Chapter 56: Iron-Blooded Man
A figure flashed, and the Ice Mage was just about to turn around.
*Puchi.*
The bloodstained blade tip emerged from the Ice Mage's chest, and Azure Steel Shadow energy invaded his body.
Azure Steel Shadow energy was specifically designed to deal with mages, so this Ice Mage's fate was sealed.
The Azure Steel Shadow energy first entered the Ice Mage's body through the wound. The intense pain caused his eyes to roll back, and his entire body convulsed.
This wasn't the end. The Azure Steel Shadow energy surged straight to the Ice Mage's brain, destroying the mana circuits within.
"Ah!!"
The Ice Mage clutched his head and screamed, dropping his staff without a care.
The Shadow of Law Annihilation was exceptionally skilled at dealing with mages, especially since this Ice Mage was weaker than Su Xiao. This outcome was only natural.
Just as Su Xiao was about to pull the longsword from the Ice Mage's body, a warhammer came swinging at his face.
The warhammer whistled through the air, carrying immense force. Being hit by it would turn him into a pancake.
Su Xiao withdrew his blade and leaped back. The Ice Mage, dragged along by the longsword, slumped to the ground, his gaze vacant and drool dripping from his mouth.
The warhammer was indeed unstoppable, but it had a weakness: once it was swung, it couldn't be stopped.
The warhammer came down, but Su Xiao had already retreated several steps. The hammer struck the Ice Mage between the legs.
*Boom.*
The burly man's hammer gave the Ice Mage a taste of "hammer-crushing eggs." With a hammer half a meter in diameter, it wasn't just the eggs; the Ice Mage's entire pelvic region was crushed into a bloody pulp.
"Oww~."
The Ice Mage, already in agony from the Azure Steel Shadow, was awakened by a new kind of pain. He let out a mournful cry and passed out. Without a doubt, this guy was done for.
The big hammer realized he had accidentally injured his teammate and stood there scratching his head.
In the distance, the gloomy leader closed his eyes in despair. If the healer, the big hammer, the Ice Mage, and himself had worked together, they might have had a slim chance. But now, the Ice Mage had been killed by his own teammate.
The gloomy leader was overthinking things. Even if they had teamed up, they wouldn't have had a chance. From the start of the battle, aside from the archer's one arrow, no one else posed any threat to Su Xiao.
Su Xiao had taken on entire adventure groups before, let alone this undisciplined little team. Moreover, they knew nothing about him, unlike those women from the Red Spider Lily.
If Su Xiao struggled against these people, he wouldn't be fit to be a Hunter.
Unscathed, Su Xiao turned his gaze to the fleeing healer. He drew the black gun from the pair of black-and-white pistols at his waist.
These two guns had their own characteristics. The white gun excelled at rapid fire, while the black gun had superior precision and range.
*Bang. Bang. Bang.*
Three "precise" shots missed. Su Xiao frowned, extended his arm, and aimed more carefully.
*Bang.*
The fleeing healer took a shot to the lower back. She let out a scream but gritted her teeth and continued running.
*Bang.*
Another shot missed. Just as Su Xiao was about to fire again, the big hammer charged forward, swinging his warhammer with a whoosh, aiming a blow at Su Xiao's head.
Su Xiao sidestepped to avoid it. The stone bridge shook from the impact, but he didn't even glance at the big hammer. Calmly, he continued pulling the trigger.
*Bang.*
This shot hit its mark. A spray of blood erupted from the healer's calf, and she collapsed to the ground.
But the healer didn't give up. She knew that if she were captured, she'd either be ground into the dirt or ransomed and then killed.
The healer struggled to her feet, healed herself with a spell, and hobbled away into the distance.
Su Xiao stopped paying attention to the healer. Her escape speed was slow, giving him plenty of time to deal with the big hammer and the gloomy leader.
"Big Dummy, go."
The gloomy leader signaled for the big hammer to hold Su Xiao back.
"He's strong. I might die."
The big hammer hesitated. The gloomy leader glanced at him.
"If I had your build and strength, I'd be invincible. What a waste."
The big hammer scratched his head. From his earlier behavior, it was clear he wasn't very bright, even a bit simple.
"Use Frenzy."
"But..."
The big hammer hesitated.
"But what?"
The gloomy leader stared coldly at the big hammer.
"After using Frenzy, my body hurts a lot."
The big hammer's words nearly made the gloomy leader faint from anger.
"We're about to die, and you're worried about pain? That guy's a monster. You..."
Before the gloomy leader could finish, a sense of danger washed over him.
*Rat-a-tat-tat-tat.*
A hail of bullets rained down on the gloomy leader. He swung his iron staff to block.
*Clang, clang, clang...*
The gloomy leader deflected many bullets, but occasionally, a spray of blood would burst from his body.
Dragon-Slaying Flash was stuck in the ground beside Su Xiao. He was now dual-wielding the black-and-white pistols, having activated rapid-fire mode.
Sixty bullets were quickly expended. Su Xiao immediately used mana to reload.
[Reload Count: 30 (per gun). Auto-reload. Each reload consumes 30 mana points. Reload interval: 10 seconds.]
The reload interval was 10 seconds, and the reload time was 2 seconds.
Mana flowed into the black-and-white pistols, generating 30 bullets in each gun's chamber.
He pulled the trigger, and the rapid fire continued.
The black-and-white pistols had strong attack power, after all, they were Purple-quality weapons, on par with the Spider Empress's equipment.
After expending 120 bullets, the gloomy leader collapsed to the ground, riddled with bullet holes, blood pooling beneath him.
Now, the only combatant left was the big hammer. He looked at the fallen gloomy leader, who had once saved his life, so he had stayed by his side.
The big hammer asked in a low, rumbling voice, "How are you?"
The gloomy leader's breathing was weak, and his body had lost all sensation.
"Use... Frenzy... kill... him, or... we all die."
Uttering these words was difficult for the now-weak gloomy leader, and he coughed up several mouthfuls of blood.
"Alright."
The big hammer closed his eyes and took a deep breath. His muscles rapidly expanded, and his height exceeded three meters.
"Idiot."
The gloomy leader's face turned ashen. He no longer held any hope of victory.
The gloomy leader's despair was justified. As the big hammer was entering his Frenzy state, Su Xiao had quietly moved behind him.
Su Xiao held his longsword in his right hand, with his left hand bracing the pommel.
*Puchi.*
The longsword pierced through the big hammer's back, emerging from his chest. Although the big hammer was much taller than Su Xiao, he fell to his knees with his mouth wide open, making him shorter than Su Xiao.
Azure Steel Shadow energy rampaged through the big hammer's body. This clumsy giant stood no chance against Su Xiao, no matter how terrifying his attacks were.
The big hammer had high stamina. Even with a sword through his heart, he didn't die. Instead, he tried to stand up.
At this point, the big hammer's skin was red, and his veins bulged. He had likely succeeded in entering Frenzy.
Just as the big hammer tried to rise, Su Xiao slashed through the tendons in both of his legs, causing him to fall to his knees again.
Cutting the leg tendons wasn't enough. With a flash of blade aura, the big hammer's arms were severed one after another. The warhammer clattered to the ground, creating a small crater in the stone bridge.
"Kill... kill you..."
Su Xiao looked down at the kneeling big hammer.
"Such a build. What a waste."
A large build could sometimes be an advantage, like the big hammer. He was definitely the type with "innate divine strength."
But that "innate divine strength" was useless. Against Su Xiao's blade techniques and combat skills, the big hammer didn't even have a chance to land a hit.
Dragon-Slaying Flash was raised high, aimed at the big hammer's neck.
Although the big hammer wasn't very bright, he was an iron-blooded man. Knowing he was doomed, he actually lifted his chin.
*Puchi.*
The head flew off. All the contractors blocking the bridge were incapacitated. Unfortunately, two had jumped off the cliff to escape, and Su Xiao couldn't stop them at the time.
Looking in the direction the healer had fled, Su Xiao quickly gave chase.
Three minutes later, Su Xiao returned to the stone bridge, dragging the healer. She had clearly resisted, but after Su Xiao's "careful persuasion," she was trembling in his grip.
Su Xiao threw the healer down beside the gloomy leader.
"Heal him."
"What?"
The healer stared at Su Xiao in shock. Su Xiao turned his head to look at her, and she quickly picked up her staff and complied.
Golden light fell, and the dying gloomy leader recovered somewhat.
"Why were you blocking the bridge?"
Su Xiao lit a cigarette, tilting his head slightly.
"None of your business. Kill me if you want."
The gloomy leader closed his eyes, looking unafraid of death.
"Don't worry. With this healer here, you won't die anytime soon. I can take my time asking."
Hearing this, the gloomy leader's cheek twitched.
Chapter 57: A Means of Transport
Just as Su Xiao was about to question the gloomy leader about why they were blocking the bridge, a faint sound came from the other side of the stone bridge.
A blood-soaked archer rolled down the slope. His chest had been pierced by the Spider Empress's bullet, nearly hitting his heart. He didn't even have the strength to get up.
"Bubu."
Su Xiao looked at Bubu Wang. Bubu Wang quickly ran over and dragged the archer back. Only when the archer was close did Su Xiao notice that his lower abdomen was also pierced. He was on the verge of death.
Su Xiao glanced at the gloomy leader, then at the healer.
"Heal him."
Though reluctant, the healer had no choice but to comply.
"Why were you blocking the bridge?"
As the saying goes, "No profit, no action." These people wouldn't block the bridge for no reason, especially since it was risky, as they had just learned.
The archer kept his head down, his eyes darting around, looking for an escape route.
"You want to know?"
The archer looked up. He had found an escape route, and his injuries had healed somewhat. He just needed an opportunity.
Without warning, Su Xiao drew his blade and slashed off the archer's legs.
"Ah!"
A heart-wrenching scream rang out. The archer's escape plan died before it could begin.
"Quiet."
Su Xiao lightly flicked Dragon-Slashing Flash, sending the blood on the blade flying.
"You..."
Before the archer could finish, Su Xiao kicked him in the side of the face.
The archer rolled across the ground before finally stopping, twitching a few times before going still.
"Heal him."
One person might lie, but three were different.
"I'll... I'll talk."
The healer finally cracked under the pressure.
"Don't say anything. If you do, we'll definitely..."
The gloomy leader looked anxious. He knew that talking meant death.
The longsword came down, and the gloomy leader's head hit the ground.
"Continue."
Whether they submitted or not, all three were going to die today. There was no room for negotiation.
"We blocked the bridge because... because..."
The healer struggled internally. She knew that talking might mean death.
"Forget it. I've lost interest."
Su Xiao slowly walked toward the healer.
"Huh?"
The healer was stunned.
"I... we blocked the bridge for the Reincarnation Mark."
"Oh?"
Su Xiao looked at the healer with confusion.
"Reincarnation Mark?"
Su Xiao had never heard that a Reincarnation Mark could be stripped.
"Yes, the Reincarnation Mark. Earlier, our team was ambushed, and a contractor was killed by a beast. While searching his body for valuables, we discovered that the Reincarnation Mark could be stripped during the Survival Trial, though the success rate was about fifty percent."
Su Xiao pondered for a moment before walking over to the gloomy leader's corpse.
He pulled up the gloomy leader's sleeve. The Reincarnation Mark on his arm was faintly glowing.
Su Xiao tried to touch the Reincarnation Mark, and a prompt from Reincarnation Paradise appeared.
[Floating Reincarnation Mark detected. Yes/No to strip it.]
He chose to strip it. The Reincarnation Mark on the gloomy leader's arm gradually detached, eventually forming a card.
[Reincarnation Mark]
Quality: Unknown
Type: Unknown
Effect: Unknown
Rating: Unknown
Description: None
Price: 1% World Source or 1000 Paradise Coins.
The Reincarnation Mark functioned like an ID card. Every contractor had one. A contractor's Reincarnation Mark consisted of concentric circles with a pentagram in the center. Su Xiao's was different, featuring a black sword pattern.
One Reincarnation Mark was worth either 1% World Source or 1000 Paradise Coins, with the option to choose either.
Su Xiao began searching the bodies of the surrounding contractors. Among the twelve corpses, he found seven Reincarnation Marks.
"Ruthless."
Su Xiao's comment was directed at Reincarnation Paradise. To eliminate the weak, it had resorted to such measures.
It was easy to imagine that if this news spread, the Survival Trial would turn into a battle royale.
But this was normal. Reincarnation Paradise needed resources to train its contractors. Eliminating the weak was only natural. There was no such thing as a free lunch.
"Sooner or later, you'll become someone else's Reincarnation Mark."
The archer gasped for breath as he lay on the ground.
Su Xiao stopped in his tracks and drove his longsword into the archer's throat.
The only survivor from the bridge-blocking team was the healer.
"Don't... don't come any closer."
The healer had a leg injury and could barely stand. Su Xiao remained unmoved, slowly approaching her. He had never felt sympathy for an enemy.
Seeing Su Xiao getting closer, the healer gritted her teeth and began to quickly undress.
"You... you can do whatever you want. Just don't kill me."
The healer crossed her arms over her chest, revealing large patches of fair skin. It had to be said, the healer was somewhat attractive.
Su Xiao sheathed Dragon-Slashing Flash. Seeing this, the healer was overjoyed and slowly lowered her arms, fully exposing herself.
Su Xiao walked up to her and placed his metal-armored hand on her shoulder and collarbone.
"Can... can we go somewhere private?"
The healer put on a show of reluctance.
"No need."
His metal-clad hand suddenly gripped her neck. The healer's pupils contracted sharply.
"Please..."
*Crack.*
He snapped her slender neck. Noticing that her Reincarnation Mark had dissipated, Su Xiao casually tossed her body off the cliff beneath the stone bridge.
Su Xiao didn't immediately sell the Reincarnation Marks he had obtained. He could sell them before the Survival Trial ended. Whether to exchange them for World Source or Paradise Coins would depend on the situation.
Over a dozen corpses lay scattered on the bridge. The battle was over.
Su Xiao began cleaning up the battlefield. He walked over to the three-row armored vehicle.
The armored vehicle was military green, with four large wheels, a high chassis, and a row of lights on the roof.
It looked like a modified jeep, but it was much larger. Besides the driver's and passenger's seats in the front, it could seat at least six more people in the back, or ten if they squeezed.
He checked the vehicle for damage. Although one side was riddled with bullet holes, none had penetrated.
Earlier, Su Xiao had thought the armored vehicle would disappear. But it turned out that the vehicle wasn't an item; it was somewhere between a summon and an item.
Su Xiao couldn't gain ownership of the vehicle, but that didn't stop him from using it during the Survival Trial.
He got into the armored vehicle. The fuel gauge showed half a tank. Under the back seats were several large cans of fuel, more than enough.
Confirming the vehicle was in working order, Su Xiao threw the food and water from Bubu Wang's back into the back seat, lightening the dog's load.
It wasn't just their own supplies. Su Xiao had also looted the food and water from the bridge-blocking team.
These supplies would last at least five days, including plenty of chocolate and compressed biscuits.
Su Xiao was a bit puzzled. How had the bridge-blocking team carried so much high-calorie food? Was it really okay to parachute with all that?
He put the thought aside. With ample food and water and a means of transport, the armored vehicle would be the best shelter at night, offering warmth, safety, and comfort.
Old Bal sat in the back seat, looking amazed. It seemed he had never seen an armored vehicle before.