Chapter 25: Chimera
In the end, Su Xiao and Si Yang reached an agreement: 5,800 Soul Coins plus 159 pieces of Light Silver Ore for the transaction. Within this Apocalypse Paradise, the selling price of ores was somewhat lower, given the large output.
The transaction location was on Gem Street. Si Yang had close ties with Archbishop Dulu of the Kodo School, and could even mobilize a small amount of combat power from them.
As for who Archbishop Dulu was, he was the one who had a certain "accident" during the high-level meeting.
The transaction was set for nine in the morning, at a small tavern on the west side of the street. Si Yang's clone would arrive, bringing the Immortal-grade gem [Sky Rend].
After a bustling morning on the streets, the weather turned somewhat overcast by late morning. Su Xiao walked along the road, glanced at the time—it was 8:45—and could head to the appointment.
Su Xiao didn't bring Yue Ling. For her, Gem Street, with its maze of alleys, was a nightmare-level terrain. Unless she stuck close to Su Xiao, she would most likely be lured away by the aroma of food and get lost. Her formidable willpower had little effect in the face of delicious cuisine.
Bringing Bubu Wang and Baha, Su Xiao soon arrived at the appointed tavern's entrance. He pushed open the louvered door; inside, there were no patrons. The bartender behind the counter eyed Su Xiao warily, pulled out a portrait to compare, and only then made a gesture of invitation.
Su Xiao sat at the bar, and the bartender slid over a murky cocktail, offering a polite smile.
Su Xiao looked at the bartender before him. An indescribable sense of wrongness arose. From his attire, appearance, aura, and so on, the bartender was a native of this world. Yet Su Xiao felt a strange familiarity—not familiarity with the person, but with the state he was in. This thing, he had encountered it before, and had even killed two of them.
This thing before him, at the seventh rank, was no longer found in the Primordial Worlds belonging to Reincarnation Paradise. It was a rare specimen. Su Xiao had only encountered two of them at lower ranks.
Su Xiao surmised that this thing wasn't targeting him, but had set its sights on Si Yang. It might have been watching for a long time, even attempting to rob him before.
The bartender behind the counter smiled politely and probed, "Is there something I can help you with?"
Hearing Su Xiao's words, the bartender across from him breathed a sigh of relief.
"Appointment at nine. I've worked with Si Yang for a long time; he's very punctual. Look, here he comes."
As the bartender spoke, Si Yang walked into the tavern. Behind him were a male and a female contractor, their relationship intimate, likely a couple.
Si Yang wasn't here in person; this was one of his clones, constructed from the flesh and blood of a supernatural creature.
Si Yang had not only brought two combat-type contractors for protection, but there were also several people from the Kodo School outside the tavern. These few, upon seeing Su Xiao at the door, had strange expressions and forced a smile.
"Mr. Hunter, sorry to keep you waiting. Let's begin the transaction."
Si Yang pulled out a small wooden box and opened it to reveal a white gem with a hint of blue. This was the Immortal-grade gem [Sky Rend].
Whoosh!
A sound like a gust of wind swept through. Si Yang remained standing in place, but the wooden box in his hand vanished. Along with it, his right hand was gone. The severed end showed clear flesh and bone, and then blood gushed out in torrents.
"You again! You've robbed me three times. I've been waiting for you to show up. Feng, Shang, kill the bartender. He's been assimilated by a Violator."
The moment Si Yang finished speaking, the man and woman behind him stepped forward. Shackles cracked and shattered on their bodies, and their auras surged dramatically.
"Mr. Hunter, our transaction will have to be delayed. Some blind fool has set his sights on me."
Si Yang sounded somewhat apologetic. Su Xiao didn't speak. He found a chair by the tavern wall and sat down. The show was about to begin.
"Boss, is that bartender really a Violator?"
"Yes."
Su Xiao could detect this because he had encountered both of the Violator's two characteristics before.
First, this Violator was a "Chimera-type." A Chimera-type meant that an external invading consciousness had appeared within a single body.
Su Xiao had once encountered a Triple-Hybrid. That guy was a Void Creature + a female Worker + a Violator. The three consciousnesses were fused together, sharing one body. Not to mention anything else, in daily life, it was already beyond eye-scorching description.
The Triple-Hybrid often had raw meat in one hand, ice cream in the other, and a cup of hot tea on the table. When the Triple-Hybrid needed to relieve itself, it was downright hilarious. The Void Creature's consciousness wanted to lift one leg—this guy was a beast-type canine. The male Violator, of course, wanted to stand upright. The female Worker wanted to squat down.
An amusing scene ensued: the Triple-Hybrid lifted one leg, half-squatted in a golden rooster stance, and then relieved itself. The difficulty level was so high that ordinary people couldn't imitate it.
This bartender was that kind of Chimera. It was a Void Creature + Apocalypse Violator + Apocalypse Miner. All three consciousnesses were male.
Another ability of the Chimera was to assimilate the natives of this world, replacing them. Su Xiao had also encountered this type of Violator before, in the Black Throne World. It had to be said, that guy was really hard to find.
After Su Xiao advanced to the seventh rank, he basically never heard of Chimeras appearing in Reincarnation Paradise's worlds. The reason was simple: Void Creatures didn't dare to come easily to Reincarnation Paradise's high-rank Primordial Worlds. Even if they did, after being hunted until they questioned their existence, they would flee to fully open Primordial Worlds.
Encountering one now, Su Xiao found it rare. He hadn't seen such a refreshingly unique Violator in a long time. This one only robbed contractor merchants.
If all Violators were like this, it would be easy to deal with. In contrast, the motley crew he had dealt with—Mr. J, Sphinx, Fei Shi, Grey Gentleman, Shenfu...
"Si Yang, you walking treasure chest. No one can bear to kill you."
As the bartender spoke, he moved to put away the wooden box, but his expression changed as he found he couldn't store it in his storage space.
"Well prepared, but this curse seal only lasts twelve hours. Futile effort."
The bartender smiled and tucked the small wooden box into his bosom.
"Hurry up and fight. What are you yapping about?"
Baha grabbed a handful of popcorn from the paper tube in Bubu Wang's arms. He was getting impatient.
"Brothers, don't hide anymore. Come on out."
As the bartender spoke, three figures passed through the wall—two men and one woman, all Violators. Seeing this, Si Yang's expression drastically changed. Feng and Shang behind him also showed vigilant looks.
"Damn, so it's four of them together. Why aren't they off destroying the world?"
"Woof."
Bubu Wang agreed. Four Violators gathered together was already a very dangerous situation.
"Move out."
At the bartender's command, the other three Violators pounced from all directions.
Boom!
The tavern shattered. Amidst the flying splinters of wood, Su Xiao flew out, landing steadily on the roof of a building across the street. He had originally planned to act, but someone had cut in front of him.
The roar of battle continued without pause. Before long, a broken figure flew over and landed with a wet slap on the roof where Su Xiao was. It was Si Yang's flesh clone.
"Mr. Hunter, I apologize. He's been targeting our guild for several worlds. When Battle Angels are around, he doesn't come. Otherwise, he always hijacks the goods. I hope you'll understand... in the future... if there's a chance... we'll cooperate again."
With that, Si Yang's flesh clone breathed its last. "Coincidentally," two more corpses flew over and landed on Su Xiao's roof. They were Feng and Shang. Was this a coincidence? No, it was a warning.
"Shouldn't we deal with that contractor?"
"His aura isn't weak. A warning is enough. Don't waste time on him."
"Just a contractor. He can't touch our world. I want to go back and take a shower. I'm covered in the smell of blood from the kill."
The Chimera led the three Violators down the street. Among them, the long-legged Mature Lady looked back at Su Xiao, winking seductively and blowing him a kiss.
After watching them walk away, Su Xiao took the sheathed Dragon-Slaying Flash from his storage space and tucked it into his waist. As a Hunter, he had plenty of experience dealing with these people.
The hunt begins.