Chapter 58: Defiance
Detecting piracy! Taking advantage of Habak's momentary distraction, the Spider Empress sniper rifle appeared in Su Xiao's hand. He aimed at Habak's chest and fired. At this distance, there was no need for a scope.
Bang!
A large hole was blasted through the left side of Habak's chest, and venom splattered everywhere.
Su Xiao's eyes showed confusion. He had aimed the shot at the very center of Habak's chest, yet the opponent had dodged it quickly.
From the start of the battle until now, Habak had never dodged Su Xiao's slashes, not even when his neck was severed. So why was he dodging now?
There was something wrong with the center of his chest. Su Xiao was certain of that.
Putting away the Spider Empress, Su Xiao charged at Habak, whose gaze had turned icy cold. Habak seemed enraged by that shot.
Reaching Habak, Su Xiao gripped his blade with both hands and slashed straight at the center of Habak's chest.
Habak indeed bent down to dodge. The long blade swept across Habak's face but didn't cut any solid substance.
A dark green claw swiped at Su Xiao's chest, leaving three bloody gashes.
Before the blood could even flow out, the dark green venom had already sealed the wounds. Su Xiao's health plummeted by a large chunk.
The slash missed, and sharp pain came from his chest, but Su Xiao didn't retreat. Instead, he thrust his blade toward the center of Habak's chest.
Dragon-Slaying Flash easily pierced into Habak's body. Habak still tried to sidestep, but the long blade ran straight through his throat.
"Hehe, doesn't hurt a bit."
Habak opened his mouth wide, venom surging within. If that mouthful of venom landed on Su Xiao, he might be done for.
"Azure Steel!"
Su Xiao roared, rapidly converting his mana into Azure Steel Shadow energy.
A massive surge of Azure Steel Shadow energy rushed into Habak's body, forming a blue circle.
Boom!
The Azure Steel Shadow energy exploded. Habak's upper body was blown apart, and a large spray of venom splattered onto Su Xiao.
Su Xiao's health dropped like water flowing out. The Supreme Blade's second effect was activated.
Bloody Battle (Passive): When health falls below 30%, Stamina +10 and attack speed increased by 20% (effect lasts half an hour).
With a 10-point increase in Stamina, Su Xiao's physique attribute temporarily rose to 35 points, granting high resistance and weakening the poison's potency.
Dark green venom dripped down Su Xiao's cheeks. After Habak's upper body was blown away, a human head appeared inside its chest cavity.
That human head belonged to a young man, around seventeen or eighteen years old.
The young man had jet-black hair and handsome features. His eyelids were trembling as he struggled to open his eyes.
Through his effort, his eyes finally opened.
As soon as he opened his eyes, he started gasping for air, but aside from his head, all other body parts were gone. He could no longer feel the sensation of breathing.
Tears streamed from the young man's eyes as he looked at the sunlight outside the station window.
Habak's body was slowly regenerating. Su Xiao held a bucket of clean water to wash off the venom; otherwise, he would die soon.
"Are you a contractor? A fellow kindred!"
The young man looked at Su Xiao with great familiarity. Su Xiao didn't speak; he needed to wash off the venom quickly.
"Use saltwater. Fresh water won't work."
Hearing the young man's words, Su Xiao paused, then took out a bag of salt. He sprinkled a small amount on the venom, and sure enough, the venom immediately dissolved.
Mixing salt into the water, the saltwater easily washed away the venom.
"Kill me. Please, kill me. Living like this is too painful."
Venom slowly enveloped the young man's head. He wanted to struggle, but he was only a head now.
"Are you Contractor 9740?"
Su Xiao's question made the young man ecstatic.
"Yes, that's me. Did the Paradise send you to save me?"
The young man seemed almost unable to believe it.
"No, it's to kill you."
Hearing Su Xiao's answer, the young man smiled with relief.
"Killing me is fine too. My soul has been devoured too much; it can't recover. Its weakness is salt. Destroy my head, and it's done for..."
Before the young man could finish, venom enveloped him. Habak's body regenerated.
"This scum. Becoming my vessel is your fortune."
Habak seemed furious, stepping back. It hadn't expected the young man, reduced to just a head, to wake up and expose its weakness to the enemy.
Su Xiao put away Dragon-Slashing Flash and took off his venom-soaked shirt, which puzzled Habak.
"How about we talk?"
Su Xiao ignored Habak.
"Hey, I'm talking to you."
Su Xiao squinted his eyes. Suddenly, a muffled sound came from inside Habak's body. Habak's expression went blank as it looked down at its chest.
"I have no interest in talking to a dead man."
Just then, a small white frog jumped onto the young man's head. It was a special-grade alchemy bomb.
Venom surged at Habak's chest, and a head, half blown apart, fell out. It was the young man's head. He was dead, but his face was filled with a joyful smile.
"How could this be? I haven't evolved to my perfect form yet. I haven't revived my race. I finally managed to sneak in here..."
Before Habak could finish, transparent chains shot out from the void, piercing into Habak's body.
"No, no, listen to me! We can cooperate. I won't ignore the tasks from now on. Listen to me!"
Reincarnation Paradise completely ignored Habak's nonsense.
[Verification: 'Habak' is an alien creature. No Reincarnation Mark. Forcible execution in progress...]
The chains inside Habak's body surged, shredding its body piece by piece.
"No~! You bastard, didn't I say we could cooperate?"
Habak's body was disintegrated bit by bit, its screams echoing far away.
After more than ten seconds, the last drop of venom in the air was decomposed. Three sparkling crystals fell to the ground.
Su Xiao quickly stepped forward and picked up the crystals. These were good stuff.
[You have obtained Soul Crystal (Medium) × 3.]
[Tip: The Hunter has successfully hunted the Violator. Hunt mission completed.]
[The Hunter performed exceptionally in this hunt mission. Full rewards granted.]
[You have obtained Silver Honor Medal × 1.]
[Silver Honor Medal]
Description: Can be exchanged for items in the Honor Shop. Rare item. Specific exchangeable items can be viewed in the Honor Shop, located in the Hunter's exclusive room.
...
The hunt mission was complete. Having learned from last time, Su Xiao would do his best to finish hunt missions.
In the space battlefield, the role of an Arbiter seemed glorious, but there was little they could do. Last time, because he failed to complete the hunt mission, he was forcibly conscripted by Reincarnation Paradise.
Once bitten, twice shy. A Hunter participating in a space war would never just be an Arbiter.
The space barrier disappeared. Soon, dozens of contractors walked into the station from outside.
"Um... this big shot."
A beautiful young woman stepped forward, wearing a loose dress that revealed glimpses of her fair legs. Her eyes were seductive, and her face was full of smiles.
The moment Su Xiao saw her, he felt a surge of goodwill, an urge to press this woman down and rub her against the ground.
This woman was a Charm attribute specialist.
"What, want to snatch the Nether King blueprints? You can choose to fight me one-on-one or all together."
The beautiful young woman was taken aback.
"One-on-one?"
"Yes, me against all of you."
The beautiful young woman showed a smile, revealing neat teeth.
"As long as someone has a normal brain, no contractor on the front island would choose to oppose a big shot like you. We all saw what happened at the Judicial Tower. That sniper's trick was terrifying."
The beautiful young woman walked up to Su Xiao, seemingly unafraid that he might suddenly stab her. She was a very clever woman. She knew that if Su Xiao wanted to kill her, ten meters or one meter made no difference. Right now, the best scenario was to get as close as possible—this was a top-tier thigh to latch onto.
The beautiful young woman pressed her ample chest against Su Xiao's arm. Under her loose clothing, she was wearing nothing.
"It's like this, big shot. Of course we want the Nether King blueprints, but you could tear off a tiny corner and sell it to us."
The beautiful young woman pinched her two slender fingers together to show a small distance, smiling like a little white fox.
Su Xiao was stunned. That could work? If contractors cooperated, couldn't they farm Paradise Coins?
The beautiful young woman guessed what Su Xiao was thinking and said, "Although getting a small corner won't give rewards, it can at least avoid penalties. Each of us will pay 1,000 Paradise Coins. We only need a small corner each. And this is a secret; few people know about it."
Su Xiao understood what was going on. It seemed Reincarnation Paradise wouldn't drive contractors into a dead end. This was a way out, but it required luck.
However, this could lead to a vicious cycle—the strong getting stronger, the weak getting weaker. That was why elite contractors like Crazy Nurse and Left-Handed Man existed.
Ability and courage determine achievement. That was fair.
Su Xiao looked around at the surrounding contractors. There were over twenty people, meaning over 20,000 Paradise Coins. This deal was a sure win.
---
A Quick Note
Regarding the late updates these past few days, let me explain. It's indeed my fault. I keep trying to fix my sleep schedule, but once I lie in bed, I just can't fall asleep. It's painful.
I might be doing three chapters a day for a while. After four chapters a day for two months straight, I feel really drained. Imagine waking up, writing, finishing four chapters, and realizing it's already six or seven in the evening. Rest a bit, then sleep. Repeat that for two months. The farthest I'd go was to the bathroom. Laughing and crying.
I checked my WeChat steps earlier. Average steps were between 50 and 200. After two months of that, sure enough, I got sick. After getting an IV at the clinic, I felt much better, but the doctor told me to exercise more because my complexion was too poor and I was too weak. He suggested I go to the hospital for a check-up.
At just twenty-six, I have cervical spondylosis and a mild lumbar disc herniation. I really don't want to keep going like this. I need to get some sunlight soon and not sit in front of the computer writing all day. Although having people enjoy the stories I write is incredibly satisfying, I'm still young. I really don't want to end up on my knees.
After resting for a while, I'll try to get back to four chapters a day.
This month, I'm ranked sixth on the secondary dimension power rankings, meaning my update volume is sixth in the secondary dimension channel. Last month, it was fourth.
I promised a minimum of three chapters a day, and I'll keep that promise. As for paying off debts, that'll take some time, but I will pay them off. I've already paid off over 60 chapters. Since the baseline is three chapters, the debt repayment speed is a bit slow.
You never expected that a dark-style writer like me would be this cowardly, right? Yes, you read that correctly. In front of readers, I'm very cowardly. Readers = supporters = those who appreciate me = my bread and butter. Without readers, no matter how well a writer writes, it's useless. That's my attitude toward readers. It was like that before, and it's like that now.
Also, I have to go on a blind date soon. I've already been rejected many times for being ugly. It really hurts. Don't laugh at me, okay.