Lei Lie glanced at him. “Are you afraid?”
“Afraid?” The scarred-face man gave a dry laugh. “I’ve been roaming the wastes for years. What haven’t I seen? It’s just a Level 3 beast. What’s there to be afraid of?”
The three Level 1 mercenaries beside him exchanged silent looks, thinking to themselves that his legs had been shaking while he spoke.
The only reason they had been able to run rampant in the Ruin Zone for so many years was because of Severance. Now that Severance was dead, they had lost their top-tier combat power. It was only natural for them to be afraid.
“Enough talk,” Lei Lie ordered. “Heads up, Liu Sen is making his move!”
As soon as he finished speaking, a low-pitched hum vibrated through the air.
“Vvmmmmm—!!!”
A pale purple ripple, visible to the naked eye, spread out in all directions, instantly covering every inch of space within a fifty-meter radius!
Lei Lie’s ability surged to its full potential, his perception extending underground like invisible tentacles—
He felt a reaction!
Roughly twenty-five meters directly beneath the building’s foundation, a previously dormant life signature suddenly fluctuated violently!
That signature was forcibly stripped from its stealth state by the pulse ripples, like a sleeping beast being jolted awake!
“Hiss—!!!”
A sharp, ear-piercing screech echoed from deep underground, causing the earth to tremble slightly!
“It’s awake!” Lei Lie barked. “Everyone, get ready!”
Before his voice could fade, a section of rubble about twenty meters from the edge of the building’s foundation suddenly exploded!
Debris flew everywhere as dust filled the air!
A black figure shot out from the ground at incredible speed, leaving a trail of afterimages in the air!
It was the Shadow-Stalker Beast!
The beast was pitch black and roughly the size of an adult leopard. Its limbs were slender, its tail exceptionally long, and its scales shimmered with an eerie luster under the gray sky.
Its crimson vertical pupils were filled with shock, fury, and fear as it stared fixedly at Lei Lie and the others!
“It’s out! Don’t let it get away!” Lei Lie roared!
The two Level 2 Ability Users acted simultaneously!
One of them pushed forward with both hands, causing an invisible force field to rise from the ground like an unseen wall, blocking the Shadow-Stalker Beast’s escape route into the deeper ruins!
The other clenched his hands in the air, causing the atmosphere to abruptly condense into several transparent Wind Blades that whistled through the air toward the beast!
The Shadow-Stalker Beast’s reactions were staggeringly fast!
Its body twisted mid-air in a bizarre fashion, narrowly dodging the Wind Blades. Simultaneously, its tail lashed out, striking a nearby concrete block and shattering the waist-high debris into dust!
“Damn, it’s strong!” The scarred-face man gritted his teeth and charged forward, wielding a specialized electric baton!
The other three Level 1 Ability Users also showcased their skills—one threw an alloy net, another released an interference magnetic field, and the last fired anesthetic rounds!
Under the group’s coordinated assault, the Shadow-Stalker Beast darted back and forth with ghost-like speed!
It shredded the alloy net with a single swipe of its claws, agilely dodged the anesthetic rounds, and the interference magnetic field only managed to slow it down for a mere half-second!
Seeing this, Lei Lie stowed his sniper rifle, pulled a dagger from his vest, and joined the fray.
The Shadow-Stalker Beast was Level 3; only a Level 3 Ability User like him could truly go toe-to-toe with it!
The beast had just been jolted from its slumber and its biological field had been disrupted by the pulse, so it was far from its peak condition.
After several rounds of combat, under Lei Lie’s full-force strikes, its movements began to lag, and its breathing grew labored.
“Keep the pressure on! Don’t give it a chance to breathe!” Lei Lie calmly directed the others to coordinate with him.
Sensing the crisis, the crimson in the Shadow-Stalker Beast’s eyes intensified!
It let out a sharp screech, and its body began to turn transparent—it was trying to re-enter its stealth state!
“Trying to run?!” Lei Lie sneered. “Liu Sen, do it again!”
On the other side, Liu Sen had been waiting for this moment and immediately reactivated the pulse generator!
“Vvmmmmm—!!!”
The purple ripple spread once more!
Just as the Shadow-Stalker Beast’s body became transparent, it was forcibly knocked out of its stealth state by the pulse!
Its form contorted violently in the air as it let out a cry of pain and fury!
“Now!” Lei Lie seized the opening, lunging forward and slamming his elbow hard into the beast’s flank!
The strike stunned the Shadow-Stalker Beast, and the scarred-face man took the opportunity to jam the electric baton against its body.
“Zzzzzzt—!”
High-voltage current surged through its entire body!
The Shadow-Stalker Beast convulsed violently, its screeching turning into a pained howl!
It struggled desperately, its tail lashing out and striking the scarred-face man in the chest, sending him flying back into the rubble!
However, the other two Level 1 Ability Users took the chance to throw out alloy nets—this time, three layers thick!
Trapped in the nets, the beast’s struggles grew weaker and weaker!
The paralyzing effect of the electricity combined with the anesthetic rounds finally began to take hold!
“Pin it down!” Lei Lie pressed down firmly on the netted Shadow-Stalker Beast!
The beast’s eyes remained fixed on him, though the crimson glow was gradually fading.
After a few more struggles, it finally went limp, its chest the only part still moving with faint breaths.
“Huff... huff...” The scarred-face man crawled out from the rubble, clutching his chest and grimacing. “Damn... that thing sure can fight...”
Lei Lie stood up and looked at the unconscious Shadow-Stalker Beast in the net, letting out a long sigh of relief.
“We got it.”
Lei Lie’s group dragged the Shadow-Stalker Beast, tightly bound in the alloy nets, back to the Terminal Station building.
The beast had woken up and was struggling desperately within the net, letting out sharp screeches.
Unfortunately for it, the anesthetic effects hadn't fully worn off, and its struggles grew weaker until it could only lie limp on the floor, glaring at the surrounding humans with its crimson vertical pupils.
“Damn... this thing is heavy...” The scarred-face man panted, plopping down on the floor.
“I’ve hauled a three-hundred-pound mutated boar before, and it wasn't even half as difficult as this beast.”
The two Level 1 Ability Users were also exhausted, leaning against the wall and gasping for air.
Lei Lie set down his gun and wiped the sweat from his forehead, his gaze instinctively drifting toward the stairs.
“I’m going to report back to the Landlord,” he said, heading toward the staircase.
“Stop right there.”
A clear female voice called out from the side.
Lei Lie paused and turned his head.
A young girl had appeared in the hallway at some unknown point.
She wore clean but simple clothes, her hair tied in a neat ponytail. Though she had a faint smile on her face, her eyes held a level of composure that didn't quite match her age.
It was Ah-Lan.
“You are...” Lei Lie frowned slightly.
He remembered this girl. She was one of the first batch of tenants and seemed to be highly trusted by the Landlord.
“My name is Ah-Lan,” the girl said, her tone calm as she stepped toward him.
“The Landlord has instructed that once the Shadow-Stalker Beast is captured, you are all to wait in the first-floor warehouse.”
Rate on N.U.
