Chapter 211: Blood-traced Cat
Chapter 211: Blood-traced Cat
Translator: JL Editor: CakeHermit
"Stay behind and rest at the training hall if you are feeling unwell." Shi Xueman glanced at Ai Hui, and her tone conveyed that she had no confidence in Ai Hui’s current condition.
Not only Shi Xueman, everyone could see that something was not right with Ai Hui.
His steps were empty, unstable, and not the least bit agile like they were in the former days.
The more capable someone is, the better they are at controlling their strength and gauging the distance. All of these meticulous traits seep into different aspects of their daily life. For example, the pace that they walk is even more uniform than by using a ruler to measure each step. Their sense of rhythm enables them to always be in their optimal condition. They are conditioned to be able to relax, but at the next moment they can give a fatal blow.
All of these special traits could easily be seen on Ai Hui in the past.
However, the current Ai Hui seemed to be a completely different person. His steps were uneven and he was staggering from side to side; he looked like a mess. One would even wonder if he was going to trip over his own shoes.
Duanmu Huanghun shot Ai Hui a glance and said indifferently, "Do not try to be a hero and become a hindrance to us later."
He laughed madly in his heart. Ha ha ha, he could finally use such a tone to talk to him!
At that moment, Duanmu Huanghun was more than happy. How long had it been since he was awaiting such a day?
Ever since meeting that scoundrel, Duanmu Huanghun constantly found himself at a disadvantageous position. Even if his capability was stronger, he would still be defeated by that scoundrel. In a state of muddle, he was healed by that chap. In a state of muddle, he was saved by that chap. In a state of muddle, he owed a huge debt to that chap.
Duanmu Huanghun felt that the only reason he had not gone bonkers was due to his strong willpower.
If Duanmu Huanghun had not made clear why Ai Hui was leading before the blood battle, the performance that Ai Hui exhibited after the blood battle was at another extreme end. It was so strong that it was hard to contest against.
Duanmu Huanghun did not retreat. He had never once given up on his pride.
Indeed he was someone with strong willpower.
He finally managed to defeat Ai Hui. He gave an exhale and he felt that his mood could not get any better than this. Even his steps seemed to be flying.
He felt that this was a turning point in his life. From this day onwards, he would start to surpass Ai Hui in all aspects.
He was destined to be the final victor!
Duanmu Huanghun lifted his head arrogantly, like a victorious hero that had just returned from a battle.
"When will you return the money?"
Ai Hui’s question caught Duanmu Huanghun by surprise. It was like shooting a fatal arrow which stabbed Duanmu Huanghun directly in the heart.
Duanmu Huanghun’s expression froze.
"Could it be that you are not planning to return it? Let me tell you this: while there are many matters between us, you still need to return what you owe." Ai Hui’s tone was filled with suspicion. Duanmu Huanghun felt humiliated. When the gaze of the others fell on him, his face heated up.
He wanted to rush forward and punch Ai Hui. However, he still had his pride, so he forced the words out of his mouth. "I will return it to you once we are out of the Induction Ground."
"You have said this many times." Ai Hui curled his lips, his face filled with despise.
Duanmu Huanghun wished that he could dig a hole and hide. Despite being familiar with all of them, he was still ashamed when he was asked to return the money in front of everyone.
Damn it, why didn’t he have money? Poor Duanmu Huanghun was unaware that Ai Hui’s mindset had rubbed off on him.
Shi Xueman almost laughed at Ai Hui’s righteous and shameless look. She too wanted to ask when Ai Hui would return her money. However, given that she would expose her identity as the girl from the noodle store, she restrained herself.
Ai Hui became more carefree after jeering at Duanmu Huanghun.
There was indeed something queer about his condition.
He felt that he was disorientated, and he was swaying while walking. It was mostly due to his sky palace. His sky palace was almost filled to the brim and it was jam-packed with the elemental energy. His brain seemed to be filled with water. Even a minute move would make it sway.
When the elemental energy within his head swayed, Ai Hui would also sway about.
In the past, he had experienced situations where he was unable to control his body. However, this was the first time that he experienced such a situation. While he was unable to control his actions in the past, he was still in a stable state of mind.
However, a slight movement now would also send his world spinning.
"Ai Hui, sorry," Lou Lan said softly, in a tone filled with regret. He did not expect such a situation to occur. He did not know what to do regarding the situation with Ai Hui’s body either.
"Lou Lan, you did not make any mistakes. You need not apologise," Ai Hui said firmly, and she continued nonchalantly," It is just a small trial; it is a good thing"
"Ai Hui, really?" Lou Lan opened his eyes wide and was somewhat surprised.
"Of course." With a deep expression, Ai Hui continued, "For such an unusual person like myself, there will definitely be some aspects that are unusual as well. There is nothing strange."
"Ai Hui is the best!" Lou Lan cheered.
Not only Lou Lan, the rest of the people suddenly saw the light. They felt that Ai Hui was right. In their eyes, Ai Hui was never normal. There were many aspects of him that were not seen on the others. As such, it was common for him to have some difference in the process of achieving the Eight Palaces Completion.
Shi Xueman was convinced by such reasoning. There were many aspects of Ai Hui that she was unable to explain. Adding another aspect that she was unable to explain was nothing strange.
Duanmu Huanghun did not know why, but he suddenly felt threatened. His victory did not seem too stable suddenly. It seemed like it would be taken away from him any time.
He could not wait to start training and he would not let Ai Hui make a comeback.
"Ai Hui, there are blood-traced fiends in that direction."
Lou Lan suddenly stopped and pointed to the street on the right. Everyone tensed up immediately.
Their goal for this expedition was to kill the blood-traced fiends.
The report on the blood crystal had been handed over to the mayor residence. While the mayor residence was distributing the rewards, everyone came to a unanimous decision to kill the blood-traced fiends. The purpose of the blood crystal was starting to come to light, and everyone’s strength had increased tremendously. The blood-traced fiends were now like dire beasts to them.
The blood crystal could increase elemental energy and could be used to create defense weapons.
The situation had changed. Previously, they were unable to gain any benefits from battling with the blood-traced fiends. Now they were able to obtain the blood crystals, and in turn, the blood crystals would increase their capability.
In other words, the appearance of the blood crystals increased their likelihood of survival.
Ai Hui was shocked and surprised that Lou Lan could detect the blood-traced fiends from such a far distance. Lou Lan was unable to do this previously. But he did not question it too much. It was not unusual given that Lou Lan had researched the blood crystal and discovered the characteristics of the blood-traced fiends.
Lou Lan was an all-purpose sand puppet.
Fatty walked to the front of the troop. He was in high spirits and felt that he had limitless strength. Amongst the people, his base level had increased the most. He had already attained seven palaces and was not far off from attaining the Eight Palaces Completion.
However, his increase in base level was aided by external forces like Lou Lan’s elemental energy soup, chili fire oil, etc. It was not due to his training. While his base level was high, his battle capability was low.
Thank goodness he was only required to defend. The higher base level had an obvious effect on his strength. The heavy shield on his hand seemed as light as a feather.
Except for Shi Xueman, Sang Zhijun, and Duanmu Huanghun, the rest of them were more or less confronted with the same problem. Of course, Ai Hui was the worst off.
After the row of them treaded cautiously for around 300 metres, they saw a blood-traced fiend.
A red blood-traced cat was gnawing on the carcass on the floor. Upon seeing Ai Hui and the rest, it raised its head. The blood-traced cat was much bigger than the average cat; it looked like a leopard. Its four limbs were thick and solid, its red fur emitted a bewitching luster, and the black blood traces decorated its whole body. The scarlet red cat stared coldly at them.
"Nine blood traces," Ai Hui said softly. His eyes were still sharp and he could clearly see the number of blood traces at one glance.
Everyone exhaled in relief. The blood worm that they killed had nine blood traces as well. They had successfully killed one. Furthermore, their strength had increased, so they shouldn’t be at a disadvantage.
The blood-traced cat no longer looked at the carcass. Instead, it walked slowly towards Ai Hui and team.
It lifted up its tail and walked measuredly and gracefully.
Suddenly, it disappeared in front of everyone’s eyes.
"Fatty!" Ai Hui bellowed urgently.
Bang!
The shield on Fatty’s hand was split into pieces, like it had been hit by a hammar. The pieces flew all around. Fatty’s cowardly character saved his life. He was used to hiding completely behind the heavy shield, and he never exposed his head.
Fatty was frightened stiff by the huge display of strength and shattered shield. He did not have any intention to resist and he followed the source of strength and rolled around on the floor.
Fatty was like a ball being kicked around. In one breath, he rolled towards Ai Hui. The blood had left his face and his face was pale; he was terrified.
Not only Fatty was scared out of his wits, everyone was frightened.
The blood-traced cat landed on the floor steadily. Despite its huge figure, it was nimble and light on its feet.
Fatty had just increased his base level, so his strength was two times higher than usual. Yet he did not manage to withstand the impact when the blood-traced cat pounced. The iron shield, which was invincible in everyone’s eyes, was also shattered into pieces. That pounce was simply too formidable, so everyone was intimidated.
Both Ai Hui and Shi Xueman had nasty expressions.
While the blood-traced cat was smaller than the blood-traced worm, it was much more dangerous and threatening.
It was as fast as lightning and was extremely deadly. Only a few clearly saw the leap it did. The reason why it could create such an impact was due to its astonishing speed. Due to that scarily fast speed, a simple move could easily become a killer move.
Furthermore, it was extremely agile. It immediately landed on the lamppost after it leaped.
But what Ai Hui was most afraid of was that this blood-traced cat was very crafty.
Those ice-cold eyes were emotionless, yet it was smarter than any of the blood-traced fiends that Ai Hui had seen before. It was also cunning. That leap was a show of strength. The blood-traced cat was also testing the waters.
It stayed a distance away from Ai Hui. It looked at them coldly, and unlike the rest of the blood-traced fiends, it did not rush towards them without a care in the world.
Ai Hui knew that they had met an opponent that was hard to deal with.