Bloody Battle on Long Street

The storm of death raged from all directions, simultaneously crushing in from the west! The icy blue glow of poisoned crossbow bolts, the invisible lethality of tripwires, the fiery shrapnel of explosions, the tearing shadows of steel beams—in an instant, Lin Xiao was completely overwhelmed!

Nowhere to retreat! Nowhere to evade!

All the light in Lin Xiao's eyes suddenly converged, leaving only a frozen, cold madness! His depleted soul groaned under the burning sensation of [-0.8], and the icy throb of the Viper's Kiss core in his right leg was completely suppressed by the instinct to survive!

Charge! Only charge!

His body was like a spring compressed to its limit. The moment the explosive shockwave hit him, he inexplicably accelerated again, defying the laws of physics! Not in a straight line, but with a strange, high-frequency vibration of small amplitude, he skimmed the ground like a phantom!

His left hand, holding the dark green reinforced dagger, came alive at that moment!

Hum!

The blade emitted an extremely subtle hum, yet it pierced through the roar of the explosions! The nearly transparent, sharp glow at the edge of the blade surged, as if it could cleave light itself!

Facing the poisoned crossbow bolts, which attacked first in a triangular formation sealing off his space, Lin Xiao neither blocked nor parried! His body, vibrating at high frequency, managed to let two bolts graze his clothes and miss by a hair's breadth, embedding deeply into the wall and ground behind him with dull thuds, their fletchings trembling! As for the bolt aimed at his face, his left hand, gripping the dagger, merely flicked upwards infinitesimally!

There was no deafening clash of metal!

Only a faint "chi" sound, almost inaudible!

The fiercely incoming poisoned crossbow bolt, capable of piercing steel plates, was sliced cleanly in half the moment it touched the reinforced dagger's edge, like hot butter being cut by a knife! The two halves of the bolt harmlessly grazed Lin Xiao's cheek as they flew past, carrying away a few strands of his hair!

Arrow broken! Not a scratch!

The deadly transparent tripwire at his feet was already taut!

Lin Xiao's forward momentum did not decrease; it even increased! Just as his toes were about to touch the tripwire, the tip of his left foot sharply pushed off the ground. He used the force to lift himself slightly forward as if weightless, and his right leg, that cold, heavy injured leg, swung forward with an awkward yet precise angle, hooking back!

Not to dodge, but to actively touch!

Snap!

The sole of his right foot precisely "tapped" the tripwire! Not a direct impact, but using his forward momentum and his control over his muscles' limits, he created a subtle downward and backward force!

The taut tripwire suddenly dipped downwards with an unbearable hum! Sparks flew from its anchor points on the walls, and Lin Xiao's body, using this small force, was like he was being pulled by an invisible rope. His speed surged again, and he narrowly "slid" out of the tripwire's attack range!

To his right, fragments of burning oil barrels and scorching heatwaves were already upon him! His clothes instantly scorched and curled, and his skin felt a burning, stinging pain!

He couldn't avoid it!

A fierce glint flashed in Lin Xiao's eyes! His left arm sharply bent to protect his head and face, while the dagger in his right hand strangely retracted backward, then thrust forward again with even greater speed! He wasn't stabbing at any enemy, but into the empty space in front of him!

[Command confirmed! Adjusting air density and flow 1.5 meters ahead! Creating instantaneous low-pressure vortex! Source Energy Points consumed: 0.2!]
[Source Energy Points: -0.8 - 0.2 = -1.0!]

Hum!

The intense pain of his soul being torn apart again struck him! Red garbled text flashed wildly before his eyes!

In the real world, in front of where Lin Xiao thrust his dagger, the air seemed to instantly become viscous and distorted! A small-scale, yet extremely violent, low-pressure vortex appeared out of nowhere!

Whoosh—!

The surging flames and most of the metal fragments were violently deflected by this sudden vortex, as if hitting an invisible, distorted wall. They grazed Lin Xiao's right side and roared past, crashing into the wall on his left and exploding into a larger fireball!

The scorching heatwaves still burned his right arm and side of his face, causing a fiery stinging sensation, but the fatal direct impact was miraculously deflected!

Almost at the same moment!

The broken I-beam from above, falling with a destructive wind, had already descended overhead! Its shadow completely enveloped him!

The icy chill of death gripped his heart once more!

"Underfoot! Bluestone slab! Shatter for me!" Lin Xiao's consciousness roared its last in the agony of his soul being torn apart! His target was a seemingly intact bluestone slab where his foot was about to land!

[Command confirmed! Temporarily reducing the structural toughness and load-bearing limit of the bluestone slab in the target area! Source Energy Points consumed: 0.3!]
[Source Energy Points: -1.0 - 0.3 = -1.3!]

An even greater emptiness and pain washed over him like a tsunami! A clear, icy throb from the Viper's Kiss core in his right leg seemed to mock him!

Crack!

The moment Lin Xiao's right foot landed! That hard bluestone slab, like tofu with all its bones removed, inexplicably shattered and collapsed!

Lin Xiao's right foot instantly stepped into empty air, his body losing balance, and he lurched forward!

But this seemingly fatal mistake caused his entire body's height to drop by half a foot! And his forward lurch accelerated even more!

Boom!!!!

The heavy I-beam, almost grazing his back and the back of his head, fell with a bone-chilling roar onto the spot where he had just stood! Debris mixed with dust exploded like a bomb! The violent shockwave propelled the lunging Lin Xiao forward like a rag doll!

Pfft!

A mouthful of blood, no longer suppressible, erupted from Lin Xiao's mouth! His back felt as if it had been hit by a heavy hammer, the already scabbed wounds instantly ripped open, blood soaking through his clothes! His internal organs felt as if they had shifted!

But he used that impact, combined with his previous forward momentum and stumble, to roll like a tumbling gourd. He narrowly escaped the core area of the explosion and the falling steel beam, crashing headlong into the two assassins waiting at the end of the alley!

"Kill him!" At the end of the alley, two martial artists in Blood Wolf Gang attire, holding poisoned sabers, clearly hadn't expected Lin Xiao to break through the triple kill in such a manner! Seeing Lin Xiao, covered in blood and lunging like a vengeful spirit, they roared in shock and anger, swinging their sabers down fiercely! The blade winds were sharp, sealing off the space to his left and right!

Lin Xiao's vision was blurred, his ears were ringing, and every inch of his body ached. The dizziness from his depleted soul and the cold madness of the Viper's Kiss tore at his consciousness! The faint glow of [-1.3] was like a countdown to death!

But his body, already falling, did not hesitate! His left hand pushed off the ground with the dagger! Using the force, he sprang up, like a wounded tiger, and ferociously met the saber slashing from his left! His right fist clenched, and the meager True Qi of the Surging Waves Art within him erupted without reservation, carrying a desperate aura, blasting towards the chest of the enemy on his right!

Clang!

The reinforced dagger and the poisoned saber clashed fiercely!

There was no stalemate! No sparks!

Only a crisp sound, like shattering glass!

The saber, forged from refined steel in the hands of the Blood Wolf Gang martial artist, was instantly sliced in half as it met the dark green dagger's edge, as if made of paper! The broken saber spun through the air!

The savage grin on the martial artist's face froze, replaced by extreme terror!

Thwip!

Lin Xiao's dagger didn't pause, smoothly thrusting forward. Its unparalleled, icy sharpness easily pierced his weak protective True Qi and buried itself in his throat!

At the same time!

Lin Xiao's punch, aimed at the right, grazed past another incoming saber! He hadn't expected this punch to kill; it was just a feint! As his fist neared the opponent's body, he changed his fist into a finger. The tip of his finger gathered the last trace of True Qi, like a viper striking from its hole, and precisely struck the Shenmen acupoint on the opponent's wrist!

The martial artist felt his wrist go numb, his hacking motion instantly faltering. The saber scraped past Lin Xiao's ribs, leaving a gash that went bone-deep!

"Ugh!" Lin Xiao grunted, the sharp pain invigorating him! Ignoring the injury to his ribs, his body, as if boneless, lurched forward, crashing into the opponent's embrace! He withdrew his left hand's dagger from the first martial artist's throat, spraying a shower of warm blood, and with a swift motion, plunged it backward!

Thwip!

The dagger emerged from the second martial artist's back without any obstruction!

Double kill in an instant!

All of this happened in the blink of an eye! From the sudden charge to the double kill, Lin Xiao had used up almost his last ounce of strength and True Qi!

He leaned on his dagger, half-kneeling amidst the blood and corpses, gasping for air. Every breath brought up blood foam and the searing pain of torn flesh. His vision swam, the entire world spinning. The faint [ -1.3 ] glow in his mind was so weak it seemed it could extinguish at any moment. The cold numbness in his right leg had already spread to his waist.

However, the killing was not over!

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The sound of air breaking through the sky sounded again! From above and the alley entrance! Two more poisoned crossbow bolts! The hidden archer gave him no chance to breathe!

Simultaneously, the assassin on the left who had detonated the oil barrel, and another burly man holding a short axe who had emerged from under the van on the right, both with bloodshot eyes and crazed killing intent, lunged forward! The Scorpion's figure finally appeared from the broken third-floor window, holding a strangely shaped hand crossbow that shimmered with energy. The bolt was aimed at Lin Xiao from a distance, a cruel and gleeful grin on its face!

A true desperate situation! Exhausted! Severely wounded! Surrounded by enemies!

Lin Xiao looked at the enemies attacking from different directions, at the deadly glint of the crossbow bolts, and felt his internal energy almost completely depleted. Yet, the corners of his mouth slowly stretched into a broken curve, filled with endless madness and mockery.

He abruptly raised his left hand, which he could barely lift, and pointed his dagger at the charging enemies. His hoarse voice sounded like sandpaper rubbing, but it carried a heart-pounding madness:

"Come on... you scum... let's see how many more I can take down with me..."

Before his voice fell, his vision suddenly went black. His last reserves of strength receded like a tide, and his body tilted backward uncontrollably.

[Warning! Vital signs rapidly declining! Consciousness about to be lost!]

[Source Energy Points: -1.3 - 0.2 (Extreme Combat Consumption) = -1.5!]

[Viper's Kiss Contamination Activity: +30%! Erosion Rate: 0.01%!]

The cold system prompt became the final death knell before he plunged into boundless darkness.