Chapter 145: Return of the Hero

Chapter 145: Return of the Hero

Xia Zheng plunged back into the siege of the blood-kin-infused amalgamations. This time, he did not bother with detours or dodging; he simply slaughtered his way out.

The hovering shields protected his entire body, while he manipulated the Dripping Water Sword to spin rapidly around his perimeter. Every monster that dared approach within five meters of him was completely shredded.

Simultaneously, he continuously drew his bow and nocked arrows. Blazing Flame Arrows flew from his grasp with a speed rivaling that of the blue-haired blood-kin maiden, each fiery projectile wiping out dozens of amalgamations at once.

With a low roar, he finally encountered the multi-headed serpentine amalgamation once again. When a flame arrow shot toward it, the projectile was actually extinguished by venom spat from one of its many snake heads, a testament to the sheer lethality of its poison.

Xia Zheng remained unfazed. Compared to the powerful blood-kin elites he had faced earlier, this brute before him was nothing special.

Thus, he loosed a Blazing Ice Arrow, instantly slowing the serpentine monster. Although it was not completely frozen—about seven or eight heads were trapped in ice—one head, the central cobra head, continued to spit venom, steadily diminishing the freezing effect.

Divine Lightning!

A flash of crimson lightning streaked across the air, striking the final snake head and splitting it cleanly in two, killing it utterly.

Lacking the cobra head, the remaining heads emitted pitiful whines and were thoroughly frozen. Then, a blue flame erupted from within them, burning them to ashes.

Having eliminated this amalgamation, a clear path suddenly opened up before Xia Zheng. He sprinted forward, and the surrounding amalgamations temporarily lacked the courage to approach him.

Yet, after dashing a few hundred meters, another amalgamation leader charged out. This was a gigantic lizard-like monster bearing the traits of a crocodile, exhaling a nauseating stench whenever it opened its cavernous maw.

Xia Zheng held his breath and fired another Blazing Ice Arrow. At this moment, only a single spiritual bead remained in his mouth.

Roar!

The lizard-crocodile monster let out a furious bellow, then spat a pillar of black light from its mouth. The beam collided with the Blazing Ice Arrow, and both annihilated each other simultaneously.

"Incredible, it actually blocked my Blazing Ice Arrow." Xia Zheng felt a pang of astonishment; this was the first time he had encountered a situation where his Blazing Ice Arrow proved entirely ineffective.

Upon closer inspection, however, the amalgamation's aura instantly wilted, as if that blast of black light had completely exhausted its supernatural energy.

"Let's see you try to block another." Taking advantage of the moment, the Moon-Glaze bracelet restored a substantial amount of his spiritual energy.

Once again, a Blazing Ice Arrow shrieked through the air. This time, the lizard-crocodile monster let out a whimper, turned tail, and fled. It even used its long snout to shove numerous ordinary amalgamations behind itself in a desperate attempt to block the incoming attack.

Unfortunately, it was far too naive. The power of the Blazing Ice Arrow required the monster to exhaust nearly all its energy just to withstand it—how could mere ordinary amalgamations hope to stop it? The ice-blue arrow transformed by the Blazing Ice Arrow pierced through one ordinary amalgamation after another before finally embedding itself deep within the lizard-crocodile monster's body.

The creature froze, then let out an aggrieved roar toward the heavens. Its body was pierced clean through by the ice sword, shattering into fragments even as it was completely frozen solid. The surrounding monsters were also caught in the shockwave, subsequently swallowed up by roaring, high-temperature blue flames.

Xia Zheng coughed, waving away the pungent odor lingering in the air, and resumed his sprint toward the exit he had entered through.

Roughly ten minutes later, a flicker of light finally appeared, accompanied by the sounds of gunfire and artillery. It seemed reinforcements had come for him.

Xia Zheng's spirits soared, and he immediately fought his way toward the direction of his comrades.

Luo Bing had led Star-Observed martial artists, high-tier genetic warriors, and elite soldiers equipped with military combat armor straight into the barrier. Just half an hour earlier, amalgamations and amalgamation leaders had begun pouring out from within the barrier in waves, keeping the outer garrison tense and busy for quite some time.

Moreover, judging by the frenzied reactions of these monsters, Luo Bing and the other genetic warriors could sense a deep unease, as if a fierce battle was raging deep within the barrier.

Concerned for Xia Zheng's safety, Luo Bing had taken the initiative to request permission from General Lefevre to support Xia Zheng. General Ying Fan also lent his backing, and eventually, General Lefevre dispatched Luo Bing and an elite force of about five hundred soldiers to act as a retrieval team.

Although these amalgamations possessed formidable strength, fortunately, the personnel Luo Bing brought along were military elites. Soldiers clad in combat armor served as living shields to hold back the monsters, allowing the rest of the troops to launch ranged attacks. The firearms and artillery in their hands possessed immense destructive power, far surpassing anything seen previously.

In the wake of the Eternal Night City crisis, federal scientists and the military had developed specialized weaponry targeting the blood-kin based on intelligence gathered from the front lines. Combat armor was one such innovation. Combined with powerful firearms and heavy artillery, this time, they distinctly suppressed the blood-kin monstrosities.

"Look, that seems to be Commander Wood over there," pointed out a genetic warrior by Luo Bing's side. Everyone instantly cast their gaze forward and were awestruck to see Xia Zheng, surrounded by the Dripping Water Sword and hovering shields, brutally carving out a bloody path through a sea of monsters entirely on his own.

Luo Bing immediately tossed her firearm to an ordinary soldier, drew the combat blade from her waist, and unleashed her genetic power, enveloping her entire body.

"Charge through!" Luo Bing took the lead, cleaving a mantis amalgamation in two with a single strike. Seeing this, the other genetic warriors followed her charge without hesitation. The dense horde of blood-kin monsters was churned up by two violent storms, no longer able to prevent the two forces from converging.

Xia Zheng sensed the familiar aura up ahead and knew it was Luo Bing. A wave of joy surged in his heart, and with a prolonged whistle, the outer ring of the Dripping Water Sword instantly fused into a massive sword over ten meters long.

"Die!" As the giant sword swept across the area, the surrounding blood-kin monsters were instantly truncated, collapsing to the ground in droves.

Luo Bing was similarly filled with excitement, fully unleashing her combat prowess. Her comrades and brothers-in-arms—the Star-Observed martial artists, genetic warriors, and armored soldiers behind her—also erupted with astonishing combat power. Even though they remained surrounded by the dense hordes of blood-kin monsters, nothing could halt their advance.

At last, when the space before Xia Zheng suddenly cleared and he caught sight of Luo Bing's panting visage, he realized the two sides had successfully connected.

"Are you alright?" Luo Bing stepped forward to ask while drawing a sidearm from her thigh holster to drop a closing monster.

Xia Zheng shook his head, pressing his back against hers. While feeling the firm and resilient curves of the woman's back and hips, he swung his sword once more, blunting the momentum of the blood-kin assault.

"Let's get out of here," Xia Zheng said. The surrounding soldiers shouted their affirmation. Though the blood-kin monsters continued their frantic attacks with a tireless disregard for sacrifice, they still failed to hold them back.

Upon reaching the entrance, Xia Zheng unleashed the very last of his spiritual energy, executing a technique known as "Arrival."

Following a deafening roar, the blood-kin monsters throughout the entire cavern collectively collapsed all at once—nearly nine-tenths of them wiped out in an instant, leaving everyone present dumbfounded. This efficiency of slaughter was practically on par with the destructive power of a missile.

Having safely returned to the military camp, only a scattered handful of fearless blood-kin monsters dared to charge out, only to be easily dispatched by the main force outside.

Xia Zheng's return once again boosted morale and further elevated his prestige within the military ranks.