Chapter 1525: Staged Collision
The Painting Woman had no interest in thinking. After receiving a negative answer, she said no more, though she was still a bit regretful about not getting a new house.
To Xu Huo, however, the experience in Zone 017 was far more important than the super item.
"Where are we going now?" the Painting Woman asked.
Xu Huo had originally chased Xue Lang to the A7 Safe Zone, only to find the man wasn't there at all. Although the woman in the black trench coat was very likely with him, she had also been lost. Finding someone in the vast Zone 017 was somewhat difficult.
The place where the intelligent xenomorph first appeared was too far to reach in a short time, and even if he found the origin point, the person who released the xenomorph might not still be there. Gaining more information was equally hard.
As for the white-haired old man, he seemed to have taken the blame for killing Yu Guo, which was why the Eerie Sound Knights had targeted him. He was also a virus enthusiast, making him a target for the woman in the black trench coat.
From the current situation, the A-grade item "Life Core" that Xu Huo had obtained from Yu Guo—which could quickly dissolve metal objects—and the contaminant bacteria extracted from his severed hand could not be used in Zone 017, or else they might attract the attention of the Eerie Sound Knights.
These people had been searching for their enemy ever since Yu Guo died. They had gone to Zone 011 before, and now they were in Zone 017...
Sooner or later, he would have to confront them. Xu Huo marked the positions of the Eerie Sound Knights members on the map, immediately changed direction, and headed north, arriving at the nearest city, Xiaoyue City.
Stationed near this city was Bai Tiao Yi of the Eerie Sound Knights, an A-grade player whose profession was a funeral director. He was the one who had activated the black-and-white wheel in Hai City, once controlling nearly a third of the city and using that item to kill many people.
Xiaoyue City was a coastal city. Ever since a storm had risen over the sea three days ago, it had been raining nonstop in the city. Xu Huo arrived at night, and the torrential rain still relentlessly battered the city. Whether due to damage to the power system or for self-preservation, only a few scattered lights were on in the city. In the storm and darkness, they flickered like fireflies, precarious and seemingly on the verge of going out at any moment.
Earlier distress messages mentioned that the entire city had been taken over by outer zone players, and these people were at odds with each other, forming small groups and fighting in chaotic battles, causing many casualties.
However, from the stretch of road Xu Huo had traveled into the city, Xiaoyue City didn't seem to have been attacked by players.
"Wah... wah... wah!" A child suddenly started crying somewhere. Even the torrential rain couldn't drown out the sharp sound, but it didn't last long before it abruptly stopped—all the residents of Xiaoyue City were being careful not to make too much noise.
The heavy rain obscured some vision. Xu Huo walked through the curtain of rain holding an umbrella and soon encountered a player in a raincoat. The player was using a defense item to keep dry. When he saw Xu Huo, he paused, gave him a deep look, and then quickly walked away.
Xu Huo saw him turn into an alley and enter the back door of a bar.
As the door closed, Xu Huo distinctly felt a strange power flash through the bar. It felt like space power, but there was a subtle difference. However, after the power disappeared, the bar was empty, and the player who had just entered had vanished.
Xu Huo paused for a moment, then continued walking. About three minutes later, he encountered the same player again.
The other man was also startled to see him, then quickened his pace to leave again. He headed toward the bar once more, followed by the sound of the back door opening and closing, and the person who entered disappeared again.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, Xu Huo didn't go into the bar to check. He kept his vertical pupil outside. Since the distance wasn't far, he kept an eye on it. However, after a short while, the player who had disappeared for the second time appeared in front of him once more.
This time, when they met, both of them stopped.
The player, who looked at most in his early twenties, first stared hard at Xu Huo, then clenched his jaw, his body trembling slightly. After a moment, he shouted, "The hell is your problem?!"
"I'd like to ask the same," Xu Huo said calmly. "You've passed by me three times already. Are you trying to stage a collision?"
These words were like lighting a powder keg. The raincoat player spat hatefully on the ground, then raised a flamethrower. He pressed the trigger, and a tongue of fire pierced the heavy rain curtain, scorching dozens of meters and instantly engulfing Xu Huo!
Even though he was wearing a protective suit and using a defense item, Xu Huo could still feel the heat of the flames. He manipulated the space ray, lifting the muzzle of the gun across from him, then teleported behind the man, simultaneously retracting the "Cake Slice" he had just released.
The other man anticipated his move. As he turned, he automatically slid backward and sidestepped to avoid the "Cake Slice" attack.
Both had used sneak attack items, but they were rendered ineffective by each other's defense items. Seeing this, the raincoat player shouted, "The Last Wish on the Gallows!"
At that moment, the "Life Flashback" took effect. The raincoat player, who had been dozens of meters away, appeared enlarged in front of Xu Huo in a half-kneeling posture, like a frozen frame—this was the trait effect being intercepted. Within a fifty-meter range, time would stop for five seconds.
However, this did not include the two people within it.
The raincoat player also saw the frozen frame. The next second, he shot out from his spot, one hand piercing through the frozen frame and striking directly at Xu Huo's throat.
Xu Huo's evolution rate might not be as high as that of players at the same level, but the effect of perfect evolution was enough to compensate for this gap. Both being C-grade, the raincoat player had no advantage. So when the man closed in, Xu Huo simply sidestepped and changed position, easily landing a punch on the other's back.
The raincoat player was knocked forward, but he reacted quickly. With a flick of his feet, he used a teleportation item to escape to the bar. Before darting into the alley, he flipped Xu Huo the bird and shouted, "If I fall for your trick again, I'm a pig!"
Actually, sometimes the line between a man and a pig isn't so clear. Take the raincoat player, for example. Three minutes ago, he was a tall, handsome young man. Three minutes later, he voluntarily "became" a pig.
When they met for the fourth time, his emotions weren't as volatile as before. He stared at Xu Huo expressionlessly and said, "I'm definitely no match for you in a fight. What do I have to do for you to let me go?"
Xu Huo raised an eyebrow and sighed lightly. "From the beginning, I have no idea what you're talking about. You keep appearing in front of me over and over. Isn't it you who's picking a fight with me?"
The raincoat player was stunned for a moment, then suddenly looked around. "Is this Xiaoyue City?"
"Where else would it be?" Xu Huo countered.
"Are you new to town?" the other man asked again.
Seeing him nod, the raincoat player clenched his fist in delight and said, "I knew I wasn't that bad. Haha, I made it out!"
Before Xu Huo could ask for details, the same power that had appeared in the bar earlier swept past them. He whirled around, but found the street unchanged from before.
(Chapter End)