Chapter 90: Delivering the Core, Longyue Town Ahead (First Update)

She ""saw"" a figure twisted by entangling vines, ""saw"" a few people in the distance retreating in terror, and several wild grasses suddenly springing up from their curled state, whipping right across their legs.

She was startled, but couldn't think—her energy was still spreading. She caught sight of a panicked figure running blindly—ah, it was A-Gang.

Get back here!

She shouted inwardly, and a thicket of brambles slid out to trip him. He fell.

Her energy kept extending. There were more people around, a lot more. A figure rushed over—who was it?

She tried to ""zoom in"" her perspective, but that person suddenly raised a gun.

""Bang bang bang bang!"" Muzzle flashes tore through the darkness. The few people not attacked by the vines screamed and fell, then a gunfight broke out.

Bian Changxi's head buzzed. She jolted awake, her vision brightening for a moment before dimming again. She felt utterly hollowed out, and spat out a mouthful of blood.

She collapsed to the ground, clutching her head, her whole body aching—pain here, pain there. She couldn't tell if she'd been shot or hit by flying dirt and branches.

Then the gunfire stopped. Someone rushed over like the wind and carefully helped her up. ""Miss Bian.""

It was Shadow.

Shadow had noticed Milk hadn't followed, and had a bad feeling, so he'd chased after her. He heard the gunshots, saw the fight from afar, and then watched Bian Changxi dash into the wild woods. He entered from another direction.

Bian Changxi opened her eyes to a thick fog, so dense she could barely see anything.

Shadow quickly said, ""I made this fog. There are still a lot of them left. We need to leave right now.""

She tried to tug his sleeve, but missed—her arm wouldn't lift.

""Milk..."" Her voice was hoarse and weak, barely audible.

Shadow heard her, paused, then understood and looked down. The fog didn't affect him. He spotted the lump of black charcoal that looked like a mouse, picked it up, and asked, ""Is... this it?""

Bian Changxi took it with her left arm. As soon as Milk touched her, it vanished—she'd put it into her farm space, not even bothering to hide it from Shadow.

Shadow's gaze flickered, but he said nothing. Just as he was about to help her up, his expression sharpened and he fired two shots. Two muffled groans sounded in the fog, followed by bodies hitting the ground.

He immediately carried Bian Changxi behind a tree. The next moment, bullets riddled the spot they'd just left.

Bian Changxi groaned in pain. Shadow asked urgently, ""What's wrong?""

""Doesn't matter... go...""

She kept slipping downward, and Shadow quickly supported her, shocked to find her body ice-cold, as if she'd just been pulled from a freezer, and getting colder by the second.

He saw her face was covered in blood. Her left shoulder was caved in and mangled, her right wrist swollen grotesquely, her hand twisted at an unnatural angle. She was covered in wounds. His heart clenched hard. He carefully hoisted her onto his back. ""Hold on, I'll get you out of here!""

He ran a few steps before pursuers caught up. ""After them! Hurry!"" It was the metal-powered man's voice.

Shadow turned, firing as he retreated. With Bian Changxi on his back, he didn't dare expose his back.

Click—the magazine was empty.

Frowning, Shadow tossed the gun aside. Unlike Bian Changxi, he didn't have a farm space. He'd only brought two guns out at night, and now both were empty. He pulled out his spare blades, throwing them as he ran.

He was even deadlier with blades than guns. The blades seemed to have eyes, curving midair to strike people hiding behind trees—one to the eye, one to the throat. Like an assassin from ancient times, he moved through the fog with ghostly precision, ruthlessly harvesting lives.

Bian Changxi clutched a crystal core weakly. She'd lost too much blood, her whole body freezing, her hands and eyelids too heavy to lift. She felt she was about to go into shock—about to die. She thought of Gu Xu—how much blood had he lost back then, yet acted like nothing was wrong? If she survived, she had to ask him for tips—how did he manage to be so tough?

Right now, she couldn't even absorb the energy from the crystal core.

Oh right, she'd overdrawn her powers—this time, seriously. She was completely empty inside. She was done for.

She wanted to pat Shadow, tell him to put her down—no point in running anymore. She just wanted to enter her farm space and sleep, forget everything.

Suddenly, Shadow stopped. ""Listen, something's coming.""

She forced herself to focus, hearing a slithering, hissing sound. The ground trembled slightly, and a faint stench of blood filled the air.

She moved her lips. ""Mutant... snake?""

And a huge one at that.

Hadn't those guys checked and said there was nothing here? It was the smell of blood—it had attracted these things. Shadow's face was grim as he ran, Bian Changxi on his back as light as a feather. If he weren't worried about jostling her, he could have run faster.

Bian Changxi pressed her lips together, pushing aside her negative thoughts and focusing all her strength on healing.

Every bit of recovery helped.

Suddenly, people behind them screamed. Bian Changxi struggled to turn her head. In the fog, a pair of huge blood-red eyes glowed like lanterns. The snake opened its jaws and swallowed a man's head whole.

She suddenly remembered a story from her childhood textbooks—Li Ji slaying the snake, or something like that.

This was her first time seeing a mutant snake since her rebirth. Maybe it was the difference in strength now, or her injuries, or maybe in her previous life, after her powers were damaged and her work kept her indoors, but this giant snake gave her a strong sense of oppression. The stench from its mouth was as unbearable as Zhang Yuwen's bad breath.

Her chest felt tighter, blood surging. Every heartbeat hurt. Maybe a broken rib was stabbing something inside.

Suddenly, the mutant snake turned its head, fixing its cold gaze on them. Clearly, it found the scent of these two powered people more appealing. The snake slithered toward them.

""Not good...""

Its ferocious head, massive body oozing foul fluids, and a stench of rot crashed through the trees and grass with unstoppable force. Shadow twisted and turned through the woods, forced farther from the edge, then leapt down a small slope, hiding Bian Changxi under a tree and grabbing her straight-bladed knife. ""Don't come out!""

Bian Changxi grabbed his hand—this time she managed to hold on, gasping, ""Fog powers—aim for its eyes!""

Shadow paused, nodded, and jumped back just as the snake arrived, its jaws opening wide, tongue lashing at him.

Its head was as big as half a person, its open mouth a swirling, stinking black hole. Shadow dodged nimbly, firing his submachine gun into its mouth, making the snake rear back in pain. Seizing the chance, he leapt from a branch and sliced off its tongue.

""ROAR—""

The mutant snake howled, blood and venom spraying from its mouth.

Shadow landed and sprinted to a tree behind the snake, climbing up like a monkey and perching on a branch.

The snake, enraged, smashed its head into the tree.

Shadow jumped down and leapt to a farther tree, darting up and down.

The snake was lured farther away step by step. When Shadow judged the distance right, he flung two dense clouds of white fog at its eyes, adding two blades for good measure.

The snake reacted as if doused in acid, thrashing madly and howling, its powerful tail whipping trees in half.

Shadow seized the chance to run, but was unlucky—its tail struck him, sending him flying. He tumbled several times, the skin and flesh torn from his back, snake venom seeping into his wounds, his whole body sizzling.

""Ah..."" He gritted his teeth and cried out, but his voice was drowned by the chorus of screams behind him.

He'd deliberately lured the snake toward the metal-powered man and the others.

Ignoring the pain, he glanced back, then sprinted back toward the small hill. But when he arrived, he stopped dead.

Three people now stood before Bian Changxi. The elite man and A-Gang both pointed guns at her. Soaked and disheveled, A-Gang snarled, ""This woman played me. I'll cripple her!""

He'd only learned about the electric shock device after meeting Boss Zhang.

No wonder she had so many powers.

The elite man disagreed. ""Wait till Brother Zhang finishes his business.""

Boss Zhang, panting, had just arrived.

Seeing Shadow, both men pointed their guns at him. ""Don't come any closer!""

A-Gang fired, forcing Shadow to his knees.

His eyes gleamed with excitement. ""You're one of Gu Xu's teammates, right? Ha! He was so tough—made me look like a fool the first time. Later, Qu Nan respected him so much, while I was just a servant, always bowing and scraping—so humiliating! Never thought I'd see his people fall at my feet, one about to die, the other kneeling to me! Ha!""

Bian Changxi glanced up. This guy was already unhinged. Who would've thought someone who looked so normal could be so twisted inside?

With that glance, she saw Shadow's back sizzling, smelled that strange odor, and understood instantly.

She'd dragged him down with her.

""Go,"" she said weakly but sincerely. ""Find someone, avenge me."" She smiled. ""I know, people like him—can't even freeze the floor—there's nothing you can do.""

Shadow acted as if he hadn't heard, glaring at A-Gang. A-Gang, stung by the reminder of his disgrace, shrieked, ""What do you mean I can't freeze anything? Go? Easy for you to say! Let's see you try!""

Bian Changxi let out a sarcastic laugh, but the laughter turned into a fit of coughing, each cough tearing her apart, so she forced herself to hold it in.

A-Gang grew even angrier, striding up to Shadow and grabbing his head.

Boss Zhang shouted, ""Don't fall for it! She's provoking you!""

ps:

Thanks to Ai Feng c for two pink tickets! Thank you for your support!"