Chapter 60: Mad Blood

Under the dim yellow streetlights, a large swarm of insects gathered.

At midnight, a gunshot shattered the silence of the night.

Su Xiao turned toward the source of the gunshot—likely Lingwu Shizao had already engaged the enemy Contracted—and pressed the Bluetooth earpiece into his ear.

“Shizao.”

No reply came; perhaps Lingwu Shizao had accidentally dropped his Bluetooth earpiece during combat.

Su Xiao didn’t know the sniper’s strength, but he was confident Lingwu Shizao could hold him off.

Right now, the priority was to deal with the female shield warrior before him.

After Ye Zi’s healing, the Queen’s health had recovered to 67%.

Let’s be honest, that green-clad girl named Yezi truly has an enormous healing capacity.

The Queen watched Su Xiao warily; she had picked up her shield nearby, but her grip was awkward due to her severed right arm.

“Even with balanced development across three attributes, no one could have this kind of devastating attack power—and that blue light causing excruciating pain? No mistake—you’ve got a Zhiyemuban .”

The Queen had experienced three derivative worlds; her experience far surpassed that of ordinary contractees.

“Who knows.”

What Su Xiao most wanted to do right now was eliminate the hidden auxiliary contractee.

But the “Mithril Chains” bound him—he couldn’t move more than thirty meters away from the female shield warrior.

This was undoubtedly a nauseating ability. The shield warrior was hard to kill, and with the hidden auxiliary contractee supporting her, he couldn’t dispatch her anytime soon.

Lingwu Shizao’s situation was unclear; it was safer to end this quickly.

Su Xiao lunged forward several steps, reversed his long blade, and slammed the hilt hard against her shield.

“Thud.”

A muffled sound rang out; the Queen’s arm bore immense pressure.

Against shielded foes, blunt force was far more effective than slashing.

The Queen gritted her silver teeth and slammed the shield toward Su Xiao—this strike carried the desperation of a dying struggle.

Su Xiao didn’t block it; he’d taken minor injuries in battle, and earlier, when blocking bullets with the shield, he’d been violently shaken—his health had dropped to around 85%.

He sidestepped nimbly, then curled his arm, grabbing the shield’s edge with his left hand.

The Queen let out a moan, silently screaming, “Not again.”

Holding the edge of the Queen’s shield, Su Xiao lowered his eyelids, a faint smile forming on his lips.

“As a shield warrior, if you can’t even hold onto your shield, you might as well die.”

Su Xiao pulled his left hand backward, while his right hand thrust the Dragon-Slaying Flash forward.

The Queen had two choices: abandon her shield, or be impaled.

If she abandoned her shield, she’d be fully exposed to Su Xiao—his overwhelming attack power left her feeling hopeless.

But if she didn’t abandon it, she’d be pierced—and that soul-rending pain she’d felt before was unforgettable.

In the end, the Queen chose to drop her shield and retreated to evade Su Xiao’s blade.

After seizing the Queen’s shield, Su Xiao hurled it violently far away.

With a clang, the door-sized metal shield crashed into a shop beside the street, sending the interior into chaos; the shield stuck diagonally into a row of shelves, a few bottles of shampoo rolling onto its surface.

The Queen stood silent, thinking for several seconds, then spoke:

“We initiated the attack today. I’m willing to pay 10,000 Paradise Coins as compensation for mental distress. Cease hostilities—this way, we might both be destroyed.”

After realizing Su Xiao was not to be trifled with, the Queen chose to retreat appropriately.

“Pay first.”

Su Xiao intended to get something for nothing.

“Fine.”

A notification from the Cycle Paradise appeared before Su Xiao.

【Contractor No. ***** has applied for a temporary contract with you.】

【Within this derivative world, you shall not attack members of Contractor No. *****, and members of Contractor No. ***** shall not act against your interests, …】

【Upon this contract’s fulfillment, Contractor No. ***** will pay 10,000 Paradise Coins as a reward.】

【Reminder: This contract is certified by the Cycle Paradise; no one may violate it.】

【Reminder: The contract was drafted by the initiator. Please read carefully. Violating it after signing will result in punishment from the Cycle Paradise.】

【Penalty for violation: Deduct 300,000 Paradise Coins.】

【Yes/No: Agree to sign contract?】

Su Xiao read the contract with a wry chuckle—the Cycle Paradise actually had this feature.

After inquiring, he learned he could draft contracts too, but it would cost 50 Paradise Coins.

Su Xiao naturally rejected the contract proposed by the Queen—he’d intended to get something for nothing, but hadn’t expected the Cycle Paradise to have a contract system.

Since they’d attacked him, he wouldn’t let this go.

Seeing Su Xiao refuse, the Queen’s expression changed.

“What do you mean?”

“What do I mean? I mean to cut off your head.”

Su Xiao pulled out a salted rice ball and shoved it into his mouth—it restored 10% vitality, a decent supply item.

“Don’t push me.”

The Queen’s voice turned icy.

“Heh~ Hahaha~.”

Su Xiao, blade in hand, suddenly burst into laughter.

“You planted bombs along my path and tell me not to push you? Today, unless I chop off your head, this fight won’t end.”

Su Xiao’s gaze shifted to a side alley beside the street.

“Stay hidden there. After I shatter her, you’ll be next.”

Su Xiao was utterly vicious now; Ye Zi, hiding in the alley, shrank back, trembling.

As an auxiliary, Ye Zi rarely fought, so her courage was weak.

The Queen knew she was in the wrong and fell silent, but now she held a test tube and a knight’s sword.

The test tube contained a bright red liquid, thick and viscous.

“Ye Zi, keep an eye on my health.”

The Queen roared, then tilted her head back and drank the vial.

“Pfft~ Disgusting.”

After drinking the unknown liquid, faint whisker-like marks appeared on her face, and a dark red energy surged across her body.

“Power is surging.”

Within seconds, the Queen’s pitch-black eyes had transformed into blood-red bestial pupils.

A deeply ominous feeling arose. Su Xiao didn’t rush forward immediately—he activated 【Basic Probe】.

【10 MP consumed. Basic Probe activated. Information obtained:】

Contractor: No. 11740. (Rage State)

Strength: 6+10

Agility: 5+10

Stamina: ???

Intelligence: 5

Charm: 6

Skill 1: Rage State (temporary passive)—lose 3% HP per second; Rage State forcibly ends when HP drops below 5%.

Skill 2: Inferior Fox Bloodline (temporary passive)—Strength, Agility, and Stamina +10.

Skill 3: Mad Blood (temporary passive)—every 10 seconds, perform a random attribute check. If failed, enter Chaos State. (Random attribute check: randomly select one of five attributes for evaluation.)

Skill 4: ???

Skill 5: ???

Skill 6: ???

……

Su Xiao’s lip twitched—what had this woman drunk? A temporary passive skill granting +10 to Strength, Agility, and Stamina?

Though her combat power had skyrocketed, she was suffering—losing 3% HP per second meant she’d die in 34 seconds.

Of course, with the auxiliary contractee watching from afar, this time might be slightly extended.

“Roar!!”

A beast-like roar echoed—the Queen was unlucky; her Skill 3’s random attribute check had drawn Charm on the first roll—and she failed.