Chapter 58: The Villain Dies from Talking Too Much
The battle was about to erupt, a fight to the death where only one would survive.
But what made it despairing was that even if Su Xiao defeated Esdeath, there was still Wave, and tens of thousands of soldiers behind him.
Judging by the situation, Esdeath had no intention of fighting Su Xiao one-on-one. Esdeath had no chivalrous spirit.
"If I can capture you alive, that would be perfect. I'll make you taste all my interrogation methods."
Esdeath's sadistic side resurfaced. Su Xiao was no longer her subordinate; he was now the enemy.
Su Xiao said nothing. Arcs of electricity surged along Dragon-Slaying Flash.
Perhaps this would be his final battle.
"No need to fight."
A faint murmur came from the little emperor, whose head was lowered.
"Hm?"
Su Xiao looked at the little emperor with confusion.
"Take me out of here. I want revenge!"
The little emperor's teeth ground together audibly, his expression extremely vicious.
"That's unlikely. I might die here, and you'd have even less chance of surviving."
"No, we can both live. Listen to me..."
The little emperor began speaking in a low voice to Su Xiao, while the soldiers in the distance were already closing in.
"There's something like that? The minister doesn't know?"
Su Xiao's eyes gleamed with curiosity.
"I discovered it the first time I touched the activation key of the Supreme Imperial Armament. I never cared about it, so I didn't tell anyone."
"You finally did something with a brain."
The arcs of electricity on Dragon-Slaying Flash faded. Su Xiao thrust the blade deep into the ground beneath his feet, quickly stepped back, and carved a long slash mark into the stone floor.
"What is he doing? Has he lost his mind?"
The minister looked at Su Xiao in confusion.
"No, Bai Ye couldn't possibly lose his mind. Unless..."
Esdeath rushed toward Su Xiao at full speed.
Su Xiao pulled Dragon-Slaying Flash from the ground, glanced at Esdeath pushing through the crowd toward him, then looked at the minister in the distance.
"Minister, thank you for saying so much nonsense to the little emperor and making him utterly despair."
As Su Xiao spoke, he stomped down on the ground with all his strength.
Boom!
Su Xiao's foot shattered the stone floor, sending large chunks of rubble falling downward.
A vertical shaft, ten meters in diameter, appeared. The opening was perfectly circular with smooth edges, clearly man-made.
The shaft was pitch black and bottomless. Large pieces of rubble fell, and Su Xiao also dropped into the hole, holding the little emperor in his hand.
"Don't think you can escape."
Esdeath leaped into the shaft. This sadistic female general naturally wouldn't give up.
But the moment Esdeath jumped in, she found Su Xiao pointing a strange weapon at her.
"Is that... a gun?"
Bang, bang, bang...
While falling, Su Xiao continuously pulled the trigger of Shattered Elf, firing six bullets at Esdeath.
A thin layer of ice formed in front of Esdeath, blocking all the bullets.
Clang, clang...
Esdeath blocked the bullets, but since she was midair with no foothold, the impact of the bullets hitting the ice created considerable force. The combined power of the six bullets pushed Esdeath out of the shaft.
Esdeath flipped and landed steadily on the edge of the shaft. She wasn't injured, but Su Xiao had already fallen deep into the hole.
"Goodbye."
A object appeared in Su Xiao's hand, and he threw it with force toward Esdeath. Two seconds later, his figure vanished into the dark shaft.
Esdeath caught the object Su Xiao had thrown. She didn't sense any danger. Looking closely, it was the token of the Hunter Unit.
On the back of the token was carved a single character: "Night." Now, a slash had been cut through that character.
"So, Bai Ye was a fake name after all."
Esdeath gripped the token in her hand, recalling the scene when she first met Su Xiao in the far north.
"You won. From now on, I am your subordinate."
That was what Su Xiao had said during their first encounter with Esdeath.
"Thinking you can escape like this? Don't even dream of it."
Murderous intent boiled in Esdeath's eyes as she leaped into the shaft.
"Esdeath, wait—"
The minister's words were cut off as Esdeath had already jumped into the hole.
"Is this woman out of her mind? Doesn't she care about the Revolutionary Army anymore?"
The minister trembled with rage. A figure walked past him and also leaped into the shaft—it was Wave.
...
Su Xiao fell rapidly through the dark shaft, his speed increasing. If he hit the ground at this speed, he would surely die.
He untied the Realm Severing Thread from the little emperor's neck, wrapped it around the metal guard of Dragon-Slaying Flash, and hurled the blade upward. Dragon-Slaying Flash pierced into the stone wall of the shaft.
Clang.
The blade sank deep into the stone. Su Xiao gradually tightened the Realm Severing Thread, his body jerking to a stop as the line wheel on his wrist creaked.
With a crack, Dragon-Slaying Flash was pulled out of the stone wall, leaving large cracks in the rock. Su Xiao's falling speed slowed.
Whenever his descent became too fast, he repeated this action, keeping his falling speed within a safe range.
The shaft wasn't endless. After falling for a while, Su Xiao landed on the ground.
Boom.
The stone slab beneath Su Xiao's feet shattered, his feet sinking into the stone as spiderweb-like cracks spread around him.
"Are... are we safe?"
The little emperor's voice trembled, and his body shook.
It was pitch black all around. Su Xiao took out a high-powered flashlight and shone it around. The surrounding walls had many doorways over five meters tall—at least a dozen of them. Above each doorway was a number, from 1 to 13.
[You have arrived at a hidden location in the derivative world: Bilumark Alchemy Laboratory.]
[The 'Bilumark Alchemy Laboratory' is a high-risk location. Hunters should proceed with caution.]
[Warning: 'Bilumark Alchemy Laboratory' is filled with alchemical poison gas. You lose 5 Health Points per second. This is True Damage.]
[Tip: Hunters can spend Paradise Coins to generate an air filtration device. Cost: 100 Paradise Coins per hour. Generate air filtration device? Yes/No.]
Su Xiao's expression changed. His Health Points were draining like water. A burning sensation spread across his body, but there was no pungent smell in the air. This alchemical poison gas was colorless and odorless—very dangerous.
"Generate."
An invisible barrier appeared. This thing cost 100 Paradise Coins per hour. If Su Xiao stayed here for a few days, he would go bankrupt.
Although the immediate crisis was resolved, he was now in an undetectable poison gas, with a large number of pursuers behind him.
"This way."
The little emperor suddenly spoke. Su Xiao looked at him in surprise.
"How are you not dead?"
"Huh? Why would I die?"
The little emperor looked at Su Xiao in confusion.
Su Xiao guessed the little emperor's Stamina attribute was at most ten points, yet he showed no signs of poisoning.
It was very likely that the little emperor was immune to this alchemical poison.
This was the underground of the Imperial Palace. The "Bilumark Alchemy Laboratory" was built by the previous emperor. The royal family could be immune to alchemical toxins.
The Empire's alchemical technology had once been extremely advanced, but it had vanished without a trace afterward. The royal family must have been involved.
Su Xiao decided to venture deeper here to find an escape route.
This place was filled with alchemical poison gas, so Esdeath and the others couldn't possibly pursue them. Moreover, the "Bilumark Alchemy Laboratory" must hide significant secrets. Secrets = Danger = Benefits = Becoming Stronger.
Su Xiao resolutely walked in the direction the little emperor indicated. Here, the little emperor might play a crucial role. The little emperor's royal bloodline was connected to the "Bilumark Alchemy Laboratory."