Chapter 55: Critical Moment
Hum! The little furball’s hind legs tapped against the empty air three times in rapid succession.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Three compressed wind bullets, acting like precise cannonballs, heavily struck right beneath the feet of the three Shadow Moss-Claws that had just finished dodging, their previous momentum spent and new strength not yet generated!
The ground trembled slightly, and fragments of grass flew everywhere!
The intense impact and instantaneous deceleration effect brought by the pressure-wind bullets caused the remaining three anomalous entities to freeze in unison, their movements stiff as if their limbs had been entangled in an invisible quagmire, coming to an abrupt halt.
"A golden opportunity!" Fierce glimmers erupted in Su Liu’s eyes! The effect of the Stealth Necklace drastically weakened after launching an active attack, but the enemy's stiffness was her combat window! Without needing to clearly see her targets, she flipped both hands, her venom-imbued dagger and sharp-tethered short blade tracing two chilling, frosty arcs through the twilight.
Leveraging the residual speed bonus from the meat chunk and the explosive power of her feet kicking off the ground, her figure transformed into a pink gale.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
The blade lights virtually merged into a single sheet!
Su Liu’s objective was not a one-hit kill; rather, she used speed suppression and the sharpness of her daggers to leave terrifying, bone-deep cuts on the critical limb joints and core nodes of energy circulation of the three entities in the split second before their paralysis wore off!
Dark green fluid squirted wildly from the monsters' wounds like a punctured water sac! Screams of excruciating pain and terror rang out simultaneously!
The attack rhythm of the three Shadow Moss-Claws was instantly disrupted, their movements distorted and sluggish due to joint injuries, and one of them even suffered a precipitous drop in speed due to core damage!
"Fall back! Grab the box!" Su Liu did not linger for a second, nor did she covet kills, her objective crystal clear.
She didn't even spare a glance at the three injured and enraged entities. The moment before the Gale Step’s deceleration effect faded and the creatures were about to swarm her, she kicked off the hard ground, her body launching like a cannonball toward the silver secret cache close at hand!
With tacit coordination, the little furball released another smaller-scale [Void Trace], erecting it like a door frame between the three entities and the box, buying yet another moment of delay.
Leveraging her momentum, Su Liu executed a sliding tackle, her left hand precisely scooping up the silver secret cache from the ground. Feeling its hefty weight in her grasp, she did not hesitate to clutch it to her chest, rolled with the momentum, and pushed herself up to sprint forward!
"Awooo!!!" Seeing the guarded box stolen, the three Shadow Moss-Claws uttered frenzied roars mixed with pain and anger, recklessly crashing through the residual spatial rifts, dragging their injured limbs as they lunged again, their ferocious moss-blades pointing directly at Su Liu's back!
"Tuanzi! Hurry!" Su Liu shouted without looking back.
Whoosh—Bang! Airborne, the little furball fired another ultra-compressed wind bullet, precisely slamming into the wound of the foremost entity.
Already injured, the creature staggered from the blast, directly knocking over another one flanking it.
Yet the last, faster Moss-Claw was already within arm's reach! Its sharp moss-blade was on the verge of piercing the fabric of Su Liu's back!
Time: [21:59:40] Remaining kilometers: [0.02 km]
A bone-chilling wind blew from behind!
The sharp moss-blade of the trailing Shadow Moss-Claw was a mere hair's breadth away from Su Liu's heart, the dark green mucus and putrid stench nearly brushing against her neck!
There was not a trace of panic in Su Liu's eyes, only absolute calm and a hint of limit-pushing madness.
She did not even look back.
Clutching the heavy silver secret cache, her body utilized the forward-surging inertia to execute a fierce forward roll!
This roll not only narrowly evaded the fatal claw lunging from behind, but it also allowed her body to achieve the exact posture adjustment needed for the final sprint—her toes kicked hard against the ground, and her figure shot forward like an arrow released from a bow, blazing along the grassland path!
Whoosh—!
The exact moment her body swept through the air, the numbers in the upper-left corner of her vision leaped abruptly:
[Current Time: 21:59:55]
[Remaining Kilometers Today: 0 km]
Done! The very last fraction of a distance was cleared during the extreme rolling sprint!
And at the exact moment she completed her kilometers—
"Hourglass of the Hour of Chen! Target: Three Shadow Moss-Claws! Slow down!" Su Liu roared mentally.
Hum!
An azure-blue wave of light suddenly radiated outward with her at the center, precisely enveloping the three relentlessly pursuing entities, who had grown even more furious from being toyed with.
Their movements instantly became sluggish, as if they had fallen into deep mire.
Simultaneously, utilizing this precious window of less than a second she had fought for, and before her center of gravity had fully stabilized, her right hand plunged lightning-fast into the virtual backpack space, accurately grasping the all-important kerosene lamp!
Spinning her body, she dropped to one knee while her left hand securely guarded the silver secret cache pressed against her chest.
Her right hand—leveraging the momentum of kneeling and the strength of her swinging arm—slammed the kerosene lamp down hard against the ground!
Crack!
The glass cover made a crisp sound upon contact with the hard earth.
The kerosene previously stored in the reservoir saturated the wick.
"Ignite!" Su Liu's command echoed silently in her mind.
Whoosh!
An orange-yellow, warm, and resolute flame instantly leaped from the wick, rapidly stabilizing and brightening.
The light, no larger than a soybean, acted like a newborn star, struggling yet stubbornly tearing open the thick, impenetrable darkness surrounding her!
Hum...!
A visible, pale-golden halo radiated outward rapidly from the kerosene lamp in all directions, forming a ten-meter-diameter spherical barrier emanating an invisible force!
Ignition successful! The ten o'clock rule took effect!
"Awooo—!!!"
The shrill, miserable screeches of the three Shadow Moss-Claws rang out almost simultaneously! Having just broken free of the Hourglass's deceleration effect, they had been lunging forward with bared claws at the edge of the barrier, eager to tear Su Liu to shreds.
Yet, what greeted them was that scorching lamplight, seemingly imbued with purifying power!
Shadow Moss-Claws were inherently light-averse and fire-fearing anomalous entities, and even Level 3 entities could not completely immunize themselves against this rule-tier suppression.
As their forelimbs and upper bodies probed into the barrier, their dark green moss leather armor emitted a "sizzling" burning sound, billowing thick black smoke!
Intense pain caused their movements to stiffen once more, and instinctively they shrank back, their ferocious faces twisted into horrific contortions of agony and rage.
However, Su Liu had been waiting precisely for this moment of stiffness induced by the barrier's burn!
"Tuanzi! [Void Trace]! Target, the ground directly ahead!"
Su Liu's command suffered zero delay.
The little furball didn't even need to land. It had been crouching, coiled and ready on Su Liu's neck and shoulders. At that instant, its tiny body tightened sharply, and gathering blue-and-white radiance flared across its two fluffy tails.
Sizzle—!
Two intersecting, air-ripping fine silver lines sliced precisely into the ground inside the barrier, two or three meters away from Su Liu—
Not attacking the enemies outside the barrier, but rather, the exact instant the three entities cried out in pain, shrank back, and pressed closest to the barrier's edge, slicing away the turf and soil beneath their feet!
The ground collapsed slightly in a sudden slump!
Caught completely off guard, the three creatures—already unsteady on their feet from burns, and huddled together with one in front and two closely following—were tripped up by this sudden minor cave-in and staggered.
The most heavily injured and slowest among them completely lost its balance and tumbled forward onto the ground!
In that instant, the rhythm and positioning of the three entities were thoroughly disrupted, exposing them right at the edge of the safe zone!
Su Liu moved!