Chapter 144 - 143: I Must Kill Her Today
On the first floor, the outcome of the chaotic battle was all but decided.
With Yang Shen and Xu Bamboo’s superb coordination—especially with Yang Shen holding nothing back—everyone except for Long Jiu had been eliminated.
Of the five dead, two were slain by Xu Bamboo. The other three had been nailed to the wall by Yang Shen, skewered like kebabs.
He had a real affinity for this method. It wasn’t some twisted hobby; pinning someone to a wall maximized their pain and left them with no leverage, severely restricting their ability to struggle. Even if they didn’t die instantly, they would bleed out slowly.
If they struggled and pulled out the spear, the wound would tear wider, and the excruciating pain would rob them of their ability to fight. When dealing with Martial Artists and their powerful Life Force, this was far more effective than just poking a hole in them.
That was why if you were going to impale someone, you might as well pin them to a wall. Deal damage and apply crowd control all at once.
One skewer, no squeal.
At this point, Long Jiu was the only one left on the side of the Rebel Species. However, Yang Shen had also been wounded while contending with her. A twenty-centimeter gash stretched across his abdomen, but the bleeding had been quickly seared shut, no longer impeding his movements.
It had been a close call. Even though Yang Shen had reinforced his defenses with his Curse Engraving, he was still cut.
Even as the last one standing, Long Jiu remained an exceptionally dangerous opponent.
Yang Shen and Xu Bamboo teamed up, launching a ruthless two-on-one assault against Long Jiu. Yet the doll-like girl, possessing the power of the Innate Realm and a profound mastery of combat, still managed to astonish Yang Shen.
’Ever since reaching the third layer of Qi Cultivation, this is the first time I’ve encountered someone my own age who can fight better than me.’
In terms of both realm and practical combat skill!
’Even with all my own cheats enabled! Except for my initial surprise attack, none of my other tricks seem to work on her anymore.’
’I have to admit, this girl is stronger than me!’
’If my power level is a ten and Xu Bamboo’s is about an eight, then hers is at least a thirteen.’
’The fact that I’ve managed to hold on long enough to turn the tables is thanks in large part to my bag of tricks.’
But the ones besieging her were no ordinary Marrow Refining Realm cultivators. If this dragged on, victory would ultimately belong to him and Xu Bamboo.
"Zhuzi... The cops are probably on their way. Watch out, she’ll try to bolt," Yang Shen warned.
He hadn’t shown his face, but he had played almost all his trump cards today. If this girl escaped, he’d likely be targeted by the Rebel Species the next time he used these abilities.
The Rebel Species were mostly small fry, but you can’t spend a thousand days guarding against a single thief...
’I have to kill her today!’
Sure enough, a commotion erupted in the yard outside the villa. Red and blue lights flashed, sweeping across the windows.
A security guard’s voice cut through the noise. "Officers! This is Building 14! One of the owners reported some late-night renovations!"
"I’ve been a guard for twenty years, and this is definitely not renovations! The noise from renovating is never this quiet!"
Clearly, the police were here...
Long Jiu herself felt no anxiety. She was devoid of emotion. But a command still crackled through her earpiece.
It was a reluctant order to retreat.
The young woman immediately executed a fierce sweeping attack, forcing Yang Shen and Xu Bamboo back before smashing through a window to flee.
A solid wood window frame was no obstacle for an Innate Martial Artist. With an explosion of shattered glass, Long Jiu fled toward the back of the villa.
"I’ll go after her alone," Yang Shen said to Xu Bamboo. His current getup was strange enough as it was. "Don’t tell the police who I am. Just say the whole thing was bizarre. We’ll get our stories straight when I get back."
For Xu Bamboo, "bizarre" was certainly the right word.
’What were those people her mother brought here for? Why did they attack without a word? And why was Jin Wu in her house?’
Xu Bamboo was still completely in the dark.
Long Jiu was incredibly fast. After his quick instruction, Yang Shen immediately gave chase, performing one last action before he left.
He controlled his Curse Engraving, forming it into a large, black hand that smashed the few scorched marks he’d left behind.
It also hammered the scorched husks of the bodies to dust.
Xu Bamboo’s first instinct was to follow, but her worry for her mother upstairs won out. She decided to check on her first before going to help Yang Shen.
Xu Bamboo sprinted back to the second floor. In a fleeting glimpse, she saw the back of a figure leaping from another second-floor window, apparently also startled by the police’s arrival.
But the safe room where her mother was...
For some reason, a gap had opened at its base... and a torrent of blood was pouring out.
Dark... viscous...
Xu Bamboo’s pace slowed... and her longsword hung limply at her side.
She stopped in front of the safe room... utterly lost.
————
In the dead of night, Long Jiu immediately carried out the order to retreat without a moment’s hesitation.
She didn’t linger, showed no dissatisfaction, just as she felt no fear.
Her vacant eyes and serene, beautiful face betrayed not a single trace of emotion.
A river ran through the center of the Jinshui Villa complex. It was a tributary that had been diverted from a larger river crossing Jinshui District, dug specifically to drive up property values.
Long Jiu’s escape route was the river.
With a light leap, she became a blur, landing on the river’s surface. After a moment of adjustment, she began to run across the water.
Literally running, her feet kicking up spray as she moved at incredible speed.
For a Martial Artist in the Innate Realm, sheer power and speed were enough to run on water, as the water provided sufficient support against the sudden impacts.
Of course, this trick was only good for escaping. It was useless in combat, as even a moment’s hesitation would send you sinking.
Long Jiu was an experienced assassin. She knew she couldn’t possibly account for every camera during her escape, which made the river a safe zone. It also helped her evade any potential police blockades.
Yang Shen, in hot pursuit, froze for a second. ’What the hell?!’ he thought. ’Running on water?’
After a moment’s observation, he understood how it worked.
’Not much skill involved,’ he realized. ’It’s all raw power.’
He was a quick study. Yang Shen gave it a try, charging onto the water’s surface. His first few steps were clumsy and chaotic, but he soon got the hang of it.
’It actually works!’
However, his explosive Power created a huge disturbance. With every step, the water’s surface erupted as if a bomb had gone off.
In comparison, Long Jiu was like a graceful water sprite, while Yang Shen was a clumsy, skipping torpedo.
And he wasn’t even as fast as her.
’Nope, I should probably keep my feet on solid ground.’
Yang Shen changed tactics and scrambled back to the bank to continue the chase.
In the darkness, a tall figure strode across the river’s surface, while on the bank, a powerfully built man in a strange helmet sprinted in pursuit.
His red scarf trailed behind him, a long, captivating phantom under the moon.
Long Jiu’s absolute top speed was greater than Yang Shen’s, but running on water inevitably slowed her down.
Neither could gain any distance on the other.
One couldn’t catch up, and the other couldn’t break free.
However, neither of them noticed a third figure keeping pace.
Beneath the black surface of the water, a strange, serpentine shadow was also swimming at an incredible speed, propelled by a massive tail and what looked like webbed feet.
The three of them continued their high-speed chase along the river for several kilometers. As she ran, Long Jiu reported through her earpiece, "Anomaly... I can’t shake him..."
An aged voice on the other end answered, his words tight with frustration, "Don’t lead him to the base... you’ll expose our position..."
"My orders...?" Long Jiu asked.
"Find a secluded spot. Eliminate your pursuer first. Long Jiu... be careful... Grandpa’s waiting for you to come home safe!"
Long Jiu stopped dead, carving a sharp white wake in the water. Just before she sank, she leaped high into the air and landed on the shore.
Coincidentally, she had landed beneath a bridge.
One of the city’s most common unmanaged areas.
Beads of water clung to Long Jiu’s cheeks, along with the cut from her earlier fight with Yang Shen. The combination only served to make her skin seem even more delicate.
With a flick of her right wrist, a metallic tube dropped from her sleeve, unfolding into a strange scythe.
Another dropped from her other cuff. When she connected them, they formed a massive, double-bladed scythe.
Clearly, such a massive weapon had been unsuitable for fighting indoors. Out here, she had no such restrictions.
Yang Shen arrived right after her, bare-chested and masked, his presence just as menacing.
’I’ve caught up... but this is still going to be a tough fight....’
’Long Jiu is an Innate Martial Artist, after all. And she’s stronger than me.’
He didn’t slow down in the slightest. Maintaining the furious momentum of his sprint, he leaped high into the air.
Rising Sun Wheel! Activate!
Buddha Sound Body Refining Technique: 50%!
Fist Intent Flame! Ignite!
He raised his right hand, and a long, black spear wreathed in flames materialized out of thin air.
His body arched like a drawn bow! He hurled it from mid-air!
A true demon king beneath the moon!