Chapter 256: Time to Collect the Corpse

The tender branches of the crabapple tree, sprouted in early spring, swayed in the night breeze, and dim starlight flickered in the distant night sky above the eaves. Luo Qi held a sliver of hope that this was just a beautiful spring night in Du Zhengyi's hometown, with flowers casting red shadows, where the greatest tragedy would be nothing more than fallen petals forming a carpet. Aliens and such clearly did not fit the aesthetic of a Jiangnan town.

He secretly cursed his ancestors. Under the swaying tree shadows, a dark figure stood motionless. Luo Qi blinked, then suddenly rushed forward and stomped wildly on the remaining five Diamond Eggs. From the sequentially cracking shells, wet little things crawled out, knowing how to bite the moment they were born.

A sharp sound emanated from beneath the crabapple tree. Luo Qi did not know if the resentment in this sound was something he had imagined. He jerked his head up, and the dark figure arrived in a flash, closing the distance between them without the slightest effort, almost face-to-face with Luo Qi.

Luo Qi was shocked, not knowing whether it was more terrifying to be face-to-face with an ugly monster, or more soul-crushing that this thing had actually completely breached Du Zhengyi's defenses.

The only thing that made him feel a bit better was that Du Zhengyi, that delicate model student, was never accustomed to failure and must be even angrier than him right now. Moreover, Du Zhengyi had reacted quickly enough; he stabbed toward the Alien Seal Beast with his blade. Luo Qi could see that he was still relying primarily on strength, not counting on the sharpness of the weapon.

But this time, Du Zhengyi's attack missed. The thing twisted its body in the torchlight and dodged away, disappearing into the darkness. Recalling the final image retained on his retina, Luo Qi noted that the way the thing twisted its body actually had a hint of elegance; it was slimmer than the one they had killed, and perhaps even more alluring.

"Do the males hatch the eggs?" Luo Qi blurted out nonsensically.

Du Zhengyi had no time to attend to Luo Qi's biology lesson; he dragged him back a few steps. The dark figure retreated to beneath the crabapple tree and let out another shriek. Both of them stared at it intently, still shaken by the speed of this Alien. Suddenly, a mass of black shadow flashed out from the left like a nightmare.

Luo Qi was already standing to Du Zhengyi's left. Du Zhengyi reacted with lightning speed in his haste, but he had no way to worry about the consumption of Magic Energy anymore. His left hand flung out an invisible Shield to block in front of Luo Qi, while almost simultaneously, another dark shadow tumbled down from above, heading straight for Du Zhengyi. The blade in Du Zhengyi's right hand suddenly turned into a hammer, which he slammed into the head of the Alien Seal Beast. Whether it was a concussion or something else, the Seal Beast collapsed.

Du Zhengyi's right hand did not stop; the hammer in his hand transformed again into a throwing axe, which Du Zhengyi hurled, hacking into yet another lunging black shadow. The entire process was incredibly ruthless yet as fluid as flowing water. The stench of rotten vegetables from the Alien's blood permeated the air once again, and Luo Qi knew that somehow, Du Zhengyi had found another opening on the Alien.

In this brief moment of helplessness, Luo Qi dove headlong into the Consciousness World, rushing into the Consciousness Well where his father was imprisoned. "That thing is spawning everywhere. Did you know this would happen?"

He did not see his father's form; now his father seemed to have abandoned his physical shape, and his consciousness received no response. He knew his father was likely contemplating whether he was lying.

Luo Qi pondered for a few seconds, then suddenly felt he had found the key point for negotiation. "Forget it, just wait to collect my corpse!"