Chapter Four: A Desperate Counterattack

Whoosh! The shadow leopard behind them darted toward Li Quan like a streak of light.

“Not good!” Lan Xin stopped in her tracks, whirled around, and raised her sword to block the attack. The brute force of the creature’s leap sent a numbing jolt through her hand, and she was forced to retreat several steps before she could steady herself.

A level-four mutant, the shadow leopard excelled in agility, its strength far surpassing her own. Lan Xin’s intervention halted the group's escape; the leopard’s deep yellow eyes locked onto her, marking her as its primary prey.

“You go on ahead,” Lan Xin said softly to the three behind her.

She was no match for the shadow leopard. If all four tried to flee together, they would all die. At this moment, her strength was the greatest; she could buy some time. Though she would surely die, at least Xia Yan and the others might escape.

Li Quan and Liao Qing exchanged glances, terror barely contained in their eyes. They knew well how powerful a level-four mutant could be.

“We should go. Staying here would only be a burden.”

“Yes, let’s go. We mustn’t drag this lady down.”

Without hesitation, the two ran toward the rear, aiming to reach the flying vehicle and save their own skins before considering anything else.

Gong Kui’s gaze was fixed on Xia Yan.

Xia Yan, what will you choose? Will you run with them, hoping for a lucky escape?

No, you can’t do that. If you run, you’re out of the game—you’ve lost completely.

Gong Kui’s eyes were red; she would rather Xia Yan die here than see him flee with Li Quan and Liao Qing.

Xia Yan did not leave. He stood firm, unmoving as a stone pillar, doing nothing, while Lan Xin was already locked in battle with the shadow leopard.

For Xia Yan, his attack was too weak; in close combat, he might not last even ten seconds, let alone harm the leopard. So he wondered, could he defeat the shadow leopard by himself?

After five seconds, he shook his head. It was impossible—not even the slightest chance to inflict damage.

So—he wouldn’t consider killing the shadow leopard. He’d focus on other possibilities.

“You’re still not leaving?” Lan Xin kept the leopard at bay, but spared a moment’s thought for Xia Yan. “If you stay here, you’ll only be a burden to me.”

Xia Yan didn’t answer, remaining motionless, like a weathered statue.

The shadow leopard wasted no time. Its muscles tensed, and it lunged at Lan Xin in a blur of black light.

Lan Xin gritted her teeth, her body flashed red—her abilities activated, her combat power surged.

With her abilities engaged, she was formidable—she could defeat Xia Yan in just a few moves. Yet even now, her speed and strength were still inferior to the leopard’s. She managed to hold her ground only due to the ancient martial arts techniques she wielded.

She couldn’t afford distractions, not even a word; she poured her entire focus into the battle, knowing a single lapse would mean death.

Xia Yan didn’t watch her, but judging by her flickering movements, he sensed her body was developed far beyond his own—certainly more than his 22.3 percent, at least 24 percent.

She was fast—so fast that only flashes of light could be seen.

Sword glints grew ever quicker, her fight with the leopard seemed to weave a rainbow circle of dazzling colors.

Claws and sword sparks clashed in a blur, two forces colliding with relentless fury, refusing to yield, determined to decide life or death.

Xia Yan stood behind Lan Xin, unmoving and silent.

“Still not leaving!” Even in battle, Lan Xin sensed Xia Yan’s presence behind her, her anxiety mounting.

Her ability had flaws—major flaws. She couldn’t hold out much longer, a minute at most. If Xia Yan stayed, he would die with her. She was proud and would not have others perish because of her.

But her words cost her a sliver of focus, and the shadow leopard seized the moment, launching a savage attack!

Helpless, Lan Xin raised her sword to block.

“Damn…” Lan Xin spat blood, staining her sword with a more vivid crimson, her breath growing faint.

She gritted her teeth, blood streaming, her sword light drilling toward the leopard’s body like a spinning blade.

But the sword missed its mark—the leopard dodged effortlessly.

Its agility became even swifter, reaching its peak, like a multitude of phantoms dancing wildly in place.

Lan Xin sensed the passage of time—the battle had lasted two minutes and thirty seconds; she could last another thirty seconds at most.

Yet the man behind her, still unmoving…

He must be mad, truly mad—was he so frightened that he couldn’t even run?

Lan Xin bit her lip, her expression bleak. She felt her strength ebbing, her life slipping away—she was going to die.

Everything about her had been so dazzling in the eyes of those institutions—within a year, ranked eleventh, challenged the management and graduated, joining the Guardian Squad.

But she had limits…

Here, in this land bathed in dusk.

What a pity…

…

“We’re here.” Li Quan and Liao Qing saw the flying vehicle intact and breathed a sigh of relief. Not daring to delay, they boarded and started it up immediately.

Then, they steered the vehicle toward Xia Yan’s position.

“What do we do?” Li Quan was anxious. “We have to land to rescue them, but that level-four mutant is so fast.”

“If we land, we’ll be in danger too,” Liao Qing said, fearful.

“But we can’t just watch them die. If not for those two saving us, we’d be dead already.” Li Quan gritted his teeth. “We have to try, even if it means risking ourselves.”

“You’re crazy. At most, we can wait for an opportunity—we can’t throw our lives away for them.” Liao Qing replied urgently. “If we land, we might end up with two more deaths.”

“I…” Li Quan felt the fear rising.

“Forget it… We can’t land, absolutely not.” Liao Qing bit his lip. “Landing means four deaths, no way to survive. That leopard is too fast.”

“But…”

“No buts!” Liao Qing snapped, “We can only hover above. If… they die, we leave. If they survive and the leopard flees or dies, we’ll land.”

Li Quan clenched his teeth, his gaze filled with helplessness.

None of them wanted to die, especially facing such overwhelming power—a near-certain death.

…

“Hurry, I can’t hold on!” Lan Xin gritted her teeth, uttering her final words. Blood sprayed from her mouth as the leopard struck her, sending her crashing into a tree, breaking it and leaving her gasping, blood pouring from her lips.

No time, no hope. This time, not one, but two would die.

Gong Kui’s gaze remained fixed on Xia Yan. He had passed the first test by not fleeing, so he still had a chance—however slim.

He’d stood motionless for three minutes. Xia Yan, just what are you planning?

Miss Lan Xin is about to die—such a talent, wasted…

Gong Kui’s eyes held regret. Lan Xin’s value was immense, yet because of Xia Yan, she might perish here. Gong Kui didn’t consider herself selfish; this was Xia Yan’s only hope.

At least, he still had a chance—a very small one. Gong Kui wondered why Xia Yan had stood still for three minutes; there must be a reason.

The shadow leopard’s intelligent gaze turned to Xia Yan, marking him as its second prey. It didn’t bother killing Lan Xin, knowing she was too badly injured to move.

This was Xia Yan’s second plan. If he couldn’t kill the leopard, perhaps he could drive it away!

Driving it away was different from wounding it. If he merely injured the leopard, it might go berserk, killing both Xia Yan and Lan Xin. Minor wounds wouldn’t frighten it.

He needed to deliver a powerful blow—only a grievous injury might force the leopard to flee.

Xia Yan’s strongest attack…

Guns?

Close combat?

No, neither.

His ability—fire element—was his ultimate weapon. But it required a condition: he had to concentrate all the fire element within his body…

Yes, all of it, condensed into a single attack. One strike to exhaust all his fire element—this was Xia Yan’s strongest attack.

At that moment, flames gathered in his right hand, forming a ball that was barely spherical, constantly shifting.

It wasn’t expanding or shrinking, but compressing.

Xia Yan refused to abandon Lan Xin to save himself, so he gambled everything—he had no choice. If he lost, both would die here.

He was no fool; Gong Kui’s words about opportunity made sense to him. To seize it, he needed to risk everything. Those who always shrink back and retreat will always fail, never survive.

Fight—this was the final hope!

If they failed, both would die.

If they succeeded, both would live.

If they survived, even Lan Xin might reconsider Gong Kui’s proposal. For Xia Yan, who risked his life to save her, would she still doubt his motives?

After all, one’s own life is always most important. When someone is willing to gamble their life for you, there’s no reason not to trust them.

“It’s at the threshold!” Xia Yan sensed his fire element was depleted; the compressed fireball in his hand had reached its limit, turning from fiery red to deep purple.

It wasn’t large, but contained immense energy—this was Xia Yan’s strongest attack.

He had to hit—if he missed, the fireball would become a joke—the greatest joke under heaven!

Xia Yan stepped forward, slowly but with eyes sharp as a hunting hawk.

The shadow leopard lunged, aiming to tear Xia Yan apart!

Xia Yan gritted his teeth and charged toward the leopard, still holding back the compressed flame.

The leopard collided with him; a claw slashed by, Xia Yan barely twisted aside, avoiding a fatal blow to his heart, but his abdomen was torn open, blood streaming.

Enough—it was time!

With a fierce expression, Xia Yan unleashed the compressed fireball at point-blank range, smashing it against the leopard!

There was no chance of missing—it would definitely hit!

It did. The fireball struck the leopard’s body with a thunderous roar, hurling it backward.

Flames flashed, lightning crackled across its body; wounds were shredded and raw, bones pulverized to dust! Even the mighty leopard howled in agony, some of its intestines spilling out.

Roar!

The leopard regained its footing, its eyes wild with rage—but also fear.

Xia Yan barely managed to stand; he refused to retreat, for Lan Xin was behind him—he could not give ground.

Roar!

The leopard issued threatening growls, recognizing that Xia Yan was spent, no longer a real threat.

Yet it felt fear—its intelligence was limited, and it couldn’t be sure whether this human could unleash another attack like that.

If he could, it might die! Its life was precious; these humans were merely prey, not worth the risk.

Its eyes turned with unnatural humanity, as if pondering. At last, it let out a long howl and turned away, vanishing in an instant.

Xia Yan sighed in relief, collapsing to the ground, drenched in sweat—he had gambled correctly. His head felt as if it were torn apart, the pain nearly maddening—an aftereffect of excessive mental exertion.

But…he had survived. That was all that mattered.

“Xia Yan, you did it!” Gong Kui smiled faintly. “I wasn’t wrong about you—you really are like a miracle, always full of surprises.”

Far away, the shadow leopard reflected on what had just happened, seething with hatred toward the human who had wounded it.

It sensed a transformation, as if it were becoming something different…

Perhaps, it was about to become a ‘king’—king of all mutants, to whom every mutant would submit, obeying its every command.

Soon, very soon. A glint of wisdom flashed in its eyes.

Just wait, you lowly humans—and especially the youth who hurt me.

When I evolve again, I will slaughter every last human.

And I won’t rely on brute force, but on wisdom—the wisdom of a king, above all humans.