Chapter 275: Assassination

Chapter 275: Assassination

The Cleaning Center of Zone 103.

It was already late at night, and Huo Wenxi leaned back in her chair, handling official duties. Suddenly, she twitched her eyebrows for no apparent reason and looked into the distance.

Zone 103 was brightly lit, appearing to have recovered from the great disaster. The neon lights seemed to flicker in Huo Wenxi's pupils.

Zhuang Lin noticed her unusual behavior and asked, "What's wrong?"

Huo Wenxi: "I want to read Zhu Ning's fortune."

Zhuang Lin: "You don't seem so cold after all."

After Zhu Ning left, Huo Wenxi had always responded coldly, seemingly indifferent to Zhu Ning outside the wall.

Huo Wenxi's desk was very antique, a large black and white I Ching board. She drew out a coin, and despite the ancient I Ching board, she used a game token to tell fortunes.

This ancient tradition of the Huo family was one of the reasons Huo Wenxi was called Little Shaman.

Zhuang Lin didn't dare to disturb Little Shaman while she was "performing rituals" and quietly watched her. A metal coin was tossed high into the air, spinning as it fell, like a die on a gambling table.

Many people thought Little Shaman's predictions were unreliable, after all, flipping a coin could be easily manipulated by a Metal Psychic.

Snap—

The coin landed in Huo Wenxi's hand. Wearing an eye patch over one eye, she glanced at it, and her intuition told her that Zhu Ning was in danger. This was the first time she had such a strong premonition.

...

"This bird is really strange."

Qi Xueliu led the team to the entrance of Songshan Temple. As soon as they entered, they startled a mutated bird. The black bird spread its massive wings and dove down, forcing their team to stop and attack.

In the darkness, bursts of firelight erupted. A dog with a human face lay on the ground, licking its front paws as if uninvolved, looking in a certain direction.

Pei Shu was well-hidden; he was good at concealing his tracks, which took some effort.

The bodies of the mutated birds fell one after another. After their round of attacks, the mutated birds seemed to sense some fear and stopped crashing into them, instead perching on the eaves and opening their sharp beaks to roar down.

The team held their guns aimed at the sky, slowly advancing into Songshan Temple. With such a commotion, it would be strange if no one inside was alerted.

Levi's nose was pressed to the ground, sniffing and gently wagging his tail. He smelled a vehicle that had once landed here, with the scent of gasoline, likely from the last Blackbird City where old gasoline was stored.

Hmm, Levi also smelled the scent of corpses. Were they carrying a corpse in their team?

No, not one, but two.

The smell of decay was faint and cold, suggesting they had been dead for a long time. Was this due to some Psychic ability?

There was a smell of fire, a Fire Psychic?

Ah, it smelled so good. Levi took a deep breath, his prominent, delicate nose pressed to the floor as if sniffing a flower or a glass of wine. He sensed strong pollution, the fragrance of demons.

Levi looked intoxicated, his tail swinging widely, even standing up. Demons smelled so good.

Du Yiqi watched this "colleague" with a subtle expression. No matter how many times he saw it, it still felt disgusting, like a pervert.

Levi lifted his head, "Five people, two corpses, one Fire Psychic, one undetectable, and one is our target."

Levi's nose was very sensitive, providing precise information. This should be the entire team of Zhu Ning. Not many, but it was impossible to relax, as Zhu Ning alone was enough to instill fear.

Qi Xueliu led the team, "Be careful."

The birds continued to circle, and the Buddha statues in the hall looked eerie, the smaller statues resembling ghostly shadows.

Their flying car was parked outside the hall, the trunk already opened. Da Song guarded the car nearby, and they needed someone to manually unlock the restraints.

The other four, accompanied by the man-faced dog, crossed through the hall. The shelter's location wouldn't be too hidden, and it was quickly discovered. Du Yiqi unlocked the mechanical panel in a few moves.

The entrance opened before them, and teammates stood guard on both sides, ready to fire. But when the entrance opened, there was only silence, no sound from inside.

Gone?

Impossible, they arrived quickly. Levi crouched beside them, indicating with his eyes: They're still inside.

Guns aimed at the ground, Qi Xueliu signaled, preparing to bombard below. Just as they opened their cannons, a sudden burst of flames appeared, like a magician on a dark stage setting fire unexpectedly when the audience's attention was focused.

"Fire!" Qi Xueliu shouted.

The cannons opened immediately. To counter Zhu Ning's Psychic ability, they hadn't chosen metal weapons.

But soon, a black figure leaped from below, moving very strangely, like a toy doll. She wore a black raincoat and held a machete. As she paused in mid-air, another head emerged from behind her.

A teammate cried out, almost dropping his gun. It wasn't the sight of a woman with two heads that scared him, but after she appeared, black spots suddenly appeared on his body, spreading rapidly like lividity.

His arm felt like a rotten apple, and the skin under the spots indented when pressed.

What kind of bizarre thing was this?

Before he could react, he felt a slight vibration in the air, and an invisible figure jumped onto him, straddling his shoulders with legs and wrapping arms around his neck. It was a child-sized figure, definitely young, otherwise unable to perform such a move.

Despite her youth, her movements were swift and decisive. With a powerful twist of her hands, a surge of force came, his eyes widened, and his spine shattered into powder.

As he died, his pupils reflected a burst of fire. Du Yiqi, closest to him, was engulfed in flames.

In just a minute, during the time it took to open the door, the three of them showed unexpected coordination.

Qi Xueliu also lost two team members within a minute. She looked ahead with a blank expression, already seeing the shadows of the enemies.

Pei Shu had intended to take advantage of the situation and attack, aiming for a quick victory, but he soon stopped in his tracks, as if an invisible hand had grabbed his right hand.

On the other side, Bai Cheng found herself in a similar predicament, her left leg caught by a force. Another Bai Cheng took the opportunity to escape from behind her, stepping on her shoulder to jump into the depths of the forest, observing before launching another assault.

Mind control?

Pei Shu realized it. No wonder she was chosen by the military to lead the demon hunting operation; Qi Xueliu's psychic ability was indeed rare mind control, capable of manipulating human bodies at will. When fully evolved, this psychic power could easily snap a person's neck in an instant, no wonder they all said Qi Xueliu was the second Su He.

Pei Shu estimated the range of Qi Xueliu's mind control. It wouldn't be as terrifying as Su He's, there must be a limit. On the other side, Bai Cheng signaled Lin Xiaofeng to stay still. Her transparent form made her invisible, ensuring Lin Xiaofeng's safety.

Perhaps Lin Xiaofeng was the key to breaking the deadlock.

Lin Xiaofeng understood the gesture from the shadows and quietly retreated. As someone who had long lived in a transparent state, she knew how to move truly silently. Due to her young age, her light weight and small stature gave her an advantage, and she wouldn't make low-level mistakes like stepping on branches.

Levi never entered the combat zone from the beginning. He made a threatening face, baring his teeth at Pei Shu.

Pei Shu finally saw Levi's face clearly. No wonder Zhu Ning had bent her fingers earlier; if he had seen it, he would have struggled to describe what it was.

Levi sensed the presence of a transparent figure, invisible to the naked eye, but detectable by his nose. He pressed his nose to the ground again, searching for traces.

Once found, they would lose their advantage. Lin Xiaofeng watched the man-headed, dog-bodied monster silently, thinking about how to kill him.

The soft Bai Cheng spread her arms and jumped down from a tall tree, reaching out one hand. Before her corpse spots touched Qi Xueliu, Bai Cheng's body was caught mid-air by an invisible force.

Crack—

Bai Cheng's body twisted in the air, as if crushed like a soda can.

Her body fell to the ground with a thud, her eyes still open, limbs twisted, and her head resting on her calves.

Pei Shu and Bai Cheng both felt their bones being gripped. Qi Xueliu was about to launch a second attack, intending to snap their necks.

Trapped by one leg, Pei Shu supported himself with one hand, his eyes burning with flames. The nearest tree immediately caught fire, and the strange birds nearby flapped their wings and scattered.

Just as Pei Shu was about to take the next step, a whirlwind swept in from behind, and dark gray lines descended from the air.

Pei Shu and Bai Cheng felt their hair stand up on the back of their necks. Pei Shu, experienced, relaxed his body this time, knowing they were now under Zhu Ning's protection, marked within her domain where no one could easily penetrate.

Pei Shu felt a heavy pressure on his right shoulder as a strong hand reached out from the darkness, Zhu Ning's hand resting on his shoulder.

Zhu Ning appeared silently behind Pei Shu and Bai Cheng, dressed in black protective gear, looking like a demon suddenly descending.

Behind her stood the main hall of Songshan Temple, with towering statues gazing compassionately at everything. Strange birds flapped their wings overhead, viewing humans as thorns in their sides, emitting sharp screeches.

Qi Xueliu was trembling. She had been using her mind control to hold Pei Shu and Bai Cheng, trying to hold on, but soon gave up. Her nerves were sensitive, and the surrounding area seemed filled with invisible pressure.

Qi Xueliu lowered her head, realizing she had stepped into Zhu Ning's contaminated zone.

Her psychic power slackened instantly. Zhu Ning didn't say a word, but Qi Xueliu knew that any rash movement would allow Zhu Ning to devour her effortlessly.

Is this a demon? There's no chance of fighting. Last time, Qi Xueliu only saw Zhu Ning from afar; this was her first close encounter.

Feeling the gap in strength, the mechanical defenses of Prometheus were no match for Zhu Ning. Their mission was a death sentence from the start.

Pei Shu sighed in relief. If not for clinging to powerful allies, Zhu Ning's appearance alone would have rendered the fight unnecessary—this was what it meant to be dominated by a powerhouse.

Seeing their insignia, Zhu Ning asked, "Prometheus agents?"

Qi Xueliu was about to answer when she suddenly gasped, her whole body trembling as if she had seen something terrifying, though the source of her fear wasn't Zhu Ning.

Swallowing hard, Qi Xueliu felt as if an invisible door had opened behind her, and she sensed the terrifying aura emanating from within.

Not just Qi Xueliu, the other team members felt the same way. Levi tucked his tail between his legs, whimpering softly.

Something was wrong. Zhu Ning frowned, noticing many dead birds on the ground. Despite the noise around them, she felt an eerie silence, so quiet that even the sound of a needle dropping could be heard.

Whoosh—

Suddenly, a cracking sound echoed through the air, like a whip snapping, but finer and sharper, capable of slicing through anything in the world.

Blood dripped from Zhu Ning's forehead, starting from the center, initially very thin, finer than a sewing needle.

Her skull was pierced by an invisible weapon, breaking through her helmet from the center of her forehead, entering cleanly and exiting from the back of her head. The technique was swift and precise, ending before she could react.

Something had penetrated her skull, yet Zhu Ning hadn't even seen the attacker.

The others were equally stunned. Pei Shu's pupils dilated in shock as the sudden change occurred, and the tall leaves around them rustled.

Instinctively, Pei Shu searched for the source. This team wasn't composed solely of psychics; the trunk of the flying car was opened, revealing a coffin-like box. The chains and straps were loose, but the box was empty, only darkness inside. Something had come out.

A bizarre creature moved through the darkness, too fast to see clearly.

Zhu Ning had expanded her contaminated zone. In her absolute domain, someone could do this... kill her?

Whoosh—

A second cracking sound echoed through the air, the second attack arriving as expected. Zhu Ning was already locked onto, and her speed was incredible, feeling her blood rush to her upper body.

Zhu Ning activated her defensive space, black slime crawling from her neck to cover her upper body.

But the defense was useless. The invisible whip had already risen, and Zhu Ning only heard the sound of it falling.

The transparent defensive space was sliced, and Zhu Ning's defense shattered like glass.

The thread cut through her body, severing her at the waist.

Data streams flickered before her eyes, turning into garbled code. When Zhu Ning raised her hand, she could no longer control it.

Lin Xiaofeng was outside the attack radius. When Zhu Ning was first struck, she didn't see it clearly because the wound was too small, and everything happened too quickly.

But she saw the second strike clearly. Zhu Ning's upper body split in half, landing with a thud.