"Listen to me."
He paused, then added, "Na'er. If you're ever in real danger, call for him. He won't abandon you."
Na'er froze at his words. She already had a dreadful suspicion, but forced down her panic and asked, feigning confusion,
"Call? Call who?"
"The person who's going to take you away. He should be very strong—strong enough to protect you."
Lin Qingzhou had also figured it out by now. The source of that killing intent was probably one of the Ferocious Beasts of the Soul Beast Clan, most likely Di Tian.
But whoever it was, they wouldn't let Na'er come to harm.
From Na'er's reaction, it was clear that Lin Qingzhou's guess was right. He didn't need to worry too much about her situation.
"Big brother knows you have your reasons for not telling me. Don't worry. Big brother will always love you."
Lin Qingzhou comforted Na'er softly, but the slight tremor in his voice still betrayed the fear in his heart.
Having lived two lives, this was the first time Lin Qingzhou had truly faced the threat of death.
After all, in his previous life, when he'd been hit by a car and killed, he hadn't really reacted much. It had happened too suddenly for him to feel afraid.
There was silence on the other end for a few seconds. Then Na'er gave a quiet "Mm."
Her voice sounded calm, but Lin Qingzhou could hear the fear pressing down beneath that calm. His heart clenched, but all he could do was end the call.
"Stay here and don't move," Lin Qingzhou told the injured middle-aged man as he turned back. "Lock the door from the inside and hide in a corner."
The middle-aged man had already lost too much blood, and his consciousness was growing hazy. He could only nod feebly.
Lin Qingzhou didn't hesitate. He pulled open the glass door and rushed outside.
The moment he stepped out, he saw the sky to the southeast stained a strange, dark red. It wasn't a sunset glow or smoke.
It was a blood-red mist, reeking of blood and roiling like a living thing.
Several plumes of black smoke rose from the east side of the city, accompanied by faint screams and explosions.
The people in the street had descended into chaos. Some screamed and ran west; others crammed into hovercars with their families, trying to flee. Still others slumped by the roadside, frozen with terror.
Gripping his warhammer, Lin Qingzhou ran against the flow of people toward home.
He had only made it past two streets when a dark figure sprang at him from the side.
It was an Evil Soul Master in a black cloak. Beneath the hood was a face so pallid it looked inhuman, with sunken eyes and a crazed grin tugging at the corners of his mouth.
He held a short blade in each hand. Dark red Soul Power glimmered along their edges. He was clearly no ordinary foe.
"Heh, heh... All alone? And just a kid?"
The Evil Soul Master licked his lips, a bloodthirsty glint flashing in his eyes. "Lucky me. I'll kill one to warm up."
Lin Qingzhou didn't waste his breath. The instant the Evil Soul Master lunged, he dropped into a crouch, dodging the sweeping blade, while swinging his warhammer up to smash into the man's wrist.
"Crack!"
The sound of breaking bones rang out, clear and jarring. The Evil Soul Master's wrist was crushed, and his short blade flew from his hand. With a piercing scream, he staggered back several steps, staring in disbelief at his broken hand, twisted at a grotesque angle.
Lin Qingzhou gave him no chance to catch his breath. He stepped forward and swept his warhammer across, bringing all his Innate Divine Strength to bear as he slammed it into the Evil Soul Master's chest.
"Thud!"
The Evil Soul Master flew backward like a kite with its strings cut and crashed into a vending machine by the roadside. Its glass panels shattered across the ground.
His chest caved in. Dark red blood welled from his mouth, and after a couple of spasms, he stopped moving.
Lin Qingzhou froze for a moment.
This was his first real fight, and the first time he'd used this warhammer on a person—not an iron blank or a piece of steel, but a living human being.
His hands trembled. Nausea surged in his stomach, but he bit down hard on his tongue and forced himself to stay calm.
This was no time for squeamishness.
He hurried forward and searched the Evil Soul Master, then unexpectedly found a leather ammunition pouch about the size of his palm.
When he opened it, he found six Fixed Soul Missiles inside, all the right caliber for his launcher.
One Explosive-type, two Freezing-type, and three Tracking-type.
Tracking-type ammunition was extremely expensive. One cost over five hundred Federation Currency on the market. It seemed these Evil Soul Masters had come prepared, right down to bringing a full supply of ammunition.
Truthfully, killing this Evil Soul Master had been a matter of luck. If he'd activated his Martial Soul right away, Lin Qingzhou would have been much more likely to die.
He stuffed the ammunition pouch into his shirt, then picked up the short blade the Evil Soul Master had dropped. After one look, he tossed it aside.
Too light, and awkward to wield. The warhammer suited him better. But after a moment's hesitation, he picked the short blade back up and tucked it behind his belt as a backup.
Before he could catch his breath, two figures appeared at the mouth of the alley. They were also Evil Soul Masters in black cloaks, one tall and one short. Seeing their companion's corpse, their eyes instantly turned icy.
"Third Brother was killed by him!" The shorter man's voice was shrill and piercing. "That kid isn't a Soul Master—there's no Soul Power fluctuation coming from him!"
"Then he's just an ordinary person with Innate Divine Strength."
The taller man narrowed his eyes. A ball of dark purple Soul Power gathered in his palm. "An ordinary person killing one of ours? What a joke."
The two of them moved in to surround him from either side. The taller man thrust both hands forward, sending the dark purple orb hurtling straight at Lin Qingzhou's face. He had no time to dodge and could only brace his warhammer in front of him to take the hit.
The orb exploded against the hammer's face. The tremendous force shoved him back three or four meters, his soles scraping two black streaks across the concrete.
The webbing between his thumbs and forefingers went numb from the shock, and the muscles in his arms burned with pain. Thankfully, his Innate Divine Strength gave him a firm grip on the warhammer, keeping it from being blasted away. His Bracer was in the toolbox. He regretted not putting it on.
Before he could steady himself, the shorter man was already rushing in from the side, a slender rapier in his hand. Its tip glimmered a dim green. It was clearly poisoned.
Lin Qingzhou twisted aside. The rapier grazed his ribs, slicing through his coarse cloth jacket and exposing the skin beneath, already beading with blood.
Lin Qingzhou's gaze turned cold. He could clearly feel the threat of death drawing closer and closer.
He lowered his eyes to study the wound. Purple poison was spreading through his body, like a cold viper gnawing through his flesh and blood.
It was devouring, screaming, and launching an attack on the tastier flesh deeper within.
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