Chapter 57: Hanging from the Southeast Branch
Detecting piracy! The Pluto blueprint suddenly changed location, and the Crazy Nurse and the Revolver Man immediately sensed something was wrong.
Frankie couldn't have left the Judicial Tower at this time; neither of them was stupid, which meant the Pluto blueprint had already fallen into someone else's hands.
Not only did the Crazy Nurse and the Revolver Man realize this, but the Three Brothers of National Football also figured it out.
A difficult choice lay before them: whether to leave the Judicial Tower.
The chaotic battle between the Straw Hat Pirates and CP9 was about to begin, and that would be the time to reap benefits.
If failing the mission meant deducting attributes, the few would decisively leave the Judicial Tower. However, failing the mission meant deducting Paradise Coins, which made them hesitate.
While they hesitated, Su Xiao had already left the main island and arrived at the front island.
The contractors on the front island were very confused. They had already given up on completing the main quest, yet now the Pluto blueprint was delivered right to their doorstep. Happiness came too suddenly.
Su Xiao, along with Bubuteni, arrived at the sea train station on the front island. The empty station was devoid of anyone.
Holding the Dragon-Slaying Flash in the station, the warnings from Reincarnation Paradise grew more urgent.
[Warning: Violator No. 9740 is within 100 meters. Hunter must proceed with caution.]
[Warning: Violator No. 9740 is within 30 meters. Hunter must proceed with caution.]
Su Xiao looked around; his perception detected no one, but the warnings from Reincarnation Paradise kept appearing.
"Come out. Hiding is pointless now."
Su Xiao stood still, seemingly having already located the enemy's position.
"Another one coming to die."
A hollow voice echoed from all around, making it impossible to determine the direction.
[Warning: Violator No. 9740 has approached within 10 meters of the Hunter. Detected that Violator No. 9740 is a 9/10 foreign species. Spatial barrier activated.]
A pale golden barrier appeared around them, covering an area of about 200 meters.
"Damn this barrier again."
A figure revealed itself not far from Su Xiao. This figure could no longer be called human; it was merely a humanoid creature.
The humanoid creature was covered in dark green liquid. As it moved, the liquid dripped to the ground, corroding it with a sizzling sound.
"You're a Hunter, aren't you? Hehehe."
The humanoid creature's words were startling, accompanied by a strange laugh.
Su Xiao said nothing. He had an ominous feeling, one he hadn't even felt when fighting the Revolver Man.
"I've killed too many humans like you. There's no other possibility except becoming nourishment for my body."
The humanoid creature's green vertical pupils flickered with killing intent, and its forked tongue licked its lips.
Su Xiao frowned. This thing didn't look human at all, and it didn't feel like a contractor.
If there was a creature similar to this humanoid, it would be the Kala Star people he had encountered before.
"A rank 9 contractor who hasn't even passed the first rank trial dares to come kill me? Admirable courage."
The humanoid tilted its head to look at Su Xiao, its gaze like that of a cold-blooded animal.
Sssss.
A large cloud of green smoke burst from the humanoid's body, rapidly spreading outward.
[You are being eroded by 'Unknown Toxin,' taking 2 damage per second.]
[You are being eroded by 'Unknown Toxin,' recovery effects reduced by 50% (natural health regeneration and use of recovery items).]
Su Xiao had already held his breath, but he was still being eroded by the toxin. The enemy's poison could directly invade the human body.
He scanned the surroundings; Bubuteni had already hidden somewhere unknown.
"Then, let the hunt begin."
Cyan Steel Shadow energy surged, and Su Xiao threw a few special-grade alchemy bombs to the ground. His figure suddenly burst forward, charging at the humanoid.
"Snake Venom."
The humanoid's belly swelled high, its mouth opened wide, and a torrent of venom sprayed out.
Su Xiao stopped his forward charge. The venom before him was overwhelming; there was no way to break through.
With a splash, a large amount of venom scattered on the ground, releasing a pungent, foul smell. Just smelling it made Su Xiao feel dizzy.
He absolutely could not be touched by this deadly poison; otherwise, he would be crippled even if he didn't die.
The enemy was extremely troublesome. Getting close was very difficult, and Su Xiao's health was continuously dropping. A prolonged fight was impossible.
He scanned the terrain—an open space with only a few seats. This terrain was favorable to him.
With a thought, a special-grade alchemy bomb on the ground instantly changed shape, turning into dozens of small frogs.
The white frogs hopped rapidly across the ground as Su Xiao skirted the venom in front of him and charged at the humanoid.
"Foolish human. If you want to get close so badly, I'll grant your wish. Remember, the one who kills you is Habak."
The venom on Habak's body began to surge, and it actually charged at Su Xiao.
Su Xiao, holding the Dragon-Slaying Flash, quickly closed in on Habak and slashed down with a single stroke.
Habak sneered disdainfully, seemingly unconcerned about Su Xiao's slash. Its venom-coated claws reached for Su Xiao's chest.
Pfft.
The long blade cut through, sending venom splattering.
"Ah!!"
Habak let out a piercing scream, sending out waves of sound.
Crack, crack...
The glass in the station windows cracked, and Su Xiao's head buzzed, his vision blurring with multiple afterimages.
He quickly stepped back a few paces, shook his head, and the afterimages disappeared.
Habak's body trembled, venom splashing everywhere as a blue mark appeared on its neck.
The previous slash had cut through Habak's neck, but it felt like cutting through a pile of venom, not a solid body.
The energy of Cyan Steel Shadow invaded Habak's body, causing it such pain that its eyes rolled back.
Su Xiao wouldn't miss such an opportunity. He rushed forward and delivered two more slashes.
Pfft, pfft.
Venom splattered. Two slash marks appeared on Habak's crown and the bridge of its nose. Although the slashes had no effect, the Cyan Steel Shadow energy could still harm the enemy.
"Unforgivable! How dare you hurt me!"
Habak stopped trembling and glared at Su Xiao.
"Poisonous, no physical form, intelligent... What kind of creature is this?"
Su Xiao was puzzled. He wondered if Reincarnation Paradise would choose other races besides humans as contractors. It seemed unlikely; all the contractors he had seen were human.
He pondered a countermeasure. Slashing was clearly ineffective. Although Cyan Steel Shadow had some effect, it was far from enough to kill the enemy.
"Venomous Pain."
Habak formed a fist with one claw, placed it in front of its mouth, puffed out its cheeks, and blew hard.
Whoosh.
A green streak shot toward Su Xiao. He tried to dodge, but the streak was too fast, piercing directly into his lower abdomen.
[You are being eroded by 'Venomous Pain,' taking 120 true damage over 3 seconds, accompanied by severe pain.]
Su Xiao pulled up his clothes and saw a coin-sized dark green mark on his lower abdomen.
Suddenly, a wave of excruciating pain hit him. Veins bulged on his forehead, and cold sweat seeped from his face.
It hurt—hurt to the bone. Not only that, but his health was rapidly dropping.
"Bubu."
Hearing Su Xiao's call, Bubu Wang immediately activated its Loyal Heart Protector ability, restoring a large portion of Su Xiao's health. Only then did Su Xiao realize where Bubu Wang was hiding.
He looked up and saw Bubu Wang hanging from the steel support beams above the station.
Note: Bubu Wang wasn't gripping the beam with its claws or biting it. It had formed a U-shape with its tail and was hanging from the steel beam! It was upside down at the moment.
Not only was Su Xiao stunned, but Habak was also stunned.
"What kind of new species is this?"
Hearing Habak call it a new species, Bubu Wang was furious. Its gaze seemed to say: 'You're the new species! Your whole family is a new species!'
Actually, Bubu Wang was right...