Time to Retreat After Showing Off

"Ella's readings are dropping." Milluki quickly switched back to the monitors. "The abnormal reaction in her abdomen is going down. Her heartbeat is still erratic, but at least it's not as terrifying as before."

Ella slumped against the doorframe, gasping for breath.

The force that had felt like it was going to tear her apart from the lower abdomen finally receded by more than half.

Her hands were still shaking, but at least she could raise her head and look at that back.

"Bai Zhu..."

Bai Zhu did not turn around.

It was not that he did not want to. He did not dare.

He was afraid that if he moved, he would collapse flat on his face in front of several hundred fanatical believers.

"Don't get emotional. My rates are very high."

Ella froze.

Milluki immediately started cursing in her earpiece. "He's so weak he can't even lift his hand! Don't let him fool you!"

Bai Zhu coughed lightly.

"Milluki, you're being awfully chatty today."

"You almost fucking died! Am I not allowed to be chatty?!"

Bai Zhu wanted to retort, but the crowd of believers across from him erupted first.

They had watched the "Holy Stone" burn into charcoal with their own eyes. Their fanatical prayers came to an abrupt halt, replaced by fear and chaos.

Some fell to their knees in the snow and scrambled backward.

Others stared fixedly at Bai Zhu's still-empty hand, so terrified that they even stumbled over their prayers.

"False god..."

"He is the false god's apostle!"

"Don't let him get near the Mother Stone!"

"The Holy Stone has been corrupted! Hurry! Notify the elders!"

The silver-robed bishop stood where he was, one half of his sleeve burned completely away by the aftermath of Sōkatsui. Even the hand gripping his silver staff was shaking.

This time, he did not dare rush forward immediately.

Bai Zhu lazily raised his empty hand.

Just that one movement.

The silver-robed bishop actually took half a step back in horror.

That made Bai Zhu inwardly delighted.

Worth it!

Even if his Reiatsu was empty, it was worth it!

"Why did you stop fighting?" Bai Zhu supported himself with his blade and tipped his chin at him. "Weren't you pretty fond of cutting in line earlier?"

The silver-robed bishop's expression turned utterly ugly.

"What exactly are you?"

"A helpful citizen passing by."

"You destroyed the Holy Stone Shard!"

"Let me correct you. It was illegal hazardous material." Bai Zhu waved his empty hand, his fingers still trembling uncontrollably. "Honestly, your little workshop wastes a lot of public resources."

The silver-robed bishop gritted his teeth and slammed his silver staff heavily into the ground.

"Grab him! He has no strength left!"

That assessment was accurate.

Bai Zhu silently deducted a point from him.

Fine, he figured it out. But why did he have to shout it out? No professional ethics at all.

The black-robed deacons around them began stirring again.

But this time, the suicidal fanaticism was gone from their eyes, replaced by caution. They carefully avoided the scorched patch on the ground and did not dare approach the spot where Bai Zhu had struck earlier.

Milluki seized the opportunity and immediately said, "Bai Zhu, retreat."

Bai Zhu frowned. "Ella is still here."

"The Black Crystal Fragment is gone. She won't die for now. My brother is watching the altar underground. Are you going to keep standing there and wait for them to beat you to death?"

"Are you sure about letting them capture her?"

"I'm not sending her to die. I'm getting the plan back on track! The plan required her to go underground in the first place. If that weird stretcher hadn't suddenly appeared, you should have retreated already." Milluki spoke rapidly. "She has spiders on her, and there's still enough stabilizer. My brother can meet her underground, and the altar's route map has been marked out. What you need to do now isn't play hero—it's get the hell out alive and leave us a fallback!"

Bai Zhu did not reply.

He turned around and looked at Ella.

Ella was looking at him too. Her face was frighteningly pale, blood still flowing from her palm, and the hem of her cloak was covered in ash.

But she did not cry or ask him to take her away.

Bai Zhu suddenly felt irritated.

When this girl stopped being afraid of death, she became even more troublesome.

"Ella." He lowered his voice. "Did you hear what Milluki said?"

Ella nodded lightly.

"I heard him."

"Are you scared?"

She paused for two seconds.

"I am."

Bai Zhu gave a low laugh.

"Good answer. Being scared is right. People who aren't afraid of dying are the ones who get into trouble."

Ella braced herself against the doorframe and shakily stood up.

"What should I do?"

Milluki immediately took over command. "Don't charge in, don't run around, and definitely don't bleed yourself again! Just pretend you can't hold on and let them take you away. The spiders will transmit the route in real time."

Bai Zhu added, "And don't trust anyone who looks like your husband."

Ella's breathing caught, then she softly replied.

"Okay."

Seeing Ella stand up, the silver-robed bishop immediately ordered two deacons to circle around from the side.

Bai Zhu raised his hand.

The two deacons froze on the spot.

Even though there was nothing in his palm.

They simply did not dare move.

Milluki cursed quietly through the earpiece. "You're still putting on an act? You can barely even fire off a Hado now, can you?"

Bai Zhu quietly replied, "Shh. Trade secret."

"One day, that showing off is going to get you killed."

"Relax. I know my limits."

As soon as he finished speaking, the silver-robed bishop suddenly raised his silver staff high.

"He's bluffing! Get him!"

Bai Zhu immediately changed his tune. "Milluki, smoke!"

"I had it ready ages ago!"

On both sides of the abandoned warehouse, three small self-destructing bugs lit up red at the same time.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The explosions were not powerful, but the smoke was terrifyingly thick.

Gray-white smoke mixed with snow powder burst outward in an instant, covering the entire area in front of the side entrance.

The Mechanical Spiders took the chance to launch two flashbangs.

Pop! Pop!

Several guards who had been about to charge forward screamed, covering their eyes as they staggered back.

Bai Zhu turned and grabbed Ella's wrist, pulling her half a step into the shadows behind the doorframe.

"Remember, don't really get yourself killed."

Ella was breathing hard, but she replied, "Same goes for you."

"I'm different. I value my life."

"Could've fooled me."

"That's because your observation skills are bad."

Milluki grew impatient. "Can you two stop chatting in the smoke? Retreat!"

Bai Zhu released Ella.

He saw that one Mechanical Spider had silently crawled inside her cloak and secured itself there. Another had slipped beside her boot.

Bai Zhu dragged his blade behind him and retreated into the side alley.

When the silver-robed bishop roared and charged through the smoke, he saw only Bai Zhu's back about to vanish around the alley corner.

"Chase him! Catch him!"

The moment he shouted, Ella suddenly crumpled against the doorframe and collapsed.

The timing and position of that fall were flawless.

The two deacons immediately stopped chasing and turned to rush toward Ella.

"Number Fifteen is down!"

"Quick! Take Number Fifteen back first!"

The silver-robed bishop hesitated for half a second between "chase Bai Zhu" and "recover the Holy Infant."

In that half-second, Bai Zhu disappeared completely into the side alley, and another cloud of smoke exploded outward.

Milluki quickly called out directions. "Turn left. There's a collapsed shed. Go inside."

Bai Zhu supported himself against the wall, gasping for breath.

"You sure that isn't a dead end?"

"You think you're in any position to choose routes right now?"

"Fair point."

He plunged into the shed and nearly tripped over a rotten plank.

"This route... gets a five-star bad review."

"Shut up and save your breath."

Elsewhere, Ella had already been lifted up by two deacons.

A priest approached with a syringe, moving far more carefully than before.

"Don't hurt her!"

"Her palm is still bleeding. Stop the bleeding first!"

"Notify the underground team. Number Fifteen has been successfully recovered!"

Ella hung her head low, breathing rapidly, her body limp as a puddle of mud.

But the fingers hidden beneath her cloak lightly touched the shell of the Mechanical Spider.

Milluki immediately received the feedback.

He stared at the moving red dot on the screen and gritted his teeth.

"Good. Ella has been taken away."

Bai Zhu leaned against the shadows behind the shed and finally managed to catch his breath.

"Next, it's your turn to act."

Ella's weak but clear voice came through the earpiece.

"I know."

At that moment, another line of communication suddenly cut in without warning.

Illumi's voice was so cold it made their scalps tingle.

"The altar has entered its second stage."

Milluki's fingers froze over the keyboard.

Illumi continued in that icy tone.

"Send me the route they took after capturing Ella."