Chapter 292: Why Is Your Blood Bar Yellow?
Bai Mu Yun's illusion interference vanished like foam the instant it touched the beam; he let out a low hum and had to start dodging immediately.
Lu Mu's Raven Shadow was also grazed by a beam; he let out a strange cry, forced a direction change, narrowly avoided it, but the explosion's aftershock jolted his qi and blood, leaving a streak of blood at the corner of his mouth.
It was this brief interference that caused the teleportation field's light to suddenly contract to a point and then vanish completely in the air.
Along with the disappearance were Chi Jinan, Min Tianyou, the Butterfly Speaker, Shen Zexi, and… the conveniently snatched Ying Duo.
"Damn it!"
Lu Mu steadied himself, stared at the empty ruins, and spat fiercely.
Chi Jinan should have been certain death, but at the crucial moment the Church abruptly interrupted it.
Bai Mu Yun's face grew so grim it could drip water; he looked up toward the Floating City, where the gate city's defense cannons' muzzles had begun to turn slightly, clearly re‑targeting a new objective.
It was probably him and Lu Mu, or perhaps the ever‑silent Fang Zhiyan.
"Retreat!"
Bai Mu Yun made an instant decision without hesitation.
Under the Floating City's fire coverage, staying put was suicide; but slipping into the crowd might still offer a sliver of hope.
Fang Zhiyan quickly rose from the ruins, wiped the blood from his mouth corner, glanced at the tip of his rapidly regenerating tentacle, and then looked toward the Floating City.
Although he couldn't give Ying Duo any experience, he at least forced out a major trump card from the Church.
He didn't oppose Bai Mu Yun's decision; the three acted in perfect sync, each becoming a phantom and charging in different directions, instantly disappearing into the more complex ground ruins of the city.
Almost the moment they left the spot.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Deadly energy beams rained from the sky, striking precisely the areas they had just stood on or might have passed through, blasting the already shattered ground into a series of charred craters, with smoke and dust billowing.
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After a dizzying sense of weightlessness, their feet landed again on solid ground, and the surrounding scenery had completely changed.
Several healers clad in pristine holy robes rushed forward, lifted the blood‑crystal‑covered Chi Jinan onto a bed, and dripped various medicines and holy water through special conduits onto the surface of the Blood Crystal, attempting to permeate it.
The Saint currently had no time to attend to the few who had just been teleported back.
All her attention was on operating those Floating City defense turrets; each glide of her fingertip corresponded to a precise external bombardment.
And on the crystal wall before her, a live projection of the external battlefield was displayed.
It was the scene of Fang Zhiyan, Bai Mu Yun, and Lu Mu escaping through the Slum ruins; Ying Duo's golden eyes blinked, quickly suppressing the earlier frustration, and began to watch his teammates' grand deathmatch.
Because he had just dragged Lu Mu into the team amid the chaos, he could now see the three's Blood Bar status; honestly, they all looked fairly healthy, except one was a bit lagging.
Lu Mu, Lu Mu, why is your Blood Bar yellow?
But since they can still weave through the artillery, they won't die any time soon.
The Saint's maneuvers were precise and ruthless, yet many parts of the Slum are inhabited, preventing a flawless fire‑net; once they enter those zones, the Saint cannot continue to launch attacks.
Ying Duo watched the "teammate deathmatch" reality show with keen interest.
Well, Fang Zhiyan's tentacles are especially useful now, serving as shields and thrust boosters; Bai Mu Yun's cloud‑like mist remains as bouncy as ever; Lu Mu is… rather scrappy, relying mainly on Raven's agility and shadow jumps to survive.
Ying Duo's gaze lingered on the crystal wall's live battlefield projection for a few seconds before shifting around.
Shen Zexi stood nearby, his complexion a bit pale, yet he was the first to notice Ying Duo's unabashed stare.
Especially when he saw Ying Duo appear intrigued by the Saint and the control wall, even trying to get closer, he flinched, rushed forward two steps, and yanked Ying Duo back.
"Don't stare!" Shen Zexi lowered his voice, his tone unusually tense and stern.
He sensed the surrounding Church knights and clerics on watch had already cast disapproving glances at the "abnormal" Ying Duo.
Min Tianyou instantly sensed the shift, stepped forward, positioned himself in front of Ying Duo, and wore a perfectly timed helpless smile.
"Sorry, everyone, this classmate... has a little problem here."
He pointed to his head, made a "you know" expression, "He's just more curious, but harmless; we'll keep an eye on him."
The Church personnel's gazes lingered on Ying Duo's signature Ying Guang Lu short hair, then glanced at his somewhat hollow golden eyes; their vigilance eased a bit but did not vanish entirely.
One who seemed like a squad leader gave a cold nod, signaling them to stay quiet and not disturb the Saint or the medical work, then refocused on his watch post.
Elsewhere, the Butterfly Speaker remained where he was, his aura slightly chaotic.
He wasn't beaten half‑dead like Chi Jinan, yet the prior battle and final energy shock clearly left him feeling quite bad.
A nun in a white research robe approached him, politely asking if he needed examination or treatment.
The Butterfly Speaker shook his head at the words and whispered.
"I'm fine; just a big drain, a short rest will do."
If he dared to act cocky in the Slum, now he's a well‑behaved baby.
He was just a second ago in the Slum, fighting the Co-Absorption madmen, at least in the Slum; now he has truly made it to the Church's stronghold.
Although the Supervision Bureau has always handled the Undercurrent arrests, the Bureau is backed by the Church; he's basically run straight into his old enemy's boss's headquarters.
Family, do you think I can survive and return to the surface?
His gaze drifted involuntarily deeper into the hall; the incident happened suddenly, and both the healers and guards seemed to have been called in on short notice. The décor appeared simple, yet everything was actually quite valuable.
Before they were teleported in, there were probably only two people here.
The Pope stood beside the Saint, saying nothing, merely watching quietly as she issued command after command to the turrets from the control panel.
He still wore that exquisite robe, a mask covering his face, just like the Saint's veil.
End of Chapter