Chapter 116: Lin Pei Is Dead
What Xu Huo was holding was a camping lantern he had found in the town mayor's office building. The wattage was too high, so he used a mop handle to prop it up in front of him.
The light could radiate over ten meters, so he first saw Gu Yu and the others, as well as the two xenomorphs that retreated as soon as the light hit them.
Even in the darkness, his vision wasn't affected, so he could clearly see the appearance of those two xenomorphs. They were different from the previous ones—their limbs were more powerful and appeared longer, and there was a thin membrane between their fingers and toes. When they moved, they kept it spread, and the mucus they secreted allowed them to walk on vertical surfaces.
Looking at the pair of fluorescent eyes in the darkness, he propped the lantern toward them. The startled xenomorphs immediately fled toward the door.
"So they're afraid of light." Xu Huo propped the lantern above his head, swept a glance over the few people huddled together in the beam of the flashlight as if facing a great enemy, and raised his chin. "Quite lively. Need any help?"
"Xu Huo! You're still alive!" Gu Yu and the other three almost cried with joy when they saw him clearly.
"And you actually cured the poison!" Lin Pei's face was still filled with shock. Everyone had seen Xu Huo's condition at the East Gate—just a scratch on his chin had caused the poison to spread rapidly to half his head, making him seem on the verge of madness. But now, not only had he cured the poison, his state was also different from before.
Xu Huo kicked away two xenomorphs that lunged at him, one after the other, and walked forward with a calm stride. "Lucky. I actually found an antidote in the town."
"It's not just the antidote!" Lin Pei saw that the two xenomorphs that had crashed into the metal plate only twitched once before their life force was cut off, and he couldn't help but pause his breathing. Then he said, "Looks like you've had other lucky encounters."
Xu Huo looked at the sword in his hand. "It's time to return my item."
"Come and take it if you have the skill!" Lin Pei whipped out the elastic rope, and his body followed closely behind. He took a quick step, stomped on the metal plate, and slashed down diagonally.
"Xu Huo, be careful! His evolution rate has reached 26%! Don't let that elastic rope tie you up!" Gu Yu shouted nervously, afraid that Xu Huo, having lost his attack item, would be no match for Lin Pei. Without hesitation, she drew her blade and charged forward.
A 26% evolution rate was no joke. Gu Yu and the others had evolution rates of over ten percent, but even combined, they couldn't beat Lin Pei, let alone Xu Huo, who only had a 10% evolution rate!
If they couldn't fight alone, they could join forces!
"We'll help too!" Shen Xin gritted her teeth and stood up, telling Ke Liang and Wang Chaoqing to throw her out. "I can ram him one more time!"
This was the best opportunity. Since Lin Pei was already injured, if he took another heavy blow, Xu Huo would have a chance to kill him!
Lin Pei's thoughts were similar. He wanted to take out Xu Huo before he could enter a combat state!
Gu Yu and the others prepared to support from near or far. Lin Pei was feinting in front, but his real plan was to use the flying arrow to ambush again, as he had done before. Both sides regarded the first exchange as the key to victory or defeat, but Xu Huo, standing at the center of this vortex, appeared unusually calm.
With his current perception, he could clearly predict that even if Gu Yu and the others went all out, they couldn't match Lin Pei's speed. The ten-point difference in evolution rate became especially apparent in the microscopic world. The others were still several meters away, while Lin Pei's flying arrow was already less than a meter from him.
"Think I'd fall for that a second time?" Xu Huo shifted his body to the side, reached out with his left hand, and caught the arrow that whistled past his ear. At the same time, he grabbed the elastic rope with his other hand and yanked it back!
Lin Pei, who had been charging at him, was shocked by this, but it was too late to retreat. He was pulled down with great force and slammed head-on into Xu Huo's rising knee. As he flew backward, he took another kick to the chest and crashed into the metal plate several meters away!
With a loud "bang," Lin Pei spat out blood and knelt on the ground. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the xenomorph beside him that had its chest crushed and died from the kick. His pupils trembled. If he hadn't used his hand to block the impact just now, his fate would have been little better than that xenomorph's!
His left arm was already broken, and his right arm trembled so much he could barely hold the sword. His only advantage, the flying arrow item, had also fallen into Xu Huo's hands... He glanced toward the main entrance, then suddenly threw the long sword at the nearby Gu Yu, dropped the elastic rope, and turned to flee!
"He's trying to escape!" Gu Yu dodged the sword and gave chase.
"He won't get away." Xu Huo caught the sword, turned back, and tossed the camping lantern behind him. The area near the door fell back into darkness, and the two xenomorphs hiding in the corners both pounced on Lin Pei!
"Ah!" Lin Pei kicked one away but couldn't fend off the other. He was pinned to the ground, and his ear was bitten off!
He struggled to get up, tearing at the xenomorphs on his body while trying to move toward the light. But Wang Chaoqing picked up the flashlight and ran toward Xu Huo. The group stood behind the camping lantern, watching coldly as he was torn apart.
Realizing that these people wouldn't save him, Lin Pei turned back toward the door. The two xenomorphs were now completely latched onto him. The sounds of tearing and chewing filled the air, but he still had hope—if he could just get out the door, he could leave the instance!
Xu Huo stepped forward a few paces. The ruby on the sword's hilt emitted a bright red light, and a sword energy sliced through his body from a distance.
The figure in the shadows split in two and fell, dragged away by the two xenomorphs as they fought over it.
[Congratulations to player Passerby A for killing a Black Player. Please accept the player's belongings.]
Receiving the game notification, Xu Huo confirmed Lin Pei was dead before saying, "The instance is already over."
"Don't we need to deal with those two xenomorphs?" Gu Yu pointed to the corner.
"They're afraid of light. No need to waste energy." Xu Huo told Wang Chaoqing to raise the lantern. As the light shone, the two xenomorphs that were feeding quickly scurried back into the holes in the metal plate.
"Are you all okay?"
Gu Yu looked at her arms, covered in scratches. "We were all scratched and bitten by the xenomorphs. We need to go back and find an antidote."
She unbuckled the leather belt from her waist and handed it back to him. "You go ahead. It wouldn't be good if the door closes later. The town is no longer dangerous. The few of us can manage."
"Can you handle it?" Xu Huo walked back. He had already noticed their wounds earlier. Although they were somewhat black and blue, their condition wasn't as severe as his had been. There were no immediate signs of xenomorph transformation. Most likely, like Professor Han on the initial train who was scratched by a xenomorph, they would develop pustules and weaken over time.
Additionally, they had varying degrees of other injuries and were all half-crippled. Wang Chaoqing, on the other hand, was almost completely unharmed.
"We have to manage, even if we can't," Gu Yu said, her shoulders slumping as she smiled bitterly. "Bad luck. We barely survived, but it turns out we're just waiting to die outside."
"And even if we survive, what's the point?" Shen Xin stared at the hole above, speaking calmly. "The next instance, the one after that—sooner or later, we'll die anyway."
Gu Yu hugged her. "Living is what matters most."
Shen Xin shook her head. "If I hadn't held my brother back, he might not have died. He was the one who deserved to live."
Because she was injured, Shen Yi couldn't make it onto the suspension bridge in time, and without any defense, he was killed by Lin Pei. They couldn't even bring his body out...
Except for Wang Chaoqing, the others all looked somewhat despairing. Xu Huo took a syringe from his leather case and said to Shen Xin, "Since you have no will to live, why don't we try this antidote and see if it works."