Chapter 60: The Money Grubber
The flames receded, and the Mad Healer stood in place. His originally flat-top hairstyle had been burned into a bald patch, while the black pastor's robe on him shimmered with a purple glow.
The Mad Healer's upper body was unharmed, but both his lower legs were severely injured, covered in burns. If not for the multiple layers of shields, his legs would have been blown clean off.
A flash of emerald green light, and a few seconds later, the Mad Healer's injuries recovered. He didn't bother with the wounds on his legs but instead stared intently at the black pastor's robe on his body.
"Don't break, don't break…"
The Mad Healer began muttering to himself. He hadn't been this nervous even when the bomb was wrapped around him earlier. Now, the durability of his pastor's robe had hit zero, and it was on the verge of shattering.
As if answering his prayers, or perhaps because the Mad Healer had done many good deeds in the past, the robe really didn't break.
The Mad Healer took off the robe, leaving his upper body bare.
"You bastard, you almost blew up my precious darling."
Su Xiao was slightly taken aback. At a time like this, shouldn't he be saying something like, "How dare you hurt me"? It seemed this guy was a real money grubber.
Words were useless. Su Xiao charged forward.
As he closed in again, the Mad Healer's combat style suddenly changed. He showed no concern for the long blade slashing toward him and instead swung his war scythe at Su Xiao.
*Pfft.*
*Pfft.*
Two streams of blood sprayed out almost simultaneously. Su Xiao's blade struck the Mad Healer's neck, but a golden light blocked the edge, allowing only a small portion of the blade to sink into the flesh.
The Mad Healer's war scythe slashed into Su Xiao's shoulder. The scythe was sharp, embedding itself deep into the shoulder.
Su Xiao immediately understood the Mad Healer's tactic. He was trying to trade blows, exchanging injury for injury.
If he were fighting anyone else, Su Xiao wouldn't be afraid, but this enemy was clearly a healer type with strong recovery abilities.
Still, Su Xiao didn't retreat. The enemy was provoking him, and his own survivability was formidable. Even if the opponent could heal himself, it was still unknown who would laugh last.
"Is living so bad?"
Hearing Su Xiao's low murmur, the Mad Healer looked slightly surprised.
Su Xiao pulled Dragon-Slaying Flash free from the Mad Healer's neck. The Mad Healer swung his war scythe, slashing at Su Xiao several times.
Su Xiao focused his attention inward, mobilizing all the mana in his body. He still had 680 mana points left.
He converted all that mana into Cyan Steel Shadow energy, a pale blue energy flooding his body. At that moment, the center of Su Xiao's pupils turned a pale blue.
The Mad Healer suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. He stomped the ground, trying to retreat, but it was too late.
Su Xiao infused all the Cyan Steel Shadow energy in his body into Dragon-Slaying Flash. The blade's surface emitted a blinding light, as if it had become a lightning-edged sword.
"Is this guy's ultimate move this fast?"
The Mad Healer was speechless. Su Xiao had activated his ultimate without any warning.
The dazzling Dragon-Slaying Flash descended. The Mad Healer raised the handle of his war scythe to block. The scythe's durability plummeted like water flowing away, causing the Mad Healer immense heartache.
*Clang.*
The war scythe snapped. Su Xiao's blade slashed into the Mad Healer's chest.
*Pfft.*
A large spray of blood splattered in front of Su Xiao. The long blade cut through muscle, bone, and organs, finally stopping when it hit the Mad Healer's spine.
This strike nearly cut the Mad Healer in two.
Blood trickled from the corner of the Mad Healer's mouth. He staggered back a few steps, looking at his remaining health with lingering fear. His health had dropped from 96% straight down to 3%. If not for the buff from "Angel's Breath," he would have been in a near-death state.
"Lucky it didn't hit the heart, or I'd be dead."
The Mad Healer coughed up blood, his eyes full of disbelief. He had never imagined that one day he would almost be one-shot by someone.
"Freakishly strong people show up every day, but today there are especially many."
The Mad Healer sighed and pulled out two Soul Crystals (Small).
Seeing the Soul Crystals (Small), Su Xiao's first reaction was to retreat. Although he hadn't been in contact with this enemy for long, the chance of him surrendering was very slim.
The Mad Healer stuffed the two Soul Crystals (Small) into his mouth and crunched them up.
A bad feeling arose. Su Xiao scanned his surroundings.
"Haha~, now you know how I felt earlier. Too late."
The Mad Healer swallowed the fragments of the Soul Crystals (Small) with a gulp, and a light ball the size of an egg appeared in his hand.
The light ball was golden yellow and slowly floated upward.
"Morning Star: Judgment!"
With the Mad Healer's roar, the floating light ball expanded to the size of a basketball, emitting a blinding white light.
The white light shone on the Mad Healer, healing some of his injuries. But when the light touched other objects, they rapidly decomposed into dust.
Su Xiao turned and ran. But upon hearing the Mad Healer's triumphant laughter, he pulled out the Shattered Elf.
While running, Su Xiao activated "Aimed Shot" and fired six shots in rapid succession. The Mad Healer's laughter turned into screams.
Su Xiao grinned, then was enveloped by the white light. Intense pain spread through his entire body.
*Huummm~.*
The white light radiated out from the train station. A few seconds later, the station was disintegrated, reduced to dust.
Far from the station, a beautiful young woman witnessed the scene, a peculiar light flickering in her eyes.
"I didn't lie to you, did I? This is a real powerhouse. But his temper is bad—he kills people at the drop of a hat."
A little girl said in a crisp voice.
"He actually fought the Mad Healer to this extent. The Mad Healer even used Morning Star. This is a super-powerful thigh to cling to, but unfortunately, we can't latch on."
The beautiful young woman sighed and looked at the little girl beside her.
"Congratulations, Xiluo Luo. You've advanced from a Worker to a Contractor."
Xiluo Luo showed her teeth in a smile, looking somewhat proud.
"I knew being a Worker wasn't a long-term plan. Although the intervals between entering derivative worlds are long, making it seem safe, life and death are in others' hands. In this cruel place, not having the ability to protect yourself won't do."
The beautiful young woman, Shui Yuan, looked at Xiluo Luo with interest.
"How about we form an adventure group together?"
Xiluo Luo looked thoughtful.
"That's not impossible, but we're both pretty weak. When we fight, do you charge in first, or do I?"
Shui Yuan hugged Xiluo Luo, her slender arm locking around the little girl's neck.
"Of course, you charge in first. A beauty like me can't be the tank."
"Bullshit! You go up front and sell your looks to lure them in."
Xiluo Luo struggled and bit down on Shui Yuan's arm. Shui Yuan yelped in pain and let go, two small rows of teeth marks on her forearm.
"You little brat, you actually bit me."
Xiluo Luo straightened her hair, revealing four snow-white canine teeth.
"Look, over there. They've decided the winner."
Xiluo Luo pointed toward the station, which had been leveled to the ground.
The Mad Healer burst out from the smoke and dust, holding his broken scythe.
"Stop chasing me, damn it! The blueprints are yours!"
The Mad Healer sprinted away, not very fast. Su Xiao silently pursued from behind, blade in hand, also not moving quickly.
The reason Su Xiao was chasing and slashing at the Mad Healer was that this guy had acted all tough and then tried to run. That was something he absolutely couldn't tolerate.
The chase continued. The Mad Healer ran while shouting and occasionally tossing a grenade. He soon reached the seaside.
"Although being chased is annoying, I want to ask you something. Are you interested in joining the Divine Emperor—"
Before the Mad Healer could finish, he noticed Su Xiao had already pulled out the heavy sniper rifle. He didn't dare say another word and leaped into the sea.