Fierce Battle at the Rear Guard

"Fire Spirit, aid me!"

Zhang Qinglang split a wisp of flame from the high-pressure fireball and drew it into his body.

At last, he broke free from his stiffness and sluggishness. At the same time, he controlled the fireball and sent it shooting toward Endless Summer.

"That move again? Little Daoist, don't tell me that's the only trick you know?"

Endless Summer's figure flickered as he rushed forward to meet the attack.

The purple armor around him wrapped itself in energy and collided head-on with the fireball. Though it blocked the blow, the purple armor shattered on the spot, left badly broken.

It had been scrapped after taking just one hit.

Wu Zhong's expression changed. Hadn't they said this Daoist was no match for him? Why did it feel like a single blow had done this much damage?

Yet Endless Summer's expression remained unchanged. In an instant, purple light reshaped itself into that savage suit of armor.

"As expected of a true disciple of Dragon-Tiger Mountain. Your Poly-Elemental Art is tremendously powerful, but unfortunately, you have too little elemental energy."

Endless Summer opened his mouth and actually spat out a USB drive.

Zhang Qinglang's pupils contracted. "What? You hid it in your stomach? How could we possibly have missed that... How much elemental energy do you have?"

With the USB drive between his teeth, Endless Summer said, "Thirty thousand bits..."

"Damn it!" Zhang Qinglang hurriedly began to take off his Daoist robe. "Patriarch, aid—"

"Boom! Boom! Boom!" Multiple turrets rose behind Endless Summer, brimming with purple plasma before unleashing it all in one torrent!

The barrage was relentless, purple smoke filling the air.

Some of the light shells were deflected by the Fire Spirit, but they still left savage craters in the walls.

Zhang Qinglang was blasted backward, coughing blood and trailing scorched smoke.

Clearly, one of his trump cards had been interrupted.

And the only thing he could cast instantly was...

"Fire Spirit!"

"Bzzz! Bzzz! Bzzz!" Once again, the fireball collided with the purple armor.

Endless Summer's purple armor shattered under the blow. His hair was singed, his body was burned, and pus-mixed blood seeped from his wounds.

Yet he still had victory firmly in hand. The purple armor would repair itself and heal his injuries.

By contrast, Zhang Qinglang's face looked utterly grim.

The two exchanged blow after blow in the corridor at tremendous speed, leaving Wu Zhong dizzy just watching them.

All he could see was a mass of firelight and a mass of purple light, flashing against each other as explosions erupted without end.

Wu Zhong retreated again and again, hiding far away, yet he could still feel the fierce wind pressure and heat waves washing over him.

The walls on both sides of the battlefield had caved in and cracked, covered in scars.

But after a fierce exchange, Zhang Qinglang suddenly faltered.

The ball of fire under his control vanished.

Meanwhile, Endless Summer remained clad in his imposing purple armor, his momentum seemingly inexhaustible.

"That's all? Looks like you're not exactly rich either. Why play around with Poly-Elemental Power if you can't afford it? Doesn't the Celestial Master's Mansion pay you people?"

Endless Summer flashed forward, seized Zhang Qinglang by the throat, and captured him alive!

Wu Zhong watched in a daze.

Was this mysterious energy, this thing practically like sorcery, called Poly-Elemental Power?

Did cultivation really exist in this world, or some kind of training system?

But what did it have to do with money? Were poor people unqualified to cultivate? And what did thirty thousand bits even mean?

With his throat clenched, Zhang Qinglang said with difficulty, "If this Daoist's gun case were here, how could I let you be so arrogant..."

He regretted not bringing his gun. Otherwise, he would not have been defeated so quickly.

After all, guns could fire instantly.

Normally, once the alarm sounded, reinforcements would rush in shortly afterward. That was why he had let his guard down.

He had never expected that his teammates would be unable to enter, all blocked outside the massive B12 blast door.

"Thud! Thud! Thud!"

At the far end of the corridor, the heavy blast door kept emitting dull impacts.

Reinforcements had clearly arrived long ago, but they could not open the door.

The people outside were frantic now, hammering desperately at it.

Unfortunately, it was their own security blast door. Its defenses were exceptionally strong, impossible to force open easily. In the end, it had blocked their own people outside instead.

Seeing that the battle was over, Wu Zhong called out, "Brother Xia, I had the outer blast door shut long ago, so Lu Guangqi and the others can't come support us for now."

Zhang Qinglang said with difficulty, "You really are working together!"

"But how could we have found no problems with your identity at all? Who forged your past records?"

He glared at Wu Zhong, unable to understand how this man's record could be so spotless.

Wu Zhong did not explain. Of course it was spotless. He really hadn't known Endless Summer before, and he had nothing to do with the Calamity Realm.

He had been an ordinary person, a regular working stiff. It would have been stranger if they had found anything suspicious.

"Bang!"

Purple energy pulsed in Endless Summer's hand. Zhang Qinglang immediately went limp all over, his head dropping.

Wu Zhong was alarmed. "Why kill him? Wouldn't taking him... taking him hostage be better?"

Endless Summer said calmly, "He merely passed out..."

Wu Zhong secretly breathed a sigh of relief. On one hand, Zhang Qinglang had actually treated him quite well. On the other, he feared that Endless Summer might truly be the sort who killed without blinking. If so, Wu Zhong himself would be in danger later too.

"Brother Xia, taking him hostage is enough. Let's hurry and get out of here first."

Endless Summer tossed aside the unconscious Zhang Qinglang and shook his head. "Watch fewer dramas. Once you join the military, you should be prepared to die. Taking hostages is useless."

"Besides, you're too weak. With you holding me back, forget escaping. Even alone, I couldn't fight my way out of here."

"What?"

Wu Zhong was dumbfounded.

"What did you say? Didn't you say you could leave whenever you wanted? Why are you saying you can't fight your way out now?"

Endless Summer chuckled. "Just because I can't win doesn't mean I can't leave..."

"In combat, I'm no match for Lu Guangqi. That guy is too fierce, truly extraordinary."

"The truth is, I willingly let myself be imprisoned here to force him to stay and guard me, wasting his time and easing the pressure on my companions' operations elsewhere."

Wu Zhong was stunned. Everyone's guess about Endless Summer had been completely backward.

He had not been waiting for his teammates to rescue him.

On the contrary, he had deliberately allowed himself to be trapped in order to tie down Captain Lu, such a powerful fighting force, and thereby help his companions.

"Then what will you do? You said you could leave." Wu Zhong broke out in a cold sweat.

Yet Endless Summer remained calm. "If I leave alone, it takes no more than a thought."

"But I didn't expect you, this unexpected surprise... Taking you with me will be troublesome."

"Still, I'll give it a try."

Wu Zhong had nothing to say. Whether he could escape depended entirely on this man.

He had not expected that Endless Summer could indeed escape, but only by himself. Taking Wu Zhong along would multiply the difficulty.

At this point, all he could do was leave it to fate and try his best.

If they truly could not get out, there was nothing he could do.

"Let's go! We'll leave through Containment Chamber 013. We can climb out through the living-creature transport pipe there."

Leaving Zhang Qinglang behind, Endless Summer led Wu Zhong in the opposite direction, fleeing deeper into Zone B.

He seemed extremely familiar with the base. He led Wu Zhong through countless twists and turns until they reached a weaker section of wall.

After several thunderous punches, the wall broke open, and they stepped into a section of Zone C.

Then came more twists and turns. Endless Summer blasted open every blast door along the way, while alarms wailed everywhere and red lights flashed.

Wu Zhong was almost too dizzy to keep up with him.

Then Endless Summer suddenly said, "Guards are everywhere here. I can't personally lead you out anymore."

"Only if I draw their attention will you have a chance to escape."

Wu Zhong frowned. "Without you leading the way, Brother Xia, I don't know how to get out."

Endless Summer smiled and said to the side, "Show yourself, Chicken Gizzard."

Wu Zhong was baffled, but suddenly felt a chill sweep over him.

When he turned his head, he saw a ghostly figure suddenly flicker into view in midair.

It really was a ghost—or rather, a specter!

Its body was insubstantial. It wore a bloodstained shirt, its face deathly pale.

A knife was still embedded in its chest, making it look exactly like someone who had died a miserable death.

This specter was also different from the cloud-and-mist ghost god they had encountered before.

This one truly had no physical form!

The specter seemed to have been present the entire time. If it had not revealed itself, Wu Zhong would never have seen it!

"Is that a real ghost?"

Endless Summer said evenly, "Chicken Gizzard knows this place even better than I do. He'll guide you."

"His name is Chicken Gizzard? Why does he have such a strange name?" Wu Zhong felt his scalp tingle as the ghost drifted behind him and perched right on his shoulders.

Endless Summer said, "I like eating chicken gizzards, so I gave him that name on a whim."

"..." Wu Zhong was speechless. This guy was way too arbitrary.

Endless Summer continued, "But he can't go more than a thousand meters away from me. So once you get outside, whether you can truly escape will depend on you."

"And I'll stay behind to cover your retreat and draw everyone's attention."

Wu Zhong was somewhat moved. "Brother Xia, won't it be dangerous for you to cover my retreat? If you can't get away because of this, then even if I escape, I won't be able to hide for long."

"This is an official agency. If they want to find me, there'll be nowhere I can hide!"

Endless Summer's expression was cold and proud. "I'll definitely get away!"

"Mm. We just need to agree on a place to meet."

"You know Hejia Mountain, right?"

Wu Zhong froze. It was the cemetery district on the outskirts of Xunyang City.

The graveyard, funeral home, and crematorium were all there.

"Of course I do. Why?"

Endless Summer said, "After you escape, go to the funeral home at Hejia Mountain. Find a family holding a wake. The deceased is named Sun Min."

"She died at No. 1 Hospital yesterday at noon. By rights, the body should be kept for three days, so she'll still be there today and tomorrow. Just wait for me in the mourning hall."

Wu Zhong was dumbfounded. Go find a dead person? Wait for him in someone else's mourning hall?

This guy really knew how to pick a location.

Of all places to meet, he chose a funeral home?

Still, that place really was well hidden. Other than the deceased's friends and relatives, who would go there?

And that Sun Min—could she be Endless Summer's companion? Were there members of his group among her family?

So that place was actually a small base for Endless Summer and his companions?

"Um..." Wu Zhong was about to ask for more details.

Suddenly, a squad of people in firefighter uniforms arrived. They each carried a massive metal device resembling a generator on their backs, and it looked extremely heavy.

"Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!"

The moment they spotted the two men, they did not hesitate. They instantly unleashed a storm of gunfire!

The bullets came mercilessly, a barrage rushing toward them.

That was manageable enough. Clad in purple armor, Endless Summer spread his wing-like plates and stood at the front, blocking every bullet with a rapid series of metallic clinks.

But when he saw that every one of them carried generator equipment, his expression darkened. "This is bad."

"Brother Xia, you should be able to handle these six, right?" Wu Zhong asked in confusion.

In his eyes, even if Endless Summer could not defeat Lu Guangqi, dealing with other people should not have been a problem.

He had even imagined this big brother leading him out in style, fighting all the way.

But unexpectedly, Endless Summer saw six people and became deadly serious, as though his life were on the line.

Endless Summer said warily, "In the Calamity Realm, underestimating anyone is courting death."

"I've never fought these six before. I don't know what they can do."

"Besides, the strength of their Air Shields depends on the electrical energy carried by their bodies. This is their home ground, and each of them has brought a high-energy generator."

"Their Air Shields will be hundreds of times stronger than when they normally carry only batteries!"

What Wu Zhong appreciated most about Endless Summer was that whenever Wu Zhong asked something, he genuinely answered.

Now that he heard this, Wu Zhong's scalp went numb.

What? Air Shields were tied to the electrical energy a person carried? These people normally carried batteries around?

This superpower could not even be used without electricity?

Fine. He had heard enough bizarre abilities by now that Wu Zhong was getting used to them.

But these six had brought specially made generators, making their Air Shields a hundred times stronger than usual. That was very bad.

A hundred times! Didn't that make these six people the equivalent of an army of thousands?