But to Sheyan's disappointment, after two sneezes, he actually felt livelier! The cold wind blew onto his face but it felt so comfortable. Catching a cold seemed like a luxury at the moment, let alone pneumonia.
“What the h.e.l.l? Did the steep increase in my HP cause my immunity to increase as well?”
The steep increase in HP here referred to the reward when he broke through the 50-point pure attribute boundary. That reward had been inexplicably retained when normally, all statuses would be reset after undergoing the Babu-Babusar ceremony! Sheyan inferred that due to the soul embryo settling in, the Authoritative precedence of the negative effects of the 'Stairway of the Sun' was lowered, making it unable to suppress the reward for the 50-point pure attribute boundary breakthrough. Thus, this situation occurred.
After spending a whole day in the hospital, Sheyan realised with disappointment that even a cold seemed to be far away from him, let alone pneumonia. Seemed like having a strong immunity was not always good news…. Getting a rank 3 ability wasn't so easy after all.
At this time, Sheyan received a call.
An international call.
Zi's slightly deep but sweet voice transmitted over the phone. Her voice was somewhat similar to the voice of the singer, Sun. There was a charm to it that's hard to describe with words.
(T/N note: Sun – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60QFQtRAvWQ)
“If you're Seaman, say something. If you're not, hang up.”
Sheyan smiled and replied.
“I'm alive, rich girl.”
Zi said emotionlessly.
“How was the last world? Did any of your people die?”
Sheyan laughed and answered.
“Nope. Not only that, I've even recruited someone who may very well become your compet.i.tor.”
Zi coldly sneered and said.
“What compet.i.tor? Can anyone be my compet.i.tor? ”
“Hmm, he's a mage who mastered the laws of Dungeons and Dragons. His main ability lies in producing illusions. He has a limited offensive repertoire; he can only perform burst damage once or twice every battle.”
Sheyan began explaining to her about Franklin. Zi immediately figured it out.
“I see. His main burst method should be rank 3 'Great Fireball' + 'Empower Spell'. There are limited spell slots for rank 3 spells, that's why he can't be the main force in battle. But his ability to create illusions is an extremely rare one. You made a good decision.”
Sheyan smiled faintly and said.
“The best decision I ever made was agreeing to Demondream's request.”
Zi snorted.
“I've already returned your favour! I'm doing pretty well in Aldaris' party right now. We even got an S evaluation in the previous world. It shouldn't be a problem for Aldaris to become an Awakener.”
Sheyan knew that Zi was just being stubborn. No matter how strong Aldaris' party was, there was no way they could compare to his own high-ranking Silver party. Moreover, relations.h.i.+ps were complex in large parties. In his Ace party, Reef had long realised that he has no leaders.h.i.+p potential, so Sheyan could immediately appoint Zi as the vice leader as soon as she joined. Sheyan laughed confidently and said.
“Of course, of course. Then can Lady Zi give me a chance to owe you a favour back? I am desperately in need of your help.”
Upon hearing Sheyan's words, the proud Zi finally revealed a slight smile, while her eyes flashed a that's-more-like-it glitter. She said after a dry cough.
“That would depend on my mood.”
Sheyan smiled.
“I'm in Taiwan now. Let me persuade you face-to-face.”
Zi said without hesitation.
“Go to Taoyuan Airport, the same place as before. I'll let Gulfstream pick you up.”
Senyan was already familiar with all the protocols, so after a few hours, he arrived in Europe. This time, he flew straight to London, to the headquarters of the E.S financial group.
Zi personally picked him up from the airport. She was wearing a Chanel coat tied at the waist with her hair tied up in a bun. It accentuated her slim figure and long legs. She appeared cold, yet alluring.
But when Sheyan walked down the luxurious stairs of the Gulfstream, let alone Zi, even the female a.s.sistant next to her was trying hard not to laugh. Sheyan's clothes were simply too casual…. loose beach shorts, flowery s.h.i.+rt, and to top it off, a pair of large wooden clog flip-flops on his feet. The clip-clopping sound they made caused the aircrew welcoming him to almost burst into laughter.
Zi was also holding herself back from laughing as she approached Sheyan.
“I see that you're as full of personality as ever, Seaman. Your colour combination is magnificent.”
Sheyan sneezed amidst the cold November wind in London. He quickly hopped onto Zi's Lincoln limousine.
“What the h.e.l.l. I don't usually take aeroplanes. I can't believe the weather's so terrible.”
The middle section of the limousine was arranged in the form of a meeting room. Zi got in and sat across from him, then said with a smile.
“Do you want to go buy some clothes first?”
Sheyan instantly rejected such a short-sighted suggestion.
“It's good to be cold! This is exactly what I want. Achoo!”
As he said that, he nonchalantly picked up a bottle of wine from the wine cabinet at the back, then bit off the cork and gulped down half a bottle like it was a beer. The bodyguards and a.s.sistants next to him were all shocked speechless. This bottle of Bordeaux wine was bought by their financial group from an auction with 640,000 euros. It was intended to serve only heavyweight VVIPs such as ministers of the state. Now, it was defiled in such a way by this Easterner. More crucially, Director Su actually did not show any dissatisfaction.
These a.s.sistants had never seen a young man acting so casual in front of Director Su. All the other young men would either be intimidated due to her status, or awe-struck due to her cold demeanor. It was common for them to make mistakes out of nervousness. However, this young man had simply made himself at home. His calmness and demeanor were eye-opening.
Zi stared at the half bottle of wine left and said coldly.
“This bottle of wine cost almost a million euros. I'll send the bill to you later.”
Her stern expression instantly turned into a smile as if she enjoyed her own joke tremendously. Sheyan seriously said.
“No problem. I don't even have a euro on me anyway, so it makes no difference to me whether you charge me a euro or a million euros. I'll just run away later…. Uh, I really have something that needs your help. And it's urgent.”
Zi pushed a b.u.t.ton and a tecoloured bulletproof gla.s.s rose to segregate their section into a private s.p.a.ce.
“Speak.”
Sheyan spread his hands and said.
“I must catch a disease, and it must be pneumococcal pneumonia. Can you find a way?”
Zi stared at Sheyan after hearing his strange request.
“Is it important?”
“Very,” answered Sheyan seriously.
Zi immediately made a call.
“h.e.l.lo, Mr. Harvin. Didn't your previous proposal involve Vorey Pharmaceutical Company? Yes? That's good. I heard they have their own medical research facility, the 3rd biggest laboratory in Europe? Ok then, I'll sign it.”
Next, she made another call which was very concise.
“Kevin, stop all negotiations with Krupp and pa.s.s the proposal for Vorey Pharmaceutical Company. Why? There's no why. My decision is why. Any other question? Good. I'm hanging up. ”
After completing this series of matter, she lifted her head and said.
“After signing the contract at 8 tomorrow, I will personally go to Vorey Pharmaceutical Company for an inspection. There will be more than 50 experts there to fulfill your wish.”
Sheyan revealed a smile.
“What an honour.”
Zi grabbed the wine bottle Sheyan drank from, took a crystal wine gla.s.s, and poured half a gla.s.s for herself. She slowly sipped at the wine before saying.
“Your second request should be to ask me to lead Ace Party for a while, right?”
Sheyan was dumbstruck for a moment.
“How do you know?”
Zi appeared to be very satisfied with Sheyan's reaction. Her lips curled into a seductive smile.
“I estimate that it should be about time for you to take that step.”
Sheyan smiled bitterly.
“I was forced to take that step. In the world of the Lord of the Rings, with Mogensha away on his awakening mission, I met a really strong team – the Stockholm Party. Unfortunately, their mission contradicted with ours.”
“Stockholm Party?” Zi's expression instantly turned serious. “Where have I heard this name before? That's right, they were top 3 in the last realm war!”
Sheyan smiled and said.
“A core member of theirs, Drubal, hunted me down. I was forced to play all my cards, and became a reserve-duty Growth-Hunter. I let him live in the end because he offered some pretty nice things in exchange for his life.”
Zi rolled her eyes at Sheyan.
“You have no idea how c.o.c.ky you look right now.”
Sheyan laughed.
“You yourself look much better now compared to the cold att.i.tude before.”
Zi blushed and s.h.i.+fted her gaze away from Sheyan to her wine gla.s.s. Sheyan knew that she's a prideful person and would get embarra.s.sed easily, so he changed the topic.
“I've awakened a few times in the last world; I couldn't help using this power after obtaining it. That's why I will definitely be away from the party the next time I enter the realm. I would be really worried if there was no one there to lead them.”
Zi remained silent while her long fingers swirled the wine in her gla.s.s. A cunning glint showed in her eyes.
Chapter 877: Custom-tailoredSeeing the beaming Zi, Sheyan sighed and said.
“Looks like I have to use my trump card.”
Zi snorted disdainfully.
“As if you have any trump cards left.”
Before she had even finished speaking, Sheyan had moved over to her side and squeezed next to her with a vulgar expression. Even through the coat, he could feel the sensation of her elastic thigh. Zi's body instantly curled up as she nervously exclaimed.
“What are you trying to do?!”
Sheyan looked at her with a naughty glint in his eyes.
“Take a guess. Maybe I'm just repeating something that I've done before.”
Sheyan then moved close to her ears and said with an extremely vulgar expression.
“In such a narrow s.p.a.ce, having high Strength is more advantageous than having high Intelligence and Spirit, don't you think?”
Zi awkwardly pushed Sheyan away and angrily exclaimed.
“How dare you!”
However, Zi's anger right now seemed to have no bite to it, because her usual way of handling such situations was to coldly say “scram”. The chill in that word alone could make most men's tools shrink back in. If other people could see her reaction just now, they would be shocked that the icy beauty had such a side to her!
Sheyan laughed out loud and shrugged nonchalantly.
“Fine, since you agreed to my request, I'll forgive your rudeness. But you owe me a meal because I suddenly realised that I'm hungry. Seems like the wine was a good appetizer.”
Zi was dumbfounded. She lashed out.
“When did I agree to your request?! And I'm the one who's rude?!?!”
Sheyan once again moved close and put his hand on the back of her chair. This simple move caused her body to tighten again. Furthermore, her mind went blank and she was in utter confusion. Sheyan smilingly said.
“Should you treat me to Indian food later? I wonder how to Indian food in London tastes like. Hopefully their lamb curry tastes authentic.”
Zi replied in a panic.
“Okay, Indian food…”
Sheyan decided not to push his luck further so he returned to his seat. Only then did Zi realise that she had conceded to him! She was so angry that she she couldn't even voice her protest, but she couldn't think of what she should do either. Fortunately, at that moment, the chauffeur pushed a b.u.t.ton and said anxiously.
“I'm sorry, Director Su, but the headquarters just ordered me to return immediately. They said they need an explanation.”
Zi instantly turned cold.
“What explanation?”
Sheyan interrupted her.
“He's just a chauffeur.”
This made Zi glare at Sheyan in dissatisfaction.
“Fine, we'll go back. Let me remind you that our dinner has to be postponed until four hours later. You want me to give you some loose change to buy burgers?”
“I'm good, thanks. I'd rather go hungry now so that I can eat more later since I'm not the one who will be paying,” said Sheyan happily.
Fifteen minutes later, Sheyan stood in front of the majestic twin towers of the E.S. financial group. A group of people with solemn expressions were waiting for them. They were all high-ranking members of the E.S. financial group, so when they saw Sheyan, who was wearing flip-flops and a flowery s.h.i.+rt, step out from the car together with the frosty Zi, one could imagine the shock they felt.
They remained stunned for a moment before a grey-haired old man took the lead and coughed drily.
“If I heard correctly, our group just transferred 760 million euros to Vorey Pharmaceutical Company. They said you authorised it?”
“That's right,” said Zi with indifference.
“Right before we were about to reach an agreement with Krupp?” asked the old man in disbelief. “Can you please give me a reasonable explanation?”
Zi glanced at Sheyan and said emotionlessly.
“There's no explanation. Anything else? If not, I'm going for dinner.”
An uproar rose from the crowd beside them. A guy who looked like David Beckham stepped forward and talked to Zi with a complicated and painful expression.
“You deployed Gulfstream III and left our VIP guests stranded in Tokyo in order to pick up this….this tourist from the beach?”
There was some pain in his voice. Zi looked at him apologetically but still said in that cold voice of hers.
“This is a personal matter, Mr. Oz.”
Oz seemed to have suffered a heavy blow from her reply. He quietly turned around and walked away. 2 other men walked away with him. They all looked like they aged 10 years. These three were admirers of Zi. Even though they were coldly rejected before, but since she rejected everyone anyway, they didn't feel that bad. But now, she had clearly made an exception for Sheyan. Imagine how much they hurt inside.
The old man earlier rejoiced instead. In the E.S. financial group, Zi was the largest shareholder. With those 3 shareholders pa.s.sionately pursuing her before this, it was hard for the members of the board of directors to go against her decisions. Now, they would obviously not be on her side any longer, and might even sell their shares. The other shareholders were also elated. This would mark a new era for them in the financial group.
“Since tomorrow is the weekend, we will hold a board meeting at 9am on Monday to request an official explanation from you for your actions, Ms. Su Lingzi,” said the old man solemnly. “If you are absent from the meeting, we will take it as you abstaining. Our financial group can no longer continue this way.”
Sheyan folded his arms on his chest as he observed the old man who obviously thought he had things in the bag. Then, he asked Zi.
“Can we go for dinner now?”
Zi nodded and said sarcastically.
“I can't believe their efficiency got so high when it came to these kind of matters. Let's go.”
A bald guy who looked like he had seborrhoea took large steps and entered the Lincoln limousine before they could. He told the chauffeur loudly.
“Drive me to Sirocco Hotel.”
The chauffeur instantly became fl.u.s.tered.
“But…”
The bald man said coldly.
“No buts. You're an employee of the E.S. financial group, not a personal chauffeur! Do you want to receive a letter of dismissal on Monday? Don't worry, you'll receive your salary for this month in full.”
The chauffeur didn't dare to speak or look at Zi. He simply started the car and drove away. Zi's bodyguards and a.s.sistants were also rooted in place. E.S. financial group's organisational structure was quite complex. There was no chairman; the board of directors made all the decisions. If Zi could not take the initiative on the board of directors, then the only authority she would have left was the right to receive dividends. When that time came, their fate would be decided by the other directors. How could they not be afraid?
Sheyan sighed.
“You sure are patient, Zi.”
Zi snorted.
“Just mind your own business. Didn't you want to have dinner? Let's go then. The Indian restaurant is pretty far from here.”
Sheyan shrugged.
“I don't feel like having Indian food anymore. I now want random food.”
“What do you mean by random food?” Zi's interest was piqued.
Sheyan stared at the man called Oz who was walking away, and said with a smile.
“Since you lost 3 admirers 3 minutes ago, we'll take a taxi and go to the 3rd restaurant we pa.s.s 33 minutes from now. What do you think?”
“Interesting proposal,” said Zi with a laugh.
“I have an even more interesting proposal…..”
As they stared at the back of the two people walking away, a chill suddenly rose in the directors' hearts.
The next morning, Zi and Sheyan arrived at Vorey Pharmaceutical Company.
The person in charge received them with trepidation.
Then, within ten minutes, the person in charge summoned five of his experts and asked them to develop a treatment plan that they had never tried before.
A plan to let a person catch pneumococcal pneumonia in the shortest time possible. Although the request was outrageous and inhumane, but for the sake of high salary and a stable working environment, the five experts spent less than three minutes to come up with a plan.
They needed to cultivate a large amount of pneumococcal culture, so Sheyan only enjoyed the custom-tailored treatment eleven hours later. He soon tasted the disease of his desire.
“Sh*t, my chest hurts like h.e.l.l,” Sheyan laid on the bed with a pale face. He currently looked like a weak old man. “I feel like there are a thousand needles piercing my lungs at the same time! I can't even breath! *cough* cough”
Sheyan spat out a large lump of rust-coloured phlegm after his coughing fit, which was a typical symptom of pus and blood mixing together after the tissue in the lungs had ulcerated. At least five of Europe's top nurses and doctors were busily moving around him.
Zi stared expressionlessly at the weakened Sheyan while holding his chilly hand. She wasn't bothered by Sheyan's phlegm at all. She quietly observed Sheyan for a while before walking over to a doctor at the side and asked.
“Why is his condition so severe?”
Chapter 878: Pneumonia, get!Seeing the respectful att.i.tude of the boss of his boss towards this woman, the doctor didn't dare to offend her in the slightest. He immediately replied.
“The patient had a very weird body const.i.tution. He seems to have no immunity towards diseases at all. As soon as the bacteria enters his body, it spread rapidly. In my 37 years of practice this is the fastest I've ever seen a pneumonia spread. If it wasn't for the result of tests showing that everything else is normal with him, I would actually suspect that he's a late-stage AIDS patient.”
Zi contemplated for a moment before asking.
“If that's the case….is his life in danger?”
The doctor hesitated, but still answered firmly.
“It is! What we're doing now is to delay the deterioration of his illness as much as possible. Please note that we're merely delaying it, there is no sign showing that he's getting any better. If this continues, just like a person who is about to fall into the abyss, there will always be a time when he breaks through that critical line. The good news is that he is still some distance away from that irreversible tipping point.”
Sheyan was drenched in sweat. He felt as if there were more than a dozen rakes going over his chest, and the violent coughing fits even made him vomit. Then, the nightmare imprint sent him some notifications:
[The virus has detected the invasion of pneumococcus into the host's body]
[The virus has activated the phagocytosis, replication, and improvement mode]
[Because the phagocytosis, replication, and improvement were all done on the digitized body of the contestant, during these processes, the pneumococcus in your body will be somewhat strengthened. The symptoms on your body will be more severe.]
[The virus has injected a catalytic code into the pneumococcus. The host's symptoms are expected to reach their climax in an estimated time of 30 minutes. That will be the most critical period for the host, and also the most life-threatening period. The period will last for 800 minutes….]
[Data disorder. Data error. Recalculating.]
[Your 'Stronghold' innate ability is triggered. All abnormal statuses on you are weakened by 25%.]
[The climax period of your symptoms will last for 600 minutes. Your life may be threatened during this stage. Please make the relevant emergency preparations.]
In the next six hundred minutes, Sheyan did not make any noise. He displayed an amazing willpower. But because gripped with too much strength, he tore a total seven bedsheets and blankets. Zi didn't take a rest either. She silently kept him company.
During this period, both Mogensha and Reef returned to the real world and gave Sheyan a call. When they heard Zi answering his phone, even the honest Reef showed a tawdry expression…. Despite his condition, Sheyan clenched his teeth and personally answered the phone. He was definitely not born with such strong willpower; it was the training from the life-and-death experiences in the nightmare realm!
Finally, Sheyan's torture ended. A soon as the replication of the virus was completed, his strong digitized body swept clean the disease that was running amok in his body. Sheyan sat up on the bed and exhaled a long breath. His whole body felt extremely light!
[virus replication has been successful!]
[You have successfully activated the rank 3 branch ability: 'Common pneumonia'!]
[Rank 3 branch disease : 'Common pneumonia' lvl 2 (+1 bonus from the Twilight Elf's Illumination)]
[This ability will only be effective on enemies who were infected with the bronchitis disease. The area of effect is equivalent to the rank 1 ability – 'Influenza'.]
[When enemies who already have bronchitis are infected by pneumonia, the infection period is 40 seconds.]
[Effect: Significantly strengthen all symptoms.]
[Sneezing effect evolved into intermittent chest pain: There is a certain chance of the enemy experiencing extreme chest pain for 3 seconds. During this period, the enemy's movement speed will drop by 80%. They will be unable to attack and will sustain 50 points of damage.]
[s.h.i.+vering effect evolved into high fever: The enemy will sustain a high fever. Their MP consumption will double.]
[Headache effect evolved into hallucination: There is a chance of the enemy suffering a hallucination. The next attack will miss.]
['Violent Coughing' has been strengthened: During the period of violent coughing, the enemy will be rendered immobile; incapable of attacking or casting abilities for 3 seconds (up from 2 seconds). Every time the enemy experiences 'Violent Coughing', it induces a 50-point blood loss damage over 3 seconds (originally 150-point blood loss damage over 15s after 3 times of 'Violent Coughing').]
[New effect of 'Violent Coughing': When the enemy is suffering from 'Violent Coughing', there is a certain chance of spitting out sticky phlegm. The foul-smelling sticky phlegm contains a huge amount of bacteria. It will instantly cause 100 points of damage to the surrounding enemies and lower their evasion by 3%.]
[This branch ability can exist simultaneously with some other disease-type branch abilities.]
[Please make haste to invest achievement points to strengthen this branch ability in order to unlock subsequent higher tiers in the innate skill tree!]
Sheyan was currently acc.u.mulating achievement points to promote himself to Lieutenant Colonel. He was quite satisfied with the abilities of 'Pneumonia', so he did not spend his achievement points to strengthen it. He could already predict that the next tier in the talent tree should be the ultimate ability – 'Atypical pneumonia'! When the 'Atypical pneumonia' emerged, it would definitely cause major changes to the previous abilities. To be honest, Sheyan really looked forward to this ability.
All the doctors were stunned. Five minutes ago, Sheyan was still struggling for his life, and yet he's now leaping down from his bed agilely and nonchalantly putting on his clothes.
The nurse nearest to Sheyan stopped him out of her professional att.i.tude and stammered in shock.
“Sir, considering your wellbeing….”
Sheyan politely but resolutely pushed away her hand and smiled at her.
“I'm fine now, thank you.”
The nurse could only look at the attending doctor with a pleading gaze. Sheyan seemed to know what they were thinking, and told them.
“I'll never be your guinea pig so you guys can just forget about that idea. Zi, I need you to take me to a nice meal. Then we can sit down and discuss about the board meeting next Monday.”
Zi, who had her arms crossed in front of her chest, asked hesitantly.
“The board meeting….do you have any good ideas?”
Sheyan grabbed a pack of biscuits lying at the side and gulped the biscuits down in large mouthfuls while he walked with Zi to her car. Only after she started the engine did he say.
“I don't believe for a second that you don't know about the idea I have in mind. You're just unwilling to do it.”
Zi merely stared at Sheyan without saying anything.
Sheyan persuaded.
“I know why you're hesitating, but you're used to being in power. Can you really live a carefree life?”
This sentence spoke deep into Zi's heart. She looked up at Sheyan.
“You mean….”
Senyan smiled and swallowed the last bit of biscuits.
“I really people who steal my car and force me to take a taxi. What's the name of that bald director? I suggest we pay him a visit.”
“Sir Balagan,” said Zi emotionlessly. “He's won't be easy to handle. More importantly, he's a very careful person. I could even feel the presence of someone similar to us among his bodyguards.”
“I'll need his address. Um…do you think we should call Mogensha over?” asked Sheyan. Then, he smiled at Zi and said, “Actually, I feel like I can take on the world with just you by my side. Just like the time we went against the Skull Party and Glory Party.”
Zi could feel an indescribable emotion in his voice. She blushed and turned her head to the side in silence. After a while, she slowly said.
“We should go eat first.”
Sheyan was always swift and decisive when he acted. After stuffing himself, he called Reef to asked him to come over. The palace Reef stayed in was only 2 hours away from London by train. During their conversation, Reef lowered his voice and reminded Sheyan.
“Boss, do you like Melody more or Zi more? Sometimes, you have to make a choice.”
Sheyan had contemplated this matter for a long time. He simply said.
“I won't let either of them go. At most, I'll get dual-citizens.h.i.+p and join the UAE where it's legal to have four wives.”
Reef: “…but will they be happy with this?”
Sheyan said disdainfully.
“How would you know that they won't be happy? Ancient China practiced polygamy and yet we didn't see the collapse of society or women suffering all the time. The civilization stood for 5,000 years. Even after the implementation of the monogamy system, there are still many women who choose to be mistresses.”
Reef was dumbfounded by Sheyan's answer. He could only shake his head and sigh.
The board meeting of the E.S. financial group scheduled for Monday did not take place after all.
That's because 2 important members of the board were absent. They may very well remain absent forever.
Sir Balagan, who held 11.7% of the shares, had caught a severe case of pneumonia and was currently being treated in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. The best case scenario estimated by the doctors was for him to live until the end of this winter. No one seemed to have asked what the worst case scenario was, but the news still spread.
Mr. Leo, who held 8.3% of the shares, met with a serious accident. He would spend a long time in the ICU.
Even if the meeting was held, without the two core members of the opposition faction, the other directors weren't Zi's match. There was no longer any point to the board meeting.
Chapter 879: Driving a duck onto a perch(T/N note: The t.i.tle is a Chinese idiom which means to push someone to do something beyond their ability.)
The enemy was weakened while they were strengthened. One the one hand, two core members of the board of directors fell; on the other, Zi received a mysterious injection of fund (Reef's savings). They struck while the iron was hot and bought the E.S. financial group shares held by two minor shareholders, thus further increasing the amount of shares under Zi's name. Zi's position became unshakeable.
And thus ended Zi's internal crisis.
It was a shame that Franklin wasn't from this world, or the Ace Party could have regrouped in the real world and had a real party.
After Sheyan finished dealing with all these matters, he had a thought of returning to Taiwan. Coincidentally, Sanzi's call came.
Sanzi's side of the phone was very noisy. It was with a considerable amount of effort that Sheyan distinguished the noise to be the banging of drums and the excited shouting voices of young men and women. Sanzi was obviously either in a club or in a bar.
Sheyan answered with a h.e.l.lo. From the other end came the sound of alcohol being gulped down. Sanzi sounded like a thirsty man in the desert that was gulping down alcohol like he was drinking water. Only after a while did he finally spoke. His voice was hoa.r.s.e.
“Big brother! I….I….”
The rest of his words did not come out. It sounded like something was shoved down his throat.
Sheyan instantly sensed that something was wrong, and immediately asked.
“What? What's happening?”
A feminine voice transmitted over the phone.
“Hey handsome, why are you drinking alone? Come on, let's dance. ”
Sanzi, who had become stupid drunk at this time, had almost zero resistance towards women, so all Sheyan got for a reply was noisy background noises. When he called back again, he was instantly cut off.
Sheyan couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive so he quickly called Uncle Dasi. Uncle Dasi a.s.sured him that everything was alright. Sanzi had been running his errands well and had not caused any trouble lately. Sheyan knew that Uncle Dasi had always doted on Sanzi. Fearing that he had concealed something, Sheyan gave a call to Aunt Di Gu. But Aunt Di Gu also told him the same thing, which meant that Sanzi really was alright.
Sheyan felt slightly better but he still didn't feel completely at ease. He decided to check Sanzi's Skype. After fiddling for a long time in London he finally pulled Sanzi's Skype profile out. The guy's ID had changed to “Pa.s.sionate Elbow” and his signature was “you just got me!”.
Sheyan determined that Sanzi had fallen into the side effects of a boy's testosterone and androgen. He should not lack young women on his side after all; it shouldn't be big problem. They were nothing compared to the icy mature director he had to deal with.
Sanzi was still someone Sheyan brought up so Sheyan still planned to take the time to go back and talk to him for a bit. However, something that demanded Sheyan's full attention suddenly happened.
The nightmare imprint suddenly sent him a blood-red parcel!
The blood-red parcel contained a roll of ancient looking parchment which was tied with a piece of tattered clothes soaked with dripping blood.
The even blood soaked into the parchment and left large blot marks on it, as well as emitting a foul blood stench.
The thing gave off a primitive, wild, b.l.o.o.d.y, rough and crazy feeling.
Of course Sheyan didn't dare to open it carelessly. He immediately reached out to Zi and Reef, and called Mogensha. Zi and Reef had no idea what it was, but Mogensha exclaimed in a hoa.r.s.e voice after thinking for a while.
“Could this be an invitation from the b.l.o.o.d.y World?”
Before they could ask, Mogensha already started his explanation.
“I don't know the details either but I encountered a person before when I was browsing the marketplace who was selling the things his boss left behind. His boss had died after receiving an invitation for the b.l.o.o.d.y World….”
Zi said with a serious expression.
“I think I have some idea what this is now thanks to AK's explanation.”
Sheyan and Reef instantly looked at her expectantly.
Zi collected her thoughts and said.
“It's not that easy to explain. Let me think. Um, I'll start from the Jura.s.sic Park world.”
The rest of them knew that Zi was about to tell them some deep lying secrets of the realm so they paid full attention to her.
“You guys should have fought with and killed members of the Skull Party before. Did you realise that the reward from killing Skull Party members are different from the reward from killing Zeus' members?” asked Zi while she slowly stirred a cup of coffee.
Sheyan nodded his head.
“Yeah, it was obvious. Killing the Skull Party members awarded additional achievement points, and equipments were directly drawn. The rewards were significantly better than the rewards from killing the Metal Professor and other people.”
“That's because we were on the same side as the Glory Party. Killing amongst ourselves was not encouraged. That's why our rewards shrunk,” Zi moved the coffee to her mouth but did not take a sip. She merely let the hot smoke warm her lips, as if doing that made her feel better.
“We were on the same side?” asked Sheyan in surprise.
Zi's eyes turned fuzzy as she said.
“That's right! The Glory Party and us were from the same nightmare realm. If you were to compare us to soldiers, it would mean that we were under the same commanding officer.”
Sheyan could already make some deductions based on what he heard so far.
“I understand now. So the Skull Party was from another nightmare realm. They don't take orders from our realm, so when we killed them, the realm gave us the highest rewards. Seems like the compet.i.tion between realms is pretty fierce too.”
Zi quietly nodded.
“Fierce is an understatement. The Avatar world should be your first realm war, right? Wait 'til you experience high intensity realm wars. You will know how unbelievably cruel the compet.i.tion between different realms is! During those times, all the contestants under the same realm must put aside their differences and work together. If they don't achieve the minimum requirement set by the realm, the furious realm may very well kill all the contestants under its jurisdiction!”
Sheyan found it hard to breathe. Zi's words had opened up a whole new window in his perspective.
A window full of blood!
Zi finally took a sip of her coffee but it had already turned cold, so she put it back down in disgust. She got up to take a few mouthfuls of cold water. She had given up on preserving her demeanor by now. She took a deep breath, and said.
“The invitation letter to the b.l.o.o.d.y World is usually sent by the realm to the leader of a strong party in the realm. It would ask the leader to send the strongest member in their party. The next world this member goes to will be a world of ma.s.sacre. The only main mission is to kill the other people to collect their invitation letters!”
“There will usually be at least 20 people invited to a b.l.o.o.d.y World. The number of people who can come back alive will usually not exceed 5. The more invitation letters a person can collect, the more advantageous the position their realm will occupy in the next realm war. This event is usually a precursor to the start of another realm war.”
“Of course, the nightmare realm will not give out impossible missions, so there might be 2-3 b.l.o.o.d.y Worlds open at the same time in order to separate contestants of different strength level. The invitation letter you received should only be an invitation to the lowest level b.l.o.o.d.y World.”
Sheyan nodded thoughtfully.
“I see. So the reason the invitation letter was given to me was because I'm the leader of this high ranking Silver party. It's unfortunate that I haven't awakened yet or I could go and have some fun.”
The awakened Brother Black laughed and said.
“Leave it to me, boss. Don't worry, this task suits me perfectly.”
Mogensha moved fast and had a wealth of battle experience. He could already suppress a Growth-Hunter when he was still a Reserve-Duty Growth Hunter. Now that he had become a Growth-Hunter, he should be able to take care of himself even if his opponent was an Awakener. His dark gold leather trousers would also add to his survivability. The Viperwolf it summoned was a great PK weapon.
More importantly was the fact that most of the enemies would also act alone. Mogensha was the best choice for 1v1 in their team.
Sheyan contemplated for a bit and nodded his head. He put his hand on the invitation letter and unfurled it….
Cruel reality hit Sheyan right on the face!
[Contestant no. 1018]
[You are the leader of the Silver party, Ace]
[You have been appointed as one of the warrior representatives to enter the coming b.l.o.o.d.y World]
[You will enter the next world alone to battle against various mighty opponents. Hopefully, you can return alive.]
“…..What the h.e.l.l!!!” screamed Sheyan who immediately queried through the nightmare imprint: “I am still a Reserve-Duty Growth-Hunter. I request a Growth-Hunter awakening mission for my next world!”
The cold voice of the realm shattered Sheyan's heart into pieces.
[The Growth-Hunter awakening mission can also be performed in the b.l.o.o.d.y World.]
Chapter 880: PreparationSheyan was speechless. He kept quiet for 2 seconds, then erupted in intense protest!
“Motherf*cker! The b.l.o.o.d.y World alone is already insanely dangerous. Awakening missions are life-threatening too (just look at Reef)! Do you want me to die!”
[This is your reward for completing main storyline missions with low evaluations for a few times in a row]
“….Hey, hey, why can't I send another party member instead?”
[Good luck]
“I'll get a high evaluation in the next world! I promise!”
[Good luck]
“Can you please say something else.”
[Good luck]
Faced with this dilemma, Sheyan pressed his hand on his forehead and fell on the middle seat of the sofa. He could only sigh in depression. Sometimes you really don't know what would happen. Sheyan had originally planned everything well, but now, the whole plan was completely overturned!
The others knew that his mood must be terrible and they also had no experience with the b.l.o.o.d.y World, so there was nothing they could say to comfort him.
One could already tell how dangerous the b.l.o.o.d.y World would be from its name alone. The danger level of awakening missions need no introduction either. If Sheyan were to slip just once, even if he were to live, it would cost him dearly.
He was extremely limited in the ways he could complete his missions. For example, he saw that Brother Black went through his awakening mission without wearing anything. But if Sheyan were to do the same, he would just be courting death. The other killers in the b.l.o.o.d.y World would be very willing to see a naked lamb like Sheyan enter their tigers' mouths.
Sheyan grabbed a pen and started to casually draw and write something in a notebook. However, the limited amount of info he had caused him to give up halfway through his deduction. Upset, he logged into his Skype. Miss Su Lingzi, who was sitting beside him, accidentally glanced at his Skype ID, causing her to roll her eyes. His ID was “Extremely Honest”.
Sheyan stared absent-mindedly at the screen for a long time before changing his status to : “If life is like being raped, and you can't fight back, then the only thing to do is to enjoy it.”
(T/N note: WOW)
(ED: Mr. Authors amazing a.n.a.logies appear once again !)
Then, Sheyan laughed heartily. He walked into the bedroom and buried his head in a blanket like an ostrich burying its head in the ground. He wanted to forget everything so that he could calm down. He knew what kind of situation he was in. He couldn't think of anything if he kept feeling so agitated.
Time pa.s.sed by in a flash. It was time to enter the nightmare realm again. The Ace Party once again congregated.
Sheyan took a deep breath and suddenly hugged Zi. Zi was flabbergasted. Sheyan didn't try to do anything else though. He merely said.
“I'm counting on you for this world.”
Zi whispered.
“Can't you let me go first?”
Sheyan laughed and patted on her back, then hugged with Reef, Mogensha, and Franklin. Franklin had just heard that Sheyan had the “honour” of being selected and most likely had to experience the b.l.o.o.d.y World + awakening mission simultaneously. He was silent for a moment, then produced a scroll.
“Boss, you might need this.”
The description of the scroll read: [Rank 6 copying scroll (marked) – tear this scroll and use it on a target to produce an illusion of the target. The illusion will have 100% of the target's HP and 30% of the target's attack power. It is very difficult for this scroll to be effective on legendary creatures.]
“Isn't this your innate ability?” asked Sheyan.
Franklin nodded.
“It is. But I think you need it more.”
Sheyan muttered.
“There must be a price for this.”
Franklin told it to him straight.
“My ability is unusable until the scroll is torn, and even after you use the scroll, I have to wait for another 24 hours for it to recover….but I think the danger of our next world should be significantly lower than yours.”
Sheyan nodded and solemnly kept the scroll.
“Thank you.”
This is the cleverness of Franklin. He never stood out, but when the team was in danger, he always displayed his worth. He was low-key but reliable and perfectly understood his role. It was no wonder that Sheyan recruited him.
It was the first time Zi interacted with Franklin, but she had been a team leader for a long time and was very experienced. She silently nodded in her mind, and had basically recognized Franklin as a member of the party.
Sheyan took a deep breath and waved.
“Well then, I'll go apply for the awakening mission.”
Suddenly, Mogensha spoke out.
“But boss…you don't have to apply for the awakening mission, do you? Without it, you definitely have a chance of coming back alive.”
Sheyan sighed.
“I've awakened too many times in the LOTR world so I don't have many awakening chances left. I know my limit. In the b.l.o.o.d.y World, if I don't awaken, my survival rate will be less than 70%! I have no choice. It's ok, you guys get busy, I'll handle it.”
Sheyan entered his personal room and closed the door. He must take the time to properly review his strengths and weaknesses.
As Sun Tzu said, know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles you will never be in peril. Sheyan knew that his next battle would be unbelievably hard. He had to squeeze out every bit of his potential or he would never survive this ordeal.
First, he checked his achievement points: 168 points.
He was only one step away from promoting to Lieutenant Colonel.
Sheyan hesitated. Should he keep h.o.a.rding his achievement points for his promotion, or use them to strengthen 'Pestilence Monarch'?
Saving the achievement points would be better for the party and for the future, but strengthening 'Pestilence Monarch' would increase his current strength. It also realised one thing – in the near future, he should forget about obtaining both promotion to Lieutenant Colonel and the ultimate ability of 'Pestilence Monarch', 'Atypical Pneumonia'. Both consumed a lot of achievement points to achieve.
After giving it some serious thought, Sheyan gritted his teeth and decided to brave the huge risk to keep the achievement points. He could treat it as a trump card. If he found himself in danger, he could strengthen 'Pestilence Monarch' on the spot. It was fortunate that he didn't need to return to the real world to strengthen 'Pestilence Monarch', unlike when he had to obtain a new disease. Otherwise, Sheyan won't be able to have his cake and eat it too like this.
Next, Sheyan checked his base attributes.
Fang Sheyan (Contestant No. 1018)
Free attribute points: 3
Strength: 43 (23+1+2+2+6+2+3+4)
Agility: 34 (17+2+5+2+6+2)
★ Physique: 49 (50+1+12+2+4+4=73)
Perceptive Sense: 32 (23+2+6+1)
Charm: 1 (10+1-5-2-3)
Intelligence: 12 (10+2)
Spirit: 6 (10-2-2)
★ Before Awakening: HP = 1000 + 1.25[490 + 200(Oceanfreak MoriMister healthy) + 50(Monstrous fighting spirit) + 560(lvl8 Asylum)] = 2625
★ After Awakening: HP = 1000 + 1.25[880 + 200(Oceanfreak MoriMister healthy) + 50(Monstrous fighting spirit) + 560(lvl8 Asylum) + 300] = 3487.5
MP = 120 + 100(Oceanfreak Moria) + 40(helmet) + 560(lvl8 Asylum) = 820
Defence = 49/2 + 2 = 26.5
Sheyan added all 3 of his free attribute points to his Strength. With the effect of his gene-mix, he could now easily breakthrough dual-50 boundaries. For Sheyan, Physique and Strength were both crucial in his future plan, so he placed a lot of importance in them.
An indescribable sense of pride surfaced in Senyan's heart. It was very rare in the nightmare realm for someone who had not promoted to Growth-Hunter to have such numbers.
Sheyan double-checked everything, then heaved a long breath and stood up. He issued a order through the nightmare imprint to depart for the honour area. It was time to apply for his awakening mission.
The ground under his feet suddenly descended like an elevator. He didn't know what he pa.s.sed through but when light appeared again, the honour area was in sight.
And it seemed that there were quite a few of contestants who came here today. The queue was pretty long. Sheyan wasn't in the mood to wait patiently in line, nor did he have any thought of concealing himself. He directly displayed his Major rank. He went straight into the pa.s.sage that only Reserve-duty officers could enter, amidst the shocked gaze of the people around him.
It was a lot more quiet inside as only a few people were waiting. Although their faces couldn't be clearly seen, the imposing manner of their bodies was suffocating, and the atmosphere in the waiting room was as cold as steel, silent and awkward. From time to time there were undercurrents clas.h.i.+ng underneath the surface.
Sheyan was the last to enter. He extended his finger and pressed at the door, which was a process similar to punching an ID card to tell the realm that he had some affairs that need handling. He then walked directly to the entrance of the operation office, and spoke to the person blocking the entrance.
“Excuse me.”
Chapter 881: FogThe muscular man glared at Sheyan in disdain and told him off in a hoa.r.s.e voice.
“Hey r.e.t.a.r.d, are you new here? Don't you know the rules? I'm up next.”
Sheyan looked at him and said.
“You were up next, but not anymore now that I'm here.”
“Hahaha!” the man burst into a fit of laughter. “Who do you think you are? You want to take my position? I've never heard of a Lieutenant General being sent down the pecking order here.”
Sheyan was in a bad mood to begin with so he answered with a smirk.
“Today, you won't just hear about it. You'll see it with your own eyes. You think you're so big just because you're a reserve-duty Lieutenant General?”
The expression of the muscular man turned dark instantly. Everyone who could come here was the cream of the crop and they all had their pride. He was about to unleash a string of profanities at Sheyan when the green light of the pa.s.sage suddenly lit up, indicating that the previous person inside had finished their business and the place was vacant now.
Sheyan walked inside like it was the most natural thing in the world. There was originally a transparent gla.s.s door in front of him. If a person tried to enter without getting permission, the person would be electrocuted. The muscular man was ready to laugh at Sheyan but the next moment, his eyes almost popped out. The gla.s.s door actually slid open to both sides!!
The face muscle of the muscular man twitched a few times. From the side, a person said sarcastically.
“That was eye-opening.”
“You f*cking idiot!!!”
Sheyan ignored the commotion behind him. He turned a corner and took a seat on a chair.
[No. 1018….Scanning….]
[Confirming Ident.i.ty….]
[Your current nightmare imprint rank is Major.]
[You currently have 168 achievement points.]
[Welcome back, Major. What can we do for you?]
“I wish to apply for an awakening mission for my next world.”
[Information check in progress….. You have received an invitation letter to a b.l.o.o.d.y World for your next world, and were appointed as the representative warrior. Are you sure you want to undergo an awakening mission?]
Sheyan thought in his mind that of course he didn't want to, but there was no doubt that he would die if he didn't do the awakening mission. If he did, he would still have a chance of surviving. He could only grit his teeth and said.
“I'm sure.”
[Scanning in progress, collecting information…. Respected Major No. 1018, you currently have 2 attributes that can break through the 50-point boundary. Which base attribute would you like to choose to be the first attribute to breakthrough?]
Sheyan's face twitched.
“I choose a dual-attribute breakthrough!”
[Scanning in progress, collecting information…. Respected Major No. 1018, due to your rank, you obtain the following information.]
[The difficulty of a dual-attribute awakening mission is double that of a single-attribute awakening mission.]
[For the duration of your awakening mission, you cannot consume any medicines or food, including, but not limited to, 'Honorary Dosages'.]
[For the duration of your awakening mission, you cannot receive help from anyone, including, but not limited to, buffs received before the mission starts.]
[This is the first time you undertake an awakening mission so you can stop the mission anytime. However, every time you fail an awakening mission, the next one will be 10% more difficult. If you choose a dual-attribute breakthrough, the increase in difficulty will become 20%.]
[You cannot reveal any information regarding your awakening mission to anyone in any way. Every time you do so, all your attributes will decrease by 10 points.]
[Are you sure you want to choose a dual-attribute breakthrough?]
“I'm sure!” Sheyan's voice sounded like it was forced through clenched teeth.
[Scanning in progress, collecting information…. Respected Major No. 1018, your request has been accepted. In your next world, you will undertake a dual-attribute breakthrough awakening mission. Good luck.]
Sheyan took a deep breath. He missed the hoa.r.s.e voice terribly, hoping that it would show up and give him a hint. Unfortunately, people didn't always get everything they wanted.
He did not continue his stay because Sheyan suddenly realised that there was one more thing he had to do. The thing seemed simple, but it was quite tedious. And, it would determine whether he could successfully pa.s.s the challenge of the awakening mission.
As time went on, more and more people entered the nightmare world. The Ace Party, under the leaders.h.i.+p of Zi, had also stepped inside. When Sheyan heard the name of the world they entered, tears instantly streamed down his face. It was the Resident Evil world.
Aaaaaaargh….Sheyan had turned numb. If he were to enter that world, he would be almost completely immune to the disease of the zombies due to carrying the virus himself. Without the threat of their toxin and disease, the damage done by the zombies would decrease by at least 30%!
What was strange was that Sheyan still hadn't received any information regarding which world he would enter next. He found out after enquiring that, in order to ensure fairness, warriors entering a b.l.o.o.d.y World would not be informed beforehand which world it would be. This would offset the factor of their parties to a large extent.
For example, if Sheyan knew which world he would enter, he could let Reef and the others collect specific information regarding that world, and even use the resources of the whole party to custom-make weapons and equipments that specifically targeted that world. This kind of behavior did not violate the law of the realm, but it would go against the objective of the realm. What if another party had no resources to do so? What if there was a party with great potential but had just undergone a wipeout and couldn't pool the resources?
The realm was also trying to maintain a fair environment. Of course, there was no absolute fairness in this world….but to take this measure was better than not taking it.
Finally, the notification for him to enter arrived. When he reached the realm plaza, he saw that next to the ordinary dark blue portal, there was another portal!
The portal seemed to be formed from boiling blood that was flowing in a silky and orderly manner. From time to time, boiling bubbles would emerge accompanied by the sound of a beast burping!
Sheyan's body turned bright and b.l.o.o.d.y, looking extremely terrifying. The b.l.o.o.d.y invitation letter automatically floated to the top of his head, s.h.i.+ning with a brilliant radiance!
Step by step, he approached the blood red portal. The crowd respectfully parted to make way for him.
Sheyan took a deep breath and suddenly burst into a crazy roar, then stepped into the b.l.o.o.d.y portal.
Behind the blood-coloured portal.
Sheyan did not lose consciousness. His vision blurred and he felt like the next few seconds were strangely pa.s.sing by extremely slowly. It was the same sensation as having a lengthy dream while taking a short afternoon nap. After that, a scene appeared before his eyes.
Dirty grey walls filled with spider webs, the air filled with a suffocating rancid smell. Next to Sheyan's feet was a ditch about two meters wide. The black water flowing inside the ditch felt horrifying. Various things floated inside including rotten rice, fish bones, small food bags, and even used tampons….
Sheyan felt that he would rather take a knife to his body than fall into the d.a.m.n gutter. He looked up and found that the ceiling above was only a foot away from his head. No wonder he felt an oppressive pressure. The tunnel he was in was arched. Seeing this architectural style, Sheyan immediately realised that he was in the underground sewer of a large city.
Within such a deplorable environment, everyone's first reaction would undoubtedly be to immediately climbed above the ground and leave the d.a.m.n place. Sheyan felt the same. He pinched his nose took large steps forward, but he couldn't find any stairs. After walking for about forty or fifty meters, Sheyan suddenly heard a rather strange sound.
The faint noise sounded like a group of people whispering, and also like the sound of c.o.c.kroaches crawling on the ground. In this dim sewer, the visibility was quite low. Sheyan slowly inched forward, ready for any sudden occurrences. He gradually saw several people wearing ragged clothes squatting together in the dark corner ahead. They seemed to be eating something. That was the source of the noise he heard.
Sheyan slowly stepped forward. Those people showed no reaction to his approach. Suddenly, Sheyan's foot stepped on something fragile. He had raised his concentration to its peak so he instantly felt it.
As his foot pushed downwards, the sh.e.l.l of the object beneath his foot deformed rapidly and ruptured. Cracks began to appear on its upper and lower sides. It then emitted a squeaking sound as the yellow-green slurry and internal organs inside burst out in a hot mess to cover Sheyan's sole.
“I seemed to have killed a bug?” as soon as the thought flashed in Sheyan's mind, he saw the homeless people in front turn their heads towards him simultaneously. The muscles on their faces were twisted, and in their eyes were a poisonous hatred. All of them let out a shuddering roar, stretched their hands, and pounced at Sheyan!
Chapter 882: Uninvited GuestSheyan's attention was mainly focused on these hobos, so he wasn't fl.u.s.tered when they launched their attack.
Because the terrain was quite narrow, Sheyan did not use his '+7 West', but instead smashed a bottle of curse-mix on the ground. The group of hobos was stunned by the shockwave and fell to the ground after suffering substantial damage.
That wasn't the end of it. Sheyan's eyes widened in shock as everywhere the shockwave pa.s.sed, the ground would emit cracking noises similar to the sound made by the c.o.c.kroach-like bug when Sheyan stepped on it earlier.
A large amount of yellowish-green liquid could be vaguely seen splashed on the ground. There were also big spots of yellowish-green stains on the wall. If it wasn't for the shockwave, Sheyan could never have imagined that there were so many bugs around him!
“d.a.m.n, is this an insect nest?” Sheyan's heart remained suspicious, but his reaction was fast. He stepped forward to meet the vicious hobo closest to him with a fist to the hobo's face.
Sheyan's current Strength had reached 49 points. His punch sent the guy flying backwards headfirst before slamming into the wall behind him. The impact sounded extremely heavy. If he was a normal person, the damage that this punch caused would at least give him a severe concussion, making him lose consciousness on the spot.
But the guy merely struggled a few times, then stood back up as if nothing happened.
Sheyan frowned. He clearly felt that when his fist landed on the guy's face, it felt like he was punching a sandbag filled with hard, tiny stones. His fist sunk into the hobo's face and he could feel the small b.u.mps inside. It was very weird.
Their companion being knocked down did not cause the rest of the hobos to retreat. Their mouths made a strange distress call of two long sounds followed by a short one. They seemed to be contacting something. Then, they continued to surround Sheyan. Sheyan simply hunched down, flung his fist and threw his knee to send another enemy flying.
The guy that was sent back by Sheyan drew an arc in the air and fell heavily into the dirty water with a loud bang. The huge splash of dirty water sent forth an indescribable suffocating odour that could make one vomit.
The man seemed completely oblivious to his situation. He opened his mouth to reveal his yellowish staggered teeth and screamed out in a hoa.r.s.e voice. He even swallowed a few mouthfuls of dirty water in the process but showed no reaction to it. He merely tried to rush back towards Sheyan. Sheyan felt a nauseating disgust just from looking at him.
Sheyan was only dazed for a moment but one of the men took the opportunity to rush up behind him and hugged him tightly. After all, Sheyan was not an agility type contestant like Brother Black who could handle any type of situation with ease.
Sheyan reacted fast though. The moment he was caught, he could feel a hot, smelly breath on the back of his neck as well as hear a beast-like gasping noise. He knew this signalled that the enemy was trying to bite into his neck. He immediately slammed his head back while his legs pushed out to heavily throw his back into a wall.
A bang erupted. The sensation, though, left a weird feeling in Sheyan. He felt as if the enemy behind him was made of a lot of broken stones, which scattered from the collision.
The skin on his back felt some p.r.i.c.kling pain, and then felt the itchy sensation of crawling things. Notifications from the nightmare imprint followed:
[You are bitten and stung by an unknown creature. You will be infected with various types of unknown diseases….]
[Due to the effect of the Stairway of the Sun in your body, this negative status was resisted….]
[You are bitten and stung by an unknown creature. You will be infected with various types of unknown diseases….]
[Due to the effect of the Stairway of the Sun in your body, this negative status was resisted….]
Sheyan immediately reached back with his hand and slapped his back. When he retracted his palm, there was an indescribably pungent odor. A mixture of viscous yellowish-green liquid and internal organs was left on his palm. He couldn't help but look at the corpses of the bugs on the ground and reluctantly concluded that his back must also be in a terrible mess.
Sheyan took two steps back to place his back against the wall, then avoided close combat with those d.a.m.nable enemies as best he could. Whenever they approached, he would kick them into the gutter. After doing that to two people in a row, Sheyan saw a gap and unhesitatingly fled.
He was very clear on what stance he should take in this world. He would continue to keep a low profile and try his best to hide his strength, then find the awakening mission as soon as possible. Therefore, although Sheyan was very confident of killing these strange people, he a.s.sessed that the intensity of the battle may be beyond the scope of his control, so he would rather avoid the fight than to expose himself by leaving any possible traces that could be detected by his enemies.
Intense footsteps echoed in the sealed, rancid sewer. As Sheyan was stridding forward, he cme to a sudden halt because there was another figure in front of him. This person looked like a tall, obese black man. His face and skin were wrinkled and distorted. Black sarcoma of two to three centimeters in size sagged off his skin, and occasionally, one could see some protruding round things moving under his skin.
Sheyan could sense a dangerous aura from him, which meant that he had the ability to threaten Sheyan's life. Sheyan wished he could run back but the strange hobos had already caught up from behind!
“Ugh, so you're forcing me to fight,” sighed Sheyan.
Right that moment, a manhole cover was pried open above his head. From the manhole extended a nozzle that looked like an elephant's trunk. The nozzle spewed a large amount pungent-smelling white smoke into t
