Chapter 508: The Girl with the Wild Imagination

Pfft.

The blade's glow sliced through the A-San's waist, its speed unimpeded, carving straight through the villa's wall and vanishing into the night sky.

A-San's upper body crashed to the ground, blood and intestines splattered across the floor.

"Ahh!!"

A-San let out a piercing scream; Bach and the black man holding an M16A4 assault rifle froze.

"Sword… qi."

The black man swallowed hard, forgetting to pull the trigger—he knew what it meant to unleash sword qi: that ability only appeared at Sword or Knife Art Lv. 20.

A-San's wailing echoed far away; Su Xiao stepped forward and planted his foot on A-San's head.

Crack.

A-San's skull crushed beneath his foot; Su Xiao lifted his gaze toward the other two.

"Run!"

Bach shouted and turned to flee.

Toot-toot-toot…

The black man holding the M16A4 fired, bullets spewing from the barrel.

Hearing the gunfire, Bach slowed his pace.

Su Xiao swung his long blade, deflecting each bullet—sparks flew as he closed in on the black man.

The black man nodded at Bach through the gunfire.

"You saved me once. This pays you back."

The black man grinned, revealing white teeth; though he often argued with Bach, they were close—bound by life and death.

Bach's facial muscles twitched; he turned and kept running, never uttering a word about staying to die with the black man.

Bach smashed through the villa's back door, fleeing in disarray—just as the gunfire ceased.

The three relied too heavily on gear and active skills—this was the flaw of most Contractees: they crushed ordinary people in the real world, but had no answer against Su Xiao, who stacked passive skills.

The moment the gunfire stopped, Bach knew the black man was dead—no doubt about it.

Clang!

A blade's glow erupted from inside the villa, a pale blue radiance blazing brilliantly in the night.

The nearby Cleaners members stared, mouths slightly agape, unable to believe what they saw.

Clang, clang.

Two more blade glows shot out from the villa; Bach threw himself to the ground, barely dodging one.

"This guy must be Third Tier—no one at First or Second Tier could be this strong in the real world."

Bach scrambled to his feet; just as he prepared to flee again, a dark shadow burst from the villa.

A howling wind rushed toward him; Bach instinctively raised his Nepalese kukri in front of him.

Ding.

Tang Hong wasn't as sharp as Dragon Flash, but under the Lv. 21 Knife Master bonus, the long blade sank deep into the Nepalese kukri, nearly severing it outright.

Bach gripped the knife with both hands; in the real world, his Strength stat was 45, but with gear bonuses, it reached 56 in the Cycle Paradise.

This was the difference between Su Xiao and Bach: Bach chose gear that boosted stats; Su Xiao chose functional gear.

Now, with no gear bonuses and active skills unavailable, Bach's strength equaled that of a First-Tier Contractee in the Cycle Paradise—perhaps a strong one, but nothing more.

Su Xiao pressed his long blade downward; Bach's knees bent, his face turning deep purple with strain.

They locked in a struggle—Bach was clearly losing.

The blade slowly neared Bach's neck; Bach knew he'd die if he kept this up, so he activated his emergency measure.

A grenade rolled out from inside Bach's clothing, its pin already pulled.

"Die."

Bach clenched his teeth; Su Xiao's Strength and Agility were both high—he assumed Su Xiao's Endurance was low, a classic assassin-type enemy.

As the grenade rolled free, Su Xiao's pressure lessened; Bach was about to collapse to his knees.

Su Xiao lifted one foot and thrust it forward, kicking straight into Bach's abdomen.

Bach's body curled like a shrimp, spewing acidic fluid, his body flying uncontrollably backward.

Boom.

The grenade exploded, shrapnel spraying everywhere, striking the villa's outer wall with sharp thuds.

Thud.

Bach crashed through the wall of the neighboring villa, dust rising—he was alive or dead, unknown.

As the explosion's fire faded, Su Xiao walked across the cratered lawn, stepping slowly toward the villa with its shattered wall.

Amid the dust, Bach struggled to rise—when a figure burst through the haze and stood before him.

The long blade came down, stabbing straight for Bach's head.

Ding.

Bach dodged; the blade pierced the expensive marble floor, chips flying.

Su Xiao stepped on Bach's back—crack—the man's ribs snapped under the pressure, his body pinned flat to the ground.

"What did they offer you? I'll pay ten times more."

Bach spoke the words rapidly—his reward was the blade's edge.

Pfft—a head flew upward, blood soaking into the finely veined marble.

"Ahh~"

A short scream came from the bedroom; furniture toppled.

Su Xiao frowned; in the real world, except for dedicated Perception Contractees, others' perception was suppressed—the air here held too few elements, and an unknown energy was even scarcer, limiting perception range.

Su Xiao could clearly sense only what was within a few meters—like incoming bullets—but beyond that, everything blurred.

He picked up a towel from the living room coffee table and wiped the blood from Tang Hong, then walked slowly toward the bedroom.

He opened the bedroom door; a faint sound came from the closet beside him.

Su Xiao stood before the closet—the closet held a girl.

The girl was the villa owner's daughter, Li Li Murui, seventeen, a rebellious teenager.

Li Li Murui was now both terrified and exhilarated; she had always dreamed of becoming extraordinary, so she adored superhero films and anime—though a rich girl, she was also a shut-in.

Ten seconds ago, she had watched a man in a black trench coat, wielding a long blade, sever another man's head—she learned for the first time that blood could spurt meters when a head was cut off, and that a decapitated body didn't die instantly—it still twitched instinctively.

Her first thought: she'd encountered superpowers—two opposing superpowered beings.

But neither had used fire or ice or any supernatural ability; Li Li Murui's mind shifted from superpowers to wuxia—she couldn't help but admire the girl's imagination.

Now, the man with the long blade stood outside the closet; she heard his footsteps.

'This is my chance. Maybe I can become extraordinary too.'

The murder scene had paralyzed her with fear, but her longing for the mysterious eased some of it.

Gathering courage, Li Li Murui shrank deeper into the closet.

There were dead people outside; no matter how much she craved the supernatural, she was still a seventeen-year-old girl—fear was inevitable.

Su Xiao opened the closet; their eyes met.

"Take me as your disciple. I can endure hardship—I might even have great talent."

Dressed in silk pajamas, Li Li Murui dropped to her knees before Su Xiao, forehead pressed to the floor.

Su Xiao's cheek twitched visibly.

Two minutes later, Li Li Murui, bound hands and feet, mouth stuffed with a towel, wriggled on the bed, tear tracks on her cheeks.

Su Xiao tapped his earpiece.

"There's a witness."

"What?!"

A startled cry came through the earpiece.

"I'm considering whether to eliminate her."

Su Xiao looked at Li Li Murui; her eyes widened, her struggles stopped.

"Mmmph! Mmmph!"

Li Li Murui struggled more violently.