Chapter 2315: The Ubiquitous Xiao Ming
When the red-haired woman made her move, the other two players coordinated with her from the sidelines. Seeing her shift her focus, the pair concentrated on delaying Xu Huo. Unfortunately for them, neither their props nor their traits seemed to take effect, as if an impenetrable barrier shrouded him at all times.
"The stronger the prop, the more obvious its shortcomings. We can't attack him, but while his barrier is up, he can't attack us either!" The long-haired man stomped his foot, causing the ground of the alley, along with the surrounding residential buildings, to sink downward.
Hearing the screams from inside the buildings, Xu Huo sighed and said, "This is the inconvenient part."
He twisted the Time Ring on his hand, enveloping the nearby residential buildings in Time Freeze. Then he turned his attention to the two people closing in on him from both sides. In a single second, he pulled them both into Mirror Space and used Materialized Objects to rapidly harvest the props they had equipped.
But people this vicious, who treated human life like mere weeds, were, from a certain perspective, equally resolute individuals. It wasn't easy to quickly disrupt them, and controlling them was even harder. However, stacking the prop "Point, Point, Soldier, General" was enough to forcibly restrain them for a second or two.
In the blink of an eye, Xu Huo appeared behind one of them. After his Materialized Objects continuously weakened the target's defenses, he effortlessly pierced the man's heart with the Black Blade.
Seeing their comrade die so cleanly and swiftly, fear flashed in the eyes of the remaining two. They no longer dared to delay and immediately tried to use their tickets to escape into the game. The red-haired woman, who had been entangled with the Painting Woman, managed to break free and flee. But the long-haired man, who was closer to Xu Huo, wasn't so lucky. He was forcibly controlled by Spiritual Power, missing that split-second window, and was instantly shredded by the Materialized Objects.
Three dead, one escaped, and two others lay on the ground, having suddenly fallen unconscious due to rapid aging.
"You go back first. I need to make a trip." Xu Huo said to the Painting Woman, then grabbed the two unconscious men, broke through the Blockade Barrier, and went straight to find the Special Defense Department members outside. "Where is Team Leader Wu?"
The players monitoring the situation outside the Blockade Barrier were already aware of the commotion inside, but they never expected Xu Huo to handle a six-on-one fight so effortlessly. Staring at the two players floating in the air, completely transformed, the Special Defense Department member being questioned swallowed hard and said, "Team Leader Wu is at the temporary command center in the Joy Activity Plaza. Team Leader Ming from Jing City and the team leaders from several other cities are there too..."
Before he could finish, Xu Huo had already vanished from his sight.
Unable to resist glancing towards the temporary command center, this Special Defense Department player couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, "A powerhouse is a powerhouse!"
Then, pointing at the several buildings that had just emerged from the Time Freeze, he shouted to the others, "Move it! Get the foundations propped up!"
For the current Special Defense Department, this kind of situation was nothing they couldn't handle.
Meanwhile, Xu Huo headed straight for the temporary command center. He happened to run into the team members from Jing City, who were just about to leave. The two groups met face-to-face in the conference room.
Seeing the people Xu Huo had brought, Team Leader Wu smiled before even speaking, walking over enthusiastically. "You came back just in time! You've solved my most urgent problem. These are the last two, right? Someone, come quickly, take them out for interrogation!"
"Xu Huo, come, let me introduce you. This is Team Leader Ming, who has recently made a name for himself in the Special Defense Department. His player nickname is 'The Ubiquitous Xiao Ming'." Team Leader Wu seemed quite pleased to have turned the tables, then said to Team Leader Ming, "Our Ting City branch isn't so unreasonable. We've handled the matter ourselves. If Team Leader Ming is in a hurry, feel free to go about your business."
Team Leader Ming ignored him and gave Xu Huo a slight nod. "Mr. Xu, your reputation precedes you. With you stationed in Ting City, this outcome was only to be expected."
Xu Huo looked at this masked man. "'The Ubiquitous Xiao Ming'? Team Leader Ming, your surname isn't Ming?"
"Ming is my code name." Team Leader Ming had no intention of revealing his real name. "Since the problem here is resolved, I'll take my leave."
With that, he activated a Space Teleportation Item and left with his team members.
"What's he so cocky about!" a player in the conference room muttered quietly. Several other team leaders also looked displeased, but they quickly adjusted their expressions, came over to greet Xu Huo, and warmly invited him to visit their branches.
"Go on, go on. Xu Huo's finally back for a visit; he'll be most comfortable staying at home." Team Leader Wu joked as he shooed them away. Once only the Ting City branch members remained, he wiped the sweat from his forehead and said to Xu Huo with lingering fear, "If you had been any later, I might have agreed to Team Leader Ming's proposal."
He briefly explained the situation to Xu Huo, then added, "You're one of us, so there's nothing I can't say. With so many lives at stake, I really didn't dare to gamble... You've really helped me out this time!"
"We're old acquaintances, no need to be polite." Xu Huo said. "Who is this Team Leader Ming?"
"He appeared out of nowhere, seems like a player specially trained by the military. It's like he's trying to compete with Nie Xuan." Team Leader Wu said. "His style is a bit different from Nie Xuan's. His 'give and take' approach has gained support from some internal members."
Xu Huo had already seen the proposal to release poison gas within the Blockade Barrier. Given the Special Defense Department's inability to temporarily deploy top-tier players, using a smaller force to accomplish the task wasn't a bad plan. However, putting the plan forward meant accepting that some people would have to be sacrificed. Of course, player attacks couldn't be completely without casualties. Compared to Team Leader Wu and the others, who held an optimal solution mindset but were forced to follow the situation's momentum, this style of sacrificing a small area to seize the initiative was indeed unconventional.
"Has Nie Xuan been back lately?" he asked.
"He came back a while ago, stayed for a few days, and left. He should be returning soon." Team Leader Wu was unaware of the Dou Shengnan interception incident. "Do you need him for something?"
"Just some personal business." Xu Huo paused, then said, "I'll stay in Ting City for a few days."
Team Leader Wu was overjoyed. "Ting City now belongs to Li Chun. It's truly your second home. Jing City has been providing construction support for Ting City. If you have time, you can look around and see the recent changes here."
Although Li Chun didn't have direct economic control over Ting City, the city was nominally assigned to her. Therefore, she and Xu Huo had the right to participate in Ting City's affairs. Team Leader Wu hadn't hidden this attack incident from him.
Furthermore, to better cooperate with Li Chun, the branch had received orders to carry out certain city renovations according to her or Xu Huo's requests.
Xu Huo wasn't interested in these things for now. He declined the invitation to dinner. "I need to rest properly for a few days. Please help me turn down any invitations like this."
Team Leader Wu naturally had no objections. He looked at Xu Huo with a gratified and kindly expression. "Rest easy. I've already arranged for the daily necessities you need. If you have any other requests, just say the word. Even if they're a bit excessive, it's fine."
Xu Huo glanced at him, then vanished from the conference room.