Chapter 1357: Exchange of Blows
However, in Dr. Duo Er's opinion, this wasn't considered important information, because the Ya Clan people generally had shorter lifespans than people from Zone 023, maturing early and dying young, which wasn't unusual.
The boy Xu Huo had encountered in the abandoned city had reported an age older than he actually appeared. If malnutrition wasn't considered, that child's age should have been even younger than he looked, only eleven or twelve years old, or even possibly ten.
Obtaining a more mature body at a younger age held considerable value from certain perspectives. For example, with clones, the clone body required the same growth time as an ordinary person. Clones wouldn't grow as fast as mutated animals or plants once completed. But if replaced with Ya Clan members, the timeline for this benefit would be greatly shortened. For certain purposes, a clone didn't need to live a long life.
But these were all speculations, temporarily without any empirical support. Only after clearing the instance could he go to the laboratory Dr. Duo Er mentioned, as well as the city where the New District Government was located.
Considering that neither the current Dr. Duo Er nor the Dr. Duo Er in the painting frame knew how many duplicates he actually had, and the success rate of escorting him was so low, Xu Huo didn't put this Dr. Duo Er into the "World Within the Painting." Instead, he draped an Invisibility Cloak over him and directly carried him on his way.
Bai Jing and the others were still locked in a struggle with the mission players. Neither side noticed Dr. Duo Er's whereabouts, but the fake player who had left earlier caught up to him.
The opponent was skilled at tracking. Xu Huo adjusted his direction several times and used removal items on both himself and Dr. Duo Er, but still couldn't shake him off. He simply found a place to stop.
The fake player had made a move against Bai Jing and the other Ya Clan members. When he first appeared, Dai Song had voluntarily left, so he was very likely a player from Twin Cities.
But nothing was absolute.
He deployed "All Things Want to Cut Everything" and "Snowflake Scattering" around him.
A large number of fakes appeared in the vicinity, instantly filling the field of vision. They nimbly climbed and leaped through the trees, once able to keep up with the Xenomorphs. However, they differed from Xenomorphs because living creatures could feel pain and had fear, while these fakes would execute commands as long as their parts could still move.
Fortunately, the equipment of these fakes wasn't particularly outstanding. Otherwise, with this quantity and flexibility, they would likely be more troublesome than ordinary Xenomorphs.
Most of the outer fakes could be intercepted using Tangent and trap items. But individual severed heads or limbs could slip through the gaps in the Tangents. Xu Huo didn't block the path completely. Instead, he left a certain gap in the middle, slowly letting some metal fakes in to snipe them off.
These fakes had no chance of getting close, so there was no possibility of them figuring out Xu Huo's items and combat style in advance, including those fakes that burrowed underground.
"Being able to store so many fakes, I'm a bit curious about what kind of item it is." Xu Huo looked up at a certain direction and said. From just now until now, the opponent had released no less than a hundred fakes. Enough to run a factory with plenty to spare. A Luggage Compartment or ordinary storage item simply couldn't hold this many. It should be a decent Location Item or Container Item.
This time, the fake player wasn't too far away. It wasn't difficult to find him, and the opponent was prepared. The moment Xu Huo appeared behind him, he used a flash item, blocking his vision before unhesitatingly rushing toward Dr. Duo Er's location—Xu Huo was alone. No matter how many fakes he created with Spiritual Power, only one had real combat ability. The rest were all fake, so this was also the best opportunity!
Passing through the defense line of "All Things Want to Cut Everything," the defense item withstood the shredding of "Snowflake Scattering." The fake player rushed to Xu Huo's original position at top speed and reached out to grab the invisible Dr. Duo Er beside him... but at that moment, a hand grabbed him.
The fake player, his face painted with a fake mannequin makeup, showed surprise. He immediately tried to use an item to shake off Xu Huo, but unexpectedly, the item didn't activate. As he hesitated in shock, a gun suddenly aimed at him!
The advanced technology from Zone 001, combined with special treatment, made the sound of the bullets very faint. But that didn't mean the lethality was low. The first few bullets were blocked by the fake player's arm—he wore a protective item on his arm. Although the item wasn't damaged, the impact still forced him back involuntarily. At this moment, Xu Huo revealed his presence and made a chopping motion with his hand.
The Black Blade was concealed by Spiritual Power. At such a close distance, there was no time to use interference items. The fake player could only judge what Xu Huo was holding based on his movements and common sense. He didn't dare to directly clash with the defensive item he was wearing. Instead, he opened a Defense Barrier. Unfortunately, the barrier was broken as soon as it was erected, without even causing the slightest disruption to Xu Huo's movement.
The fake player leaned back, his limbs reversing to grip the ground, and quickly crawled backward. But he hadn't given up on Dr. Duo Er. He feinted to draw Xu Huo away, then used an item to block the bullets coming from behind. When he was only twenty meters from Dr. Duo Er, he suddenly vanished from his spot and directly swapped to his side. He then shouted "Clear the path" toward the front. In the gap of "All Things Want to Cut Everything," a relatively less winding passage surrounded by green light appeared.
Taking advantage of the next round of bullets not yet catching up, the fake player grabbed Dr. Duo Er and crawled into the green passage.
Xu Huo turned around. He first put away the combat robot, then plucked the Tangents from a distance, using two intersecting lines to sever the passage.
Dr. Duo Er was just an ordinary person. Even if someone was carrying him, he couldn't avoid falling. Before the fake player could pull him back up, the triple Defense Barrier covering them was completely destroyed by over a dozen Tangents that suddenly converged. These lines stopped just at their feet, as if trapping the two in a narrow cage.
The Tangents suddenly converging and then abruptly stopping truly startled the fake player. He instinctively glanced at Xu Huo ahead, then quickly thought of a way to escape after recovering.
The fakes started moving again, but this time, instead of running toward them, they scattered in the opposite direction, heavily damaging the surrounding trees and pushing the fallen trunks toward the Tangent area.
Ordinary trees, of course, weren't enough to push open the Tangents. But these trees were thick and numerous. One after another, they pressed down. Even if they were severed, they could block part of the Tangents. Not to mention those that got stuck right on the Tangents, effectively obscuring their sharpness in another way.
As the fake player dodged with Dr. Duo Er, he shouted into the air: "Natural Dry!"
In this entire area—whether it was the fallen broken wood, the Tangents crisscrossing in the air, or even the grass blades on the ground—after he said those three words, everything was covered in a faint white light. It was as if something had been wrapped around them, instantly losing their flexibility and becoming dry and hard.
(Chapter End)