Chapter 936: Enemies Meet (Fourth Update)

In the Forest of the Strong, beside a campfire, Detective Little Luoli and the man with gold-rimmed glasses sat huddled around the flames.

“We’re running low on food.”

Detective Little Luoli sighed; her once-pale face was caked in dust. Just ten minutes ago, the two had encountered several “guests,” whose food drew their attention—they attacked those “guests.”

The outcome wasn’t good: they didn’t get the food, and the glasses-wearer nearly died. Those “guests” could burrow into the ground, vanishing completely once inside the soil. Their escape had been pure luck.

“Next time, choose targets more carefully—we…”

The man with gold-rimmed glasses turned his head toward a distance, as if hearing something.

“Something’s wrong.”

No sooner had he spoken than two figures rushed toward them. Seeing one of them, Detective Little Luoli’s body tensed.

“Does he mean to reduce the number of players?”

Detective Little Luoli rose to her feet, seeing Su Xiao charging toward them from afar.

“That doesn’t seem right—he seems to be… fleeing?”

The man with gold-rimmed glasses was confused.

“Brother Baiye…”

Whoosh~

Su Xiao dashed past, Bubu Wang right behind him—completely ignoring the man with gold-rimmed glasses.

The campfire scattered under the gust of wind; the man’s hand froze midair, awkwardly.

Boom… boom… boom…

The ground began to shake. Detective Little Luoli and the man with gold-rimmed glasses turned toward the source—their faces turned ashen.

“Oh my god~”

Detective Little Luoli’s voice cracked with tears.

“Split up and run!”

The man with gold-rimmed glasses roared, and the two bolted left and right.

Whoosh!

The Star-Parasite Crab horde surged past, ignoring Detective Little Luoli and the man with gold-rimmed glasses entirely—fixated solely on Su Xiao, as if his act of drawing water in their territory had made the conflict irreconcilable.

Leaving aside the two who nearly wet themselves, Su Xiao, while fleeing, kept pondering one thing: why were these Star-Parasite Crabs so obsessed? The way they chased him, it was clear he’d once burned their nest.

He hadn’t done it—but a Shadow of Annihilation named Kain Sylis had. To the Shadows of Annihilation, Star-Parasite Crabs were creatures that must be eradicated.

More planets had been destroyed by Star-Parasite Crabs than by war. Each planet’s destruction meant the shattering of elemental balance across vast stretches of the Void. Thus, Shadows of Annihilation always exterminated these pests—vermin of the Void.

Over time, the Star-Parasite Crabs came to hate the Shadows of Annihilation. But fully grown Shadows could crush the entire crab race with one hand; the crabs could only tremble in fear.

Now, this was clearly hatred between old enemies. Drawing water in their territory was trivial—the true provocation was the pure Qinggangyingsuo energy within Su Xiao’s body.

Su Xiao had been caught in the crossfire. He had inherited the Shadow of Annihilation, but not through the orthodox path—the Shadow had vanished from the Void, and he didn’t even know who his enemies were.

The appearance of Star-Parasite Crabs on the fourth floor of the Ancient Castle might not be coincidence. Alice wouldn’t have brought such a dangerous species into the castle without reason.

The chase continued. Su Xiao and Bubu Wang raced through the forest, both moving swiftly. Even though the Star-Parasite Crabs surged like a tide, the two gradually pulled ahead.

Sensing this, the crabs accelerated their advance, leaving behind a trail of shattered shells.

Their speed surged abruptly, and moments later they entered Su Xiao’s intuitive range—seven meters.

Su Xiao grew angry from being chased. He suddenly stopped. Bubu Wang nearly fainted, barking twice: “Master, calm down!”

Su Xiao was calm. If he kept running like this, he’d exhaust himself. He needed to force the crabs to pause—or cripple them.

He hadn’t planned to do this—it risked being surrounded. But these crabs had pushed too far.

The moment Su Xiao halted, a wave of Star-Parasite Crabs surged forward.

Counter-Shield activated. Dozens of Counter-Shields formed a circular barrier, enclosing Su Xiao.

Patter-patter! Countless crabs slammed into the shields. Su Xiao immediately crouched low, maintaining his center of gravity.

Crunch-crunch-crunch…

A terrifying chewing sound erupted around the shields—thousands upon thousands of them. The shields cracked like shattered glass, instantly covered in fissures.

“Not enough. Wait until they’re denser.”

Surrounded by the crabs, Su Xiao was plunged into darkness. If the shields broke, he’d be reduced to dust.

Bubu Wang, watching from afar, saw Su Xiao completely engulfed. His big, watery eyes filled with tears. He spun around and charged straight into the crab horde—clearly meaning: “I’ll fight you to the death!”

Whoosh!

A pale red aura erupted from within the crabs. Any Star-Parasite Crab touched by the aura instantly shattered into shell fragments.

Whoosh~

Countless Star-Parasite Crabs exploded. Su Xiao’s figure reappeared—his Counter-Shields now riddled with holes.

This was the active effect of aura release: projecting one’s aura at super-speed to inflict 100 + (Willpower × 5) damage on all enemies within 30 meters, ignoring armor, magic resistance, shields, and equipment defense.

Star-Parasite Crabs had low HP and relied entirely on their white shells for defense. Su Xiao deduced that aura release could instantly kill them.

Su Xiao didn’t know how many he’d killed, but using the momentary vacuum created by the crabs’ deaths within thirty meters, he broke free of the horde and kept running.

Seeing this, Bubu Wang, who had just been about to charge, slammed to a halt and turned around—clearly thinking: “Alive is good. Fighting to the death? Too violent.”

The two resumed their frantic escape. The Star-Parasite Crab horde no longer surged forward, as if wary of Su Xiao—or perhaps recalling the ancestral terror of the Shadows of Annihilation. A tiger is a tiger—no matter its form, it’s not something grasshoppers can provoke.

Soon after, Su Xiao and Bubu Wang reached the heart of the Forest of the Strong.

Su Xiao noticed the crabs weren’t following. He exhaled deeply, and the two leaned against a tree to rest.

Bubu Wang stuck out his tongue, cooling himself through his mouth. For some reason, the deeper they went into the Forest of the Strong, the hotter it became.

Su Xiao had stripped to the waist, a cigarette dangling from his lips. Seeing Su Xiao bare-chested, Bubu Wang glanced at his own leather coat. Though he was sweltering, he couldn’t take it off.

“What, want me to shave you?”

Su Xiao exhaled a plume of smoke, already imagining Bubu Wang’s new look: all fur shaved off except for a strip along the back and top of the head.

Su Xiao couldn’t help picturing it—Bubu Wang would look just like a donkey…

Bubu Wang lifted his head high—clearly meaning: “I’m not getting shaved!”

Though the chase had left them battered, it wasn’t without reward.

Su Xiao pulled a bucket of fresh water from his storage space, then two cups, tossing one to Bubu Wang. The two began drinking sip by sip.

Burp~

Bubu Wang let out a satisfied burp. Though they’d been hunted mercilessly, at least they had fresh water.