow straight out.
Cyan Steel Shadow energy surged along the alloy arrow. Over a dozen meters away, the long-range bespectacled man had just aimed his second shot when Su Xiao hurled the alloy arrow in his hand.
The alloy arrow tore through a layer of air, its spiral arrow fins rotating. The next instant, the arrow tip pierced into the long-range bespectacled man's skull. He didn't even let out a groan before collapsing.
'Blade Path: Time.'
The long blade stabbed into the metal floor, a wave of force spread out, and Su Xiao vanished from his spot.
Blade light flashed. The two contractors at the very front both felt a chill at their necks, followed by the world spinning around them.
The Apocalypse Paradise contractors came wave after wave. Only a few could exchange a few moves with Su Xiao; most were slain by him in an instant.
"Maximum... charge."
With a thunderous boom, Su Xiao's long blade had just been pulled from a contractor's neck when a tremendous force struck him from the front.
Bang! Su Xiao slammed into the door of the captain's quarters. He landed in a half-crouch, then stood up and rolled his neck.
"This bastard... is he a tank?"
A girl with twin ponytails glanced at the energy cannon in her hand, somewhat doubting whether she had actually hit the enemy just now.
Blood dripped from the corner of Su Xiao's mouth. He pressed down on his left shoulder, and with a crack, the slightly dislocated bone snapped back into place.
Su Xiao's long blade slashed diagonally, cleaving an incoming bullet in two. The shattered fragments bounced a few times on the metal corridor floor before landing. The chaotic battle continued.
Ten minutes later, with a bang, a contractor flew out from a corner of the corridor. He immediately stood up, took two steps, and then realized something was wrong—his heart had stopped beating. Or rather, it had been crushed by the enemy's kick.
Nearly twenty contractors rushed past the heartless man. Some had lost an arm, others were carrying their own organs, their eyes filled with terror.
After these twenty-plus contractors fled around the corner, the battle in the corridor subsided.
Inside the corridor, Su Xiao wiped the blood from his face. The crystal layer on his vital torso areas shattered with a crack, scattering to the ground.
It turned out that Apocalypse Paradise contractors weren't easy to deal with either. These guys were too rich, with all kinds of Epic-level equipment and items appearing endlessly.
Su Xiao could dodge one or two items, but if there were too many, he had no choice but to tough it out.
Lighting a cigarette, Su Xiao sat down on a pile of corpses to rest. There were still 47 minutes until the coordinate was generated.
Meanwhile, at the entrance of the corridor, the pressure door hissed shut.
Behind the pressure door:
"I... I survived. I fought that monster and survived! I think I even cut him once!"
A burly man with a broad-bladed greatsword and only one arm left leaned against the metal wall, muttering to himself.
"Are you all... willing to charge in a third time?"
Kulong, a scar running across his face and covered in blood, spoke up. His strength was not weak; when he faced Su Xiao head-on, he had withstood a few slashes, not disgracing the name of a tank.
"I dare. If he doesn't die, we die."
A short-haired tomboy gritted her teeth.
"Let's... calm down first."
A healing-type girl squatting in the corner spoke softly. Just now, a blade light had flown right over her head, giving her a buzz cut that somehow made her look adorably silly.
"Everyone..."
Kulong was about to boost morale when the steam door on the outer side opened, and a man with naturally curly, somewhat messy hair walked in.
"Is the enemy inside?"
The messy-haired man's eyelids drooped, looking as if he hadn't woken up. His calm demeanor drew the attention of all the contractors present.
By now, Apocalypse Paradise had gathered 281 contractors. Originally, there were 329, but after the last charge, 48 contractors had been left behind forever in the corridor.
If it were an open terrain facing 329 contractors head-on, Su Xiao would have been focus-fired and killed within minutes. But the C-shaped corridor's terrain prevented him from being surrounded.
"Yes, inside."
Kulong was a bit confused about what was happening.
"Mm. You've worked hard. Leave the rest to me." The messy-haired man yawned and continued, "If I die, temporarily leave the contractor camp. The guy inside there... isn't someone you should be dealing with."
The messy-haired man opened the steam door.
"Wait. We'll help you charge in."
Kulong vaguely guessed something but didn't say it outright.
"Thanks for the offer, but I'm used to fighting alone. If others interfere, I'll actually be more restricted."
The messy-haired man closed the pressure door. A dozen seconds later, a roar came from the corridor.
The battle lasted several minutes before subsiding. Kulong exchanged a glance with Scarface, and they both pressed the pressure door's recognition device without a word.
The pressure door opened. The corridor was very quiet. The messy-haired man sat leaning against the corner, one hand resting on his knee, blood dripping from his fingertips.
The second Battle Angel had fallen.
Seeing the dead messy-haired man, Kulong's heart sank halfway. There was only one enemy blocking the corridor, and they couldn't break through at all. Victory was just a few dozen meters away, yet it felt so distant.
"Is there anyone else... willing to charge in with me?"
Kulong's fists clenched with cracking sounds. Scarface didn't speak. Either way, death was certain, so he chose to gamble.
The 281 contractors gathered again, maintaining the same formation as before. It was the most effective and the most likely way to break through.
"This is the last time. If it doesn't succeed..."
Kulong grinned. If it didn't succeed, they would die. There would be no "then."
"Everyone, prepare!"
Kulong took a deep breath. Just as he was about to lead the charge into the corridor—
[Announcement: All contractors must withdraw from the contractor camp within five minutes. Any violation will result in forced execution punishment.]
[Announcement: The conscription mission has been canceled. This mission carries no penalty.]
...
As soon as these two announcements appeared, Kulong and the others were stunned. They had been cut down until they couldn't find their bearings, and now the conscription mission was suddenly canceled.
"Waaah—"
A healing-type girl covered her mouth, crying tears of joy. She no longer had to challenge that god of death in the corridor. One man, one blade, and over 300 contractors couldn't break through. This was no longer something a Fifth Rank contractor could do.
Not just the healing-type girl, but everyone else felt the same. Fighting Su Xiao felt like facing the ultimate final boss of a Fifth Rank world. Without a strong enough team composition, the tank would fall in an instant.
"Apocalypse Paradise, you finally see how miserable we are."
Scarface's hands trembled. The joy in his heart was beyond words. He felt a sense of surviving a disaster. He wanted to laugh three times and roar, "Heaven has eyes!"
However, these contractors didn't yet know that Apocalypse Paradise had ordered them to retreat because of something else. What Reincarnation Paradise was competing for this time wasn't just resources.