Chapter 18: The Shorty
The mountain wind blew, carrying a faint scent of blood through the basin.
Around the basin, at least dozens of eyes were fixed on the one-eyed giant below, all of them contractors waiting to reap the benefits without lifting a finger.
But none of them expected the team fighting the one-eyed giant to be wiped out so quickly, not even the mental mage who had started it all.
Now, with the main tank having fled, no one could withstand the one-eyed giant's attacks head-on. Everyone could see the giant was severely injured, and no one wanted to miss such an opportunity, but there were too many contractors lurking nearby.
Mr. A lay behind a slope above the basin, his eyes burning with anger and self-blame.
"I was too careless."
Mr. A had anticipated that contractors might interfere, but he never imagined they could influence the mental state of a lord-tier creature.
Old Wolf, Mr. A, the young woman healer, and the archer were members of the same team. After stumbling upon the one-eyed giant's trail, Old Wolf suggested gathering other contractors.
If they gathered others, the reward for killing the one-eyed giant would be minimal unless they killed off the outsiders and kept the treasure chest for themselves. In their calculations, the team would recruit at most twenty people; any more would invite complications.
Mr. A initially disagreed with Old Wolf's plan, as killing other contractors was no easy feat. But after one contractor joined, his mind changed—that contractor was Stone.
After some time of scheming and maneuvering, the small team was formed. Mr. A and Old Wolf played opposing roles to prevent any other troublemakers from emerging within the group. Having one 'troublemaker' like Old Wolf was enough.
The archer was tasked with infiltrating the other contractors, building rapport with the freelancers, and alerting Mr. A if anything went wrong.
The young woman healer had only one job: when the one-eyed giant was on the verge of death, she was to kill the main tank, Stone, causing a tank collapse.
Once the tank fell, the one-eyed giant would slaughter many unprepared freelancers. After the giant had killed most of them, Mr. A would step in—he could barely serve as a tank himself.
This was where the plan went wrong. At the critical moment, the young woman healer stopped using healing skills on Stone. But who would have thought that Stone, who should have been pummeled to death, would be saved by the Ice Goddess's aura at the last second and escape in the chaos?
Now, with the tank gone and the others on guard, not a single freelancer had died.
Forced into a corner, Old Wolf, Mr. A, and the others had no choice but to surround and kill the one-eyed giant. If the giant also escaped, they would lose everything. And since the main tank had fled mid-battle, the 20% share of the spoils naturally fell to Mr. A.
But another surprise came: the one-eyed giant killed Old Wolf in one blow and then crushed the archer.
Now, Mr. A tasted the bitter fruit of his own schemes. Beside him, the young woman healer looked dazed.
"What do we do now?" she asked, turning to Mr. A.
"What else? We wing it," Mr. A replied, his emotions already settling.
"Huh?" The healer was puzzled.
"We're lucky we didn't die. Old Wolf and Big Head were just temporary teammates. Even though we've been through two derivative worlds together, I'm not about to avenge them. What about you?"
"Of course not," the young woman healer blurted out. The four of them were only cooperating.
"So, our losses aren't as bad as they seem. This is Reincarnation Paradise—surviving is what matters," Mr. A said with a long sigh, forcing himself to feel better. If he knew his plan had failed because of Bubu Wang, what would he think?
Mr. A was decisive. He immediately gave up on the one-eyed giant and started watching the show from a distance.
The one-eyed giant paced around the basin, as if wanting to leave but not daring to. The contractors lying in ambush were all hesitating.
Seeing this, Mr. A sneered. The giant's injuries were slowly healing. The longer they delayed, the less likely they were to kill it.
[Notification: Contractor 13013 has left the temporary adventure group.]
Receiving this message, Mr. A wasn't surprised. The temporary team had a rule: if member deaths exceeded 50%, one could leave without penalty.
"That sniper wants to bail too? Too late. With a sniper rifle that powerful, plenty of people must be eyeing it," Mr. A muttered, shaking his head. But then his eyes widened.
Not just Mr. A—all the contractors around the basin were stunned.
"Is this guy trying to die?"
"Who knows? Maybe he's crazy for treasure chests."
On the slope of the basin, a figure holding a long blade was slowly walking down.
The one-eyed giant noticed the newcomer. Sensing his aura, it let out an enraged roar.
"Shorty, it's you (Dark Continent language)," the giant rumbled, its voice thick and slurred.
"Shorty?"
Su Xiao exhaled a puff of smoke, flicking away the cigarette butt. The mountain wind scattered the smoke.
If not absolutely necessary, Su Xiao wouldn't have shown himself. The contractors around were all waiting to swoop in for the kill. They didn't know how fast the one-eyed giant could recover, but Su Xiao did.
At this moment, the giant's health had already recovered to about 46%, and the bloody holes on its body were visibly healing. With no main tank to hold the front and his position already exposed, Su Xiao decided not to use the sniper rifle.
Dragon-Slaying Flash slowly slid out of its sheath. Stowing the dark purple scabbard into his storage space, Su Xiao took a few steps forward, then leaped. The jump carried him several meters high, and since he was on a downward slope, he dove toward the one-eyed giant at high speed.
"Roar!"
The one-eyed giant bellowed, grabbing its bloodstained giant wooden club and charging forward.
The two closed in from above and below. When they were four meters apart, the giant swung the club at Su Xiao in midair.
Just as all the watching contractors thought Su Xiao was doomed, a metal wire shot out from the bracer on his left arm.
The wire wrapped around the giant's waist. Su Xiao pulled hard, accelerating his dive. He swung under the giant's armpit, turned, and faced its back.
Boom!
The giant club smashed into the ground, sending dirt and rocks flying.
Su Xiao retracted the Realm Severing Thread, sliding backward with his feet plowing the earth. After sliding about half a meter, he stomped down, gaining solid footing. Power surged from his feet, and his long blade carved a white streak through the air.
Pfft.
Blood sprayed from the one-eyed giant's ankle as a deep, bone-deep gash appeared.
Struck by this blow, the giant staggered. Its physiology was similar to a human's, and the cut had severed the ligaments in its right leg.
Cyan Steel Shadow energy surged into the wound. The giant howled in agony, but its massive size meant the pain wasn't enough to immobilize it.
The giant raised its club, gripping it with both hands, and brought it crashing down toward Su Xiao's head.
Even before the club was close, Su Xiao's black hair was blown back by the force. If that hit landed, he'd be crippled at best.
A pale blue energy shield materialized in front of him. Su Xiao formed a shield with 300 strength and tilted it slightly to the left.
Thud!
The giant club slammed into the shield, sending a visible shockwave rippling outward.
With a crack, a fissure appeared on the shield's surface—just one.
Because the shield was angled to the left, the giant's club naturally slid in that direction.