Chapter 31: The Ferocious Butcher
Su Xiao glanced at the fallen Moen Tony and paid him no further attention. This guy was clever, and it was safe to predict that the next patriarch of the Moen family would be none other than him.
After all, the Dominator was now dead, and the "Azathoth Consciousness" was being handled by Su Xiao, nearly subdued. With these two taken down, the various factions within Herlu City would flourish.
If Tony could become the new patriarch of the Moen family, he would undoubtedly become a major figure in Herlu City from now on.
With the potential threats in the room resolved, Su Xiao closed his eyes to perceive the situation inside the [Greed Chapter]. The scene within was quite lively.
Inside the mist-shrouded arena of the [Greed Chapter], a mass of black smoke was darting around frantically. This was the Azathoth Consciousness.
Its opponent, the Living Butcher, stood nearly four meters tall, wielding a long-handled greatsword. The weapon was almost three meters in total length, with a handle a full meter long, a blade close to two meters, and a width of about four fingers. It didn’t appear cumbersome but rather sharp and unstoppable.
The Living Butcher’s skin was a dark red, with visible cracks, and tattered strips of cloth hung from its body.
Before encountering the Living Butcher, Su Xiao had been chopping enemies like vegetables. But after meeting this thing...
A terrifying blade aura howled, carving black scars through the air. The "Azathoth Consciousness" had managed to hold on this long mainly because the Living Butcher hadn’t bothered much with it.
As soon as Su Xiao entered the [Greed Chapter], the Living Butcher’s eyes seemed to regain some life, and it prepared to lunge at him.
The Azure-Blue longsword was thrust into the ground. Through repeated experiments, Su Xiao had learned that as long as he didn’t draw the sword, the Living Butcher wouldn’t appear. This time, it was entirely the "Azathoth Consciousness" that had provoked the Living Butcher.
"Law Destroyer."
The mass of black smoke that was the Azathoth Consciousness churned—this was pure darkness.
"..."
Su Xiao said nothing. He walked past the Living Butcher and approached the Azure-Blue longsword.
Blue flames surged at the end of the Azure-Blue sword’s hilt. Su Xiao’s hands hovered over the flames, and he closed his eyes.
With a whoosh, the blue flames vanished, appearing within the churning darkness, but they were extinguished instantly.
The blue flames at the hilt reignited. Su Xiao’s gaze shifted to the black smoke.
"Butcher, kill him."
The moment Su Xiao spoke, the Living Butcher rushed past him.
Clang!
The first slash was unleashed.
A blade aura nearly ten meters wide appeared, cleaving the black smoke in two. A wave of mental agony spread, yet despite enduring the pain of a severed consciousness, the Azathoth Consciousness didn’t let out even a hint of a scream.
Clang!
The second slash tore through the air, and the black smoke began to dissipate.
The Living Butcher spun its long-handled greatsword, delivering a third upward slash. The black smoke scattered with a crackling sound.
"In the end, I still lose to you."
The calm voice faded away. The Living Butcher turned its gaze, hoisted its three-meter greatsword, and charged at Su Xiao, unstoppable.
Inside the banquet hall, Su Xiao opened his eyes. If he didn’t want to "die in battle," he could voluntarily leave the [Greed Chapter].
Su Xiao suspected that until his Blade Technique reached Lv.40, he couldn’t face the Living Butcher head-on.
[Prompt: The Hunter has killed the Blind Azathoth.]
[Azathoth’s "Dark Source" has been broken.]
[Blind Azathoth has died.]
[Dark Source Azathoth has not died and has entered a berserk chaotic state.]
[Because the Hunter did not kill Dark Source Azathoth, only World Source and Soul Coin rewards can be obtained.]
[You have gained 16.7% World Source.]
[You have gained 205 Soul Coins.]
...
Seeing the prompt from Reincarnation Paradise, Su Xiao was somewhat surprised. He had only killed half of the final boss, yet he obtained 16.7% World Source. If he had killed the complete form, the reward would have been astonishingly generous.
From the prompt, Azathoth had split into two parts: Blind Azathoth and Dark Source Azathoth. The former was Azathoth’s consciousness, the latter its body.
Su Xiao stood up and walked toward the banquet hall’s exit. Just as he was about to push the door open, a sudden sense of danger emerged.
Almost instinctively, Su Xiao sidestepped, and a layer of crystals formed on his chest.
Pfft!
A long dagger pierced through Su Xiao’s chest. His hand had already gripped the sword hilt, but he didn’t draw it, because there was no enemy nearby. His instinct had only warned him for an instant before the danger vanished.
It wasn’t an assassination from another space or an invisible enemy. Based on Su Xiao’s combat experience, he deduced this the moment he was stabbed.
The dagger had pierced three centimeters to the right of Su Xiao’s heart. Moreover, a series of judgments occurred.
[You will be affected by the "Thorn Sting" ability. Strength attribute judgment in progress... Judgment passed. This ability activation failed.]
[You will be affected by the "Spirit Bee" ability. Agility attribute judgment in progress... Judgment failed. You take 690 points of defense-ignoring damage + 179 points of agility true damage + 16 points/second bleeding damage for 60 seconds.]
[You will be affected by the "Thorn Sting" ability. Strength attribute judgment in progress... Judgment passed. This ability activation failed.]
[You will be affected by the "Ghost Walker" ability. Charm attribute judgment in progress... Judgment failed, and the enemy’s charm attribute overwhelms yours. You take 2900 points of damage.]
[You take...]
...
After seven judgments, Su Xiao slowly pulled the dagger from his chest, his expression calm. An unexpected prompt appeared.
[You have obtained the Red Dance Fang (Legendary).]
[Due to the enemy’s ability, the Red Dance Fang has exceeded its upper damage limit. Durability has been depleted. Current durability: 0/76.]
...
Su Xiao had been assassinated. The enemy was very strong. For an ordinary Sixth Rank contractor, this dagger strike would have been a one-hit kill. But for Su Xiao, drinking a bottle of Ancient Secret Medicine would restore him.
Twenty kilometers away, inside a massive cave.
A woman with a cool, revealing outfit and long, light red hair sat slumped beneath a stone wall. Her eyes gradually regained focus.
"That’s ridiculous, damn it!"
The woman’s lips twitched, her face slightly pale.
"Meihuan, he’s not dead?"
A deep male voice came. A man of medium build spoke, his surroundings slightly distorted, obscuring his features.
"It’s not just that he’s not dead. After taking my hit, that Hunter is at most... lightly injured."
Meihuan seemed a bit speechless. The last time she had assassinated a Sixth Rank main tank, it had felt similar—no, that time the main tank had been severely injured.
"Lightly injured? Are you kidding me? My legendary dagger cost hundreds of thousands of Paradise Coins, and you’re telling me lightly injured?"
"Then next time, use an Epic dagger."
Meihuan shrugged. She was just a hired killer. If it weren’t for the fact that the target was also a Violator, she wouldn’t have taken this job. Reincarnation Paradise’s Hunters were no joke.
"You said..."
"Hey, Matthew, aren’t you being too arrogant?"
Meihuan’s smile was charming, but the man named Matthew stiffened.
"Sorry, I got carried away. But since you’ve taken the contract, what now?"
The somewhat agitated Matthew bowed his head slightly. Though he was a Violator, he didn’t dare act arrogantly in front of Meihuan.
"Didn’t I say? Next time, use an Epic dagger. I only have four chances, and I’ve used one. If that doesn’t work, have your boss bring out ‘that thing.’ With that grade of dagger, I guarantee a one-hit kill."
Meihuan stood up, stretching with her hands crossed.
"Change of location. That guy’s close combat is as strong as a boss. Let me give you some bad news: the Ancient God you recruited got killed again a few minutes ago. Didn’t even let out a fart before dying."
Meihuan walked toward the cave entrance. On her exposed, fair right arm, dense blue stripes covered it, each stripe very thin. Conservatively, there were over a thousand, and each one represented a contractor who had died by Meihuan’s hand.