More than ten minutes later, Liu Cheng slowed down, fell to the ground, and exhausted his accumulated kinetic energy. When he turned around, he found that Han Xiao was still following behind him like a ghost.
"Kill me."
Liu Cheng's face was covered in horrific scars, and he gave a bitter smile.
"You don't need to tell me." Han Xiao said indifferently, his palm wide open, gripping Liu Cheng's head, his five fingers piercing through the skull.
Han Xiao only exhaled a breath of stale air after Liu Cheng stopped breathing.
"This was a formidable opponent; we almost suffered a crushing defeat."
After taking one last look at Liu Cheng's corpse, Han Xiao fired a High Combustion Bullet to save him from being devoured by wild beasts, and then followed the sound of artillery fire back to the battlefield in Green Valley Town.
The battle intensified. The gates of Green Valley Town had been blown open, and armored vehicles roared through the streets, exchanging fire with machine gun emplacements made of sandbags. The residents of Green Valley Town huddled in the corners of their houses, covering their ears and trembling with fear. Lü Cheng's troops deliberately avoided the ordinary residents.
Since Liu Cheng had dragged him into the battle, Han Xiao decided to make the fight quick. He set off to find the commander of Green Valley Town, but when he looked for someone to give orders in the town, he found that there was no one in command.
On the other side of Green Valley Town, two distant tire tracks on the ground indicate the direction where Bashas and Xiao Rui went.
"They ran away?"
The off-road vehicle drove through the dark forest, and the sounds of gunfire from Green Valley Town gradually faded into the distance. Xiao Rui, sitting in the back seat, turned around and could see the firelight behind him through the gaps in the trees.
"Liu Cheng is actually dead..." Xiao Rui clenched his fists and pressed them against his knees to barely suppress his trembling legs.
Liu Cheng served the family for over ten years with unwavering loyalty and was one of the family's top-ranking experts, boasting numerous impressive achievements. Xiao Rui had always regarded him as a reliable support, but unexpectedly, he died at the hands of Black Phantom!
Xiao Rui originally thought that even if Liu Cheng couldn't stop Black Phantom, he could still escape unscathed. However, Liu Cheng Liu Cheng said at all, he only knew that his backer was about to fall!
Bashas and four armed guards were also in the car, looking tense.
"Black Phantom is a monster! I told you not to mess with him! But you wouldn't listen!" Bashas was covered in sweat.
Xiao Rui's face was ashen. "Stop talking nonsense, at least we escaped!"
"He won't catch up, will he?" Bashas kept glancing at the rearview mirror, his heart pounding.
Xiao Rui swallowed hard. "Lü Cheng is currently attacking Green Valley Town. The town's guards are holding off the enemy for us, so he doesn't have time to Pursuit us down."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a ghostly black figure appeared in the rearview mirror, following him like a shadow. Everyone in the car screamed in fright!
"He's here!"
"Run!"
"Press the accelerator to the floor, and don't let go!"
The people in the car were terrified. The SUV sped up like a wild dog, quickly leaving Han Xiao behind. But before they could even catch their breath, the black phantom reappeared behind them like a persistent plague, like a death knell.
Adrenaline surged, hearts nearly leaped out of their throats, and everyone was stiff with tension. The terrifying escape atmosphere finally caused the driver to make a mistake. In a panic, the car plunged down a ditch, rolled over, and crashed to the bottom, upside down.
Xiao Rui felt dizzy and struggled to climb out of the car window. Suddenly, a pair of boots flashing blue light appeared in his line of sight. He looked up and saw the Black Phantom looking down at him indifferently.
"No, don't kill me..."
Bang bang bang—gunshots rang out one after another. Xiao Rui closed his eyes in fright. After a while, he realized that he was not in pain. When he opened his eyes, he found that all four armed guards had been shot dead. Bashas and he were left behind.
Xiao Rui trembled. He needed to remain calm in this situation, but the fear of death made it impossible for him to stay composed. The fear surged like a tide, repeatedly engulfing his heart, even making him afraid to look Han Xiao in the eye. He stammered, "Black... Black Phantom, spare my life, and I can give you a huge reward."
Han Xiao raised an eyebrow. The reason he spared Xiao Rui was because he noticed that Xiao Rui was surrounded by guards, which he guessed meant he was an important figure, so he deliberately didn't kill him.
Bashas regretted clashing with Black Phantom, and even more so, regretted listening to Xiao Rui's advice. He looked up and stared directly into Han Xiao's eyes, glaring angrily, and said, "You liar! You actually already had an alliance with Lü Cheng; you weren't just passing by!"
They said they weren't interested in causing trouble, but they were lying!
Han Xiao stroked the pistol and chuckled, "Would you believe me if I said it was a coincidence?"
"I know I'm not going to survive if I fall into your hands, kill me!" Bashas suddenly hardened his stance, shaking off Xiao Rui's anxious hand that was tugging at his clothes.
"I don't know if you're truly seeking death or just putting on a tough act, but anyway, as you wish."
Bang! The bullet pierced Bashas's temple, and he fell to the ground, the pool of blood gradually widening.
Han Xiao raised an eyebrow. It seemed that Bashas wasn't faking it, but was truly desperate and wanted a quick death. Warlords like him, who operated in the wild, even if they were usually afraid of death, would accept it calmly when they actually faced it.
The other person, however, was much more cowardly. Han Xiao looked over and saw Xiao Rui standing to the side, too scared to even breathe, his face pale and his back covered in cold sweat.
Han Xiao crouched down and patted Xiao Rui's face with the barrel of his gun. "You don't want to die?"
Xiao Rui nodded hurriedly.
Give me a reason.
"I... I can give you a lot of money, and I can introduce you to the Ofmera Family!"
"Do you think I look like someone who needs to be?" Han Xiao pointed the gun at himself.
Xiao Rui swallowed hard in fear, racking his brains for something that could move Black Phantom. Han Xiao, with sharp eyes, suddenly noticed the bulging in his pocket and pulled out a stack of wanted posters—it was actually the wanted poster for his own identity, Zero.
Why are the people from Overmela carrying my bounty poster?
Han Xiao raised an eyebrow, waved the paper in his hand, and stared at Xiao Rui without saying a word. Seeing that something had finally piqued Black Phantom's interest, Xiao Rui perked up and hurriedly spilled the beans, recounting all the information he knew.
"Xiao Han? Zero? The Ofmera Family?!"
Han Xiao was stunned after hearing the intelligence.
He had no idea that his original self had such a background!
"... You're not lying to me?" Han Xiao frowned.
Xiao Rui nodded repeatedly. Black Phantom seemed interested in Zero. He didn't care why; he only knew that he had a chance to survive. He had no intention of hiding anything and struggled to take out the car's computer to pull up a series of photos.
The photos clearly showed various pictures of Han Xiao's original self at the Ofmera Family before he was taken away by Germinal. With this irrefutable evidence, Han Xiao immediately had no doubts about his identity.
So, I have a cheap father and a bunch of brothers and sisters?
Han Xiao's feelings were very complicated. He had always thought that he had no ties in this world, but he didn't expect that he would have this bond.
Overmela was his home. Han Xiao glanced at Xiao Rui and the book; was this person also family?
"Overmela, a major warlord in the North Continent, and his second-in-command Xiao Jin, are my original body's biological father. Their power is considerable..."
Han Xiao pondered in silence.
Xiao Rui's heart was in his throat, like a prisoner awaiting judgment; he felt this was the longest minute of his life.
"You can leave now," Han Xiao said calmly.
Xiao Rui couldn't believe it. He stood up shakily, ran a few steps away, and when he turned back and saw that Han Xiao was unmoved, he was overjoyed.
My life is spared!
He had no intention of revenge and had no desire to have anything to do with Black Phantom again, so he took off running.
Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head!
Xiao Rui lost control of his body, took two steps forward due to inertia, and fell face-first into the mud, his pupils dilated, looking completely bewildered.
What's wrong with me?
"So cold..." These were Xiao Rui's last thoughts as he left this world.
A deep bullet hole was gushing blood from the back of his head.
Han Xiao holstered the Wild Eagle gun, his face expressionless. He had just thought about it and decided to kill it instead.
Overmela was the original owner's bond. That unfortunate soul had already been scattered. He was himself, not someone else. Even if they were related by blood, Han Xiao would not treat Overmela as family, not to mention that the original owner was killed by his older brother.
He will not inherit the original owner's relationship; to him, Overmela is a stranger, not someone he cares about.
Kill them if they deserve it!
Perhaps based on his original identity, he could get some assistance from Overmela, but his current status means he no longer needs to accommodate or rely on a power of that caliber.
Most importantly, he didn't want to do that.
My family... is no longer in this world.
He lit the corpse, turned and left, the leaping flames stretching the silent shadow of the book long.