Chapter 2598: How Can You Beat Up an Old Man
The overwhelming killing intent and the sudden emptiness in his body caused that player to momentarily fail to hold onto his item. In a battle between high-level players, every second could determine life or death. Just as he felt a chill creep up his throat, the murderous figure before him suddenly turned his head to look in a certain direction, then without hesitation turned and left.
After Xu Huo's figure disappeared, the other three rescue team players confirmed their companion was unharmed and followed. From a distance, they saw him standing on a half-collapsed low building. After using an item to divert a bolt of lightning, he pulled someone out from underground.
It was a person from District 001 wearing a mechanical suit.
"It took quite a bit of effort to find you. I didn't expect you to be hiding underground," Xu Huo said, retracting the metal instrument used to block the fierce wind and putting away his umbrella, addressing the man who had been hoisted up by a spiritual power materialized object.
Old Mr. Xi was swaying violently in the wind, but he ignored his dizziness and the rush of blood to his head, urgently saying, "Someone is chasing me underground!"
"Slap!" The dust-covered Painting Woman poked her head out of the hole created by the materialized object. The metal on her head retracted, revealing her displeased face. "This old man runs really fast! I chased him for ages!"
The materialized object exerted force and tossed the little old man onto the rooftop. His mechanical suit, which had an automatic defense function, quickly grew several mechanical arms from its back, steadily propping him up on the ground. At the same time, it opened a demon head mask that had been blown over by the wind.
With the rain gone and the defense barrier activated, the little old man eagerly shed his mechanical suit as soon as he landed. He first dry-heaved for a while before lying down. "I can't do it anymore. I'm spent. Little Xu, my life is in your hands."
Xu Huo pointed at the four people in the distance. "I didn't cause this mess here."
The little old man immediately recognized them as the rescue team. He cursed weakly, "Are you here to rescue people or kill them? I was hiding in the sewers and you nearly electrocuted me! Get lost, all of you!"
"Old Mr. Xi." The four rescue team members had already retrieved their items and were quite surprised. "Is this the bodyguard you hired?"
"Did you expect me to rely on my own people or on you?" The little old man would have jabbed his finger at their foreheads if he could stand up.
"It's a misunderstanding." The four rescue team members still held great respect for him. The player who had initially clashed with Xu Huo was the first to apologize. "I was a bit impulsive earlier. If I had known you were also here to rescue people, we wouldn't have had to fight."
There was deep wariness in this man's eyes as he spoke. Xu Huo appeared to be just a B-rank player, yet he handled himself with ease against the four of them, all A-ranks. If he hadn't been serious about fighting, they might have lost one or two people today.
The Painting Woman, who had climbed up from downstairs, stormed over to the little old man and gave him a hard kick, making him clutch his leg and howl in pain.
Xu Huo made a symbolic gesture to stop her, then waved dismissively at the few people whose expressions had changed drastically. "She knows how hard to kick."
"No matter what, you can't beat up an old man." The group was quite displeased. If not for the fact that the Painting Woman had held back, they wouldn't have just stood there.
The Painting Woman was still furious. She held up her communicator and asked the little old man, "I called out to you, so why did you hit me?"
The little old man looked innocent. "You were wearing a metal face mask. How was I supposed to recognize you? I thought you were a mini-boss from the instance!"
Xu Huo gave him a knowing, half-smiling look. "You're quite cautious."
The little old man snorted. "If I weren't, would I have survived until today?"
The disheveled Painting Woman wanted to kick him again.
"Alright," Xu Huo stopped her. "If you want to vent, we won't give him any food later."
The Painting Woman raised her hand, and the diligent paper item carried up the boxes that had been hidden underground.
"None of this is for you!" She glared at the little old man.
Not one to be outdone, the little old man sat up and pointed at the rescue team members. "Water. Food."
One player brought over water and dry rations. "Old Mr. Xi, you've been hiding here for a long time. Have you figured out the trick to this instance?"
"The space here seems to both merge and isolate itself. Invisible doors are everywhere. People who occasionally appear before you vanish when you get close. This makes our rescue efforts extremely difficult."
"And yet you still dared to unleash your big moves here?" The little old man gave him a cold glance. "Since the spaces are both connected and not, how can you be sure you won't affect others trapped in the restricted zone? Just because you can't perceive them doesn't mean they don't exist."
The newcomer remained relatively calm and analyzed, "Since the space is cut off, as long as the space doors don't appear or open, it shouldn't affect people in other spaces within the same city."
The little old man took a sip of water and said nothing.
The player didn't press further and stepped back.
After enjoying his food and water under the Painting Woman's watchful eye, the little old man turned to Xu Huo with a grin. "I knew you were a good kid the first time I saw you. We barely know each other, yet you came all this way to save me. Don't worry, I'll make that item you want, even if I have to use my own materials."
"Isn't that only right?" Xu Huo said with a faint smile. "I already gave you the Subclass Stone. Don't even think about skimming materials from it."
The little old man coughed dryly and put on a serious face. "Am I that kind of person? If I did something like that, you can go ahead and curse me out on the Message Collection Terminal. I wouldn't ruin my own reputation for anything."
"Do you even have a reputation left?" Xu Huo said flatly.
The little old man didn't feel embarrassed at all. "I may not have a nice way of speaking, but I generally don't tell lies."
Xu Huo tore off a piece of jerky and asked, "You've been in here for a while. Have you seen this person?"
He used his spiritual power to conjure an image of Xiao Chuan.
The little old man glanced at it and waved his hand. "Ask those four."
Xu Huo took out a photo of Xiao Chuan.
Unexpectedly, the rescue team members actually knew. "This person has already been transferred out using a Container item, but they can't be released just yet."
Everyone who entered the restricted zone had to give a full account of their experiences to the local government. These were all details of the instance. Additionally, since this instance was quite special, the government didn't dare let people who had been in the restricted zone run around freely.
Xu Huo recorded the rescue team's explanation and sent a message to Liu Jie through the Under Dimension, asking him to tell Jing Shi that Xiao Chuan was safe.
"I have a few more here."
He released the contract staff and the few Xia City citizens he had taken in.
"Now, the next step is to find a way out." Xu Huo looked at the little old man. "Time flows differently inside and outside the restricted zone. The longer we delay, the more dangerous it gets. I still haven't completed this month's instance, so I need to get out as soon as possible."
The little old man became more serious upon hearing this. He opened his terminal and projected a rough outline of the city in the air. This was probably recorded earlier, as it didn't match the current city at all. Only the general directions could be vaguely identified.
"I've scouted this entire area. There are seven locations with teleportation portals. Two of them are close together, and I managed to spot a pattern. These portals probably can't open in the same direction within a certain range. If two portals are to open at the same time, one must be inward and the other outward."